The Brain: Our Nervous System

The Brain:

 Our Nervous System

Author: Seymour Simon

Publishing: HarperCollins Publishers, 1997

“An absorbing introduction to this amazing control system that can do more jobs than the most powerful computer ever made.” 

 The Horn Book

“Simon may have done more than any other living author to help us understand and appreciate the beauty of our planet and our universe.” 

 Kirkus Reviews

         “Your brain is only a small part of your whole body...Your brain is really what makes you, you.” Thus, Seymour Simon, in THE BRAIN: OUR NERVOUS SYSTEM, provides concise scientific detail about parts of the brain and nervous system including stunning magnified computer images of the brain and spine, while providing curiosity and fascination as a framework by setting up the essential nature of the topic: Your brain enables you to "...read, run, laugh, breathe, say hello to a friend, or turn to the next page in this book. Try it!"

        Nominated for the Beehive Children's Informational Book Award in 2000, this factual book provides educational elements such as a logical progression from the tiny elements of the brain such as neurons, nerves, dendrites, axons, synapses, to the major elements such a the skull, cranium, cerebellum, brain stem, and spine, and finally to matching the parts of the brain to their bodily function. However, the book does not provide a table of contents, index, or glossary - and instead functions more as a  photo essay meets picture book. The text, though, does not shy away from scientific terminology and explanation, while maintaining a level of readability appropriate for elementary school students. Readers' understanding of concepts is further developed by the use of everyday analogies -- Simon compares the brain to a grapefruit, nerves as hairs, the spine as a rope, short-term memory to breakfast, and long-term to your first day of school. Visual, everyday comparisons such as these enhance understanding for both children and adults. Easy to read diagrams are also included.

           Science as a source of entertainment and amazement permeates this work. When author Seymour Simon was a child, he was fascinated by science fiction writers such as Arthur C. Clarke and Edgar Rice Burroughs, reading them in science fiction comics such as AMAZING STORIES and STARTLING STORIES. THE BRAIN: OUR NERVOUS SYSTEM follows this influence, as Simon inspires wonder through guiding readers to marvel at their own brain behind their own eyes. Simon incites amazement particularly through his choices of images. The selection of images and photography is apparently chosen for its 'wow factor' - most are full page, glossy, colorful computer generated scans and micorgraphs which dramatize the science fiction ameba-like appearance of nerves and dendrites and such. The background color of the text and images is a dark glossy blackness - emphasizing the startling photography, and that science can be as spectacular and out-of-this-world as any science fiction comic. 

             A multitude of activities can be done along side this book to enhance the enjoyment and understanding of the brain. A picture of a brain can be colored and labeled for its parts and functions. If children cut out the picture and tape it to a makeshift "hat," they will get a good idea of what parts of their own brain provide for the various functions. Then, games can be played to experiment with the various senses that the brain controls. For example, a game to test hearing can be done if all but one student closes their eyes. The one student will then make a noise - like tapping, jiggling keys, crumpling - then students must guess what the noise is. You can make teams and keep score! The sense of touch can be similarly explored when students close their eyes, and use only sense of touch to guess what object is or to move across the room. To explore vision, optical illusions could be presented, explored, and explained. Smells can be presented and guessed at. Riddles can be asked. Thus, children in their "brain hats" can explore their own brain functions inside in a fun, interactive way. Whatever activities are done using this striking information book, the children's craniums are sure to be sparked up!

References:

Simon, Seymour. "Simon Seymour Bio." Accessed October 28, 2013. http://www.seymoursimon.com/.

Seymour, Simon. 1997. THE BRAIN: OUR NERVOUS SYSTEM. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc. ISBN 059063490.

Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice

Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice 

by Phillip Hoose

“Hoose fashions a compelling narrative that balances the momentous events of the civil rights movement with the personal crises of a courageous young woman.” 
The Horn Book



“Phillip Hoose’s narrative, which was drawn in large part from interviews with Colvin and others as well as additional research, paints a fresh, insightful picture of those life-changing times in Montgomery, looking at them through the experiences of a teenager who faced challenges for being both young and black.” 
Cooperative Children’s Book Center Choices

       Claudette Colvin is a lesser known civil rights figure in American history. She was 15 years old when she, like Rosa Parks after her, stood up to racial segregation and refused to give up her seat for a white woman in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955. She was not sitting in the four rows of "whites only" seats in the front of the bus, but when an additional white woman got on the bus Claudette was expected to vacate the seat. Her friends moved to the back of the bus, but Claudette bravely refused. Like Rosa Parks, she was arrested. Unlike Rosa Parks, Claudette was only a teenager, but was still dragged out, put in handcuffs, and put in an adult jail. 

