BUBBLE HOMES AND FISH FARTS- FIONA BAYROCK

I spend fifty percent of my time working with intermediate grade kids who are still trying to get the hang of reading. The state of Colorado calls them UNSATISFACTORY (a term that NEVER, in my mind, should be applied to a child) or PARTIALLY PROFICIENT, and much of the professional literature calls them struggling readers. A couple of months ago, I read something (and I wish I could remember what) about "developing" readers. That terms seems a lot more positive, a lot more hopeful, and a lot more appropriate, to describe kids who are still working out the reading puzzle.

When I work with developing readers, I have three goals. First, I want to help them develop the heart of a reader- the attitudes and beliefs, that readers carry in their heads, e.g. reading is valuable to me, I am able to read, there are reasons to want to read, reading has value to me. Next, I want to help kids develop the skills and strategies readers need, the phonics and comprehension strategies that will help them make meaning from those funny little black squiggles on the page. Finally, I want kids to develop the voices of readers, to become fluent, to read like people talk.

I put attitudes and beliefs first, because I truly believe that until kids WANT to read, see value in reading, and think they CAN read, not much else is going to happen. With that in mind, I'm always on the lookout for books that kids will WANT to read. I've found a new one this weekend. BUBBLE HOMES AND FISH FARTS, by Fiona Bayrock, and illustrated by Carolyn Conahan, begins with this introduction:

Bubbles are soft and squishy and full of air. They shimmer. They float. And they are very handy. Animals make bubbles, ride bubbles, breathe bubbles, and even live in bubbles. Animals use bubbles in amazing ways.

The remainder of the book is organized into two-page spreads, with each spread focusing on a different way that each of the sixteen featured animals uses bubbles. The section begins with a statement about how the animal uses bubbles, e.g. Bubbles are for fishing (humpback whales), bubbles are for talking (herring), bubbles are for nesting (African gray treefrog), followed by a paragraph of more detailed information. The illustrations are mostly pastel colors, watercolor I think. Each illustration contains a few cartoon bubbles that capture the essence of the text in a fun and different way. An appendix in the back contains more information about each animal, including scientific name, size, habitat, and a few fun facts, as well as a glossary. And don't miss the acknowledgments, with its extensive list of scientists who were consulted for this project!

I can't wait to share this one with my developing readers!

NIC BISHOP BUTTERFLIES AND MOTHS

If you have hung out in the world of children's nonfiction at all in the last few years, you've almost surely heard of uber-photographer Nic Bishop. Last year, Bishop won a CYBILS award for NIC BISHOP FROGS. The annotation on the CYBILS website pretty much says it all:

Nic Bishop is known for his jaw-dropping nature photography. Open a book cover with his name on it and you'll be greeted with stunning action shots, exquisite attention to detail, and sharp, sharp close-ups that inspire awe. Couple that with Bishop's equally crisp, up-close and personal writing in Nic Bishop Frogs, and you've got an award-winning combination of text and illustration that captures a child-like wonder about a topic that is anything but new. That's quite a feat. Bishop's language is interesting and playful, and his analogies and references are right on, squarely aimed at where kids' heads are at. Simple word choices never talk down, but will allow newish readers to find success easily. The book flows logically, covering life cycle, defense, diet, habitat, and other essentials you'd expect to find in an animal book, but the organization is refreshingly kid-friendly, meandering through the topics as though Bishop and the reader were having a conversation while sitting in a marsh waiting for a frog. It's intimate and personal and accessible---frogs as you've never seen them before. Fascinating process notes are sure to inspire young photographers.

Substitute moths and butterflies for frogs, and you would have a pretty good review of NIC BISHOP MOTHS AND BUTTERFLIES. MOTHS AND BUTTERFLIES is an absolutely gorgeous book of nature photography, written by a biologist who clearly knows tons and tons and tons about his subject. He shares his knowledge in a way that is kid-friendly and accessible, yet not at all condescending or watered down.

At the end of the book, Bishop shares a little about his process, including a story of an overnight trip to Costa Rica to photograph a rarely seen rainforest caterpillar that is able to puff up its body and look like a snake. I was fascinated by this story and dropped in at his website to look for similar stories about his process. One whole section of his site is devoted to an explanation of how he takes his photographs. Fascinating stuff!

BALARAMA: A ROYAL ELEPHANT- Ted and Betsy Lewin

Ted and Betsy Lewin have spent their lives travelling the world, collecting stories and creating beautiful picture books. Their latest book, BALARAMA: A ROYAL ELEPHANT. For this book, the Lewins travel to southern India, to meet Drona, the lead royal elephant in an annual parade held in celebration of Dasara, a centuries-old royal and religious festival. The Lewins are so taken with Drona, that they decide they must return the next year for the parade.

