elementary school | Page 2 of 7

Molly and the Machine, mglit that works well for ages 8 and (way) up

Mglit does not have to be based in the 80s to be entertaining. I say that because it seems that a couple of the books that we’ve read recently have had ties to that fabulous decade. Certainly, a major reason for that is the absence of screens. There’s no device that kids have to occupy them, solve their problems, do their research or look at pictures of giant robot footprints. That’s what Molly from Molly and the Machine might’ve done when she first started her adventures. It’s an mglit book that takes off its shoes and wades knee-deep in the river of fun reading. This is also an example of mglit that skews younger, allowing ages eight and up the chance to enjoy the adventure.

Molly and the Machine is a true mglit book that those mid-elementary readers are able to read, yet hold interest for middle school students also.

A book that’s friends with Spy SChool

I’m a Neutrino, STEM-based, illustrated wonderment for ages 4-8

Assuming that an illustrated book is fact-based, and not some interpretive trip about what a cloud looks like, adults shouldn’t need to be told what it’s about, should they? Ah, dear reader, these are times when board books can be about quantum physics and illustrated books can tell true tales about things that you never learned about in school. So, no, sometimes adults will read an illustrated book and still have no idea as to how to describe, talk about or understand what they just read, but that’s ok. In the end, we all want this generation to be smarter and better than us, don’t we? To that end, I’m a Neutrino, Tiny Particles in a Big Universe is a beautifully illustrated book about a tiny thing that you’ll never see, yet there are billions of them zipping around us at any moment.

I’m a Neutrino is an illustrated book that’s probably smarter than you, but that’s ok. Kids will like it, think about the possibilities and use that seed to better us all.

Fear not the illustrated books that you need help understanding

Wally the World’s Greatest Piano-Playing Wombat, a read along with wit

Once when I was teaching fifth grade I mentioned to some of the students that they weren’t the best and that there would always be somebody better. This elicited a wave of sincere shock and disbelief from them. What about this, what about that were all questions that quickly followed their gape-mouthed expression. These kids needed to read a book akin to Wally the World’s Greatest Piano-Playing Wombat. It holds the title of being the longest-titled book that we’ve read in recent memory. It’s a title so long we couldn’t add any words to our review title, lest it not be accepted by search engines. , as well as being one that elementary kids will love to hear, but also one that readers, won’t mind reading.

Wally the World’s Greatest Piano-Playing Wombat is an illustrated book that says lots about children’s confidence and teamwork, without saying a lot.

Wombat resistance is futile

The Extincts, Quest for the Unicorn Horn, graphic novel go-to for 8 and up

When I saw the cover to The Extincts, Question For The Unicorn Horn it was an immediate connection to The O.W.C.A. Files. For a period in our life, when our kids were older than five and younger than 11, we saw Phineas and Ferb at least once a day. Thus, we’ve seen The O.W.C.A. Files, which was a stand-alone episode that aired after that series finale. In The Extincts, Quest for the Unicorn Horn, we see a cat, bird, frog, and wooly mammoth-looking creature all wearing spy gear and running towards the reader. It’s a graphic novel by New York Times Bestselling Illustrator Scott Magoon that does much the same in that it jumps into your hands like a kitten that wants its belly rubbed. And I say that in the best of all ways possible because I love it when a cat or kitten jumps near my hand and wants to be scratched.

The Extincts, Quest For The Unicorn Horn perfectly melds action, humor, STEM and more puns, into a graphic novel for ages 8 and up.

Start the school year off with your favorite new graphic novel

My Parents Won’t Stop Talking! will be on your forever bookshelf

The cover of this book is annoying, and that is the point. My Parents Won’t Stop Talking! Is an illustrated book that channels the impatience, imagination, panicked exaggeration, and manic mood swings that kids can have like few books before it. When you read it you’ll remember when you were a kid and your parents would not stop talking. The family was out for a walk, they’d see somehow they know and talk for what seemed like hours. My Parents Won’t Stop Talking! is from the viewpoint of a possibly impatient child as that exact thing happens.

My Parents Won’t Stop Talking! is the perfect intersection of art and story in a picture book about patience, perception, and creativity.

Embrace the choas and go down the rabbit hole

The Sweetest Scoop, a fun picture book on ice cream, ethics and persistence

The other day I heard on the radio that Touch of Grey was released on this date in 1987. They then went on to chat about Jerry Garcia and I immediately regretted not seeing them on tour with my friend in 1988. However, now I’m all about reading, children’s literature, and introducing kids to great books, which bring us to The Sweetest Scoop, Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream Revolution. This is a picture book that examines the rise of the duo in the world of frozen treats and corporate responsibility. Don’t read too much into that last series of words because the book is entertaining, has a great narrative, and will make readers smile, in addition to giving them something to learn.

The Sweetest Scoop is a picture book on Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream, the flavors, their business, the ethics, and walking the walk.

At the intersection of life, business and ethics is this surprisingly fun picture book

Hornswoggled!, a super silly book that runs with wacky words

There’s a box social at the ole Smith place. There’s a difference between using outdated slang and using a large vocabulary. When I teach I often use a larger vocabulary because students need to practice their inference skills, of course, if there are any blank stares or questions I’ll re-state what I just said, and then say it in a way that they’ll understand. Horsnwoggled! is an illustrated book that looks at uncommon slang, peppered with a propensity of alliterations, and is set against a forest of anthropomorphic animals trying to solve a farcical whodunit.

Hornswoggled! Is a very fun book about silly sayings that will have early elementary ages alluding to much merriment.

Fun, nothing but fun, and that’s a great thing

Baseball Around the World, a vortex of America’s pastime, wherever you are

When is America’s pastime, not America’s pastime? Baseball Around the World, How the World Plays the Game addresses that question early on in the book. It also touches on the ‘boys of summer’ nickname, but thankfully skips any soft AOR songs that might reference that. Baseball Around the World is an intelligent illustrated book that looks at baseball, and how it’s done in different areas. It’s a great entry point for those who don’t know anything about the game but also provides dozens of instances where diehard fans will learn something too.

Baseball Around the World takes a look at the game through 13 countries, how it got there, famous players and more.

The diamond, boys of summer (but not just for boys), etc