        After she got out of jail, she was contacted with civil rights activists such as E.D. Nixon , Rosa Parks, and Fred Grey. Later that same year, Rosa Parks was also arrested for not vacating her bus seat for a white person. It was Rosa Parks who would forever be remembered as a hero for this brave act, as the civil rights leaders felt more comfortable with her as the face and voice of the movement. Claudette was equally brave, but her rocky history and impoverished background made them uneasy to use her for the movement, especially as she had become an unwed pregnant teen by the time of her trial. Unfortunately, after her release on bail she was treated more of an outcast than a civil rights hero.

        Later she would be able to make a contribution to the African-American civil rights movement when she became a plaintiff in the famous Browder v Gayle lawsuit against Montgomery and Alabama in regards to the unconstitutionality of bus segregation, making a case against the city and state by telling her own story. Despite her part in this trial, the civil rights leaders did not contact her to let her know the news about the decision to abolish bus segregation.

      The organization of the book is designed to aid in a full understanding of both Claudette and the time she lived in. Readers are apt to understand this important era of civil rights history more deeply as the author intertwines historical record with Claudette's own personal memoir of these times. Text boxes in the margins highlight and explain important points as the story moves through in chronological order, telling both personal and historical stories. The first part of the book reveals the the life and times for African Americans living in Montgomery in 1955, and the second part portrays the Browder v Gayle case and the passionate resentment of many living in Montgomery at the time.

     The story has a beautiful, rich layout, with primary documents such as newspaper headlines, mug shots, and black and white photos interspersed throughout. Some of the photos and documents reveal the disturbing cruelty of the times, such as a picture of a sign reading "NO dogs negros mexicans". These illustrations not only lend authenticity to the story, but engage the reader in a visual and emotional level.

       This book could be used as a resource at it contains helpful organizational elements such as a table of contents at the beginning listing the chapter numbers and contents, as well as an epilogue, an author's note, a selected bibliography, notes, acknowledgements, picture credits, and finally, an index.

       February is African American History month, but any month may be a good time to delve deeper into the civil rights struggle and cultural roots of African American history.  One great way is to read other biographies and histories of African Americans who changed history. Another avenue of exploration is through the arts - an exhibit of African American poetry and music, for instance.  Further reading could include any past Coretta Scott King Book Awards, which focus on the appreciation of African American culture. 

        Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice is the winner of numerous awards and acclaims including the 2009 Newbery Medal, the 2010 Robert F. Sibert Honor, the 2010 Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books, the 2011 School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, and the 2009 National Book Award.

Hoose, Phillip. Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus & Giroux,         2009. ISBN-10: 0312661053

Stop Pretending

http://www.amazon.com/Stop-Pretending-Happened-Sister-Crazy/dp/0064462188

Stop Pretending: What Happened When My Big Sister Went Crazy

Poet: Sonya Sones

Publishing: HarperCollins Publishers, 1999

            Cookie is a thirteen year old girl who comes from an ideal New England middle class upbringing growing up in one of the communities that dot around the Boston metro area. Her family, normal and seemingly picture perfect, is about to celebrate the Christmas holiday when Cookie’s 19 year old sister has a manic-depressive episode. From an introduction that sets a pace of idyllic familial undertones, readers are quickly jolted as Cookie describes the horror she feels as she witnesses her sister, near naked, running out the door during the frigid Christmas season. Such a ruckus is stirred by Cookie’s sister’s rage that the once calm and collected family, doing everything in their capacity to control her, begins to lose their grip. Based on the real life experiences and derived from the personal adolescent journals of Sonya Sones, Stop Pretending… recounts Sones thirteen year old self in poetic verse as she stands witness to how her sister’s illness and subsequent inpatient stay at a psych ward challenges her own view of the normal family dynamic. Each page takes on an emotional confrontation of how Cookie deals with her sister’s mental health both as an observer and as a victim of her own insecurities that commonly plague adolescents when any thirteen year old tries to figure out how deal with the abnormalities that arise in a once normal household.

