Class Antics – Inside Elementary Education

This is Part 6 of a series about Fun with Literacy: Taylor Swift lyrics

My students enjoy applying the principles of creative writing, description and figurative language to pop culture.  Taylor Swift’s “Our Song” is one of my favorites.  One year, I was a judge for talent show auditions, and I heard this song several times.  The lyrics are fun!

I like this song for teaching because it is full of metaphors.  Similes are much more common, so it’s nice to show students that metaphors can work well, too.

Quick tip for teaching students to write metaphors: have them write a simile, then erase the word “like.”  Ta-da!  A metaphor!

I extend the lesson by comparing “Our Song” to Elton John’s classic “Your Song.”  The students enjoy finding similarities and differences.  I like showing them how self-aware these songs are—they’re songs about not having a song.

Deep stuff for third grade!

Click for literary analyses (pdf files) of Taylor Swift’s “Our Song” and Elton John’s ”Your Song“

I have a soft spot for stories about writers. When I discovered the TV series Castle, I was hooked at first sight. I really appreciate the high quality work of the writers of the show- and the constant challenge: can I solve the mystery before Richard Castle does?

Then there’s a fun twist: As a promotion for the show, “Richard Castle’s” book Heat Wave was released in hardcover by Hyperion and debuted at #26 on The New York Times Best Seller list, ultimately moving up to #6. The second novel Naked Heat debuted at #7 on The New York Times Best Seller list.

What’s not to love about a fictional fiction writer portrayed by Nathan Fillion?

There’s a lot more to love, actually.

Castle star Nathan Fillion co-founded Kids Need to Read, an organization dedicated to getting more books into underfunded libraries:

“Growing up, my parents managed to show me the importance of reading without cramming it down my throat. A difficult task, I’m sure. It breaks my heart to think that there are kids out there, ready to have their imaginations lit on fire, excited and wanting to read, and facing naked shelves in their school or local libraries.”

Now I have a soft spot for Kids Need to Read, and I hope you will, too. Kids Need to Read focuses on stressed populations, such as juvenile offenders, impoverished urban teenagers, and youth faced with learning challenges. KNTR assists educators who are devoted to helping such children overcome the odds and succeed through worthwhile literacy programs. You can request donations online.

I can tell you from experience that helping kids in these circumstances select a book to read is both personally and professionally satisfying. Even greater is finding out that your encouragement came at a time that made a difference in that young person’s life.

I’ll be donating and volunteering. Hope you will, too!

This is Part 5 of a series about Fun with Literacy: Taylor Swift lyrics

My students enjoy applying sometimes stuffy reading vocabulary lessons to decidedly un-stuffy contexts.  Analyzing how Taylor Swift uses figurative language and storytelling techniques to make her hit song “Speak Now” so catchy has been a nice way to spice up our lessons.

By now, my students know that Taylor won’t be stopping by to help us study her songs, but that hasn’t dampened their enthusiasm for noting similes, rhyme schemes, point of view, and imagery in her songs.

I hope you enjoy my literary analysis of the song “Speak Now” by Taylor Swift, a song about Taylor’s fantasy of interrupting a wedding to declare her love (from her album Speak Now).

For Taylor’s story behind the song, click here.

This is Part 4 of a series about Fun with Literacy: Taylor Swift lyrics

My students and I have enjoyed analyzing Taylor’s songs for literary techniques and figurative language. This song has special meaning to a lot of people because it’s about being picked on and bullied. You’ll see how the catchy chorus provides an empowering message. As usual, telling detail, clever rhymes and storytelling flair help listeners connect emotionally to the song.

I hope you enjoy my literary analysis of the song “Mean” by Taylor Swift from her album Speak Now.

For Taylor’s story behind the song, click here.

This is Part 3 of a series about Fun with Literacy: Taylor Swift lyrics

My students memorize dozens of reading vocabulary terms and then use this knowledge to analyze what they read. When I teach figurative language and literary techniques, I find it’s important to give students pop culture examples so they don’t think that good writing is limited to that which was written hundreds of years ago.

There’s a reason Taylor Swift is a star—the girl writes catchy songs that elicit emotional response. My students and I have enjoyed analyzing how she does it.

“Hey, Stephen” is probably my favorite Taylor Swift song. As we analyzed it, I saw why. It captures a moment very well (Taylor’s crush on a boy named Stephen), telling details elicit emotional response and make it easy to identify, and the liberal use of internal rhyme keeps the song swaying along.

I hope you enjoy my literary analysis of the song “Hey, Stephen” by Taylor Swift from her album Fearless as much as I’ve enjoyed this incredibly catchy song.

