“Well she had no choice...Trixie bawled. She went boneless. She did everything she could to show how unhappy she was”.

This book is funny and follows the story of a toddler with her “knuffle bunny“. It would be a great read in a k-1st classroom. The illustrations are creative and eye catching. The use of drawing and photos is also a great aspect.

The story follows little Trixie, who embarks on a hilarious adventure with her beloved Knuffle Bunny, only to realize that communication barriers between adults and children can lead to amusing misunderstandings. Willems' distinctive blend of expressive illustrations and minimalistic text creates a relatable and endearing tale that both parents and young readers will enjoy.

“It is he who heals the broken in spirit and binds up their wounds, he who numbers the stars one by one...”

This book would be great in a 4th-8th grade classroom. I have read it with my students in my current placement and many students did not know about the brutality of World War II, especially for those who were Jewish and practiced Jewish religion. This book allows students to look into other views from different time periods.

This is a historical nonfiction book written by Lois Lowry. It takes place in Denmark during the second world war. The book follows 10-year old Annemarie Yohansen who gets to experience the brutality of the Nazi occupation first hand. She and her family house their Jewish friends and have to avoid getting the attention of the Nazis.

“When she visits the next flower, some of this pollen is rubbed off onto the stigma. This fertilizes the plant and causes it to produce seeds and fruits.“

This book would be great in any classroom for a stand alone read aloud or anything regarding science. The book highlights the importance of bees on many of our items of produce and organic materials such as cotton. Students can learn about the processes of how plants are pollinated and gain a respect for living organisms.

This is a nonfiction book that covers how important bees are to our world. Alex Woolf write the story that is accompanied by funny and educational illustrations by Peter Beton. The story revolves around how many food and commercials products, like cotton and fruits/veggies, are reliant on bees to pollinate them and what would happen if we didn't have them.

“Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.“

This book would be great for 2nd to middle school students. Whether a teacher just wants to read a book to their students or the class is discussing the branches of government, this book allows students to learn about an influential supreme court justice who continued to fight for equity her whole life.

This book tells the story of RBG and her journey to becoming the first woman on the supreme court. From her experience as a young girl to her time in college we get to see the obstacles that she overcame to be a voice for those who were asking for representation.

“My work will be precious. I will bridge the 'gap' between Black & white... ...and hopefully all people! I suppose some things in life are just meant to be.“

This book would be a great read for students in kindergarten up to middle school. I have personally read this to my last semester placement 2nd graders and they all had so many questions after reading it. It allows students to enter the world of someone with differences in a different time period and see their hardships and challenges and how they overcame them (or are still working towards them) for a more equitable experience.

This is a children's autobiography book written by Ruby Bridges. The book goes over her story of being one of the first black children to attend an all white school. We get to see from her point of view the difficulties and hardships in her education and homelife and how she had obstacles to overcome but also support in her journey for equity.

“Rarely someone passes,
a withered lead suddenly adrift,
here, there.“

This book would be great in a 1st-4th grade classroom. Seeing the poems in both Japanese and English could also provide a great tool for bilingual students who speak both languages. The reflection questions at the bottom also make this book a great read for independent reading and morning meetings.

This book contains a series of Haikus that were originally written in Japanese but are translated into English. Each poem is intriguing and thought provoking. One thing I really enjoyed about the book is how the author encourages the reader to think more deeply about the poems at the bottoms of the page adding more emphasis on the reflection afterwards.

“The seeds of thoughts were planted.
I had set my story free!
That poet in my pocket turned into a....
Poetree!“

This book would be great for students of any age, but I would recommend to use it in a k-3 environment. When students are learning about poetry they can read this book and see how enjoyable poems can be when they are accompanied with visuals and use many different poetry conventions.

This book of poems uses constant rhyming and alliterations. This creates a fast paced reading experience that is full of fun imagery while maintaining a great story in the center. The book has uses of clever word play that allows the readers to create mental imagery along with the imagery in the book.

“You might not realize it but you are a poet! You became a poet as soon as you opened this book because you started a journey.“

I would suggest to use this book in any classroom where poetry is being taught or talked about. This book allows readers to see examples of conventions used in poetry and prompts of what they can write about. This can inspire creativity in poetry writing and would be useful in classrooms.

This book flips the script of a regular book of poems. Instead of giving the reader the experience to read poems, Coelho gives the reader prompts that allows them to think about how to write poems for themselves and how to reflect upon what they wrote. There are examples of imagery, similes, and other poetic devices that teach the student what they can include in their poems.

“Life doesn't frighten me at all. No, they don't frighten me at all. They don't frighten me at all. It's only in my dreams.“

I think this collection of poems would be great in a middle-elementary classroom. As students get older and experience the challenges that come with life these poems can transport them into world where they can see how others are also going through difficult times but end up making it out. I would recommend this book as it is supportive and has a sense of creativity.

This collection of poems is written by the iconic Maya Angelou and is accompanied by illustrations from the works of Jean-Michael Basquiat. Angelou uses evocative words that are emphasized by the illustrations and make them easy to read and a want to continue to read. The poems connect to the reader as they encompass the challenges of life and how you can overcome them.

