At home resources #8

April Fool's Day! 
Today is April Fool's Day. If we were together at school you might play a fun trick on someone.

One year a class came to the library with their heads hanging down, looking sad, and the teacher apologized saying that ALL of her students had forgotten their library books. When I started to respond with my disappointment, they all shouted "April Fool's!" (They had left the books in the hall to play a little trick on me!) That was a good one! 😀

Here are some jokes for April Fool's Day:
What did one plate say to the other plate?
Dinner is on me!

What stays in the corner yet can travel all over the world?
A stamp.

What kind of tree fits in your hand?

A palm tree!

Book suggestions:

Younger readers:

Strega Nona by Tomie dePaola

Strega Nona leaves her assistant, Big Anthony, in charge of her magic pasta pot when she goes off over the mountain. Big Anthony can't resist saying the magic words and the pot startd cooking pasta. But how do you get it to STOP?! There are several other books about Strega Nona. 

Middle grade readers:

Beatrice Zinker, Upside Down Thinker by Shelley Joannes

Beatrice has always thought differently and she does her best thinking upside down. She hangs from trees, hangs off her bed, anything to get her brain working. She and her best friend have a plan to dress as ninjas on the first day of school. When her friend shows up without her ninja outfit, Beatrice starts to worry: are they best friends anymore? Humor and real-life conflicts between friends. 

The Teacher's Funeral by Richard Peck

Russell is fifteen in 1904 and is eager to get out of school and on with his life. So when his teacher dies at the end of the summer, he thinks they'll never be able to find a replacement teacher in time and he can be free. Unfortunately for Russell, his sister Tansy is excited to try out her skill as a teacher! So not only does school continue, but to Russell's dismay his new teacher is also his sister! 

Upper grade readers:

Allies by Alan Gratz

A fictionalized account of the real events of D-Day June 6, 1944. Here is a link to the book trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9lJ4wzn7h8&list=PLavG70EAhhWnJk5nD3KU_gIj4Ng0fv8is&index=4

Free online magazines:

Ranger Rick has opened up all of their online magazines for kids learning at home. Go to https://rangerrick.org/stuck-indoors/ to view any of the Ranger Rick or Zoobooks magazines about animals and nature. An adult will need to enter an email address but that's all the information that's collected. The magazines for younger kids have a read-aloud feature--it will read the articles to the student. 

Tomie dePaola
I learned that Tomie dePaola has passed away at the age of 85. He was a beloved picture book author and illustrator of over 200 books during his long career! He might be most famous for Strega Nona, but other favorites include The Art Lesson and Oliver Button is a Sissy. Here's a video of Mr. dePaola in his studio: https://vimeo.com/280371217
I heard him say once that one of the best things we can do as adults is to expose children to as many illustration styles in picture books as possible--it's their first window into the world of art.