Perfect Picture Book Friday: A Morning with Grandpa

Hold onto your hats! Today’s post is chock full of good stuff!

It’s Perfect Picture Book Friday…so you know we are going to have a super picture book to review. And, because this is the third Friday of the month, we will be featuring the debut picture book of tomorrow’s Will Write for Cookies guest, Sylvia Liu! Woo-hoo!

But we need to make a few announcements first.

  1. The lovely Susanna Hill has announced her long-awaited Halloweensie Contest…I’ve participated in this writing challenge for many years…it’s a ton of fun…and ONLY 100 WORDS. Check out the rules and prizes (oh, but definitely, with Susanna, there are always prizes) right here.
  2. Last month we ran a giveaway for a copy of Joan Leotta’s Summer in a Bowl. Thank you to everyone who commented…I enjoyed hearing what your favorite salad ingredients are. And the winner is:

 

BARBARA ANN PASTER

Barbara, I’ll be contacting you ASAP so I can get the book out to you.

  1. Tomorrow we’ll be giving away a copy of A Morning with Grandpa…so please stop by.

And now, thank you for your patience…it’s time for our #PPBF review.

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A MORNING WITH GRANDPA

Written by Sylvia Liu

Illustrated by Christina Forshay

Publisher: Lee and Low Books (2016)

Ages: Preschool – Grade 3

Themes:

Family life, health and fitness, yoga

Synopsis:

From Amazon:

Mei Mei s grandpa is practicing tai chi in the garden, and Mei Mei is eager to join in. As Gong Gong tries to teach her the slow, graceful movements, Mei Mei enthusiastically does them with her own flair. Then Mei Mei takes a turn, trying to teach Gong Gong the yoga she learned in school. Will Gong Gong be able to master the stretchy, bendy poses? Winner of the LEE & LOW New Voices Award, this title celebrates, with lively spirit and humor, the special bond between grandparent and grandchild and the joy of learning new things together. Readers of all ages will want to try out some tai chi and yoga too!

Opening Lines:

“Mei Mei watched Grandpa dance slowly among the flowers in the garden.”

Why I like this book:

  • I love books with multigenerational characters…and here we have a beautiful give and take relationship…each learning from the other.
  • Text is filled with wonderful language as the author explains how to do various tai chi and yoga moves…as a reader, I loved how the story sounded…as a writer, I appreciated how carefully the author chose each and every word.
  • The illustrations are absolutely perfect! We feel the character of Mei Mei…we see Mei Mei and her grandpa moving through the garden.

RELATED ACTIVITIES

  1. In the back matter, the author provides explanations of various tai chi moves and yoga poses.
  2. Book trailer on Mr. Schu’s blog: http://mrschureads.blogspot.com/2016/04/book-trailer-premiere-morning-with_17.html

 

This post is part of a series for parents and teachers called Perfect Picture Book Fridays hosted by Susannah Leonard Hill. Click on her link and find lots of other picture book suggestions with summaries and activities.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Don’t miss tomorrow’s special post!

WILL WRITE FOR COOKIES

SYLVIA LIU will be in the house!

PPBF: Separate Is Never Equal

Can you believe this is the LAST DAY OF SEPTEMBER?

A couple of weeks ago, I promised that at the end of the month, I would give away a copy of my parent-teacher book book pic from wordpress blogin celebration of National Library Card Sign Up Month. Thank you to all who commented on that post. And the winner is

JEN BAGAN

Congratulations, Jen…I will be in touch to get your mailing address.

For me, September always meant the start of a new school year…as a kid, I always loved the first day. My sister and I each got a new outfit and a shiny new pair of shoes. And I looked forward to seeing my friends after the long summer.

But even though the main character of today’s Perfect Picture Book Friday pick has a shiny new pair of shoes, her first day of school is not going well.

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SEPARATE IS NEVER EQUAL: Sylvia Mendez & Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation

Written and illustrated by Duncan Tonatiuh

Publisher: Abrams Books for Young Readers (2014)

Ages: 6-9

Themes:

Discrimination, desegregation, bullying

Synopsis:

From Amazon:

Almost 10 years before Brown vs. Board of Education, Sylvia Mendez and her parents helped end school segregation in California. An American citizen of Mexican and Puerto Rican heritage who spoke and wrote perfect English, Mendez was denied enrollment to a “Whites only” school. Her parents took action by organizing the Hispanic community and filing a lawsuit in federal district court. Their success brought an end to the era of segregated education in California.

Opening Lines:

“Sylvia had on her black shoes. They were shiny new.”

Why I like this book:

  • One of my favorite nonfiction picture books of 2014, this story is written and illustrated by the amazing Duncan Tonatiuh who is going to be our December Will Write for Cookies guest!!! And I’ll be reviewing his NEWEST book that month, The Princess and the Warrior. PLUS…there will be a giveaway of one of Duncan’s books!
  • Powerful text combines perfectly with bold distinctive illustrations.
  • Wonderful springboard for discussions on discrimination, segregation, and equality…and also bullying.

 

RELATED ACTIVITIES

  1. Interview and read aloud with Duncan Tonituah: https://youtu.be/n7-kzJVcOUw
  2. A teacher’s guide – grades 1-5: https://laii.unm.edu/outreach/common/educators-guides/2015-Americas-Award.pdf
  3. Book trailer: https://youtu.be/KlyGKQdPePQ

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This post is part of a series for parents and teachers called Perfect Picture Book Fridays hosted by Susannah Leonard Hill. Click on here name and find an archived page of over 1000 picture book posts with activities. Click here for this week’s new reviews.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Joan Leotta: Will Write for Cookies PLUS Giveaway

WILL WRITE FOR COOKIES

Plate of Cookies

INSIGHT – INFORMATION – INSPIRATION

FOR WRITERS

TODAY’S GUEST

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JOAN LEOTTA

One of the best things about this writing journey is that I get to meet so many incredible travelers. But no matter what genres they write, they want to share their words with the world.

Joan Leotta has been playing with words since her own childhood. She is a journalist, playwright, short story writer, poet, and author of several mysteries and romances. She has seven books in print at the present time. Simply a Smile is a book of short stories, each inspired by an object. She often uses this book to teach short story writing to middle and high school students. Continue reading