The Magic Horse of Han Gan

The Magic Horse of Han Gan by Chen Jiang Hong is a story about a boy named Han Gan who loves to paint but his family was too poor for him to buy brushes. One day he meets a famous painter named Wang Wei and he cannot resist but sketch one of his horses in the sand. Wang Wei loves his sketch and gives him supplies to paint on his own at home. Han Gan started drawing every second he could and was always drawing horses. He became so talented that within seven years the Emperor and Han Gan was offered a place at the Academy of official painters. But when he got there, Han Gan refused to change his craft that the teachers asked him to do. Han Gan only wanted to paint horses and that was all. People began to judge him because of his love for painting horses.

This is a great book with many amazing pictures and an amazing story of trying your best. Han Gan can relate to many students who love to paint or have a passion for certain things. This can be used in the classroom to teach children to work hard and become to the best at what they love. Han Gan is also Asian which can relate very well to Asian students. This can also be used to help students practice their drawing and the teacher can ask the students to draw pictures of horses. This can also be used at home to help students realize that they can work hard and never give up on what they love.

Esperanza Rising

Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan is an incredible story of a girl going from having everything to struggling to survive. Esperanza is a girl whose father owns a large farm in Mexico. They have a lot of money and have servants who take care of them until one day her father is killed by thieves. Esperanza and her mother have to flea to America with her servants to survive leaving her grandmother behind. They work on a camp site where they live in small cabins and work in fields. One day her mother gets very sick and is forced to work more to keep her mother alive. All she wants is to have her family back together and her mother healthy again.

This story can be used in upper elementary school and middle school. It is a great read and teaches important Spanish words along the way. Children can learn that even when people have a lot of money it can easily be taken away and that working your hardest can make a big difference in your life. They can learn from Esperanza and how hard she worked to keep her family going. Many children could relate to this story because some have families that are in a similar position. Parents can read this book to children at home to help them learn that not everyone is fortunate and many people have to work hard to get where they are.

King For A Day

King For A Day by Rukhsana Kham is a story about spring festival of Basant in Lahore, Pakinstan. This festival includes feasts, parties, and kite-flying battles. Malik is a boy who takes part in the kite-flying competitions. Unfortunately, he has to fly his kite against the mean boy who lives next door. He has many tough competitors but he pursues. He even has the chance to become King of Basant.

This is a great book about childhood and also the festival of Basant. Teachers could use this in their classroom to teach students about the festival and how it could compare to festivals here in the United States. Teachers could also use this to explain that bullies are everywhere and can teach a lesson on being kind to everyone. Parents could also use this book at home to teach acceptance to their children and to teach them about other cultures across the world. This book is very helpful in explaining this festival and children can get a good understanding of what it is about.

Knock Knock

Knock Knock by Daniel Beaty is a touching story about a boy and his love for his father. The boy shares a game called knock knock that him and his father has created. One day his father is not there to play the game when he wakes up. The boy waits and waits for him to come back but his father never does. The boy decides to write his father letters and leave them in his room in case his father is coming by when he is not there. One day the boy returns from school and there is a letter waiting for him at home. It is from his father and it tells him all the dreams is father has for him in his future.

I loved this book and this is a great story for any young man who does not have a father around. The boy learns that he can still be strong without his father and he can always be a better man. This book can be used in school to teach children that not all families are the same and some children do not have a father at home. Parents can easily use this book both single moms or single dads or both parents. Children can learn that their parents just want the best for them not matter what. The illustrations in this book are creative and fantastic. They really help to tell the story but they can also be used to see more of the story. A teacher could read this book to a class and after have the students create their own illustrations like this book.

The Name Jar

The Name Jar by Yangook Choi is a great story about a young girl from Korea named Unhei. She has just come from Korea with her family and is about to start school in America. On her first day on the bus, she get teased about her name. When she enters her classroom for the first time she feels worried about telling the class her name. She decides to tell the class that she will come up with a name on her own and then will tell the class. The next day at school, the whole class has created a jar that they have placed their favorite names in. They tell Unhei that she can pick any name she likes from the jar. The jar continues for a few days while Unhei discovers what her real name really means to her.

