Children's Books About September 11

If you’ve watched television or read the news this week, chances are you’ve seen constant reminders of September 11 as we near the tenth anniversary of the bombings. And chances are your kids have seen them too. You might choose, as some of my friends have, to avoid the media retrospectives this weekend. But you can’t avoid talking with your kids about 9/11 at some point, if you haven’t done so already. As with so many difficult subjects, reading a relevant book together can facilitate a conversation with young children and might prompt children to ask questions or make observations they wouldn’t have articulated otherwise.

The Integrating Literacy site features September 11-related children’s books this week, along with more comprehensive ideas for discussing the event with your kids. In addition to the books recommended on that site, take a look at A.B. Curtiss’s The Little Chapel That Stood, a book that portrays courage and instills hope without downplaying the devastation of the terrorist attacks.

For a breathtaking read about the World Trade Center, check out The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordecai Gerstein. Gerstein writes with wonder about Philippe Petit’s 1974 tightrope walk between the Twin Towers. Your children will be enthralled by Petit’s daring and the aerial perspective of Gerstein’s illustrations. The loss of the Towers becomes the context for the story, alluded to in the opening sentence (“Once there were two towers…”) and referenced again at the end: “Now the towers are gone. But in memory, as if imprinted on the sky, the towers are still there. And part of that memory is the joyful morning, August 7, 1974, when Philippe Petit walked between them in the air.” As Curtiss does with St. Paul’s Chapel (describing the chapel’s connection to George Washington and Alexander Hamilton), Gerstein places the Twin Towers in historical perspective rather than confining their significance to a single, tragic day. The Man Who Walked Between the Towers is also available in Scholastic video format.

Note: After you’ve read The Man Who Walked Between the Towers with your children, watch the grown-up version of Petit’s story in the captivating documentary Man on Wire. Then read Colum McCann’s Let the Great World Spin, which tells the disparate stories of several New Yorkers whose lives intersect on the day of Petit’s tightrope walk. If you don’t read the whole novel, find a copy and at least read the first section. Seriously. Those few pages may contain the most mesmerizing prose you’ll ever encounter.

Review: The Twelve Days of Kindergarten Series

Writing about school-related books reminded me of a picture book series my son and I read over and over again a few years back. Deborah Lee Rose’s The Twelve Days of Kindergarten, The Twelve Days of Winter, and The Twelve Days of Springtime portray a kindergarten classroom over the course of a typical school year. As the titles suggest, the books follow the counting pattern of the familiar Christmas song. (“On the first day of kindergarten, my teacher gave to me the whole alphabet from A to Z. On the second day of kindergarten, my teacher gave to me two picture books and the whole alphabet from A to Z…”) A nice variation from most counting books, the Twelve Days books give kids practice counting backwards and build their memories as the list of “gifts” grows from one item to twelve.

Carey Armstrong-Ellis’s hilarious illustrations are the reason my son and I returned to these books again and again. The same eight students are pictured throughout the series (how’s that for a student-teacher ratio?), and each student displays his or her unique personality in an entirely age-appropriate way. Your child will enjoy predicting what new trouble the two roughhousing boys will create, what elaborate outfit the fancy girl will wear, how the horse-loving girl will express her passion, and whether the shy girl will come out from behind the teacher’s back or the nose-picking boy will ever get his finger unstuck. Observant readers can even guess the narrator’s identity. Armstrong-Ellis clearly knows her way around a kindergarten classroom. Her illustrations incorporate charmingly familiar details like an alphabet chart and various supplies stored in cubbies or shelved behind handmade curtains. The classroom gradually descends into chaos as each book progresses. The supplies come off the shelves, hamsters Chuck and Joe become Chuck and Josephine and breed offspring that escape from their cage, and a deceptively quiet student invites outdoor animals into the classroom. You get the sense that the teacher, who looks to be a seasoned pro with a youthful spirit (check out those earrings), finds this group of students more challenging than most.

I highly recommend these books for your preschool or kindergarten child. Older kids might enjoy reading them aloud to younger siblings or just reminiscing about the good old days of kindergarten.