Unfortunately, sometime that year, Drona is electrocuted when a branch he is eating touches an electrical wire. When the Lewins return to India, they meet Balarama, the newest lead elephant. This book chronicles the Balarama's role in parade in words, but maybe more importantly, in Ted Lewin's glorious, glorious, glorious watercolor illustrations. The pictures are so real that I feel like I'm right there watching the parade. Wow, wow, wow!

An appendix contains lots of helpful nonfiction text tools to share with kids. There's a list of interesting facts (did you know, for instance, that elephants' trunks contain tens of thousands of individual muscles, or that elephants are left or right-tusked, just like humans are left or right-handed?). There's also a pictorial comparison of Asian and African elephants, and a short bio of the five most recent lead elephants in the Mysore Dasara celebration.

CREATURE ABC- ANDREW ZUCKERMAN

This new animal alphabet book is about as perfect as perfect can be. Each four-page spread begins with a photograph of an animal and a large upper and lowercase letter. The next two-page spread has a different photo of the animal, as well as its name. Readers have the opportunity to peruse an alligators' toes, get close enough to tickle the hair under an elephant's chin, flinch at kangaroos kicking, feel the prick of a porcupine's quills, and caress a vulture's wing feathers. The animals' photos, placed against a plain white background (with the exception of N for nocturnal, which is black) are absolutely stunning. Emergent readers can practice strategies like predicting and cross checking picture against word. This book is a treat for the reader's eyes!

DOWN, DOWN, DOWN: A JOURNEY TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA- Steve Jenkins

I am a charter member of the the Steve Jenkins Fan Club. I love the way Jenkins draws on children's natural curiosity to teach them about our world. I love how he makes complex information accessible to kids. And of course I love Jenkins' beautiful collage illustrations. SISTERS AND BROTHERS, and ACTUAL SIZE have long been two of my favorite nonfiction mentor texts. This weekend, Jenkins' newest book, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN: A JOURNEY TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA, leaped to the top of my list of all time favorite nonfiction/information picture books.

DOWN, DOWN, DOWN begins with this one page introduction:

"Viewed from space, the earth looks like a watery blue ball. Oceans cover more than two-thirds of the globe's surface, and well over half the planet lies beneath water more than a mile (1 1/2 kilometers deep). We have explored only a small fraction of the oceans. In fact, more humans have walked on the moon than have visited the deepest spot in the ocean.

In this book, we'll descend from the ocean's surface to the sea floor and travel through one of the most extreme environments on earth. Along the way we'll encounter some unusual creatures…"

Jenkins begins at the surface of the ocean, and takes his readers on a journey 35,838 feet down, to the bottom of the Marianas Trench. Each two-page spread represents a different cross section of the ocean. A "depth-meter" on the righthand side helps readers to know how far down they have travelled. Headings, accompanied by one or two paragraphs of text, explain to the reader what might be going on at that level. The text is typical Jenkins- meaty, yet accessible and interesting to kids. Here are a few facts that I found particularly interesting:

• The bodies of most ocean animals are filled with fluids, so they don't have a problem with the pressure found under the ocean.

• Nine out of every ten animals that live below the sunlit layers of the ocean are bioluminescent- they can produce their own light. Anything containing a hollow, air-filled space, such as a human body or a submarine, risks being crushed as it descends.

• At 3,300 feet, marine snow, composed of dead plankton, fish scales, animal waste, and bits of larger creatures that have died in the waters above, is the primary food source for small animals, who then become prey for larger hunters.

And of course, each two-page spread is illustrated by three or more of Jenkins' amazingly accurate and breathtakingly beautiful collage sea plants and animals. An appendix at the back of the book contains a paragraph about each animal, as well as a visual comparing the animal's size to that of the human hand. There is also a diagram showing what humans or vehicles have descended to particular depths.

DOWN, DOWN, DOWN is a book that will fascinate kids (not to mention parents and teachers!) I could use the book to teach kids about tools such as headings and diagrams and appendixes. I could use it as a mentor for interesting nonfiction writing. I love having kids draw on Jenkins' work to create illustrations for their own research reports. A must-own for any library, classroom, or family!

