Pete and Pickles (Berkley Breathed)

 

I love this author's style. The book was easy to read and very engaging. We loved the adventures that Pete and Pickles went on.  This would be a great transition book from our friendship unit to our imagination unit.

Goodreads says:

Pete is a perfectly predictable, practical, uncomplicated pig. At least, he was . . . before a runaway circus elephant named Pickles stampeded into his life, needing a friend. Pickles is larger than life and overflowing with imagination. She takes Pete swandiving off Niagara Falls. (Sort of.) And sledding down the Matterhorn. (Sort of.) Pete goes along for the wild ride and actually begins to enjoy himself . . . until Pickles goes too far. And Pete tells her she must leave. Yet sometimes the simple life isn?t all it?s cracked up to be.

Pulitzer Prize?winning cartoonist Berkeley Breathed offers two new irresistible characters and a heartfelt, hilarious look at the rarity of true friendship.

The Warlord's Puzzle (Virginia Walton Pilegard)

Amazing illustrations! Great way to introduce tangrams.

Goodreads says:

A young peasant boy convinces his poor but wise father to enter a contest to solve the warlordis puzzle, which is actually the original tangram
 

Indistractable (Nir Eyal)

 

This is a great book. I want to also read his book, Hooked. In this book, he gives a lot of really great tips. Two that I started already are I turned off notifications on my email so that I'm not distracted at school every time I get an email. I also signed up for FocusMate. I haven't used it yet...but I plan to. 

This is a book I plan to go back and read annually to reflect on how I'm doing and make additional adjustments.

Goodreads says:

You sit down at your desk to work on an important project, but a notification on your phone interrupts your morning. Later, as you're about to get back to work, a colleague taps you on the shoulder to chat. At home, screens get in the way of quality time with your family. Another day goes by, and once again, your most important personal and professional goals are put on hold.  

What would be possible if you followed through on your best intentions? What could you accomplish if you could stay focused and overcome distractions? What if you had the power to become "indistractable"?  

International best-selling author, former Stanford lecturer, and behavioral design expert, Nir Eyal, wrote Silicon Valley's handbook for making technology habit-forming. Five years after publishing Hooked, Eyal reveals distraction's Achilles' heel in his groundbreaking new book.  

In Indistractable, Eyal reveals the hidden psychology driving us to distraction. He describes why solving the problem is not as simple as swearing off our devices: Abstinence is impractical and often makes us want more.  

Eyal lays bare the secret of finally doing what you say you will do with a four-step, research-backed model. Indistractable reveals the key to getting the best out of technology, without letting it get the best of us.  

Inside, Eyal overturns conventional wisdom and reveals: 


Why distraction at work is a symptom of a dysfunctional company culture - and how to fix it  
What really drives human behavior and why "time management is pain management"  
Why your relationships (and your sex life) depend on you becoming indistractable  
How to raise indistractable children in an increasingly distracting world 
Empowering and optimistic, Indistractable provides practical, novel techniques to control your time and attention - helping you live the life you really want.

Truth Pixie Goes to School (Matt Haig)

 

I love the rhyming in this story! 100+ pages and it never fails! 

I'm also really impressed by the illustrator, Chris Mould. There are a LOT of illustrations in this book and they're all very compelling. 

I heard a podcast where Matt Haig was being interviewed and he said that his kids books are all kind of self-help books for kids. I would totally agree with that for this book. There are a lot of good things to learn about friendship, standing up for what is right and not being bullied into doing what others think is cool. 

Goodreads says:

New school. New friends. Same old pixie.

'Aada started her new school,
And the pixie came too.
But this school was a place
Where it was hard to be true . . .'

An uplifting story that will delight younger readers and help them to be themselves in their school uniform. With words by the bestselling mastermind Matt Haig and pictures by the inky genius Chris Mould.

Room on Our Rock (Kate and Jol Temple)

 

This is an amazing story! Brilliance in writing!

Goodreads says:

Two seals are perched on a rock. When others need shelter, do they share it? Room on Our Rock celebrates the truth that there are two sides to every story. This clever picture book has one story that can be read two different ways.

When read from front to back, the seals believe there is definitely no room on their rock for others. But when the book is read from back to front, the seals welcome others to shelter on their rock. A heartwarming story about sharing and compassion.

Fing (David Walliams)

 

I've never read a David Walliams book aloud before. I don't even think I've read one of his books...but I decided to read this one to my class because I felt like we needed something crazy that they'd really enjoy a good laugh about. When I was reading, my students had some serious belly laughs and it was a delight to see them enjoy it so much. It is especially "explosively funny" if you are 8 years old.

In this story, Myrtle is a terribly spoiled and rotten child. In the end, she gets her due....thank goodness! 

Goodreads says:

The jaw-achingly funny children’s book from No. 1 bestselling author David Walliams – a deliciously daft Tall Story of a child who had everything, but still wanted more. Illustrated by artistic genius, Tony Ross.

Meet the Meeks!

Myrtle Meek has everything she could possibly want. But everything isn’t enough. She wants more, more, MORE! When Myrtle declares she wants a FING, there’s only one problem… What is a FING?

Mr and Mrs Meek will do anything to keep their darling daughter happy, even visit the spooky library vaults to delve into the dusty pages of the mysterious Monsterpedia. Their desperate quest leads to the depths of the jungliest jungle where the rarest creatures can be found. But will they ever find a FING?

An explosively funny, totally surreal Tall Story about two perfectly nice parents and their unbelievably monstrous daughter from the phenomenal bestselling author David Walliams.

