The Wild Robot by Peter Brown

A ship carrying robots has shipwrecked and five boxes with robots in them have landed on a "deserted" island. Four of the robots are destroyed in the crash against the rocks and are useless but one robot is intact.  A few otters come and check out the wreckage and accidentally turn on the button of the robot who survived.  She comes to life and as a programmed robot begins to access her situation and wanders around the island.  She encounters danger and begins to figure out how to adapt to her surroundings in nature.  She even learns how to create a community with the animals and fosters a young goose.  But her past comes back to her when the creators of the robots send advanced robots unto the island to bring her back.  Is the robot considered a robot any longer or has she progressed to a creature with personality and choice?  These are some questions to think about!

Peter Brown created some wonderful illustrations for this book. His experience as a popular picture book creator has been included in this middle grade novel.  I always enjoy when a middle grade book adds some pictures throughout the novel.  The book is science fiction but it is easy to forget because so much of the book includes nature and animal experiences on the island. The writing is wonderful and the story is excellent. This is a can't put it down book for me! I am reading this from a list of Newbery contenders for 2017. So far, this is my favorite and may just end up with the prize or maybe the Caldecott?  After last years Newbery winner, it wouldn't surprise me!

School Library Journal lists the grade level from 3-7th grade. I would agree. The AR reading level is 5.1 and it is 5 pts. (Takes between 5 and 10 hours to read) It is a good book to choose for elementary libraries.  I will be putting it as a recommendation for the MHL list in hardcover.

Interview with Peter Brown

• Age Range: 8 - 11 years
• Grade Level: 3 - 7
• Lexile Measure: 740
• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (April 5, 2016)

ITEM Conference 2016

I was delighted to find out last spring that I was awarded a scholarship to go to the ITEM Conference this fall.  ITEM is the professional organization for Information and Technology Educators of Minnesota.   The following link is a summary of some of the sessions and keynotes that I experienced.  I was encouraged in my profession, motivated to try something new, and found lots of professional support and innovative ideas. I encourage all media and technology teachers to put this on your calendar to attend next year.

Here is a link to my Google Slides that reports on my experience at the conference.

ITEM Conference 2016 Summary by Diane Yliniemi

Reading The Secret Chicken Society to 3rd Grade Classes

Each year I choose a Maud Hart Lovelace book that is short enough to read to the 3rd graders. Even though the book might also be one they can read independently, I find that there are so many enhancements to the read aloud....vocabulary, background knowledge, projects, etc.  

So this year I started keeping track of the first reading on chart paper, Then I found some great you tube videos and graphics and I had to find a new way to save our progress.  So check out our padlet!

We are reading chapter 3 and 4 this cycle.  There are twelve chapters in the book. 

I plan to introduce a chicken project where we collect spare change for a flock or more of chickens for Heifer International.  

Secret Chicken Society Padlet

The Cat Who Came In off the Roof by Annie Schmidt

I went the Information and Technology Educator's of Minnesota (ITEM) last weekend.  One of my favorite things is to hear book-talks of the best books for the year. Mackin publishing did a fabulous job. At the end of the presentation, everyone got to take one of the books.  Like candy in my profession! So the book I took home was The Cat Who Came in off the Roof. It is written by a Dutch author who died in 1995.  This book is one of the classic titles in Dutch children's literature.  It was a delightful read.  It isn't eligible for a Maud Hart Lovelace title because the author isn't from North America.  I think being deceased would also be a reason.

I loved this story. I reminded me of my childhood favorite 101 Dalmatians by Dodie Smith. Yes, it was an actual chapter book and not just a picture book of a Disney movie.  The cover illustration also reminds me of 101 Dalmatian movie. It starts with a women who is helped down from a tree by a shy reporter. The woman was in the tree because she was scared of a dog.  You soon find out that the woman is really a cat who turned into a woman after eating something in the garbage at a chemical plant. She ends of living as "secretary" for the reporter. The poor reporter has been ordered to start writing other news stories instead of the cat ones he seems to come up with. Minou (the woman/cat) goes around to all her cat friends and sources stories for the reporter to help save his job.  There is also a mystery and a town villain character that needs to be revealed.

What a fun read. School Library Journal recommends it for grades 3-6. The reading level is 3.9.  I give this book a thumbs up for both boy and girl elementary students.  It is also an appropriate read aloud to a class.

 

• Age Range: 10 and up 
• Grade Level: 5 and up
• Lexile Measure: 0500 
• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers (January 19, 2016)

Lost In The Sun by Lisa Graff

I was determined to finish this book and not abandon it. It was a slow going book for me.  I just couldn't connect to the characters or the story. It is a middle school angst story about a boy named Trent. He accidently hit a boy with a hockey puck on a lake and the boy died. He had a heart defect no one knew about. But Trent, of course, feels a lot of blame and shame. He feels like the world is against him. And it seems to be.  His family has issues. His father and mother are divorced and he has to visit his father and his new wife along with his other siblings. The visits are not the most pleasant. Trent struggles to find a place in middle school and has a lot of anger building up. The title Lost in the Sun comes from baseball: when a fly ball gets lost in the sun, you have to remember to shift your position to find it. Trent has a lot of changing and shifting to work on.

Not a favorite of mine.  However, many reviewers have loved it. You may have to read it and find out if this is your kind of book. 

It is a Divison II book. There are some swear words in the book. It is for both boy and girl middle school students.  It is a 4.5 reading level.  I give it a 2 out of 4.

