Chapter Book of the Day – Page 14

Great Books

Picture Book of the Day

Vote for Me!
by Ben Clanton (Author, Illustrator)

Booktalk: It’s election time again. The donkey wants your vote. So does the elephant. And each will do just about anything to win your support…

Snippet:
DONKEY:
Hey, you!
Yes, YOU with the great hair and that dazzling smile.
Listen, you should–

ELEPHANT:
DON’T LISTEN TO THAT DONKEY!
You’re too smart for that.
You’ll want to…

BONUS! See the video!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfZikbt7uiY]
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Chapter Book of the Day

Fracture
by Megan Miranda (Author)
272 pages

Booktalk: Eleven minutes passed before Delaney Maxwell was pulled from the icy waters of a Maine lake by her best friend Decker Phillips. By then her heart had stopped beating. Her brain had stopped working. She was dead. And yet she somehow defied medical precedent to come back seemingly fine — despite the scans that showed significant brain damage. Everyone wants Delaney to be all right, but she knows she’s far from normal. Pulled by strange sensations she can’t control or explain, Delaney finds herself drawn to the dying. Is her altered brain now predicting death, or causing it?

Snippet:
The first time I died, I didn’t see God.
No light at the end of the tunnel. No haloed angels. No dead grandparents.
To be fair, I probably wasn’t a shoo-in for Heaven. But honestly, I kind of assumed I’d make the cut.

BONUS! See the video!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fd5rUSMoYdI]
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5 More Great Earth Day Books

Biscuit’s Earth Day Celebration
by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (Author)
Biscuit the little yellow puppy goes to school for Earth Day. Easy reader.

Earth Day (On My Own Holidays)
by Linda Lowery (Author) and Mary Bergherr (Illustrator)
Learn about how Earth Day started. Easy Reader.

Earth Day
by Margaret McNamara (Author) and Mike Gordon (Illustrator)Lloyd G. Douglas (Author)
What can Emma do for Earth Day? Level 1 easy reader.

Let’s Get Ready for Earth Day
by Lloyd G. Douglas (Author)
Dan and his class get ready for Earth Day. Easy reader.

Sid the Science Kid: Earth Day Fun
by Jennifer Frantz (Author)
Sid is going to plant a tree for Earth Day, but first, he wants to know…what is dirt? Level 1 easy reader.
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STEM Haiku

Share your own haiku about a STEM topic during National Poetry Month.

(STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

Go Away, Bugs!
Oh bugs, bugs, bugs, who
said you could come in? This is
my house, not yours. Scram!
© 2012 Anastasia Suen
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Literary Links

How To Search Google By Reading Level (via @eBookNewser)
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Read and Write Sports: Readers Theatre and Writing Activities for Grades 3-8

STEM Haiku

STEM Haiku

Share your own haiku about a STEM topic during National Poetry Month.

(STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

Sixty Seconds
A minute is a
minute, so why are some days
short and others long?
© 2012 Anastasia Suen
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Picture Book of the Day

Can I Bring Woolly to the Library, Ms. Reeder?
by Lois Grambling (Author) Judy Love (Illustrator)

Booktalk: A young boy asks his librarian if he can bring his friend Woolly, a mammoth, to the library. His humorous pleas are a fun way to teach children how to use a library.

Snippet:
Can I bring Woolly to the library, Ms. Reeder?
Can I?
PLEASE?!
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Chapter Book of the Day

BZRK
by Michael Grant (Author)
400 pages

Booktalk: Set in the near future, BZRK is the story of a war for control of the human mind. Charles and Benjamin Armstrong, conjoined twins and owners of the Armstrong Fancy Gifts Corporation, have a goal: to turn the world into their vision of utopia. No wars, no conflict, no hunger. And no free will. Opposing them is a guerrilla group of teens, code name BZRK, who are fighting to protect the right to be messed up, to be human. This is no ordinary war, though. Weapons are deployed on the nano-level. The battleground is the human brain. And there are no stalemates here: It’s victory . . . or madness.

Snippet: Anyone could have done it. But could they have done it as fast? Could they have wired the pilot’s brain three days? And set her up to have a switch thrown as dramatically as this?

Hell no.

BONUS! See the video!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98Tu5tSSIcs]

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Literary Links

It’s National Library Workers Day – Name your favorite librarian as a star!

Show support for your library during National Library Week, April 8-14, by uploading this art to your Facebook page.
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Read and Write Sports: Readers Theatre and Writing Activities for Grades 3-8

Nonfiction Monday

Picture Book of the Day

Earth Day Every Day
by Lisa Bullard (Author) and Xiao Xin (Illustrator)

Booktalk: On Earth Day, we find ways to help the Earth. Trina plants trees with her class. She forms an Earth Day club with her friends. What can you do to make every day Earth Day? Do your part to be a planet protector!