This is a great book that can be shared with students who have a new student coming to the class. A teacher could use read this book to their class before the student comes from another country so the class can understand how this student may feel. This book can teach students to accept others even if they are different from themselves. Parents could also use this book at home to read to children who need help accepting their name or accepting themselves. This book is great for any age child but especially upper elementary students because this is the age that children begin to tease others.

The Incredible Twisting Arm

The Incredible Twisting Arm by Kate Egan is a story about a boy name Mike who loved magic. Mike is not a very good student in school but he really wanted to improve. He find out that the magic shop he loves so much is having a special magician come for a show but it happens to be on the same day as his grandmother's birthday party. He wishes he could go but instead of being upset, he makes a plan to gain more privileges so he will be able to ride his bike down to the shop without his parents. He decides that maybe if he works harder in school or shows his parents how responsible he can be, he will be able to gain the extra privilege. Mike finds out that his science teacher is going to offer extra credit for creating a science experiment using everyday household items. Mike feels that this can be his way to be able to ride to the magic shop alone.

I feel that this story can relate to many students in upper elementary school. Not everyone is the best student but some want to change that. This story would be great for students who are just entering fourth or fifth grade because that is about the age of Mike. Teachers could use book to teach students that there are many ways to show responsibility and earn respect from parents or adults. This book would also be fun to use in science class to do some of the experiments and magic tricks. Parents could also read this book their children of this similar age because it will explain to them how they can gain the trust of parents. I would recommend this book for any child who loves magic because it teaches the reader a lot of tricks that would be fun for any young magician. This book is also the second book of a series called The Magic Shop.

Bicycle Book

Bicycle Book by Gail Gibbons is a very fun informational text about bikes and how they have changed over the years. This book shows many pictures of bikes and gives descriptions of bikes and how we have improved on the technology of bikes. It also has a page dedicated to explaining each part of the bike and how it works. 

This book could be used to parents to help teach their children the parts of the bike. Children who are very interested in engineering and building would love this book. They would be able to understand how bikes work and how each part is used. This book could also be used in a unit about building and how technology advances with time. Teachers could use this book to show how bikes have changed over many years and then talk about how other things have also changed. This book has great illustrations and is interesting for people who love bikes! 

Angel Girl

Angel Girl by Laurie Friedman is an amazingly touching story about a boy in a concentration camp during World War II. The boy is separated from his mother when they are forced into the camps. He wishes he could see his mother again but he never does. He goes through terrible times of being starved, over working in factories, and being so cold. One night he has a dream about his mother and she tells him an angel will save him. Two days later, a little girl is standing by the fence and throws him an apple just as the guards look away. Everyday they do this, and when she is about to leave he says "you are my little angel girl". I will not spoil the ending but it is truly amazing.

This book could be used in high schools or even middle schools when teaching children about World War II and concentration camps. I would say this book is too graphic for younger children and might scare them too much. I loved this book and feel that it can bring light to such a terrible time for the World. This book would help students to see what concentration camps did to people, even children. It has amazing pictures that can help students to picture the concentration camps and what it might feel like to be in one. It has a great ending and I feel that people of any age would love it!

Henry and the Cannons

Henry and the Cannons by Don Brown is the story of Henry Knox. Knox was a well known bookseller who lived in Boston during the time of the Revolutionary War. George Washington was leading the US Army but he was having a hard time. He needed more weapons. Knox knew just where to get them and he set on a long journey to Fort Ticonderoga. The way there was much easier but on the way back he struggled to get 59 cannons to Boston which was over 300 miles North. It took him nearly 3 months to do so but he did not lose a single cannon. Knox's ability to get these cannons helped America to beat the British in Boston.

