Daisy Dreamer and the Totally True Imaginary Friend


Holly Anna - 2017
    People call me the girl with her head in the clouds because I daydream some of the time…or maybe most the time. But isn’t that what makes life so…well, dreamy? Together with my best friends, Lily and Jasmine, we love to write stories, draw, and invent games. Then one day, I drew a doodle in my special journal and you know what? That picture moved! All. On. Its. Own. And that is how I met Posey, my totally true imaginary friend. Now he’s got a story to tell. And guess who’s going to tell it. Yep, that’s right. Me, Daisy Dreamer, the girl with her head in the clouds. With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Daisy Dreamer chapter books are perfect for emerging readers.

Jaime Bunda, Secret Agent: Story of Various Mysteries


Pepetela - 2001
    Through misstep and mistake, Bunda finds himself embroiled in crimes of passion and international criminal networks as he stumbles through contemporary Angola. This mystery pokes fun at the James Bond genre while offering humorous insight into contemporary Angolan culture.

The Battle Begins


Devon Hughes - 2015
    That is, until the day that he's captured and taken to a dark laboratory full of terrifying creatures. They're called Unnaturals, and they're made to fight.Soon Castor is transformed from a mutt into a powerful beast with huge eagle wings—and he's thrust into the fighting ring. He knows he'll need all of his courage to survive. But it will take unexpected human and animal allies and something even more than courage for him to save the Unnaturals....

The House on Stone's Throw Island


Dan Poblocki - 2015
    Then an immense storm blows in, and the wedding party is left stranded with no way to contact the mainland... and no idea that they have been targeted for revenge by the undead. The only clues to the danger they're in are a scrap of an old Nazi uniform -- and an unfamiliar voice, crying out for help in German...Josie and Eli soon realize there's much more to worry about than guest lists and flowers. It's up to them to uncover the chilling history of Stone's Throw Island and put its ghosts to rest -- or this dream wedding will become an absolute nightmare.

Essential Linguistics: What You Need to Know to Teach Reading, ESL, Spelling, Phonics, and Grammar


David E. Freeman - 2003
    Linguistics is much more than a study reserved for academicians. Linguistics has real-life applications to effective teachingnow more than ever. With the increased emphasis on phonemic awareness and phonics in the teaching of reading, teachers need to understand how language works. When teachers are familiar with basic linguistic concepts, they are better prepared to make decisions about how to teach reading, spelling, phonics, and grammar to all students, including English language learners. In this unique linguistics course-in-a-book, David and Yvonne Freeman explain essential linguistic concepts in a thorough, but manageable manner and show the connections between linguistic theory and classroom practice. They demonstrate that the greater a teacher's understanding of basic language structures and processes, the easier it is to make good decisions on tough topics like phonics, spelling, and grammar. They present: the basic concepts of linguistics in everyday language examples and activities that apply linguistics concepts to teaching reading, spelling, phonics, and grammar to all students, including English language learnersend-of-chapter applications that link linguistic theory and classroom practice.Understand more about how language works, then use that knowledge to help your students learn. Turn prescriptive approaches into linguistic investigations. Get yourself and your students hooked on linguistics.

Little Bear's Little Boat


Eve Bunting - 2003
    He rows it around Huckleberry Lake, fishing and dreaming. But then Little Bear begins to grow and grow, until one day he doesn’t fit in his little boat anymore! All children who experience growing pains will appreciate Little Bear’s predicament. And they will smile with satisfaction as the solution to his problem unfolds in simple, lyrical words and charming pictures from two award-winning picture-book creators.

Timeless Simplicity: Creative Living in a Consumer Society


John Lane - 2000
    It is a book about the advantages of living a less cluttered, less stressful life than that which has become the norm in the overcrowded and manic-paced consuming nations. It is a book about having less and enjoying more, enjoying time to do the work you love, enjoying time to spend with your family, enjoying time to pursue creative projects, enjoying time for good eating, enjoying time just to be.

Why School?