BLOG TOUR- A PLACE FOR WONDER- Georgia Heard and Jennifer McDonough

Today is a very special day at Carol W's corner. I am honored to host Georgia Heard and Jennifer McDonough, the authors of a wonderful new professional book, A PLACE FOR WONDER. The book begins with "Straight Line," a poem that perfectly captures how I sometimes feel in schools. Kids are so wonderful, and curious, and thoughtful, and then they come to school. Read the poem, but don't stop there! There is more below!

Straight Line
by Georgia Heard

All the kindergarteners
walk to recess and back
in a perfectly straight line
no words between them.
They must stifle their small voices,
their laughter, they must
stop the little skip in their walk,
they must not dance or hop
or run or exclaim.
They must line up
at the water fountain
straight, and in perfect form,
like the brick wall behind them.
One of their own given the job
of informer – guard of quiet,
soldier of stillness.
If they talk
or make a sound
they will lose their stars.
Little soldiers marching to and from
pretend
their hair sweaty
from escaping dinosaurs
their hearts full of loving the world
and all they want to do
is shout it out
at the top of their lungs.
When they walk back to class
they must quietly
fold their pretends into pockets,
must dam the river of words,
ones they’re just learning,
new words that hold the power
to light the skies, and if they don’t
a star is taken away.
One star
by one star
until night grows dark and heavy
while they learn to think carefully
before skipping,
before making a wish.

**************

I read A PLACE FOR WONDER almost a month ago. It's one of those books, though, that sticks with you. I find myself thinking about it, and sharing it with friends, and examining my practice through a new and different lens. This week I got to ask Georgia and Jennifer some of my burning questions. Here they are:

I've followed your work for many, many years, and have been really convicted by the notion that teachers need to first be writers and poets themselves, if they are going to teach others to be writers and poets. As I read TIME FOR WONDER, I kept thinking about that, and wondering if teachers didn't also need to see the world through wondering eyes, if they were going to evoke that same sense in children. Do you think that is true? If so, what are some of the ways you evoke and cultivate wonder in your own lives?
I do believe that teachers need to be writers and poets themselves if they are going to teach others to be writers and poets. I’ve always loved what Cynthia Rylant wrote: I once met a boy who was a poet. I believe he was born with a way of looking at things…and even if he never writes one single line of poetry, he’ll always be a poet. I believe that we’re all born with a poetic way of looking at things, and that young children are natural poets, but as we get older life sometimes squeezes the poetry out of us. Our job is to try and find that poetry inside us again; to try to find our voices. Writing alongside our students, at home, or briefly in the classroom, can help spark this.

Ways that I cultivate wonder
I try to find beauty everywhere I go. You don’t have to live in a rural or suburban setting -- I lived in NYC for over twenty years – and there was so much beauty there: flowers sticking out of the water buckets at the corner deli: the way the sparrows flitter and squawk over a bagel scrap in the street; morning light blazing down side streets; and so many other moments. It might take more effort in an urban setting, but if we just open our eyes we can find it.

Having a young child in my house is an everyday reminder to see the world through different eyes. He is full of "whys" and "how comes," and teaches me to slow down and think about how kids see the world around them.

I'm a teacher in an urban school. Ninety percent of my students are on free lunch. They are crammed into tenement apartments surrounded by little, if anything beautiful or wonderful. There is also not a lot of intellectual stimulation. The teachers at our school do everything they can to create warm and nurturing environment at school, but what kinds of tools can they give kids to help them carry a sense of wonder into their world, when lots of times it just simply is not very beautiful.
I taught in schools in NYC that were like the one you describe above, and I really know how difficult it can be. The kids in your school need that sense of wonder nurtured. Bring the beauty of the world inside the classroom. Here is a gathering of a few ideas (all from NYC classrooms) to bring wonder and beauty inside. Bring in a small cherry tree branch (found at a corner deli in spring), and place it in a water bucket in the corner, and wait for it to bloom. If allowed, bring in hermit crabs, and other living creatures. Bring in blooming plants. A terrarium. A discovery table with shells and nests displayed next to a magnifying glass. A single flower in a vase. Hang a cloth or a quilt on the wall -- especially if there is a story behind it. Ask kids to plant seeds or bulbs, and watch them bloom. One small square would be a great idea for kids to really look deeply and see their world with new eyes. Even putting the square on concrete and looking at it through a microscope can evoke a sense of wonder at what unexpected things they might find. And so many more ideas… Make your classroom the beauty that the kids might not be able to see outside. Read The Old Woman and Her Secret by Eve Merriam, and tell them that their job this year is to ask questions, and be filled with wonder; and then set up wondering centers so the kids can begin to express that wonder.

