Course Reflection of Children's Literature

I am a HUGE fan of Children's literature. I have never been so excited to go into a book store in my life and just sit there, read, browse, and buy good literature. That is because I now know what good literature is and how to incoporate it into my classroom. I have learned so much about the different genres that can enhance learning in my classroom and that will get my own students to answer the difficult questions these books bring up.

I will use children's books in a variety of different ways in my classroom. Not just in elementary school but if I teach 5th or 6th grade I will also encoporate children's books because as I realized that most people loves books and I want my students to love books as well. I can use books to learn about different authors, illustrators, or poets, and learning about different types of genres. They will also be incporated in the reading workshop: guided reading, independent reading, literature study groups but importantly placed in the classroom so my studnets have the opportunity to browse through good literature. Chapter books will also be a great way to read aloud to my students in the class. Doing this they will see that I enjoy reading which will promote reading to them.

I love the blogs because there are so many opinions on books and seeing other students, teachers, and indivduals opinons on certain books really allow me to see many different sides of a situation. It also allows me to look for good literature from other blogs that students have created. It was a great class and I will take my personal experiences from this class into my own classroom.

Dough Boy by Peter Marino (Novel)

This piece of literature is a fictional story about a boy named Tristan who is overweight. His parents just got divorced and his mom has a new boyfriend. They are living happily until his mom’s boyfriend’s daughter moves into the house. The problem with his daughter is that she is a health freak. All she talks about is nutrition, physical activity and losing weight. She begins talking to Tristan every day about different types of food and how it will be easy for him to work off the weight. But bad things keep happening to Tristan. He gets called names like dough boy, fatty and other mean names, get’s tripped in the lunch room, he falls through the attic floor, he gets picked on in the locker room, and his so called friend Marco is the worst one of all. I chose this book because it is a more difficult book to read alone so I would read this out loud to the class. This book brings up many different questions about family life and personal wellness. How do particular families, where they live, and family priorities play a role in personal wellness? Can it be both positive and negative? It also brings up the feelings, emotions and troubles that go along with being overweight but even “thin” and “skinny” can feel the same way. Throughout the book the reader feels like Tristan should stand up for himself and we can also discuss why he doesn’t do this? Why does he allow this to happen to him? How will he be able to stand up and like himself for who he is?

Muhammad Ali: Champion of the World by Joan Winter

This piece of literature is a biography of Muhammad Ali and how he used physical activity to become a political figure in the United States. I chose this piece of literature because it is about a world famous sports icon that changed the way people looked at boxing, politics, and the African American culture. Ali’s ancestors came from a white slave master where he got his real name, Clay. He didn’t want to use a white man’s name. This brings up in school by students how physical activity has an impact on politics. During this time his African religion and African American roots were silenced and Ali became the leader of the movement of his people. He was paving a way for African Americans and how they should be strong, proud and willing to fight for what they believe in. Through physical activity he was able to grow in confidence and believe in himself. This piece of literature shows the determination of a man who never gave up on fighting for his people. Through Ali’s actions as an athlete he was able to change his life and many lives around him.

The Gulps by Rosemary Wells

This piece of literature is about the Gulps family and they are going on a vacation in their RV. Four members of the family, including mom and dad love unhealthy food and the last member of the family Dawn eats healthy. In their RV they briny way to much unhealthy food and because they are eating too much they have gained so much weight that the RV is unable to move. They now have to stay at the farmer’s house until they can get healthy and fit. I chose this piece of literature because the students can relate their family to the Gulps family or the farmer’s family. They will have the opportunity to look at each family different. One is living in town and the other is living on the farm. Lifestyles of each family are different and because of their environment they live differently and that affects their health. Another aspect that comes up in this piece of literature is that there are some people who will not eat vegetables or healthy food because they think it is not good. The students will be able to discuss if they are like that as eaters and why? Why do some people not like vegetables, fruits, salads and some people love them? They can relate the environment, how they grow up and the lifestyles of their parents. While looking at this piece of literature they can see that there will be effects positive or negative on healthy eating due to the environment they live in.

The Busy Body Piece of Literature: A Kid's Guide to Fitness by Lizzy Rockwell

This is a non-fiction piece of literature about how the body is built to move. I chose this piece of literature because it explains the importance of movement, physical activity, and fitness. It breaks down how students are able to move by examining different parts of the body that provides the body to move. There are two different parts to the piece of literature. On one side there is information on a specific body part: bones, muscles, the heart, lungs, and stomach but then on the other side of the page is an outline of the body so they can relate their activities to the parts of the body that they use. Using this piece of literature allows the students to think an aspect of science. What do the bones, muscles, heart, lungs, and stomach do for our body and why they are important for movement? This also relates to injury and things that could happen to our body if we do not take care of them. It’s a way to see the body as different parts but then reconnect these parts to make a healthy active body.

Good Enough to Eat: A Kid's Guide to Food and Nutrition by Lizzy Rockwell

This is a non-fiction piece of literature about the importance of food and the benefits of a quality, healthy pattern of eating. I chose this piece of literature because it describes, explains and gives visuals of vitamins and nutrients. Many students don’t have an understanding of what vitamins and nutrients even are let alone how they should eat them during each meal. So it gives them an opportunity to look into detail at what carbohydrates, protein, fat, vitamin C, Vitamin A, calcium, iron, sodium, and potassium are and how to get these nutrients and vitamins in their food. I also enjoy the pictures the piece of literature gives under each example because the students can look at this and apply it to their life. Do they eat cheese? Do they eat eggs? Are they getting vitamin C in oranges? It is a great opportunity to analyze how well they eat their vitamins and the nutrients that are in their body. I also enjoy the part on digestion. Many pieces of literature are hesitant to talk about this issue but I believe it is an important part of personal wellness. It’s a way for students to understand how the nutrients are absorbed into their body and how it carries the bad chemicals and excess fats out of the body.

How to Train with a T.Rex and Win 8 Gold Medals by Michael Phelps

This piece of literature is an autobiography of how Michael Phelps won 8 gold medals. It didn’t just happen in the pool at the Olympics he trained for 6 years. I chose this piece of literature because it brings up the Olympics. The Olympics is a time where physical fitness and show athletes on a world level who are walking examples of personal wellness. Many students see these athletes and how good they are on T.V. but they don’t know what it takes to be an Olympic Athlete. Not just a swimmer like Michael Phelps but all the different sports that are portrayed in the Olympics. Personal wellness is a variety of exercise, eating right, sleep and drinking water. This might bring up a discussion of why Michael Phelps ate so much and slept so much? The students might not understand that over excessive physical activity calls for an increase in sleep and eating. This piece of literature also brings up thoughts about his training and physical activity. It compares how he swam the length of the Great Wall of China three times and could lift a New York City Subway Car. This piece of literature puts Michael Phelps’s training in comparison that will shock students. This would give them an idea of how much work it takes to be an Olympic Athlete.