Snippet:
Mom says people should clean up their own messes.
Earthlings made this Earth a mess.
So we Earthlings should fix it.
It’s a job for everyone.
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Chapter Book of the Day

Scheduling Smarts: How to Get Organized, Prioritize, Manage Your Time, and More
by Sandy Donovan (Author)
64 pages

Booktalk: Time management. It’s a challenge for everyone. Between homework, family life, friendships, and after-school activities, most teens feel overscheduled and stressed out. But did you know you can create a ‘time budget’ to help you manage your list of to-dos? Or that identifying your priorities is a great first step toward getting your crazy schedule under control?

Snippet: Ever heard the expression, “Time is money?” People use this phrase to describe how valuable time is. What they’re really saying is, “Treat your time like money, because you’ll never feel as if you have enough of it.” In fact, this saying is true in more ways than one. Time is valuable, and you do need to budget it just like you budget money.
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Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday

This week’s Nonfiction Monday Round-up host is Ana’s NonFiction Blog

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Nonfiction Book Blast 2012

Deborah Hopkinson booktalks Titanic: Voices From the Disaster

on the Nonfiction Book Blast blog today…

Save the date! June 23, 2012 Nonfiction Book Blast 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.

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STEM Haiku

In honor of National Poetry Month, we invite you to share an original STEM haiku.

(STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

Share your original STEM haiku at the new STEM Friday blog.

pruning the roses
I cut the old canes
away, and new ones grew back
fuller and stronger.
© 2012 Anastasia Suen
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Read and Write Sports: Readers Theatre and Writing Activities for Grades 3-8

Friday Reads

Picture Book of the Day

These Bees Count!
by Alison Formento (Author) and Sarah Snow (Illustrator)

Booktalk: As the children in Mr. Tate’s class listen, they use science and math to learn how bees work to produce honey and make food and flowers grow.

Snippet:
One by one, we zip up high,
buzzing through
the bright blue sky.
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Poetry Friday

This week’s Poetry Friday Round-up is hosted by Read, Write, Howl

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Chapter Book of the Day

Saving Animals from Oil Spills (Rescuing Animals from Disasters)
by Stephen Person (Author)
32 pages

Booktalk: When disaster strikes, people aren’t the only ones in danger. On April 20, 2010, an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico exploded. See how the animals were affected…

Snippet: As much as two and a half million gallons (9.4 million liters) of oil flowed from the broken pipe into the Gulf of Mexico every day. Scientists knew that the Gulf’s wildlife was in serious danger.
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STEM Haiku

Night Sky
Venus, Jupiter
and Mars, I see you at dusk
shining on the moon.
© 2012 Anastasia Suen
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STEM Friday

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

Come visit the new STEM Friday blog – and add YOUR link!

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Nonfiction Monday on April 9, 2012

Nonfiction Monday is coming!

The Nonfiction Monday Round-up on April 9, 2012

is at Ana’s NonFiction Blog.

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My NEW chapter book is Just So, Brianna (All-Star Cheerleaders)

Great Books

Picture Book of the Day

C. R. Mudgeon
by Leslie Muir (Author) and Julian Hector (Illustrator)

Booktalk: C.R. Mudgeon, a sensible hedgehog, likes knowing just what to expect. Always. No surprises, no excitement. So when a noisy new neighbor, Paprika the squirrel, arrives, C.R. Mudgeon is even less cheerful than normal.

Snippet:
At suppertime C.R. Mudgeon smelled something strange.
Peppery.
Tickly.
He sneezed.
Paprika was cooking. The air was thick with her spices.

BONUS! See the video!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZ2xgF1RmLc]
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Chapter Book of the Day

The Glass Collector
by Anna Perera (Author)
352 pages

Booktalk: Fifteen-year-old Aaron lives amongst the rubbish piles in the slums of Cairo. His job? To collect broken glass. His life? Wasted. His hope? To find a future he can believe in.

Snippet: Aaron walks slowly and painfully, trying hard to take the weight off his left knee, which is throbbing badly after a fall this morning with a pony and cart. The toe he jabbed and the elbow he bashed when he landed on the hot, potholed road hurt almost as badly and, for one awful moment, he thinks he’ll just sink down on the pavement and give up.

BONUS! See the video!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrA4weYw49g]
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STEM Haiku

(STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

Write a haiku about STEM for National Poetry Month and share it.

Binary Words
Electricity
on and off. Words are ones and
zeroes. Talk is math.
© 2012 Anastasia Suen
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Literary Links

Ready to write your children’s book? Apr 4-May 23 (online) writing workshops begin next TODAY!