We do lots with nonfiction and research with our students. I don't think, howeer, that we are as good at researching their "heart wonders." I'm wondering if you could talk a little more about the kinds of things that you do to help kids address their "heart wonder" questions.

“Heart Wonders” are the big, pondering, and sometimes personal questions that we ask ourselves such as: What will my future be? ; What makes a friend? ; Why do bad things sometimes happen to people? These questions are meant to be pondered, savored, and explored by reflecting on them but also by having a conversation with another person; they are not necessarily researched in the same way as more informational questions. We tell younger kids that “research wonders” are questions about things that you can hold in your hand (although this isn’t always true), and “heart wonders” are those questions that are about what’s in your heart and mind. As we describe in our book, the two types of questions often blend. Many personal essays come from “heart wonders” – explored through personal writing.

So, so, so many ideas in the book could be used in intermediate grades. I'm wondering, though whether, you would whether the two of you might ever consider doing a sequel, with Jen teaching and Georgia conducting research in an intermediate grade classroom? That would be a fun book to read?
Thanks for the suggestion! We’ll definitely think about it.

I'm also the mom of two high school kids. My guys go to a high school that is considered to be the best in the district, yet there is very little, if any, space for kids' passion or interest, or engagement or wondering within the walls of the classroom. I wonder, then, how can middle and high school teachers embrace your ideas? What can parents of high school kids do to restore joy, and passion, and wonder to their kids' learning lives?
You’re so right – when kids get into high school their passion, interest and sense of wonder diminishes. This should be the subject of another book but, briefly, teachers could make room for students’ questions in each subject – and devote part of the class to exploring these questions. Can you imagine if there was a class called Pondering Time where students ask “heart wonder” questions and, then write to explore the answers?

I so, so, so loved this book. I so, so, so needed this book. I want you to read it too. You can read the book or order it at Stenhouse.

Also, Georgia and Jen will be hosting a web conference on Monday night. If you would like to be part of that, please leave a comment below.

JUST THE RIGHT SIZE- WHY BIG ANIMALS ARE BIG AND LITTLE ANIMALS ARE LITTLE by NICOLA DAVIES

I love when people who know a lot about a topic can make the information interesting and understandable to someone who is not an expert in their field. That's exactly what happens in JUST THE RIGHT SIZE: WHY BIG ANIMALS ARE BIG AND LITTLE ANIMALS ARE LITTLE. Author and zoologist Nicola Davies draws on her considerable expertise as a zoologist to help kids understand some pretty complex information about animal evolution and physiology. Davies begins by explaining the BTLT (Big Thing, Little Thing) Rule (which would be terrific to link to intermediate grade math or science lessons on surface area and volume):

If you DOUBLE the length of something,
the surface area and cross section
go up FOUR TIMES,
while its volume and weight
go up EIGHT TIMES.

Davies then explains, in 1-2 page spreads, how this rule impacts any number of aspects of human and animal physiology, e.g. why people can't fly, why animals can only be "so big," how the surface area of the gills and the intestines are increase the efficiency of the respiratory and digestive systems, how size impacts travel, etc. Each of these topics, and lots of others, are complicated, but Davies explains them in a way that is friendly, and understandable, and humorous. And there are tons of fun-to-know facts embedded throughout, e.g. "If you spread out the skin that makes up the air sacs in your lungs, it would cover most of a tennis court" OR "Gibbons used to be large, tree-climbing apes, more like chimps, but when they started to get around in the forest by swinging from tree to tree, having a nice, light body was convenient…now they are the lightest ape, the size of a fat domestic cat."

Kids (and adults) will also love Neal Layton's humorous, cartoon- style illustrations. They're funny, but also packed with tons of information that complement the text. The illustrations will be great "mentor texts" for my fourth and fifth graders, who already know quite a bit about diagrams, and need to stretch themselves a little. I think it would be fun for them to choose three or four significant facts, then try to embed those some how in their illustrations.

This probably is not a book for most little guys, but I think third, fourth, and fifth graders would really enjoy it. I could even see reading it aloud to my son's high school biology class…

POETRY FRIDAY- A FOUND POEM

Today.
A redorangeyellow
Autumn Friday.

So what to do?

Two things,
it seems to me.

At least two.

Use up
each day.

Fill it
overflowing
with good.

Deliberately
enjoy it.

Two, begin now.

Mend a fractured friendship,
mail an overdue letter,
repair a broken heart,
lay aside a griveance,
act on a noble impulse.

