Our last book tasting in November was a big hit, so it only made sense to do it again! Last week, our students came in hungry and left STUFFED with ideas for books to read.
What was on the menu this time around? Well, Chef Sully, who flew in all the way from Paris, complete with a fancy French accent, was serving up some delicious genres that included:
What’s on YOUR reading menu these days?
What better way to celebrate our learning about inferences than to EAT?! We’ve been exploring several short stories and have been using paper s’mores to break apart the pieces of an inference:
We remember that BK +TC =I and that we make inferences all the time and don’t even know we’re doing it. Way to go grade 3s!
Aren’t edible inferences delicious?
Today, our special guest was…Mrs. Cheeseman! She read to us a book called JoJo the Giant by Jane Barclay. It was the story of a boy who is eager to grow bigger. He wants some new running shoes after seeing them in a store window, but they are too expensive. He decides to enter a race to see if he can win the pair, but is racing against bigger boys, including a bully. In the end, JoJo learns about believing in himself and that we can grow in more ways than one!
A huge thank-you to Mrs. Cheeseman for reading with us today! We loved the story of JoJo the Giant and thought you were a great reader.
What does BK + TC = I mean? It looks like a math equation but really it means
Background Knowledge + Text Clues = Inference
Today we talked about inferences and specifically looked at 4 different commercials where we could practice making inferences.
Did you know that we make inferences all the time without even knowing it? You can make inferences walking down the street, in the grocery store, when watching a movie, and so on. Sometimes adults refer to it as ‘reading between the lines’. Others refer to inference as an ‘educated guess’. In general, an inference means that someone can make a conclusion on something based on their own experiences and other information. We will be working on transferring that skill to reading text over the next several weeks…and beyond.
Have a look at these commercials and see what you can infer. Some of them are quite funny!
When setting up my classroom each September, I get the inevitable question from at least one person that asks…
My answer is: a teacher can never have enough books! We had the pleasure of adding even more new books to our class library. After opening the packages, the students noticed a theme with these new books…Biographies!
We were introduced to what a biography is and read one together. After several days of reading and sharing the books, students have finally selected one person they are interested in learning more about. The goal is to complete a presentation called Biography in a Bag and teach the class all about their person of interest. Check out the students exploring the huge selection of biographies…
Many students guessed correctly…it was Mrs. Jones! She delighted us with not 1…not 2…but THREE Robert Munsch books! Munsch is certainly a favourite Canadian author among many of us!
We loved participating in the reading of each book and laughed and gasped at all the right spots.
Thank you, Mrs. Jones! You were fantastic and we loved you visiting us today.
On Friday, we had our most recent mystery reader come and visit with us. We welcomed Mrs. Fitzpatrick! She did a fabulous job reading the book called Ferdinand by Munro Leaf and illustrated by Robert Lawson.
It was originally published in 1936 so this is a story that has been loved and read by children for many years! It tells the story of a Spanish bull named Ferdinand that does not follow or define himself in the way other bulls do. Rather, he is quiet, peaceful, and happy just sitting under the cork tree, enjoying nature. When he is selected to fight in the bull fights in Madrid, you can imagine what he did…or didn’t do.
The story reminds all of us that we all should be our own unique selves and not who others think we should be.
Here are some fun facts about the book you may not have known:
Today, we read a wonderful biography called Meet Viola Desmond by Elizabeth MacLeod. Viola Desmond is considered by many Canadians to be a hero. The book tells the story of Viola’s rather famous moment in history when she bought a ticket to the movie theatre in 1946 in Nova Scotia. Viola bought a ticket and sat in the whites-only section of the theatre. She was told to move to the balcony where black people were supposed to sit. Instead, Viola was determined to sit where she wanted, and as a result, she was jailed, went to court, and found guilty. Viola died in 1965 at age 51. In 2010, the government of Nova Scotia pardoned Viola and apologized for what happened to her.
A few students connected Viola’s story to Rosa Parks from the U.S.A. Indeed, their experiences are very similar!
Years later, Viola’s sister, Wanda, shares her story and is proud to hold the new Canadian $10 bill where Viola’s portrait will be printed starting next week.
Check out this article from the London Free Press!
Who is someone else that you think should be on a Canadian bank note?
Our most recent Mystery Reader was…Jake’s dad! He did a fantastic job reading to us a wonderful story called The Book of Gold written and illustrated by Bob Staake. It tells the story of a boy named Isaac who isn’t a curious boy until he meets an old shopkeeper who tells him about The Book of Gold. This special book, hidden somewhere in the world, holds all the answers to every question and turns to solid gold when opened. Isaac hunts all over the world for this book, thinking it will make him rich. As Isaac ages, he continues his search for the golden book but along this journey, he learns a whole lot more! Read the book for yourself! You won’t regret it.
Thank you to Jake’s dad for spending time with us today!
On Friday, our classroom was transformed into a sort of literary cafe as students were invited to their very first BOOK TASTING event. Book tasting gives students the opportunity to sample some juicy reads in a short period of time and come away with a wish list of titles. It’s a great way to let young readers sample different authors, genres, and series. After all, books are a lot like food—you won’t know if you like something until you try it!
We ‘sampled’ several different genres of books including:
At each table sat a pile of 10-15 books of a particular genre.
After checking out the front and back covers and inside flaps, students spent a few minutes browsing through the book to develop their first impressions. When time (about 5 minutes) was up, students wrote down observations and made note of whether or not they want to add the book to their wish list.
They rated the book out of 10 and jotted some notes about various things including what they thought of the book, what did the author do to hook them, and so on. It’s a perfect way for kids to nibble on a book and decide if they want to devour the whole thing!
Students rotated through 5 different stations in total. Afterwards, we enjoyed some yummy refreshments!
It was so much fun and we all went away with perhaps a few books we would like to read, maybe even from a genre we have never explored before.
Our next Book Tasting will be sometime after Christmas.