Here's a fun children's version of the adult best seller! This one is considerably pared down to include just the need for correct commas. After offering a little story to explain the title, several humorous examples of misplaced commas are offered on double page spreads. Both pages list an identically worded sentence, only the comma location is changed.
ie: Eat here, and get gas. vs. Eat here and get gas.
Sorry - I had to go there!
Its a little uneven but certainly a strong example of some of the writing conventions we try so hard to hammer home.
Fun to pair with Punctuation Takes a Vacation by Pulver.
Showing posts with label Language Arts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Language Arts. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Monday, February 5, 2007
Did You Say Pears? by Arlene Alda
Colorful photographs pair homonyms or homophones (and a page at the back explains the difference) while the text plays off the sound and meanings. Sometimes the text surprises like "blew" for candles and "blue" for a swath of sky and other times it's the striking photographs: a spiral staircase for "stair" and a carved wooden face for "blank stares." A delightful choice for language arts and perhaps a model for creative writing.
Grades 2-4
Grades 2-4
Friday, January 26, 2007
One Green Apple by Eve Bunting
Illustrated by Ted Lewin
This first person narrative describes a field trip to an apple orchard that Farah takes on her second day of school in her new country. Farah understands much more of what she sees than her teacher and classmates give her credit for. They don't understand why she chooses a green apple when the others are picking ripe red apples, and one classmate tries to stop her from adding her apple to the cider press. The apple becomes a metaphor for aculturation and a symbol of triumph when she says her first "outside myself" word.
I've been a foreign student without any knowledge of the language and this book rings true. Bunting is a master at packing a lot of meaning and depth into sparse language. The beautiful watercolor illustrations capture the expressions of the students superbly.
Recommended Levels: 1-6
SLJ, starred in Booklist.
This first person narrative describes a field trip to an apple orchard that Farah takes on her second day of school in her new country. Farah understands much more of what she sees than her teacher and classmates give her credit for. They don't understand why she chooses a green apple when the others are picking ripe red apples, and one classmate tries to stop her from adding her apple to the cider press. The apple becomes a metaphor for aculturation and a symbol of triumph when she says her first "outside myself" word.
I've been a foreign student without any knowledge of the language and this book rings true. Bunting is a master at packing a lot of meaning and depth into sparse language. The beautiful watercolor illustrations capture the expressions of the students superbly.
Recommended Levels: 1-6
SLJ, starred in Booklist.
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