Well I don't know how I managed to make it to the last week of September! This month was a busy one, that's for sure! Between engagement craziness, back to school chaos, multiple illnesses in the household, a new cat joining our family, a new dishwasher, David starting his new job, AND plumbing issues... I don't know how all of that fit into one month, but also... how is it already almost October? Let's face it, September is nutty every single year, between new kiddos and their families, new routines and rules to go over (and over and over and over again) and that exhaustion (both you and the kids), there are a few things us teachers need to help sooth our sanity. Check out some of my recommendations to add to your September tool kit, if not for this year, maybe for next year (future you will thank you ... and me?)
Michael Babay Ills. Paula Cohen
Charlesbridge
This is a very cute and entertaining story. A group of vocal students complain that their lunch room is too loud and noisy, the principal seems to do the opposite of listening when she adds class pets, science projects and sport teams to the crowded cafeteria, but like many great principals, she has a plan! This would be a great classroom read aloud and a great segue into teaching lunch room expectations. I would definitely recommend it to any elementary teacher, or for students ages 6-10. There are some challenging words, but I think that the pictures tell the story quite well and it would be great as a shared reading or read aloud experience.
Judith Koppens Ills. Marja Meijer
Clavis
This picture book tells the story of a child named Sam and her dog named Benny. One day, as Sam is getting ready for school Benny brings his leash hoping for a walk. She tells him she can't be late for school but sees how sad he is and finally decides to bring him with her. Read to find out what crazy antics Benny gets up to when he goes to school! This book is fun and silly, with an easy to follow storyline and a small section of text on each page. The text is usually black on a white background and sometimes varies in size to denote expression and emphasis. The illustrations are fairly simple, with a good amount of colour and detail and help tell the story rather than draw away from it. I would recommend this book for shared reading between adults and children in the age 4-6 range.
Maggie Hutchings
Pub date: May 9, 2023 Tundra Books
Ok, so this one definitely has to be on NEXT year's September list, but it is the perfect back to school book so go preorder it on amazon (link in title), you'll thank yourself in May when it arrives and you already have one less thing on your September to do list...
This cute and funny picture book will sure to be a hit with young readers. The story is about a cockroach who feels forgotten on show and tell day, so he and his family hop in a child's backpack and visit school. They are completely unaware that everyone is afraid or disgusted by them and the antics they get up to. The cockroach decides that this school is quite great and is quite oblivious to the fact that everyone is trying to get rid of him. The illustrations are really well done and are a huge part of the storytelling, and lend a huge hand to the comedic side of the writing. It is a great back to school story and one that I know many children will love, and it is entertaining for adult readers too!
Andrew Larsen Ills. Mike Lowery
Kids Can Press
This is a nice story about the writing process and about autobiographies. I think this would be a great book to introduce a new writing unit or to take away the intimidation of writing at the beginning of the year. I could definitely find a place for this book in my classroom and would recommend it to other teachers!
J Pedicini ills Cono Cono
This colourful picture book tells the story of a unicorn who is judged and left out by the other unicorns because she is "girly". When the other unicorns find themselves in a dangerous weather situation (very reminiscent of Rudolph and the reindeer!) of course only the girly unicorn can save the day! The other unicorns apologize for being mean and appreciate her for who she is. The pictures are so stimulating, any unicorn-loving young reader will love this book instantly. I chose to include this book in the back to school list because of the important connections to friendships and getting to know others for who they are. The message in this story is an important one, and it is also empowering for young children to learn that "girly" isn't a term that means anything, anyone can love unicorns and just because you look a certain way, enjoy certain things, or do activities that are typically gendered, it doesn't make someone weird or different. I would definitely consider purchasing a copy for my classroom library and think that it would be well suited for children in the age 3-8 group, especially unicorn lovers!
David Michael Slater Ills. Davilyn Lynch
Clavis
This is the story of a young boy, Max, who is struggling with his first day of school. He brings a stuffed bear with him and as the story unfolds it looks as though there is a large bear acting ferociously in the classroom but really the bear represents Max acting out and becoming upset in the new environment. After a visit to the principal’s office, Max meets a little girl who also brings her stuffed teddy bear to school. Through an embrace with the two bears, readers see that sometimes the first day is scary but that there can always be a second first day.
I could definitely see this book being used in Grades K-3 classrooms, especially at the beginning of the year. I could also see it being used in other settings such as guidance counselling or in families of young children with exceptionalities such as autism who may struggle with their first day of school or moving to a new school. I could definitely see myself buying a copy for my classroom library, but if I taught K-2 I would say this book is a classroom library “must have”!
Laurie Trumble Davis Ills. Paulette Bogan
The Collective Book Studio
This really sweet picture book tells the story of Gus, a bulldog who is sure that he can do anything. When it comes to swimming, his owner and friend Bean continues to remind him that bulldogs are really not built to swim, and he ignores that. He's sure he can swim. When he comically sinks each time he hops in water, Bean realizes that he is never going to give up and buys him a life jacket. He is quite happy to have proved himself right, because in fact, bulldogs can do anything.
I love a lot about this book! I love that it features a character with a growth mindset who faces adversity and uses a tool that will help him be safe and have fun. I feel that there are some underlying messages there about inclusion, disabilities and universal design. I also love that it features a pet life jacket, as a former humane educator, it was my responsibility to teach responsible pet ownership and animal safety, and I think that the more people who are aware of dog life jackets, the better! Just because most dogs (except maybe bulldogs) can swim, it doesn't mean that they wont panic or being in dangerous situations near water, like falling off a boat, and so my dog always wears her life jacket if there is a chance she could fall or jump into bodies of water. I mean, she’s terrified of water and doesn’t want anything to do with being on my dock at the cabin but when we do go anywhere near the water or sit and read on the boat I always make sure her life jacket is on and she’s ready for anything.
