Top 10 Favorite Picture Books by Genre

Hello, Friends!

Life in Fifth Grade along with some of my other favorite blogs are doing Tidbit Tuesdays about a different topic.  It's not Tuesday (yet), but I still wanted to share some of my favorite picture books that I read aloud in my classroom. 

To me, using picture books in the classroom is an essential part of teaching.  Using picture books not only can build community in your classroom, but can also be used to reinforce the standards you are teaching.  I even used picture books when I taught 5th grade.  They can be POWERFUL, y'all, if used correctly. My 5th graders loved to sit on the carpet and listen to a quick read aloud.  So did my 2nd graders and my 3rd graders!  

I know it can be hard to add read alouds to your classroom schedule.  Believe me, I know! I make sure to set a 10-15 minute block dedicated to just reading aloud each and every day. If something has to be cut during my day, I try my best to not make it my read aloud time.  It's my favorite part of the day! Pictures books also help me to hook my students into becoming readers.  We gotta start somewhere!  

So, here are my top 10  picture book read alouds.  I teach reading through genre studies.  I chose my favorite read aloud from each genre. 

Biography: The Boy Who Never Gave Up
I am a Steph Curry fan.  When I came across this book a couple of years ago, I fell in love.  It explains how Steph came through such adversity about his height from such a young age. He was too short to play in high school, too weak in college, and would never make it to the NBA.  Such an inspiring book!  If you're a Lebron fan, I won't hate on ya.  Click here to view his book The Boy Who Became King.   
       

Informational: Creature Features
I think I own almost all of Steve Jenkins books.  He writes informational books, and they are phenomenal.  His illustrations capture children's attention while learning different facts.  This particular book goes through 25 animals while explaining why they look the way they do.
 

Fairy Tale: Believe Me, Goldilocks Rocks

I love your original version of fairy tales.  I compare and contrast different versions from around the world.  However, some of my students FAVORITES are the fractured versions.  You have to check out this series of books.  They are hilarious!  This one is told my Baby Bear's perspective and it's not what you think.  

                                               

Tall Tales: Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind Crockett

This girl has my heart!  She is feisty and my students love her! There is so much exaggeration in this book that is easy for students to pick up on. 

Historical Fiction: The Babe and I 

Historical fiction is my favorite genre as a reader.  There are so many good picture books that are historical fiction that help younger students understand history.  The Great Depression is hard for students to understand.  This book really helps to understand the money issues during that time, but also give some background on Babe Ruth.  As a sports fan, I loved this story. 

Realistic Fiction: We're All Wonders

I have read aloud Wonder for the last couple of years.  This is our first chapter book read aloud. I love the life lessons that this book teaches.  There is a picture book version of Wonder that I also read aloud.  

Fantasy: The Bad Seed

I read this book aloud at the beginning of each year.  This book helps to teach the power of acceptance and the importance of just being yourself.

Mystery: Grandpa's Teeth

My favorite part of this story is talking like on old man.  Seriously! I use this book to help my students to learn to draw conclusions and make inferences.  Not a single student of mine has ever figured out who stole grandpa's teeth.  This book is hilarious!

Poetry: Parts

The figurative language in this book is off the chain! LOL.  This book is my go to when teaching my students about idioms.  This little boy takes things a little too seriously and my students roll over laughing because of it.

Favorite Back to School book: You're Finally Here

I love back to school time!  Yes, it is stressful trying to get everything together and ready for our new students.  But for me, it's a new start each year.  No matter what happened the previous year for us or our students, it's a fresh start.  This book captures my emotions about being giddy at the beginning of the year.  It's adorable! 

I have WAY more than ten books that I love, especially in each genre.  I could choose ten just from historical fiction! ;-) Click the book titles to check out each book. 

I have to ask, what are some of your favorite picture books to read aloud?

Must Read Monday {Cindy Ellen}

Hello, Friends!

I hope that you all have had a GREAT Monday.  Today, I am linking up with the sweet Amanda from Teaching Maddeness for her Must Read Monday linky.

Last week, we started our fairy tale genre.  One of our standards is to compare and contrast different versions of stories like Cinderella stories.  Our favorite book to read was Cindy Ellen: A Wild Western Cinderella story.  I LOVE this story because I get to pull out my strong Southern accent.  I was born and raised in South Carolina and have a pretty strong accent.  With this book, I get to let it shine.  

They love the story and love that it takes place in the South.  They even stopped me to say that they knew what the words mean in the story.  By words they mean like 'gettin' hitched' and 'yonder'.  LOVE it!  You better believe that we were experts on comparing and contrasting different Cinderella stories lasts week.  They are always amazed at how many versions there are.  

What's your favorite version of Cinderella?  Leave me a comment below.  I'd love to see which books I need to check out.

Lots of love,
Jeannie

Must Read Linky-Tall Tales Anyone?

Hello, Friends!

Today I am linking up with the talented Amanda Madden from Teaching Maddeness for her Must-Read Monday linky.  Yes, I'm linking up on a Tuesday. Don't judge... ;-)

For the last three weeks, my students have been diving in to tall tales.  They have LOVED learning all about these wild and crazy characters.  Today, I want to share a few of my favorites with you.

My favorite tall tale that you HAVE to read to your class is the amazing Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind Crockett. First, I love the illustrations in Stephen Kellogg's books.  Such an amazing author and my kids love his version of the tall tales.  Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind Crockett is the wife of Davy Crockett.  When she was a baby, she could "out-talk, out-grin, out-scream, out-swim, and out-fun any baby in Kentucky".  As she grew up, she lived in the wilderness, cuddled with grizzlies, and finally saved her future husband. My students and I just love to read about her.  She has some amazing adventures.

Thunder Rose is an ADORABLE tall tale.  The author of this book, Jerdine Nolen, wanted to create a tall tale set in the Old West and create an African American character who would become the heroine of the story.  Let me tell you that my students LOVED reading about Miss Rose.  Rose was born just a talking and told her parents that she was mighty partial to the name Rose and since it was thundering outside her name came to be Thunder Rose.  She drinks milk straight from the cow, builds buildings tall enough to scrape the sky, and created barb wire.  She can even calm storms just by singing up song.  Like I said, we LOVE reading all about Thunder Rose.

Apples to Oregon by Deborah Hopkinson and Nancy Carpenter is the cutest little tall tale.  It is about how a brave pioneer father brings apples, peaches, pears, plums, grapes, and children across the plains.  This story explains the process of traveling west.  The daddy in the story is mighty partial to his fruits and when a big rush of wind comes he makes everyone help to cover his little darlings.  This means their petticoats, trousers, and even daddy's drawers.  My students LAUGH and LAUGH at this page. One of our favorite parts is when the little girl fights Jack Frost.  We love this story!  Super cute and has such a a great meaning.

I love teaching tall tales!  Any other tall tales my students and I should check out?

I hope you are having a GREAT week so far. Tomorrow is HUMP DAY! (Did you read that like the camel in the commercials?)    ;-)

Lots of love,

Jeannie