Monday, January 4, 2010

Conclusion....

Hi 5th Graders!

Since Mrs. Heilmann is on maternity leave now, I will have you write to me. YAH!!! The first thing we need to do is wrap up our discussion on Tangerine. I would like you to post your response to the book by Thursday morning. This will allow us to start our next book Thursday to keep us moving along with guided reading and the blog.

Your questions for the next post will be:

1. What did you like about the book and why?
2. If you had to re-write an ending to the book, how would you have changed the ending to this story?

NEXT....

We are going to rate several books and choose what our next guided reading book will be. I will give you the title, author and information off the back cover. Please select your first, second, and third choices for reading. You need to briefly (a sentence or two) explain why you chose the books in the order you did. From there...I will have a book to begin with Thursday when I am at Jefferson at the end of the day!

Here goes:

MISSING MAY by Cynthia Rylant. This is a Newberry winner. Since summer was six years old she lived with her dear Aunt May and Uncle Ob. Now, six years later, Aunt May has died. Summer, who misses May with all her might, is afraid something will happen to Ob. Most days Ob seems like he doesn't want to go on.

But then Ob feels May's spirit around him and he wants to contact her. Cletus Underwood, a strange boy from school, reads about someone who could help him do that. Summer wants to hear from May too.

Ob and Summer don't know what to expect when they set off on their search for some sign from May. They only know they need something to ease the sorrow and give them strength to go on living - always knowing they will never stop missing May.

THE LAST OF THE REALLY GREAT WHANGDOODLES by Julie Andrews Edwards. Ben, Tom, and Lindy Potter have never even heard of a Whangdoodle - until they meed the brilliant Professor Savant at the zoo. He tells them all about the wise and magical creatures who disappeared to another land because people stopped believing in them. And when the professor invites them on a quest to find the last of the really great Whangdoodles, they can't resist.

The way to Whangdoodleland isn't easy: The children must learn to see things in a completely different way. When at last they succeed, they encounter wondrous creatures like the Whiffle Bird, the Swamp Gaboons, and the High-Behind Splintercat. But it seems they will never find the elusive Whangdoodle. Especially since the "oily" Prock, the sinister Prime Minister of Whangdoodleland, is determined to stop them - in any way he can...

SHAKESPEARE'S SECRET by Elise Broach. When Hero starts sixth grade at a new school, she's less concerned about the literary oringins of her Shakespearean name than about the teasing she is sure to suffer because of it. So she has the same name as a girl in a play by a dusty old author. Her is simply not interested in the connections.

But that's just the thing; suddenly connections are cropping up all over. There is a million dollar diamond hidden in her new house (or so she's told), a curious woman next door who seems to know an awful lot about it, and then, well, then there's Shakespeare. Not to mention Danny Cordova, only the most popular kid in school, who seems intent on uncovering the mystery with Hero. Is it all in keeping with her namesake's origin - just much ado about nothing? Hero, being Hero, is determined to figure it out.

EVERYTHING ON A WAFFLE by Polly Horvath. This is a Newberry Honor book. Primrose Squarp simply knows her parents did not perish at sea during a terrible storm, but try convincing the other residents of Coal Harbour on that score. For all practical purposes, at least for the time being, Primrose is an orphan, and there is no great clamoring of prospective adopters. After realizing the impracticality of continuing to pay Miss Perfidy an hourly wage to babysit her, the town council is able to locate a relative, Uncle Jack, who reluctantly takes Primrose into his care. But true sanctuary can always be found at a restaurant called The Girl in the Swing, where everything - including lasagna - is served on a waffle.

10 comments:

  1. Danielle

    I like this book because there is a lot of mystery and suspence. I like how you think you know how Paul lost his eyesight but in the end you find out it's not true.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jay

    I liked this book because it had a mystery all the way to the end. The whole book you were always wondering how Paul really lost his eyesight because we pretty much knew right away that it wasn't because of an eclipse.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Danielle

    I like this book because in the end you find out that Erik did get in trouble for being bad. I think Paul's dad is disapointed in Erik because now he won't get into a good collage. I think the whole town won't trust their family anymore because of Erik.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Danielle

    At the end of the book I would have liked to hear about Paul's first day at St. Andrew's. Also it would have been better if Erik got a better punishment for stealing. I think him doing restitution won't really change anything. I think if they did tell about Paul's new school he would get on their soccer team and would tell them about Lake Windsoer and Tangerine. Maybe one of the teachers had heard about him and because their nuns they wouldn't like him.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Danielle

    My first choice is Shakspeares Secrets. I chose it because it sound like it has a lot of action and mystery. It also says they are looking for a diamond so it sounds interesting.

    My second choice is Everything on a Waffle. It sounds like there's somthing about Uncle Jack that Primrose will find out so it sound interesting.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Jay

    Same as Danielle, at the end of the book, i would like to hear about what happens at St. Andrews, because I think it would be interesting to hear about what happens once he goes there. I also think it would be cool if the author skipped to Paul's next year at Tangerine, and we would see how he had changed.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Jay

    Same as Danielle, Shakespere's Secrets would be my first choice, but my second choice would be the "Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles"

    ReplyDelete
  8. Danielle

    My Third choise is The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles. I think it would be interesting because it's fantsy.

    My last choice is Missing May. It sounds sad and I don't think it has a lot of action or adventure.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Jay

    One thing that I really did like about the ending to the book was the part about Mike Costello having his tree, and Lewis having his tree. I think that was a very creative way to end the book. I wonder if the author planned that by giving Mike Costello his tree in the middle of the book, or if he just played out the ending in the end.I think that he probably planned it out, but if he didn't then that would have been even more creative.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Jay

    My third choice is "Everything on a Waffle" because it sounds a little interesting, but just not as much as the other two books.

    My last choice is "Missing May" as well.It has a little bit to do with the fact that there is so much going on at one time, and it also has a little bit to do with the fact that the book just doesn't sound as interesting as the other books.

    ReplyDelete