This is a great informational text with fun pictures and awesome writing. Knox's story can be used in the classroom when learning about the Revolutionary War with students of any age. Younger kids will love the pictures and the story itself. But middle school aged kids as well as high schoolers would love this book because it holds so much information in a fun way.

Fancy Nancy and the Fabulous Fashion Boutique

Fancy Nancy and the Fabulous Fashion Boutique by Jane O'Connor is such a cute book about being an older sister and doing the right thing. It starts with Nancy going shopping for her little sister's birthday that is coming up. Nancy, her littler sister, Jojo, and their mom go shopping to get party supplies. While shopping, Nancy finds this lace fan she really wants but does not have enough money to buy it. Instead of asking her mom, Nancy makes her own boutique at her house using her grandmother's old clothes. While running her new store, Jojo finds a necklace she really wants but Nancy's friend already wanted to buy it. Jojo throws a fit and asks Nancy to give it to her for her birthday. Nancy feels badly because her friend already bought it, so she goes to buy it back from her friend.

This book could be used by any parent very easily in their own to teach their children bout responsibility and taking care of family members. Nancy does the right thing for her little sister and in the end she is rewarded. Parents who have multiple children, could read this to both the younger ones and the older ones to teach them about family and its importance. This book could also be used in the classroom to teach children new fun vocabulary words and also about responsibility. I loved this book and it is also a series. Check them out!

The Baby On The Way

The Baby On The Way by Karen English is a great story about the relationship between a grandparent and a grandchild. It starts with Jamal, a young boy, asking his grandmother if she was ever a baby. The grandmother proceeds to tell story of her birth and her family. Her story is sweet and helps Jamal to understand that everyone is a baby once in their lives.

This story would be great for a grandparent to read to their grandchild. It could help for the grandchild to understand that everyone is a baby once and it could also build a relationship between grandparents and their grandchildren.  A parent could also read this to their child to show the child family dynamics. Many ideas can be brought to life by reading this book to a child at home. This book can help build relationships between grandparents, parents, and children very easily. It can spark stories that grandparents or parents would not think to tell their children. This book could also be used in a class to explain how times change in our world. The grandmother talks about slave times and certain traditions they did back then, she states that they do not do the traditions anymore. This could make students understand that times change and the way things are now might change later in years.

A Hen For Izzy Pippik

A Hen For Izzy Pippik by Aubrey Davis is a wonderful story about a little girl who tries to do the right thing. Shaina finds a hen one day when it falls out of a truck. Shaina begs her mom and grandpa to let her keep it until the man in the truck, Izzy Pippik, comes back for it. They agree she can keep it but then the hen begins to lay eggs. The hen's eggs hatch and more and more chickens are living in the town. This town was not doing well because business was bad and no one could afford to buy things. When the chickens were all over town, the shop keepers began to get very angry but Shaina knew Izzy Pippik would come back.

This is a great story for kids of all ages especially elementary school aged kids. This can be used in the classroom to teach children about responsibility and the importance of communities. Parents could read this book at home to their children who are struggling with doing the right thing at home or in school. The illustrations in this book are great and could be used in an art class while learning about color and shades.

Wonder

Wonder by R.J. Palacio is an amazing story about a young boy whose face is distorted because of a birth defect. August struggles with people talking about him and being shocked by his face everyday. Most of his life he is home-schooled but the summer before 5th grade his parents decide it is time for him to start school. As August starts school he tries to ignore the stares and the words that are talked behind his back but it begins to get hard to ignore. This book switches perspectives from August, to his sister, and other people he meets along the way. It is an fantastic story about acceptance and judgement.
I would recommend this book for children in upper elementary school, middle school and even high school students. It teaches the reader how to be more accepting and the realization that everyone has their own problems. In the classroom this book would be great for fifth graders who are about to start middle school or sixth graders who are just starting middle school. This can teach students how to "not judge a book by its over" and to be more accepting of making new friends. Parents could read this to their children who are also in this age group but parents themselves should read it too. Adults can learn how to not judge other adults as well. This book is a warm read with some realistic twists.