Sunday, March 24, 2013

The Mouse and the Motorcycle


Cleary, B., & Wong, B. D. (2007). The mouse and the motorcycle. New York: Harper Children's Audio.

Genre: Modern/Animal Fantasy
Age Level: 7-11

Summary: Ralph is a tiny mouse who lives in a dingy old hotel off the main highway. One day a boy named Keith and his parents stopped to stay at the hotel. They stay in rooms 215 and 216. When Keith lives a toy motorcycle on the night stand, while his family goes to dinner, Ralph falls in love with it and tries to ride it. While trying to ride the bike he falls into the trash can and is unable to get out. When Keith returns to room 215 after his dinner he notices his motorcycle is missing and looks for it everywhere. The boy finally finds the motorcycle in trash can and notices Ralph lying scared at the bottom of the can. This is where the adventure and friendship between a mouse and a boy begin. Keith and Ralph understand each other and share a common interest of motorcycles. Keith and Ralph create a plan for Keith to play with it during the day and Ralph to ride it at night while the humans are sleeping.
However the first time he did not listen, Ralph had an unfortunate time when he ran into a laundry pile and lost the motorcycle when he chewed through the laundry to save his own life. He thought Keith would never talk to him again but yet again he was wrong. Keith forgave Ralph and continues to bring him food as he always did. But Ralph’s family overhears the employees of the hotel discussion the issue of the chewed laundry and decides they must leave the hotel. Ralph comes up with a plan for his family to stay in the hotel and stay hidden for a few days until the hotel employees forget about them.
Then the unimaginable thing happens, Keith becomes ill. There is no aspirin anywhere to be found anywhere by his parents. Ralph feels it is his responsibility to find Keith an aspirin. While looking for the aspirin Ralph finds himself on another adventure with a toy ambulance but it all ends with an aspirin being left for Keith to take when he wakes up. Keith feels he owes Ralph something in return and offers to take him home but Ralph refuses. Once again another turn of events happens when the bellboy returns the motorcycle to Keith after finding it on the floor of the office. Keith realizes the perfect gift for Ralph would be the motorcycle and so they decide on a place for the motorcycle to be kept once Keith leaves. And so both boys have the experience of a life time.

Reflection: I thought this story was very cute. This is the first book in the Ralph Mouse series by Beverly Clearly. The author writes the story with amazing literary devices that capture the theme which seems to be responsibility in general and the change in level of responsibility as one grows older along with friendship. Beverly Clearly uses personification to make the mouse come to life and have human like characteristics such as speaking. She also uses flashbacks to tell reasons why Ralph’s mother is worried at all times. For example, when Ralph states he needs to get an aspirin, the story of Ralph’s father dying from a dissolved aspirin he carried in his cheek comes about. This also adds suspense to the plot. The use of onomatopoeia throughout the story to make the toys come to life helps to keep the readers entertained.
            This story would keep the interest of students because of the realistic setting even though most of the events in the story cannot really happen. For instance, the mice are found in an old hotel instead of a mansion somewhere. The story is an easy reader so the students do not give up in the middle of the book. I feel the audience of this book is more for boys than girls because the author used a boy, a mouse, and a motorcycle to tell the story. There is no way that the story would have been the same if the characters would have been a girl, a motorcycle, and a mouse because usually girls are afraid of mice and do not play with toy motorcycles.
            I can relate to this story because when I was younger my mom told my dad to get my brother a hamster for his birthday. Instead my dad came home with little white mice with red eyes and I was terrified of them. However, my brother thought they were awesome and would use blocks to make them cages and pretend they were in jail all the time. I hated when he would play with them and I never went in his room until after they died because they just seemed so creepy and made my skin crawl.
            I would use this book in a literature circle or as a read aloud so students can carry out a discussion on the many adventures of Ralph while on the motorcycle. It can be used to teach point of view and the different types of conflict Ralph finds himself in. For example, at the beginning it was person (animal) against person because Ralph was not sure Keith was a good person or not and then it turned to person (animal) against self when Ralph was trying to decide between his good and bad thoughts on taking the motorcycle out during the day. Some questions that I would ask students would be: Where do you think Ralph takes the motorcycle after Keith leaves the hotel? How do you think Ralph’s family gets food after Keith leaves the hotel and is unable to bring them food? Do you think Keith’s teacher will believe his story about talking to Ralph and allowing him to ride his motorcycle, explain why or why not?  

Monday, March 18, 2013

Mercy Watson Goes for a Ride


DiCamillo, K., & Van, D. C. (2006). Mercy Watson goes for a ride. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.

Genre: Fiction
Age Level: 5-7

Summary: Mercy Watson Goes for a Ride is the second book in the Mercy Watson series. In this story the adventures continue when Mercy wants to drive the Watson’s convertible. One Saturday, when Mercy and Mr. Watson are out on their normal drive, Mr. Watson notices Baby Lincoln (the elderly neighbor) in the back seat.  Mercy gets very excited and jumps in Mr. Watson’s lap. Mr. Watson tries his best to get Mercy to move but she would not. They end up in a high speed chase with a police officer. The day is finally saved when the elderly neighbor manages to stop the car. The police officer takes all three back home and instead of writing them a ticket Mrs. Watson was able to talk the officer into toast and butter.

