Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match

Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match
Written by Monica Brown
Illustrated by Sara Palacious
Published in 2011 by Children's Book Press
32 pages
Multicultural Literature

Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match is a children's book featuring Marisol McDonald, a Peruvian-Scottish-American girl who lives her life "mismatched." The acrylic illustrations add to the storyline. She wears polka dots and stripes, eats strange food for lunch, and even breaks down gender stereotypes by insisting she is a pirate-princess at Recess. She chooses to be who she is despite the funny looks she gets from her classmates and others. This little girl is a great example to children; she inspires them to be who they are and not worry about what others think or say. This story also breaks down gender and cultural stereotypes and instills in children that they can be anyone they choose to be; others do not have to define them. Standard ELA.AAS.3.3 says: Identify traits or feelings of a character in a story. This story could be used to match this standard. Students could discuss Marisol's traits and how she felt when other students were not accepting of her diet, wardrobe, and activities. Since Marisol is very charismatic and displays an array of qualities, this would be a great story to begin covering this concept.

The Fox on the Swing

The Fox on the Swing
Written by Evelina Daciute
Illustrated by Ausra Kiudulaite
Published in 2018 by Thames and Hudson
48 pages
International Literature

Evelina Daciute is the author of The Fox on the Swing book and Aušra Kiudulaite is the illustrator. It was published and copyrighted in the U.S. by Thames and Hudson on June 19, 2018, however, it was originally published in Lithuania in 2016. Its original publication in another country qualifies this story as international literature. The story is 48 pages long. The illustrator used a collage style for the pictures in this book and does workshops to teach children this tactic. The images in The Fox on the Swing resemble childhood art and drawings. The essential question of this book is simply, "What makes you happy?" The plotline encourages children to think to themselves and answer this question. In the story, a boy named Paul meets a fox on his way home from the bakery. The fox challenges Paul's predictable routines and encourages him to think deeply about the life he is living and life for what makes him truly happy. This would be a great book to help children think about their attitudes and expectations in life. The first English Langauge Arts standard for second-grade is:  Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text. [RL.2.1] a. Infer the main idea and supporting details in narrative texts. (Alabama.) I could use this story to teach inferencing since the story never explicitly states its purpose and the concepts the fox covers are whimsical and philosophical. 

Goodnight Moon

Goodnight Moon

 by Margaret Wise Brown

 Illustrated by Clement Hurd 

Published in 1947 by Harper and Row Publishers, Inc.

32 Pages 

Picture Book

Goodnight moon is  a popular bedtime story about a bunny who says, "Goodnight" to everything in his room. The room's contents are listed first, and then the bunny proceeds to say, "Goodnight," to all of it. This story was illustrated using the tempera method, which is a combination of pigments, water, and egg yolk. The story is written in a rhyming pattern as the bunny says goodnight to all the things he sees. The English Language Arts standard [RF.K.2a]  in the Alabama course of study states that Kindergarten students will be able to "recognize and produce rhyming words." This book would be a great way to introduce the concept of rhyming to students and show them examples of rhymes.