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How Oliver Olson Changed the World By: Claudia Mills

Summary:
Oliver is worried about how to conquer school projects and his over protective parents.  He seems to find his inner voice when a pushy classmates forces him to make a statement.

Follow-Up Questions:
1. What was Oliver's favorite part of the space sleepover?  Would that be your favorite part?  Why or Why not?
2.  What would write about to the senator?

Extenstion Activities:
1. Check out this fun quiz about this book:
http://www.quia.com/quiz/3099933.html
2. Work with a friend and make your own space visual aid.

Captain Nobody By: Dean Pitchford

Summary:
When Newt is left alone because his brother is in the hospital he comes up with a creative way to get noticed.  He decides to become Captain Nobody.  Well, he gets noticed alright.  Soon Newt, Captain Nobody, is really saving the day.  Can he keep up this act for long?  What will his parents do when they find out?  Read this very creative book to find out more!

Follow-Up Questions:
If you were going to create your “other” you costume.  What would you be and what would your costume look like?
What is the most courageous thing you have ever done? Explain using a lot of details.

Extension Activities: 
Check out the Captain Nobody website for awesome audio files and reading guides, plus lots of cool stuff!
http://www.captainnobody.com/

The Sherlock Files: The 100-Year-Old Secret By: Tracy Barrett

Summary:
This fast paced book is great for anyone who loves a good mystery book.  When brother  and sister Xander and Xena are uprooted and moved from Florida to England they have to find new things to do with their time.  While playing outside their hotel one day they receive a mysterious note with disappearing ink.  They are soon involved in a real Sherlock Holmes, ‘Unsolved Mystery’.  Will they be able to solve the mystery?  Will their parents find out what they are up to?

Follow-Up Questions:
1. Xena and Xander have moved from Florida to London for one year. What are some similarities and differences between the two places? Think of climate, language, food, and landscape. Do you know anyone who has moved from another country? Find out what they found the easiest and the hardest things to adjust to.

Extension Activities:
Check out other cool mysteries for kids to solve:
http://kids.mysterynet.com/solveit/
Fill out this mystery cube to help your solve the crime:
http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/mystery_cube/

Flight of the Phoenix By: R.L. LaFevers

Summary:
Nathaniel is sent to live with his cousin after his parents are declared lost at sea. He never even knew he had this cousin and it turns out that she is a beastologist (someone who studies supposed mythological creatures). He gets swept away to witness the hatching of a phoenix egg.  Everything is going well until his cousin gets kidnapped.  What will Nathaniel do?  Can he save his cousin and help the phoenix egg hatch?

Follow-Up Questions:
How would you feel if someone told you that your family was in the beastologist business?  Why?
How would you have handled the situation differently? Use details!

Extension Activities:
You can read an excerpt from this book or any of the books in the Beastologist series at the link below:
http://www.rllafevers.com/books.html#b
Get a great reading and discussion guide here:
http://www.rllafevers.com/for_teachers.html

Dying to Meet You By: Kate Klise

Summary:
This book is about an author of ghost stories named I.B. Grumply.  He has rented out a summer home to finish writing his last book.  What he did not know is that when he signed the rental agreement he signed up to take care of a little boy. This little boy insists that there are ghosts living in the mansion.  Will I.B. Grumply get to the bottom of all this?  Will he give up and move to a new place for peace and quiet?  Is there really a ghost living in the old mansion?  Read more to find out.

Follow-Up Questions:
If you were Mr. Grumply what would you have done when you got to the house and realized that you had to take care of a little boy?
Do you think that you will read the next book in this series?  Why or why not?

Extension Activities:
Get some great writing and drawing tips here:
http://kateandsarahklise.com/teacherpage.htm
Watch an amazing book trailer for this book at the following link.  When it is over, create your own!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYPuZfnCrww

Umbrella Summer By: Lisa Graff

Summary:
This book will make you laugh, cry and every emotion in between.  Annie is terrified that she might have ebola and other various diseases after her brother's unexpected death.  She is always extra careful and because of this she has become a lot less fun.  Will her friends be able to help her out of this phase or will they grow sick of it and walk away from her?  Read this exceptional book and find out!

