Children’s Literature
READ 651-Summer 2010
Peet, B. (1970). The wump world. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Flesch Readability– 78.5
The Wump World is a very cute book and kid-friendly. The story has an environmental theme where the
Pollutians land on Wump World and take over. The Pollutians look very similar to humans. They scare off the
Wumps and build huge cities over the lush green land that the Wumps cherish. Eventually, the world becomes
too dirty and polluted even for the Pollutians and they find another home in outer space. They abandon Wump
World and leave behind the damage. The Wumps come out of hiding and are saddened, but stay hopeful after
seeing a small patch of green still left. They know their world will never be the same, but they are hopeful that
more green will eventually grow back.
I think this is a great book to use in ELA with my future students in conjunction with their environmental
science units. I think this book can be used with any grade. The illustrations match very well with the text on
the page. I especially love how the whole color scheme changes as the Pollutians slowly pollute the world and
everything becomes grayer. The story is especially great for ELLs because the words are supplementary to the
illustrations. If I was working in a small group, I would probably have the students take a Picture Walk before
reading the text together. I would also be sure to help decode frequent nonsense words, such as “Wump” and
“Pollutian” before reading. ELLs may find this book helpful because it uses fictional characters to explain real
events going on in the world today.
Kerley, B. (2009). One world, one day. Washington D.C.: National Geographic Society.
Flesch Readability– 96.7
This nonfiction book shows children from around the world going through their daily routines. The incredible
pictures are of children waking up, eating all different food for breakfast, going to school, playing and learning,
coming home, eating dinner, working or playing at home, and then to sleep. Of course, each stage shows several
different children varying in ethnicity, gender, SES, and race. After traveling the world, the author realized how
similar routines were for children around the globe and wanted to illustrate this through pictures. This book
highlights similarities while celebrating the differences.
I think this book could be used for many different writing activities. I would love to use this in the beginning of
school. After reading as a class and discussing observations, I might ask the students to go through their day and
record each stage in the day and exactly what it looks like for them. The discussion following this assignment
could mirror the author’s intentions – show how similar all of the students daily routines are, but also talk about
how they are all very different. Hopefully, this activity would begin a conversation we would continue
throughout the year as I create an environment where we all celebrate our differences and share them so we can
learn and grow together. The pictures of the different foods, activities, countries, etc would be very helpful for
ELLs. Not only do the pictures add so much to the words written underneath or beside them, there are many
pictures they may find to be familiar. If anything, the book and the theme of the book will celebrate differences
in the room and boost confidence.
Black, M. I., Hawkes, K. (2009). Chicken cheeks. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.
Flesch Readability– 57.4
This short, but hilarious book simply goes page by page adding one animal after the other on top of each other.
The animals are introduced with their names and a rhyming “bottom” word to match. With the duck as a base,
the animals pile one-by-one until finally a “bumblebee bum” stings the top animal and they all fall to the water.
The book has a simple plot, although the reader never knows why the animals started stacking to begin with. It
seems the main focus of this humor-filled book is to introduce animal names along with illustrations and
incorporate same sounds in the word pairs.
From “rhinoceros rump” to “deer rear”, I think all of the students could have a lot of fun with this book. The
word pairs would be especially useful to incorporate in a lesson that focused on syllable sounds and multiple
spellings of sounds. Students could choose one page in pairs, identify the letter(s) that are the same in both
words and see if they can find any other spellings for it. As an extra bonus, they could brainstorm words that
use the other spellings and come up with another word pair. ELLs may struggle with some of the synonyms the
author uses for “bottom” and several animals they may not be familiar with, but as we read the book together,
we could discuss as a class what these animals are and where we may find them. Since the book is so short, I
would love to read it first to the class without stopping. The second reading would involve a pause to discuss
after every pairing – the animals and the pronunciation of the bottom synonyms. We could also act out the
animals with motions and/or noises as we read through as a class (choral read), which would help everyone, but
mostly the ELLs.
Piven, H. (2010). My best friend is as sharp as a pencil and other funny classroom portraits.
NY: Schwartz & Wade.
Flesch Readability– 83.1
New York,
I just loved this book. The beginning of the story talks about all of the questions the main character’s
grandmother asks her at the end of the day. Many middle school students can relate to that, whether it is a
teacher or a family member asking the questions. The character gets tired of answering with words, so she
decides one day to SHOW her grandmother by using ordinary items like lipstick, a pencil, a balloon, or even a
ballet slipper. She uses three or four ordinary items to describe the people (or animals) she likes at school. The
coolest part about the book is that she not only uses simile after simile to describe, but the author includes the
actual picture of the items paired with some illustrations of the main character. After she is done describing
each person, the next page is always a depiction of that person using all of the items in her similes. Once again,
the items are real pictures, not illustrations.
I can think of many activities for students to do with this book. Of course, it would be the most appropriate in an
ELA class to use it during the study of similes in literature. After reading the book together, the students could
do one of many things. They could choose a question Grandmother asked the little girl in the book and respond
using their own similes for the person in mind. They could then gather these ordinary items and create the
person. Another activity that may be especially helpful for ELLs is that I could bring in a tub full of ordinary
items, which could serve as a brainstorming bucket for the students as they think about the similes they want to
use for their person. The students could also do this in pairs or small groups, contributing one or two similes.
This seems to be a great way to begin teaching similes because students can use real, tangible items to describe
people or animals.
Also, an added bonus is that it allows students to be active, engaged, and allows for creativity with objects.
What the author calls “Object Art” could also be great to use with the students for storytelling when being able
to tell a story verbally seems too difficult or even boring. The art adds another element that allows ELLs to use
a different method to show learning.
Arnold, K. (1997). Duck, duck, goose? New York, NY: Holiday House, Inc.
Flesch Readability– 92.6
This book was inspired by a Russian film called, Who is this Bird? I think it would be an interested author study
to look in Katya Arnold and the film she based the book on. Middle school students should engage in critical
reading as well as critical literacy where they examine social issues behind texts. On top of the cultural diversity
found in the story’s background, the moral is a timeless one. The main character is a goose that is unhappy with
every bit of her life, including the way she looks. She likes pieces of other birds better, and one day she decides
she will go around trading her physical characteristics with other birds. She trades necks with a swan because
hers is much more beautiful. She trades beaks with a pelican, and goes on and on until she is no longer able to
do what all of her other geese friends do (swim, eat, fly). She learns a valuable lesson and decides she would
rather go back to being HER.
Students could write a journal response after reading as a class about a time they felt like the goose in the story
(or tell why they have maybe never felt this way). The moral is a great to use during advisory time or I could
begin with this story when starting a unit on morals and themes. The illustrations are big, colorful, actionpacked, and hilarious, which is great for ELLs. The theme seems universal and one all students can relate to in
some way. Students could also have small group discussions after journal writing, and share their experiences
with each other. Discussions could also tie in our differences as humans and how we always think what other
people are and how they look is better than what we have. The different types of birds can easily translate into
our different cultures.
Alda, A. (2006). Did you say pears? Plattsburg, NY: Tundra Books.
Flesch Readability– 100
This book is short and sweet, but packed with examples of homonyms and homophones. Each homonym has
two pictures that accompany the two word meanings and are placed directly above the words. This book would
be helpful for any student, but especially ELLs because of the pictorial representation of each homonym and
homophone. The pictures are real photographs, which make it even better to support ELLs comprehension of
homonyms and homophones. In the back of the book, it lists the homophones and homonyms separately and
includes the pages for reference. The book is culturally sensitive and mostly uses pictures of objects, not people.
This book could be great to use when teaching homonyms and homophones. After reading through the book as
a class, a pair of students would choose one homophone or homonym and illustrate their own depiction by
bringing two pictures into one. The students write the phrase from the book on the bottom of a poster board and
then work together to create a silly way to help everyone remember. Posters can be displayed around the room.
(For example, “if a pitcher could pour” – students could draw a baseball pitcher pouring a pitcher of water).
Leedy, L., & Street, P. (2003). There’s a frog in my throat: 440 sayings a little bird told me. NewYork, NY:
Holiday House, Inc.
Flesch Readability– 91.7
This book is all about idioms that use animals in the expressions. The book is actually divided by animal types.
Each page is chalked full of idioms, the meanings, and a cute/funny illustration to accompany it. The book
presents a very creative way to learn idioms. I am convinced that students would thoroughly enjoy reading this
book and never feel like they were “learning” anything.
This book is great for teaching idioms. I can see this book being used as a centers station. In small groups of
three, students can choose their favorites from one category – pull from a bag. Then, students can illustrate their
idiom on a piece of paper and write both the saying and the meaning. The final products can be displayed
around the room. I would make sure that I met with each ELL in my room when they reached this center to be
sure they understand each word found in their idiom, as well as the meaning. The reading level is fairly low,
which seems to be appropriate for ELLs when learning such abstract ideas. The vocabulary in the book is
comprehensible, but the actual idea of idioms is where there will be a challenge. Luckily, the author presents the
information in an engaging and interesting way. 
Another way to use this book is to have the student act out idioms in pairs. I am sure they could find some
creative ways to portray the saying.
Smith, D. J. (2002). If the world were a village: A book about the world’s people. Hong Kong,
King Tong Company Limited.
Flesch Readability– 86.7
China: Wing
This book could be a great book to use in the beginning of the year when we are all trying to get to know each
other. The book is an informational text that makes dry, lifeless facts about our world seem more interesting and
more attainable to comprehend for middle school students. The book is packed with statistics, but in terms of
one village. The author gives statistics about the world’s nationalities, religions, food, schooling, etc., but all in
terms of a village made of 100 people. Numbers that are normally enormous, such as the population of the
Earth, are more manageable because the scale is smaller (but still proportional to real statistics).
While delivering statistics on food, money, and religion, the author embeds the stark differences found between
the lives of the villagers. The illustrations are colorful, but some depict the text in a more powerful than others,
depending on the topic. Overall, I think the idea behind the text is powerful and because it incorporates people
around the world and all of our differences, I think it would be a great book to use in the beginning of the year.
After each page we read together, we could discuss where we fit in to the statistics. Hopefully it would
encourage students to share their culture and experiences. Students could also follow up with journal entries to
help them reflect, or come up with questions in groups that are inspired by the information from the text.
Shaskan, T. S. (2008). If you were onomatopoeia. Minneapolis, MN: Picture Window Books.
Flesch Readability– 77.3
This book offers a clever way of introducing onomatopoeia. Each page is a new event with the sounds that go
along with written BIG and bolded in fonts. Each sound is accompanied by an illustration. The author
encourages the reader to imagine themselves actually being onomatopoeia by saying repeatedly, “If you were
onomatopoeia, you could…”. In the back of the book, the author includes a small glossary of terms that may be
unknown to the reader, including a formal definition for onomatopoeia.
As the class reads this book together, I could ask the students to repeat each word that makes a sound together. I
would encourage them to say the words as they might hear them. For example, when they say, “whisper,” they
actually whisper the word to their neighbor. When they say the word, “cock-a-doodle-doo,” they say it loud and
draw out the “oooo” sound at the end. As a follow-up activity we could go on a listening walk with paper and
pencils. As we walk around the school and outside, students record the words that they hear – creating their own
onomatopoeia.
The illustrations are great for all students, but especially ELLs. Many examples are included; therefore, the
students get repeated exposure to many words that say the sound they represent. The book is interactive and will
get the students involved and moving (kinesthetic). Also, the kids in the book are multicultural.
Shaskan, T. S. (2008). If you were alliteration. Minneapolis, MN: Picture Window Books.
Flesch Readability– 76.7
This book shares many of the same qualities and characteristics of the previous book, If You Were
Onomatopoeia. On each page, the author describes the possible ways to form alliteration: repeating vowels
sounds, using consonant clusters, using two letters that make the same sound, etc. The book gives a lot of
examples of alliteration using creative phrases and sentences complimented by vivid and entertaining
illustrations.
This book would not only be useful to teach the literary term, alliteration, but also could be helpful with phonics
work. After reading a page, the students could brainstorm other words that have the same sound. Students could
come up with their own short sentences, poems, stories, or tongue twisters as they practice using alliteration in
their own writing. This could possibly be used at a centers station during literacy time.
The content in the book is suitable for ELLs because of the illustrations, appropriate word choice, and repetitive
practice/exposure to examples of alliteration. Students could participate in a similar activity with this book
where they chorally repeat the phrases after we read them together.
Book Title: More Parts by Tedd Arnold
Description of Content: This book contains engaging pictures to draw the reader to the story, illustrations
throughout the story help the student understand the vocabulary in the story, there are not too many words on
each page to overwhelm the student, the text has a rhythmic flow, lots of elements that can be pulled from the
story to create several lessons from such as; rhyming words, contractions, idioms, and text to self-discussion.
Usefulness: Several lessons can be taught when using this book. The great illustrations aid in doing a picture
walk and having the students make predictions about what is happening in each picture. The text itself can be
used to teach rhyming words. I would put the rhyming words on cards and we can sort and separate them
accordingly. Then we can go back, look at the spelling of each word, and discuss the phonics rule that apply. I
can also use this story to teach contractions. I could again list the words on cards for them to sort, play a
concentration game with the words, or even Go Fish. The class could also use bubble maps or other thinking
maps to organize their work. Students would also learn about idioms and their true meanings so they could
apply this knowledge when listening and speaking to others. This story would also be used to have the students
relate to the character in the story. As an individual, they could use their journals to write about how they do
not understand some information or the feelings they are having when they are confused. I could also use this
story or one of its sequels, Parts and Even More Parts, to discuss where they can go to find someone to listen to
them when they do not understand or have questions about any concerns or problems they may be having.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease= 100.0
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level= 0.9
Book Title: Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss
Description of Content: This book contains pictures t hat support the text, repetitive and predictable text,
basic sight word vocabulary, simple sentence structure, and many possibilities for extension activities. This is
an enjoyable and engaging book for beginning readers.
