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A Ball for Daisy, by Chris Raschka

Published March 9, 2013 by Dagmar

A-Ball-for-Daisy

The 2012 Caldecott Medal winner.  This is a terrific wordless story.  Students can follow along as I turn the pages and they “read” about Daisy the dog and her love for her red ball.  One day, Daisy goes for a walk in the park with her owner.  Daisy and a brown dog play with her red ball.  When the other dog pops Daisy’s ball by accident, and the ball is thrown away, Daisy goes home and puts her head on her paws.  No words are necessary to know exactly how Daisy is feeling.  Everyone’s hearts go out to her.  When Daisy goes to the park the next day, there is the brown dog with a blue ball.  They play together.  The book closes with Daisy happily sleeping on the couch with her new blue ball.

This book was so fun to show my K and Prek students.  The library was absolutely silent as my K students realized they had to follow each of the pictures in order to understand the story.  We then went through the book together as students retold the story.  My Prek students tended to shout out what they thought was happening.  Either way was fine and very entertaining to watch my students faces as I turned the pages.

The water color illustrations really shine.

Chicken Big, by Keith Graves

Published February 18, 2013 by Dagmar

chickenbigThis Is a hysterical take on the chicken little story. I love to read this to second and third graders. A humongous chick is born and joins his fellow chickens in the chicken coop. No one seems to realize that he is a chicken. The smallest chicken is not the brightest chicken in the coop. When he is hit with a falling acorn and then rain drops he becomes just like Chicken Little. Poor Chicken Big tries to calm the chickens while they guess again and again what he might be…is he an elephant, a squirrel, an umbrella? Each guess is more hilarious. Such a fun book – always a hit with my students.

Extra Yarn, by Mac Barnett

Published January 18, 2013 by Dagmar

extra yarnI have to admit that I’m a big fan of local Bay Area author Mac Barnett and also the illustrator Jon Klassen (I Want My Hat Back).  Annabelle lives in a town with no color.  One day, she finds a box with colorful yarn.  She knits herself a sweater, when she has some yarn left over, she knits a sweater for her dog Mars.  The yarn never seems to run out, and Annabelle never seems to stop wanting to knit.  Soon her drab town is covered in wonderful color, everyone has a sweater (or a hat), including the bird houses, the trees, the houses, the pets.  Color is everywhere.  My students love watching the book come to life as Annabelle knits.  But, like every great book, there is a villian. The archduke offers millions of dollars to Annabelle if se will just give up her magical yarn.  When Annabelle says, “no”, the Archduke steals the box.  My students love this book and are always quiet until the end, when they applaud.  It’s a wonderful read aloud for all second to fifth graders in the library or just one on one at home.

The Sneetches and other Stories, by Dr. Seuss

Published January 3, 2013 by Dagmar

sneetchesOne of my favorite Seuss books and always a great read aloud for my fourth through sixth graders who tell me that even though they’re older, they still like to be read to.  In fact, my older readers love listening to the Sneetches every year.  This year, I included the other stories, which they really liked.  Included are The Zax, about a north-going Zax and a south-going Zax who stubbornly won’t budge when they find each other blocking their way.  (reminscent of today’s Congress – a fact not lost on our teachers as I read the book.)  Too Many Daves about Mrs. McCave who had 23 sons and named them all Dave.  Lastly, What am I Scared of?  “Then I was deep within the woods, When, suddenly, I spied them.  I saw a pair of pale green pants With nobody inside them!

The Best Pet of All, by David LaRochelle

Published December 12, 2012 by Dagmar

bestpetHave you ever asked your mom for a dog and gotten the run around?  “Dogs are too loud.”  “Dogs are too messy.”  Well, what if you asked her for a dragon?  Thinking that she’s being clever, Mom says “yes” to the dragon. Big mistake.  It turns out that dragons are VERY bad pets and won’t leave when you ask them to leave. Luckily, they are terrified of dogs.  So, when it’s time to get rid of the dragon, what better choice than a dog?  This funny, clever book won applause from my second graders.  What a great read aloud!

Big Red Barn, by Margaret Wise Brown

Published November 29, 2012 by Dagmar

big red barnThis is a wonderful pre-school read aloud.  The rhyming is very nice as are the illustrations.  It give you a great way to talk about farms (I work in an urban school) and to interact with students as they “help” me make farm noises.  Best of all, the book ends in such a peaceful way that all those wiggly bodies settle down and are ready for another book.

Synopsis: A day begins on a farm.  The people are away, so only animals are there to play.  There are horses, donkeys, roosters, hens, sheep, goats, mice, bats, cats, and even a scarecrow.  They all live and sleep in a big red barn.

Welcome to Kids’ Lit Corner!

Published November 9, 2012 by Dagmar

Welcome to Kids’ Lit Corner, a blog about kid’s books.  My name is Dagmar Serota.  I’m a volunteer librarian at a pre-k through middle school public school in Oakland, CA.

I’m always on the hunt for great, read aloud books that keep my younger, pre-k through 3rd graders engaged and smiling and my older, 4th through 8th grade readers excited.   I’ll highlight books that are my favorites and books that are real winners with students in my library.  So, if you’re a children’s librarian, a teacher, a parent, a student or just a big fan of children’s literature this may be the blog for you.

Thanks for tuning in.  Stay posted for my book reviews.  I hope they help you with your book selections.