The Very Pink Unicorn

A Wrinkle in Time is a well rounded science fiction fantasy novel about t hirteen-year-old  Meg Murry 's classmates and teachers see her as a troublesome and stubborn student. Her family knows that she is emotionally immature but also sees her capable of doing great things. The family includes her beautiful scientist mother, her missing scientist father, her athletic 10-year-old twin brothers,  Sandy and Dennys ; and her five-year-old brother  Charles Wallace Murry , a  child prodigy   genius  who can sometimes read Meg's mind.  Throughout the book, amazing things happen, taking Meg on a journey to find her missing father.  This book can strike a nerve for anyone with missing parents but can also help them to open their minds to the possibilities of science and time.  Other books by this author are A Window in the Door and A Swiftly Tilting Planet, all sequels to her most profound novel A Wrinkle in Time. Classroom Activities: 1.) Students can create their own fantasy w

Brown Girl Dreaming is a memoir about  Jacqueline Woodson, one of today's finest writers, that tells the moving story of her childhood in mesmerizing verse.   Raised in South Carolina and New York, Woodson always felt halfway home in each place. In vivid poems, she shares what it was like to grow up as an African American in the 1960s and 1970s, living with the remnants of Jim Crow and her growing awareness of the Civil Rights movement.  The poems in this book are extremely vivid, touching and powerful.  Even being about a young brown girl, this book can be used to teach any young girl to live their life, follows their dreams, and shoot for the stars.  In my personal opinion, this book is a strong read due to the fact that it is extremely emotionally charged and well balanced throughout its entirety.  Other novels written by this author are Each Kindness and Another Brooklyn. Classroom Activities: 1.) Have students write a poem that strongly correlates to their person

Wonder is a heart-warming, love-filled, inspirational novel written by R.J. Palacio.  As a realistic fiction novel, you begin to understand why choosing kindness any day is the best option.  In the book, Auggie, the main character, is a child with a very rare birth defect who does not automatically enjoy going to school but with the help of his friends Summer and Jack helps them to understand why being kind to their friend goes a long way.  I would reccomend this book to be read to students in grades three and up when they begin to learn about kindness towards their peers.  This book can be used during national bullying prevention week as well. Learning about being kind and using literature to do so kills two birds with one stone and allows educators to reveal the secret that literature can be used for almost every situation. We're All Wonders was also written by R.J. Palacio. Classroom Activities: 1.) Students can read the book and then watch the movie.  After doing bot

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is an autobiographical novel by Maya Angelou  that illustrates how the strength of character and a love of literature can help overcome  racism  and  trauma .  When reading this book, keep in mind that the author used her own personal life to guide literature in a way that creates a new outlook on how you can handle your own personal situation based on any trial or tribulation in your own life.  A book like this can be used in a classroom and can help students to understand how to speak up for themselves in situations they feel they are voiceless in.  Maya Angelou has written a plethora of novels that include Mom & Me & Mom and And Still I Rise. Classroom Activities: 1.)  Students can write a short story about their own lives and use the text in the book as a way to figure out how they can overcome the trials and tribulations in their own lives. 2.)  Have students write to Maya Angelou (pretend letters) asking what her life was like a

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a historical fiction novel written by John Boyne.  This book is based on a boy named Bruno who is forced to move away from his home due to a promotion that his father received from work.  Bruno soon finds himself a new friend in Shmuel who is stuck with an unfortunate fate as Bruno learns Shmuel is confined to a concentration camp.  Trying to save Shmuel, Bruno finds himself facing the exact same fate of being placed in a gas chamber to die.  The story told in this book, based on facts of a historical event during the times of concentration camps and gas chambers, allows readers to understand what exactly happened during the Holocaust and gives a small insight to what it was like to be on both the outside and inside.  Novels like this one are The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne Frank and Night by Elie Wiesel. Classroom Activities: 1.)  Have the children write a letter to a Holocaust survivor and send them to the survivors.  Or if there are no mor

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl is based on the fantasy idea of a young boy named Charlie who won a golden ticket contest, hosted by none other than the famous Willy Wonka, to attend Wonka’s tour of his chocolate factory.  During his visit, Charlie experiences the children around him and how they react with their parents and is eventually the “last child standing” by the end of the tour.  Wonka eventually invites Charlie and his family to come live with him in his factory to which they agree.  This book feeds on the amazement of just being able to experience what happens in a chocolate factory where the world’s most desired candy is created.  Reading the book, you can automatically place yourself in this fantasy world making it seem so real.  This book was later presented as two feature films, one released in 1971 titled Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and the other titled Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, after the book.  Other books by this same author are The