Reflection: This book is really cute and funny. The illustrator, Chris Van Dusen, continued the same theme throughout the series. The illustrations are cartoons that enhance the plot, characters, and mood of the book. Just as book one did this book has some illustrations that are page bleeds while others are just small clusters of images. The book has glossy images that provide visual cues to support the text and adds loads of humor. The facial expressions within the book are outstanding and make you laugh as you read the story. This book is also a paperback book and the cover contains a doublespread illustration to give the effect of a man and a pig in a car with the police chasing them. This makes the book look fun and interesting to read.  
Students will love reading this series because of the overall experience gained throughout the stories. Each book contains a different adventure to read about and amazing illustrations to support the adventure. This book is excellent for students who are in between a traditional early reader and an early chapter book. The vocabulary is not very hard either and the story itself contains a lot of repetition to make the book easier for students.
This fictional book series would make great books for ELL students because the illustrations are easy to follow. This makes the story easy to retell even if students are ELL or simply low level readers. Students can start with the illustration on the cover to make a prediction about what the book will be about and then complete a picture walk through the book to help make their predictions about the plot of the story. This series would also be useful when sequencing events in order, compare and contrast, and character traits. Some questions that students could answer are: How are Eugenia and Baby Lincoln similar and different? Why do you think Mercy wants to drive so badly? What would you do if you saw a pig driving a car?

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Officer Buckle and Gloria


Rathmann, P. (1995). Officer Buckle and Gloria. New York: Putnam's.
 

Genre: Fiction
Age Level: 4-7

Summary: Officer Buckle is the safety officer for the town of Napville. His job is to tell the children of the Napville School how to be safe. However, he tends to put the students to sleep when he gives his safety presentation. Then the police department gets a new police dog named Gloria. She goes with Officer Buckle to give his safety speeches. Suddenly, the children sit up and pay attention. Officer Buckle begins to think that he is beginning to reach the students but what's really happening is that Gloria is acting out the scenarios Officer Buckle describes and she manages to do this without him noticing. He finally notices when the news does a report on him and he sees himself and Gloria on the news. At first he is not happy but in the end Officer Buckle realizes how much more the students enjoy his safety speeches when Gloria is with him.

Reflection: I love this book! The illustrations complete the story because the story itself does not tell about what Gloria is doing in the background while Officer Buckle gives his speech. The illustrations are cartoons that help to enhance the plot, character, and theme. Several illustrations through the paperback book have a doublespread to help give the effect of motion throughout the story. The first doublespread image begins on the copyright page of the book with a leaning swivel chair and push pins that carry your eye to the next illustration before you beginning reading the text. Not to mention the silly illustration involving the banana pudding spill.
This story would continue to keep the interest of students because of the silly illustrations and the funny storyline. Young children love animals and this story shows how animals can help people. There is also enough mischief to keep young children engaged and lots of good humor to keep everyone laughing.
            This book could be used to teach many concepts to young children. Some of the strategies that could be used with the book are predictions, cause and effect, sequencing, and summarizing. Educators could use the book to teach about safety and teamwork. Students could make up their own safety rule and draw a picture of Gloria acting it out. Some questions that could be asked are: Why were Officer Buckle's feelings hurt? Why did Gloria feel badly? Are they better working together or apart?

Mercy Watson to the Rescue


DiCamillo, K., & Van, D. C. (2005). Mercy Watson to the rescue. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.
Genre: Fiction
Age Level: 5-7

Summary: In the fictional book, Mercy Watson to the Rescue, a family of two adults, the Watsons’, owns a pig, Mercy, and treats her as their child. Every day the mother fixes Mercy hot toast with a great deal of butter on it. Each night when putting Mercy to bed her parents sing her a song since she is afraid of the dark. One night, Mercy decided to sleep with her parents in their bed and then the adventure begins. The bed falls into the ceiling. When Mercy leaves her parents stuck in the bed they believe she is going to get help but she is only after food. When she goes looking for food she runs to the pesky neighbors who end up thinking she is a burglar and call the police. When help arrive they see that Mercy is not a burglar but hear someone yelling for help. They follow the voices and realize the Watsons are in danger. The Watsons’ believe Mercy went and got help the entire time. To celebrate their rescue, mother cooks Mercy favorite food for everyone.