Print Length: 296 pages

Publisher: Philomel Books; Dgs Rep edition (May 26, 2015)

Publication Date: May 26, 2015

Sold by: Penguin Group

Big Bad Detective Agency by Bruce Hale

The Big Bad Wolf is accused of vandalizing The Three Little Pig's home.  He claims innocence and so the police asks him to figure out who really was the criminal or else go to jail.  A fourth little pig named Ferkel hooks up with the wolf to help him solve the crimes.  The twosome go throughout Fairylandia and question possible suspects like Hansel and Gretel or Goldilocks. Each fairy-tale character is over the top in personality and are definitely not how they were in their original story. Their characters are very questionable!  As a good detective team, they do figure out who did the crime and decide that perhaps they should open up a detective agency and continue investigations. Perhaps a set up for future books? 

The tone is of this book is humor, slapstick, and more like a detective show.  Some of the vocabulary may be difficult and the humor is more on the dark side.  I am sure many kids will laugh out loud. I personally hoped it to be more on the positive side and so it isn't my favorite read.  I like my mysteries more cozy.  I give this book a 3 out of 4. It is good for the 3rd grade readers in division 1 of Maud Hart Lovelace.  The reading level is 3.9 (vocabulary), the book is short with 120 pages that includes plenty of drawings.  

• Age Range: 7 - 10 years
• Grade Level: 2 - 5
• Lexile Measure: 570 (What's this?)
• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Paperbacks (January 27, 2015)

Nuts to You by Lynne Rae Perkins

I thought I would just love Nuts to You as much as I loved Apple Blossom the Possum. They have so many similarities.  However, this book just didn't tug at my heart like the possum family.  Nuts to You is the story of a squirrel who gets picked up by a hawk but manages to escape in the air but falls far from the tree home.  A couple of squirrels watched where he landed and take off to find him. They discover that the electrical company is cutting down trees under the electrical poles and lines and it is destroying the homes of animals as well. They have to figure out how to warn the animals and save themselves as well.

I think the pictures in this book are adorable!  Lynn Rae Perkins must have created them as well since no other person is listed. I might have liked this book better on Audible.  There was some cute dialogue and snappy conversations that seemed perfect for listening.  This might be fun as a read aloud!   There is a message of tree conservation in this book - in the last few pages it really sent home to the reader what the theme of the book is about.  I also have to say that sometimes the squirrels were really "squirrelly" (silly, random, hyper!).  I rate this book a 2.5.  It would be good for division 1 and both boys and girls.  The reading level is 4.2.

• Age Range: 8 - 12 years
• Grade Level: 3 - 7
• Lexile Measure: 560 
• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Greenwillow Books; Reprint edition (May 3, 2016)

Ellie's Story: A Dog's Purpose Novel by W. Bruce Cameron

Ellie's Story is a terrific realistic story about a search and rescue dog from the dog's point of view. Ellie is picked out of a litter of puppies after a trainer plays with the pups and determines that the little pup may have the right intelligence and temperament for the purpose of working the police department.  The entire story is told from the eyes and thoughts of this German Shepherd dog.  You are introduced the adults and trainers in her life through her clues and perspective. It is just a charming and wonderful story.

If a student loves dogs then this is the book for them.  I also found it fascinating to see how a puppy is actually trained for search and rescue situations.  This is not a book full of humor but of empathy and compassion in its heart warming story-line.  This is a great division 1 book for both boys and girls. The reading level is 4.2.  I give it a 4 out of 4.

• Age Range: 8 - 12 years
• Grade Level: 3 - 7
• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Starscape; First Edition edition (April 14, 2015)

The Question of Miracles by Elana K. Arnold

It's been awhile since I have posted a book....because, well I started reading adult books I guess! But I am now back to reading books from the Maud Hart Lovelace nominee potentials for next year.  I have several books to write about.

The Question of Miracles is a story about a girl named Iris Abernathy who has moved to a small town in Oregon with her parents.  She came from sunny California and the rainy weather of Oregon has not helped with her adjustment.  You also find out that Iris believes her best friend, who tragically died, is a ghost under the stairs closet in their new house.  I was getting ready for a scary mystery. But the book is actually about Iris as she tries to deal with the death of her best friend. She meets a boy who she finds out is considered a miracle because before he was born, they determined he would probably not survive and yet he thrived.  The Catholic church declares it a miracle and so Iris wonders how miracles are given out. Is it faith or luck? She spends time in counseling and just grappling with big questions of life. She also makes new friends and begins to slowly move on.

Iris's family is not a spiritual family and so her questions about miracles and God cannot be discussed with them without just getting more questions. She tries to look to others for different answers.  As a believer in God and his interest in my life, I felt sad that Iris had so little hope for her life and for others.  Her interest in her friend's miracle life shows that seeking answers outside of a concrete science thinking mindset is natural for people.  I am glad the author did not shut down all the thoughts about miracles but left it open for the readers.  When science can't answer, our spirit may just lead us to a greater truth.

This book moves a bit slowly, and since it isn't a ghost story after all, may be disappointing to some readers. I would give it a solid 3 out of 4.  It was a good book, but probably not going to appeal to everyone. It is a 5.3 reading level and perfect for 5th grade and up. More girl appeal as well.

Age Range: 10 - 12 years

• Grade Level: 5 - 7
• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers (February 3, 2015)