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Presidents' Day
written by Anne Rockwell
HarperCollins Children's Books
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The children in Mrs. Madoff's class are back and ready to tell you what they know about some of our most important presidents. Charlie, Sarah, Nicholas, Jessica and the rest of the gang create costumes and sets, and then act out a play illuminating the lives of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt. After the curtain closes, the children return to the classroom to hold an election for class president. Budding citizens are sure to share Mrs. Madoff's students' enthusiasm for both American history and the democratic process. A must read for this history-making election year!

"Another successful title by this prolific mother/daughter team....The text is engaging and includes flashes of humor... Rockwell's clean, uncluttered illustrations are bright and bold and depict children engaged in the learning process and thoroughly enjoying it. An excellent introduction to the holiday for younger grades and a first purchase for most collections." - School Library Journal

 

Who Lives in an Alligator Hole?
written by Anne Rockwell
Harper Collins Children's Books - Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 2
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Alligators are feared animals whose ancestors date back 160 million years. Today the alligator has a key role in its ecosystem. Just like humans, alligators affect everything surrounding them. Despite this importance, the alligator was near extinction. Read and find out about how alligators are more than monster reptiles.

"Simplified yet not anthropomorphized, the clearly delineated paintings feature alligators and other animals as the focal points of well-composed scenes. Another well-designed, effective presentation from the Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science series." -Booklist

"A non-reading child would be able to get much of the text's information from Lizzy Rockwell's pictures alone. Her lifelike (and labeled) illustrations could be used to identify animals in the wild." - Kirkus Reviews

 
The Busy Body Book: A Kid's Guide to Fitness
Crown Books for Young Readers
An ALA Booklist Editor's Choice, Best Books for Youth Award 2004
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This action-packed guide to fitness presents a cast of characters engaged in a rich variety of activities meant to motivate and inspire young readers to be more physically active. Kid-friendly charts of the six body systems involved in movement illustrate clearly how the human body is built to move. With just the right combination of information and inspiration, Lizzy Rockwell celebrates the amazing human body and a life on the go.

"Rockwell's message is the joy of physical activity, but she also does a great job of connecting exercise with detailed information about the body and how it works. The design is clear and inviting... In and afterword to parents, Rockwell talks about the problem of overweight children and makes an enthusiastic pitch for healthy physical fun. Doing the activities on these pages is certainly a place to start." -(starred review) Booklist

 
Good Enough to Eat: A Kid's Guide to Food and
Nutrition
1999, HarperCollins 
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This book offers all the basics found in an adult nutrition guide in a format designed specifically for kids. Lizzy Rockwell has filled GOOD ENOUGH TO EAT with funny speech bubbles, detailed illustrations, and an engaging cast of children who explain everything from why your body needs protein to how long it takes to burn 100 calories. All this plus hands-on experiments and recipes make learning so much fun, kids can taste it!

"There's an amazing amount of information packed into this inviting, clear and valuable book." - School Library Journal

"Everyone will appreciate the clear, detailed illustrations about the various nutrients and the foods that contain them. ... a valuable classroom tool for teaching about health and nutrition." - Booklist


         
Hello Baby!
1999, Crown Books for Young Readers
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A little boy narrates the events of family life as he, his parents, and grandmother eagerly await the arrival of a new baby sister. At the doctor's office he listens to the baby's hearbeat and sees a chart on the wall which explains how the baby grows inside the womb. When baby Eliza arrives from the hospital, she eats, sleeps, bathes, burps, and cries, but soon feels right at home thanks to her caring parents and a loving and helpful big brother. Emphasising the positive and the real, this book celebrates the love, excitement, and wonder shared by a family during a special time.

"Readers who have already welcomed a new baby into their home will enjoy remebering the events portayed here while future siblings will gain insight into what's in store for them." - (starred review) School Library Journal

"Rockwell integrates a factual approach and a down-home quality. ... Emphasis and proprtion accurately reflect a happy child's point of view." - Publisher's Weekly


         
100 School Days
written by Anne Rockwell
2002, HarperCollins 
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The children in Mrs. Madoff's classroom start counting to 100 on the first day of school. They keep track of the days gone by by adding a penny to a jar every day. Every tenth day someone brings a collection from home to share and count. Evan brings ten balloons, Nicloas brings 60 baseball cards, and Charlie brings a puzzle with 90 pieces. On the 100th day everyone brings 100 of something good to eat, and they have a celebration.

"Rockwell's realistically rendered illustrations are drenched in color creating a warm and inviting classroom and familial spaces." - School Library Journal

 

Career Day
written by Anne Rockwell
2000, HarperCollins 
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In Career Day, special visitors come and tell the class about their jobs. Pablo's father drives the big bulldozer which is helping to build the new town library. Michiko's mother writes and illustrates picture books. Children will love to imagine the fascinationg careers which await them. In the meantime, they will take pride and pleasure in all the important work that they too do each day.

