ReedALOUD: Little Tree

The students and I have been reading little tree written and illustrated by Loren Long.

Loren has turned a personal story connected to his son's entrance into kindergarten into a universal story about having the courage to let go.

About little tree:
In the middle of a little forest, there lives a Little Tree who loves his life and the splendid leaves that keep him cool in the heat of long summer days. Life is perfect just the way it is. Autumn arrives, and with it the cool winds that ruffle Little Tree’s leaves. One by one the other trees drop their leaves, facing the cold of winter head on. But not Little Tree—he hugs his leaves as tightly as he can. Year after year Little Tree remains unchanged, despite words of encouragement from a squirrel, a fawn, and a fox, his leaves having long since turned brown and withered. As Little Tree sits in the shadow of the other trees, now grown sturdy and tall as though to touch the sun, he remembers when they were all the same size. And he knows he has an important decision to make.

A few things about this book. I have enjoyed sharing it with all my students, from grades kindergarten through grade five, which speaks of its universality and appeal. The students hear Loren's story seed. Some see the tree as Loren and his son as the leaves. Other students see his son as the tree. It's been interesting to hear their conversations.

I appreciate this line after the little tree has let go of his leaves, "As his last leaf floated to the ground, for the first time Little Tree felt the harsh cold of winter." I used this sentence as an opportunity to remind students that growth and comfort take time and that things will not get easier right away. A good reminder in this instant gratification world that there isn't always a quick fix.

It's important that Little tree let go at his own pace, the gentle concern and encouragement from forest friends was great modeling, but so to was the fact that Little Tree let go when the time was right.

These same friends were their to grow with Little Tree.

We're taking a page (or leaf) from Little Tree and talking about ways to be courageous learners -- to let go so we can let grow.

I was able to meet Loren and share with him how much I love this book. I think you will too.

How will you let grow?

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: Last Stop on Market Street

Today, the third graders and I read Last Stop on Market Street, written by Matt de la Peña and illustrated by Christian Robinson.

Here's a description of the book from Matt's website: "Every Sunday after church, CJ and his grandma ride the bus across town. But today, CJ wonders why they don’t own a car like his friend Colby. Why doesn’t he have an iPod like the boys on the bus? How come they always have to get off in the dirty part of town? Each question is met with an encouraging answer from grandma, who helps him see the beauty—and fun—in their routine and the world around them."

I love this book! The hush that occurred over three classes confirmed the power of a well-told story. Poetic verse and vibrant illustrations elevate Last Stop on Market Street to the experiential level. It feels authentic.  Having grown up in the inner city it feels familiar to me, but it presents a world not often seen by readers, some of my students included. There is much discussion about books as windows and mirrors - a window into another person's world and a mirror of one's own. This book provided both experiences for the students that I worked with today.

There is far too much to mention and still have you get to the good part of this post - the student reactions - so I will choose two things.

I appreciate how Matt wove into the story the strong sense of values and how the grandmother was passing them along in both straight-forward and subtle ways. Certainly serving others is a wonderful value, but so too are friendlessness, kindness, politeness, and generosity. The students and I had an interesting discussion about this topic.

I am in awe of the city, the people, and the beauty in both that Christian has created. The art is light yet carries depth. Each spread is a story in itself.

As I have mentioned before, this group of students are well-versed in close reading having been participants in a Mock Caldecott Committee for the last three years. They also happen to be a thoughtful and introspective group of children who are willing to share their feelings, ideas, and connections to stories. This makes them ideal partners in reading!

The students had five ways to reflect on and connect with the book. 

Using the Tellagami App, the students talked about why their connections to the story. 

Using pen and paper, the students answered three different questions: 

How have you helped others? 

 What values are your grandparents passing along to you? 

 What activities do you do with your grandparents?

See more answers here:

The last tool the students used was FlipGrid. They talked about why they think the story is important.

The password is "mrlibrary."

How have your students connected and reflected on the story?