           The prose style poetry in Stop Pretending… is written as memoir veiled as adolescent journal entries providing glimpses into the mind of a thirteen year old. At first reading, the poems read as short sporadic bursts of emotion that are at times sentimental, cruel, loving, and confusing. The confrontations faced by the narrator, Cookie, are conveyed by judgment sometimes real and sometimes imagined. Sones’ brilliance in capturing her thirteen year old self is really capturing one of the biggest fears any young teenager would face, judgment from others. A reoccurring theme in many of the poems is the fear of judgment from others and how that placement of judgment will reflect on Cookie and her family during their time of crisis. The fear of Cookie’s peers and neighbors finding out about her sister’s mental illness is evident early on with the poems “Questions” and “Thin Skin.” In the poetic sketch “Questions” Sones recalls how her thirteen year old self would dodge the uncomfortable questions about her sister’s illness with a simplified statement of “she’s sick.” “Thin Skin” compares the truth of her sister being revealed as crazy or committed to a psych ward with outbreak of zits all over her face- apparent and noticeable. With the underlining fear of judgment, Cookies sister’s mental illness, or the big family secret, is also the shame of the family and illustrates a cruel widely held belief of adolescence; one rotten apple spoils the bunch. Focusing on her insecurities of what others may think, Cookie begins to place that judgment on her sister. The poem “Sister’s Room” shows a change of direction of how Cookie views her own sister. Though there are poems peppered throughout the pages that take on a sentimental and rosier picture of how Cookie once looked up to her sister, it is with in “Sister’s Room” that Cookie takes a critical view of her sister by judging her through other peoples eyes:

“How can she bear people looking at her

whenever they feel like it

through that square of chicken-wired glass

in her door?”

           The same criticism feared by Cookie is then placed on her sister by Cookie herself to the point of almost blaming her sister. But even with those cruel critiques of her sister, Cookie remains sentimental, and through her criticisms is the underlining wish that everything would return to normal. 

            This poetry book can be used in the classroom to introduce students to powerfully honest and emotional poetry. Students can be challenged to write their own poetry about their family, about questions of identity, and poems about personal emotional states. Pre-teens and teens will relate to this deeply personal endeavor.

             Stop Pretending has been nominated for numerous awards including the Bluegrass Award (2001), Maine Student Book Award (2001), Evergreen Young Adult Book Award (2002), Beehive Young Adults' Book Award (2002), Garden State Teen Book Award (2002), and Volunteer State Book Award (2004) and won the Christopher Book Awards (2000).

Sones, Sonya. 1999. STOP PRETENDING: WHAT HAPPENED WHEN MY BIG SISTER WENT CRAZY. New York, HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 0060283874

Comets, Stars, the Moon, and Mars: Space Poems and Paintings

http://www.amazon.com/Comets-Stars-Moon-Mars-Paintings/dp/0152053727

Comets, Stars, the Moon, and Mars: 

Space Poems and Paintings 

Poet & Illustrator: 

Douglas Florian

Publishing: 

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company

 2007

           Douglas Florian’s poetry book, COMETS, STARS, THE MOON, AND MARS, is a delight for both children and adults alike. The School Library Journal, in their starred review of the book, writes, “In both language and artwork, Florian strikes the perfect balance between grandeur and whimsy.”

          The book begins with a poem entitled “Skywatch” where the author invites the reader to think of exploring the night’s sky, to consider telescopes and constellations, and to have fun doing it.  Florian then takes us on a journey of outer space with this collection of twenty poems that range from the universe, galaxy, and our solar system, around all the planets (even the poor “fired” Pluto!) to comets, constellations, the black hole, and finally, “The Great Beyond”! At the end of the book, Florian provides the reader with “A Galactic Glossary” that provides more detailed information on each of the poem topics, to satisfy more curious and advanced readers. Further, the most astute of readers can utilize the final page, a selected bibliography that includes both Stephen Hawking and nasa.gov. 

         The poems were created using simple, short lines, often with a staccato rhythm that is brisk and zippy. Florian uses a great variety of meter and rhyme schemes to accent the topic of the poem, however he is abundant with whimsy and humor throughout, even while presenting scientific facts. The poems are often repetitive, which creates both an easy rhythm, and makes the poems especially accessible for children to read, understand and remember. It is clear that the author intended this book of poetry and art to be both a learning opportunity, and a chance to bask in creative wonder; to have fun - as can be seen in the clever humor of Pluto: "Pluto was a planet. / Pluto was admired. /Pluto was a planet. Till one day it got fired." The author also uses fun, dynamic shapes with the poems - for example the poem about the spiral galaxy is also in the shape of a spiral. 

