The Great Outdoors Can Be a Scary Place for a Kid Who's Scared of Everything

Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking, and Other Natural Disasters by Lenore Look

Hello, Readers!

This week 2nd and 3rd grade book club members are reading Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking, and Other Natural Disasters, the second book in the Alvin Ho series written by Lenore Look and illustrated by LeUyen Pham.

Alvin Ho does not think the great outdoors is great. It is super-duper scary. Here are a few reasons why:

1. Flash floods.
2. Meteorites.
3. Lots of creepy trees.
4. Pit toilets!

Luckily, when his dad suggests - GULP! - a camping trip, Alvin is prepared. He has:

1. A portable generator.
2. Night-vision goggles.
3. Toilet paper.
4. More toilet paper!

So grab your mosquito netting and your heavy-duty flashlight and experience the great outdoors with the one and only Alvin Ho.

Possible Discussion Questions:

1. What types of fears does Alvin have? How do his fears affect him at home and school?
2. Why do you think Alvin is scared to go camping and hiking?
3. Alvin believes his Uncle Dennis's Batman ring will be a secret weapon that gives him powers. Do you think the Batman ring did or did not give Alvin secret powers? Why or why not?
4. What types of secret tips did Uncle Dennis give to Alvin and Anibelly?
5. How did Uncle Dennis's secret tips backfire on Alvin and Anibelly and their dad?
6. How does Alvin end up making a friend while he is camping? How did Alvin and his friend end up being superheroes?
7. What do you think Alvin liked most about camping and hiking?
8. Alvin likes to pretend he is the superhero Firecracker Man. If you could make up a superhero character, who would you be? What would your costume look like?
9. Are you afraid of some things? What would you put in your PDK - Personal Disaster Kit - to help you survive the things that scare you?

Curriculum Connections:

• Life Skills (problem solving, courage, phobias)
• Science (nature)

What 2nd and 3rd Grade Book Club Members Thought:

• Our rating: 4.2 out of 5
• "One question I wondered was why is he scared of so many things?" --Joliz
• "My favorite part was when Alvin met that alien." --Jake
• "One question I wondered was is he not scared anymore?" --Valeria
• "My favorite part was when he was in the box." --Nathan
• "My favorite part was Gungung." --Sanika
• "One question I wondered was why is there a Batman ring?" --Nathan
• "My favorite part was when he made a snare trap." --Joliz
• "My favorite part was on page 34 when Alvin was naked." --Rivian

If You Like This Book, You Might Try Reading These:

Some Friendships Are Meant to Be

Hello, Universe by Erin Entrada Kelly

Hello, Readers! 

This week 5th grade book club kids are discussing Hello, Universe by 2018 Newbery Medalist Erin Entrada Kelly. Told from intertwining points of view (two boys and two girls), Hello, Universe is  a funny and poignant neighborhood story about unexpected friendships. The novel celebrates bravery, being different, and finding your inner bayani (hero). 

In one day, four lives weave together in unexpected ways. Virgil Salinas is shy and kindhearted and feels out of place in his crazy-about-sports family. Valencia Somerset, who is deaf, is smart, brave, and secretly lonely, and she loves everything about nature. Kaori Tanaka is a self-proclaimed psychic, whose little sister, Gen, is always following her around. And Chet Bullens wishes the weird kids would just stop being so different so that he can concentrate on basketball.

They aren’t friends, at least not until Chet pulls a prank that traps Virgil and his pet guinea pig at the bottom of a well. This disaster leads Kaori, Gen, and Valencia on an epic quest to find the missing Virgil. Sometimes four can do what one cannot. Through luck, smarts, bravery, and a little help from the universe, a rescue is performed, a bully is put in his place, and friendship blooms.

Source: https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062414151/hello-universe

Possible Discussion Questions:

1. What is Virgil like as a person? When he describes the rest of his family, he says he feels “like unbuttered toast standing next to them” (p. 4). What does he mean by that simile? How does he think he compares to his brothers? How does his experience in the well affect him? 
2. How does Lola’s arrival help Virgil? What is she like, and what’s her role in the family? Describe Lola’s exchange with Valencia. What do Valencia and Kaori think of her?
3. In more than one instance, Virgil wishes he could act as the “Alternate Virgil” (p. 39). How would he change himself if he could? How does the book’s title relate to Virgil’s hopes about changing? What changes does he actually make by the end of the book?
4. Describe Valencia’s personality and her interests. What is her nightmare, and why can’t she ask her mother for help? How do people, including her parents, treat her differently because she’s deaf? Give specific examples.
5. Valencia explains that she prays to Saint Rene. Who is he and why does she pray to him? In the well, Virgil talks to Ruby San Salvador. Who is she and how is she helpful to him? What does this tell you about Valencia and Virgil and how they are alike? What else do they have in common?
6. Discuss Chet’s character and how he treats other kids. Why do you think he’s so unkind? What messages does he get from his father? How do you think those affect his actions?
7. Kaori likes to tell people that “her parents were born in the high, misty mountains of a samurai village” (p. 26). What does this reveal about her character? Describe her interest in psychic matters and how that interest is important to the novel’s plot. Talk about her relationship to Gen, how they interact, and how their personalities compare.
8. Talk about the main characters’ names and nicknames in the novel. Why does Valencia call herself Renee? Discuss Kaori’s observation that Valencia seems proud of her real name, and the fact that “Kaori was fond of her name as well”  (p. 265). What does Lola say about Valencia’s name? How does Virgil feel about his name and nickname? How does Chet’s last name lead to a nickname and relate to his character?
9. Identify the different points of view that the author uses throughout the novel. How do the points of view differ by chapter? Why do you think the author chose to focus different chapters on different characters and use different points of view?
10. The author uses similes and metaphors to create a vivid narrative. For example, Virgil’s crying is compared to a faucet, starting on p. 243 and picking up again on p. 245. Discuss the effect of the metaphor and why the author extends it. On p. 244, Virgil thinks of his family as speaking “in exclamation points.” What images does that create in your mind? Find other figures of speech and discuss their impact on the reader. 

Curriculum Connections:

• Life Skills (problem solving, communication, dealing with bullying, intergenerational relationships)
• Science (animals, snakes,)
• Disabilities (deafness)
• Writing (multiple points of view, text structure, narrative elements)

What 5th Grade Book Club Members Thought:

• Our rating: 4.1 out of 5.0
• "Why did Virgil's parents not care so much for Virgil?" --Vibha
• "My favorite part was Virgil got saved." --Aditi
• "My favorite part was when Ruby San Salvador convinced Virgil into getting brave." --Alex
• "My favorite part was when Virgil was saved from the well." --Vibha
• "One question I wondered was why is Chet so unkind?" --Alex
• "My favorite part was when they found Virgil." --Alexa

If You Liked This Book, You Might Try Reading These:

What We're Reading Next: 

We couldn't decide, so we're breaking into two groups and reading both of these amazing books:

Life's Always Looking Up When You're "Short"

Short by Holly Goldberg Sloan 

Hello, Readers!

This week our fifth grade book club members are discussing Short by Holly Goldberg Sloan. With its humor, insight, and terrifically quirky cast of characters, including the unforgettable Julia Marks, this novel is a heartwarming, joyous story of self-discovery and the role models who forever change us.

Julia spends a lot of time looking up. But please don't call her short; she is boycotting that word. She's not allowed to boycott the local theater production of The Wizard of Oz, however. Her mother insisted that she audition, and now she has been cast as a Munchkin--even though she can't dance or carry a tune. Her summer is not starting well.

But then, unexpectedly, Julia begins to see her world-- and herself --in a different way. She is inspired by the show's always enthusiastic director, and she becomes friendly with two women unlike any she has ever met: Olive, an adult with dwarfism who doesn't let her size define her; and Mrs. Chang, a neighbor whose incredible artistry helps Julia see herself as an artist. She soon realizes that "this is going to be the summer when the little people call the shots."

Source: book jacket

Possible Discussion Questions:*

1. Who are Julia’s role models? Why is it important for kids to have role models? Who is your role model?
2. Why did Julia almost quit the play? What does Olive do to keep Julia in the show? Have you ever wanted to quit an activity? What motivated you to stick with it?
3. Julia is praised for taking initiative during the play. What is initiative? Do you agree with Shawn that initiative is more important than talent, luck, or good looks?
4. Several characters must deal with assumptions people make based on how they look. What do you think it’s like to be Olive? What did Julia assume about Mrs. Chang? Have you ever made an incorrect assumption about someone else that you later corrected? Have you ever felt like people made an incorrect assumption about you?
5. Shawn Barr explains that “artists are observers.” This challenges what Julia has always thought. How are you an artist? What do you think is the purpose of art?
6. Why is Julia upset when she finds out she is just slow to grow and will probably not be short forever? Why does she want to be “short”?
7. Discuss how Julia, Randy, and Shawn each handle the review of the play after opening night. What can you learn from Shawn and Randy’s reactions?
8. What does Julia learn about herself during her summer as a Munchkin? What qualities or skills make you unique?
9. Julia comes up with a slogan that she would put on a business card — “Marks Hits Her Marks.” What would your personal slogan be?
10. Julia wonders how many adults really like their jobs and fantasizes about a future career where she could eat apricots, walk a dog, and lay in the grass and daydream. What is your fantasy career?
11. Shawn Barr teaches the Munchkins about the value of body movement in acting. What does your body movement say about you? Does how you move change based on your mood? 
12. What surprised you as you read this story?
13. How has your thinking changed (or been confirmed) after reading Short?

