“Americans love labels” This is such a sad but accurate statement. Do you feel like other countries have the same? For such a small child to pick up on this so early on, is eye opening.

I feel like this part of the book is everything we‘ve been taught about in our TSL classes. Seeing the perspective from Jude entering her new class makes me really want to strive to make these children feel safe and welcomed.

The beginning of part 2 begins with Jude arriving in America. If you were Jude, how would you feel on the airplane as it was starting to descend into America, your new home? #NCHPedsReads #JanPedsReads

I am so excited to start reading this book! Jasmine Warga‘s verse style writing makes the chapters smaller and less intimidating. Don‘t let the length make you squirm! I am so intrigued to learn more about the Syrian culture that Jude honors even with her recent move to America. What do you think her biggest struggle is going to be?? # NCHPedsReads #JanPedsReads

After the Fall is a great book on how Humpty Dumpty got back up again! This story written and illustrated by Dan Santat is all about what happened to Humpty after had that great fall and couldn‘t put back together again. This book teaches you to not let fear stop you from achieving what you want. This website has a variety of lessons (my favorite being the egg experiment) and could be use for many different school topics. EL strategy 41(compile

Jane Yolen‘s Thunder Underground is a P book all about things that....are underground! These poems range from Subways to magma and tree roots! This author would be a great author to do an AS since her publishing‘s are all over the place. This activity allows teachers to customize questions based on their levels. I also think it would be great to have students pick a topic listed in the book and write their own poem. UDL strategy 6.1 (guide app..

The Newbery Medal, MF story, The One and Only Ivan written by Katherine Applegate is one you should add to your bookshelf if you haven‘t already! This story is about a gorilla, named Ivan, who lives and preforms at the mall with an older elephant named Stella. One day Ruby, is brought to the mall and Stella makes Ivan promise that he‘ll find a better life for them. Where do they end up? I think this would best be used as an IR for students and..

This NF read has won multiple awards and after reading it, I can tell why. The pictures in this book move so graciously you almost can imagine the dance in real life. This book talks about duties that slaves we‘re responsible for building up to their day of freedom, Sunday‘s. Many would join together in Congo Square...but what would they do there? This would be a great RA that could be used on Feb 1, National Freedom Day. UDL strategy 3.1( prov..

This MF read is great to use in your classroom to show social and physical differences. Maxi, a Great Pyrenees, is a great companion for Timminy, who shows him about many life lessons. Maxi is actually deaf but teaches Timminy all about understanding and being perceptive in this cruel world. At the end of each Chapter there is a “Maxi Secret” read to find them all out! I would actually use this in a LC to have students pitch this book to others.

This B is an easy read for young readers. This book explains a little about Martins life before he made it into history for his famous speeches. This would be a great Chapter book to do as a RA or even use as a DR and have children reenact his speeches. As we go along we could use UDL strategy 3.2 (highlight patterns, critical features, big ideas, and relationships) and EL strategy 1(teach questioning for clarification). This site has multiple..

This F story in the Llama Llama series is about little baby llama who is waiting for his momma to come in so he can go to sleep. Busy momma has a few things to take care of before going up to baby llama. Will he be patient or will he cause a fuss? This lesson allows students to show their creativity and make their own quilt based off the one in the story. UDL strategy 7.1( optimize individual choice and autonomy) and EL strategy 46(use discovery

This funny F spinoff from Laura Numeroff‘s “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie”, is the hilarious journey from giving a Moose a Muffin! If you give him what he had asked for, he just continues asking for emote! See what all he asks for when you read the book. This would be a great RA or a S to use in the class. This lesson talks about use of compound words that can be found in the story. EL strategy 20(list the most important words and phrases on board

This is an old classic I grew up reading as a young adult. Charlotte‘s Web is a TL, Newbery award winning book written by E.B. White. Diving deep into the understanding of friendship, Wilbur and Charlotte develop a close relationship. They are faced with many challenges on and off the barn and work together to conquer it all. Using this story as a SR, teachers can lead group discussions to dig deeper into the true meaning of friendship. EL...

