Category: Language Arts

Exploring Asia Through Picturebooks: Food, Family, and Story

Watercress: Wang, Andrea, Chin, Jason: 9780823446247: Books - Amazon.ca

Recently, we visited China through Andrea Wang’s Watercress.  The children in the story learn to find a balance between their family’s traditions and the pressures of North American culture.  While on a road trip, her family stops to harvest watercress from the roadside.  She feels embarrassed as she wades through the ditch, collecting watercress with her parents and siblings.  At dinner that night, her mother shares stories from her own childhood, exposing her children to new aspects of their family’s story, their heritage, and their Chinese culture.

Many people find connection to their family and culture through the food that they eat.  Are there foods that you enjoy with your family?

Check out the video below to hear about Cecilia Chiang’s connection to family and food through story.

Picturebooks Around the World: Exploring Japan

We are continuing to ‘travel the world’ via our picture books! We learned about the invention of instant ramen, created by chef Momofuku Ando. He was inspired by the many people in Japan who experienced famine after World War II. Ando wanted to create a easy, inexpensive, and filling food that many people would enjoy:

Magic Ramen: The Story of Momofuku Ando: Wang, Andrea, Urbanowicz, Kana: 9781499807035: Books - Amazon.ca

Check out the video below about the history of this amazing invention!

Learning at Home: Writing Prompt

As we approach October, the month where we learn about all things superstitious, spooky, and scary, check out this video of a very ‘scary’ black cat. After watching the video, feel free to write about…

  1. What is something that terrifies you? Is this fear based on something (a memory, a movie, etc.)? What might happen if you had to face this fear?
  2. Why do you think black cats are considered ‘bad luck’? Many black cats are not adopted from shelters. What could we do to challenge this stereotype and help people love black cats instead?
  3. What was your favourite toy when you were younger? Do you still have it?

Happy Pizza Day!

Did you know today is National Pizza Day? We celebrated by learning about different pizzas around the world, and by designing our own bizarre, delightful, or gross pizza toppings!

We’ll be creating a piece of writing and an art project based around our unique pizza creations. Check out the video below and consider the following questions:

-What is your favourite pizza topping? What flavours do you like?

-Would you try a banana pizza? Why or why not?

-Do you think every country and culture has their own ‘kind’ of pizzza?

Our First Read Aloud Novel!

Ban This Book - Alan Gratz

This week, we began our novel study/read aloud for Alan Gratz’s Ban This Book. The novel follows a student named Amy Anne, who must find her voice in order to speak up against censorship. When Amy Anne’s favourite book is taken off her school library’s shelves, she takes matters into her own hands by creating a secret banned book library.

As we read this novel, we will discuss censorship and representation in children’s literature. Did you know that the Captain Underpants series is one of the most banned books across North America?

If you want to learn more about the importance of reading, you can watch this persuasive Ted-Talk speech from a 9-year-old student. Do you agree or disagree with their ideas?

All Around the World: Exploring Global Perspectives with Picture Books!

Hello, travelers! Over the next few weeks, we will be learning about different countries, continents, and cultures from through picture books written by a diverse group of authours (#ownvoices).

Today, we learned about the importance of educating people of all genders when we read The Library Bus by Bahram Rahman.

The Library Bus: Rahman, Bahram, Grimard, Gabrielle: 9781772781014: Books - Amazon.ca

The authour grew up in Afghanistan, where the book is set, and was inspired by the resilience of teachers and students. He is using the story to raise awareness about girls education, and to celebrate the beauty and landscape of his home country.

As we learn more about the world around us, it is important for us to consider:

-What do we know about this country already? How do we know/what are our sources?

-Is it possible to learn everything there is to know about a country or culture in one day? What should we do if we want to learn more?

-Can we make any connections to the characters in the book? How are our lives similar?

Check out the song we will be using to learn more about the vast world around us below:

Extreme Writing: Bonus Topic

Hello, writers!  If you want to practice your writing at home, please feel free to watch this video and then set your timer for 10 minutes.

  1. What is a food you can’t stand/hate? Describe it in detail.
  2. Write about a time you threw up. What happened?
  3. Write a story about a dog stealing food. What food does it steal? What happens?
  4. Have you ever been caught doing something you shouldn’t be? Explain.

Extreme Writing: April 14th

Hi, writers! Today, your Extreme Writing task is to watch the video above, set your timer for 10 minutes, and write as much as you can about the topic(s) below. Good luck!

  1. Have you ever been to a live musical performance (a concert, an orchestra, a recital)? What was it like? Have you ever performed or played a musical instrument in front of an audience? What was it like?
  2. What is a song, artist, or genre of music you love? Why do you love it? Would you recommend other people listen to it?
  3. Write a story that involves Music. Does the character write a new song? Does the character find a magical instrument? Does this song have an effect on people?
  4. You may notice the children in the video use sign language to communicate. What are some other ways we can communicate with each other? Why is communication important?

Extreme Writing: Tuesday, April 13th

Hello, writers! Today, you will have 10 minutes to write as much as you can about the topic(s) below. Please watch the video first, set your timer, and get writing!

  1. Would you ever try ‘spaghetti ice-cream’? Explain why or why not.
  2. What is the strangest, most interesting food you have ever eaten? Describe it.
  3. Write a story about a food that looks like a different food (ex: a person goes to eat a chocolate cake with vanilla icing, but really it is a meatloaf with mashed potatoes). What happens?
  4. If you were going to ‘invent’ a new food, what would it be? How would you invent it?

 

Good luck, writers!