As we all know,
"The night cometh".

Lanny Henninger


-- POETRY FRIDAY is at the home of poet extraordinaire, Laura Salas.

AN EXTRA SPECIAL SUPER DUPER AUTUMN TREAT AND A DEADLINE

In late September, I blogged about A PLACE FOR WONDER, a fabulous new professional book by Georgia Heard and Jennifer McDonough. In A PLACE FOR WONDER, Heard and McDonough examine how teachers can create “landscapes of wonder,” classrooms where curiosity, creativity, and observation are encouraged, and where intelligent, inquiring, lifelong learners are developed. Heard and McDonough created "wonder classrooms" in McDonough's kindergarten and first grade classrooms, and in the book, they share some really practical and concrete ideas for teachers to help children not only see their world, but also write about it.

"Our goal was to create a landscape of wonder in primary classrooms—a landscape in children’s minds and hearts filled with wonder and awe about this amazing world we live in."

"We knew that it’s important to not just ask the questions but to learn to explore questions. We wanted to set up time for the children to ponder their questions and teach them how to go about exploring those questions."

Young children need to know that nonfiction writing is varied, but at the core of all nonfiction writing is often a question, an observation, a passion fermenting in the author’s mind and heart. Heard and McDonough, p. 58

I loved this book and have been trying to implement many of Heard and McDonough's ideas into my teaching, and also into my parenting. I was thrilled to be included on Heard and McDonough's blog tour, which starts later this week.

October 19: A Year of Reading

October 21: Miss Rumphius Effect
October 23: Carol’s Corner (can you believe it, right here!).

As part of that tour, I get to send some questions to Georgia and Jennifer, so I'm opening this up to my readers. Take a look at the book (you can preview the entire book online here), then email me with your questions. I'll pass them onto Georgia and Jennifer, and maybe they will answer them!

Also, as an EXTRA SPECIAL SUPER DUPER AUTUMN TREAT, Stenhouse will wrap up the blog tour with a LIVE WEBCAST with Georgia and Jennifer on Oct. 26th at 8 p.m. EST. This will be a great opportunity to join a small group discussion with the two authors. Five participants for this live webcast will be chosen from the comments in this post and the blog tour post on October 23 If you would like to have your name thrown in the bowl, post a comment or question about the book here. Include your email address so I can contact you if you win! No special software or equipment are needed to participate in the webcast – just a phone and your computer.

From now until the beginning of the tour you can also receive free shipping when you order A Place for Wonder. Just use code “blog” at the checkout when you order from www.stenhouse.com or by phone at 800-988-9812.

****************************

LAST DAY TO NOMINATE FOR CYBILS
Have you nominated your favorite new books for the CYBILS? Anything published between October 16, 2008 and October 15, 2009 is eligible, but TODAY is the last day you can nominate a book for this honor! Hurry on over to the CYBILS site and get busy nominating!

POETRY FRIDAY

We are about a month from the end of the boys' high school football season. And I have decided that being the mother of a football player causes every weird and dormant alter ego that I might have ever had (and would have vehemently denied was a part of me) to come to the surface. That person that wants to stand up and punch the person who is criticizing the fourteen-year-old freshman quarterbacking the varsity team, who happens to be my son. And that selfish one who prays, when somebody's baby is down on the field a little too long, "Oh, please, don't let it be my child…" And that one who does not quite know how to support her child and balance his dreams, with the cruel realities of life…

THE WOMAN FIVE DOORS DOWN- Francis Duggan
The woman five doors down tells me her son Ted is the best player in the school football team
And that one day he will play in an A.F.L. Grand Final and that more than once of late she's had this dream
Of watching him receive the Coleman medal for best on ground on football's biggest day
Watched by well over ninety thousand people who cheer him on with a loud hip hooray.

Read the rest of the poem here.

POETRY FRIDAY is at PICTURE BOOK OF THE DAY.

TRUCKS- WIL MARA

Last summer, I tutored a little guy who was going into third grade, but reading at a beginning first grade level. Three or four times a week, I picked G. up and we went to the neighborhood library and read. Originally, I tried to steer him toward the easy reader section- Dr. Seuss, the Elephant and Piggy books, and the Rookie Reader science series. G would have none of it. He wanted books about cars, and more specifically, books about low riders. We exhausted all of the books in that library, then moved to the larger world of interlibrary loan. By the end of the summer, I knew quite a bit about low riders, and G had started to read and had written a twenty-page book about low riders.

