Picture Book-Intermediate

Title: Olivia Forms a Band

Author: Ian Falconer

Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers

Genre: Intermediate picture book

Age Range: 4-6, 6-up

Summary: Olivia finds out that she and her family are going to a fireworks show.  She thinks that it isn't a fireworks show if there isn't a marching band. Olivia decides to form her own band, but when her family is about to leave, she decides that all of her instruments are too much to bring.  Her family enjoys the fireworks show, and then they go home and Olivia goes to bed, but before going to sleep she plays her band one last time.  Her instruments were left all over the floor, and her mother almost tripped over them when she came to tell Olivia goodnight.  

Personal Reaction: I liked this book because it teaches children to have an imagination.  Olivia was creative enough to start her own band.  She also made her own outfit for her band to wear.  The illustrations are simple, yet still have a good impact on the reader. I would use this book in my classroom because I feel that it can relate to the children reading the book.  Olivia is about the same age as the children who would read this book, so again, they can easily relate to Olivia and her lifestyle/age.

Picture Book-Intermediate

Title: Hello, Red Fox

Author: Eric Carle

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Children, 1998

Genre: Intermediate picture book

Age Range: 4-6, 6-up

Summary: Little Frog is having a birthday party where he invites some other animal friends.  Little Frog's friends names say that they are the opposite color of the color wheel than they actually physically show.  Each friend comes to the party, and throughout the book Mother Frog says that each friend isn't the color that is in their names.  Little Frog tells mother to look harder, and when she does she sees that the colors actually are correct.  

Personal Reaction: I liked this book because it teaches kids complementary colors on the color wheel.  When the reader stares at the black dot in the middle of the page and looks onto the blank page on the right, the color opposite on the color wheel appears in the shape of the animal mentioned on that specific page.  This will get the reader engaged in the book and keep them interested as they read.

Picture Book- Primary

Title: The Very Hungry Catipillar

Author: Eric Carle

Publisher: Philomel Books, 1987

Genre: Primary picture book

Age Range: K-3

Summary: This is the story about a catipillar that is very hungry.  Each day it eats through a different food, but it still hungry for some reason.  After it eats through a leaf, it starts to feel better, and has gained a lot of weight.  Soon, it turns into a cacoon and then turns into a pretty butterfly.

Personal Reaction: I liked this book because it teaches a child many different things.  First, it is a counting book, because it talks about how many things the catipillar eats each day.  It also has some words that could be difficult, but would push a child who is growing in literacy to learn more.  The pages are thick and are easy for a child to grab on to, which will be enjoyable to them.  The pictures are also very childlike so the children can relate and continue to be interested in what they are reading.

Picture Book- Primary

Title: Painting a Rainbow

Author: Lois Ehlert

Publisher: Harcourt, Inc.

Genre: Primary picture book

Age Range: K-3

Summary: This book is about a child that plants a garden of different colored flowers with her mother every Spring/Summer.  They plant some red flowers such as roses, orange flowers such as poppies, yellow flowers-daisies, green plants-ferns, blue flowers-morning glories, and purple flowers such as violets.  The little girl knows that even though the flowers will die each year, she can plant more next Spring/Summer.

Personal Reaction: This book does a good job teaching children about the different colors of the rainbow.  It shows that there are many different variations of each color also.  The book, in another way, can teach the kids spellings of different flowers and other words that they may be unfamiliar with.  The large print in the book will not overwhelm the child when he/she are reading.  The abstract pictures are different than a normal drawing, which will grab the reader's attention and keep them interested.  This book can be used for many purposes, and I think that it would be a positive example for a child to grow in their literacy.

Easy Reader

Title: Olivia

Author: Ian Falconer

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing Division, 2000

Genre: Easy Reader

Age Range: 6 and up

Summary: The book is about a little pig named Olivia who is so active that she sometimes wears herself out.  She wears other people out too, but her brother, Ian, is very interested in what she does.  He sometimes copies what she does, and she gets annoyed at him.  When Olivia goes somewhere she likes to be prepared.  The illustrations show that when Olivia went to the beach she brought swimmies and wore her bathing suit. She learned, from her mother, how to build sand castles and was very good at it.  Sometimes Olivia likes to go to museums.  When she sees that a painting looks like paint was just thrown on a canvas, she goes home and tries it herself.  Her mother reads her three books after talking Olivia down from wanting to read five books, and then she goes to sleep.

Personal Reaction: I liked this book because it taught many different things.  It can teach children to be prepared, it teaches them good hygiene (when Olivia brushes her hair and brushes her teeth), and shows that you should listen to your parents.  This book could be an interesting way to teach children these good habits.  This book is  a positive example of how children act in real life, and how they should act at all times.  It shows the reader that there are other children like them and that other parents require things from their children also.  Overall, the books teaches good lessons that children need to learn at an early age.

Predictable Book

Title: Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See

Author: Bill Martin Jr.

Illustrator: Eric Carle

Publisher: Henry Holt and Company, 1995

Genre: Predictable book

Age Range: 4-6

Summary: This book teaches repetition, as well as colors.  The repetition keeps the child focused and interested in what they're reading.  It talks about different colored animals, and ends with a teacher and her class saying that they see all the previously mentioned animals.  This book also teaches the children colors and what different animals look like.  Making some animals colors that they would not be in real life will teach the children something by showing them that they can have an imagination outside of what they see everyday.

Personal Reaction: I liked the book because it is catchy and the repetition made it interesting.  I liked reading the book out loud to myself so I could hear the rhyming and repetition that went on in the book.  The repetition gives children a chance to talk out loud and this will give them confidence to speak out in front of their classmates.  I read this book when I was in elementary school, so I believe that other children, today, will enjoy it too.

Counting Book

Title: Fish Eyes- A Book You Can Count On

Author: Lois Ehlert

Publisher: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1990

Genre: Counting book

Age Range: K-3

Summary: This book effectively teaches children how to count.  It uses rhyme to keep the children interested as they read, and it uses very colorful picture to grab their attention.  The book is shaped in an unusual manner (rectangular), which would also grab a child's attention.  The artwork that is displayed is simple, yet does a good job in being an interest to a child how is just learning how to count.  With few words on a page, it will not overwhelm the child, and will make them want to learn more.

Personal Reaction: I liked how catchy the book was when I read it.  Even though I already know how to count, it made me want to keep reading to see what kind of fish appear next, and to see what else happens in the story.  I could use this book when teaching children counting methods, as well as using it to help children differentiate colors.

Alphabet Book

Title: Eating the Alphabet

Author: Lois Ehlert

Publisher: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1989

Genre: alphabet book

Age Range: K-3

Summary: This children's book teaches children the different letters of the alphabet.  It also teaches them the use of capital and lowercase letters in writing.  It gives, large, clear, and concise illustrations of each food that is mentioned, which easily grabs the students' attention and makes them want to continue learning.  The book associates food, which children like, with learning words and letters.  Putting something that a child may like and something they don't know together will help them become interested in learning the new concept.

Personal Reaction: I liked the way the book taught children letter/words.  As mentioned before, I like how food is intertwined with learning a new concept that the child may be unsure of.  I like how the pictures of food are bright and vibrant, which easily grabbed my attention and will grab a child's attention also.  I can see myself using this book to teach children the letters of the alphabet and when teaching them word composition too.