Usefulness: This book can be put at a listening center and a cassette or CD of the story can be used by the
student to listen to it over and over again. I can also look at some online support for this story such as
www.storylineonline.net. At this site, students can listen to stories read aloud to them on the internet. Students
will gain confidence with their vocabulary and fluency. This is a great book to teach rhyming words. Children
can locate them in the story and list on charts or thinking maps. They can use the rhyming words to play
several games. Students could then use those rhyming words and make up new text to create a different story.
This book can be used to bridge the gap between cultures by discussing and writing about things they like or do
not like, green things, what do you do with or in a house, box, train, dark, rain, goat, and boat. Student’s
interest in this book can be expanded on by conducting an author study of Dr. Seuss. By doing this, students
will learn about other stories they may be interested in reading.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease= 100.0
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level= 0.0
Book Title: Farm Animals by DK Publishing, Inc.
Description of Content: This book contains real pictures of farm animals that draw the reader to the book.
This book has good language context and opportunities for language experience. The vocabulary is basic and
repetitive. The sentence structure is simple and there is a picture word list in the back of the book for the
students to refer to if needed. This book lends to cross-curricular opportunities.
Usefulness: Some skills that can be taught using this book are names for adult and baby farm animals, basic
sight vocabulary, picture clues, context clues, and special endings (ing, s, ies,ed). Simple games like
concentration and Go Fish could be used to help with matching names of the adult animal with its baby.
Thinking maps can be used to list animals on a farm, names for adult animals and their babies, sounds those
animals make, student’s favorite animals, other things you would find on a farm besides animals. Students
could transfer information from this book to different types of habitats and what animals would live in those
habits. For example, animals you would find in the forest, desert, rainforest, or beach. This could lead into
some researching different types of habitats. Student’s could take this information and put it into book form,
dioramas, or use pictures from magazines or off the internet. This book would lend well to a field trip to a farm
for the students to actually use all of their senses to view the different animals. Students could share
information about animals that are from their native country.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease= 100.0
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level= 0.3
Book Title: Frog and Toad Are Friends by Arnold Lobel
Description of Content: This book contains opportunities for cross-curricular activities, listening, speaking,
reading, and writing basic vocabulary. Concepts about print can be explored using this book. The use of
different reading strategies can be taught with this book. There are many possibilities for extension activities
when reading this book. This is a good book to use as a student’s introduction to reading books with chapters.
Usefulness: Picture cards can be made to reinforce unknown vocabulary in text. Some examples for picture
cards would be a path, shutters, front porch, meadows, woods, river, stars, calendar, world, and tore. You could
find these pictures in magazines, internet, or use a camera and go on a scavenger hunt for those things.
Punctuation marks, such as the exclamation marks and talking marks, could be taught. Students could glue
colored macaroni shells to prewritten sentences from the story to show where talking marks would go. This
book could be placed at a listening center so the student would gain confidence in vocabulary and fluency.
Students could use thinking maps or pictures to show knowledge of the four seasons. Students could share how
seasons are alike or different from their native country. The internet can be used to research seasons from
around the world. Science can be correlated with this book by learning about the life cycle of a frog. Calendar
skills can be taught in math with this book. Students can make a flipbook of the months of the year adding
illustrations. Number formation and filling in information on a calendar can also be taught. Writing and oral
expression can be brought in with the use of this book by having the students retell the story by using props or
role-playing and making a production of the story. Students could write about their best friend in their journals
and discuss things they do with their friends.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease= 100.0
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level= 0.0
Book Title: Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? By Bill Martin Jr / Eric Carle
Description of content: This book uses repetitive and predictable text to help the beginning reader. The
simple language and manageable story length makes this story a favorite. The illustrations support the text and
provides visual art appreciation to the reader. The use of simple sentence structure makes this an enjoyable and
engaging book. Integration of language skills: reading, writing, speaking, and listening can be extended upon
with the use of this book. This story also leads to the opportunity of multicultural knowledge.
Usefulness: In the classroom, I would use this book to teach some of the reading strategies necessary for
independent reading. Using picture clues and getting your mouth ready for the beginning sound works great
with this story. I would also use this story to introduce the question mark and the non-phonetic word “what”.
This book also is great for transformations. The students can use different types of thinking maps to organize
animals from different habitats or cultures. After organizing thoughts, students can make a transformation of
the story to share with the class. I can also use this story to have the students divided into groups by animals
and they can perform a choral reading of the story.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease= 100.0
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level= 0.6
Book Title: Silly Sally by Audrey Wood
Description of Content: This book is engaging and just fun to read. The rhythmic flow of the story lends to a
heightened interest in the book. Supportive pictures that pertain to the text enable the beginning reader to use
reading strategies for unknown vocabulary. This book also is a good springboard for text to self-discussions,
which may lead to opening up about the students’ experiences.
Usefulness: Teaching rhyming words and special endings like “ing” and “ed” can be used with this book.
Students can list, sort, create, play games, and act out these rhyming and special ending words. I would use this
book to introduce and teach verbs. I would also use this book to teach verb and noun phrases. Students can
listen or read the story to locate the phrases. Then we would list them on chart paper or sentence strips. Next,
cut those phrases apart and have children play a game to match back up with their correct match. Students
could then make up their own verb and noun phrases and play the same game to make “Silly Sentences” and
then illustrate. Writing activities may lead to students expressing their own experiences about what they could
do on their way to town. This would bring in multicultural opportunities to share about their own town. This
could springboard into a social studies lesson about towns, neighborhoods, and even farther. I could also use
this book to discuss and teach feelings.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease= 86.5
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level= 3.8
Book Title: The Itsy Bitsy Spider by Iza Trapani
Description of Content: This book leads to lots of possibilities for extension activities and integrating
different subject areas. Multicultural opportunities and making culture connections can also be taught with this
story. The story is fun and engaging using appealing visual art in the illustrations. The pictures support
unknown text and this makes opportunities for the reader to practice reading strategies. The text has a natural
flow with rhyming words that makes this story fun for the reader to listen to and read.
Usefulness: Things I would teach from this story are almost endless. Here are a few.
*rhyming words, verb and noun phrases, role playing – students act out each scene and then perform for the
class, rewrite and make a transformation of the story – students give ideas, create new rhymes, illustrate, and
then publish into a book, journal writing about spiders – fictional or non-fictional, Beginning, Middle, End of a
story, problem and solution, cause and effect, Math – doubles using spider bodies, addition and subtraction
stories with spiders and webs, Science – spider body parts, different types of spiders, research spiders from
different countries (multicultural link), Cooking- make spiders with marshmallows, pretzels, and m&m’s, and
more.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease= 90.9
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level= 2.4
Book Title: We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen
Description of Content: This book leads to visual art appreciation. The use of black and white pictures show
the family doing an action and the color pictures represent the sounds those actions would make. By doing this,
the illustrator helps the reader make some predictions while reading. This leads to a good foundation for
beginning reading strategies. Basic sight vocabulary is abundant in this story to aid in successful reading.
Repetitive and predictable text is another feature in this story that will help the beginning reader. This is a fun
story to read and engage the students in natural language experiences.
Usefulness: With this story, I would be able to teach the use of exclamation marks and how to read with
expression. The students could make up a sound and a hand motion to use every time they see an exclamation
mark and then do that while reading the story. I can also teach contractions with this story. Locating
contractions and then using a game to review them. This is also a great story to teach “onomatopoeia”words.
In doing this, students would be using reading strategies to figure out unknown words. Positions words are
another great skill to develop with this story. Students can locate, create, and act out different types of position
words. I can take pictures of them doing the position word and then put it into a class book for students to use
as a reference when reading or writing. Students will be able to act this story out and perform it for the class.
Sequencing skills can be taught with this story. Students can arrange events on sentence strips and put them in
order. By using motions to retell the story, the students will recall the order of the story. Transformations of
this story can be made to allow for multicultural differences. I can apply text to self-discussions with this story
by having students relate to times when they were scared.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease= 96.4
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level= 0.6
Book Title: The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle
Description of Content: This book has lots of repetitive and predictable text to help the beginning reader be
successful. It contains simple sentence structure and the pictures support the text enabling students to practice
reading strategies. In this book, language and vocabulary are used in context and connections can be made to
enhance language rich experiences. This book gives many opportunities for cross-curricular outcomes and
many possibilities for extension activities.
Usefulness: I can use this book to teach animal names and the sounds those animals make. Students could use
this information to play concentration with a partner or I can put the animal and their sounds on index cards,
students pick a card, and then have them find their match for a quick, whole group, movement game. Students
can then use thinking maps to create lists of other animals and their sounds. As a class, we can use this
information and make a class book that can be used for reference material when reading or writing. I can also
teach the use of question marks and talking marks. Some comprehensions skills that can be taught with this
story would be sequencing and making predictions. This is a great book to have students do some role-playing.
Students can use props to retell the story or they can actually be given an animal and they reenact the story.
This could be videoed and then later played on the smart board for students to view themselves and discuss.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease= 95.3
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level= 1.3
Book Title: Elmer by David McKee
Description of Content: This book would be one for a more advanced reader or used for listening
comprehension and appreciation. I like this story because it lends to text to self-experiences which is great for
the ELL reader. The pictures are vivid and engaging. This book would be a great book to use at a listening
center or have the teacher record it on tape or CD for the students to listen to repeatedly.
Usefulness: The main reason I chose this book is for the text to self-experiences that an ELL student can relate
to. Students can discuss what makes them special or why they feel how of place and record that information in
various forms such as thinking maps, Venn diagrams, and writing journals. This book also would be a great
book to teach beginning, middle, and end of a story. Students can also make predictions about what will happen
to Elmer as he travels through the story. I can also use this story to teach what the PROBLEM is in the story
and what the SOLUTION will be. Cause and effect is another skill that can be taught with the reading of this
story.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease= 79.3
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level= 4.0
Beaton, Clare (2002). Transportation/El transporte. Surrey, England: B Small Publishing.
Readability Level: > 1.0
Description: This is one in a series of bilingual books designed to teach very young children important
concepts/words in English and Spanish.
Classroom Use: During my Social Studies unit on transportation, I could use this book to teach simple related
text to both English speaking students as well as with my Spanish speaking students. The illustrations are clear
and there is only one word per page making this book a good resource for the youngest learner.
Crews, Donald (2003). Freight Train/Tren de carga. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books.
Readability Level: 2.50
Description: A simple story about a colorful freight train traveling along the tracks that is written in both
English and Spanish.
Classroom Use: I use this book as a part of a unit centered around another well know book, The Polar Express.
This bilingual version would be a wonderful resource for use with students whose first language is Spanish. The
text is very simple and can help them with the basic concept of the story as well as learning color words.
Elya, Susan (2002). Home at Last. New York, NY: Lee & Low Books Inc.
Readability Level: 6.80
Description: Ana, an eight year old girl, moves with her family from Mexico to the United States. The
recounts her first day of school, her adjustment to a new country, and how she encourages her mother to learn
English.
Classroom Use: I use a lot of narrative books as mentor texts for my students during our writing workshop. I
could use this book as an inspiration for my students to recall memories of ways that they have helped their
parents in one way or another. This story also helps children to understand what it is like to be a ESL student
who is trying to learn a new language and get adjusted to a new culture. Students who have moved from
Mexico will be able to relate to Ana and possibly use it as a mentor text for them to recall their own experiences
with moving to the United States.
Emberly, Rebecca (1993). Let’s Go: A Book in Two Languages. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company.
Readability Level: 1.40
Description: Captioned illustrations and text in both English and Spanish take the reader to locations such as a
zoo, an airport, an aquarium, and a picnic.
Classroom Use: In my classroom I could use this book throughout the year with students who first language is
Spanish to teach important words related to our units of study such as the seasons, animals, ocean life, and the
food pyramid.
Enderlein, Cheryl (1998). Christmas in Mexico. Danbury, CT: Hilltop Books.
Readability Level: 7.30
Description: This is a simple informational text about the customs, songs, food, and activities associated with
the celebration of Christmas in Mexico.
Classroom Use: I use this book with a unit we do in December called Christmas Around the World. During
this unit, as the title implies, we study the cultures of different countries around the world and their unique
Christmas celebrations. I read this book to my students when introducing Los Posadas because it provides
wonderful descriptions of the foods, symbols, decorations, and attire associated with this holiday. It also
includes much of the terminology related with the holiday which I teach my students during this unit. With the
help of this book, my students learn about other cultures and it helps my Hispanic students to feel included and
prideful of their own culture.
Fleischman, Paul (2007). Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella. New York, NY: Henry Holt
and Company, LLC.
Readability Level: 3.50
Description: In this retelling of the classic Cinderella story, the author takes bits of the tale from each different
culture around the world and weaves them into one version that spans the globe. The beautiful illustrations help
to demonstrate the similarities and differences from each cultures version of this time-honored tale.
Classroom Use: I would use this book as a read aloud at the conclusion of a unit on the many variations of the
classic fairy tale, Cinderella. A unit of the various versions of Cinderella is a great way to include students
from diverse backgrounds and cultures. By using this book at the end of the unit, it helps students to recall
cultural details from the versions they have been studying and to see how they can all come together to make a
twist on the well-known story. This would also be a good opening activity if teachers wanted students to create
their own class fairytale that included aspects from all the cultures represented in their classroom.
Lin, Grace (1999). The Ugly Vegetables. Watertown, MA: Charlesbridge.
Readability Level: 2.90
Description: This is a story about a young Chinese girl who helps her mother to plant a garden in their
backyard. As the garden grows, she notices that their garden is not like the other garden’s in the neighborhood
and becomes ashamed of their “ugly vegetables” because everyone else has grown beautiful spring flowers.
Once her mother harvests their vegetables, she makes a special soup that smells so good it attracts all the
neighbors over for dinner. The girl then realizes how special their garden was and the next spring, all the
gardens are filled with spring flowers and Chinese vegetables.
Classroom Use: I think that this would be a wonderful text to use to help students understand that being
different isn’t something negative. This story helps to show how other cultures can share what is unique to
them and that these differences are what helps to make us each special. I would like to use this book in the
spring when we talk about plants and about the variety of plants that can be grown.
Rivera Marín, Guadalupe (2009). My Papa Diego and Me: Memories of My Father and His Art. San
Franciscso, CA: Children’s Book Press.
Readability Level: 5.50
Description: The star of this book is the beautiful artwork by Diego Rivera, the author’s father, who was a
famous Mexican artist. Each page features one of his works-of-art along with a memory from his oldest
daughter, Guadalupe, which she associates with the painting. Each memory is written in both English and
Spanish.
Classroom Use: I teach in a Fine Arts school where our goal is to incorporate the arts into our everyday
curriculum. One of the units I do with my students is on using their own art as a means of inspiration for their
own writing. This book would serve as a fantastic mentor text for students to see how other author’s have used
this technique in their own writing. At the same time, students are also exposed to wonderfully simple stories
of the author’s experiences as a child growing up in Mexico. I think these experiences would be very relatable
for a child who comes from a Hispanic background but also shows other students that although we may appear
to be very different, we all share many of the same experiences such as going to school, playing with dolls,
picking flowers for our mothers on Mother’s Day, and having parties to celebrate special occasions which are
just a few of the memories Rivera recalls in this book.
Tafolla, Carmen (2000). My House is Your House. Barrington, IL: Rigby.
Readability Level: 5.10
Description: This is a book from our kindergarten reading series and tells the story of a grandmother from
Mexico who tries to teach her family to welcome everyone who comes to their door by saying, “My house is
your house. Mi casa es su casa.”
Classroom Use: This is a pattern book that I use with my class during our shared reading time. I think that it
would work well with ESL students because it intertwines Spanish with the English in a way that they will be
exposed to the repetitive English words but still understand what the story is about.
Yin (2006). Brothers. New York, NY: Philomel Books.
Readability Level: 3.70
Description: This is a story about a young Chinese boy, Ming, in the 1800’s who is sent to America to live
with his brothers who own a store in Chinatown and work on the railroads. Ming is warned that he should not
leave Chinatown but dressed in a disguise; Ming leaves the safety of Chinatown and meets a boy named
Patrick. The two boys become friends and begin learning about each other’s language and culture. In the end,
the two boys help to bring the two communities of people together.
Classroom Use: A story such as this can be used for a variety of purposes in several different grade levels. For
younger students, it can be used as a read aloud to show that all people are different but that we can still learn
and grow from each other. This book includes many aspects of the Chinese culture which would make it a
wonderful resource to use in a classroom with Chinese students who would be able to relate to the story and
illustrations. For older students, this book could be included in a study of American History and the influence
that the Chinese immigrants had on the development of American culture and the boom of the railroad
development during that time.
Hamanaka, S. (1994). All the Colors of the Earth. New York, NY: William Morrow and Company, Inc.
Content: Children come in all the colors of the earth … thus begins a book that examines the superficial
differences of children from all over the world. Themes: skin color, hair, expressions of love
Why useful: The first thing ELLs notice upon arrival is that they look different. This book makes it acceptable
to be different and actually celebrates differences! Skin color is often a taboo subject that is much watched but
rarely mentioned.
Offensive features: none
Image to Text Compatibility: great (oils on canvas)
Sentence structure: one line per page, poetic
Downfalls: more copious text would provide more practice
Readability: (Flesch-Kincaid): 8.7
Adoff, A. (1973). Black is Brown is Tan. Singapore: Harper Collins Publishers.
Content: This is a story of a family formed by a white father and black mother, their children, and their
extended family. Themes: colors, relationships, chores, foods, seasons, nature
Why useful: ELLs from countries of rather homogenous race have a difficult time shedding preconceived
notions about foreign races. This is a great book to introduce students to the melting pot (or toss salad) of
America.
Offensive features: none, although some ELLs may be offended by the idea of racial equality
Image to text compatibility: excellent, painted illustrations
Sentence structure: poetic, no capitalization
Downfalls: illustrations impressionistic, details do not jump out at you; young readers will not immediately pick
up nuances
Readability: (Flesch-Kincaid): 3.9
Davol, M. (1993). Black, White, Just Right! Morton Grove, Il: Albert Whitman & Co.
Content: A girl explains how her parents are different in color, have different tastes in art, food, and pets, and
how she herself is different, too, but just right. Themes: colors, hobbies, art forms, preferences for various daily
tasks, breaking stereotypes
Why useful: This story discusses how to live life beyond labels. It gives readers permission and freedom to not
conform to expectations and societal pressures. For example, the mom takes ballet lessons with the daughter
while dad enjoys dancing to hip hop!
Offensive features: none
Image to text compatibility: great, illustrations in gouache
Sentence structure: Complete sentences, sometimes rhyme
Downfalls: has a singular purpose, not multi-faceted, could have included dealing with racial prejudice
Readability: (Flesch-Kincaid): 4.5
Mak, K. (2002). My Chinatown: One Year in Poems. China: Harper Collins Publishers.
Content: A boy misses his home in Hong Kong and discovers Chinatown. Themes: foods, holidays,
homesickness, fortune telling, cobbler, games,
Why useful: This book is excellent for both ELLs and American students to learn about the Chinese culture.
Immigration is always a mixed bag of feelings. There is the exhilaration of newness but also the melancholy of
losing your past and your identity. A new identity must be developed.
Offensive features: none
Image to text compatibility: very good, life-like paintings
Sentence structure: Stanzas and poetic format, less traditional, no rhyme scheme
Downfalls: perhaps the author could have compared Hong Kong with Chinatown and discussed more the boy’s
feelings of homesickness.
Readability: (Flesch-Kincaid): 4.6
Makhijani, P. (2007). Mama’s Saris. New York, NY: Little, Brown, and Co.
Content: An Indian American girl is allowed to wear her mom’s beautiful sari for her seventh birthday party.
Themes: coming of age, cultural fashion
Why useful: Lends to great discussion regarding how immigrants must assimilate into the new culture and at
the same time hold onto the old. Wearing the saris declares to America that she is from India. It takes great
courage to stand up and be different from everyone around you.
Offensive features: none
Image to text compatibility: excellent, simple realistic paintings
Sentence structure: paragraphs
Downfalls: I would like to know the history of the sari and how this form of clothing came about.
Readability: (Flesch-Kincaid): 5.9
Woodruff, E. (1999). The Memory Coat. New York, NY: Scholastic Press.
Content: In the early 1900s, two cousins and their family emigrate from a Russia torn by the Cossacks to come
to America, hoping to pass inspection at Ellis Island. Themes: loss of parents, grief, peasantry, escapism,
sentimental keepsakes, injustice, discrimination, Jewish persecution
Why useful: The history of immigration has been fraught with trauma, danger, loss, separation, and fear. It is
wonderful for modern day immigrants to compare their experiences with historic immigrants. One gets a sense
of how far immigration has come but also how far we still have to go. There is also additional information
under Author’s Note.
Offensive features: none
Image to text compatibility: very good, oil on canvas by Michael Dooling
Sentence structure: sizable paragraphs
Downfalls: How about including some positive experiences of immigration?
Readability: (Flesch-Kincaid): 6.2
McKissack, P. (1997). Ma Dear’s Aprons. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.
Content: Ma Dear is a single mom with one boy, a working Afro-American woman in rural Alabama, early
1900s. Themes: servitude, race relations in the south, rural life, work ethics, storytelling, mother’s love, church,
spirituals
Why useful: New comers to this country often have no idea of the history of racial conflict in this land. This
story alludes to the tense relations between the two predominate races a hundred years ago. It prompts the
readers to take a look at the hardships of living. ELLs certainly can relate to the idea of hardship. This is a
tender story.
Offensive features: none
Image to text compatibility: superb, oil wash on board, impressionistic
Sentence structure: simple, paragraph form
Downfalls: religious vocabulary was intentionally left out and the story kept secular
Readability: (Flesch-Kincaid): 6.2
Ransom, J. (2000). I Don’t Want to Talk About It. Washington, D.C.: Magination Press.
Content: A mother and father approaches their daughter about their getting a divorce. They help the daughter
get used to the idea as well as the hurt. Themes: fear, anger, running away, reactionary impulses, sadness, life
after divorce, change, constants, guilt, confusion
Why useful: Published by the American Psychological Association, this book stimulates discussion about
separation and loss. ELLs often struggle to deal with separation from family members and relatives. Starting a
new life in a new country is not unlike starting a new life with separated parents. Includes a Note to Parents
section.
Offensive features: none
Image to text compatibility: great, facial emotions well captured
Sentence structure: short, in stanza form
Downfalls: Could have spent a couple more pages painting what life after divorce looks like
Readability: (Flesch-Kincaid): 4.6
Wing, N. (1996). Jalapeno Bagels. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.
Content: Pablo, the son of a Jewish father and Mexican mother, decides what to bring to class for International
Day from his parents’ bakery. Themes: Jewish culture, Mexican culture, bi-racial families, bakery, pastries,
family business
Why useful: Being a bi-racial child is a unique experience that may be found among ELLs. Also, immigrants
sometimes come to America to begin a small family business, such as a bakery. Students can see that they can
contribute meaningfully to their family’s business effort. In the end, Pablo chooses jalapeno bagels because
bagels originate from Jewish culture and jalapenos from Mexican culture. Pablo chooses it for its metaphorical
effect. Introduces both Spanish and Yiddish words. Most ELLs will appreciate this language diversity.
Includes 2 recipes.
Offensive features: none
Image to text compatibility: very good, the drawings of the mother and father actually resemble their respective
race.
Sentence structure: easy paragraphs, medium print
Downfalls: I would like to see book reflect other life experiences outside of the bakery.
Readability: (Flesch-Kincaid): 5.3
Jordan, D. & Jordan, R. (2007). Michael’s Golden Rules. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster
Content: Two friends, Michael and Jonathan, learn the value of a winning attitude from Micahel’s uncle’s
golden rules.
Themes: faith, courage, skills, knowledge, team mentality, practice, mistakes, having fun, name-calling
Why useful: Written by basketball legend Michael Jordan’s mom and sister, this book teaches the true meaning
of winning. Winning in any area of life demands a good attitude, discipline, and helping one another. These
golden rules are applicable to more any endeavors one can dream up. One can learn from this book how to lose
and get back up.
Offensive features: none
Image to text compatibility: excellent, life-like caricature style
Sentence structure: moderate paragraphs
Downfalls: maybe a little more detail on the discipline of practice
Readability: (Flesch-Kincaid): 4.9
Title: My name is Sangoel / written by Karen Lynn Williams and Khadra Mohammed ; illustrated by Catherine
Stock.
Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, p2009
Reading Level: 2.3
Interest Level K-3
Sangoel, who is proud of his rich African heritage, moves to America, and when nobody there can pronounce
his name correctly, he fears he will lose his identity. I can identify with others not being able to pronounce my
name. We have students from several countries and we (teachers and students) sometimes struggle with
pronunciations. Our name is important to us and we want others to say it correctly – here is the message from a
child’s point of view. (Teachers often just hear this message from the parents)
Title: When donkeys fly / written by Ginger Hodge ; illustrated by C.B. Markham ; designed by Kim Hall.
Publisher: Donkey Fly Press, p2008, c2008
Reading Level: 2.2
Interest Level K-3
A young girl aspires to do great things but constantly hears "When donkeys fly" from others and herself and
assumes she will never achieve her goals, until one day she actually sees a donkey fly and realizes she can do
and be whatever she dreams. Each year we use this book to talk about dreams for the future. The message and
illustrations are multicultural and our connections to others are as well.
Title: Going home / by Eve Bunting ; illustrated by David Diaz.
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers, p1996
Reading Level: 5.4
Interest Level K-3
A Mexican family comes to the United States to work as farm laborers so that their children will have
opportunities. The parents still consider Mexico their home. Young children find themselves in this same
scenario in our schools. Readers see a “family view” of moving to America.
Title: Goldfish and Chrysanthemums / by Andrea Cheng ; illustrated by Michelle Chang.
Publisher: Lee & Low Books, p2003
Reading Level: 3.4
Interest Level 5.4
A Chinese American girl puts her goldfish into a fish pond that she creates and borders with chrysanthemums in
order to remind her grandmother of the fish pond she had back in China. Our school usually has Chinese
students each year and we are all interested in their culture. It is helpful to have our own resources to help our
Chinese students feel welcomed.
Title: How many days to America? : a Thanksgiving story / by Eve Bunting ; illustrated by Beth Peck.
Publisher: Clarion Books, p1988
Reading Level: 3.2
Interest Level K-3
Refugees from a Caribbean island embark on a dangerous boat trip to America where they have a special reason
to celebrate Thanksgiving. Our schools are not allowed to show many holidays and this book is a way to
approach Thanksgiving from another point of view.
Title: I hate English! / by Ellen Levine ; illustrated by Steve Bjorkman.
Publisher: Scholastic, p1989
Reading Level: 2.7
Interest Level K-3
Mei Mei finds it difficult to adjust to school and learn the alien sounds of English when her family moves to
New York from Hong Kong, Children do not expect to be permitted to express that they do not like an
academic subject while they are physically in school, so it will be helpful to use it for all students, especially
ELLs.
Title: Amazing Grace / by Mary Hoffman; pictures by Caroline Binch.
Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers, p1991
Reading Level: 4.1
Interest Level: K-3
Amazing Grace is an inspirational book about an African American young girl. A classmate says that Grace
cannot play the coveted part in the school play because she is African-American. Grace discovers that she can
do anything she sets her mind to do. This is a wonderful book to compare to another book that we read (When
Donkeys Fly) about overcoming life’s obstacles and continuing with your dreams for the future.
Title: One green apple / by Eve Bunting ; illustrated by Ted Lewin.
Publisher: Clarion Books, p2006
Reading Level: 2.6
Interest Level K-3
While on a school field trip to an orchard to make cider, a young Muslim immigrant named Farah gains selfconfidence when the green apple she picks perfectly complements the other students' red apples. Our school has
a family from Egypt and they often wear their traditional head pieces and clothing. Our students can gain
appreciation for their cultural as well as give our Egyptian students a better feeling of acceptance.
Title: Sofie and the City / Karima Grant ; illustrated by Janet Montecalvo.
Publisher: Boyds Mills Press, p2006
Reading Level: 3.2
Interest Level K-3
Sofie calls her grandmother in Senegal on Sundays and complains about the ugliness of the new city. Her life
changes when she makes a new friend. This book will be helpful in my room because a big topic at our school
is friendship. Students sometimes forget to be all inclusive.
Title: Chang's paper pony / by Eleanor Coerr ; pictures by Deborah Kogan Ray.
Publisher: HarperTrophy, p1993
Reading Level: 3.3
Interest level K-3
Chang, the son of Chinese immigrants in San Francisco during the 1850's gold rush, wants a pony but cannot
afford one until his friend Big Pete finds a solution. . Our school usually has Chinese students each year and we
are all interested in their culture. It is helpful to have our own resources to help our Chinese students feel
welcomed.
Wilkinson, P. (1998). Illustrated Dictionary of Mythology: Heroes, Heroines, Gods and Goddesses From
Around the World. New York: DK Publishing, Inc.
Flesch- Kincaid Grade level: 10:45, Reading Ease: 53.97
The readability listed above doesn’t seem representative of the entire book. This book is a picture dictionary
and is a wonderful resource for teaching mythology of various cultures. This book contains information on the
Trojan War and The Odyssey so it is a wonderful supplemental resource for The Odyssey. This is beneficial to
ELLs because of the many pictures and captions.
Burdett, L. (1998). Shakespeare Can be Fun: Romeo and Juliet for Kids. Buffalo, NY: Firefly Books (US) Inc.
Flesch- Kincaid Grade level: 7:88, Reading Ease: 66.63
This text is written in poetic format so creating a readability level based on sentence length can be misleading;
however some quotes from the play are incorporated. Each page has drawings and comments from young
students (age 7-11). This is a great resource for teaching Romeo and Juliet to ELLs; it stays true to the spirit of
the play while using simpler vocabulary.
Roberts, N. (1967). Ghosts of the Carolinas. Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press.
Flesch- Kincaid Grade level: 9:90, Reading Ease: 59.48
This book would be used for 11th grade students to tie in with American legends. Hispanic students are familiar
with La Llorna and usually have a high interest in ghost stories. The stories are short and each has an
accompanying picture. I would read the story aloud to the students – perhaps with the lights off.
Buxton, J. (2008). The Littlest Llama. New York: Sterling Publishing Company
Flesch- Kincaid Grade level: 3:47, Reading Ease: 89.24
The plot of the story is that the littlest llama wants to play, but all the other llamas are too tired or busy. The
littlest llama goes on an adventure and is chased by a “monster.” When he returns safely home, a new llama has
been born and she wants to play, but the littlest llama is too tired. I would use this book to illustrate alliteration,
to illustrate the 1-2-3 Double Rule, and to teach plot diagramming.
Bruchac, J. (2000). Squanto’s Journey: The Story of the First Thanksgiving. New York: Harcourt, Inc.
This tells of Squanto’s captivity by English sailors and deportation from his homeland in America to Spain. He
is sold as a slave but later freed and sent to England. He realizes that if he can learn English he can be of use to
the Englishmen and hopefully be able to return home. This book has many benefits for ELLs. First it parallels
life experiences that the students have had. Many have left their homeland against their will. Squanto sees the
benefit of learning English even though it is difficult. Eventually he is able to return home and becomes helpful
to the Englishmen. I would teach this in my 11th grade American Literature class and could develop many
activities from this: point-of view, setting plot, etc. , comparison contrast essay.
Karlin, N. (1996). The Fat Cat Sat on the Mat. New York: Harper Collins Publishers.
Flesch- Kincaid Grade level: 0:41, Reading Ease:100
This is a silly book of rhymes and repletion. It would be good for introducing phonics. Students could search
for and list all of the “at” words.
Adams, S. (2007). Eyewitness World War II. New York: DK Publishing.
Flesch- Kincaid Grade level: 9:90, Reading Ease: 56.45
As with most Eyewitness books, this is full of pictures and tidbits of information. I teach Elie Wiesel’s Night
to 10th graders and this book will help me teach World War II information. It also comes with a ClipArt CD and
a poster. Students could use the ClipArt to help them prepare a report.
Stolley, R. ed. Our Century in Pictures: For Young People. Boston: Little, Brown and Company.
Flesch- Kincaid Grade level: 10:71, Reading Ease: 57.78
As the title suggests, this book is a compilation of pictures and written descriptions of life in the 20th Century
(1900-1999). This is an excellent resource for that time period. The abundance of pictures is beneficial to the
ELL student. I would have many uses for this book. For example, I could use it for background for To Kill a
Mockingbird or The Great Gatsby.
Kunth, W. (2009). World Encyclopedia. New York: Blue Globe.
Flesch- Kincaid Grade level: 12:30, Reading Ease: 46.07
This book is an amazing resource of information about different places and cultures. I will use it to jump start a
research project on different countries and cultures represented by the faces of the people. The information
contained about these places goes beyond cold statistics to give information about their way of life. It contains
many beautiful pictures that ELLs will find interesting.
Dubner, S. (2007). The Boy With Two Belly Buttons. New York: Harper Collins Publishers.
Flesch- Kincaid Grade level: 4:32, Reading Ease:79.27
This book is about Solomon, a boy with two belly buttons. He never thought it was strange until his little sister
was born with only one. He thought something was wrong with his sister until his mother said, “One is the
right number of belly buttons.” So, Solomon tries to give his extra belly button away. Therefore the story is
about not wanting to be different. At the end, Solomon realizes he is special and draws a smile on his belly
underneath his belly buttons to create a smiley face. This is an excellent book for teaching theme and examining
individuality. It is helpful for ELLs because of the theme and easy readability.
A Bad Case of Stripes
Camilla woke up before the first day of school with a rainbow of stripes all over! She was very worried about
what kids would say about her at school, and she already was trying to hide the fact that she loves lima beans.
Of all things to love and she did not want anyone to know. The doctors ended up having her go to school the
second day, just as she predicted, the students made fun of her ever changing color. In the end, Camilla was
cured but only by being true to herself and eating her favorite dish!
This is an amazing story to let students know that being different is great, and that one should be true to
themselves. Worrying about what other students think should not matter to you as much as you being you,
regardless of the things you enjoy to do, eat, speak, or say. The text is supported by the pictures.
Readability 2.8
Shannon, D. (1998). A Bad Case of Stripes. Scholastic Inc. New York, New York.
Can you Say Peace?
Children want peace all over the world, and they say “peace” in their native language. This is a meaningful
story because it encourages the students’ interest in various languages. This book also encourages children to
be peaceful in everything that we do in the school, home, and everywhere. The pictures support the text and
give background information to culture with clothing and geographical backgrounds.
Readability 3.3
Katz, K. (N/A). Can You Say Peace? Scholastic Inc. New York, Toronto London Auckland, Sydney, Mexico
City, New Delhi, Hong Kong, Buenos Aires.
The Only One Club
Just before Christmas Jennifer’s class has the assignment to make decorations for the classroom. But there was
one student in the classroom that did not celebrate Christmas, that was Jennifer because she celebrated
Hanukah. That night she decided to make up a club called “The Only One Club”. The next day when she
arrived at school the students started to ask about her club, and they started to come up with ways that they were
the only one of something special. Jennifer later invites all of the students in the class to become part of her
club because they were all the only one of something, which made each one special. This text allows students
to look at themselves and pick out characteristics that are unique. The text is supported by the pictures.
Readability 4.8
Naliboff, J. (2004). The Only One Club. Flashlight Pree. Brooklyn, New York.
Nathan’s Wish: A Story about Cerebral Palsy
Nathan is a young boy with cerebral palsy, which has left him dependent on a wheelchair or walker to get
around. He enjoys Miss Sandy’s company and spending time at the raptor rehabilitation center that she runs.
This is where Nathan meets Fire, an owl, that has broken her wing. Fire so desperately wants to be free again,
though when the time comes for her release she cannot fly. Fire becomes depressed, though Nathan comes up
with a way to make her feel useful. The owl becomes a mother to orphans and enjoys her new life. This
inspires Nathan to not allow himself to sit around and feel sorry/useless at the center. Nathan begins to help
Miss Sandy.
This is meaningfully story because it highlights that despite your shortcomings; everyone is useful and can be
appreciated for what they can do. Even if something is difficult, it is important to not give up because there are
many ways to do different skills. The texted is supported by pictures.
Readability 6.1
Lears, L. (2005). Nathan’s Wish: A Story about Cerebral Palsy. Albert Whitman & Company. Morton Grove,
Illinois.
Horton Hatches the Egg
Horton is a faithful elephant that goes through many difficulties to keep the egg that was left with him safe.
Despite everyone making fun of him, Horton stays faithful 100%. Hunters find him and then sell him to the
circus. When all of the hard work of hatching the egg is over, Mayzie, the one whom needed a break, wants her
egg back, though there is a surprise. The hatchling looks like a small elephant with wings! In the end, the
circus lets Horton go and he was happy 100%. This message tells the students if you are faithful, in the end
you will be rewarded in some way. Perseverance pays off! The text is supported by pictures.
Readability 2.0
Seuss. (1940). Horton Hatches the Egg. Random House. New York.
Living Color
This fascinating colorful book is all about animals that survive in their environment. Each animal is special and
unique with its ability to live in dangerous surroundings. This booked is packed with information on how each
organism is amazing. This book is relevant because it talks about features that are exclusive to their survival.
At times people just feel like they need to survive and just make it through. This is a book that students can
relate to special characteristics that they may be the only individual, which possesses these traits. The pictures
support the text.
Readability 10.3
Jenkins, S. (2007). Living Color. Houghton Mifflin Company. New York, New York.
Stephanie’s Ponytail
Stephanie is the trend setter in her school with hairstyles, and all the other kids like to copy her, only after they
say that it is ugly. Diligently, she continues to try new things to make herself different, but nothing works
because they keep copying her. Finally, Stephanie out smarts the school by saying that she is going to shave her
head. Surprise the next day the only one with a nice ponytail is Stephanie!
This relates to ESOL students by letting them know that it is okay to be a trend setter and do not just follow the
crowd. Also, make sure that you do not just follow the crowd. Doing your own thing is vital to being special.
The text is supported by pictures.
Readability 4.8
Munsch, R. (1996). Stephanie’s Ponytail. Annick Press Ltd. Toronto, New York.
Testing Miss Malarkey
Miss Malarkey is stressing about the upcoming state testing, though is trying to play it off. Students notice all
of the grown-ups acting a bit strange because of “The Test,” which is coming soon. The principal, lunch lady,
Miss Malarkey, and even the janitor are a bit on edge. In the end though, the adults return to normal and the
students were rewarded for their hard work on “The Test.” This story can help the students by letting them
know, no matter how tough it gets, if they work hard there will be a reward. Plus, stressing out does not help
anyone and situations will always get better. Just take your time and do your best on the test (that’s all the
teachers ask of you)! The pictures support the text.
Readability 5.1
Finchler, J. (2000). Testing Miss Malarkey. Walker & Company. New York, New York.
Knokin’ on Wood: Starring Peg Leg Bates
Clayton was a young boy that lived in South Carolina that absolutely loved dancing and making rhythms,
though he hated to work in the fields. So he would always try to get out of the work and dance at the local
barbershop where he was paid for it. Clayton wanted to work in a cotton mill to get out of the fields, though
tragedy struck when his leg had to be amputated due to an accident at work. At first he was devastated, though
Clayton did not stay down for long because dancing was his passion. He ended up performing for all sorts of
crowd’s despite segregation. This inspiring story helps students see that no matter what obstacles are in their
way, if you work hard you can achieve! Always follow your dreams! The text is supported by pictures.
Readability 5.9
Barasch, L. (2004). Knokin’ on Wood: Starring Peg Leg Bates. Lee & Low Books Inc. New York.
The Crayon Box that Talked
A crayon box that was having disputes with each color not liking each other was evident to a little girl in a
store. She decided to buy the box of crayons and she went to work coloring a masterpiece. As the girl used the
crayons, they stood in amazement. Because now the crayons saw how they could come together to make a
wonderful piece of art and without each other this would not be possible. This story allows students to see that
everyone is important to a whole unit to make it truly special and amazing. Despite individual uniqueness,
when team work and cooperation are used outstanding things can happen. The text is supported by pictures.
Readability 5.9
DeRolf, S. (1997). The Crayon Box that Talked. Scholastic Inc. New York, New York.
Book Title and Author: A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon
APA Reference:
Shannon, David (1998). A Bad Case of Stripes. New York: Scholastic
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid reading level: 4.4
Book Summary: Camilla worries excessively about the opinion of other people. She loves lima beans but
refuses to eat them because she is afraid of what the other children at school think of her. After a series of
crises, where she breaks out in stripes, Camilla learns that it is best to just be yourself.
Usefulness to Elementary Setting: This is a wonderful book for building community in the classroom, while
fostering good self-esteem. Students can always relate to Camilla, because they also have worried about what
other people think at some point. Through A Bad Case of Stripes, students learn to appreciate one another’s
differences while embracing their own uniqueness.
Usefulness to ELLs: This book reaches across cultures and ethnicities to address a universal theme. Many
ELLs, like all students, are concerned with peer pressure and acceptance. This book provides a humorous story
that sheds light on a much deeper concern. ELLs will understand Camilla’s fears and be comforted by her
conclusions.
Book Title and Author: Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon by Patty Lovell
APA Reference:
Lovell, Patty (2001). Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid reading level: 2.6
Book Summary: Molly Lou Melon is small with buck teeth and a squeaky voice, but her grandmother tells her
to always be proud and stand tall. When Molly Lou starts a new school, a bully makes fun of everything about
her. Molly Lou’s self esteem ultimately wins everyone over, including the bully.
Usefulness to Elementary Setting: This book is terrific for character and community building. Students are
encouraged to view themselves in a positive light. They also gain strategies for coping with bullying, valuing
individual differences, and developing a positive self image.
Usefulness to ELLs: Molly Lou Melon deals with many issues that ELLs face each day. She has to attend a
new school where others do not understand her. She has left a caring home with a grandmother that supports
her. Molly Lou perseveres and gives ELLs the courage to display their talents as well.
Book Title and Author: Cheyenne Again by Eve Bunting
APA Reference:
Bunting, Eve (1995). Cheyenne Again. New York: Clarion Books
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid reading level: 1.9
Book Summary: In the 1880’s Young Bull is taken from his home and forced to attend a school created by
white men. He is forced to give up his traditional clothes, language, and heritage. Young Bull finds a way to
use his memories to remain Cheyenne on the inside.
Usefulness to Elementary Setting: This heartbreaking book gives students a realistic look at life following the
movement of Native Americans to reservations. This disgraceful period in our history is crucial for students to
understand so they will strive for tolerance and justice in the world.
Usefulness to ELLs: ELLs may be able to relate to Young Bull because they too are in a new and different
culture. Young Bull must speak English, and these young students are often expected to do the same. They are
being taught skills that may be valued in American culture, but may be of little benefit in their home countries.
Book Title and Author: My Best Friend by Mary Ann Rodman
APA Reference:
Rodman, Mary Ann (2005). My Best Friend. New York: Puffin
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid reading level: 3.3
Book Summary: Lily is going to be in first grade. She is spending lots of time at the pool during the summer,
and she wants Tamika to be her best friend. Tamika will be in second grade, and she thinks she is much too old
for Lily. Lily learns that sometimes your best friend is not the one you pick.
Usefulness to Elementary Setting: This book is great for helping students deal with the complex and often
painful world of developing friendships. It is useful for use at the beginning of the year to build community and
foster a sense of community within the classroom.
Usefulness to ELLs: The theme of this book is universal. All students crave friendships and suffer
disappointment when those relationships sometimes fail to develop. This book reminds all students that there is
a friend for everyone. They just have to be willing to accept the friendship being offered.
Book Title and Author: Those Shoes by Maribeth Boelts
APA Reference:
Boelts, Maribeth (2007). Those Shoes. Cambridge: Candlewick Press
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid reading level: 1.3
Book Summary: Jeremy wants some high top shoes that everyone at school seems to be wearing. He lives with
his grandmother, and they don’t have enough money for anything except snow boots. Jeremy finds some high
tops at the thrift store and buys them, but they are too small. Ultimately, Jeremy gives his high tops to a friend
in need of new shoes.
Usefulness to Elementary Setting: This book is useful for community building in the classroom. Through this
book, students develop empathy for others who may not have as much as themselves, while others realize they
are not the only children making sacrifices. The students learn that by giving, they are really receiving.
Usefulness to ELLs: All students must learn to distinguish between needs and wants. They must also develop a
sense of empathy for those less fortunate than themselves.
Book Title and Author: Faraway Home By Jane Kurtz
APA Reference:
Kurtz, Jane (2000). Faraway Home. New York: Harcourt
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid reading level: 4.5
Book Summary: Although Desta is Ethiopian, she has always lived in America. When her grandmother falls
ill, Desta’s father plans to return to Ethiopia. Desta is afraid her father will stay in Ethiopia. Through telling
stories of his homeland and sharing his love for his daughter, Desta’s father brings her closer to her heritage
while reassuring her that he will return to her and America.
Usefulness to Elementary Setting: This book is useful for studies on immigration and issues facing American
citizens from other countries. Children can easily relate to Desta’s anxiety surrounding her father’s departure,
while appreciating the vivid descriptions and eloquent language used to describe Ethiopia.
Usefulness to ELLs: Many ELLs can understand Desta’s anxiety surrounding her father’s return to Ethiopia,
since they may face similar circumstances. Her story may also encourage these students to seek more
information on their heritage.
Book Title and Author: Brother Eagle, Sister Sky
APA Reference: Jeffers, Susan (1991). Brother Eagle, Sister Sky. New York: Dial Books
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid reading level: 13.4
Book Summary: This book is based on Chief Seattle’s statement to the American Government when he was
forced to sign a treaty selling Native American lands to the United States. It is a heartbreaking, poignant, and
revealing message that provides insight into our need to preserve, honor, and respect that land and all its
inhabitants.
Usefulness to Elementary Setting: When studying Native American cultures, this book gives first hand insight
into Native American beliefs concerning the natural world. It is also a wonderful book for promoting
environmental awareness and stewardship.
Usefulness to ELLs: This culturally sensitive book allows ELLs to connect to the experiences the First
Americans. The message encourages ELLs to appreciate and respect the land they now call home.
Book Title and Author: So Far from the Sea
APA Reference: Bunting, Eve (1998). So Far from the Sea. New York: Clarion Books
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid reading level: 4.5
Book Summary: The Iwasaki family is visiting the area that was once the Manzabar War Relocation Camp
during World War II. This will be their final visit before moving from California to Massachusetts. The
family is saying a special goodbye to the children’s grandfather, who died at the camp. The parents help the
children come to terms with the shameful events of the past, while embracing a promising future.
Usefulness to Elementary Setting: This book would provide wonderful support for an in-depth study of
detention camps that were constructed during World War II to imprison American citizens of Japanese heritage.
The subject matter also provides compelling support for tolerance and justice in the world.
Usefulness to ELLs: ELLs can relate to the struggles of the Iwasaki family as they struggle for recognition and
acceptance as American citizens. The heartbreak experienced by the family, and the perseverance they show
will connect with many students.
Book Title and Author: Thank you, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco
APA Reference: Polacco, Patricia (1998). Thank you, Mr. Falker. New York: Putnam
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid reading level: 4.8
Book Summary: Trisha is so excited to start school and learn to read. When she begins school, however, she
cannot make sense of the letters and numbers. Trisha faces ridicule from classmates until fifth grade. That
year, Mr. Falker helps Trisha learn to read and changes her life forever. Little Trisha grows up to become
author Patricia Polacco.
Usefulness to Elementary Setting: This book is wonderful for building community and character in the
classroom. All students will gain valuable insight through exposure to this book. Students that struggle with
reading will be inspired by Trisha’s story. Those that may not understand students who struggle, will become
more tolerant and supportive.
Usefulness to ELLs: ELLs come to a new country where they are often far behind other children in their
classrooms. Trisha’s story is an inspiring message to these students that others struggle as well and that hope
exists.
Book Title and Author: The Other Side by Jacqueline Woodson
APA Reference: Woodson, Jacqueline (2001). The Other Side. New York: Putnam
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid reading level: 1.5
Book Summary: Clover wonders what is on the other side of the fence that separates the white and black
communities. One summer, Annie, a white girl, begins sitting on the fence. Eventually, Clover begins sitting
with her and others slowly join in. The girls conclude that one day the fence will be torn down.
Usefulness to Elementary Setting: This book provides a glimpse of life during segregation. It is beneficial for
sparking dialogue about injustice, tolerance, and equality.
Usefulness to ELLs: ELLs may also feel isolated from society. Through this book, they can gain the
confidence to “join others on the fence” and make America a better place.
Champions on the Bench:
The Cannon Street All-stars are playing in the state championship. They are the only African American team in
the tournament. The story is told through the eyes of the pitcher, Cleveland. The all white teams refused to
play the Cannon Street All-stars. The fans in the stands started to chant “let them play”. Cleveland felt as if
they had they’re own cheering section. The coach told the team that the all white teams can’t avoid playing
against the black teams forever. In October, the team watched Jackie Robinson’s Dodgers win the World
Series. During the last game, Jackie was injured, but still cheered for his white team-mates from the bench.
The story teaches the value of pulling for the team, even if some of them are not pulling for you.
Flesch Reading Ease- 85.5
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level- 4.1
The Gym Teacher from the Black Lagoon:
The school is getting a new gym teacher. All of the kids get a preconceived idea about how mean and rough he
will be. Once he arrives, the students realized he is a regular guy who just wants everyone to have fun.
The book teaches that notions about new people are usually wrong and can be worse than reality.
Flesch Reading Ease- 90.5
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level- 3.3
Across the Alley:
Abe and Willie are neighbors across the alleyway. Abe is Jewish, and Willie is black. They never play together
during the day, but talk across the alleyway at night. Willie teaches Abe to pitch and Abe taught Willie to play
the violin. The boy’s guardians get together and explain to them that “ignorance comes in as many colors as
talent”.
The book teaches the reader that people are not the same and everyone has special talents. You should accept
your own special talents, and be proud of your friends for who they are. It also teaches that you should choose
your friends based on compatibility and likeness, not on status, social background or color.
Flesch Reading Ease- 80.3 Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level- 5.9
The Big Field:
Hutch comes from a long line of great baseball players, but he is just a second baseman and his dad is “the”
short stop. The story deals with his feeling of anger for not being able to please his dad, because he is not
“good” enough to play short stop. The short stop on his legion team tells him all of the time how lucky he is
and he doesn’t understand why he doesn’t feel lucky.
In the end, the story teaches the reader that talent is not everything. Hutch always had support from his family
and friends who came to watch him play, while the short stop on his team never had anyone who cared enough
to come and watch him.
Flesch Reading Ease- 82.7
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level- 7.3
The Boy who saved Baseball:
The Dillontown baseball field is going to be torn down by new developers. The town leaders make a bet with
the developers: “If our team beats your team, we get to keep the field”. The young Hispanic boys find a way to
get the local legend to coach their team and save their field.
The book shows that by convincing the town to work together and help them, the boys soon realized that they
could do more than just play baseball
Flesch Reading Ease- 86.1
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level- 4.8
Comeback Kids-Hot Hand:
The story centered around a basketball coach and his son. The son is the star of the team and he loses focus
because of his parent’s divorce.
The reader learns how some children deal with divorce and the value of having somewhere to go when they are
having problems at home.
Flesch Reading Ease-97.2
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level-2.1
Comeback Kids-Two-Minute Drill:
This is a story of 2 friends. Scott Parry and Chris Conlan prove that the nerd and the quarterback can be best
friends. They work together to find a way to make the will to succeed stronger than natural ability.
The reader learns that we all have a special ability to do something that no one will ever forget.
Flesch Reading Ease-97.2
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level-2.1
Life, Love and the Pursuit of Free throws:
This is definitely a young girl’s book. The two girls are best friends that compete at everything. Each of their
strengths prove to be the other’s weakness.
The story allows the ready to explore healthy competition. Readers also realize that helping to improve a
friend’s weakness can make a friendship stronger.
Flesch Reading Ease-93.5
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level-2.5
Miracle on 49th Street:
This is a book about modern parenting. A professional basketball player meets his daughter for the first time on
her 12th birthday. The girl comes to live with him after her mom dies with cancer. They eventually come to
love one another and understand the meaning of family.
The reader learns that even famous people can be single parents and have the same problems that non-famous
single parents have.
Flesch Reading Ease-94.3
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level-2.5
Teammates
By: Peter Golenbock
This story is about the Negro baseball leagues and the racial challenges that two famous players faced during
this period of United States history and how these two players became friends despite the odds. The players
were Pee Wee Reese and Jackie Robinson. The Brooklyn Dodgers took a chance and were not afraid of the
racial changes that were taking place in the U.S. I would use this book to help demonstrate to ELL students
about how America is constantly changing and although many people do not agree with integration of ELL
students, there are others who will give the ELL students a chance just like the Dodgers gave Jackie Robinson a
chance. I would also use this book to teach students that America is called the Melting Pot and that we as a
nation are made up of people from various walks of life and that’s what makes living in America so grand.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 8.6
Golenbock, Peter. (1990). Teammates. New York, NY: Harcourt Brace & Company.
Ming Becomes an American
By: Janet Reed
In this story, a young girl, Ming, and her family are becoming American citizens. Although her family is
excited, Ming wonders if becoming an American citizen means that she and her family will have to surrender
their Chinese customs. In the end, Ming understands that just because she and her family are becoming U.S.
citizens, they can be proud of their heritage. This book is important for those students whose parents are
becoming American citizens or who have already become citizens. It helps ELL students to understand that just
because they may live in the United States, they can still be proud of their heritage. Since the setting of the
book is New York City, a teacher could also incorporate the Statue of Liberty and how Ellis Island was what
many immigrants of long ago saw on their entrance into America and the freedom the statue entail.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 4.6
Reed, Janet. (2004). Ming Becomes an American. Merrimack, NH: Options Publishing Inc.
My First American Friend
By: Sarunna Jin
The author of this book wrote this story when she was only eight years old. It details her life in China with her
grandparents until she was six years old and then her journey to America to reunite with her parents. Sarunna
begins first grade with no knowledge of the English language and her difficulty making friends since no one
understood her either. One day a girl in her class, Ali, came over and started playing with Sarunna. From that
day forward, she and Ali became best friends. When Sarunna went to second grade, her English improved and
she made even more friends. This book does a great job at showcasing the difficulties a young ELL student has
when he/she first beings school. This would be a great book to use when you see a student who is having
difficulty making friends. A teacher could easily incorporate this book into the curriculum with a lesson in
character education.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 4.8
Jin, Sarunna. (1996). My First American Friend. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Ira Says Goodbye
By: Bernard Waber
In this story, a young boy named Reggie is moving away from his best friend named Ira. At the beginning of
the story, Ira discovers that his best friend is moving away. Ira is very upset at the news. However, his friend
keeps telling Ira all of the fun things that he will able to do in his new city. Ira is upset to think that Reggie will
not miss him and their friendship when he leaves. But before Reggie moves, he breaks down and sobs at the
thought of not being with Ira every day. This story is very touching and sort of silly at the same time. Students
who just moved to the U.S. can really relate to this story since they themselves are having to leave their friends.
Teachers can use this book to show their ELL students that it is okay to be sad when they have to leave their
friends behind. It is a common feeling and let them know that things will be okay and they can make new
friends as well as keep in contact with their old friends.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 2.3
Waber, Bernard. (1988). Ira Says Goodbye. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Company.
First Day Jitters
By: Julie Danneberg
In this hilarious story, the reader thinks that a student, Sarah, is nervous about her first day of school. The book
goes through various scenarios that a new student may feel before their first day, such as not wanting to get up,
slumping down in the car, envisioning a mean looking class, etc. However, at the end of the story, readers are
surprised to find that Sarah is actually the teacher. This book does a great job at showcasing the fact that adults
get nervous about their first day in a new place just like kids. This book can ELL students to realize that their
move is not only hard and nerve-racking for the, but for their parents as well. The teacher can help a student to
realize that whatever problem they are facing in the new community; their parents are facing as well. A teacher
could even talk about his/her own experience on the morning of their first day of a new school year.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 2.8
Danneberg, Julie. (2000). First Day Jitters. Watertown, MA: Charlesbridge Publishing.
Wilfed Gordon McDonald Partridge
By: Mem Fox
In this delightful story, a young boy, Wilfred, befriends a neighbor who is 96 years old. Wilfred not only enjoys
Miss Nancy Alison Delacourt Cooper’s company, but he also likes the fact that she has four names just like
him! Wilfred overhears his parents talking about Miss Nancy losing her memory. Wilfred goes on a journey to
try and discover what a memory is and how he can help Miss Nancy find hers. At the end of the book, Wilfred
does indeed help Miss Nancy to remember her life and the things that were important to her. This book would
be a great way to help ELL students understand that it’s okay if they happen to forget or have trouble with some
parts of their new language. The teacher can then show the ELL student concrete examples of what they have
“forgotten” or misunderstood just as Wilfred did in the story. I would also use this story because I have had
ELL students in my class with three or four names and it would be fun to show them a book where the
characters also have many names. Sometimes students may feel self conscience because if they are the only
student with many names and reading this book may help the student feel more comfortable.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 4.3
Fox, Mem. (1985). Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge. La Jolla, CA: Viking Children’s Books.
Jack and the Beanstalk
By: Rochelle Larkin
Everyone loves this timeless tale of Jack and his mother who have very little money and turn out to be rich in
the end after Jack trades a cow for magic beans. When Jack comes home from town tell his mother about the
trade, she is angry with him and tosses the beans out the window. When Jack awakes the next morning, he
discovers a large beanstalk growing in the yard. Jack hurriedly climbs the beanstalk to discover a giant castle.
In short, Jack tricks the giant a couple of times and then when the giant chases Jack down the beanstalk, the
giant falls to his death. At the beginning of the story, Jack and his mother are very poor. Unfortunately, many
of the ELL students that I have taught can identify with this. Since ELL parents may have recently come to
America, chances are the family has very little money. Students may feel embarrassed about this fact. This
book could be used to teach children that just because their family may not have much money at this time,
things can (and probably will) change over time. Teachers may need to address this issue with students to help
them explore their feelings about their social status.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 2.1
Larkin, Rochelle. (1993). Jack and the Beanstalk. New York, NY: Creative Child Press.
Family Pictures
By: Carmen Lomas Garza
In this autobiographical picture book, the author reminisces about experiences she had with her family as a
child. Everything from making tamales and celebrating birthdays to finding hammerhead sharks on the beach.
Each page in the book tells a different story from the author’s life. Each page also details these events in
English as well as in Spanish. This would be a great book to use in s read aloud for classroom use. If you have
an ELL student, you could also have them to read the book as well. This book address all sorts of cultural
diverse issues ranging from what Mexican families eat for dinner to how they celebrate Christmas and their
interpretation of the Christmas story. This would be a great resource for a week long unit about Mexico and
their cultural traditions in comparison to our traditions as Americans.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 6.3
Garza, Carmen Lomas. (2005). Family Pictures. San Francisco, CA: Children’s Book Press.
The Story of Ruby Bridges
By: Robert Coles
In this true story, little six-year old Ruby Bridges faces racial challenges when she is the first African American
to enter into William Franz Elementary school in New Orleans. Ruby is able to overcome the obstacle of the
racism around her by other students as well as adults. It is unfortunate in today’s society, but Americans are
still racist towards others. Although today, much of the racism is directed toward ELLs, not just African
Americans. This book does a fantastic job at describing how a child feels when they are being criticized for
something that is beyond their control. Teachers can use this to remind ELL students to remain brave in the
face of danger and to show them all it takes is one person to make the difference in an entire classroom, school,
and community.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 3.3
Coles, Robert. (2004). The Story of Ruby Bridges. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.
Corduroy
By: Don Freeman
In this story, a little teddy bear, Corduroy, is sitting all alone a shelf at the department store. Corduroy is lonely
because he has no friends and no customer ever seems to want the little bear in green overalls because he was
missing a button. However, one day a girl named Lisa comes along and sees the little bear’s potential and
wants him in spite of his flaw. This is a great book to share with ELL students because they may sometimes
feel “flawed” because of the language barrier. They may also be left out with the other students because of this
barrier. However, just a Lisa did in the story, someone (a teacher or another student) will come along and see
the ELL student’s potential and become friends so the ELL will no longer feel inferior.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 7.5
Freeman, Don. (1968). Corduroy. New York, NY: Penguin Group.
Puppies For Sale:
This book is about a young boy who wants to buy a dog that he sees for sale in a storefront window. He
proceeds to ask how much the dogs are and figures out quickly that he does not have enough money. The young
boy sees a dog limping in the background and asks how much he would cost. The store owner quickly states
that he will always limp and be different. The boy wants to buy the limping dog and the owner states that he can
have him for free. The boy is upset at this and pays the owner $2.37 now and states he will pay the owner $.50 a
month until he has paid the total of $50.00. The boy feels that this limping puppy is just as good as any other
puppy for sale! As the young man walks out of the store with the limping puppy the owner notices a limp in the
young mans stride and shiny braces on his legs.
I believe this book will be great for ELL students because they also feel very different at times. Sometimes this
feeling of being different never goes away and they will have to learn to accept it, just like the boy and the
puppy did in the book.
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 5.5
APA Style Reference:
Clark, D. (1999). Puppies for sale (J. Dillingham, Illus.). Franklin, TN: Dalmatian Press.
Chrysanthemum
This book is about a young lady who believes her name is perfect while she is at home during her primary
years. Her name is Chrysanthemum. When she turns 5 she begins kindergarten. At school, the children pick on
her name stating that no one is named after a flower and her name is entirely too long to even fit on a sheet of
paper. When Chrysanthemum would return home each day she would go to her room and cry. The teacher, Mrs.
Twinkle, caught on the the teasing of Chrysanthemum's name and proceeds to tell the class her first name:
Delphinium Twinkle. All the children were now in awe of Chrysanthemum and Mrs. Twinkle's name and they
all want nicknames of flowers as well. Mrs. Twinkle is pregnant in the book and she names her little girl,
Chrysanthemum.
I believe this book will be great for ELL students because they will also get picked on for not knowing the
language being taught or having an accent or a different name, or coming from an entirely different culture.
They too might feel very sad/mad/angry/frustrated when they return home from school each day. I read this
book at the beginning of each year not only to teach differences in each other, but I also tie it into my children's
names. We count how many letters that are in our names to see if we have as many letters as Chrysanthemum.
Chrysanthemum has 13 letters and this past year I had a student with 11 letters in her name, she was so proud!
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 6.3
APA Style Reference:
Henkes, K. (1991). Chrysanthemum. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books.
Leo the Late Bloomer
This book is about a young boy (tiger) who can't read, write, speak, draw or eat properly. His dad is worried and
keeps watching for signs of blooming. The mom is not at all worried and tells the dad that he will bloom in his
own time. Leo's dad stops watching Leo. All the seasons come and go and Leo has not bloomed. One day, late
in Spring, Leo bloomed. He was so happy that he learned to read, write, speak, draw and eat properly. His
parents were so proud! Leo says at the end of the book, “I made it.”
I believe this book will be great for ELL students because it reminds me of how much time plays a factor in a
language learning role. All ELL's bloom in their own way with time. I also teach this book at the beginning of
the year to explain how all of my children bloom at different times.
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 5.2
APA Style Reference:
Kraus, R. (1971). Leo the late bloomer (J. Aruego, Illus.). New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.
The Kissing Hand
This story is about a little boy (raccoon) who does not want to go to school because he is afraid of leaving his
mom. His mom comes up with an old secret to tell her son. The secret is: His mom will kiss the inside of the
little boys hand and whenever he is scared, he is to put his hand to his heart and it will always remind him of his
mom. He loves it and decides to go to school that evening. But before he goes to school, he kisses his moms
palm and says it should always remind her of him! ♥
I believe this book will be great for ELL students because it reminds me of how sometimes they have separation
anxiety from their parents. They are truly out of their comfort zone in school where no one else speaks the same
language. I also teach this book at the beginning of the year to explain how all of my children can miss their
loved ones. We do a palm/heart activity to go along with the book. I feel this eases the transition into school.
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 1.4
APA Style Reference:
Penn, A. (1993). The kissing hand (R. Harper, N. Leak, Illus.). Washington, DC: Child Welfare League of
America, INC.
Ten Black Dots
This book is a counting book from the numbers 1-10. It teaches the children to recognize the numbers 1-10.
This book also has visual representations of the numbers 1-10.
I believe this book will be great for ELL students because it has a great visual representation of the numbers one
through ten. The children mimic the visual representations in this book in their own books that they create and
illustrate.
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 3.0
APA Style Reference:
Crews, D. (1968). Ten black dots. New York, NY: Scholastic.
One Hundred Hungry Ants
This book is a counting book from the numbers 1-100. It teaches the children to count from the number 1
through 100. This book also has visual representations of the numbers 1-100.
I believe this book will be great for ELL students because it has a great visual representation of the numbers one
through one hundred. The children mimic the visual representations in this book by acting, or illustrating, trying
to create the numbers 1-100. I also use this book for rhyming words. Each page has a set of rhyming words that
the children have to listen for.
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 4.7
APA Style Reference:
Pinczes, E. (1993). One hundred hungry ants (B. Mackain, Illus.). New York, NY: Scholastic.
Llama llama red pajama
This book is book that I use when I teach rhyming. Every other line in this book rhymes. It is good for the
children to hear a book that has frequent rhymes in order for them to catch onto the pattern.
I believe this book will be great for ELL students because it has a great visual representation of the rhymes
throughout the entire book. The picture word match is also very good.
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 8.4
APA Style Reference: Dewdney, A. (2005). Llama llama red pajama (A. Dewdney, Illus.). New York, NY: Penguin
Group.
Winter Poems
This book is a collection of poems. I teach from this book to introduce what poetry sounds, looks, and feels like.
The children love to listen to these poems. When they are ready to write their own, they have me re-read some
of these poems to get a better understanding of what they are supposed to do.
Readability Analysis: (There are many poems in this book. I chose the first one to analyze.) Flesch-Kincaid
Grade Level: 7.2
APA Style Reference:
Rogasky, B. (2005). Winter poems (T. Hyman, Illus.). New York, NY: Scholastic INC.
A life like mine, How children live around the world
This is a book that I frequently refer to in Social Studies. It has different children from all over the world that
live in different countries. This book is broken up into four categories: 1. Survival, 2. Development, 3.
Protection, 4. Participation. Each category has sub parts about how to live, survive, develop, and protect
themselves in their own country. The kids love to look at this book to see where they are from and how they
live there. They are fascinated on how different it is in the United States.
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 4.8
APA Style Reference:
A life like mine: how children live around the world. (2002). New York, NY: DK Publishing.
Look inside the Earth
This book is book that I use when I teach Earth Science. It shows detailed pictures of the outside and inside of
the earth. It is a very good representation of all the aspects of the earth surface, and the layers of the earth. The
children love to look at the pictures and captions in this book. We do several illustrations that go along with this
book as well as writing activities.
Readability Analysis: Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 2.1
APA Style Reference:
Look inside the earth. (1989). New York, NY, Grosset & Dunlap, Inc.
Bradby, M. (2000). Momma, Where Are You From? New York: Orchard Books.
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Ease: 84.61
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 4.36
Content Description with Reason: During our poetry unit, I teach an autobiographical poem called, “Where I’m
From” by George Ella Lyon. Students have a copy and make margin notes as I model them on the SmartBoard
so we can understand the poem. This children’s book is a great one to accompany the lesson because it gives the
view point of a different speaker. Students can easily see how the format of both the poem and the book are the
same but the ideas are quite different.
Ideas for working with ELLs: The end product of the lesson is for students to write their own poem, which can
be intimidating, especially for ELLs. I show a model of my poem, and I have my special services show her
poem as well; I asked her to write hers very “simply” so kids wouldn’t be overwhelmed. I also walk students
through brainstorming a list of memories they can use in their poem so that they can just put the items in the list
together to make a poem.
Burleigh, R. (2002). Pandora. Orlando, FL: Harcourt Books.
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Ease: 83.22
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 3.78
Content Description with Reason: I use this read-aloud to kick off our Greek literature section. Pandora is a
common allusion in our culture, so it also provides a segue for teaching allusion and showing how the Greek
myths are still alive in our own contemporary world. The story involves Pandora, who is surrounded by
anything she could want, but she is drawn to a box that she is forbidden to open. Eventually, curiosity gets the
best of her, and she releases evil and many bad things into the world.
Ideas for working with ELLs: Have students share the well-known stories from their own cultures. Pause during
the story to summarize. This would also be a good story for student to illustrate a scene from.
Cisneros, S. (1991). The House on Mango Street. New York: Vintage Books.
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Ease: 81.92
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 6.03
Content Description with Reason: This book is a series of short vignettes told through the eyes of a young
Hispanic girl as she comes of age in America. The best part is that you don’t have to read the whole book, so I
pull excerpts from this throughout the year. For example, when we read Juliet’s “What’s in a name” speech on
the balcony, we also read the excerpt where Esperanza talks about her name. Though the reading level is easy
and there is no linear plot to this book, it covers a lot of important themes that people from all cultures can
relate to: family, value of education, sense of home, poverty, abuse, and many more. There are connections
between this book and many, many core texts.
Ideas for working with ELLs: These vignettes are so short that you could read them aloud and then have
students practice their own reading out loud to a partner. They are also ready-made writing prompts. After
students read about Esperanza’s name, they can write about the history of their names and how they feel about
them; after they read about Esperanza’s neighborhood, they can write about the dynamics of their own.
Herbert, B. (1994, May 8). Romeo and Juliet in Bosnia. New York Times.
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Ease: 25.86
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 21.0
Content Description with Reason: This may be a surprising choice for this list because it’s a newspaper article
and because the reading level is so high. However, I included it because students enjoy reading about things that
are real. Many prefer nonfiction to fiction, and this is no exception with ELLs. Though the reading level is high,
with some teacher guidance, students really get into this article. It’s about two teenagers from cultural
backgrounds that hate each other; when they decide to run away together, they are shot down on a bridge.
Students are horrified by this because they realize that the teens, Admira and Bosko, could be anyone. It paves
the way for great discussion about conflicts between people of different races, religions, etc.
Ideas for working with ELLs: Because the readability grade level is so high, the teacher may want to edit the
text to take out some of the really difficult vocabulary and make the sentences shorter.
Kimmel, E.A. (2008). The McElderly Book of Greek Myths. New York: Simon and Shuster.
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Ease: 84.02
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 4.12
Content Description with Reason: This is a new book for me, but I plan to use it after I read Pandora to the
class. I’ve been looking for a book of short myths told very simply with easy-to-understand language, and this
one is perfect. There is a lot of value in knowing stories from many cultures, and the ancient Greeks stories have
impacted modern western stories.
Ideas for working with ELLs: I plan to have groups of students do reader’s theater with different myths. That
way they can work together to understand the story and act it out for the class.
Laden, N. (2005). Romeow and Drooliet. San Francisco: Chronicle Books.
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Ease: 90.30
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 2.73
Content Description with Reason: This book is a fun adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, but this
feud is between the Felini cat family and the Barker dog family. Believe it or not, my lower-level kids really get
into Romeo and Juliet. By the last week of the unit, we are all a little tired of it though, and I love to conclude
with this fun story. This leads to discussions about other types of feuds, and the final product is for kids to come
up with their own adaptation of Romeo and Juliet.
Ideas for working with ELLs: Make a comparison chart (Venn diagram, T-chart, etc) on the board to follow the
similarities between the two stories. Give students a very specific graphic organizer for planning their own
adaptation of the story.
Pulver, R. (2003). Punctuation Takes a Vacation. New York: Holiday House.
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Ease: 76.03
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 5.00
Content Description with Reason: I love this book because it makes punctuation fun while showing how
important it is. As for appealing to ELLs, I like how the students in this book are all different colors!
Ideas for working with ELLs: Even using this book at all is an adaptation for ELLs. It is not something I use
with my higher reading level kids. It may be helpful to review or take notes on the uses of the different
punctuation marks before reading so kids get the humor.
Santiago, E. (1993). When I Was Puerto Rican. Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press.
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Ease: 87.63
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 3.69
Content Description with Reason: This is powerful, beautifully written memoir of a girl’s childhood in Puerto
Rico and teenage years in New York. The reader follows her through bewilderment and discouragement to a
triumphant ending. We study the coming-of-age theme a lot in English 1, and it’s something that the students
are going through themselves. This is a great example of a non-traditional voice.
Ideas for working with ELLs: This is a book that we might not read in class but that I recommend to students. I
have a big bucket of recommendations in my brain that I like to pull from when I’m helping kids pick out books
in the library. Since this is a longer book, I would let an ELL use it for a couple of book clubs so they are not
completely overwhelmed with having to finish it in three weeks.
Steptoe, J. (1987). Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale. New York: Lothrop Books.
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Ease: 72.59
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 6.75
Content Description with Reason: One of my units is actually very much geared toward students from different
backgrounds. We read versions of Cinderella from different cultures, keep track of similarities/differences, and
write our own adaptation. (I only do this with my Transition Reading class.) This is the “loosest” version, but I
included it because it’s the only illustrated picture book I have. The others are just stories I print for them. Even
9th graders enjoy kicking back and listening to their teacher read them a kids’ book.
Ideas for working with ELLs: See if they know different Cinderella stories. Since I usually kick off the unit
with this story, I could do a pre-reading activity where you give students some key words, have students plug
the words into key story elements (plot, character, conflict, etc), and then write a sentence using the words that
predicts what the story will be about.
Tellez, H. (n.d.). Lather and Nothing Else. Retrieved August 3, 2010,
from http://www.plymouth.k12.wi.us/Staff%20Home%20Pages/High%20School/HS%20English/Cleary1/olden
gI/lather.pdf.
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Ease: 85.14
Flesh-Kincaid Readability Grade Level: 4.14
Content Description with Reason: For a story with almost no action, my kids get completely sucked into it! I
use it to teach internal conflict, and it truly is very suspenseful as you wait to see what will happen. Basically, a
Captain walks into a barber shop to get a shave. While the barber is shaving him he’s trying to decide if he
should kill the captain. In the end, the Captain reveals that he knew all along that the barber was from the
opposition. I use the four corners of the room to have students make predictions as we read and discuss why
they made that prediction. This also helps keep struggling readers up with what’s happening.
Ideas for working with ELLs: I have had a huge amount of success using this story with ELLs, mainly because I
have had several students from Colombia in my class. It’s a good idea to get them to go talk to their parents
about the revolution and come back to report what they said. It would be even better if a parent could come in
and talk to the class. The four corners activity I mentioned above is great for ELL’s.
The Story of Ruby Bridges by Robert Coles
The Story of Ruby Bridges is a short biography that outlines the challenges of a six year old girl who was the
first black child to attend an all-white elementary school in New Orleans. Although she met opposition from
parents who felt she should not be there, Ruby was escorted to and from school daily by federal marshals. She
was the only student in the school because the neighborhood families refused to send their children to school
with her. Ruby was determined to succeed and worked hard with her teacher in the otherwise empty classroom
to learn to read and write.
This book will be useful for my class to teach compassion, justice, diversity and acceptance. I feel that all of the
students, especially some of the ELL and African American students will be able to relate to the book regarding
being different from the majority of students.
Coles, R. (1995). The story of ruby bridges. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 3.0
Chester’s Way by Kevin Henkes
Chester’s Way is a story of best friends, Chester and Wilson, who shared everything and strongly influenced
each other’s decisions in most aspects of their lives. One wouldn’t play baseball, ride his bike, play in the snow,
or rake leaves without the other. Then Lilly moved into the neighborhood and had her own “different” way of
doing things. Chester and Wilson refused to invite her into their circle. They later befriended Lilly when she
rescued them from bullies while dressed in a frightening disguise. From that point on, they extended their view
of the world and tried “different” activities that Lilly liked doing. To Chester and Wilson’s surprise, they
actually enjoyed thinking outside the box and became more flexible with their actions.
This book lends itself well to teaching the importance of acceptance, teamwork, cooperation, and believing that
it is okay to be different. This book is excellent for reading at the beginning of the school year to encourage
cooperative learning and friendship. This book will be great for teaching ELLs and all other students to identify
the roles of being a follower, a leader, and a team player.
Henkes, K. (1988). Chester’s way. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 4.8
I Love You With All My Heart by Noris Kern
In the book, I Love You With All My Heart, Polo, the polar cub is advised by a friend to be careful as he
fished in the cold water so as not to get sick, causing worry to his mother who loved him with all her heart.
Puzzled by the statement, Polo seeks to understand how his mother could love him with all her heart. He goes to
each of his friends and asks in what ways their mothers love them. Each loved in a different manner; his
penguin friend’s mother loved him with all her wings as she cuddled him, his seal friend’s mother loved him
with all her flippers as she hugged him. As his friends look on, Polo’s mother explains all of the ways that she
loves him; with her fur, eyes, nose, paws, back, and with all her heart.
This heartwarming book may be used to teach cultural diversity, feelings, friendship, and even body parts with
young children and ELLs. It can also be used to teach literal and figurative language.
Kern, N. (1998). I love you with all my heart. CA: Chronicle Books.
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 4.0
Big Bad Wolf is Good by Simon Puttock
In this story, Big Bad Wolf is very sad because he has no friends. In attempt to make friends, he decides to
become a good wolf; however, his reputation precedes him. All of the farm animals take cover when he comes
around until the day that he finds and returns a lost duckling. Grateful, Mrs. Duck invites him in for tea and to
play with her ducklings. He then becomes known as Big Bad Wolf who is good.
This book addresses tenses (lots of past tense words), quotation marks, suffixes, counting, feelings, friendship,
manners, and onomatopoeia. It would be excellent for making comparisons on a pocket chart Venn diagram
between other fairy tales involving wolves. ELLs/LEPs and all students would find this book helpful for
modeling the differences in names for some adult and baby animals; goose-gosling, duck-duckling, etc.
Puttock, S. (2001). Big bad wolf is good. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 1.0
Move Over, Rover by Karen Beaumont
In this book, Rover’s doghouse is invaded by various farm animals seeking shelter as a storm sets in. The
doghouse quickly clears out when a strange odor is detected. As a skunk makes his way into the house, the other
animals leave to find another warm place to sleep during the storm.
This book has an exclamation mark on all but about two pages. It would be an excellent way to model telling,
asking, and excitement sentences for all students, particularly ELLs/LEPs, who might not understand voice
inflection and tone. This book allows ELLs to build background knowledge of the connotations of skunks, in
the past many of my students have been unfamiliar with this animal. There are also many rhyming words and
contractions. For all students, this book would also be good for making predictions and creating a new ending
for the story. It also lends itself well for making comparisons to books such as The Mitten (by Jan Brett) or The
Napping House (by Audrey Wood).
Beaumont, K. (2006). Move over, rover. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 1.8
Wonderful Worms by Linda Glaser
The book, Wonderful Worms, builds background knowledge and encourages appreciation for earthworms, the
underground gardeners. It uses numerous adjectives to describe how worms look, move, dig burrows, and help
plants to flourish.
Wonderful Worms is an excellent book for integrating science and literacy. It lends itself as a resource to the
science units of study of plants, natural resources, recycling and composting. The book also features several
examples of concepts of print; it is a nonfiction story, has a table of contents, a photo essay, and a related poem.
The simple illustrations and short, but informative text, make it interesting and appealing for ELLs/LEPs and all
students. This book is great to use before actually introducing live earthworms to the students for observations
and data recordings with soil and plant lessons.
Glaser, L. (1996). Wonderful Worms. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Co.