G reminded me (AGAIN!) about the importantce of motivation and engagement in reading. The EASY READERS were painful, but put G in a book about low riders and he could read words like Chevrolet Impala, hydraulics, chrome, velvet and horsepower with absolutely no problem. He could read those words because he cared about them.

This year I'm spending my mornings teaching intervention groups to second and third graders. The groups are about 75% boys. We are reading a lot of nonfiction and I've just found a new book I think they will love. TRUCKS is a Level 1 (first grade, not DRA Level 1) National Geographic Reader in a series that also includes topics like storms and frogs. The book is narrated by Slick, a truck driver who appears on every page. Each two-page spread is about a different kind of truck-typical ones like dump trucks, tow trucks, and cement mixers, but also some that are more unusual, e.g. the world's largest truck, the Liebherr 282. The last three pages show Slick's rig, including the cab and dashboard, and his office/sleeping quarters. Each two-page spread contains a great picture, and 2-4 sentences of juicy information.

I know G and has buddies are going to love this book. After they are done examining all of the different kinds of trucks, I can use the book to teach them about nonfiction tools, because TRUCKS has all of them- a table of contents, headings on each page, labeled diagrams, "truck talk" vocabulary that is pulled out in a little text box on many of the pages, and a glossary in the back. Many of the pages have truck-related riddles, e.g. "Q: What is the laziest part of a truck? A: The wheels, they're always TIRED."

I'm putting this book in my school bag right now. I can't wait to share it with my reading buddies. I know they are going to love it.

NEW NONFICTION SERIES- PICTURE THE SEASONS- JILL ESBAUM

Review copies provided by publisher.

This week I discovered PICTURE THE SEASONS, a terrific new nonfiction series, written by Jill Esbaum, and published by one of my favorite nonfiction publishers, National Geographic for Kids.


APPLES FOR EVERYONE and SEED, SPROUT, PUMPKIN PIE are absolutely perfect October books. The premise of both books is simple- they start with a seed, and follow it from seed to fruit and beyond. What's not so simple, though, is the beautiful language, and the even more gorgeous photograph collages on each page. The language is lovely, kind of a blend of poetry and nonfiction. Listen to these excerpts:

"A pumpkin seed
is tucked into sun-warmed earth.
Spring rains soften
its tough coat.
A root reaches
for nutrients.
A sprout reaches
for light.
Soon jaggedy leaves
rise from twisty vines
wandering in all directions."

Or how about, "On a chilly night, a steaming mug of tangy cider chases away the goosebumps." Really nice, huh?

There's lots to wonder and talk about on each page. The first page of APPLES FOR EVERYONE has a large rectangular picture of an apple orchard, but it also has a closeup of a bee landing on an apple blossom, then two more bees, just kind of set down on the page, looking like they could crawl out of the book at any second. And then there is my absolute favorite photograph is of two rowers making their way across a lake or river in boats made of gi-normous pumpkins. My two high schoolers spent at least ten minutes talking about that picture.

This series is perfect for the little guys, K-3. I could also see using the books as mentor texts for older students attempting the genre of photo essays or working on their descriptive writing. And the best news is that right now there are five books in this series:

• APPLES FOR EVERYONE
• SEED, SPROUT, PUMPKIN PIE
• A TREE FOR ALL SEASONS
• INSECTS
• PILGRIMS OF PLYMOUTH

I'm hoping that this series will continue to grow.

I'M A CYBILS PANELIST

Phew! Finally I can tell! For the second year in a row, I will be working with a terrific group of people as panelist for the CYBILS AWARDS. This year I will be working on the Nonfiction/Informational Picture Book category.

Here is a description of the Nonfiction/Informational Books category:

Kids love interesting non-fiction books. Kids love information books. And the sky is the limit for kids' interests. The Non-fiction/ Information Picture Book category is looking for stunning, visual nominees that capture the curiosity and wonder of children of all ages. From science to art, history to sports, or current events to biographies, if the book has a fresh approach, kid appeal, fabulous illustrations, photography, and will be picked up again and again, please nominate.

Nonfiction/information books will be 48 pages or less and should appeal to the younger reader. The committee will refer to the Library of Congress classification as a guide for determining non-fiction status. Previous winners in this category include Nic Bishop’s Frogs (2008), Lightship by Brian Floca (2007), and An Egg is Quiet by Diana Ashton (2006).

It's really easy to nominate books in this category, and about ten others, including poetry, graphic novels, picture books, intermediate grade fiction, and lots of others . This year there is a really quick and easy form you can fill out, so hustle right over to the CYBILS website and get busy nominating!