A Very Hungry Caterpillar in Time-Lapse

Thanks to my friend Donna for sharing this wonderful time-lapse video documenting the transformation of a caterpillar to a monarch butterfly. As Donna points out, it's perfect for sharing with your kids alongside Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

Elementary, My Dear Reader: Children's Books About the School Experience

My kids and I usher in the school year with a variety of emotions: Excitement and some trepidation for them, a bittersweet blend of melancholy and relief with a pinch of denial for me. (I can’t possibly be the mother of a third grader and a kindergartener!) Bookstores and libraries observe back-to-school season as well, displaying titles that build excitement and soothe fears about starting or restarting school. Think The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn, Will I Have a Friend? by Miriam Cohen, Look Out Kindergarten, Here I Come! by Nancy Carlson, and similar books.

Beyond general back-to-school themes, school-related children’s books address an assortment of surprisingly specific subjects. For elementary school kids, check out the following titles about various aspects of the school experience:

Reluctant Readers

Miss Malarkey Leaves No Reader Behind by Judy Finchler and Kevin O’Malley

This story is based on the premise that there’s a book out there for everyone and that given the right book, anyone will enjoy reading. While I don’t completely buy that premise (I hate to admit that in a blog about children’s books and literacy), I do recommend Miss Malarkey for competent readers who resist reading outside of school. The book’s first-person narrator opts out of his school’s reading program. Even the principal’s pledge to dye his hair purple and sleep on the school roof doesn’t entice the narrator to contribute to the school’s collective reading goal. None of Miss Malarkey’s reading suggestions hold the narrator’s attention until she hits upon a title that combines all of the boy’s interests. Reluctant readers will recognize themselves in the narrator and his friends, and might be persuaded to keep searching for a captivating book—particularly if you discuss this book with your child as you read.

Standardized Testing

The Big Test by Julie Danneberg

While part of me finds it sad that standardized testing has made its way into children’s literature, I applaud Danneberg (a teacher) for addressing the apprehension that often accompanies test week. Mrs. Hartwell’s class has worked hard and enjoyed learning all year. But as the Big Test approaches, a sense of dread pervades the classroom. Mrs. Hartwell’s well-meaning attempts to prepare her students “to show what you know” only add to the tension, and a few students become physically ill with anxiety. Deciding to change her lesson plan on the final day of test prep, Mrs. Hartwell makes a surprise move that gives her students the necessary confidence to face the Big Test. This book helps put standardized testing in context for elementary-aged readers and offers them practical ways to prepare for test week.

Behavior Issues

David Goes to School by David Shannon

Some kids learn classroom rules by listening quietly as the teacher recites them at the beginning of the school year. Others, like David, learn the rules by breaking them. For kids like David, who first appeared in the award-winning No, David!, there is nothing natural about sitting still, waiting silently before speaking, standing in line, or walking slowly down a long expanse of hallway. David Goes to School is a deceptively simple book with cartoon-like illustrations and text that is accessible to very early readers. But it’s a profound experience to identify with a character who doesn’t fit the mold, to find your differences validated within the pages of a book. My son, a "David" through and through, adored David Shannon’s books for their humorous and reassuring portrayals of high-spirited kids.

Learning Difficulties

Thank You, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco

Trisha is excited to start school and learn to read. But school gradually becomes torture for Trisha as her classmates master reading while she struggles to decipher the symbols on the page. Trisha feels different and dumb, especially after her beloved grandparents die and her family moves across the country. Then in fifth grade, a new teacher named Mr. Falker advocates for Trisha when other kids tease her and becomes the first person to recognize her learning difference. With help from Mr. Falker and a reading teacher he enlists, Trisha soon learns to read. Mr. Falker, the reading teacher, and Trisha all shed happy tears by the end of the book. I’ve yet to read it without getting choked up myself—especially on the final page where Polacco reveals that this story (like so many of her wonderful books) is autobiographical. I dare you to read about Polacco’s encounter with the real Mr. Falker thirty years later without feeling a tug at your heartstrings.

Shielding Kids from Scary Stories

Stay tuned for more original content soon. I'm gradually increasing my screen time as I recover from eye surgery. Meanwhile, take a look at this Boston Globe article on how parents grapple with difficult content in children's books. (You'll need to register with the Boston Globe or log in to your Facebook account to view the article. If you go the Facebook route, why not become a fan of How to Raise a Reader while you're at it?)

