Aunt Chip and the Great Triple Creek Dam Affair (Patricia Polacco)

Another great Patricia Polacco! And once again, there were gasps when they started to figure out the story. These are a joy to read to a class!

Reread April 2022: This is one of those books that kids give a round of applause for when it's finished. They love that the kids teach the adults and that the adults are such buffoons who don't know how to read.

Goodreads summary:

How much TV is too much TV? Welcome to Triple Creek, where the townspeople watch TV day and night. They watch it when they're eating, working, playing, and sleeping. They even use TVs to teach the kids at school. But when Eli's eccentric Aunt Chip (who refuses to own a TV) discovers that her nephew and her neighbors don't remember how to read, she pulls the plug on the whole town?using books that have been piled high to build a dam to spread the magic of reading all around.

Something About Hensleys (Patricia Polacco)

Patricia Polacco has a magic story telling gift. Every my toughest students who don't seem to enjoy story time get drawn into her stories. My students even gasped as the two girls were walking down the street and came across a kitten while having just what they needed to catch the kitten.

I started off telling my class how my husband's family lives in a very small town and everyone loves to go to The Merc. You find all sorts of cool things at The Merc....just like at Hensley's. This is a historical fiction book. The author says she is still loyal to Hensley's because of her great experiences there.

Goodreads summary:

There's something about Hensley's! No matter what you need, that general store is sure to have it. It's almost magical the way the manager, Old John, seems to know what the townsfolk need before they do! But then a new family moves to town. The youngest child, Molly, has asthma--but her mother doesn't have money to treat her, or for anything else. But leave it to Old John to find a way to use Hensley's to give the family exactly what it needs, even if it can't be boxed or bagged.

A true--and truly moving--story about an unforgettable general store and about the extraordinary power one person's acts of kindness can have on another.

About the Author: Patricia Polacco lives in Union City, Michigan.

IMWAYR

One of my grade 4 students gave this book to me MONTHS ago because he thought it would be good for book club. He'd ask me what I thought of it and I'd embarrassingly say I wasn't quite finished it yet (Why didn't I just say I hadn't started it yet??!) I finally started reading it and he's right! It is a great book. 

I will probably always be working on this book. I need to just get serious and read it and get on with life! I know it's a good one. Why do I hesitate??

El Deafo (CeceBell)

This is our grade 3 book club book this month. It's perfect timing because in science we are doing a unit on Hearing and Sound.

I appreciate being able to read books like this and hear about things from someone's perspective. I hope I'm not as insensitive as people she knew growing up!


Goodreads summary:

Starting at a new school is scary, even more so with a giant hearing aid strapped to your chest! At her old school, everyone in Cece's class was deaf. Here she is different. She is sure the kids are staring at the Phonic Ear, the powerful aid that will help her hear her teacher. Too bad it also seems certain to repel potential friends.

Then Cece makes a startling discovery. With the Phonic Ear she can hear her teacher not just in the classroom, but anywhere her teacher is in school--in the hallway...in the teacher's lounge...in the bathroom! This is power. Maybe even superpower! Cece is on her way to becoming El Deafo, Listener for All. But the funny thing about being a superhero is that it's just another way of feeling different... and lonely. Can Cece channel her powers into finding the thing she wants most, a true friend?

This funny perceptive graphic novel memoir about growing up hearing impaired is also an unforgettable book about growing up, and all the super and super embarrassing moments along the way. 

Something From Nothing (Phoebe Gilman)

This story fits well with our Open Court unit on money.

We loved the little story under the story.

Goodreads summary:

The blanket Joseph's grandfather made him is transformed into many things as the years go by: a jacket, a vest, a tie, a handkerchief--and finally a button. Gilman's modern adaptation and lively illustrations turn this favorite Jewish tale into a contemporary classic.

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IMWAYR

It's the same as last week.
It makes me sad. I just haven't had time to read!
It must be May :(
Hurry up summer!! I need my reading time.

What Moms Can't Do (Douglas Wood)

Warning: Don't read this book with a bunch of kids if you're not ready to hear some funny mom stories. Almost every page, someone said, "That's true! You know, my mom...." and they'd have something that related to each page. The story goes through a mom's day from a kid's perspective. Quite well done. Apparently, there's a What Dads Can't Do as well. We will have to find it.

Goodreads summary:

Shows a child pondering the many problems that mothers must deal with in the course of a normal day.

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