Make A Turkey (easy reader)

Make A Turkey by Anastasia Suen
A Bebop Easy Reader

Reading level: Guided Reading: D Intervention: 6 DRA: 4

Library Binding: 8 pages

Publisher: Bebop Books

A Japanese American boy demonstrates a fun classroom project – making a picture of a turkey from a handprint.

Also available in Spanish as Hacer un pavo.

Activities:

After you follow the directions in the book and make a turkey, use these lesson plans with your children:

Science: Have children make fingerprints.

Math: Show children how to use a handspan to measure.

Social Studies: Go for a walk and observe how different people use their hands. Make a list of what was seen.

Writing: Talk about what it means to “lend someone a hand.”

Literacy Links
Copyright © 2009 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

Raise the Roof (home/community theme)

Raise the Roof by Anastasia Suen
Picture book

Reading level: Ages 4-8

Hardcover: 32 pages

Publisher: Viking

“Here is a picture book that has done a remarkable thing—the author has reduced the steps of building a new home, from blueprint to welcome mat, to its bare essentials and written the story in jaunty rhyme that very young readers will both understand, and enjoy.” ~ Children’s Literature

Activities:

Learn about construction workers and their tools.

Compare Native American homes and the first homes built by European settlers inWhat Should a House Do?

Use these Home and Houses Activites and Crafts.

Make these Houses and Other Dwellings.

Think about Houses and Communities and children who are homeless.

Literacy Links
Copyright © 2009 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

Delivery

Delivery by Anastasia Suen
Picture book

“A good choice for preschool story hours or for primary units on communities or transportation.” Booklist

Activities:

Reading level: Ages 4-8

Hardcover: 32 pages

Publisher: Viking

Try this Online Truck Puzzle.

See Ocean Freight Photos from around the world.

Print these Airplane Coloring Pages.

Can you find all of the words in this School Bus Word Search?

Trace your hand and arm to make this Train Craft.

Literacy Links
Copyright © 2009 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

Red Light, Green Light Craft

Red Light, Green Light by Anastasia Suen
A traffic picture book

Reading level: Ages 2-5

Hardcover: 32 pages

Publisher: Harcourt

Traffic Light Necklace Craft

Materials:

• red, green and yellow yarn
• black construction paper
• red, green and yellow yarn dots
  (I used 3/4″ color coding dots from Office Depot)
• glue stick

Directions:

1. Cut the yarn into 36″ lengths.

2. Gather the yarn into triple strands (one red, one yellow and one green for each child.)

3. Cut the black construction paper in strips. (I used 9×12″ paper so I cut the 12″ side into 2″ strips. Each strip was the 2″ wide and 9″ long.

4. Fold each black strip in half to make a tent. (Now it’s 2″ wide and 4 1/2″ tall.)

5. Put the yarn inside the black paper “tent.” Make sure that 18″ of yarn extends out on each side.

6. Rub glue on the inside of the tent. Then press the paper tight so the glue holds.

7. Place a green dot, a yellow dot and a green dot on the black paper. Green is Go! Yellow is Slow! Red is Stop! Now you have a traffic light!

8. Tie the ends of the yarn into a bow. Now put the bow over the child’s head. It’s a traffic light necklace!

Literacy Links
Copyright © 2009 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

Here Comes the Bus

Here Comes the Bus by Anastasia Suen
A Bebop Easy Reader

Reading level: Guided Reading™: B DRA: 2 Intervention: 2

Paperback: 8 pages

Publisher: Bebop Books

A Chinese American girl takes the bus to school and greets her friends, one by one, at each stop.

Also available in Spanish as Ya viene el autobús

Activities:

Use the lesson plans from the 91 page Illinois School Bus Safety Program.

First School has school bus music, coloring pages, crafts, and online games.

Play the online School Bus Safety Games.

Visit the Traffic Safety Kid’s Page for coloring pages, puzzles and a word scramble.

Download Free Bus Safety Presentations in PowerPoint.

Use these lesson plans with your class.

Literacy Links
Copyright © 2009 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

An Elephant Grows Up

An Elephant Grows Up
by Anastasia Suen (Wild Animals series)

Reading level: Ages 4-8

Hardcover / Paperback: 24 pages

Publisher: Picture Window Books

Under the hot African sun, a baby elephant is born. The calf looks small next to her mother, but she weighs more than 200 pounds. Her days will be filled with lots of eating—this calf has a lot of growing left to do. What else happens when an elephant grows up?