Education Week: New Literacy Standards Could Challenge Even Passionate Readers
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My NEW chapter book is Just So, Brianna (All-Star Cheerleaders)

STEM Haiku

STEM Haiku

In honor of National Poetry Month, we invite you to share an original STEM haiku.

(STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

Share your original STEM haiku at the new STEM Friday blog.

Humming
you never rest
computer, you’re always hum,
hum, humming a tune
© 2012 Anastasia Suen
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Picture Book of the Day

Senorita Gordita
by Helen Ketteman (Author) and Will Terry (Illustrator)

Booktalk: In this Tex-Mex retelling of The Little Gingerbread Man, Senorita Gordita –a little corn cake– escapes from the frying pan and leads a merry chase. (Try the recipe for gorditas in the back!)

Snippet: And with a flip, and a skip, and a zip-zoom-zip, off she ran. Lagarto skittered after her.
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Chapter Book of the Day

Floors
by Patrick Carman
272 pages

Booktalk: Ten-year-old Leo Fillmore should know everything there is to know about the Whippet Hotel–he is the janitor’s son after all. But a whole lot of mystery gets thrown his way when four cryptic boxes are left to him…boxes that lead him to hidden floors, strange puzzles, and an unexpected friend or two.

Snippet: Leo sat up in bed and thought of his mother’s voice; then he thought of ducks and breakfast. After that, he remembered the one thing he’d hoped to forget in his sleep: Merganzer D. Whippet, the owner and creator of the Whippet Hotel, was gone.

BONUS! See the video!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SI-YxT1_O3o]

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Literary Links

Ready to write your children’s book? Apr 4-May 23 (online) writing workshops begin next week!

Did your child have 1000 hours of one-on-one reading by first grade? (via Momania: A Blog for Busy Moms)
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My NEW chapter book is Just So, Brianna (All-Star Cheerleaders)

Nonfiction Monday

Picture Book of the Day

Twice as Good: The story of William Powell and Clearview, the only golf course designed, built, and owned by an African-American
by Richard Michelson (Author) and Eric Velasquez (Illustrator)

Booktalk: To nine-year-old Willie Powell, there was no prettier sight than the smooth grass lawns of Edgewater Golf Cource.

Snippet: Willie Powell as fast. He was the only third grader who could run across the playgound faster than most fifth graders. But the new golf course as seven miles outside of town, and he’d promised his mother he would be home before dark.

BONUS! Download the teacher’s guide!
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Chapter Book of the Day

Amateur Wrestling: Combat on the Mat
by Garrison Wells (Author)
32 pages

Booktalk: Did you know that wrestling started out as a deadly sport? Ancient Greeks and Romans used it for self-defense. In modern times, amateur wrestling is still powerful and challenging. But training, equipment, rules, and scoring systems make the sport safer for competitors.

Snippet: Amateur wrestling is one of the oldest styles of fighting. It has been around for thousands of years. Proof of its history has been found in China, Egypt, India, France, and other countries. Archaeologists in Egypt have found art dating back to 2300 B.C. that shows wrestling. Drawings on cave walls in France show wrestling existed more than 15,000 years ago.
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Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday

This week’s Nonfiction Monday Round-up host is Rasco From RIF

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April 2012 Online Workshops

The April 2012 workshops will begin on Wednesday, April 4th.

Which workshop is best for you?

New to children’s books?
Learn about the different types of children’s books in the Children’s Book Genres Workshop.

Passionate about literacy?
Find out how you can write for children learning to read in the Children’s Literacy Workshop (for Writers).

Ready to write?
Write and edit your book in the

After you finish a writing workshop you can work through two more edits in a “work-in-progress” workshop, by rewriting your picture book or easy reader or working on the next chapter of your children’s chapter book or children’s novel.

The April workshop dates are April 4-May 23, 2012.

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STEM Haiku

In honor of National Poetry Month, we invite you to share an original STEM haiku.

(STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

Share your original STEM haiku at the new STEM Friday blog.

I’ll start…

Comments
A blog is a place
to share your thoughts. We invite
you to share yours here…
© 2012 Anastasia Suen
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My NEW chapter book is Just So, Brianna (All-Star Cheerleaders)

Friday Reads

Picture Book of the Day

A Dress for Me!
by Sue Fliess (Author) and Mike Laughead (Illustrator)

Booktalk: Hippo is looking for a new dress. There are so many choices! Dresses with beads and fringe, dresses with shiny sequins, dresses with stripes and checkers, and more!

