Literature Annotations (School Library Collection)

A Second is a Hiccup

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A Second Is A Hiccup, by Hazel Hutchins, explains the concept of time to young children with analogies that they can easily understand. A question begins each section (e.g. “How long is a week?”) for a second, a minute, an hour, a day, a week, a month, and a year. I found that the book loses its rhythm after explaining how long a second and minute were, making this book difficult to read aloud on a cold run.

This is a good book to have on hand if asked “how long is a week?” Otherwise, I would stick to just reading the first few pages, which hold together much better than the loose structure of the rest. Watercolor illustrations are nice and show diverse families (diverse in age and ethnicity), all playing together as well as separately in their own homes.

Displaying Information (series)

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The Displaying Information series includes four titles:

  • Diagrams, Diagrams, Diagrams! 978-1476533377
  • Graphs, Graphs, Graphs! 978-1-4675-0259-5
  • Maps, Maps, Maps! 978-1-4675-0262-5
  • Timelines, Timelines, Timelines! 978-1-4675-0261-8

All books are written by Kelly Boswell, published in 2013, for grades K-2, by A+ Books (Capstone Press).

Recommender Valerie Byrd Fort is a teacher librarian in an elementary school in South Carolina. She writes that the series explains “different ways to display information in data,” with examples that are kid-friendly. She adds that the series provides ideas for teachers to use the books to support Common Core State Standards. Listed as “recommended” in Library Media Connection, August/September 2014.

Note: Library Media Connection’s book reviews always include books in the Mathematics section; the LMC scale goes up to “highly recommended” and includes “not recommended.”

Let’s Make Graphs (series)

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The Let’s Make Graphs series includes:

  • Bar Graphs 978-1-62431-390-5
  • Graphing Story Problems 978-1-62431-391-2
  • Line Graphs 978-1-62431-392-9
  • Pictographs 978-1-62431-393-6
  • Pie Graphs 978-1-62431-394-3
  • Tally Charts 978-1-62431-395-0

All are published in 2014, for grades K-3, by Cherry Lake Publishing. Available in e-book format also.

Recommender Lynn Van Auken is a teacher librarian from a Massachusetts school. She writes that the series is “thorough and engaging”, entices readers to try making graphs, and clarifies key words. She notes that the series is aligned with the Common Core State Standards. Listed as “recommended” in Library Media Connection, May/June 2014.

Note: Library Media Connection’s book reviews always include books in the Mathematics section; the LMC scale goes up to “highly recommended” and includes “not recommended.”