Will I Have a Friend?

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Author: Miriam Cohen
Illustrator: Lillian Hoban
Awards: none
Grade level: K-2nd Grade

This is an adorable book about a young boy named Jim who is headed to his first day of school and tells his dad that he wonders if he will make any friends. His dad reassures him that he will, and says goodbye to him for the day. Throughout the day, Jim is going through the school activities and is wondering where his friend might be. During nap time, he realized a boy named Paul is looking at him and holding something in his hand. After nap time, Paul comes up to Jim and shows him his cool toy car. After that Jim and Paul begin to play and then play with the rest of their classmates. At the end of the day when Jim's dad picks him up, he is pleased to hear that Jim made a friend.

This is a great book for K-2nd because it is definitely a book geared towards younger children with the simple vocabulary and it might settle nerves on the first day of school about finding a friend, especially if some children don't know anyone else. Many children can relate to being nervous on the first day, so reading this book might help calm some children's nerves. I would definitely use this book in my classroom, and I think it is a great book to read on the first day.

Love You Forever

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Author: Robert Munsch
Illustrator: Sheila McGraw
Awards: none
Grade level: 1st-4th grade

This is a very touching book about the life of a baby boy and his mother. At the beginning of the book, the boy is just a baby, and throughout the book, he continues to grow and grow until he is a young man. Each time the boy is talked about, the reader can tell how much he is growing and changing, and the book really makes the boy a relatable figure in the book. Towards the end, the boy is getting older, as well as the mother. She calls him one day and says that she is very sick, and the boy goes to visit his mother one last time. Throughout the story, the mother always sings her boy a song, but in the end, while the mother is in her son's arms, he sings her the song. The son then goes home at the end of a long day, and picks up his baby girl and sings the same song his mother always sang to him.

This book is very touching, and really shows the life of a mother and her son. It was very relatable because it described the boy at many different ages, and it definitely felt like real life. It was sad at the end when the mother passed, but I was happy at the end when he went home and sang the same song to his baby girl. I put the grade level at 1st-4th because I feel like the concept of the book would be hard to grasp for young kids. I would definitely have this book in my classroom, and I would have it in the classroom library so students could explore the book and read it on their own.

The Night Before Mother's Day

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Author: Natasha Wing
Illustrator: Amy Wummer
Awards: none
Grade level: K-2nd Grade

This is an adorable book about two children getting ready for mothers day! It is a spin-off of the night before Christmas and includes many of the literary aspects from that book. During the book, the two children and the father do things such as made cake, cards, and got their mom a gift. The next day they all awake on mother's day and pamper their mom with a spa day and everything else they did for her. 

This is a great realistic fiction book because most children(not all) will know what mother's day is and celebrate it with their mom. I put the grade level between K-2nd because there is simple vocabulary for young children to understand throughout the book, and I think younger children will really enjoy reading this around mother's day since they can relate to it. In my classroom, I would probably read this book and then the students could do an art activity based off of the book for their mothers/guardians in their life.

Sky color

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Author: Peter H. Reynolds
Illustrator: Peter H. Reynolds
Awards: none
Grade level: 1st-3rd grade

This book is about a young artist named Marisol. She loved to paint many different things and even had her own "art gallery" on the fridge at home. She learns that her art class has been assigned to paint a mural on the wall for the library. She is beyond excited and while everyone is choosing which part to paint, she says she will paint the sky. She begins looking in a box of colors but is upset because she can't find any blue paint. That night, she watches the sunset and is in awe by the amazing amount of different colors in the sky. The next day, she goes to class and makes a sky out of many amazing and beautiful colors. 

I really enjoyed this book! Most children love to draw or paint, and can easily relate to the love and creativity of drawing. I would definitely have this book in my classroom because it motivates children to be creative and think outside of the box. I chose this book for 1st-3rd grade because it has vocabulary that is simple enough for students to read. In my class, I would use this book to influence creativity before an art activity and encourage students to think outside of the box when it comes to drawing and different colors.

Wonder

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Author: R.J Palacio

Awards: Bluebonnet award

Grade level: 3rd-8th grade

Wonder is an amazing fiction children's literature book written by R.J. Palacio. It has many awards including the Bluebonnet award. They also released a movie in 2017 based off of this award-winning novel! This book could be used for a wide range of children, from about 3rd grade-8th grade! This book is about a young boy named August (Auggie) who was born with severe deformities. He wants everyone else to see him as ordinary but feels like he is the only one that sees himself as ordinary. Throughout the novel, we see the many challenges Auggie faces while transitioning from home-school to middle school, but we are also able to see the point of view from the people around Auggie and involved in his life. The reader is able to see how difficult life is for Auggie as well as the people around Auggie. This book truly shows an amazing journey of the struggles Auggie has, as well as the celebrations he has as he becomes more comfortable and gets a sense of belonging at his school.

As a teacher, I would definitely use this book in my classroom! I think it is an amazing story for students to hear, and it will teach the students amazing lessons on being kind and accepting others even if they might look different. I think a good grade level for this is 3rd through 8th because the students will be able to better understand what Auggie is going through and understand the many perspectives throughout the book. This book would be great to have students read and then have discussions about what they read and talk to them about the different viewpoints in the book. It would also be a good idea to have the students keep a book log while reading just so they can write down their opinions on the style of writing in the book.