What's Up with This Chicken?

Title:  What's Up with This Chicken?

Author:  Jane Sutton
Illustrator:  Peter J. Welling
Publisher:  Pelican Publishing ©2015
ISBN:  978-1-4556-2085-2
Grade Level: K-5
Book Review:  Jane Sutton's books frequently appear in Literature Connects because she has a tremendous talent for taking real life experiences and creating delightful narratives that both inform and entertain. Jane definitely doesn't disappoint in her newest release, What's Up with this Chicken? It is a wonderful story filled with interesting information about chickens and is told in Sutton's signature style: believable characters, magnificent humor and plenty of word play. The book contains a powerful embedded message about how to resolve conflicts by changing your perspective. Trudy refuses to get off her eggs. Sylvia can't understand why. Under the tutelage of a wise grandmother, Sylvia comes to understand that Trudy is not difficult, she is really just broody. Don't miss out on this "egg-cellent" book. It is appropriate for students PreK-5 because it can be read and enjoyed on so many levels. 
Systems Thinking Connections
Habits:  Sylvia and her grandmother could easily become frustrated with Trudy and decide that she has outlived her usefulness as an egg-laying chicken; instead, they consider the issue fully (including doing some important research) and resist the urge to come to a quick conclusion. As a result, they recognize that there is a reason for Trudy's behavior, her desire to mother chicks is a fundamental structure of Trudy's natural make up. A deep but meaningful example of recognizing that a system's structure generates its behavior. They surface their assumption--Trudy is a broody hen--and then test their assumption by purchasing some fertilized eggs. For younger children simply recognizing how changing their perspective helps Sylvia and her grandmother increase their understanding is a very worthwhile connection.
Tools:  Conflict is central to any good story. The conflict resolution is particularly strong in What's Up with This Chicken? So much so, that children could use this balancing loop to explain how conflict in this story is resolved.

Here is one way to "tell the story of this loop." As the conflict increases, Trudy refuses to get off her eggs) Sylvia works to resolve the situation. As Sylvia's effort at resolving the conflict increases, the conflict decreases because Trudy is happily sitting on her eggs and caring for her chickens. Sylvia's need for resolution strategies goes down because she is focused on Trudy's new role as a mother hen. Over time the chickens grow up and Trudy needs more fertilized eggs. In addition, Sylvia learns that one of Trudy's offspring is also a brooding hen. As Judy now refuses to allow Sylvia to collect the eggs (conflict), Sylvia will have to work to resolve the conflict (providing Judy fertilized eggs) so the conflict decreases. Using a causal loop to focus on the conflict helps students understand more deeply conflict in a story. Students could also use this loop to tell their own story about a conflict that resolves but over time manifests itself in a slightly different way.

The ladder of inference would also be a good tool to use with What's Up with This Chicken?. When faced with a conflict with Trudy, Sylvia and her grandmother add information to their pool of experience by reading in a book about chickens. They use that information to make a more informed decision in caring for Trudy and as a result have a happier chicken. Students could go up and down the ladder from both the perspective of Sylvia and Trudy.

Lifetimes

Title:  Lifetimes

Author:  David L. Rice
Illustrator:  Michael S. Maydak
Publisher:  Dawn Publications ©1997
ISBN:  1-883220-59-9
Grade Level: 2 and up

Book Review:  From the one day lifetime of a mayfly to the 2,000 year lifetime of a giant sequoia, Lifetimes gives the reader the information to reflect on how similar and how different living creatures really are.  Lifetimes is one of those picture books that is written on so many levels: the colorful illustrations and introductory text can be enjoyed by a young child while the informational text is instructive for adults. Lifetimes has a variety of text features repeated consistently throughout the book making it very easy to access information.   Each page begins with the same sentence pattern: "A lifetime for a (species) is about (length of time)."  Then an expository paragraph gives information about the species featured on the page.  The entry concludes with a bolded statement that makes us think.  For example, "Butterflies show us it's possible to do important work and have fun at the same time."  Then at the very bottom of the page three little monkeys offer us ideas to "tell about," "think about" or "look up." The book is replete for ways to teach nonfiction text and science content about plants and animals.

