Thanks to Cathy, Mandy, and Julie for hosting this event! Since one of my goals this year is to read more nonfiction books that I can use with my first graders, I knew this was the perfect opportunity to build my book stack
And then I started scouring my book baskets for my "must have" nonfiction titles to share. Why was it so hard to find my "must-haves" for teaching nonfiction?! If I have such a hard time finding nonfiction titles that I love, what does this say about how I'm using nonfiction with my first grade readers? After some soul-searching and more digging through baskets of books, I put together a list that I can live with and can share proudly. My list includes books that my first graders cherish, as well as books that I think help me to make nonfiction more accessible to early readers. And so... here we go!
I believe this was the very first nonfiction book I shared with my students this year, and it was met with great excitement and curiosity! It quickly became a class favorite and is still being read today. Kids love the oh-so-adorable baby animals, and I loved the information presented. ABC ZooBorns also has an app that appears to be very highly rated!
I even learned new information about snow with this one! We read it on Tumblebooks, which prompted me to buy a copy for our classroom library. It gives fascinating facts about snow along with beautiful photographs.
I had to list these two together as they are a perfect match! I think both books really help us to show the importance of fostering curiosity and wonder in our classrooms... and where that can take us. While I've read both books, I'm looking forward to sharing these two titles with my first graders for the first time this year!
Just last week, we had our annual VIP event where we invite our grandparents (or other family members if grandparents can't make it) into our classroom. I love that this book helps us to understand our similarities and celebrate our differences, both before and after the event.
(Pebble Plus books)
I added this particular Pebble Plus title because I just got it as a part of a pack from our Scholastic book order, but really, I am a big fan of all Pebble Plus books! There is a huge variety of topics written in a way that makes it easy, even for my lowest readers. Next year, I believe our district will also have a subscription to the PebbleGo site. We had a free trial of it earlier this year, and I loved it! It also provides great nonfiction in a way that is easily accessible to emerging readers.
(National Geographic Kids)
Ok, I kind of feel like I'm cheating now... but I chose this title so I could include this series of books, too! The National Geographic Kids books are passed from reader to reader in my classroom. There is such a variety of topics, and each one includes so many different nonfiction text features.
So, as I'm writing this post, I'm finding that I am more of a fan of nonfiction series than of individual titles. And I think I'm okay with that! I know I can count on many of these series to grab a reader and provide information on a topic they choose. If you haven't seen the "See More Readers" series by Seymour Simon, they provide the same attention grabbing writing for which Seymour is famous. These are available at different text complexities (I think from a "Level 1" to a "Level 3".)
(Ready to Read books)
This is another series that has been quite popular in my classroom! Ready to Read books fit that same mold of having lots of variety in topics (animals, machinery, bugs, and more) in an easy-to-navigate format for young readers.
While I don't really teach "themes" so much any more, one topic that we study each year is the Iditarod and Alaska. We learn about map skills, geography, research, and this last great race on Earth through our study every March. This is a new title from Scholastic, so I'm looking forward to sharing it with my kids this year. It's written for older readers (I'd guess 3rd-5th grades,) but I know there is lots of information I can and will share! And I just have to put this out there for your personal reading... if you are interested in learning more about mushing, you HAVE to read this hilarious and heartwarming narrative by Gary Paulsen called Winterdance: The Fine Madness of Running the Iditarod!
Now that I've compiled my list and realized I am mostly a fan of lots of different series nonfiction, I'm anxious to see what other people chose to help build my list of more individual titles for next year!
Hi Laura. Nice to meet you online! Kids love series, don't they? The enjoy the familiarity of the way a series text is laid out and the confidence that comes with having read previous books in the series. I am adding the National Geographic Kids book series to my list. I have already added Me...Jane from another post, so I HAVE to add The Watcher, too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing.
I love nonfiction series too. They hook the kids with the topics and the format becomes familiar to them so they achieve success. Definitely need to get The Watcher to go with Me . . . Jane.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Elsie! I think early readers rely on those familiar formats, both in fiction and nonfiction, as they learn to navigate their way through a book.
DeleteI'm excited to check out many of your picks, but especially The Story of Snow: The Science of Winter's Wonder. It snowed here this morning (enough for the plow to come through) so I'm in a bit of a winter wonderland kind of mood!
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely one of my very favorite snowy nonfiction reads! Enjoy!
DeleteLaura,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your post. You make such a good point when you say, "If I have such a hard time finding nonfiction titles that I love, what does this say about how I'm using nonfiction with my first grade readers?" I, too, work harder to find nonfiction must-haves in my classroom. I constantly trying to build this part of my classroom library. This event should be helpful in adding to our baskets.
I also found your point about series nonfiction interesting. More to ponder....
Thanks Laura!
Cathy
I'm so glad you offered this opportunity, Cathy! It really has helped me to ponder nonfiction more. It has definitely helped me add to my nonfiction baskets! Thank you!
DeleteLaura, I agree with Cathy on your thinking about having a hard time finding non-fiction titles that I love...what does this say...I think it says the non-fiction market is improving little by little...authors are writing non-fiction in more interesting ways to make the topics more appealing-especially to our newest readers!
ReplyDeleteI like how you shared titles as well as series books! My students love the national geo books!
I look forward to checking out most of the books you shared as they are new to me!
THANK GOODNESS! I too had a difficult time after about 5 titles…I was feeling guilty. I am so glad you all had the courage to share you also found this difficult!
DeleteI am so thankful to have all our wonderful blogging friends to help me build my collection! I even took a great tip from Cathy and started a listmania for nonfiction AND my library book bag is FULL of titles to explore ;-)
Deb
Thanks, Amy and Deb! Yes, I do think publishers and authors are finding new ways to pull in even the earliest of readers. Maybe this will help all of us with our nonfiction difficulties, too! :)
DeleteLaura I agree with you that it is a real challenge to figure out how to best display and share nonfiction titles. I have many titles in various bins in my teacher area that I use for lessons and read alouds but I struggle to display my nonfiction in ways kids want to read it. This year I have a popular nonfiction bin and a "featured non fiction" bin and these are very popular as go to places! I also find it a struggle to find lots of nonfiction at the reading level of my students. The National Geographic readers are fantastic. I also use the Ready to Read. Many Bobbi Kalman titles are fantastic for illustrations and not too much info on one page. I adore Jenkins books too but the reading level is often too high. They are of course great for read alouds. A great list!
ReplyDeleteLaura, When you talked about being more of a fan of nonfiction series...series books make sense! We look for series books in fiction because they are predictable, we understand the author's voice and style, and because we get to know and care about the characters. In nonfiction series, the only thing that changes is that the characters become "subjects" that we may or may not know but our reading becomes driven to wonder, think, stimulate background knowledge, and question...the series structure provides us with a predictability that we can count on to support us in understanding this new subject. Thanks for sharing your list and your thoughts! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for joining us. I love The Story of Snow, you can never have too much snow.
ReplyDelete