            

http://www.the-best-childrens-books.org/Comets-Stars-the-Moon-and-Mars.html

        This book would work marvelously as a read-aloud due to the simple rhythms of the poems, but children can also get great joy and information from the illustrations. In this large-format book, each poem is set in a two-page spread of beautiful artwork, that continues the brilliant combo of wit and data. Florian created the book's artwork using vibrant gouache paint, collages of cutouts, and rubber stamps on primed brown paper bags, creating an eye-catching texture.  They are at once antique looking and uniquely modern, and provide a wealth of information to accompany each poem through the use of pictorial and worded labels. The artistic pages are also scattered with die-cut peepholes, which make exploring the book through the little windows and cut-outs as much fun as the author provides exploring outer space. 

         This book would be an excellent accompaniment to lessons about outer-space - it provides the art and poetry that can connect to the visual learners in the classroom as well as to children's creative instincts. There are so many crafts that children can do to learn further about space. For example, they can make a solar system model using a coat hanger and cut outs. Or, they can observe the moon every evening, and draw the shape as the moon goes through its monthly cycle. Just as this book can bridge the scientific concepts to artistic learners, it can also be used to bridge poetry and art for children who are more apt to be interested in science. 

         COMETS, STARS, THE MOON, AND MARS has won numerous awards including the Kirkus Reviews: Best Children's Books, 2007; a South Carolina Picture Book Award Nomination, 2008-2009; and the Horn Book Fanfare Best Book, 2007.

Florian, Douglas. Comets, Stars, the Moon, and Mars: Space Poems and Paintings. Ill by Douglas Florian. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 2007. ISBN 0-15-205372-7

The One and Only Ivan

The One and Only Ivan

Poet: Katherine Applegate

Illustrator: Patricia Castelao

Publishing: HarperCollins Publishers, 2012

"How Ivan confronts his harrowing past yet stays true to his nature exemplifies everything youngsters need to know about courage. … Utterly believable, this bittersweet story, complete with an author's note identifying the real Ivan, will inspire a new generation of advocates."
- Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

        Ivan is a silverback gorilla who has spent 27 years in captivity, within the glassed cage of a dated circus-themed mall where people watch him at “two, four, and seven, 365 days a year.” Ivan is friends with a stray dog named Bob and Stella an aging elephant. Ivan spends his time making art using crayons to recreate objects in his world. When Ruby, a baby elephant arrives to replace the dying Stella, Ivan begins to see his condition, his situation, and his art in a new light.

        Ivan makes a promise to Stella that he won’t let the Ruby grow up in a cage. As Ivan remembers what it is to be a gorilla, he realizes he must make changes to secure a better life for Stella.

         Inspired by a real captive gorilla, The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate is written in halting free verse, with the author utilizing words and rhythm carefully and sparingly. The cadence of the poetry both complements the words of Ivan and also serves as a parallel to the sparse environment Ivan is forced to live in:  

“Humans waste words. They toss them like banana peels and leave them to rot.

Everyone knows the peels are the best part.”

       

        The halting half sentences had the effect of forcing the patience of Ivan onto me, as the reader, forcing me to do with less. Even Castelao’s illustrations are used sparingly within the book.

           This novel could easily be paired with related books dealing animals and unlikely friendships, animals in captivity and more. In fact, themes within the story of unlikely friendships, sense of belonging, animal rights, family and responsibility, make the story work well within the context of a variety of connections. Activities might range from creating an evolution-based “family tree” to researching the habitats of gorillas and comparing that to the real-life habitat of the gorilla that was the inspiration for story.

            The novel has won numerous awards. In 2013 alone it won the Newberry Medal, the American Library Association Notable Books for Children Award, and the Christopher Book Award. It was also nominated for the Great Lakes' Great Books Award, and the Bluebonnet Award.

Applegate, Katherine. The One and Only Ivan. Ill. by Patricia Castelao. (New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, 2012).

The Lion and the Mouse

                   

The Lion and the Mouse 

Author & Illustrator: Jerry Pinkney

Publishing: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2009

            In this nearly wordless adaptation of the classic Aesop fable, The Lion and the Mouse, author and illustrator Jerry Pinkney helps the reader to understand within his or her’s own personal framework.

