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alexandracarpenter

Joined January 2019

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alexandracarpenter

The Little Engine That Could | Watty Piper

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The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper is an F book that is considered to be an American fairytale (so maybe it is a TL), and it would be great for an S or an RA. It is a cute story about a train who thinks she can (and, spoiler alert, she does)! Find a lesson plan at www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plans/teaching-content/little-engine-could-teaching-plan/ #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter The UDL I would apply to this is 8.1 - heighten salience of goals and objectives, because it is about reaching goals! The ESOL strategy I would use is 14 - simplify your speech by making it slower and redundant. 5y

caldwellalex95 @alexandracarpenter This picture book was easily one of my favorites when I was a child! I almost used it for one of my Litsy posts as well! This book is so cute and the underlying message is so special. Thank you for providing a lesson plan provided by Scholastic. Scholastic is very reliable and I enjoy their resources. Thank you for sharing your feelings about this book! 5y

Zmohammad Wow, this is fantastic! The ESOL strategy is excellent for all students to comprehend the story. 😁 5y

jessicabaksh Kids really do like this book and it does teach a great message. Your UDL principle fits perfectly with this book! 5y

DrSpalding Excellent resource and nice job identifying how you have aligned your principles and strategies. 5y

3 likes1 stack add5 comments

review

alexandracarpenter

The Black Cauldron | Lloyd Alexander

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This book I am recommending is actually the 2nd in the series The Chronicles of Prydain, which would be perfect for an AS or IR. The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander is an F book that won a Newbery Honor (another book in the series won a Newbery Award). You might recognize the title because a Disney movie was also made from it! This series sparked my love for the fantasy genre and would be a good read even now as an adult! #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter A UDL that would go well with this book is 7.1 - optimize individual choice and autonomy. The main character Taran had a lot of important choices that he has to make throughout the series. ESOL strategy 23 - structure advance organizers consisting for new terminology that learners will encounter - is good for some of the fantasy names and places that ELs might encounter during this read! 5y

alexandracarpenter A reading guide from the publisher can be found at us.macmillan.com/books/9781250050601 5y

DrSpalding Having books to recommend for independent reading is part of a teacher‘s job. Good job identifying a high interest book that students may enjoy. Excellent idea using the publishers website. 5y

3 likes3 comments

review

alexandracarpenter

Hatchet | Gary Paulsen

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Hatchet by Gary Paulsen is an Newbery honor
winning RF novel that is perfect for an IR. This book might be a little intense for some students (since a character does die), so upper elementary students only! It is about a 13 year old boy that finds himself suddenly stranded in the woods Alone, he has to survive by himself. This is one of the few books I have ever read where I think that the sequel was just as good as the original! #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter I pick UDL 3.2 - highlight patterns, critical features, big ideas, and relationships - for this book because even though the main character is alone in the woods, he often thinks about his family and the relationships between him, his parents, and his friends. The big ideas and relationships in this book are what makes it so good (besides the crazy survival plot that we all know and love). 5y

alexandracarpenter The ESOL strategy that I think would be best with this book would be 12 - teach to two obectives, language and content 5y

alexandracarpenter Find lesson plans here from the publisher : www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plans/teaching-content/hatchet-lesson-plan/ 5y

jessicabaksh I completely forgot about this book! Remember reading it in either 3rd or 4th grade but I do agree it should only be used in upper elementary classrooms. I agree with your chosen esol strategy as well 5y

DrSpalding This is such a good book specifically for young boys. Nice alignment. 5y

4 likes1 stack add5 comments

review

alexandracarpenter

Absolutely Normal Chaos | Sharon Creech

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Absolutely Normal Chaos is an RF novel by Sharon Creech that would be good for an IR. This book is told from the perspective of a teenage girl writing in her journal for a school project - she also reviews Greek literature for another school project within it! This book teaches vocabulary, literature, and lessons about friends and family. I read it until it fell apart as a kid! #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter Find a teaching guide on Sharon Creech's website www.sharoncreech.com/book/9780064406321/absolutely-normal-chaos 5y

alexandracarpenter I think this would work great with UDL 1.1 - offer was of customizing the display of information and 9.3 - develop self- assessment and reflection. The fact that it is written in a journal format works well with these guidelines! 5y

alexandracarpenter For ESOL strategies I would use 38 - assign short readings for homework. 5y

DrSpalding This author is excellent! She recently began following me on Twitter. What an honor. 5y

2 likes4 comments

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alexandracarpenter

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane | Kate DiCamillo, Bagram Ibatoulline