For Taylor’s story behind the song, click here

This is Part 2 of a series about Fun with Literacy: Taylor Swift lyrics

“Love Story” is one of Taylor’s most popular songs. When I taught this to my class as part of a figurative language lesson, I set off a surprising discussion that perfectly illustrated children’s moral development.

In the song, Taylor compares her forbidden love with Romeo and Juliet. As part of a discussion of how allusion can add depth to writing, I told them the story. Boy, was I surprised when my third graders had zero sympathy for Romeo. He killed Tybalt! That made Romeo a bad guy. Doesn’t matter that Tybalt killed Mercutio. Romeo was bad and deserved all that happens to him. End of story. Nothing could change my students’ opinion.

I had never thought of the story this way before, but I thought you would be interested in their logic and moral reasoning.

Here is my literary analysis of the song “Love Story” by Taylor Swift from her album Fearless. It’s very good for teaching students how to recognize literary techniques in popular entertainment.

–For Taylor’s story-behind-the-song, click here.

This is Part 1 of a series about Fun with Literacy: Taylor Swift lyrics

I teach my students dozens of reading vocabulary terms, and I’m always looking for examples of the concepts in our everyday lives. You should have seen the looks on my students’ faces when they saw “Figurative Language with Taylor Swift” on our daily schedule! I felt bad when I realized that they thought T-Swizzle would really stop by later in the day. Still, the class rallied from their disappointment and found many examples of figurative language and literary techniques in this song.

I first got into Taylor Swift songs after judging talent show auditions a few years back. I heard each of her songs many times over. I was impressed with the lyrics. The girl knows how to tell a story, using clever rhymes, similes and alliteration to enhance the effect. There’s a reason she’s a star.

Here is my literary analysis of the song “You Belong With Me” by Taylor Swift from her album Fearless. It’s very good for teaching students how to recognize literary techniques in popular entertainment.

–For Taylor’s story-behind-the-song, click here

Research shows that kids who do not read during the summer months fall victim to the Summer Slide, in which they lose skills during summer vacation. This is an acute problem for elementary students, because they lose so much, so quickly. We spend the first quarter trying to get students back to the level they were at the end of the previous year.

The bigger problem with the Summer Slide is that it affects the most vulnerable students, those who have the least support at home. Scholastic, PBS Kids and iVillage joined to promote Summer Reading Central for kids and parents. The goal is to get kids to read at least 4 books over the summer to prevent the Summer Slide.

Scholastic’s Summer Challenge lets kids log their reading time in pursuit of a World Record. In Summer 2010, students around the world logged 52,710,368 reading minutes. Scholastic will feature the 20 schools with the most minutes this summer in the 2012 Scholastic Book of World Records.

There’s a 12 page Family Participation Guide online with reading logs, certificates, forms for recommending books to others, and WordGirl definition and vocabulary activities. Suggested Book Lists are posted online for the 2011 Summer Reading Challenge, organized into dozens of categories of interests, also identified by reading level or age.

As for me, I’ll be reading and writing all summer. I love it!

When I was a child, Fred Rogers was my best friend.  He opened his show with a simple song, so simple that I could sing along before I started going to school. I knew that he talked directly to me and I talked to him, too.

May 22 celebrates the anniversary of the premiere of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood in 1967.  The last original Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood aired on PBS in 2001, making it the longest-running PBS program at the time.  (PBS began its broadcasts of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood in 1968.)

Fred Rogers did a lot more:
>> He was the composer and lyricist of over 200 songs.
>> He wrote numerous books for children and for adults.
>> He won 4 Emmy Awards and the Lifetime Achievement Award.
>> He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.
>> He advocated before the U.S. Senate for more government funding for children’s television rather than the Vietnam War.
>> He testified before the U.S. Supreme Court in favor of allowing home recording of his television show during the Sony V. Betamax litigation.

His last book, published in 2002 was The Mister Rogers Parenting Book.  One of his famous sweaters is on display in the Smithsonian.  Mr. Rogers was one of my most important role models, even at the age when I called him “Mr. Rog” because I couldn’t say his whole name. 

I salute you, Mr. Rog.

Part of the fun of blogging is that you get to meet other bloggers—and their students.  Mr. Reifman’s class in Santa Monica asked me if the boy on the cover of Best Multiplication Songs EVER! is supposed to look like an “x” for multiplication.  I was impressed with their question and told them more than they ever wanted to know about symbolism in my books and marketing messages.  (I went to business school to learn how to be a civilian—I grew up as an Air Force brat with no idea how the other half lived.)

So here it is…Fun with Symbolism.

Dear Mr. Reifman’s class,

You are very clever! There are indeed hidden symbols and layers of meaning on the cover for Best Multiplication Songs EVER!

The jumping boy on the cover is indeed intended to make you think of the “X” for multiplication. The jumping-for-joy-look indicates that the album has a lot of energy. Also notice that the red letters and a boy flying against the blue sky evoke Superman images, suggesting that you can become a multiplication superhero if you listen to the album.