Science Books and Films Best Book of 2006

Photos:

Watch San Diego Zoo’s Elephant Cam and meet all 11 elephants.

See all 25 elephant photos in the AWF media gallery.

Activities:

Find your way through the elephant maze.

Try a baby elephant dot-to-dot, an ABC elephant dot-to-dot, and an online elephant dot-to-dot.

Set your own level of difficulty in this online elephant puzzle.

Select the number/shape of the pieces for this elephant puzzle.

Make a 3-d elephant or an elephant counting book.

Color the elephants in M.E. and Me’s Africa Coloring Book.

Visit the Elephant Coloring pages at First School.

Literacy Links

Copyright © 2009 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

Man on the Moon – 40th anniversary!

Man on the Moon by Anastasia Suen
An Apollo 11 moon landing picture book
June 20th is the 40th anniversary of this historic mission!

Reading level: Ages 4-8

Paperback: 32 pages

Publisher: Puffin

Photos:

NASA’s photos of Apollo 11.

See three Apollo 11 videos:

Watch the earth launch, the moon landing, and the first step on the moon.

See and hear the Apollo 11 Mission at the History Place.

Activities:

Create your own Moon Art with the Eagle moon lander (above).

Use the Six Trait Writing mini-lesson at Picture Book of the Day.

For lesson plans and more, visit Challenging the Space Frontier

COMING NEXT WEEK at ALA:

Nonfiction Book Blast: Booktalks for Reluctant Readers
Sunday, July 12, 10:30 am to 12:00 pm
Convention Center Room W181 (Level 1 of the West Building.)

18 authors will “booktalk” their latest books! (You can see the booktalks on our wiki.)

Literacy Links
Copyright © 2009 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

Uncle Sam

Uncle Sam by Anastasia Suen
American Symbols Picture Book

Reading level: Ages 4-8

Library Binding: 24 pages

Publisher: Picture Window Books

He has become one of the country’s most well-known characters. Tall and firm, Uncle Sam stands for a strong U.S. government. Join meatpacker Sam Wilson in Uncle Sam as he shares the wild story of how he, a clown, and countless artists shaped this American symbol.

Activities:

September 13th is Uncle Sam Day!

Bake and paint an Uncle Sam hat.

Try this online Uncle Sam coloring page.

Make an Uncle Sam pin with seed beads and a safety pin.

Find lesson plans, crafts, puzzles and writing activities at abcteach.

Use these six trait writing activities as students create their own Uncle Sam comic.

Are you attending ALA in Chicago? On Monday, July 13 from 11-12 in Booth #1940, I’ll be signing 100 copies of Uncle Sam…and Capstone is giving them away!

Literacy Links
Copyright © 2009 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

A Tiger Grows Up

A Tiger Grows Up by Anastasia Suen (Wild Animals series)

Reading level: Ages 4-8

Hardcover / Paperback: 24 pages

Publisher: Picture Window Books

Deep in the forest, a tiny tiger cub is born. As the tiny tiger grows, she plays in the river and learns to hunt on her own. Catching a fish is an easy task. Splash! Learn more about this wild hunter, as you watch a tiger grow up.

Photos:

See the National Geographic Photo Gallery of tigers and other big cats.

Visit National Geographic’s Creature Feature for a tiger video, facts, photos, and an e-card you can send to a friend.

Activities:

DLTK’s Crafts for Kids has tiger coloring pages, paper bag puppets, paper plate crafts and more!

Kaboose has a tiger cub magnetic frame craft, a tiger pencil holder craft and instructions for a tiger seltzer rocket!

Try the tiger word search here and here.

Help the baby tiger find his way through this online maze.

Literacy Links
Copyright © 2009 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

What Do You See at the Pond?

What Do You See at the Pond? by Anastasia Suen
A science easy reader

A young Asian American boy and his mother see all kinds of animals in the pond. But there’s something else the boy sees in the pond too—his own reflection!

Reading level: A

Paperback: 8 pages

Publisher: Bebop Books

This book is also available in Spanish.

Activities:

Celebrate Earth Day with Scholastic’s activities for K-8.

Stop by EarthDay.gov’s kid’s pages for games and activities.

Visit Larry Ferlazzo’s blog for The Best Earth Day Sites for ELL, ESL, AND EFL.

Use the What Do You See at the Pond? lesson plans for reading instruction as well as art, math, science, social studies, and language arts cross-curricular activities.

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Copyright © 2009 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.