Hoot
By: Carl Hiaasen
Hiaasen, Carl. Hoot. Queensland Braille Writing Association, 2005.
![Hoot by [Hiaasen, Carl]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41AKiF%2B35oL.jpg)
https://www.amazon.com/Hoot-Carl-Hiaasen-ebook/dp/B000FC1ILI/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1540937398&sr=1-6&keywords=environmental+chapter+books
More About the Book and Author Found Here!
Genre: Fiction- Early Chapter Book
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Summary:
Taking place in Coconut Grove, Florida, main character Roy Eberhardt is a new kid at school. Through a chain of events between encounters with a bully and making new friends, things fall oddly into place for him to discover the ecological mystery of endangered owls. Unfortunately, their burrows are where "Mother Paula's All-American Pancake House" is to be built, which would destroy their homes. However, the persistence of three determined middle school kids are driven to change the system and protect the endangered species.
Target Audience:
The target audience for this book is for children ages 10+, and the Readability Lexile is 760L. This book has a fantastic plot with so many interwoven morals that allow the main character to go on the adventure of a lifetime. It teaches students that "Everything happens for a reason," and to fight for the things you believe in. I think this book is highly enjoyable, hilarious, and would keep young readers eager to continue reading as they begin exploring early chapter books.
Evaluating the Story:
Based on Donna Norton's elements of Contemporary Realistic Fiction, this book is considerably great because it relies on relevant subjects and everyday occurrences. The main character faces conflict in school, which snowballs into a plethora of happenings that allow him to develop an interest in an endangered species that he wishes to save. This plot is entirely possible, and the context is very ordinary. The characters act like real people, they face different conflicts, and the setting is contemporary to our world. The word "realistic" does not mean that this story is deemed true, however it encompasses a story that could have happened.
Reader Response Activity:
For this activity, I created a simple worksheet that asks the students to watch the movie Hoot after reading the book. This allows them to receive a visual portrayal of the story. On this worksheet, I ask that they compare and contrast the similarities and differences between the book and film adaptation of the movie. I did not make this an extensive activity because I think just having exposure to both portrayals is a learning experience, and a more enjoyable one at that. There are various adaptations for this activity, so students could do this individually, discuss it in small groups, or it could be reviewed as a class creating a T-Chart on the whiteboard. It is a great story that offers a plethora of learning opportunities!
Generation Green: The Ultimate Teen Guide to Living an Eco-Friendly Life
By: Linda Sivertsen and Tosh Sivertsen
Sivertsen, Linda, and Tosh Sivertsen. Generation Green: the Ultimate Teen Guide to Living an Eco-Friendly Life. Simon Pulse, 2008.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1416961224/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=sl1&tag=doigootog03-20&linkId=26d06fcbf4878d413d90eeef5b19631f
More About the Book and Author Found Here!
Genre: Informational Text- Early Chapter Book
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Summary:
Generation Green is a "how-to" informational book that identifies the biggest issues affecting our planet and offers a variety of ways to live a more environmentally friendly life through the way we shop, dress, eat and travel! It allows young readers to understand that "being green" and conscious of our decisions can easily be a natural part of our every day lives. It emphasizes that no matter how big or small our efforts are, they all contribute greatly to saving the planet. This is a fantastic book with excellent, appropriate language that allows children to understand the complex concerns that our environment faces.
Target Audience:
The target audience for this book is for children ages 12 and up (no Lexile score available). This book introduces more complex concepts regarding global warming and overflowing landfills, so middle school students would be the perfect candidates for this book. Younger students may struggle with the given challenges and may need further explanation. I think this book breaks down each concept simply and appropriately, and provides very valuable learning opportunities for students.
Evaluating the Story:
Based on Donna Norton's elements of an informational text, this book would be a fantastic candidate to use in teaching children new information. The material is accurate, encourages analytical thinking, and incorporates corresponding illustrations. This book contains a significant amount of new concepts to middle school readers, and Norton mentions that if books have well-defined vocabulary, it helps student's reading skills improve and pushes them to read for a purpose or meaning. Informational books offer children opportunities to experience the excitement of discovering something new, and in this case, learning how to live more environmentally friendly and the impacts each individual has is very stimulating, because it draws readers in. Knowing that they can make a difference in their own lives is intriguing in itself!
Reader Response Activity:
For this activity, I ask that students create a poster promoting something environmentally conscious for them to hang around the classroom, or better yet, the school! Not all students get the opportunity to discuss the importance of being green, so if given the opportunity to spread the word, encourage it! This allows students to learn about taking action and pushing for change. I also want students to look up one statistic regarding the message they want to promote to illustrate the drastic information about environmental challenges.
Call Me Tree/Llamame Arbol
By: Maya Christina Gonzalez
Gonzalez, Maya Christina., and Dana Goldberg. Call Me Tree. Children's Book Press, an Imprint of Lee & Low Books Inc., 2014.
https://www.spanishplayground.net/bilingual-picture-books-celebrate-earth/
More About the Book and Author Found Here!
Genre: Picture Book- Bilingual- Online Materials
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Summary:
In this story, readers will join characters on a journey of self-discovery as they learn that they grow just like in tree in the world around them. The child begins as a seed, eager to grow, developing into the world and shooting up to the sky as a tree does- noticing all of the beautiful elements of Earth; The sky, sun, birds, and other children just like them. It also encourages that all people are different and unique, just as trees are, and this is overall a fantastic story that appreciates both the differences in people as well as a love for the natural world through simple rhymes. This book is set up where one verse is in English, and below it is offered in Spanish. This is great for both English and Spanish speaking students, because they get exposure to different languages. Another interesting component of this story is that it never mentions gender pronouns throughout the book, and the main characters are referred to "children" or "kids." The author mentions she specifically did this because "Trees remind us there are lots of ways to be!"