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After seeing the Book Boost about The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo in class, I went straight to the CMC to see if I could find it! This F book would be good for an RA or maybe an adapted RT. I highly recommend this book to everyone, and I am grateful to have discovered it through this class! #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter I found a great script for a Reader's Theater on Kate DiCamillo's website. The link to it is www.candlewick.com/book_files/0763625892.art.1.pdf 5y

alexandracarpenter I think a UDL for this book could be 9.1 - promote expectations and beliefs that optimize motivation. This book teaches a powerful lesson about love and how your outlook on life can affect you. An ESOL strategy could be 9 - teach note-taking strategies (time lines). Edward is a busy toy who goes lots of places, and a time line could be a fun activity to help. 5y

giont I‘ve been wanting to read this book! I like how you said you would use it as readers theater, that‘s such a cool idea! I‘m sure students would love it. I‘m making myself another note to read this book now! Thanks for sharing :) 5y

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Ms.Bursey Thanks for sharing, I actually haven‘t read this book yet, but the story seems very entertaining. 5y

jessicabaksh After seeing it being mentioned multiple times in class and seeing multiple postings of this book on litsy I really think I should read it 5y

DrSpalding This author does an excellent job providing high-quality resources for her books tied to the publisher. You know how much I enjoy readers theater and it‘s benefit on fluency. Well done. 5y

4 likes1 stack add6 comments

review

alexandracarpenter

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler | E L Konigsburg

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From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler by EL Konigsburg is a Newbery award winning RF mystery and adventure novel all wrapped up into one! Two kids decide to run away to the Metropolitan museum and solve a mystery that they encounter while there. I think this would be good for an AS since this author has an amazing and extensive career. This book is super interesting and a fun read for sure! #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter Since this book is older I couldn't find a lot of good resources on her publishing site or on ReadWriteThink. I did find a ton of worksheets and activities that looked amazing at www.bookunitsteacher.com/reading_mixedupfiles/frankweilerpreview.pdf 5y

alexandracarpenter For a UDL I thought 4.1 - vary the methods for response and navigation - was good because a teacher can print out a map of the Met and students could track where the kids go to do things throughout the day! A good way to foster the skill of map reading. 5y

alexandracarpenter I think a good ESOL strategy for this book would be 46 - use discovery learning activities. If you live in New York, wouldn't it be fun to take a trip to the Met? 5y

2 likes3 comments

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alexandracarpenter

Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb | Al Perkins

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Hand Hand Fingers Thumb, written by Al Perkins and Eric Gurney, is a P book that would be great for a CR. This book is full of repetition and would be perfect for young children, younger ELs, or special needs students. My little brother (a special needs student) definitely loves this book to the point where I had it memorized and read it to him multiple times a night! #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter A cute activity for making DIY drums for students can be found at www.fantasticfunandlearning.com/diy-drums-to-go-with-hand-hand-fingers-thumb.html. I know it's not an official website, but this book practically requires a drum activity! 5y

alexandracarpenter A UDL principle that goes along with this book is 8.3 - foster collaboration and community. Drumming and chanting this book together as a class would be a great way for students to collaborate as a group. 5y

alexandracarpenter ESOL strategy 17 - provide contextual support through audio visuals, models, demonstrations, realia... etc - would be wonderful for this book since teachers can demonstrate hand motions and drums to provide support for ELs 5y

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kennedimartin This book looks great! I love how you included that your brother loves this book as well, I will definitely have to check this out! Thanks for sharing 5y

kelseymccormick @alexandracarpenter I love how you mentioned that your brother loves this book, so cute! I like how your resource of creating a drum connects to CR. If the students are singing along with the story it would be fun to have a beat to go along with it! 5y

Mmw2478 Kids always love Dr. Seuss books. They‘re all fantastic and educational without them even knowing. 5y

3 likes6 comments

review

alexandracarpenter

Abiyoyo | Pete Seeger

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Abiyoyo by Pete Seeger and illustrated by Michael Hays is a TL book that would be great for an S. This book is based off of a South African lullaby and folktale, and was one of my favorite books as a kid! You can find more information about this boo at www.scholastic.com/teachers/books/abiyoyo-by-pete-seeger/. #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter This book would be good for UDL 5.2 - use multiple tools for construction and composition, since this book can be sung and be used for a storytelling in many different ways. 5y

alexandracarpenter ESOL strategy 14 - simplify your speech by making it slower and redundant - would be good to use during a storytelling! 5y

DrSpalding We witnessed this as a storytelling during our last class. You know it works! (edited) 5y

