Professional Reading

This title presents encouragement and incentives for implementing podcasting within the school curriculum. Part I explains the basics of Web 2.0 and dispels popular myths. A review of necessary equipment and software; how to develop effective vocal techniques; and the mechanics of recording, publishing, and distributing a podcast make launching a project appealing. Numerous ideas for utilizing this technology are given in the second section. One chapter gives an alphabetical listing of more than 125 lesson ideas, covering suggestions for utilization in nearly all classroom subjects, which might spark further creative thought. These lesson ideas include interviews, journaling, audio tours, radio plays, news broadcasts, PE instructions, raps, poetry readings, etc. The remaining sections look more closely at some of these ideas, such as advertising, mnemonic raps for learning, radio broadcasts, and oral-history projects. Evaluation rubrics, planning sheets, and graphics aid in successfully producing a podcast. An extensive glossary, bibliography, and index complete this useful resource.—Susan Shaver, Hemingford Public Schools, NE

This resource involves students in reading and sharing poetry, and performing simple plays adapted from folktales. The content is simple and the short sentences make it user-friendly and age appropriate. Struggling readers will be motivated by these materials, and the practice of reading with a group and sharing text will help students increase reading fluency rates. The stories revolve around familiar rhymes such as "Mary Had a Little Lamb, "On Top of Spaghetti," "The Bear Went over the Mountain," and many more; each unit includes presentation suggestions, props, delivery, and Web sites where you can download the musical version of each title. Some titles include movement and dance; these pieces include staging plans that clarify how students will physically move throughout the scripts. A useful volume for introducing readers theatre to elementary schools.—Kathleen Pavin, Purdy Elementary School Library, Fort Atkinson, WI

Polette offers more than 140 kinesthetic activities in science, mathematics, geography, and U. S. history content areas for students in grades 4–8. The suggestions include games, stories and storytelling, and plays designed for group participation. The activities encourage students to use written and oral communication skills through teamwork with their classmates, but some of the directions are vague. For Here Is My… and Busy Scientist, students are instructed to use large trash bags to create objects, but it is not clear how they're supposed to do this. Although the brief introduction offers the exercises as pre- reading and writing activities, many require research on the part of students prior to engaging in them. The title implies the use of nonfiction, but many fiction titles are included. A section called Good Reading lists additional titles, but some are dated, such as Elizabeth Rathbun's Exploring Your Solar System (1989) and Franklyn Branley's Planets in Our Solar System (1998). Also, the lists of additional titles in the science, math, geography, and history sections don't include authors, publishers, or publications dates. Stick with more carefully constructed texts—Rebecca Sheridan, Easttown Library & Information Center, Berwyn, PA

This is a fresh and appealing approach to teaching upper elementary and middle school students how to present their research creatively and without plagiarism. Polette's premise is that by changing the way students present their work, they are forced to think about the information they find and assess it critically and independently rather than just regurgitating it. The author uses Ripley's-style "Believe-it-or-not" fact tidbits as a hook and offers unusual and creative presentation formats, such as cinquains, acrostic poems, quizzes, and graphic organizers. Each section is organized around a theme: food, transportation, medicine, crime, presidents, unusual people in history, unexplained events, etc. Each thematic part concludes with a list of literature resources. The bizarre facts that Polette has discovered, and the interesting options she offers for presenting research, are guaranteed to make the SLMS the favorite teacher in the school. Elementary librarians may also want to add her Research without Copying for Primary Grades (Pieces of Learning, Jan. 2008) to their professional collections.—Jane Barrer, PS/IS 111 Adolph S. Ochs School, New York City

This book is designed as a resource on literature about different cultures, written by members of those cultures. A full quarter of the 101 titles represent the Mexican-American experience, with another 10 percent focusing on Native Americans. African Americans and Japanese Americans get less coverage. The most frustrating aspect of this guide is the lackluster writing. The entries are poorly written, dry summaries, with none of the characteristics of a good booktalk. Professionals who use this book for the suggested titles would be best served by writing their own presentations for them. Librarians seeking better resources for booktalks should consult Jennifer Bromann's and Nancy Keane's books on the subject. Multicultural literature is explored in Venture into Cultures: A Resource Book of Multicultural Materials and Programs (ALA, 2001) and Martha Smith and Liz Knowles's Understanding Diversity through Novels and Picture Books (Libraries Unlimited, 2007).—Melissa Rabey, Frederick County Public Libraries, Frederick, MD

This guide is arranged by genre and then by type of material (e.g., picture books, novels); the author, title, and subject indexes make it easy to use. There is an exceptionally useful chapter on graphic novels and their importance. The book will be helpful for those with a very limited knowledge of children's books, but it will have little relevance for those who are familiar with the literature. Many of the authors, great as they may be, are mentioned time and time again, making the lists redundant. There are also very few lesser-known titles or "sleepers" included. Kathleen Odean's Great Books for Boys (Peter Smith, 2000) has more variety, though it hasn't been updated recently. Overall, Best Books for Boys might be a useful addition for new teachers or librarians who need an introduction to books that boys might enjoy.—Jessica Kerlin, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Parma, OH