*Discussion questions based on Brightly's Book Club for Kids (http://www.readbrightly.com/brightlys-book-club-for-kids-short/)

Curriculum Connections:

• Life Skills (self-discovery, appreciating differences, problem solving, role models)
• Art (drama, acting, body language)
• Research - Dwarfism

What 5th Grade Book Club Members Thought:

• Our rating: 4.4 out of 5
• "One question I wondered was why Julia wanted to stay short?" --Vibha
• "Why do they call flying monkeys winged monkeys?" --Sophie
• "I want to talk about when Julia and Olive flew." --Katie
• "Why was Shawn Barr at the motel?" --Alexa
• "One part of the story that sticks out in my mind was when she met the director." --Jordyn
• "Why weren't Olive and Julia written in the newspaper when they were talking about who the flying monkeys (winged monkeys) were?" --Kenzie
• "I want to talk about her flying." --Aditi
• "Why would Julia almost quit the play?" --Alex

If You Like This Book, You Might Try Reading These:

What We're Reading Next:

"You're Telling Me I Can't Read This Book? Oh, Okay," . . . Said No Kid Ever.

Ban This Book: A Novel by Alan Gratz

Hello, Readers!

This week 5th graders are discussing Ban This Book: A Novel by Alan Gratz. In my opinion, Gratz is a master at developing determined, realistic characters to whom readers can relate, and he does it again with the cast of characters in Ban This Book.

It all started the day Amy Anne Ollinger tried to check out her favorite book in the whole world, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, from the school library. That’s when Mrs. Jones, the librarian, told her the bad news: her favorite book was banned! All because a classmate’s mom thought the book wasn’t appropriate for kids to read.

Amy Anne decides to fight back by starting a secret banned book library out of her locker. But soon things get out of hand, and Amy Anne finds herself on the front line of an unexpected battle over book banning, censorship, and who has the right to decide what she and her fellow students can read.

In the end, her only recourse might be to try to beat the book banners at their own game. Because after all, once you ban one book, you can ban them all…

Source: https://www.alangratz.com/writing/ban-this-book/

Possible Discussion Questions:

1. How do you feel and what is your reaction when someone tells you that you cannot do something?
2. What does it mean to be a "banned" book? Do you think some books should be banned from libraries? Why or why not?
3. Describe Amy Anne. How does her personality help and hinder her at the same time? How does she change throughout this story?
4. What troubles Amy Anne about her family life? What advice might you give Amy Anne about dealing with her sisters and about getting her parents to understand her concerns?
5. What are the main reasons Amy Anne is upset Mrs. Spencer's decision to remove books from the school library?
6. What are "good intentions"? Do good intentions always to good outcomes? Share an example from the story to make your point.
7. What is the B.B.L.L.? Do you think it was a good idea? Why or why not?
8. Who does Amy Anne hold responsible for getting her suspended? Who is really responsible, and why?
9. Amy Anne says, ". . . for all the amazing things books can do, they can't make you into a bad person." Agree or disagree, and why?
10. The list of banned books used by the author in this story includes some books Amy Anne doesn't like reading as well as some she feels uncomfortable reading. Why would Gratz think it was important to use a list like this?
11. What message do you think author Alan Gratz wanted readers to consider after reading this book?

Curriculum Connections:

• Social Studies: The Constitution and Bill of Rights, The First Amendment
• Celebrate Children's Book Week and Every Child a Reader
• Find out some of the books that have been challenged or banned throughout history
• Learn about Banned Books Week.

What 5th Grade Book Club Members Thought:

• Our rating: 4.5 out of 5 - We really enjoyed reading and discussing this book.
• "My favorite part was when Amy Anne started the B.B.L.L. an then went insane with banning books." --Alex
• "I wondered how Amy Anne sat in the bathroom for one whole day." --Vibha
• "Why would people ban books that have the slightest degree of violations without policy? That doesn't make sense." --Alex
• "My favorite part was when she played 'hookie'." --Alexa
• "I want to talk about how her favorite book is real!" --Katie
• "One question I wondered was why are there lockers in 4th grade?" --Sophie
• "My favorite part was when Trey's mom lost to Amy Anne." --Aditi
• 
  
• "Did this happen to the author?" --Aditi

If You Liked This Book, You Might Try Reading These:

     

What We're Reading Next: