Zen Shorts by Jon J. Muth

Zen Shorts by Jon J. Muth (2005)

Zen Shorts is a great book. It didn't win a Caldecott, but that doesn't change anything. (I recently realized that Charlotte's Web was only an honor book for the Newberry Medal. Ginger Pye certainly doesn't stick out that much these days.)

Zen Shorts is an interesting look at Zen philosophies and stories. Three children discover that their new neighbor is a panda bear named Stillwater. Each of the children visit with the bear and hear a story that he shares with them that applies to their situation.

The focus of these stories is to give a different (Zen) perspective on the situations each child is facing. Stillwater is a good friend who is happy to share his wisdom. The stories are adaptations of familiar stories of Zen wisdom.

Here is the lesson of the three stories, but I won't tell you the actual stories:

• Sometimes good luck and bad luck are wrapped up together.
• Don't keep the past with you, especially if it keeps you from enjoying the moment.
• Even if you give away everything you have, there are still things you can have and enjoy.

These stories are provide an opportunity to help your students examine their perspective on the situations. You can ask them questions about how they feel about the choices that were made in the story. Along with this you can explore the decision making process.

This book is definitely worth the read, and a great addition to your lesson plans. Check it out.

Key to the Treasure by Peggy Parish

Key to the Treasure by Peggy Parish (1966)

This is the book that made me realize that I loved reading. I'm not sure how I got a copy or why I decided to read it the fine Saturday morning instead of going outside, but it was a very important moment in my life. I read this book from cover to cover in a single day, and I was only in second grade.

Peggy Parish is best known for her character Amelia Bedelia, the maid with no understanding of figurative language. However, Parish wrote a variety of stories including a set of stories during her life including a series of young children solving mysteries.

Key to the Treasure, is the first of these stories involving siblings Jed, Bill, and Liza. In this story, the children are spending the summer with their grandparents. Grandpa's family has a story that has been passed down for generations. Actually, there are two stories to tell.

When Grandpa's Grandpa was a boy, he lived near an old Indian woman names Old Jane. (This is written in the 60's when that name was acceptable.) When she died, she left him all of the tribal treasures she had collected.

When Grandpa's Grandpa grew up, he got married, and had three children-two boys and a girl. The children love their father's games, and the Indian treasures. Each of them has a special item that they love most. Grandpa's Grandpa is called away to fight in the Civil War, and to keep the kids out of trouble, he takes their favorite items and hides them. There are a set of clues to the hiding place. Grandpa's Grandma is given the first clue which she accidentally washes when she does the laundry. All that remains is a painting with a the Indian headdress, a clay pot, a strange key, and a question mark. Each generation tries to find the treasure, but there is something missing, some clue.

The next day, the children are playing with the headdress before it is sent to be a part of an exhibit at the local museum. They fight over whose turn it should be, and Bill accidentally pulls out one of the feathers. Inside the cup that holds the feather, they find a piece of old paper that holds a clue to the treasure. The children decide to try to find the treasure in secret so they can surprise Grandpa.

I love the clues because they are a variety of word puzzles that you can solve for yourself. You just need to write out the clues and stop the story long enough to solve them.

I actually used this book when I was doing my student teaching. I only had the one copy so I read it. We did all sorts of lessons with secret codes and puzzles. We learned Morse Code, and solved each of the puzzles.

I definitely suggest this book, and you should check it out as soon as you can.

Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig (1970 Caldecott Book)

Sylvester and the Magic Pebble (1970)

William Steig has a very interesting story telling style that I enjoy, especially in this book.

Sylvester is a young donkey who loves pebbles. He collects them and is always searching for special stones to add to his collection. One day he discovers an unusual specimen. It is a small red pebble. "It was flaming red, shiny, and perfectly round, like a marble."

It's a rainy day, and Sylvester makes a casual wish that it would stop raining. Much to his surprise, the rain stops immediately. He decides this is because it is a magical pebble and wishes that it would start raining again. When the rain starts, Sylvester knows his guess is correct.

While heading home to share his magical pebble with anyone that needs assistance, Sylvester sees a lion approaching. In a panic, he wishes that he was a stone so the lion won't be able to find him. Sylvester instantly finds himself as a stone, but because he isn't touching the pebble he isn't able to turn back.

I won't tell you what happens next except to say that Sylvester's parents are extremely worried about their son. Check out the book to see what else happens.

So how can you use this in a classroom? There are lots of opportunities to use prediction strategies in this book. One example is starting the sentence "Then Sylvester turned into a..." and give the kids a chance to guess and see if they are right.

You can also talk about making good choices. Sylvester wants to use his pebble to help other people, which is a good choice, but then he makes a bad choice in wishing to be a stone. You can also review the steps of the story and see how much the children have retained.

Another fun activity is to let the children explore what they might do with a magic pebble.

So here we have a story filled with educational opportunities. Check it out and use it in your classroom.

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool (2010)

Moon over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool (2010 Newberry Medal Winner)

Against her better judgement, Abilene Tucker has been sent to the small town of Manifest, Kansas by her father who has found work in a train yard, and he has convinced her that it would be better if, this one time, she didn't travel with him.  It comes as a surprise, and she isn't completely happy about it, but there is one reason for Abilene to be excited about this move-she will have a chance to place her father in all of the stories that she has heard from him about the town of Manifest. In all of her stories, he hasn't had a place.

Manifest is a poor town trying to survive the Great Depression and the loss of the coal mine that was the only business that really kept it afloat.

Abilene is leaving with Shady, a man that works as the interim preacher for a number of years of a Baptist church that burned down many years ago. He runs poorly attended meetings and Abilene wonders about the bottle of booze that sits in what passes for his kitchen.

Abilene finds a box filled with letters from a WWI soldier to a boy named Jinx. Through a strange mishap, Abilene starts working for Miss Sadie, a woman that the people in the town think might be a witch, and a fortune teller. Miss Sadie has the compass that Abilene got from her father.

Miss Sadie tells the story of Jinx and his time in Manifest. How he came to town running from a past that wasn't his fault, and becomes a part of the struggling community. Most of the people of Manifest suffer because the owner of the mine oppresses them and makes them work long hours for little pay with only on store in town owned by the mine.

Will Jinx be able to help the people of Manifest get out from under the thumb of the mine? Will Abilene be able to find where her father fits into the story of Manifest?

This story is great for discussions of history. The story of Jinx happens during the time of World War II. It also faces the issues of racism and bigotry. Abilene's story happens during the Great Depression and during a time when the railroad was an important part of making America happen.

There is also opportunity to talk about the importance of stories, and the stories of family.

Lon Po Po by Ed Young (1990 Caldecott Medal Winner)

Lon Po Po by Ed Young (1990)

Ed Young loves to draw from his childhood home of China when it comes to creating stories for young children. As an author and an illustrator, Ed Young is a well know name in Children's literature.

Lon Po Po is a telling of a tale that will seem familiar since it is very similar to Red Riding Hood, but with a bit of a twist, but even though it seems familiar, it isn't a re imagining of Red Riding Hood. Instead, it is a fairy tale from China.

As I mentioned, the story will seem familiar, but there are some similarities and differences.

Similarities

• A wolf that talks and pretends to be a grandmother.
• Child(ren) alone against the wolf.
• The wolf trying to cover up his physical differences.

Differences

• The mother goes to see grandma, and leaves the house.
• There are three children.
• Rather than a hunter saving the day, the children save themselves.

I won't say anything beyond that because I don't want to ruin the story. Check out this tale for yourself. If you are using it in the classroom, be sure to pair this book with another version of Red Riding Hood in order to let the children analyze the differences.

Holes by Louis Sachar

Holes by Louis Sachar (1999 Newberry Medal Winner)

There isn't much in life that Stanley Yelnats can enjoy. The only cool thing about his name is that is spells the same backwards as it does forwards. He's over weight and unpopular. His father stinks up the house with his attempts to find the cure for stinky feet. Worse than that, Stanley's whole family is cursed by an old gypsy woman because the original Stanley Yelnats broke a promise to her.

How does Stanley know they are cursed? Bad things just keep happening. They may seem good at first, but something always goes wrong. Take for example the day when Stanly was walking down the street, and a really nice pair of sneakers fell on his head. They were really nice, and they looked like they might even fit his feet, but very soon after he found them, the police were arresting him for stealing them.

It turns out the shoes were a donation from a famous athlete to help raise money for needy kids. No one accepts Stanley's reasons why he has the shoes, and even worse, the judge decides to sentence him to either go to jail or Camp Green Lake.

Stanley is pretty excited to learn that he will be spending his time at Camp Green Lake. When Stanley gets to the camp, he discovers that it is a strange work camp where boys who are trying to avoid jail are forced to dig hole in an area that used to be a lake, but is now a dried-up pit in the ground. Their job consists of digging a hole each day. Each hole has to be 3 feet long by 3 feet wide by 3 feet deep.

Stanley's new bunk mates give him the nickname Caveman probably because of his large size, and Stanley struggles every day under the hot sun.

So why are these boys digging holes every day? Is it a way to help them rehabilitate and make better choices about their futures? No, it turns out when this hole in the ground was still a lake, a treasure was lost in a sinking boat. The woman who runs the camp, and her ancestors, have been searching for years for that treasure.

Along with this, there are some other interesting plot points that I won't get into in case you haven't read this book. (If you haven't read it, then shame on you.) Let's just say that Louis Sachar can weave together a story with multiple layers that will leave you wondering what will happen next.