Target Audience:
The target audience for this story is for children ages 6 to 10, with a Readability Lexile of 400L. This story is great for much younger children because of the simple rhymes and context. It embraces the idea of uniqueness, which is a great concept for children to grasp at a young age. It also allows a significant amount of opportunity to further expand discussions to create a greater learning experience.
Evaluating the Story:
Based on Donna Norton's elements of multicultural books, this story is a great pick for bilingual students. It emphasizes cultural respect, enhances the self-esteem of students, and exposes children to cross cultural communication. Through multicultural literature, members of racial or ethnic minorities can feel proud of their own heritage and develop positive attitudes. This story also includes elements of a quality picture book, because the illustrations correspond to each page, has a meaningful theme, and the style and language is appropriate for the age range of children. It avoids all stereotypes of race and sex, and perfectly exemplifies the meaning of the story referring to the beautiful similarities between nature and children growing side by side.
Reader Response Activity:
For this activity, I created a template that has a blank picture of a tree on it. I ask that students decorate the tree to represent them by using all of their favorite things. They could draw their favorite sports, food, animals, etc. in the tree. I chose this activity because it coincides with the story's message of the environment and uniqueness in every individual. Since this book is for 6-10 year olds, it is very appropriate for their understanding yet an enjoyable project to embrace their creativity. I also included a read aloud link of the story, so that students can hear the Spanish section correctly!
Water Rolls, Water Rises/ El Agua Rueda, El Agua Sube
By: Pat Mora
Mora, Pat. Water Rolls, Water Rises -- El Agua Rueda, El Agua Sube. OSCI Braille Program, 2016.
https://www.spanishplayground.net/bilingual-picture-books-celebrate-earth/
More About the Book and Author Found Here!
Genre: Picture Book- Bilingual- Online Materials
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Summary:
This story beautifully brings water to life from page to page as it explains the way water moves around the Earth. Each illustration is inspired by water, and is accompanied by both Spanish and English verbs describing the way it flows. This is a great reading experience for both languages, and it exposes young children to a language different than their own. Not only is it linguistically versatile, but it still connects children to nature and portrays the precious resources that it contains, and captures some of Earth's most serene locations.
Target Audience:
This book is for children ages 6-11 years old, with a Readability Lexile of 930L. This book is great for this age group and even younger kids because of the illustrations it offers. Children are able to get great information while enjoying the beautiful art work, and there is a variety of activities that could pair great with this book!
Evaluating the Story:
Based on Donna Norton's elements of a multicultural literature, this book displays both English and Spanish culture wonderfully on each page. It includes both language and flows nicely with the illustrations. This is also classified as a quality picture book because it is appealing to children, contains beautiful illustrations that correlate with the context, and celebrates different parts of the natural world both culturally and environmentally. The incorporation of water on each page is a stunning feature, and is completely appropriate and enjoyable for the age range.
Reader Response Activity:
For this activity, I challenged students to attempt writing a paragraph describing how water tastes. This is hard to do because describing something so simple is difficult, however it expands their thinking to perhaps look into the texture, temperature, and flavor much more than they normally would. This activity could also be done in small groups, where students find adjectives that describe it or as an entire class. However, it is a fun activity that goes along with the book and emphasizes how complex and important water is, even if it seems so simple. I also included a link to the read aloud so that students can hear the Spanish section correctly!
Talking with Mother Earth/Hablando con Madre Tierra: Poems/Poemasu
By: Jorge Argueta & Lucia Angela Perez
Argueta, Jorge, and Lucia Angela Perez. Talking with Mother Earth: Poems. Groundwood Books, 2008.
https://www.amazon.com/Talking-Mother-Earth-Hablando-tierra/dp/0888996268/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1541010700&sr=1-1&keywords=talking+with+mother+earth
More About the Book and Author Found Here!
Genre: Picture Book- Bilingual
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Summary:
The main character of this story, Tetl, struggles with having brown skin, black eyes, and long dark hair, which is far different from the rest of the children around him. He is bullied terribly, and feels alone, lost and afraid. However, through the help of his grandmother and her knowledge of their ancient Aztec ancestor's teachings, he learns to listen to the Earth speaking to him- through the wind mountains and stones- to proudly accept who he is. Every page offers both the English and Spanish text, and the vivid illustrations portray the power of the natural world. The main character has very relatable emotions, which is perfect for children at a young age to connect with!
Target Audience:
This story is for children between the ages of 5-8 years old, with a "Non-Prose" code (no Lexile can be assigned) since it is a book full of different poems. The language of this story is appropriate for younger children because it discusses self acceptance and the power of nature simply enough for young readers to learn from, and it offers a great variety of learning opportunities, whether it regards new languages, self-esteem, the environment, etc. It has beautiful illustrations and a very thoughtful meaning!
Evaluating the Story:
Based on Donna Norton's elements of quality poetry, this book shares feelings, experiences, and visions of the author. It allows children to understand the power of words, and the similar connections between poetry and art. The plot of the story is very relatable to anybody who has ever been bullied, felt excluded or even afraid. It draws on the senses and touches on familiar things that many children face in their everyday lives. By doing so, children are able to develop a deeper understanding because of their prior knowledge on the specific feelings that are evoked. This is also a picture book, and the context correlates perfectly with each illustration. Readers are able to convey messages from both the language and the pictures, which I think are the most important elements to comprehend as they flip through each page.
Reader Response Activity:
For this activity, I created a template that asks students to write about something in nature that they take for granted in a poem. Whether it is the wind, trees, water, sun- whatever, they will write a short poem and illustrate a picture that correlates with the poem. It would be cool if all of the students poems were collected and put into a "class book" for everyone to read. This allows students to feel like authors themselves and use their creativity to construct something like Talking with Mother Earth.
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