by florian.b www.flickr.com I had another Wacky Wednesady teaching idea! Banned Books Week should be discussed in elementary, middle, and high school classrooms. Children should know that some people try to ban books from library shelves because they do not agree with the content. In the past, some books have been banned. This doesn’t happen [...]

by bobster855 www.flickr.com *Historical fiction for older middle grade readers, young adults *Teenage slave girl as main character *Rating: Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson is a wonderful read with a captivating voice and unforgettable main character. Short, short summary: Isabel, a teenage slave, and her five-year-old sister, Ruth, are sold to Loyalists who live in [...]

Why would Shel Silverstein’s A Light in the Attic be pictured on a post that talks about challenged and banned books? Because believe it or not, it is on the list of the 100 most frequently challenged books from 1990 to 1999. Are you racking your brain, like I was when I saw the list, [...]

*Picture book for preschoolers through first graders *Families of all sorts are the main characters *Rating: All Kinds of Families! is a sweet picture book full of interesting ideas about families. No matter what a child’s family looks like, they should feel like they belong with this book by Mary Ann Hoberman. Short, short summary: [...]

photo by carrera911e www.flickr.com Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor is a Newberry Medal winner and the beginning of a series about a beloved dog and a young boy, Marty Preston. I chose it for today’s “Timeless Thursday” because animal stories, especially well-written ones, are always a big hit with kids. This book, which I taught [...]

by mrbill www.flickr.com Here’s a Wacky Wednesday idea I had just the other day when I luckily received an Advanced Reader Copy of Al Capone Shines My Shoes for review. Although there are not many mistakes in it, there were some. I gave away the ARC to a lucky reader of my blog who left [...]

photo by peasap www.flickr.com *Picture book for preschoolers through first graders *Little boy and pirate girls as main characters *Rating: The Night Pirates is a fun read full of imagination and playful language! Short, short summary: Tom is a nice little boy who is trying to go to sleep. But he hears shadows outside his [...]

And the winner is Linda. Check out her blog, “Travels With Children” at http://minnemom.com/ . If you didn’t win a copy of Al Capone Shines My Shoes by Gennifer Choldenko, think about purchasing a copy and giving it to your favorite kid during whichever winter holiday you celebrate! Now on to Maniac Monday. . . [...]

**Leave a comment on this post by Monday, September 21 at noon CST for a chance to win an advanced reader copy of Al Capone Shines My Shoes by Gennifer Choldenko. You can comment about this post, about Alcatraz, about the series, about middle-grade readers for boys, or about anything else that floats your boat–including [...]

I loved, loved, loved Trixie Belden mysteries when I was in elementary/middle school in the late 1970s/early 1980s. I wanted to solve the mysteries right along with Trixie, and I wanted to have brothers and a best friend, Honey. The reviews on Amazon are written by people around my age, who loved Trixie Belden as [...]