How to Be a Tree Hugging Book Lover

My lament about the closing of Borders and the decline of the print book generated online comments and an offline conversation about the environmental impact of books versus e-readers. You might assume that digital reading is greener than print reading, but the reality is not so simple. According to Eco-Libris, an organization promoting sustainable reading, the carbon footprint of an e-reader is about 15 to 20 times that of one newly purchased book. Taking into account factors such as production materials, waste and recycling efforts, and health effects on workers, the environmental impact of one e-reader could equal the impact of as many as 40 books (based on several reports compiled on the Eco-Libris site). Bottom line: The greener option depends upon your reading habits and the frequency with which you replace electronic devices. If you’re an avid reader (or more to the point, a regular purchaser of new books) and you intend to keep the same e-reader for several years, an e-reader makes sense from an environmental standpoint. If your book-buying and electronics-consuming habits are more in line with the average American’s, print books are probably the greener choice for now.

That said, the United States book publishing industry is a voracious consumer of trees—some 30 million trees per year, many of them from endangered forests. In light of that jaw-dropping figure, an organization like Eco-Libris was an idea whose time had come. Founded in 2007, Eco-Libris helps readers plant a tree for every book they purchase. In addition, the organization is among those advocating for a greener publishing industry. You can take a page from Eco-Libris’s book with these suggestions for more sustainable reading.

1. Plant trees. While Eco-Libris specifically targets readers, they're not your only option for supporting reforestation. A donation to the Arbor Day Foundation can fund replanting in national forests. What’s more, the Arbor Day Foundation provides a state-by-state directory of organizations where you can donate time or money to plant trees in your area.
2. Read books printed on recycled or FSC certified paper. The Rainforest Action Network provides an online database of children’s books that meet these standards. Little Green Books is a division of Simon Schuster that publishes environmentally-themed children’s books using recycled materials and soy or vegetable ink. For more general reading, check out the 2009 and 2010 book lists and corresponding reviews from Eco-Libris’s Green Reading Campaign. Every book on the list is printed on recycled or FSC certified paper.
3. Pass it on. Don’t let books collect dust on your shelves. Pass a book along to a friend, register your book with BookCrossing and leave it in a public place for another reader to enjoy, or donate books to your library or another organization. Many libraries raise funds by reselling donated books; if your library doesn’t accept used books, they’ll likely know who in your community does. Other options for your gently used books include the Books for Soldiers Program, the International Book Project, and various prison book programs.
4. Buy used books or borrow from the library. This one is fairly self-explanatory, but it’s worth noting that buying used books online for door-to-door delivery is counterproductive if sustainability is your goal.
5. Purchase new books selectively. Choose titles you’re likely to read several times (read-aloud children’s books, for example) and books by local or favorite authors. If you have a local independent bookstore, purchase your books there. As Eco-Libris founder Raz Godelnik points out, “Independent bookstores are a viable part of local economies and making your local independent bookstore stronger will make your community stronger…Remember that social sustainability is not less important than environmental sustainability.”

Check out my Arbor Day post for tree-related reading recommendations. E-reader users, see Raz Godelnik's suggestions for greening your e-book reading.

Reading on the Road

Sixty-five hours in a minivan with young children might sound more like penance than vacation, but our family truly enjoyed (most of) those hours on a recent trip. This was due in part to the prodigious use of audiobooks and other literacy-related activities. The following suggestions for integrating reading with traveling can help bridge the summer reading gap, enhance camaraderie, and create special vacation memories.

Stock up on audiobooks

Books-on-CD are a mainstay during our travels. With enough advance planning, you can borrow a CD and multiple copies of the corresponding book from your local library or through interlibrary loan. (Trust me, the kid in the back of the van won’t be content craning over the seat to see the pictures.) Pre- and early readers can exercise their chops by following along in the book as the narrator reads. While you won’t need duplicates of chapter books, it’s still nice to have one copy of the book for reference if space allows. Speaking of space, transfer library CDs to a personal binder and leave the bulky library cases at home. Keeping all the CDs in one organizer also means you’re less likely to end up replacing lost library items.

Physical CDs are of course unnecessary if you download audiobooks to an iPod or MP3 player. You can find downloadable audiobooks for sale or rent at The Audio Book Store and Audible or for circulation at many libraries. Check with each source for download instructions and device compatibility.