“I am not your missing piece,
I am nobody's piece.
I am my own piece.
And even if I was
somebody's piece
I don't think I'd be yours!“

I really enjoyed this collection of poems. I have read from this book since I was a child and could see this being used in any grade level classroom. The poems are imaginative enough for older students to enjoy reading them and will spark creativity for younger students. The imagery that goes along with the poems help the reader visualize the humor and creativeness of each poem.

This is a black and white classic book of poems by Shel Silverstein. The poems can be silly and extend from reality to create a sense of creativity for the reader. He has a unique blend of humor, imagination, and and heartfelt observations that can captivate and spark a world of creativity for the readers.

“He wasn‘t strong because he wasn‘t afraid. No, he was strong because he kept doing it even though he was afraid.”

This book would do well in a middle school and high school setting. It allows students to see how other students experience life through societal biases and stereotypes and can increase a sense of empathy for differences in life.

This book has an important story to tell about a complex to-be friend group. In high school Rasham and Quinn are two students just trying to live their life. After a night out at a party, Quinn sees Rashad being brutally attacked by a police officer and does not know what to do. The story unfolds to see how the students and community respond to these actions while the two boys have to deal with their own personal lives as well.

“He thought about his style of painting-
one that combined East and West.
his past and his present.

Tyrus saw an opportunity.“

This book would be a great read for grades 1st to 8th. The story of Wong's life is complex and fulfilling and allows readers to see how a craft can be rewarding for intrinsic reasons and not just extrinsic. Along with the messages, the art is also fantastic. The art follows a more traditional style and is very satisfying to observe as you read the story.

This is a great biography about the life of Tyrus Wong. From the hardships of immigrating to America, to his later endeavors, we get to see how Wong worked hard through his life to be an artist for himself. While at Disney studios he worked hard to create the back drops for Bambi and was unfairly credited only as a backup artist. However, he kept creating art for himself and others.

“Each fall is a message, a hint, an idea.
A new way to move from over there to over here.“

This autobiography has a great message for students. Students will face challenging moments countless times in their life and Ashima Shiraishi demonstrates through her story that it is possible to overcome these moments through learning from failure. As she falls she thinks about what she could learn and do better the next time, each time getting closer until she makes it. This would be a great read aloud book in any classroom to persevere.

This picture book biography covers the story of Ashima Shiraishi overcoming a difficult climb. Ashima is a youth world champion rock climber and has been been climbing since she was 6 in New York. In the biography she goes through her strategy in how to overcome a difficult task with the reader. This allows the reader to learn about how she climbs and her strategizing to work through difficult moments.

“The tentacles seize their prey.
They surround their thrashing meal.
They latch on with powerful sucker-studded clubs.“

This book would be great in any age classroom. The book focuses on one of the most mysterious deep sea creatures in the ocean. It has a great introduction that grabs the attention of the reader and then continues to explain what we know about this creature in an interesting and eye catching manner. The illustrations are great so students can be able to visualize the enormous size of this creature.

This nonfiction text provides a great story telling feeling around the life of the giant squid. Accompanied with the illustrations, the reader is able to learn about how they catch prey, eat, use their tentacles, and begin their life. Readers are able to see how they begin as small organisms and grow into their full size and protect their offspring by using their ink. Great book with great illustrations.

“City birds aren't picky about where they live, either! Look closely and you may see a Mourning Dove nesting in an old pot on a terrace, an American Kestrel raising its babies behind a gargoyle, or sparrows and starlings taking up residence in any empty spot they can find.“

This book would be great in a 3rd grade and up classroom. It teaches students about the joys of something many would not think of doing. It shows ways to identify the birds around you and where one can do it. Students learning about categorization also can build complex thinking skills that could benefit their in class learning as well.

This nonfiction text is a great collection of informative yet silly illustrations, suggestions on how to start birdwatching, different birds one can see when birdwatching, and the things you can bring with you as you birdwatch. It allows all students to figure out how they can bird watch, even if they are from an inner city. It builds upon finding fine details to identify birds as one gets better as well. Great suggestions and tips.

“Water, even when you try to fool me, I know you.
You blast and huff.
Whistle and puff.
Steam.“

This is a simple read that provides illustrations while discussing the different ways water exists in our world. I think this would fit very well in a Kindergarten to 4th grade classroom. This could be included in a curriculum to introduce water to students and how it is not as simple as it seems, even transitioning into the water cycle.

This is a quick and simple book about water and how it exists all around us. The author provides fun illustrations that demonstrate how water can be a large mass, like the ocean, or exist as a tear. It explores the different states of matter, with water being a gas (steam and clouds) and water being a solid (ice cube/ iceberg).

“Climate change will not destroy
our voices,
our hope,
our positivity,
our iakwe.“

This nonfiction collection of poems regarding our earth and what we can do to help it belongs in any classroom. The poems show how people are fighting to protect our earth and working together to achieve this goal. We get to hear about stories involving young activists as well that show how there is not an age requirement to start working towards a better future.