ReedALOUD: Smoot, a rebellious shadow

This first few weeks in my school library are spent creating community. We talk about how to make our library a welcoming, safe, and comfortable space for all learners. Part of this conversation revolves around our school rules: Take Care of Yourself - Take Care of Others - Take Care of Our Environment. Getting students to dig deep within themselves to think about these things is always easier with just the right book.

Smoot A Rebellious Shadow, written by Michelle Cuevas and illustrated by Sydney Smith allowed the students to consider both themselves and others as learners in our library. In Smoot, we are introduced to a shadow that yearns to live a life where jumping and skipping and living in technicolor are possible. This shadow dreams to live to a life more daring than the one his boy feels comfortable living. I am always pleased when an author allows young readers to step outside themselves and consider a different perspective, but even more so when students are given a new perspective on a familiar thing, like How does your shadow feel about the life you live?

Michelle Cueves' writing is spare and lyrical. This shouldn't be misconstrued for a lack of depth. As in her other books, Cuevas makes the reader care deeply for her characters. We want Smoot to succeed. We want his boy to be less afraid of life. The combination of lightness and depth is matched by Smith's line, which flows from broad brush strokes to detailed drawings. 

Smith's art places the focus on Smoot and fills his world with familiar scenes. For those of us who like to play with our shadows this book captures that energy, there's a looseness to the art, which makes it playful. 

Onto our story! One fateful day, Smoot inexplicably separates from his boy and in this defining moment Smoot chooses to follow his hopes and dreams and courageously sets off to explore their neighborhood.

You'll notice that Smoot's boy is peaking from behind the bench and was by the gate in the image above. Smith keeps the boy in view throughout the story, reminding us of the importance of their partnership.

Other shadows are inspired by Smoot's courage and begin to follow their dreams. 

This is one of my favorite pages. I am a rock hound, so this character appeals to me. I love this old city and how the castle rises from it. It looks like these buildings want to get in on the fun too.

Understanding that there can be consequences for these actions, Smoot goes back to make things right and helps the shadows and their partners find a way to find the courage to live their hopes and dreams. I think readers will be thinking about building rocks into castles and least this reader will.

Of course, one last person needs to find that courage.

I asked the students to think about their own hopes and dreams. I asked them to think about what they needed to do to take care of themselves to make it come a reality. I asked them to think about how they could take care of others so they, too, could achieve their hopes and dreams. I asked a lot of questions...

They did some big thinking. 

They shared their thinking.

I explained that they would share their thinking in a Smoot-like fashion. On the black (or shadow) paper the students wrote how they would take care of themselves and on the white (or person) paper, they shared how they would take care of others. On the table with the black paper I put out white oil pastels and on the table with the white papers, I placed black sharpies.

This window will be a great visual reminder of their thinking.

More about the book from the publisher

"A brave shadow finds a more colorful life in this joyous picture book by the acclaimed author of The Uncorker of Ocean Bottles and illustrator of Sidewalk Flowers.

Smoot the shadow has been living a yawn-filled life for years. His boy never laughs and never leaps, so Smoot never does either . . . until the day he pops free, and decides to hit the road in search of the life he dreams about. And as he enjoys his first colorful day—singing, dancing, and playing—other shadows watch him, and they become brave, too. The frog’s shadow takes the shape of a prince, the dragonfly’s shadow that of a dragon. Even the rock’s shadow gets in on the excitement. But what will become of the timid beings their shadows have left behind? Will they finally be inspired to find their own daring?"

**This review is based upon an advanced copy of the book that I received from the publisher.

ReedALOUD: The Uncorker of Ocean Bottles

Last week, my fourth graders and I shared The Uncorker of Ocean Bottles, written by Michelle Cuevas and illustrated by Erin E. Stead. 

"The Uncorker of Ocean Bottles, who lives alone atop a hill, has a job of the utmost importance. It is his task to open any bottles found at sea and make sure that the messages are delivered. He loves his job, though he has always wished that, someday, one of the letters would be addressed to him. One day he opens a party invitation—but there’s no name attached. As he devotes himself to the mystery of the intended recipient, he ends up finding something even more special: the possibility of new friends."

This book is one stunning package. Stead's art and Cuevas' narrative play off each other and build to form one beautiful, evocative, and thoughtful whole. I think this would be a wonderful book to begin the year with and have the students write and send their hopes and dreams off in bottles (though they would stay at the school in some form that would allow them to revisit them in June). I couldn't wait that long though. September is so far away. We would use it now. The fourth graders and I read The Uncorker of Ocean Bottles during our last library class together, which was within a week of them heading off for summer vacation. There was no sign of impatience or  day dreaming about what was to come. The students were present, engaged, and touched, something that is an indication of the story's power. 

After reading and reflecting on the book, these questions provided additional direction for the project:

What message would you like to send out into the world?

Who do you hope would find it?

How far do you hope your message would travel?

How long would your message be at sea?

What kinds of messages did they write?

We discussed how the message could focus on an accomplishment, an event or a person. If that was too limiting, they could write a time capsule type note or write to someone in the future.

What to do with all the messages?

Prior to the lesson, I had looked into purchasing bottles and having the students send them out into the world. I was dissuaded from this by all my environmentally-minded colleagues who reminded me that 75 new bottles littering the oceans was bad in many respects.

What should we do? The answer came during a conversation with a kindergarten student the day before the lesson: Geocaching! I am going to leave the messages in Geocaches that I visit and will hide some of my own. I am adding the school address to the notes, in the hopes that someone might write us back. We'll see! 

I knew I wanted to share this book with students the moment it arrived in the mail. It is a story asking to be read, shared, and discussed.

ReedALOUD: By Mouse and Frog: let the stories be told!

Today, my first graders and I read by Mouse and Frog by Deborah Freedman. We had so much fun! (You can read my review of the book on this post.)  This is a fun book to read aloud! The students loved Frog's exuberance and easily identified with Mouse's exasperation at the story being hi-jacked by Frog's ideas. After reading the book, I gave the students two options to create stories together just like Mouse and Frog.

Some used the Explain Everything App to illustrate and narrate stories together. 

Some chose to write stories together:

ReedALOUD: by mouse and frog

"you got to have friends..."

I can hear Bette Midler singing this...  

Deborah Freedman knows the ins and outs of friendship well. She also knows how to convey the emotions of those friends well, her character's expressions and body language are wonderful.

In The Story of Fish and Snail, we meet two friends at a divergent moment in their friendship, one of them ready to make a big leap into something new while the other is not quite ready. 

Trust prevails as both Fish and Snail journey forth into new worlds with the safety and comfort of a familiar friend.

 

In By Mouse and Frog, two friends embark on an different kind of journey - a creative journey.

"Fastidious Mouse has one idea about how to tell a story. Free-spirited Frog has another. What happens when Frog crashes into Mouse's story with some wild ideas? Chaos!...followed by the discovery that working together means being willing to compromise—and that listening to one another can lead to the most beautiful stories of all." `from Deborah's web page

Creative genius is challenged and usurped when Mouse's quiet story about having tea at home turns into a rollicking adventure - - replete with a dragon and  king -- when taken over by Frog's exuberance. 

These two friends have to learn the creative boundaries around friendship. 

Whose story is it? How can all the creative voices be heard? What does it mean to compromise? 

This illustration tugs at my heart as Frog tries to undo the "damage" to Mouse's story. The words make it even more powerful.

All ends well as the two friends begin again with a common vision for their storytelling. 

In by Mouse and Frog, two creative heads are better than one!

Don't open or close this book too quickly, or you will miss more good things! The jacket flaps and publication information are a continuation of the story. #somuchfun