              In this story, as in the classic tale, the mouse begs the lion to release him without harm. The lion, seemingly amused, allows the mouse to scamper away. Later, when the lion is trapped by human net, the mouse helps the lion escape by chewing away at the ropes.

           The timeless message of grace and reciprocity is made more relevant to the reader’s experience by Pinkney’s flawless execution of expressive and realistic characters using pencil, watercolor, and colored pencils, which add distinct levels of human personification to the animals. Pinkney uses his scarce and carefully chosen words to further hone in on the direction and feeling of the story. The onomatopoetic “who who whoooo” of the owl warns of impending danger, and the painful and incensed "RRROAARRRRRRRRRRR" of the lion when captured is shrewdly paneled to appear above the mouse, quickly scampering to save him. The background, sometimes depicted as the grand and sweeping African Serengeti, reminds the reader that this story’s context is nature, where food chain is of utmost importance. At other times, Pinkney’s background is left blank, allowing the reader to focus only on the expression and emotion of the page.

          Students reading this book can connect with cause and effect by suggesting and playing out other potential outcomes to the story. The book could also serve as an excellent opening in examining the relationship between the powerful and seemingly powerless. Students might be asked to reflect on how they might make a difference – as a child to an adult and as a citizen in the world.

         This book won the 2009 School Library Journal Best Books of the Year, the 2010 Indies' Choice Book Award, the 2009 Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books, and the 2010 Caldecott Medal, as well as being a on the bestseller on such lists as New York Times, Publishers Weekly, and Amazon.com.

References

Pinkney, Jerry. The Lion and the Mouse. Ill. by Jerry Pinkney. New York, NY: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2009.

The True Story of the Three Little Pigs

Book Title: The True Story of the Three Little Pigs

Author: Jon Scieszka

Illustrator: Lane Smith

    

           This is the story of a misunderstood wolf, who had the misfortune of being at the wrong place, at the wrong time…or that’s what he would have us believe. Most children are familiar with the traditional three little pig’s story, but perhaps they have never thought to look at the situation from the wolf’s perspective. Spoofing the conventional fairy tale, author Jon Scieszka, recounts the wolf’s side of the story while illustrator Lane Smith breathes it to life using shadowy watercolors. shifty

Unjustly defamed by the sensationalism-stalking media, Scieszka recounts in first-person narrative style the events surrounding the disappearance of the pigs. 

          Smith’s dark tones and enigmatic illustrations deepen the effect of unfolding drama and heighten the sense that perhaps the wolf, at times depicted with seemingly boneless, slippery attributes, is not being entirely forthcoming in his tale.

           Alexander Wolf would have the reader believe he was but innocently attempting to borrow a cup of sugar from his neighbors, the pigs, when an unfortunate sneeze (after all, he had a terrible cold) crumpled the poorly built homes. What was the wolf to do with the ham dinners (a.k.a. deceased little pigs) left among the rubble of straw and sticks? “Think of it as a cheeseburger just lying there,” he says. Needless to say, he had a first, then a second helping. When the third pig insulted his grandmother, Wolf "got a little crazy." By the time authorities arrived at the third little pig’s home, Wolf was upset and the reporters misinterpreted events into the story we know today.

            The moral of the story that every event has more than one perspective, can be made with students by asking them to retell a traditional story from the antagonists perspective. For example, how would Hansel and Gretel be depicted by the witch who lived in the gingerbread house? Students can be asked to make up different stories and then act them out for the group. Carolyn Phelan of the American Library Association suggests that the book "encourages kids to leap beyond the familiar, to think critically about conventional stories and illustration, and perhaps to flex their imaginations and create wonderfully subversive versions of their own stories" ("True Story of the Three Little Pigs" 2013).

            This story was one of the "Top 100 Picture Books" of all time in a 2012 School Library Journal Poll, as well as an ALA Notable Book. 

References

Amazon.com, "The True Story of the Three Little Pigs." Last modified 2013. Accessed September 22, 2013. http://www.amazon.com/True-Story-Three-Little-Pigs/dp/product-description/0140544518/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books.


Scieszka, Jon. The True Story of the Three Little Pigs. Ill. by Lane Smith. New York, NY: Viking Press, 1989. ISBN-10: 0140544518