1 like3 comments

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alexandracarpenter

Marshmallow | Clare Turlay Newberry

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Marshmallow by Clare Turlay Newberry is a Caledecott award honor F picture book that would be great for a CR (or at least some of the poems in it would be. Written from the perspective of a cat, this book is a cute story about what happens when a new pet bunny moves into an apartment. #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter You can find more information about this book at www.scholastic.com/teachers/books/marshmallow-by-clare-turlay-newberry/ 5y

alexandracarpenter This book would work great with UDL 1.2 - offer alternatives for auditory information, since it is told from the point of view of a cat but also through poems. 5y

alexandracarpenter It would also work great with ESOL 38 - assign short readings for homework since students can read the poems ahead of time before reading the whole story 5y

gnewman @alexandracarpenter I am an animal lover, so I have to read a book told from the perspective of a cat!! And, I love that it incorporates poems too! Thanks for sharing the resource so that I could read more about it!! Great choice! 5y

1 like4 comments

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alexandracarpenter

Anne of Green Gables | L M Montgomery

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"Anne of Green Gables" by LM Montgomery is a classic HF book that would be great for an IR. It tells the story of orphan Anne Shirley. Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert want to adopt a boy to help out around the farm, and instead the quirky and imaginative Anne shows up! I loved this book when I was in elementary school and Gilbert Blythe was my first literary crush!! #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter For activities to use in the classroom involving this book, use www.varsitytutors.com/englishteacher/montgomery (this book is very old, so I couldn't find any resources on the publishing site!) 5y

alexandracarpenter I think this book would work wonderfully with UDL 7.2 - optimize relevance, value and authenticity. Anne goes through a lot of struggles that all children, even 100 years later, can relate to, and she does it all while being herself! 5y

alexandracarpenter An ESOL strategy that would work with this book would be 42 - use time lines to arrange and sequence important information. Since this book is longer, creating a timeline would be helpful! 5y

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gnewman @alexandracarpenter did you know that they have a show of this book on Netflix? I watch it all the time, and had no clue it was based on a book! In addition, your UDL Principle is true to the storyline! I love this choice and will have to get it for my future classroom! Thank you for sharing!! 5y

alexandracarpenter @gnewman I knew there was a show but I haven't gotten around to watching it. Now that I have your recommendation I might have to go check it out! 5y

DrSpalding There are several in the series! I have read them all. At one time I had a student say I was her Ann of Green Gables! 5y

1 like6 comments

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alexandracarpenter

The Crossover | Kwame Alexander

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The Crossover by Kwame Alexander is a Newbery and Correta Scott King award winning P book that would be great for an LC. This book is a story about basketball, but it is also a gut-wrenching story about family and about coming of age. You can find more resources at www.scholastic.com/teachers/books/crossover-the-by-kwame-alexander. #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter I think this book goes well with UDL 1.1 - offer ways of customizing the display of information. The way the poetry is written with varying sizes of words and spacing makes this book unique! 5y

alexandracarpenter I would also use ESOL strategy 5 - teach technical vocaublary, since an EL might not know many of the specific basketball terms (example, crossover) before reading this book. 5y

taywise393 I have not read this book yet but it is definitely in my “to read” pile! Thank you for sharing the interactive resources link! It makes me so excited to read it :) 5y

Mmw2478 I loved this book and have 2 of his others that I plan to read soon. 5y

4 comments

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alexandracarpenter

Ender's Game | Orson Scott Card

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Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card is a wonderful SF novel that won the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1986. I think it would be an awesome read aloud (RA) in class, or an independent read (IR). This is my favorite book of all time, and I could rave about it for days. However it does deal with some more graphic subjects and has some children fighting, so I would recommend it for more mature 5th and 6th graders only. #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter The publishing company has released a reading group guide to this book that can be found at us.macmillan.com/books/9780812550702 5y

alexandracarpenter A UDL guideline that goes along with this book could be 3.2 (highlight patterns, critical features, big ideas, and relationships) since there is a lot of symbolism and interesting relationships between characters in this book! An ESOL strategy I would use would be 49 (give students pre -lexicon assignments when introducing new topics), since this book is science fiction and makes up some new words, which might be confusing to ELs. 5y

DrSpalding Because of the rich content I think this would make an excellent read aloud. Again nice job in explaining the principles and strategies you have 5y