Grit (Angela Duckworth)

 This is a book to read again and again! It is strongly tied with the ideas of Carol Dweck and growth mindset. Perseverence is key!

Goodreads says:
In this must-read book for anyone striving to succeed, pioneering psychologist Angela Duckworth shows parents, educators, students, and business people both seasoned and new that the secret to outstanding achievement is not talent but a focused persistence called grit.

Why do some people succeed and others fail? Sharing new insights from her landmark research on grit, Angela Duckworth explains why talent is hardly a guarantor of success. Rather, other factors can be even more crucial such as identifying our passions and following through on our commitments.

Drawing on her own powerful story as the daughter of a scientist who frequently bemoaned her lack of smarts, Duckworth describes her winding path through teaching, business consulting, and neuroscience, which led to the hypothesis that what really drives success is not genius, but a special blend of passion and long-term perseverance. As a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, Duckworth created her own character lab and set out to test her theory.

Here, she takes readers into the field to visit teachers working in some of the toughest schools, cadets struggling through their first days at West Point, and young finalists in the National Spelling Bee. She also mines fascinating insights from history and shows what can be gleaned from modern experiments in peak performance. Finally, she shares what she's learned from interviewing dozens of high achievers; from JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon to the cartoon editor of The New Yorker to Seattle Seahawks Coach Pete Carroll.

Winningly personal, insightful, and even life-changing, Grit is a book about what goes through your head when you fall down, and how that not talent or luck makes all the difference.

Truth Pixie (Matt Haig)

 

Goodreads says this book is 3.5 in the Christmas series. #1 is A Boy Called Christmas, #1.5 is A Mouse Called Miika, #2 is The Girl Who Saved Christmas. I'm not sure what #3 is! 

This one was delightful. It's a rhyming book and has a great story about friendship, the hazards of being a little too honest and trusting that things will work out. 

Goodreads says:

https://ihaveabookyoushouldread.blogspot.com/2022/12/a-boy-called-christmas-matt-haig.html

A Walk in the Words

 

This is a fantastic metaphor for what it is like when you struggle with reading. I loved talking about how students do not need to worry about how fast someone else reads...and that savoring the words is a delicious experience. 

Goodreads says:

When Hudson Talbott was a little boy, he loved drawing, and it came naturally to him. But reading? No way! One at a time, words weren't a problem, but long sentences were a struggle. As his friends moved on to thicker books, he kept his slow reading a secret. But that got harder every year. He felt alone, lost, and afraid in a world of too many words.
Fortunately, his love of stories wouldn't let him give up. He started giving himself permission to read at his own pace, using the words he knew as stepping-stones to help draw him into a story. And he found he wasn't so alone--in fact, lots of brilliant people were slow readers, too. Learning to accept the fact that everyone does things in their own unique way, and that was okay, freed him up and ultimately helped Hudson thrive and become the fabulous storyteller he is today.

Gold (David Shannon)

 

A great story to read when we do the decodable, The Prince's Foolish Wish. It would be fun to go find a bunch of versions of this fable.

Goodreads says:

A riotous retelling of the Midas myth by the Caldecott Honor-winning and #1 New York Times bestselling author of No, David!

Maximilian Midas was a peculiar little boy.
He didn't much like chocolate and he didn't play with toys.
The first word that he uttered when he was one year old
Wasn't Mama, wasn't Papa; what Maxie said was, "Gold!"

Max Midas isn't like the other kids. Instead of trying to make friends, he decides to make millions and spends it all on what he loves best: GOLD. Gold statues. Gold fountains. Piles and piles of gold, and atop them all, a golden castle. But one day, things get lonely inside his shiny castle and Max finally learns that gold isn't worth anything without friends and family by your side.

David Shannon, the Caldecott Honor--winning and New York Times bestselling author of No, David!, is back with a riotous romp that's sure to be a beloved classic.

Little Red (Bethan Woollvin)

 

Don't mess with the girl in this version of Little Red Riding Hood. 

Good storybook for contrasts and contradictions because we are so familiar with the regular story of Little Red Riding Hood that this one takes us by surprise!

Goodreads says:

Little Red Riding Hood meets a wolf on her way through the woods to visit her sick grandmother. The wolf is hungry, and Red Riding Hood looks tasty, so he hatches a dastardly plan, gobbles up Grandma and lies in wait. So far, so familiar. But this Little Red Riding Hood is not easily fooled, and this big bad wolf better watch his back. In this defiant interpretation of the traditional tale, the cheeky, brave little girl seizes control of her own story (and the wolf gets rather more than he bargained for).

That Is Not A Good Idea (Mo Willems)

 

You all know how foxes are...tricky...and this one tries to lure a goose to his home to put her in the soup. When she turned the tables on him, my class all gave a huge and enormously loud gasp! 

Goodreads says:

One day a very hungry fox meets a very plump goose. A dinner invitation is offered.

Will dinner go as planned? Or do the dinner plans involve a secret ingredient...?

(Don't forget to listen to the baby geese!)

This is a Moose!

Sometimes people just won't play the role we expect them to!

Goodreads says:

Lights! Camera! Moose!

MOOSE? Yes, Moose! When a movie director tries to capture the life of a moose on film, he's in for a big surprise. It turns out the moose has a dream bigger then just being a moose—he wants to be an astronaut and go to the moon.

His forest friends step in to help him, and action ensues. Lots of action. Like a lacrosse-playing grandma, a gigantic slingshot into space, and a flying, superhero chipmunk.

In this hilarious romp, Richard T. Morris and bestselling illustrator Tom Lichtenheld remind us to dream big and, when we do, to aim for the moon.