Systems Thinking Connections:
Habits:  Observes how elements within systems change over time, generating patterns and trends.  Makes meaningful connections within and between systems.  Considers an issue fully and resists the urge to come to a quick conclusion. This book is clearly about time and trends that occur with in the lifetimes of many varied organisms. I identify three separate habits but list them all together because an integrated free flowing discussion where students are able to make their own connections and generate new understandings about these (and any other habits of a systems thinker) while making meaning of the text would be a tremendously rich discussion.
Tools:  Behavior Over Time Graphs seem an obvious choice for this text; however, because the length of time is different for each species careful attention will need to be given to construction of the graph.  Each species could easily constitute its own graph with the x-axis showing the lifespan of that creature and the y-axis representing stages of development.  Students could then compare.  For instance, how long is you childhood, when your life expectancy is a single day.
Ladder of Inference.  Questions on the Non-Fiction Ladder of Inference could all be answered in relation to this text.  The consistently patterned text lends itself well to a discussion of structure.  The thought provoking insights and basic questions of how each species is particularly suited to its particular lifespan would lead to a rich conversation about beliefs.

Baby Baby Blah Blah Blah

Title: Baby Baby Blah Blah Blah!

Author:  Jonathan Shipton
Illustrator:  Francessca Chessa
Publisher:  Holiday House ©2009
ISBN:  978-0-8234-2213-5
Grade Level:  PreK

Book Review:   Like many young children, Emily is faced with the news that her parents are going to have another baby.  Emily loves to make lists, so she makes lists about the new baby, both the good and the bad.  Her conclusion, once the baby comes it will be all about the baby and life will no longer be all about her.  Emily is eventually convinced of the joy this baby will bring.  That is until the author suggests that one more surprise is still in store. As this book is available in Turkish, I dedicate this entry to the enthusiastic teachers with whom I had the privilege of working this summer.

Systems Thinking Connections:
Habits:  Considers an issue fully and resists to the urge to come to a quick conclusion.  
Emily believes that once the baby comes it will only be about the baby, but through thoughtful, loving explanations and assurances from her mom and dad, Emily reconsiders and adjusts her assumptions. A very similar discussion could focus on the habit, Considers how mental models affect current reality and the future.  Emily and her parents are anticipating the same event, but each has a very different point of view about what the future holds.
Tools: Behavior Over Time Graphs (BOTG). This book includes specific language that makes it ideal for  young children to craft their own BOTG.  For example, "The baby bump grew.  And a little worry started to grow in Emily's mind.  The bigger the baby bump grew, the bigger Emily's worry grew."  This language from the text supports children's understanding of a simple dynamic:  Change over time.  Children familiar with the BOTG will be able to recognize this language and use it as inspiration for their own BOTG. Under the guidance of a sytems-focused teacher, along with some prior knowledge, children could graph a number of variables related to the pending birth of a new sibling. The actual timeline of the printed story is quite short; however, dad describes his sense of happiness over a much longer period of time.  Children could create a BOTG that spans the time before Emily was born and projects to the arrival of the new baby.  These graphs could support a genuine conversation about the story and an opportunity for children to share and graph their own experiences with the birth of younger siblings. 
This book would also be a good one for using the ladder of inference.  While the text is quite simple, it abounds with opportunities for inference.  For example, what is Emily paying attention to that leads to her beliefs about her new sibling. What are some actions she might take based on her beliefs at different moments in the story?  How do her beliefs change?  What causes that change?

Library Lily

Title:  Library Lily

Author:  Gillian Shields
Illustrator:  Francesca Chessa
Publisher:  Eerdmans Books for Young Readers ©2011
ISBN:  978-0-8028-5401-8
Grade Level:  PreK-2

Book Review:  Lily loves to read.  She reads all the time. She reads so much that she is sometimes unaware of the world around her.  Milly hates to read. That is until Lily introduces her to the joy and adventures that she can have when she reads. Library Lily is a heartwarming story about both the joys and influences of reading.  As this book is available in Turkish, I dedicate this entry to the enthusiastic teachers with whom I had the privilege of working this summer.
Systems Thinking Connections:  
Habits:  Changes perspectives to increase understanding. The story is a classic example of this habit for both Lily and Milly.  It clearly illustrates that both characters are better off when they incorporate the perspective of the other into their own lives.
Tools:  Given the straightforward presentation of Lily's experiences reading books and Milly's constant need for adventure, the book provides a great means of introducing the concept of accumulation to young children.  The number of books that Lily reads is increasing at a steady and constant rate.  Likewise, it can be inferred that Milly's experiences accumulate at a similar rate.  Once the characters meet they both experience an accelerated accumulation of books read and adventures experienced. The concept of accumulation is at the heart of this story and re-readings could support children in acquiring a deeper understanding of the concept of accumulation.
The book would also be an excellent basis for a primary lesson the ladder of inference.  Students could compare Lily's ladder about her attitudes toward reading with Milly's ladder.  Milly changes her mind about reading based on the influence of her new friend, Lily. Students could offer lots of evidence about what Lily and Milly believe, what they are paying attention to and ultimately what they choose to do based on their beliefs.