"Clearly laid out and cheerfully presented, this picture book strikes just the right tone for its intended audience." - Booklist

"A sparkling, family-centered, no-threat introduction to considerations of what might be fun for little ones to do when they grow up." - Kirkus Reviews


         
Father's Day
written by Anne Rockwell
2005, HarperCollins 
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In Father's Day the children in Mrs. Madoff's classroom create original illustrated books about their fathers and then surprise them with their creations at the Father's Day party at school. Sam's father is strong, Eveline's father sings her to sleep at night, and Nick and his dad like the same kind of books. This book shows a realistic variety of familiy configurations as it models the use of writing and drawing as vehicles for literacy and self expression.

"When the students in Mrs. Madoff's class are asked to write books about their dads, each child's work illustrates a distinctive aspect of the relationship with a pleasing variety of multicultural nuances... Don't limit this book to Father's Day - it should be enjoyed year round." - School Library Journal

 

Mother's Day
Written by Anne Rockwell
2004, HarperCollins 
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The students in Mrs. Madoof's classroom tell how they will each celebrate Mother's Day in their own special way. Eveline, her dad, and brother will make beignets and bring Mama breakfast in bed. Sarah, whose mom died when she was a baby, will take Grandma out for a special dinner. Jessica and her mom, will spend the day, "just the two of us" hiking and picnicking. In the classroom each child makes a tissue paper flower to give mom as a gift.

"The warm hues and smiles all around show the affection shared by these families. This Mother's Day delight is sure to be in high demand." - School Library Journal

"A mother-daughter team adds to a winning streak of classroom books." - Booklist

 

Thanksgiving Day
written by Anne Rockwell
1999, HarperCollins 
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For the Thanksgiving play, Charlie is the ship called the Mayflower, Sarah is a pilgrim, Eveline is Chief Massasoit. In Mrs. Madoff's classroom everyone is thankful for the special things that made the first feast and living in a new home possible. This companion to Show and Tell Day and Halloween Day clelbrates the spirit of friendship and giving that started with pilgrims and Wampanoag people on the first Thanksgiving Day.

"The Rockwells demystify a great American holiday... An agreeable, unbiased explanation of a cherished day." - Kirkus

"An excellent example of a holiday concept book for inquisitive young readers." - Publisher's Weekly

 
         
Valentine's Day
written by Anne Rockwell
2000, HarperCollins 
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The children in Mrs. Madoff's classroom are sending valentines to a special friend. Our narrator Sam tells how each child creates an original valentine using paper, glue, glitter, lace, stickers, and more. Then they take their big envelope with lots of stamps on it to the post office and send their valentines far away. Readers will enjoy solving the mystery of where the special friend has gone and whether or not she will remember them on Valentine's Day.

"Leave it to the Rockwell's to find a new story for a commonplace event: a story with heart." - Kirkus Reviews

 

Apples and Pumpkins
written by Anne Rockwell
1989, Simon and Schuster 
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A little girl and her parents go to the farm to pick apples and pumpkins. With pride and enthusiasim our young narrator describes the events of this favorite autumn ritual. At home they carve the pumpkin into a Jack-o-lantern. On Halloween night her mother gives away apples while she goes trick or treating on her street. A well oserved story about a famly enjoying the simple pleasure of being together.

"The combination of words and pictures is just right: the book tells of the happiness of a small adventure from the point of view of a very secure child." - Horn Book

 

A Nest Full of Eggs
written by Patricia Belz Jenkins
1995, Collins, Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science, Stage 1
A 1995 Best Children's Science Books, ALA editor's choice award
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This first look at robins follows a full year of growth and change: how the birds develop inside their egg during the spring, how they mature from chicks into fledglings in the summer, how they learn to fly in the fall, and how they leave for warmer climates in winter - only to return when spring comes around again.

"Cheerful pencil and watercolor illustrations are cler and informative." - Booklist
Mary Clare Likes to Share
written by Joy Hulme
2006 Random House, Step-into-Reading Series
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Mary Clare loves to share. If there's food around, Mary Clare fairly divides it up and shares it with her friends and family, no matter how many there are! This rhythmic, rhyming reader clearly demostrates the concept of fractions in a bouncy and sweet - and savory - way! Learn to read, do math, and how to be a good friend, all in one satisfying book.

   




Angelina of Italy
written by Maya Angelou 
2004 Random House
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ANGELINA LOVES PIZZA. So much so that when she hears that there is a Leaning Tower of Pisa, and mistakenly thinks it’s made of pizzas, she is so distressed that she must go see it for herself!