Reflection: This book is really cute and funny. It also has great illustrations. The illustrations are cartoons which enhance the plot, characters, and mood of the book. The illustrator changed the colors of the illustrations to represent different times such as night and day. Some illustrations are page bleeds while others are just small clusters of images. The book is paper back and the cover contains a doublespread illustration to give the effect of a pig running from an older woman. This makes the book look fun and interesting to read.
I personally can relate to this story because when I was younger, my mother took my siblings and me to a stock yard. While there we saw the workers mistreating a piglet. My mom felt really bad for the piglet and bought it. The only way to get the piglet home was in the back seat of my mom’s car. So once we got the piglet in the car we went through a McDonald’s drive thru and ordered the piglet a happy meal since we had no other food to feed it. After we got the piglet home, my siblings and I spent many days playing in the pig’s pen as if it were a dog.
The fictional book can be used to have students make predictions about the story. Students can start with the illustration on the cover to make a prediction about what the book will be about and then complete a picture walk through the book to help make their predictions about the plot of the story. The story could also be used to teach cause and effect to students using a graphic organizer. This book would also help to explain the difference between nonfiction and fiction books because many parts of the story are not realistic. Some questions that students could answer are: What caused the bed to fall into the ceiling? How would you feel if your bed fell through the ceiling? Do you think a pig would or would not be a good pet?

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Madam President


Smith, L. (2008). Madam President. New York: Hyperion.

Genre: Fiction
Age Level: 5-7

Summary: In the fictional story, Madam President, a little girl images how her life would be if she were president. She discusses the many jobs the president has but the illustrations show how the jobs would be completed within the little girl’s everyday life. For example, the president’s job is to give executive orders so in the illustration the girl gives orders to give her more pancakes at breakfast.  

Reflection: I loved this book! It was very cute.  This story would be amazing when teaching a unit on the election. You could use this story to discuss the President’s duties and when the election is because the illustrator shows many images of leaves falling from trees to represent the fall season. There are also other historic figures used in the illustrations such as Susan B. Anthony, Harriet Tubman, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. Within the unit, teachers could teach about the Seal of the President of the United States and the flag of the confederates. There are many concepts and historical information that can come from this one book! Once students have studied up on the president’s duties, they could write an opinion piece based on these questions: What would you do if you were president? What laws would you pass? What would you veto?
        The compositions of the illustrations are what make the story so interesting and fun to read. They enrich the mood of the story to make it flow with the words. The illustrations are drawings that seem to pop off the page. The setting of the story is integral because the story would not be the same in another setting nor with different illustrations.

Ella Sarah Gets Dressed


Chodos-Irvine, M. (2003). Ella Sarah Gets Dressed. New York: Scholastic

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Age Level: 2-5

Summary: In the story, Ella Sarah Gets Dressed, a little girl wants to wear a certain outfit for the day. There is person-to-person conflict when her parents and older sister try to get Ella to wear different outfits. She continues to repeat her outfit of choice over and over when they try to tell her what to wear. Finally, Ella dresses herself in the outfit of her choice and thinks her outfit is perfect. When her friends come over to play they also think her outfit is perfect. You can tell from the illustrations, her friends also dressed themselves for the day.  

Reflection: I thought this book was so cute and brought up memories of my niece. One day we decided to visit my mom at the hospital in which she worked and she needed to get dressed. I laid her clothes out but when she came out of the bedroom she did not have on what I laid out. She picked out her own outfit. I tried and tried to get her to change but she wouldn’t. Then she saw my jewelry and wanted to wear every beaded necklace I had and every bracelet I had. I told her to only wear one and she refused. She wore every beaded necklace and bracelet I had. She thought is looked beautiful and so I let her wear it.

            That day taught me that it is ok to be different. Who cares what I thought of my niece’s outfit when she had the confidence to wear whatever she wanted and felt she was beautiful. I think it is a good idea to let children pick out their clothes. I feel it helps them make choices and develop their opinions without relying on someone else to make them.

The story is realistic fiction because it could happen in real life even though the author made the story up. This book is very short and is an easy reader for those children who are in a beginning reading stage. I would read this story to children within a kindergarten class to help with making predictions because it repeats the same phrase throughout the book making it is very predictable. I would also use these for older students within a 2nd or 3rd grade class when working on personal narratives. Some of the questions I would use to help students write their narratives are: When you were younger did you have a favorite outfit you loved to wear? What did it look like? How did the outfit make you feel? Do you still have a favorite outfit now?

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

About Me

              My name is officially Megan Cyrus but the University of the Cumberlands still refers to me as Megan Murphy. I just got married March 30, 2012 and I have not updated my information with the university. We live on a 72 acre horse farm in Fort Gay, West Virginia. Between us and my in-laws we have a total of 20 horses. We have no children just nieces and nephews that we love to spoil.
               I received my teaching degree from Morehead State University. Before receiving a teaching job, I worked at a daycare for one year. Now I am in my fourth year of teaching, all of which I have taught 2nd grade. I teach at Louisa East Elementary School in Lawrence County, Kentucky. I am also on a positive behavior team, Math cadre team, and also Academic Team coach. I am the Math team lead for the 2nd grade at my school. I LOVE Math!!
               I am working towards a masters as a Reading and Writing Specialist. Not including the class I am in now, I have three classes left. :) I am hoping that with this masters, I will be able to become an intervention teacher within my school system.