Our family has enjoyed the following audiobooks in particular:

Frog and Toad Audio Collection written and narrated by Arnold Lobel
Nate the Great Collected Stories by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat, narrated by John Lavelle
The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden, narrated by Tony Shalhoub
Beverly Cleary’s Ramona series, narrated by Stockard Channing, and the Henry Huggins books narrated by Neil Patrick Harris
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo, narrated by Graeme Malcolm

(FYI, Malcolm also narrates M.C. Beaton’s Hamish Macbeth books, a series of mystery novels for adult readers, to great effect.)
Suitable for tween and teen listeners, The Great Train Robbery by Michael Crichton, narrated by Simon Prebble
Also try the Rabbit Ears series, recordings of familiar children’s stories narrated by assorted actors and originally produced for radio.

Brake for bookstores

Use Indie Bound’s bookstore finder to locate independent bookstores along your route and stop in for a visit. Local bookstores often feature displays related to the geographic areas they serve. The books included in these displays can enrich your family’s appreciation of the place you’re visiting, and they make excellent souvenirs. Shout-outs to the Upstart Crow in San Diego, Valley Bookstore in Jackson, Wyoming, and Western Edge Books, Artwork, and Music in Medora, North Dakota, three distinctly different but equally wonderful bookstores that welcomed us on our recent trip.

Make the most of the books you carry along

Select books that directly enhance your kids’ experience of the trip. The Discover America State by State series by Sleeping Bear Press is a treasury of kid-friendly books ideal for U.S. travel. For lots more state-by-state reading suggestions, check out the Wrapped in Foil page by children’s book reviewer Roberta Gibson. If you’re traveling overseas (lucky you), take a look at this extensive bibliography, divided by continent, compiled by the University of Wisconsin’s Cooperative Children’s Book Center.

               

Read interpretive signs

Interpretive signs continue to become more user friendly in general and more accessible to visitors of all ages with groups like the National Association for Interpretation promoting best practices and private firms specializing in design and installation services. According to a list of interpretive sign guidelines published by the South Dakota State Historical Society, sign designers increasingly strive to tell the story of a place. Effective signs don’t simply inform; they reveal particularities, instill wonder, and inspire stewardship. Signs for general viewing tend to be written at a seventh to ninth grade reading level, so you might need to interpret the interpretive signs for young children. Let your kids find their own way to the signs that interest them most, and take advantage of related resources for children (visitor’s guides, scavenger hunts) where they’re available.

Read travel guides and atlases together

DK Publishing’s Eyewitness Travel Guides have a child-friendly layout that will be familiar to young readers who have encountered other DK titles. ABC Travel Guides, a series of alphabet-based books designed by parents from Pennsylvania, are available for fifteen U.S. cities. While not designed as travel guides, Scholastic’s Rookie Read-About series includes U.S. state titles that will give younger readers a better sense of the places they’re visiting.

Atlases are excellent family road trip companions. Our 2011 atlas is so tattered from backseat use that my dad, who endured the same 65 minivan hours, asked more than once whether the maps were outdated. When kids have access to a map and the ability to read it, they don’t need to ask, “Are we there yet?” Map reading is one aspect of geographic literacy. According to the National Geographic Society, which is collaborating with other national organizations to improve geographic education, “Americans lack critical geographic understanding and reasoning skills that will be required for civic life and careers in the 21^st century.”

Along with an atlas, Me on the Map by Joan Sweeney is an excellent book for preschool and early elementary-aged kids. My context-loving heart thrilled when I discovered this book for my daughter, who became obsessed with maps a year or so ago. The text of Me on the Map is essentially a series of captions; the illustrations map the narrator within gradually larger contexts: room, house, street, town, state, country, and world. (“This is me. This is me in my room. This is a map of my room. This is me on the map of my room. This is my house. This is a map of my house. This is my room on the map of my house…” You get the idea.)The second half of the book zooms in again as the narrator describes how to locate a specific point on the map. (“First I look at the map of the world and find my country. Then I look at the map of my country and find my state…”) In its final pages, the book expresses the awe of a young child contemplating the world’s magnitude: “Just think…in rooms, in houses, on streets, in towns, in countries all over the world, everybody has their own special place on the map.”

How does your family integrate reading and travel? Let us know in the comments section or on How to Raise a Reader’s Facebook page.