This HF based off of the storm that hit United States Midwest completely without any notice. John finds himself trapped out in the horrible blizzard with no knowledge on how to survive. Does he make it? I think this would be a great LC for the room since Lauren Tarshis has an entire series all based on historical events that could be talked about. This activity provides detailed High Order questions that would really get conversations started..

Wow! This book was AMAZING! This RF novel Out of my Mind by Sharon Draper is a book you shouldn‘t leave unread. 11 yr old Melody has never spoken a word in her life. She is full of excitement, knowledge and would blow you away with her sense of humor, if she could only be heard. Read to find out some of her biggest obstacles. This activity has children communicate using a communication board just like Melody in the story. It would incorporate..

This SF book, a part of the Magic Treehouse collection, Mary Pope Osborne‘s Pirates Past Noon book is a great story! Jack and Annie get captured by domed pirates one day. These pirates want to show them where the gold is at, but they are unable to read! Do they help the pirates or say no way? Read to find out! I would use this as an IR in my classroom and would love this activity to go with it. It would incorporate EL strategy 30( encourage the..

This MF hilarious picture book is written by Craig Smith and Illustrated by Katz Cowley. One day, while walking down the street, they saw a donkey with 3 legs! It was such a wonky donkey. As the book continues the author adds things to the donkey to add adjectives that end in a y to the name of the Wonky Donkey. This book would be a fun book to CR with your students. This video shows the song that was created from the book and adds more visuals...

This classic story, Where the Wild Things Are are both written and illustrated by Maurice Sendak. Max is a mischievous young boy who is nicknamed “wild thing” thing by his mother. One day, after being sent to his room for not eating dinner, his room transforms into a wild jungle! Not afraid, Max tries to tame these “wild things” and is made king! Read to find out how he accomplishes this. This would make a great RA for teachers to engage their ...

This SF book a part of the Magic Treehouse Series by Mary Pope Osbourne is about Jack and Annie traveling back to the time where dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Read about their encounters with Pterandons, a Tyrannosaurus Rex and even a pack of Anatosaurus! I think that this would be a good IR to allow children to jump into the story at their own pace. I would use UDL strategy 6.1 ( guide appropriate goal-setting) and ESOL strategy 29 ( offer a ....

This MF read is author Drew Daywalt‘s twist on an old story of Rock, Paper, and Scissors. The pictures created by Adam Rex, make you feel like you are fighting beside each “warrior” as they take on the quest of finding someone who can beat them. There is no question as to why this was chosen for the Flicker Take Children‘s Book Award. This would be a great S approach for the classroom use. Teachers could really dig into the personalities of each..

This Theodor Seuss Geisel honor fictional story is a great beginning chapter book for younger grades. Mercy Watson Goes for a Ride by Kate DiCamillo is about a little pig who really wants to go for a ride and drive Mr. Watson‘s pink convertible. During their ride around town, Mercy finds a moment of opportunity to take the wheel! Read the book to find out what happens when a little pig takes control. This would be a fun book to RA in the front...

This TL book is about little pigs who all build their homes out of different material. The big bad wolf tries to blow down their homes and succeeds until the last little pig outsmarts him. I think this would be a great book to assign roles and turn it into a RT and have child perform it. This website has many activities but I think the best one is having children construct their own homes like in the story. I believe UDL strategy 4.1 (vary the....

This RF book is an adorable story about the journey of a baby turtle hatching from an egg and his search to find his mom in the sea. This story contains very descriptive words about everything the turtle encounters in his journey. I‘ll follow the Moon written by Stephanie Tara and illustrated by Lee Fodi has won the Moms choice awards and also the Chocolate Lily Award. I would beat use this as a Storytelling book for my class. Great descriptive..

This P book, Big Words for Little People written by Jamie Lee Curtis and illustrated by Laura Cornell, would be best utilized in a RA in a large group. This book is a fun way to introduce higher level vocabulary words to younger students. There are great visuals and fun definitions to make words understood for “little people.” Teachers may use the EL strategy 17, providing contextual support through audio, visuals, models, demonstrations, realia,