Follow-Up Questions:
If you were Annie’s friend would you be able to tolerate her change or would you make fun of her for being overly cautious?
Write the next chapter of this book.  What will Annie do?  What will Annie stop doing?  Be specific.

Follow-Up Activities:
Create an Umbrella bookmark at:
http://www.lisagraff.com/abouttemplate2.html
Hear some of the book read by the author here:
http://www.teachingbooks.net/book_reading.cgi?id=4698&a=1

Dragons Egg By: Sarah L. Thomson

Summary:
This quick read is about a girl named Mella who has been raised to be a dragon keeper.  In her world dragons are kept as pets for those who are able to train them.  She soon encounters a dragon slayer and has to keep a dragon’s egg safe while traveling to the hatching grounds far away.

Follow-Up Questions:
 Would you have taken on the challenge that Mella did?
 If you were a dragon keeper, what would you name your dragons and why?

Extension Activities:
Make sure to check out this website and download the dragon hunt!  It's a super fun activity!
http://home.earthlink.net/~slthomson/teachers.shtml
Read the first few chapters online at:
http://books.google.com/books?printsec=frontcover&id=sAPWwhzzIQC#v=onepage&q&f=false

N.E.R.D.S. By: Michael Buckley

Summary:
This book captures the nerdy kid in all of us.  Read along as one boy, Jackson Jones, falls from the cool side of the school to the nerdy side.  He is relieved when he is asked to join a group of nerds unlike any other.  It is a story of true heroism and modesty that keeps you reading and rooting for the bad guy, gone good!

Follow-Up Questions:
1.  Jackson is treated poorly by the N.E.R.D.S. because of how he treated them in his former life.  Do you think these actions are fair?  Why or Why not?
2. Who was your favorite 'nerd' and why?

Extension Activities:
The best website for a book ever!! Check out secret surveillance footage.  You can also read a chapter online as well as put your name in the name generator and see what your spy name would be!!  Plus there is really cool music in the background!!
http://www.abramsbooks.com/nerds/

The Secret of Zoom By: Lynne Jonell

Summary:
Christina is a little girl who grows up sheltered from the world after her mother is killed in a laboratory explosion nearby.  Her father forbids her to go outside the walls of the house.  After becoming a friend with a boy named Taft she learns a whole lot about the world outside and some secrets that are kept inside the house she has been living in!

Follow-Up Questions:
1. What was your favorite part of this book?
2. If you had Zoom at your fingertips, what would you do with it?

Extension Activities:
Check out this link for awesome writing tips from the author:
http://www.lynnejonell.com/writing/tips01.html

Out of my Mind By: Sharon Draper

Summary:
This is a heartwarming and heart-wrenching book about a little girl who is a quadriplegic.  We follow her as she explains how she can handle all tasks in her mind but just does not have a way to express her feelings and thoughts.  She has the chance of a lifetime when she is awarded a computer made just for her.  Will being able to communicate change her life for the better?

Follow-Up Questions:
1. Would you be able to accept Melody onto the debate team despite her disability? Explain.
2. Do you think the computer will continue to help Melody or hurt her in the future?  Why?

Extension Activities:
1. Write a poem about one of the following topics:
The Girl on the Inside
When Friends Betray Us
A Fish out of Water
Sisters
The Power of Words
Courage
2. Study Guide:
http://sharondraper.com/bookdetail-guides.asp?id=35

The Magic Half By: Annie Barrows

Summary:
This is book is about a girl named Miri who feels left out because she is the middle child of two sets of twins.  She is constantly looking for ways to have fun on her own.  When she discovers a new magic secret will she have the guts to pull off the stunt?  What will happen then?  Will this be enough to change her future?


Follow-Up Questions:
1. If you were Miri what would you have done differently to Hoarst?
2. If you found the missing jewelry after all those years, what would you do with it and why?

Extension Activities:
Check out amazing writing activities here:
http://www.anniebarrows.com/magichalf/educators/
Cool facts about twins:
http://www.anniebarrows.com/magichalf/stuff/

Extra Credit By: Andrew Clements

Summary
This is a book about a pen pal friendship from a little girl in the states named Abby and a little boy in Afghanistan named Sadeed.  Abby is given this extra credit assignment so that she will not be held back in her current grade.  Sadeed is chosen to correspond with Abby because he is the best student in his class.  Things go smoothly until the community that Sadeed comes from finds out that he is corresponding with someone from the United States.  Can they continue to write to each other?  Can two people so different really learn anything from each other?

