MrsMitch's Blog

Informational Book Guidelines

As you review a book you have read, be sure to include the following in your blog post:

• Title, author, genre, publisher, and date of publication of the book.  Don’t forget to underline the title and capitalize the author’s name.  The publication date will be a year.
• Summarize the book.  This does not need to be really long, but you need to explain the main points of the book. 
• Name three interesting things that you learned from the book.
• Your opinion of the book.  Did you like it?  Would you recommend it to others?  On a scale from 1-10, how would you rate it?  What type of person do you think would enjoy this book? 
• Proofread your post.  In addition to running a spell check, be sure to carefully read over what you have written.

Paragraph #1:  first two bullets

Paragraph #2: third bullet

Paragraph #3: last bullet

PROOFREAD!        PROOFREAD!        PROOFREAD!        PROOFREAD!

Here is an example of what a review of Guinea Pigs as Pets might look like:

Guinea Pigs as Pets: How to Raise Healthy, Happy Guinea Pigs is an informational book written by D.P. Brown.  It was published by Learning Life Books in 2010.  This book explains the “do’s” and “don’ts” of taking care of guinea pigs.  It explains the history of the guinea pig, how to feed them, exercise them, clean them, and how to keep their cages clean.  It also describes the many different breeds of guinea pigs, such as the American, Peruvian, Silkie, Crested and Abyssinian guinea pigs.

I learned some very interesting facts about guinea pigs that I did not know before I read this book. First, did you know that their scientific name is Cavia Porchellus?  People also refer to them as Cavies.  Also, humans and guinea pigs are the only two creatures that have to get their Vitamin C from food!  They cannot produce it on their own.  Finally, archaeologists found the remains of a giant rodent in Venezuela.  It was nine feet long, four feet tall, and weighed 1,500 pounds!  This was the ancestor of guinea pigs and it had eight inches of front teeth!

On a scale from 1-10, I would give this book a 10.  This book was easy to understand and provided a great deal of useful information for anyone who owns guinea pigs.  If you are trying to decide whether or not to get guinea pigs, this is the book for you!

Poetry Review

Include the following elements in your poetry review:

Title of Poem

Poet

(Copy the poem.)

Which book did your poem come from?

Why did you choose this poem?

Does it rhyme or is it free verse?

Why do you think the poet wrote this poem?

Is this a poem you could recite to the class?  Why or why not?

Example

There’s a New Cook in the Cafeteria

by Bruce Lansky

Good morning, staff and students.
We have a brand new cook.
And that’s why our lunch menu
will have a brand new look.

To make a good impression,
our cook’s prepared a treat:
your choice of snapping turtle soup
or deep-fried monkey meat.

If you’re a vegetarian,
we have good news today:
she’s serving pickled cauliflower
and jellyfish soufflé.

And for dessert our cook has made
a recipe from France:
I’m sure you’ll all want seconds—
of chocolate-covered ants.

I hope you like this gourmet feast.
I hope you won’t complain.
But if you do we’ll have to bring
our old cook back again.

This poem came from the book, No More Homework! No More Tests! by Bruce Lansky.  I chose this poem because it reminded me of lunches in the cafeteria when I was in school.  It made me laugh and I like the fact that the verses rhyme. 

I believe that Bruce Lansky is trying to tell students that no matter how bad school lunches may be, they can always be worse!  Reciting this poem to the class would not be very difficult to do because it rhymes and it is humorous.  Using facial expressions and voice inflections would make the poem even funnier!

Here are some tips for writing comments on blogs you have read:

• Respond appropriately.  It’s okay to include your opinion, but be considerate of others.  You don’t have to agree with a post, but you must remember to be polite when commenting.

• If you like something the person wrote, don’t just write ”cool” or “sounds awesome.”  Explain why you think what the person wrote is “cool” or “awesome.”

• If you have a question, don’t be afraid to ask it!  For example, you may want to know if the person has read any other books by that author, or you have a question about how many books are in the series.  Ask your question, because the writer may write back!

Welcome!  The purpose of this blog is to give you a place to share your opinions on the AR books that you are reading.  Let your classmates know about the wonderful books you are reading by writing a blog post.  You can share book suggestions with your friends AND if you are looking for a new book to read, you can visit the blog to see what your friends are recommending.

As you review a book you have read, be sure to include the following in your blog post:

• Title and author of the book.  Don’t forget to underline the title and capitalize the author’s name.
• What the book is about.  This does not need to be really long, but it does need to be long enough to explain the basic idea of the story.  What is the genre of the story?  Is it an adventure book?  A mystery?  Remember, don’t give anything away that would spoil the book for someone who has not read it yet.
• Your opinion of the book.  Did you like it?  Would you recommend it to others?  On a scale from 1-10, how would you rate it?  What type of person do you think would enjoy this book?  Remember to be honest.  If you did not think it was a really great book, do not rate it a 10.  It is okay not to love everything you read.
• Proofread your post.  In addition to running a spell check, be sure to carefully read over what you have written.

Here is an example of what a review of Among the Hidden might look like:

Among the Hidden is an amazing book written by Margaret Peterson Haddix.  It is about a boy named Luke who lives in a country where the law states that parents are only allowed to have two children.  Unfortunately for Luke, he is a third child.  This means that he is not allowed to go outside and has to hide in the attic all day long.  His life is pretty boring until new houses are built near Luke’s house and some new neighbors change his life forever.  What do I mean?  You need to read the book to find out!

On a scale from 1-10, I would give this book a 10.  If you love books that have adventure, drama, and mystery, you have to read this book.  It is also the first book in a series, so if you like it as much as I did, you can continue reading about Luke’s adventures in the second book called Among the Imposters.

If you have any questions, let me know.  Happy blogging!

Mrs. Mitchell

The Eagle’s Nest Book Blog has been implemented to provide a place for students to review and recommend books they have read.  When a student finishes reading a book, he or she can log on to the blog and write a summary of the book, rate it, and give his or her opinion of that book.

The blog is hosted by a website called Kidblog.org.  This site was designed to provide free, easy-to-use blogs for elementary and middle school students.  Each student has a password-protected account.  All reports and comments are approved by Mrs. Mitchell before they are posted to the blog so that no inappropriate material gets published.  No e-mail addresses are required and there is no kind of advertising on the blog.  We hope that you enjoy reading about our reading selections on the blog!

Mrs. Mitchell