Children s Literature October 25, 2017 Library Programs & Services Storytimes 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten Preschool Explorers Parent/Child Workshops Special Events (cultural, art, movement, etc.) Reference Librarians Inter-Library Loan Music CDs Traveling Storytime Trends in Children s Literature Kindness Empathy Inclusion Acceptance Courage Diversity Own Voices Books are sometimes windows, offering views of worlds that may be real or imagined, familiar or strange. These windows are also sliding glass doors, and readers have only to walk through in imagination to become part of whatever world has been created or recreated by the author. When lighting conditions are just right, however, a window can also be a mirror. Literature transforms human experience and reflects it back to us, and in that reflection we can see our own lives and experiences as part of a larger human experience. Reading, then, becomes a means of self-affirmation, and readers often seek their mirrors in books. Rudine Sims Bishop 2017 Titles Egg By: Kevin Henkes Publisher: Greenwillow Books, Publication Date: 1/3/17 Extension Activity: A graphic novel about patience, surprises, and friendship. With repetition, this story is great for toddlers and preschoolers during the spring as birds start to hatch. A Greyhound, A Groundhog By: Emily Jenkins, Illustrator: Chris Applehans Publisher: Schwartz & Wade, Publication Date: 1/23/17 Extension Activity: Anytime you hear the word grey stand up anytime you hear the word ground touch the ground Not Quite Narwhal By: Jessie Sima, Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: 2/14/17 Extension Activity: There are a bunch of narwhal books out recently Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea, Wendall the Narwhal, and Someday Narwhal A Perfect Day By: Lane Smith Publisher: Roaring Brook Press, Publication Date: 2/14/17 Extension Activity: Talk about what you would do on your perfect day.
Noisy Night By: Mac Barnett, Illustrator: Brian Biggs Publisher: Roaring Brook Press, Publication Date: 3/7/17 Extension Activity: Use black paper and neon paint to create your own night time scene. Learn about animals that are nocturnal. If Your Monster Won t Go to Bed By: Denise Vega, Illustrator: Zachariah OHora Publisher: Knopf, Publication Date: 3/14/17 Extension Activity: A fun story for a monster storytime, bedtime routines, or other how-to books for kids. Create your own monster using craft supplies. Triangle By: Mac Barnett, Illustrator: Jon Klassen Publisher: Candlewick Press, Publication Date: 3/14/17 Extension Activity: Practice your typical shapes but also teach kids a few fun ones as well parallelogram, trapezoid, decagon and more! I Don t Draw, I Color! By: Adam Lehrhaupt, Illustrator: Felicita Sala Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: 3/21/17 Extension Activity: Pair with Swatch and My Many Colored Days for a powerful storytime about colors and feelings. We re All Wonders By: R. J. Palacio Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: 3/28/17 Extension Activity: A great story about empathy toward others and friendship Escargot By: Dashka Slater, Illustrator: Sydney Hanson Publisher: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Publication Date: 4/11/17 Extension Activity: Perfect for a story about trying new things, vegetables and more. I think it would work great with Rah, Rah Radishes and other food related books. Also, try the song, Fruit Salad which can be found on the Jbrary YouTube channel it s a crowd favorite! Little Excavator By: Anna Dewdney Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: 6/6/17 Extension Activity: The perfect rhyming story for those little ones who love construction vehicles. Practice rhyming sounds! Say Zoop! By: Hervé Tullet Publisher: Chronicle Books, Publication Date: 8/1/16 Extension Activity: A great story to have kids participate with you as you read. I ve done something similar with Tullet s book Press Here everyone participates from their seat as we read it together. I Am Peace: A Book of Mindfulness By: Susan Verde, Illustrated by: Peter H. Reynolds Publisher: Harry N. Abrams, Publication Date: 9/26/17 Extension Activity: A great book to use when doing some stretching, yoga or deep breathing with kids. Learning what to do when frustrated, angry or upset After the Fall