1 like3 comments

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alexandracarpenter

Boy: Tales of Childhood | Roald Dahl

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Boy: Tales of Childhood is a (B) autobiography by Roald Dahl about his experiences growing up. I think this book would be great for an author study (AS) because it really helps you get to know Dahl and how his (funny and endearing) experiences shaped him and led him to write all of the books we know and love. Strangely enough, out of all the books of his I read as a child, this one about himself was my favorite! #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter A UDL that I think would be good for this book is 7.2 (optimize ... authenticity) because Roald's experiences as himself led him to write his influential books. An EL strategy that would be good for this book is 28 - provide biographies of significant me and women from different countries (Roald grew up in the UK and talks about going to Norway a lot in the book). 5y

alexandracarpenter Lesson plans for this book can be found on Roald Dahl's website www.roalddahl.com/create-and-learn/teach/teach-the-stories/boy-tales-of-childhood-lessons 5y

cwright Omg. This is so cute. Not sure how how I just found out this existed but I need to read it immediately. And agreed, it would be so great for an AS! 5y

2 likes1 stack add3 comments

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alexandracarpenter

The Girl Who Drank the Moon | Kelly Barnhill

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The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill is a Newberry Medal winning F book that would be perfect for a Literature Circle (LC). This book is told in an incredible way that keeps you on the edge of your seat - and it includes an incredible cast of characters. Dragons? A monster with a paternal side? SO MANY strong, powerful women/girls? A disabled character who is able to still build a life for themselves? This book has it all! #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter For this book, I would use UDLs 2.1 and 2.2 as I felt there are a lot of opportunities to look at the interesting vocabulary and the interesting way that this book is structured. An EL strategy I would use would be 30 (encourage the use of diagrams and drawings as aids to identify concepts and seeing relationships) as I think diagrams and graphic organizers could help ELs see the plot more clearly! 5y

alexandracarpenter Visit the publishing site www.workman.com/products/the-girl-who-drank-the-moon-winner-of-the-2017-newbery-medal for a Reader's Guide! 5y

DrSpalding What a wonderful summary! I could not agree more. Your guide is a valuable resource to assist any teacher in using this in their classroom. 5y

ha_kaye I love how you highlighted the fact that this book has strong female leads! It is a definite add to my classroom library (: 5y

2 likes4 comments

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alexandracarpenter

Stone Soup | Marcia Brown

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Stone Soup by Marcia Brown is a 1948 Caldecott Honor TL book based off of an old French tale. It is a fun story that teaches a good lesson about kindness and cleverness. It would be good for a RT (readers theatre). A lesson plan for this book can be found at www.scholastic.com/teachers/blog-posts/shari-carter/stone-soup-lesson-sharing/. #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter I think that this books would be a cute option for a Readers Theatre, since there are many characters but a fairly simple plot. For this reason, I would say that the UDL 1.1 (offer ways of customizing the display of information) would be perfect for this book, along with EL strategy 17 (provide contextual support through... models, demonstrations, realia, body language and facial expressions). 5y

DrSpalding This is a classic and your English learner strategy shows that it would also be an excellent story for storytelling where you could truly provide the Realia or models. 5y

Edenmonet I loved this book when I was little! My teacher did a read aloud and after that it became my favorite book. I liked how your lesson plan allowed students to make their own stone soup! 5y

1 like3 comments

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alexandracarpenter

Verdi (copy 2) | Janell Cannon

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1998 Bookseller's Choice award winner "Verdi" by Janell Cannon is an F picture book that would be perfect for an AS. Janell Cannon is better known for her book "Stellaluna", but growing up I always liked the art and the lesson taught in "Verdi" more. Verdi is a snake who is afraid to grow old and turn green. However, he discovers that growing up doesn't have to mean growing bored, and that he can be the zany snake he has always been.#LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter Janell Cannon doesn't have a website (or if she does, she's great at hiding it) so here is a link to the publisher https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/books/verdi-by-janell-cannon/. I couldn't find any activities for Verdi on here or readwritethink, but there are plenty on Stellaluna. Justice for Verdi :( 5y

alexandracarpenter Since there are Spanish versions of Cannon's books widely available, an EL standard that would be great for this could be 24 - "incorporate the language of second language learners into the curriculum". Since this book provides a lot of information about snakes, a UDL standard could be 3.1 "activate... background knowledge" if students are learning about reptiles or snakes in other content areas. 5y

DrSpalding JUSTICE for Verdi! I love it. I own this book and of course, Stellaluna. My students enjoyed these books and I, for some reason, like bats. I even have the plush character. Scholastic is an excellent resource and I like your idea of using the Spanish version of her books. Most libraries have widely read books in multiple languages. Many local libraries will courier their books to your school free of charge if you have a library card. 5y