Holes by Louis Sachar is about a 14-year-old boy named Stanley Yelnats struck with misfortune due to a family curse and had later been wrongly convicted of theft.  Yelnats ended up being sent to Camp Green Lake where he was to dig holes to "build character" but later Stanley begins to suspect they are digging for other purposes.  This book was late adapted into a feature film starring Shia LaBeouf.  As mystery genres go, this book keeps you on the edge of your seat because who wouldn't want to know about a secret hidden treasure chest and all the glories it may possess.  I would recommend this book to teachers to read to their students simply because it comes with a great lesson: "ALWAYS stick to your gut feeling.  It never steers you wrong".  There are also sequels to this book titled Holes: Stanley Yelnats' Survival Guide to Camp Green Lake and Small Steps by the same author. Classroom Activities: 1.)  A fun and creative way to have children i

Tikki Tikki Tembo by Arlene Mosel, illustrated by Blair Lent, is about two brothers, one is older and most honored with a very long name to match! One is younger and less honored with a very short name. When each boy falls into the well, Mother learns a powerful lesson about having too long of a name! This book really gives a view of how Asians take pride in giving longer names to certain children but realizing that a long name is not very necessary at all. Folklore was created as a genre to keep cultures alive and express the importance of keeping the culture alive from generation to generation. In order to keep folklore alive, one must keep the story genuine and without misunderstanding. Another book by this same author is The Funny Little Woman. Classroom Activities: 1.) To make things creative, have the children in your class pick a topic that is of their own culture, like ceremonial clothing or facial jewelry, and have them research the subject. The students can then wr

A Stick is An Excellent Thing by Marilyn Singer is a compilation of 18 poems that capture the enjoyment of outdoor games played all around the world.  This book shows that although we grow older, games are timeless and can be enjoyed from generation to generation.  I enjoyed reading these poems because as a little girl, I grew up playing most of these games but to know that the same games are played around the world but in different ways shows how we are all the same in many, many ways.  The book expresses poetry in every way such as personification, verse, rhyme scheme, and even being content that speaks to readers.  Another book by this author is Tallulah's Tutu. Classroom activities: 1.) Since there are 18 poems that express the participation of outside activities, each day, for 18 days, choose a poem to read and then allow the children in your classroom to split into groups (or have one giant group) and play the game of the poem that was chosen.  Have each student pick

Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly is the  biographical text that follows the lives of  Human Computers such as  Katherine Johnson ,  Dorothy Vaughan , and  Mary Jackson , three mathematicians (known as "human computers" ) who overcame discrimination, as women and as African Americans, while working at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration ( NASA ) during the  Space Race , as well as  Christine Darden , who was the first African-American woman to be promoted into the  Senior Executive Service  for her work in researching  supersonic flight  and  sonic booms .    It was the basis of a  film by the same name  which was nominated for three Oscars. The set up of this book is to allow the reader to understand one of the most important parts of history that were seldom discussed due to the fact that the main roles were about African American women being the ones to do the unthinkable at a time period like the one in the book.  Shetterly brings to light, every sing

As if being the new kid in class isn't already hard enough, Unhei was afraid that no one would be able to pronounce her name.  After careful consideration, she began a search for her own American name but soon enough her classmates realized that helping her see the special meaning in her own personal name was much more important. The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi shows the difficulties non-American people face when they come to live in the United States of America.  The pictures in the book really give the story life as they carefully express the story through them.  Her classmates helping her to figure out why her own name is unique helps build character and helps to get to know a classmate better as well as helping them with a personal matter.  Many Asian families migrate to the United States where they end up changing their children's names so that they will fit in with American culture.  Li becomes Michael, Chien-Shiung becomes Katie and so on.  This particular book is a

The Colors of Us, written and illustrated by Karen Katz, is about a little girl named Lena who wants to paint a self-portrait using brown paint for her skin tone.  The simple statement "brown is brown" leads Lena and her mother to take a stroll down their block to help Lena understand that there are a plethora of browns all around her.  The Color of Us can be defined as a type of memoir picturebook.  It gives an account of someone's personal life while adding pictures for likeness and representation.  The use of every color brown sheds light on the exact meaning of the title as well as providing visual examples for readers who may be just as curious to know why brown is not just brown and what "cinnamon" and "toffy" actually look like. This book allows the reader to fully grasp the concept of how many colors truly surround us all.  Karen Katz shows an exciting and creative way of describing everyday people that we always see to make them more notic