Snippet:
Rows of dresses,
wall to wall.
Watch me as I
try them all…
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Poetry Friday

This week’s Poetry Friday Round-up is hosted by my juicy little universe

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Chapter Book of the Day

Shetland Ponies Are My Favorite!
by Elaine Landau (Author)
24 pages

Booktalk: Shetland ponies have small, broad heads and stocky bodies, and they’re known for being hard workers. Did you know that Shetlands hauled coal in England’s coal mines in the mid-1800s? Or that modern-day Shetlands sometimes help the blind by serving as guide ponies?

Snippet: Shetlands are the perfect size for kids to ride. They are usually about 44 inches (112 centimeters) tall. That’s just a little bit bigger than a very large dog.
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STEM Friday

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

Come visit the new STEM Friday blog – and add YOUR link!

_____________________________________________________________________

Nonfiction Monday on April 2, 2012

Nonfiction Monday is coming!

The Nonfiction Monday Round-up on April 2, 2012

is at Rasco From RIF.

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My NEW chapter book is Just So, Brianna (All-Star Cheerleaders)

Young Readers

Picture Book of the Day

Princess!
by Viviana Garofoli (Illustrator)

Booktalk: The rhythmic text in this board book follows a young “princess” from morning to night.

Snippet:
Princess wakes up!
Time to start the day.
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Chapter Book of the Day

Binky Under Pressure (A Binky Adventure)
by Ashley Spires (Author, Illustrator)
64 pages

Booktalk: In Binky’s third adventure, our intrepid, sometimes accident-prone hero is shaken out of his routine when he’s forced to contend with Gracie, a dainty striped foster kitty who comes to live at Binky’s space station (aka his home at 42 Sentinel Parkway). Binky instantly resents the new arrival, whose cute face and perfect manners are downright annoying. Indeed, Gracie seems too perfect. So Binky decides to do some undercover investigating and discovers a shocking truth about the family guest. Soon Binky is thrust full-throttle into a situation that puts all his Space Cat skills to the ultimate test!

Snippet:
Why would his humans do this to him?
Another cat? Wasn’t he good enough for them?
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The March 2012 Carnival Of Children’s Literature is up!

Have you visited the March Carnival Of Children’s Literature
at the Just Children’s Books! yet? Hop over and say hello to Nichole!

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STEM Friday is coming!

STEM Friday is coming! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

If you blog about science or math books tomorrow, come share your link!

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Literary Link

My March Quick Tips column: Hot Topics: Hatching Eggs with STEM is at Booklist Online.
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My NEW chapter book is Just So, Brianna (All-Star Cheerleaders)

Great Books

Picture Book of the Day

Big Little Brother
by Kevin Kling (Author) and Chris Monroe (Illustrator)

Booktalk: Being an older brother has its benefits, of that there’s little doubt. But how would you feel if your little brother grew to be bigger than you?

Snippet:
It’s my own fault.
I wanted a little brother.

BONUS! See the video!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBGmGI40y7g]
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Chapter Book of the Day

The Faerie Ring
by Kiki Hamilton (Author)
352 pages

Booktalk: The year is 1871, and Tiki has been making a home for herself and her family of orphans in a deserted hideaway adjoining Charing Cross Station in central London. Their only means of survival is by picking pockets. One December night, Tiki steals a ring, and sets off a chain of events that could lead to all-out war with the Fey. For the ring belongs to Queen Victoria, and it binds the rulers of England and the realm of Faerie to peace. With the ring missing, a rebel group of faeries hopes to break the treaty with dark magic.

Snippet: Tiki eyed the item that Leo had tossed under the desk. Mesmerized by its beauty, she reached for the ring. It was a burnished band of rich gold, capped by an intensely red stone the color of blood that almost seemed to beckon her.

Tiki stared into the ruby red depths, turning the stone this way and that to catch the light. Something flickered and her heart caught in her throat as she peered closer. Deep within the heart of the stone, flames burned.

BONUS! See the video!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5K7kQaMOcM]
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5 Great Earth Day Books

Earth Day
by Trudi Strain Trueit (Author)
Learn why we celebrate Earth Day in this Rookie Read-About Holidays easy reader.

Earth Day Girl
Wordgirl saves the world on Earth Day. Easy Reader.

Fancy Nancy: Every Day Is Earth Day
by Jane O’Connor (Author) and Robin Preiss Glasser (Illustrator)
Fancy Nancy goes green in this I Can Read Level 1 easy reader.

The Earth and I
by Frank Asch
A boy talks about his friend, the Earth. Picture Book

What Do You See at the Pond?
by Anastasia Suen (Author) and Aaron Boyd (Illustrator)
A boy and his mom take a nature walk in this simple easy reader.
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Literary Links

Ready to write your children’s book? Apr 4-May 23 (online) writing workshops begin next Wednesday!

Library Skills = Information Literacy Skills = Common Core Skills
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My NEW chapter book is Just So, Brianna (All-Star Cheerleaders)