By: Dan Santat Publisher: Roaring Brook Press Publication Date: 10/3/17 Extension Activity: A great discussion about how to get back up again after you fall down. Check out the book trailer and draw your own Humpty Dumpty characters on hard boiled eggs. La La La By: Kate DiCamillo, Illustrated by: Jaime Kim Publisher: Candlewick Press, Publication Date: 10/3/17 Extension Activity: Pair with call and response or repeat-after-me songs like, There Was a Tree or I Am Hungry found on Jbrary s YouTube channel Love, Triangle By: Marcie Colleen, Illustrator: Bob Shea Publisher: Balzar + Bray, Publication Date: 10/3/17 Extension Activity: A great introduction to three different shapes. Identify shapes and have children wave their own shapes in the air or go on a shape hunt in your classroom. 2016 Titles Be a Friend By: Salina Yoon Publisher: Bloomsbury, Publication Date: 1/5/16 Extension Activity: A great story to share with a friendship theme and to teach children that different isn t necessarily bad. I Hear a Pickle (And Smell, See, Touch, and Taste It, Too!) By: Rachel Isadora Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books, Publication Date: 1/12/16 Extension Activity: A great primer for learning about senses and a pickle tasting activity would be fun too! Snappsy the Alligator By: Julie Falatko Illustrated by: Tim Miller Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers Publication Date: 2/2/16 Extension Activity: Have your own party to celebrate Snappsy decorate the classroom, have snacks that start with the letter P and have a dance party! Swap By: Steve Light Publisher: Candlewick Press, Publication Date: 2/9/16 Extension Activity: A pirate story about swapping one thing for something else check out the book trailer online. Perfect for a pirate theme during Talk Like a Pirate Day in September. Ideas Are All Around By: Philip C. Stead Publisher: Roaring Brook Press, Publication Date: 3/1/16 Extension Activity: Take the kids for a walk outdoors or even in the classroom and try to find the little surprising things you don t notice every day. When Green Becomes Tomatoes: Poems for All Seasons By: Julie Fogliano, Illustrated by: Julie Morstad Publisher: Roaring Brook Press, Publication Date: 3/1/16 Extension Activity: Poems to share throughout the year perfect when starting a new season!
A Hungry Lion or a Dwindling Assortment of Animals By: Lucy Ruth Cummins Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: 3/15/16 Extension Activity: Pair with A Very Hungry Caterpillar for a great storytime all about eating! Flora and the Peacocks By: Molly Idle Publisher: Chronicle Books, Publication Date: 5/3/16 Extension Activity: Create your own tails or paper fans when the weather starts getting warmer. Also, let the kids hear what a peacock sounds like using YouTube. And check out the book trailer on YouTube as well. One Day in the Eucalyptus, Eucalyptus Tree By: Daniel Bernstrom, Illustrated by: Brenan Wenzel Publisher: HarperCollins, Publication Date: 5/3/16 Extension Activity: Pair this story with I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a City Shapes By: Diana Murray, Illustrated by: Bryan Collier Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: 6/21/16 Extension Activity: A great title that looks at shapes in the city a great way to expose kids to city life, if they don t live there School s First Day of School By: Adam Rex, Illustrated by: Christian Robinson Publisher: Roaring Brook Press, Publication Date: 6/28/16 Extension Activity: The perfect story to share during the first week of school about how a school feels as it gets ready to start school! Maybe Something Beautiful: How Art Transformed a Neighborhood By: F. Isabel Campoy & Theresa Howell, Illustrated by: Rafael López Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: 8/12/16 Extension Activity: Create something that makes your classroom more beautiful try an open art program provide kids with leftover art supplies and let them create! They All Saw a Cat By: Brendan Wenzel Publisher: Chronicle Books, Publication Date: 8/30/16 Extension Activity: Draw your own picture of a cat or practice cat yoga poses to stretch your back Leave Me Alone! By: Vera Brosgol Publisher: Roaring Brook Press, Publication Date: 9/13/16 Extension Activity: An interactive story perfect for getting your kids to really pay attention to the illustrations and all yell together, LEAVE ME ALONE Owl Sees Owl By: Laura Godwin Illustrated by: Rob Dunlavey Publisher: Schwartz & Wade Publication Date: 9/20/16 Extension Activity: Using your own wings, Soar/Glide/Swoop/Swoosh through this story. Shy By: Deborah Freedman Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: 9/27/16
