Lafayette School Elects to Read!

Lafayette School’s first Reading Road Trip features a trip to the White House and a landslide of books about presidents, our nation’s capital, and presidential elections! Fourth and fifth grade Reading Road Trippers are checking out books that connect to our Elect to Read theme, reading those books, creating exciting book projects to share with classmates—and earning valuable odometer points for their Reading Road Trip teams!

In Mayor Hubble is in Trouble! by Dan Gutman, Election Day is just around the corner.  A.J. and Andrea are running for student council, and Mayor Hubble promises to teach the kids the ins and outs of politics.  Who will win?  Who will lose?  And will anyone agree to kiss a baby during campaign season?  In My Weirder School, every vote counts!



Mayor Hubble Diorama by Eve, Courtney, Mariah, and Jasmine

Vote for Me

A poem inspired by The Kid Who Ran for President

by Carlin C.

 

Vote for Moon and June!

There will be no homework soon.

America will party all night and sleep all day.

Come party with me, come and play.

There will be snowball fights and candy delight.

We will eat until we are full, taking very big bites.

We will climb the White House wall until we all fall.

Oh, what a joy to be president after all!

If you don't vote for me there will be no candy. 

What a crime.

Don't you see, there's so much time!

So, please vote for me!

 

Mayor Hubble Diorama by Zachary H.



Mayor Trouble Is in Trouble by Grace L.



Mayor Hubble Is in Trouble by Nina J. and Jessica T.

Lafayette favorite author  Dan Gutman continues his campaign for good reading in The Kid Who Ran for President.  With his friend as campaign manager—and his former babysitter as running mate—twelve-year-old Judson Moon sets out to become President of the United States!

The Kid Who Ran for President Diorama by Jason H.

Fourth grade Reading Road Tripper Cole E. offers some biographical information about Dan Gutman:

Dan Gutman has written many books, but the most popular are the My Weird School series.  He lives in New Jersey.  He lives with his wife and two children.  You can visit him on his website at www.dangutman.com. He has written hundreds of books for children.  He likes being a children's writer because when he writes, he imagines that he is in the book and that he is a character.

A Winning Ticket with Fun and Friendship:  The fifth-grade class election is a close contest between teachers' pet Cricket Kaufman and class clown Lucas Cott.  Julio Sanchez is campaigning for his best friend and hiding his own leadership abilities.  Can Julio throw his hat into the ring without jeopardizing his friendship with Lucas?

Class President Diorama by Michael, Sarah, and Taylor

Reading the Geek Chronicles!   She may be “average and unpopular,” but in Rosie Swanson: Fourth Grade Geek for President by Barbara Park, Rosie is running for class president against two of the most popular kids in the fourth grade!

Mayor Hubble Poster by Alexa L.

Reading Road Trippers are exploring a presidential title from a popular biography series.  Who Was Abraham Lincoln? by Janet P. Pascal examines the life of the humble farm boy who grew up to become the sixteenth president of the United States—the man responsible for leading the nation through the bitter and bloody Civil War. 

Lego White House by Thomas H.

President Obama by Haleigh

Check it out!  Scholastic’s Election 2012 website features updates on election news from the Kids Press Corps, an Election Central resources section, maps, games, videos, and more!

We Think Mice Are Rather Nice!

A motorcycle fit for a mouse… Close up the motorcycle looked even better than he expected.  It was new and shiny and had a good set of tires.  Ralph walked all the way around it, examining the pair of chromium mufflers and the engine and the hand clutch.  It even had a little license plate so it would be legal to ride it….

A mouse on a toy motorcycle… sounds like the start of a Reading Road Trip adventure!  Fourth graders are revving their reading engines and earning points for their teams with The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary, traveling with reckless Ralph, a young mouse who befriends Keith, a boy in room 215 of the Mountain View Inn.  Together, they discover true friendship, awesome escapades, and the joys of motorcycling.

The Mouse and the Motorcycle Poster by Emma D.

The Mouse and the Motorcycle Flip Quiz by Evie M.

The Mouse and the Motorcycle Sketch by Peter H.

The Mouse and the Motorcycle Diorama by Ally F.

We can visit the wonderful world of long-time favorite author Beverly Cleary.  Click on the red-highlighted words to get started.

Ralph S. Mouse by Sofia D.

The Mouse and the Motorcycle:

Book Review by Layla C.

My favorite part in this book is when Ralph, the mouse, gets permission from Keith, the boy, to keep the motorcycle when Keith leaves the hotel.  I like this part because it shows how much Keith and Ralph bonded with each other.  Even though Ralph lost the motorcycle once, they found it, and Ralph got to keep it.  This connects to my life because once I won a big, inflatable, bright green monkey at a fair. My younger brother Alex really wanted it, and I decided that, in the end, I should give it to him.  I absolutely loved this book!

This story begins within the walls of a castle, with the birth of a mouse.  A small mouse.  The last mouse born to his parents and the only one of his litter to be born alive…. 

Fifth grade Reading Road Trippers are exploring The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread, connecting to this charming 2004 Newbery Medal winning fairy tale about Despereaux Tilling, a tiny mouse with big ears and an even bigger heart.  Despereaux’s unusual talents and decidedly un-mouselike behavior bring disappointment to his family and earn him a trip to the castle dungeon.  As we follow the tale—and the tail—of the mouse, we meet the kidnapped princess who Despereaux loves, a servant girl wishing to be royalty, and a sneaky rat who is conniving to ruin them all.

First, let's take a peak at a video book review by Yumtso:

We can learn more about author Kate DiCamillo and her other books. 

Click on the red-highlighted words to get started.

Take a look at this Despereaux puppet show, created and performed by Victoria, Cameron, and Emily:

The Tale of Despereaux Poster by Sasha J.

Here's another Tale of Despereaux puppet show, created and performed by Izzy and Lauren:

The Tale of Despereaux Diorama by Olivia

Exploring Esperanza Rising and Poemas en Español

Our land is alive, Esperanza, said Papa… This whole valley breaths and lives.  Esperanza can’t imagine living anywhere other than El Rancho de las Rosas.  She has spent the first twelve years of her life as the pampered only child from a wealthy family in Aguascalientes, Mexico.  When her Papi is murdered, Esperanza and her mother must flee their privileged life to find work in Southern California labor camps, where they experience hardship, discrimination, and harsh working conditions on the eve of the Great Depression.

Fifth graders connected Esperanza Rising with Trees/Arboles, a poem written by Alma Flor Ada and performed beautifully both in English and en Español by Lana and Rodrigo:

We can visit with Pam Muñoz Ryan, the author of Esperanza Rising, Riding Freedom, Becoming Naomi León, and many other Lafayette favorites.  Click on the red-highlighted words to get started.

Esperanza Rising Diorama by Caroline Yu