Managing Stan (aka Zapped!) has hidden symbols, too. You’ll notice that fire or the color red appear when the kids are up to no good and are being untrue to themselves. That’s when things tend to get zapped, too. I used trees (and leaves) to symbolize honesty and being true to yourself. For example, Kyle wears a gilded leaf necklace that belonged to his mother. Brian, his best friend, is the one who keys in on its importance. The scenes at the Secret Tree show the kids becoming friends, not just classmates. Even the plaque on the bench under the tree has a tree theme: In Memory of Eldon Bower. “Bower” is a tree-related word meaning a leafy shelter.

In my newest book, Brainstorm, I wrote some cool metaphors. See, Brian is very clever, and his ideas come to him out of the blue, like brainstorms. (Some brainstorms are good; others lead to  funny problems.) Whenever Brian has a brainstorm, I create a metaphor and compare it to a real storm. For example, “Snowflakes swirled in Brian’s mind as a wintry brainstorm grew into a blizzard.” In some cases, the type of storm has something to do with the idea, like when Brian’s brainstorm starts raining cats and dogs as he thinks of an idea related to Barkley, weirdest dog ever.

Until my last year of high school, I could find symbols in stories, but honestly thought that the authors didn’t really intend them. I thought my teachers just made me search for them as some sort of scavenger hunt activity combined with an assignment to write a two page essay about the importance of the color red on page 184. Education is about helping each generation build on the learning of others; I can save you some time and say that yes, authors absolutely really do put symbols in their books.

Try putting symbols in your own stories! Just think of the symbol you want to use and what it will mean, and slip it in here and there. Not too much, or it will get tacky. For example, Brainstorm is 180 pages long, and I only used 9 brainstorms.

Sincerely,
Corey Green

Rick Riordan won the Author of the Year Award for The Lost Hero (The Heroes of Olympus, Book 1)

The Children’s Choice Book Awards lets young readers voice their opinions by voting for the books they like.  Of course, the hope behind this program is that kids will make their own reading lists and develop a love of reading.  Kids cast more than 500,000 votes online this year.

My students love Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series.  The students who can read at that level are very proud of their accomplishments, and their success motivates others. 

My class formed a Percy Jackson fan club that celebrated all things about Greek mythology.  They were especially democratic by not demanding that club members had to have read the Percy Jackson books to join the club.  The result was a lot of fun and sharing on their own time—things that make a teacher’s heart soar.

Thank you, Rick Riordan, for your contributions to KidLit!

This year’s theme for National Library Week is “Create your own story @ your library.” 

What activities are you planning for your class? You might like to use my Story Writing Tips for Kids that have been online for a long time.  The webpage is one of the most frequently visited of all my sites.  I also have a Story Planning Worksheet to download, print and use in your classroom.

Here are some famous librarians.  I hope this information sparks fascinating interactions with students in classroom discussions:

* Ben Franklin and his philosophy group Junto organized the “Articles of Agreement,” which set up the nation’s first library.  The librarywas first meant to benefit only the members so that they could share books on the issues they discussed during meetings.  It went on to become the Library of Congress.

* J. Edgar Hoover went to night school at George Washington University and supported himself by working at the Library of Congress. There, he was a messenger, cataloguer and clerk.

* Lewis Carroll: The author of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass became a sub-librarian at Christ Church in Oxford, England.  Lewis Carroll’s real name was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, and he first told the story of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to the three daughters of the Dean of Christ Church, in 1862.

* Jacob Grimm, one of the famous Brothers Grimm, worked as a librarian in Kasel, Germany after graduating with a law degree.

* Madeleine L’Engle, author of A Wrinkle in Time served as the librarian and writer-in-residence at Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City.

* Beverly Cleary attended the School of Librarianship at the University of Washington, Seattle, and became a children’s librarian.

* Former First Lady Laura Bush holds a Master’s degree in Library Science.  While First Lady, Mrs. Bush supported librarian recruitment initiatives and toured many libraries around the world.

The Library of Congress website has wonderful sections for Kids and Families and for Teachers.

My post about National Library Week 2010 might have some ideas for you, too.

I am posting this a bit early so my teacher-readers can create lesson plans.

April Fools Day celebrates pranks, hoaxes and silliness.  Many people believe it originated from a line in “Nun’s Priest’s Tale.”  This was the story of Chanticleer and the Fox in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales (1392).  Readers misunderstood a line to mean “32nd of March.”  Chaucer’s poem was made into a book titled Chanticleer and the Fox, written and illustrated by Barbara Cooney.  Her book won the 1959 Caldecott Medal.

Some fun April Fools pranks from The Top 100 April Fool’s Day Hoaxes of All Time:

 * In 1915, during World War I, a French aviator flew over a German camp and dropped what appeared to be a huge bomb. German soldiers immediately scattered, but no explosion followed. Finally, the soldiers gingerly approached the bomb, only to discover it was just a large football with a note tied to it: “April Fool!”

 * The BBC announced that Swiss farmers were enjoying a bumper spaghetti crop in 1957; the show included  footage of Swiss peasants pulling strands of spaghetti down from trees.  BBC’s instructions for growing a spaghetti tree:  “place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best.”

 * In 1975, an Australian news program reported that the country would soon be converting to “metric time.” Under the new system there would be 100 seconds to the minute, 100 minutes to the hour, and 20-hour days.

 * A newspaper story ran in London in 1981 about a Japanese long-distance runner who had entered the London Marathon but, on account of a translation error, thought that he had to run for 26 days, not 26 miles. The runner was reported somewhere out on the roads of England, still running, determined to finish the race; even though various people had spotted him, they were unable to flag him down.

 * The April 1998 issue of the New Mexicans for Science and Reason newsletter contained an article claiming that the Alabama state legislature had voted to change the value of the mathematical constant pi from 3.14159 to the ‘Biblical value’ of 3.0.  This became an Internet sensation: the Alabama legislature soon began receiving hundreds of calls from people protesting the legislation.

April Fools Day is a perfect occasion to tell you more about my book,  Zapped! 

Inventing Stan was easy…
making Stan behave is impossible!

Kyle, the new kid at Buckley Elementary School, invents an imaginary scapegoat to deflect the blame for a prank that goes wrong in class. How perfect — the kids can play pranks and never get into trouble!  When Stan takes on a life of his own, the kids get into more trouble than they ever imagined. The kids discover making Stan behave is impossible.
Children’s middle-grade fiction.
Audience: Ages 9-12.

 Now for something real: On April 1, 2007, the first Diary of a Wimpy Kid book came out.

Once upon a time, schoolchildren celebrated holidays on the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln (February 12) and George Washington (February 22.)  Now, the two holidays are combined into one: Presidents’ Day.*

Presidents’ Day is a time for many traditional elementary school activities: learning about the presidents and completing worksheets, hearing stories about Washington and the cherry tree, and creating a silhouette of students using the overhead projector for tracing.  Fun activities, all.  Here is a not-so-traditional idea for a grammar lesson:

Presidents’ Day is not the official name for the holiday, and there is some disagreement on the spelling.  “Presidents’ Day” is favored by the Chicago Manual of Style, the American Heritage Dictionary, and Webster’s Dictionary.  “President’s Day” is incorrect because two presidents “own” the holiday, not one.  Use the day to try once again to teach students about where to place the apostrophe: before the s if ownership is singular, after the s if there are multiple owners.  eHow.com has a nice lesson plan for teaching apostrophe use and links to several practice worksheets.

ABCTeach has a collection of nice Presidents’ Day worksheets.

*The third Monday in February is the federal holiday that honors George Washington. Today, the date usually is observed as “Presidents Day” in recognition of other American presidents, such as Abraham Lincoln (who was born February 12). The legal name of the federal holiday, however, remains “Washington’s Birthday”. The federal holiday used to be observed on February 22nd until the Uniform Monday Holiday Act was passed by Congress.

Ticket to Read is an awesome online program that functions as a super fun reading tutor for all levels.  You can use it for remediation or as a challenge.  It’s appropriate for grades K-6.

In essence, your child earns tickets for reading passages and answering the questions.  These tickets can be redeemed to play games and to decorate your own personal virtual tree house.

Ticket to Read provides comprehensive reading tutoring.  It really covers everything.  Your child reads the story out loud (fluency) and answers questions that address comprehension and vocabulary.  If your child makes mistakes, the program offers personalized tutoring.  If your child has trouble sounding out words, the program will read to her, and then let her click on words she doesn’t know so she can hear them pronounced.  After all the tutoring, your child tries the passage again.  Many of the passages are nonfiction, which is the most difficult genre for children on standardized tests.  For younger students, Ticket to Read has a phonics component.

The tickets are good reinforcement because your child earns them quickly and constantly.  Every correct question earns tickets.  Reading a story out loud and recording it earns tickets.

It is super fun to decorate the tree house.  Your child can spend tickets on virtual toys such as a drum set or keyboard, buy a virtual teddy bear, and even purchase access to secret passages or a virtual pool.

Individuals can subscribe to Ticket to Read for $29.95.  Classes can subscribe for $249.95.  Schools can subscribe, too—see Ticket to Read for details.  You can get a FREE 14 day trial.

This is a great deal!  You will be so glad you subscribed!  Your child’s reading level will soar!