Extension Activity: A story of friendship, courage and kindness. Pair this with a discussion of feelings and friendship We Found a Hat By: Jon Klassen Publisher: Candlewick Press, Publication Date: 10/11/16 Extension Activity: The third book in the Hat trilogy about friendship and sharing. Work this in with a sharing theme Du Iz Tak? By: Cason Ellis Publisher: Candlewick Press, Publication Date: 10/18/16 Extension Activity: Fun read aloud with made-up words the perfect story to picture walk through with the class before and/or after reading it aloud This Is Not a Picture Book! By: Sergio Ruzzier Publisher: Chronicle Books, Publication Date: 5/3/16 Extension Activity: A great story for kids who are learning to read and also a great way to introduce writing your own book (with pictures, of course)! 2015 Titles Last Stop on Market Street By: Matt de la Peña, Illustrated by: Christian Robinson Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: 1/8/15 Extension Activity: Talk about being thankful for what you have and ask what kids can do to help others Perfect story to share around a Thanksgiving unit Hoot Owl, Master of Disguise By: Sean Taylor, Illustrated by: Jean Jullien Publisher: Candlewick Press, Publication Date: 2/10/15 Extension Activity: A fun superhero-esque story that would pair well with nonfiction books about owls or a nighttime theme. Wolfie the Bunny By: Ame Dyckman, Illustrated by: Zachariah OHora Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: 2/17/15 Extension Activity: A great picture book if you re talking about families. Have kids draw their own family on paper Up In the Garden and Down In the Dirt By: Kate Messner, Illustrated by: Christopher Silas Neal Publisher: Chronicle Books, Publication Date: 3/3/15 Extension Activity: Pair this story with science books about animals underground or in a garden Go on a nature walk and show kids where these animals may be hiding Families, Families, Families By: Suzanne Lang & Max Lang Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers Publication Date: 3/24/15 Extension Activity: A diverse story about all different types of families. Kids can share about their own families or you can talk about different types of animal families.
To the Sea By: Cale Atkinson Publisher: Disney-Hyperion, Publication Date: 6/2/15 Extension Activity: A beautiful friendship story and helping those in need. For a STEM idea, use YouTube to find a recording of a whale song. There s also a little book trailer for this movie that is adorable! Flutter & Hum: Animal Poems By: Julie Paschkis Publisher: Henry Holt & Co., Publication Date: 8/18/15 Extension Activity: Also includes Spanish translations of the poems. A great book for an animal unit or poetry unit. McToad Mows Tiny Island By: Tom Angleberger, Illustrated by: John Hendrix Publisher: Harry N. Abrams, Publication Date: 9/1/15 Extension Activity: If you re looking for a new title about transportation this is it! McToad uses all sorts of transportation to get his mower to Tiny Island! Max the Brave By: Ed Vere Publisher: Puffin Books, Publication Date: 9/5/15 Extension Activity: Check out Emily Arrow s song about this book - a ukulele song that s fun to dance to! Strictly No Elephants By: Lisa Mantchev, Illustrated by: Taeeun Yoo Publisher: Simon & Schuster, Publication Date: 10/27/15 Extension Activity: Act out what kind of animal you d like for a pet or draw your pet s picture Read Aloud Reminders If you re not excited, they won t be excited You don t have to read every word or even every page, but don t substitute difficult words for easier ones, instead talk about the new vocabulary together (a good book has 3x richer vocabulary than everyday conversation) Don t be afraid to use the same title multiple days, change up extension activities to keep it fresh kids love repetition Look for books that show diversity gender, race, culture, etc. Slow Down young children s brains take a longer time to process information, so give them time to build the world in their head as you read Resources All the Wonders podcasts, interviews, crafts and extension activities for children s books (allthewonders.com) Brightly a website to connect families with books, spearheaded by Penguin Random House but promotes all children s books (readbrightly.com) Children s Book Council (CBC) booklists for building a home library, a Goodreads list of diverse books, etc. (cbcbooks.org) Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy (CLEL) a great book award that happens every year specifically for picture books (clel.org) CYBILS book awards given by children s book bloggers (cybils.com) Jbrary Blog & YouTube Channel filled with songs and stories for toddlers and preschoolers (jbrary.com or youtube.com/jbrary) Literacious my own blog with book reviews, storytime lesson plans and a lot more (literacious.com) PA Cruise Into Kindergarten a lot of great resources all in one place (cruiselibraries.org)