First Graders Rule

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I work in a K-8 IB school. There are benefits to having Pre-K through 8th grade in one school. I teach Grades 6, 7, 8. Today we had a treat. We were visited by a first grade class. The students had  created PowerPoint presentations about honey bees. They then presented these to my eighth grade students.  I love this for many reasons. The first graders take this so seriously. The eighth graders learn a lot from the first graders. They are impressed that the first graders know how to cite their sources and create a slide that has a bibliography. We end it with honey tasting. There are advantages to having a husband who is a beekeeper.  I have provided  the three presentations our first graders created. They need to be watched in the order below. See how awesome our first graders are

Hazen's Video

Diego's Video    

Jayceona's Video   

Salt by Helen Frost

 

Genre: Middle Grade, Young Adult, Historical Fiction

Source: I own a copy

I have loved all of Helen Frost's books. This one was a little more special to me. I grew up in Indiana.  I lived on a farm until we moved to Florida when I was fourteen. One of my favorite past-times along with my sisters was looking for arrowheads on our property. Helen's book about a friendship between a Native American Family and a white family was hopeful and hard at the same time. What do you do when you hear rumblings of war? For James and his family who have a trading post outside the fort, they continue on the way they have always gone. They trade with the Indians, who are their friend. James best friend is Anikwa, a young boy of the Kekionga, a part of the Miami tribe.  He too has heard rumblings of war.  Many of his people have decided they will side with the British if it comes to war. 

I felt so terrible for James and his family. James had to witness his friend Isaac's hatred for the Native Americans. He really has no basis to his hatred, which makes it all the more tragic.  As I read and saw what each side did I wondered if Anikwa and James could remain friends.  You will need to read the book to find out what happened.

47 Days Annette Oppenlander

 

Genre: Middle School, Young Adult, Biography
Source: I purchased a copy.

 Near the end of World War II, Hitler knew he was losing. This did not stop him from continuing the fight. When man power was dwindling, he reached out and drafted the Hitler Youth. These were young school boys. Helmet and Günter were best friends. They receive their draft notice in school and are required to report within one week to Marburg. They were told there would be no transportation and they would need to find their own way there. Günter goes to find Helmut. He tells him he doesn't plan to go. Helmut agrees. If they are caught they will be shot on the spot as traitors. Günter's father went to ward almost five years earlier and his brother left last year. This will leave his mother and younger brother all alone. Günter and Helmut start walking, slowly, deciding they will hide out in hopes the war will end before they actually get there.

     This story is the true story lived by the author's grandfather Günter and his best friend Helmut. It is a quick read, yet a hold-your-breath type of read. I worried the entire time I was reading about what they were going through.  I hear our youth today complain about such simple things when kids like Günter and Helmut had to worry about war, being killed, starving, freezing to death. It made me think about what was going on in Ukraine right now and how those children are living something similar. This should be in every middle school classroom. This is a definite must read