Follow-Up Questions:
1. If you were given the assignment to write another student from a foreign country, what would be your top 5 topics to write about in your first letter? What would be your top 5 questions that you would want to know from the person you were corresponding with?
2. If you were in Sadeed’s  position, would you have done what he did or would you have kept the secret going?


Extension Activities:
1. As a class you could each bring in an item that you think is important to where you live.  For example: Abby sent Sadeed a rock and he sent her sand.  What would you chose? Bring your items to class and discuss them.
2. Continue to write the rest of the book.  What happens next with Abby and Sadeed?
You can check out the study guide by Andrew Clements here:
http://books.simonandschuster.com/Extra-Credit/Andrew-Clements/9781416949312/reading_group_guide

Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School and Other Scary Things By: Lenore Look

Summary
This book is about Alvin Ho, a boy who is very scared to talk at school.  Well, he is truly scared of most things, honestly.  It is hard for Alvin to make friends at school because he does not speak.  They all think that he is strange.  His best days are when he catches the chicken pox and gets to stay home from school for two whole weeks!  Can you imagine?  Will he ever make real friends at school?

Follow-Up Questions:
1. What is something that you used to be afraid of?  How did you overcome your fear?  How did you feel after you overcame that fear?
2. If you could make a list for Alvin to help him make friends at school what would be your first three items on the list?


Extension Activities:
1. Speak with someone in your family and see if they can tell you anything else about the Revolutionary War.
2. Alvin was fascinated by where he grew up.  List three really neat facts about the city or state that you were born in.

Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally) By: Lisa Yee

Summary
This a book about growing up and growing out of certain friendships.  When Bobby realizes that his best friend, Holly, is becoming a girl he starts to rethink their friendship.  Fourth grade is hard enough without having the other guys seeing you walking around and talking with a girl... Gross...  Will Bobby be able to replace his friendship with Holly with another guy or will he realize that being friends with a girl really is not that bad?


Follow-Up Questions:
1. At the end of the book something happy comes from a very sad moment.  Have you ever experienced a sad moment and then later on realized that it happened for a reason and something really good came out of the sad situation?
2. How do you react when one of your friends is picked on in school?  How do you stand up for them?


Extension Activities:

See how the illustrator came up with the perfect cover for the book here:
http://www.dantat.com/BOBBY/BobbyVSGirls/EVOLUTION_OF_A_COVER.html
Watch a real goldfish do tricks!
http://www.dantat.com/BOBBY/BobbyVSGirls/FISH_TRICKS.html
Take the time to draw a picture of your favorite pet or animal.  Then write a poem about what the pet or animal means to you.

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon By: Grace Lin

Summary
This is a story about a girl named Minli.  She lives in a place called The Valley of the Fruitless Mountain.  She sees how hard her parents work each and everyday and wishes they had more to show for it.  After purchasing a goldfish, Minli is inspired by all of her father's enchanting stories.  She decides to try and change the family's fortune.  She learns many valuable lessons along the way.

Follow-Up Questions:
 1.  Which story in the book did you like the most and why?
 2. If you could be any character in the book who would you choose and why?


Extension Activities:
Check out the book's trailer here:
http://www.gracelin.com/content.php?page=wherethemountainmeetsthemoon
Check out the activity book and board game here:
http://www.gracelin.com/content.php?page=wherethemountainmeetsthemoon&display=activities

Sunshine State Books

I am so excited to bring you this year's Sunshine State Young Reader's Award Winning books.  The List is as follows:
The 100-Year-Old Secret
The Magic Half
NERDS: National Espionage, Rescue and Defense Society
Extra Credit
Out of my Mind
Umbrella Summer
The Secret of Zoom
Dying to Meet You
Flight of the Phoenix
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon
Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things
How Oliver Olson Changed the World
Captain Nobody
Dragon's Egg
Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally)

Make sure after you read each book you come and post a comment!  I cannot wait to hear what you think of each book! I have also added some fun activities that go along with each book.  Enjoy!