Finally, I love that Gus has a growth mindset and never gives up. He demonstrates to young readers the importance of believing in yourself and doing your best. I would definitely purchase a copy of this book for my classroom library, and would recommend it to parents and teachers of children in the age 3-9 range.
Jolie Curran Ills Frans Vischer
This book is super neat. It tells the story of a hedgehog and kangaroo who are bored in the petshop over night. They find a place to build a fort, but they find that there are holes in it and need to fill it with pennies. Over the course of the story several mathematical ideas are discussed including regrouping, the partial sums method, arrays, repeated addition, patterns and open number lines. I like that the book focuses a lot on lining things up, as a grade 3 teacher, whether we are talking about placevalue, arrays or regrouping, I am always reminding my students to try to organize their manipulatives, pictorial representations and equations into groups or lines. Even the smallest routines and concepts are reinforced in this story! I love that font is large and accessible. I could see this book being used as a read aloud in a primary classroom and the font is large enough that it would be easy to project or share in a small space like the carpet when students are gathered close to the teacher. I would love to have this book in my classroom library! I would definitely recommend it for parents and teachers of children in the age 4-10 range who are developing an understanding of addition as being related to counting. Younger children will not be ready for the regrouping and place value aspects, but grade 2 and up definitely would be.
Barbara DiLorenzo
Flyaway Books
This beautifully illustrated picture book tells about a girl and her grandad having a picnic and painting at the park after a scary lockdown drill at school. Ava has a hard time bringing up her feelings but eventually shares them with her grandad who validates the feelings, tells of his own experiences with "duck and cover" drills and offers the strategy of painting using all of her senses as a way to deal with the feelings she is experiencing. The illustrations are so beautiful, they look like paint with a sponge to create a fall park in the background. I love that the book teaches about using all of your senses because that is important for art, but it is also important for mindfulness. I think that this book offers children the opportunity to talk about lockdown drills or fears about safety at school while also offering opportunities to discuss mindfulness and mental health strategies that young children might enjoy, whether or not they needed them as a strategy that day. I have had to teach about lockdown drills which can be really hard with young children, they wonder why a bad guy would want to come into their school and how would be survive if that happened. Their questions get to be a lot! I could see this book being a nice resource for teachers who are teaching about these drills. I also like that it is set in fall, a time when we seem to review a lot of these protocols. I also like that the illustrations are artistic and the book is about creating art. I could see the book being an inspiration for creating art as well. I would recommend this book to families and teachers of children in the Kindergarten to Grade 5 age range.
Andrew Katz Ills Juliana Leveille-Trudel & Joseph Sherman
CrackBoom! Books
This beautifully illustrated picture book tells the story of an adventure and a love of reading. Julia is a little girl enjoying a camp fire on a summer evening with her forest (animal) friends when she realizes she doesn't have a book to read them. Together they go on a boat ride, following the constellations to a library where she retrieves some books. The animals head back and enjoy reading books under the stars with Julia. The illustrations are so intriguing. With pops of colours and neat details like reflections in the water or shadows under trees, this book is one that young children will love to look at. The story is fun too and teaches a little about constellations and early explorers while reminding readers that a love of reading is a great thing to have, especially when you can share great books with great friends. I could definitely see having this book in my classroom library and would recommend it to parents and teachers of children in the 4-10 age range.
JaNay Brown-Wood Ills. Anastasia Williams
Charlesbridge Pub Date: Oct. 18
This beautiful picture book tells the story of a lost gerbil and a small youngest sibling who uses his problem solving and other math skills to help find his furry friend. Using size and shape as part of problem solving, this book shows readers that there are real life applications for the math concepts they are learning at school. I also love that the character is Black and that some young readers will be able to see themselves in the story. It is also a bit of an underdog story because the smallest sibling is the one with the biggest ideas and the best strategies for solving the problem. All great growth mindset lessons for sure!
I would recommend this book to parents and teachers of children in the 5-9 age range. I could see this book in my class library, and would definitely recommend it to other teachers in my school in the k-grade3 range.
Katharina Volk Ills Malgosia Zajac
Kind World Publishing
This book is about a new neighbour in the forest, and the assumption that this new neighbour stole Frog's missing ball! This is a great book to teach about prejudice and assumptions and learning about those who are different to us. The illustrations are really neat, I love seeing the animals' houses like the Hare's burrow which is underground and has a bunch of pictures of a million bunny family members (that's a fun joke for the adults!). The book suggests the age range of 4 to 9 and I would definitely agree. I could see my students loving this book.
Angela Ferraro-Fanning ills AnneliesDraws
Ivy Kids Publishing
This book is made up of so many different activities, recipes, information and ideas for children to read about and try this fall! I'm sure that all young readers will be able to find some fun things to explore in this book. I would recommend this book to parents and teachers of children in the 5-10 age range who are looking for some new activities to keep children entertained and engaged in learning about the world around them.
And Maybe one October Reads in Three ...
by Jessica Boyd, ills. Brooke Kerrigan
Orca Publishers
This book is so adorable! The little ghost, Wee Boo has a little problem... she's not very scary and even worse, she's really cute! She has a lot of trouble learning to scare people, but eventually she learns that maybe scaring people isn't quite the right job for her. Kids will love this funny and silly book and it hits the shelves in September, just in time to pick up a copy before Halloween! I would recommend this book to parents and teachers of children in the age 4-10 range.
Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read and review these great books!