Weslandia

Title:  Weslandia
Author:  Paul Fleischman
Illustrator:  Kevin Hawkes
Publisher: Candlewick Press, ©1999
ISBN:  978-0-7636-0006-8
Grade Level:  K-5

Book Review:  With Camp Snowball 2015 just a few days away and this text having served as the primary text for Camp Sunshine 2012, it seems fitting to write an entry for Weslandia.  Wesley is a misunderstood young boys whose passion for learning facts and whose unwillingness to go along with fashion fads and popular foods make him something of an outcast.  That is until the summer he creates a civilization complete with its own food, sports, alphabet, and number system. The story includes a sustainability theme as Wesley seeks to use each element of the crop he creates:  juicing the fruit,  roasting the roots, weaving the stalk and seasoning with the leaves.  Replete with dynamics--the sophistication of a civilization, Wesley's understanding of himself, his growing number of friends, and Wesley's happiness--this story will result in rich dialogue among students and provide numerous opportunities to apply systems thinking tools and concepts.
Systems Thinking Connections
Habits:  Considers as issue fully and resists the urge to come to a quick conclusion.
This is not an easy habit to see in practice.  In fact, it is far easier to find occasions when a quick decision leads to an unintended consequence, but Wesley, the story's main character is a good example of practicing this habit.
Tools:  As mentioned in the review,  there are many dynamics in this story, which lend themselves well to behavior over time graphs.  These dynamics range from very simple things like the character's happiness, suitable for younger children, to the sophistication of the civilization, a topic that would push the thinking of older students and send them back to the text to look for evidence.
To further develop the idea of what constitutes a civilization and what contributes to its development students could use a stock flow diagram. The story focuses on some very specific elements of a civilization:  language, numeration, food, shelter and clothing.  The discussion could include whether or not this is a stock without an outflow.  Once an element of a civilization has been created, can it ever be completely "uncreated?"  Or do things like innovation, disregard of tradition, power of another civilization actually erode the quality of a civilization?   All of these ideas could be linked in an interdisciplinary unit on ancient civilizations.   Learners could seek evidence in the civilizations being studied to find additional support to answer questions like what contributes to the development or a civilization or what causes a civilization to diminish?  

"Books that Stretch Children's Thinking," NAEYC

This blog has a very predictable format; however, this morning I am deviating from that format to call attention to a list of books developed by NAEYC that promote children's thinking.  Systems thinking instruction, after all, is about giving learners as many tools as possible to think more deeply and communicate more clearly.

The link below connects to NAEYC's list, which features the following titles:   Round Like a Ball, Not a Box, Not a Stick, Just How Long Can a String Be? and Duck! Rabbit!  You can expect to see these books featured in future posts on this blog, but in the meantime check out these suggestions by NAEYC and begin to make your own thinking connections.

http://families.naeyc.org/learning-and-development/reading-writing/books-stretch-childrens-thinking

When the Wind Blows

Title:  When the Wind Blows

Author:  Linda Booth Sweeney
Illustrator:  Jana Christy
Publisher:  G.P. Putnam's Sons ©2015
ISBN:  978-0-399-16015-8
Grade Level:  PreK-2
Book Review:  What happens when the wind blows?  In this story when the wind blows, something magical happens.  Through a series of exquisitely articulated two-word sentences readers experience wind beginning with a gentle breeze, escalating into a full blown thunder storm and then laying as evening comes. Beautiful in its simplicity the book illustrates the effect of wind and it challenges the reader to examine his feelings about this often maligned element of weather.  The story offers a wonderful opportunity for readers to experience descriptive writing, not through flowery modifiers, but rather a series of carefully chosen sensory images.  When the Wind Blows is a masterful combination of elegance and simplicity, power and whimsy--not unlike the wind.
Systems Thinking Connections:

Habits:  Recognizes that a systems structure generates its behavior. Each phrase in the story illustrates the effect of wind on a different part of the system.  Paired with this Habit of a Systems Thinker card (left), teachers and students can create a wealth of connections with this habit.  
Considers how mental models affect current reality and the future.  Beliefs and attitudes affect our perspectives.  Wind is often labeled as an unpopular weather element.  The characters in this story have a very different view, embracing the change in weather and making the very best of the blustery conditions.  Their response to a windy day would be a great conversation starter connected to the reader's thoughts and feelings about the wind.
Tools:  The book illustrates with profound simplicity the dynamic intensity of the wind.  Even very young children could use a behavior over time graph to show the change in the wind.  Great vocabulary could be developed when building the y-axis:  breezy, gusty, blustery, and squally to name a few.

Bonus a parents guide is available for this book can be accessed at http://www.lindaboothsweeney.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/When-The-Wind-Blows-Guide.pdf