Mike Rose - 2009
    What does it mean to be educated? What is intelligence? How should we think about intelligence, education, and opportunity in an open society? Why is a commitment to the public sphere central to the way we answer these questions?Drawing on forty years of teaching and research, from primary school to adult education and workplace training, award-winning author Mike Rose reflects on these and other questions related to public schooling in America. He answers them in beautifully written chapters that are both rich in detail—a first-grader conducting a science experiment, a carpenter solving a problem on the fly, a college student’s encounter with a story by James Joyce—and informed by a deep and powerful understanding of history, the psychology of learning, and the politics of education.Rose decries the narrow focus of educational policy in our time: the drumbeat of test scores and economic competition. Why School? will be embraced by parents and teachers alike, and readers everywhere will be captivated by Rose’s eloquent call for a bountiful democratic vision of the purpose of schooling.

Teaching Literature


Elaine Showalter - 2002
    Teaching Literature is an inspirational guidebook for all teachers of English and American literature in higher education.- Written by leading academic, prolific author and cultural journalist, Elaine Showalter- Original and provocative reflections on teaching literature in higher education- Encourages teachers to make their classroom practice intellectually exciting- Wide-ranging: covers the practical, theoretical, and methodological aspects of teaching literature- Highly practical - employs real examples from real classes and careers throughoutDraws on 40 years of international teaching experience

The Emerald Tablet


Dan Jolley - 2016
    Four friends. One city—and its sinister shadow. The action-packed adventure of Percy Jackson meets the elemental magic of Avatar: The Last Airbender in this epic new middle grade series.I name myself water.I name myself air.I name myself earth.I name myself fire.When Gabe and his friends find a strange old map in his uncle’s office, follow it to a crumbling secret chamber beneath San Francisco, and perform a ritual that promises to bind them together forever, they think they’re just having one last adventure before Gabe moves away. It’s not like they believe the “power of the elements” is real.But then things begin to happen that none of them can explain. In their search for answers, the four friends draw the attention of a sinister cult that’s plotting to merge our world with a twisted parallel realm...and discover that they are all that stands between San Francisco and utter destruction.Full of awesome elemental powers, nightmarish creatures, and nonstop adventure, this cinematic and fast-paced series opener is the perfect next read for kids who have devoured books by Rick Riordan, Ridley Pearson, and Brandon Mull.

Lighthouse Christmas


Toni Buzzeo - 2011
    After all, would Santa even know how to find them in this faraway spot? But when Christmas Eve is ushered in on a wild storm and Papa risks his life to rescue a drowning man, the children realize that the most important thing about the holiday is being together.As in all great Christmas stories, a happy ending is in store, and Santa finds them after all. Cozy and nostalgic, this story was inspired by the Flying Santa program, a New England tradition since 1929. It's the perfect book for a family to read together in front of the fire on Christmas morning.

Heidi Heckelbeck Has a Secret


Wanda Coven - 2012
    But Heidi is not happy about attending Brewster Elementary, especially not when meanie Melanie Maplethorpe turns Heidi’s first day of school into a nightmare by announcing that Heidi is smelly and ruining her art project. Heidi feels horrible and never wants to go back to school—but while sulking in her room at home, she remembers her special medallion and Book of Spells. With a little bit of carefully concealed magic, Heidi might be able to give Melanie a taste of her own medicine….

In a Blue Room


Jim Averbeck - 2008
    Mama brings flowers, tea, a quilt, even lullaby bells to help her sleep. But none of these things are blue, and Alice can sleep only in a blue room. Yet when the light goes out, a bit of magic is stirred up. Pale blue moonlight swirls into her bedroom window. Then the night swirls out, around the moon and into the universe, leaving Alice fast alseep in a most celestial blue room.

The Penderwicks Collection: The Penderwicks, The Penderwicks on Gardam Street, The Penderwick at Point Mouette


Jeanne Birdsall - 2011
    This collection includes The Penderwicks, The Penderwicks on Gardam Street and The Penderwicks at Point Mouette.

The Golly Sisters Go West


Betsy Byars - 1986
    They’ve got new dresses and the best show on either side of the Mississippi. But can they keep their act together long enough to get this show on the road? Find out in this hilarious tale of the old west!The Golly Sisters Go West by Newbery medalist Betsy Byars is a Level Three I Can Read, which means it contains a complex plot and challenging vocabulary—just right for the newly independent reader.As Carol Hurst's BooksInTheClassroom site comments: "Byars has the ability to construct believable, often loveable characters who face some of life's greatest hurdles. Her humor is visible everywhere as is her empathy with the difficulties faced by many children. She writes for many ages and her easy to read books are wonderful fare."