1 like3 comments

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alexandracarpenter

The Man Who Walked Between the Towers | Mordicai Gerstein

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"The Man Who Walked Between the Towers" is a Caldecott medal award winning book by Mordicai Gerstein. It is an NF book that I think would be good for Storytelling. It follows the story of a street performer Phillipe Petit who tight rope walked between the Twin Towers in New York. I remember reading this book when I was in elementary school, specifically the illustrations! #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter Here is a lesson plan from the publishing company Scholastic https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plans/teaching-content/man-who-walked... 5y

alexandracarpenter A UDL standard for this book is 1.1 - "offer ways of customizing the display of information". The illustrations show what happened from many perspectives! 5y

alexandracarpenter An ESOL standard for this book is 30 - "encourage the use of.... drawings as aids to identify concepts and seeing relationships". Drawings and art could really aid in comprehension with this book, because it is such a visual book already! 5y

3 comments

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alexandracarpenter

Walk Two Moons | Sharon Creech

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Newbery award winner "Walk Two Moons" by Sharon Creech is an F book that would be perfect for an LC. The story revolves around Salamanca and her family as they take a road trip across the country. As Salamanca tells her family a story to pass the time in the car, truths about her own life start to unravel as well. Sharon Creech was my favorite author growing up and this was one of her best books, in my opionion. #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter Harper Collins, the publisher, provides activities to be done in the classroom here https://www.harpercollins.com/9780060233341/walk-two-moons/ 5y

alexandracarpenter The UDL I would choose for this book is 7.2 - "optimize relevance, value, and authenticity". The main characters are Native American and I feel that having this representation and talking about the characters' culture would be helpful for students who are of a similar background to see themselves in a story. 5y

alexandracarpenter An ESOL strategy for this book could be "use student pairs for team learning...". Pairing students of varying skill levels together to read passages of the book could be helpful in aiding comprehension of student who have less knowledge of the English vocabulary. 5y

3 comments

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alexandracarpenter

When Sophie Gets Angry-Really, Really Angry | Molly Bang

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"When Sophie Gets Angry - Really, Really Angry" by Molly Bang is a Caldecott Honor RF book that would be good for an IR. The story revolves around a young girl Sophie who gets angry. She then appropriately manages her anger by going to a quiet place by herself, and returning to her family once her anger has subsided. This book is mostly images and easy vocabulary, making it a perfect book for a young student to read by themselves. #LAE3414sp19

alexandracarpenter There are many activities posted on author/illustrator Molly Bang's website for this book at www.mollybang.com/Pages/sophie_act.html 5y

alexandracarpenter A UDL strategy that goes along with this book is strategy 9.2 - "facilitate personal coping skills and strategies". Sophie manages her own anger in stead of acting out and hurting herself or others. This is a wonderful example for young children who are learning how to manage their own anger. 5y

alexandracarpenter An EL strategy that goes along with this book could be 3 - "encourage self talk (positive thinking)". No matter who you are, you have experienced anger at some point in your life, and this book can help children express their emotions in their L2 by providing simple vocabulary and illustrations for them to use as a jumping off point. 5y

DrSpalding Yes! While this won the Caldecott it also won the Zolotow award as well. You picked a good one! Wonderful resource again and excellent alignment to the universal design principles and English learner strategies. There is a lot of talk about social/emotional learning in classrooms currently. Charge on! 5y

1 like4 comments

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alexandracarpenter

Creepy Carrots!: with audio recording | Aaron Reynolds

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Caldecott medal winner "Creepy Carrots" (F) would be perfect for an RA. It's a story about Jasper, a young rabbit who loves to eat fresh carrots. However, he starts to believe that his favorite treats are following him around! The story reveals a cute twist ending and is very fun and engaging.

alexandracarpenter A coloring activity by illustrator Peter Brown himself can be found on his website here http://www.peterbrownstudio.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Creepy-Carr... 5y

alexandracarpenter This book would go along well with ESOL strategy 17 - provide support through ... demonstrations, realia, body language and facial expressions. There are many actions and intonations that can be used to convey what Jasper is saying and doing (for example, yanking a carrot and taking a bite of one). 5y

alexandracarpenter It also applies to the UDL standard 3.2 - highlight patterns, critical features, big ideas, and relationships. Exploring the relationship between the carrots and Jasper could be fun, as well as talking about the pattern of the carrots appearing and disappearing. 5y

alexandracarpenter #LAE3414sp19 5y

DrSpalding You were paying attention! EL 17 is perfect and using Brown‘s website as a resource was wise. Great work. Keep going! ❤️📚 5y

2 likes5 comments