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 2.6
Moon Rope, Un lazo a la luna by Lois Ehlert
Moon Rope, Un lazo a la luna is an interesting book because it is written in both, English and in Spanish. It is
an adaptation of a Peruvian folktale of Fox, who wants to go to the moon, and convinces Mole to come along
for the big juicy worms. Their bird friends help them by making a rope woven from grass that will be used to
climb to the moon.
This book would be good to use for an author’s study of Lois Ehlert. Former students have always been
attracted to our classroom library’s collection of books written by Ehlert. I think that will continue to be the case
for ELLs and all students next year because both languages are supported. Comparisons may be made with
familiar words. Because my students will be required to learn Spanish next year, I feel that this book can be
used for independent, shared reading, and buddy reading. Also, because this story is open-ended, all students
can make predictions about what happened at the end of the story, and write a new ending. Phases of the moon
and animal habitats may also be integrated with this book.
Ehlert, L. (1992). Moon rope, Unlazo a la luna. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Publications.
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 0.5
Five Little Sharks Swimming in the Sea by Steve Metzger
Five Little Sharks Swimming in the Sea is a counting book. On each page, the number of sharks decreases by
one until at the end of the story when all swim together. The theme of this book is similar to that of Five Little
Monkeys Jumping on the Bed.
This book will be beneficial when introducing subtraction, addition and/or fact families to my first grade
students. It will be especially helpful to ELLs/LEPs and all students to be able to determine that the number of
sharks decrease by one on each page. After reading the book and subtracting sharks, students can then practice
the inverse operation of adding. This book will also be good to use for teaching number words. I often use the
accompanying big book for whole group chorale reading. ELLs/LEP’s might find this book helpful when as a
finger play to grasp concepts; also an excellent way to reach visual, auditory and kinesthetic learners.
Metzger, S. (2004). Five little sharks swimming in the sea. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 3.4
Hello Ocean, Hola Mar by Pam Munoz Ryan
This book is written in both English and Spanish. It has brightly colored realistic illustrations of a young girl’s
adventures and discoveries of the ocean using her five senses. Numerous adjectives are used to describe the
scenery in a poetic manner.
This book will be used to introduce and reinforce the five senses, rhyming words, color words, and landforms.
ELLs/LEPs will benefit and understand the story line better because of the illustrations, as well as being able to
compare familiar English and Spanish words.
Ryan, P. M. (2003). Hello ocean, hola mar. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 3.8
A Color of His Own by Leo Lionni
In this classic book, A Color of His Own, a chameleon observed all of the wonderful colors of other animals
and wished to find a color of his own. He climbed on a leaf and changed to several colors as the leaves changed
colors with the seasons. He later met a wise older chameleon who told him that he would never have a color of
his own. The two of them decided to stay together so that they would always be alike. They became the best of
friends and lived happily ever after.
This book is excellent for extending background knowledge for ELLs/LEPs and all students who might not be
familiar with characteristics of chameleons. A Color of His Own can also be used to teach acceptance of one’s
self and others. It is also good to use as a read-aloud for teaching or reviewing color words and for making
comparisons; between animals and/or fairy tales that end, ‘happily ever after’.
Lionni, L. (1975). A Color of His Own. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 3.0
Beautiful Warrior, The Legend of the Nun’s Kung Fu by Emily Arnold McCully
This story tells the tale of a young Chinese girl’s battle with local bullies which leads her to seek shelter in a
Shaolin Monastery, where Buddhist monks had practiced kung fu for over a thousand years. The young girl’s
name was Jingyong and she lived during the Ming Dynasty with a loving, progressive family. When the
Manchu warriors swept down and conquered the Forbidden City, Jingyong was separated from her family and
had to live on her own. Learning much about kungfu from the Buddhist monks, Jingyong soon gained their
respect and was allowed to become one of them. She then became known as Wu Mei, meaning beautiful
warrior. She became legendary and befriended another young girl, Mingyi, who needed her help in warding off
an offensive suitor. The rest of the story tells about Wu Mei’s tutoring Mingyi and their ensuing friendship.
English language learners can appreciate the struggles both girls go through in achieving their goals and also
learn about Chinese cultural from this beautifully illustrated book.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—77.1; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—6.1
McCully, E.A. (1998). Beautiful Warrior, The Legend of the Nun’s Kung Fu. New York, New York. Scholastic
Press.
Brother Eagle, Sister Sky by Susan Jeffers, Illustrator
Brother Eagle, Sister Sky is a beautifully illustrated picture book which recants the words of the Susquamish
Indian chief, Chief Seattle. The chief is about to sign a treaty with Washington, DC which allows the
government to buy the lands from the Native Americans of his tribe. The chief gives a speech which wisely
questions how anyone can sell the sky, the streams, the wildlife, etc. Taking place well over one hundred years
ago, Chief Seattle’s poetic speech points out the many environmental issues which will arise with the take-over
of his lands by settlers who may not be as wise as his tribesmen in preserving the land.
ELL students will truly enjoy the gorgeous artwork of Susan Jeffers. She has captured nature at its best. Chief
Seattle’s speech commands the reader’s attention and makes us think of the many environmental issues that we
face today. How wise he was in predicting the many problems that our current world might face. Students will
recognize the wisdom of his gripping speech.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—50.0; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—14.1
Jeffers, S., Illustrator. (1991). Brother Eagle, Sister Sky. New York. Dial Books.
Dream Peddler by Gail E. Haley
This is a charming story of a poor peddler who must travel far from his home to London to realize his dreams.
It is a beautifully illustrated story which depicts life in England during the eighteenth century.
English language learners will gain insight into life in England during this time period from this beautifully
illustrated book. They can identify with the struggles that the peddler, John Chapman, goes through as well as
appreciate the tenacity it takes for Chapman to achieve his goals and save his family from poverty.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—82.1; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—4.3
Haley, G.E. (1993). Dream Peddler. New York, New York. Dutton Children’s Books.
Erandi’s Braids by Antonio Hernandez Madrigal and Tomie dePaola, Illustrator
Erandi comes from a poor Mexican family who lives in a poor Mexican village. The family goes through many
trials and tribulations due to their poverty. They earn their living by fishing and desperately need a new fishing
net since theirs is beyond repair. Erandi surprises her family by selling her beautiful hair in order to earn money
for the much-needed fishing net.
This delightful story will capture the hearts of the ELL student. They will be able to identify with and
appreciate Erandi’s sacrifice as well as learn about Mexican culture and the value of family.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—82.5; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—4.3
Madrigal, A.H., dePaola, T., Illus. (1999). New York, New York. G.P Putnam’s Sons.
Heidi by Johanna Spyri and Maja Dusikova, Illustrator
Heidi is the charming story of a young girl who loses her parents and lives with her Aunt Dete. When her aunt
can no longer support Heidi, she takes her up the mountain, high in the Swiss Alps to live with her grandfather.
This delightful tale shows how Heidi manages to capture the hearts of all who come into contact with her.
ELL students will come to love Heidi, too, as they read about her generosity of spirit and friendship. They will
learn about Swiss and German culture and appreciate the lovely pictures throughout the book.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—80.1; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—7.2
Spyri, J., Dusikova, M., Illus. (2009). Heidi. New York. North South Books, Inc.
Once a Mouse… by Marcia Brown
Once a Mouse is an intriguing Indian fable about an old man who befriends a small mouse and uses magic to
help the creature save himself from bigger, stronger predators.
ELL students will enjoy the moral of the story as well as learn Indian culture and folklore. There are few words
in the story so a struggling reader will be able to understand most of the book through the pictures and simple
words.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—80.8; Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level—5.8
Brown, M. (1961). Once a Mouse. New York. Charles Scribner’s Sons.
Saturday Sancocho by Leyla Torres
This delightful tale depicts a young Mexican girl who enjoys spending her Saturdays with her grandparents
making chicken sancocho. One Saturday, the grandmother is lacking ingredients for the savory stew. She takes
her only resource, eggs, to the market and shows her granddaughter how to barter and trade to get the needed
ingredients for her recipe.
English language learners will appreciate the cunning used by the grandmother to get what she wants and needs.
They will also enjoy the simple story as well as the recipe for Mama Ana’s Chicken Sancocho found at the end
of the story.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—52.3; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—9.5
Torres, L. (1995). Saturday Sancocho. New York. Farrar Straus Giroux.
Selvakumar Knew Better by Virginia Kroll and Xiaojun Li, Illustrator
Selvakumar Knew Better is a work of fiction based on a true story that happened in a South Indian Village
during the tsumami of 2004. It is a gripping tale of a faithful pet dog who saves the life of his young master
through his doggie intuition. The dog Selvakumar instinctively knows that he must make the young boy flee his
home and head to higher ground.
ELL student will enjoy this heart-rending story of the love shared between a dog and his master. They will gain
knowledge about the devastation of the 2004 tsunami and the strength these people used to overcome this
dreadful disaster.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—73.2; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—5.8
Kroll, V., Xiaojun, L., Illus. (2006). Selvakumar Knew Better. ISBN-13:978-885008-29-9.
Sumi’s First Day of School Ever by Soyung Pak and Joung Un Kim, Illustrator
Sumi’s First Day of School Ever is a thoughtful picture book about a young Korean girl who goes to school on
the first day in a strange, new place where the only thing she can say is her name. She feels lost, alone, and
scared but manages to make it through the day with the kind help from her teacher who makes sure she is not
left alone to fend for herself.
ELL students can easily identify with Sumi’s situation and can appreciate the trials of her first day in school .
They can learn the value of kindness and the importance of friendship in this easy to read and colorfully
illustrated book.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—90.0; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—3.0
Pak, S., Kim, J.U., Illus. (2003). Sumi’s First Day of School Ever. New York, New York. Viking Press.
Thunder Cake by Patricia Polacco
This delightful story is set in Michigan and depicts the life of a young girl living with her Russian grandmother
as they encounter a severe thunderstorm. The grandmother must help calm and give strength to her
granddaughter and does so by telling her that the storm is necessary to help her make her thunder cake. This
cleverly takes the child’s mind off of the scary situation.
ELL students will appreciate the cleverness of the grandmother in comforting her granddaughter. They will
understand the child’s qualms about the storm and identify with her fears. They will also enjoy the surprise
Thunder Cake recipe at the end of the story.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—84-7; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—4.9
Polacco, P. (1990). Thunder Cake. New York, New York. The Putnam and Grosset Group.
Tiger by Judy Allen and Tudor Humphries, Illustrator
Tiger is an endearing story about a Chinese village that fears the attack of a ferocious tiger. The villagers want
the tiger destroyed. Only the boy Young Lee cares about the life of the tiger. When a stranger comes into town
who promises to hunt the tiger down, the villagers are excited. Little do they know, this man is no ordinary
hunter. He hunts with a camera, rather than a gun.
ELL students will become excited about the outcome of this story. Its ending is unexpected and they will
delight in the fact that the tiger, an endangered species, is spared.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—82.2; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—5.7
Allen, J., Humphries, T., Illus. (1992). Tiger. Cambridge, Massachusetts. Candlewick Press.
Romiette and Julio by Sharon M. Draper
Romiette and Julio is a novel which bases many of its characters and story line on Shakespeare’s famous play,
Romeo and Juliette. These characters are, however, modern day teenagers living in a world filled with
prejudices and complications. Romiette is a beautiful African American girl who meets and falls immediately
in love with Julio who is Hispanic. These lovers are “star-crossed” as were Romeo and Juliet; they must figure
out how to thwart the efforts of a very prejudiced gang who wished to bully them into conforming to their
wishes. Luckily, their plight does not end as tragically as the original play.
English language learners will appreciate the lengths the two teenagers go through to live a normal life without
the interference of a prejudiced teenage gang. They can identify with the obstacles these two young people
must go through just to be together as a couple.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—85.4; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—4.2
Draper, S.M. (1999). Romiette and Julio. New York, New York. Aladdin Paperbacks.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
This timeless classic novel depicts life in the rural South during the early part of the twentieth century. Its
charming young characters Scout, Jem, and Dill witness firsthand some of the prejudices that African
Americans experienced during this time period. Atticus Finch, father of Scout and Jem, and a progressive man
for his time, is in the process of defending a black man who has been accused of raping a young impoverished
white woman of questionable character. His children grow to admire his courage and determination to follow
his instincts and beliefs. Atticus’s conviction is so strong that even the bigots are moved. Amidst the racism and
rough language, all who understand this novel are lifted.
English language learners can learn much about the Civil Rights of African Americans during the nineteen
thirties. They can recognize the progress that America has made in equalizing injustices in our country. Even
though the language is offensive, students can recognize the merit of understanding the vernacular of the time.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—84.0; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—5.7
Lee, H. (1960). To Kill a Mockingbird. New York, New York. Grand Central Publishing.
“Unanana and the Elephant” retold by Kathleen Arnott from Hey! Listen to This edited by Jim Trelease
This fairy tale, “Unanana and the Elephant” is an African tale which depicts a courageous mother saving the
lives of her young children. Her two beautiful children are the envy of four different animals: a baboon, a
gazelle, a leopard, and a one-tusked elephant. The elephant is sly enough to trick the youngsters into its mouth
and the mother, Unanana must go rescue her two children. She does so and also releases many other animals
and people, living in the belly of the elephant, thereby becoming the heroine of the village.
English language learners will appreciate the cleverness of the mother in tricking the animals into helping her
capture her children. They will enjoy the heroic antics of the female of the story.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—59.5; Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level—11.6
Arnott, K. (1992). Unanana and the elephant. In J. Trelease, (Ed.), Hey! listen to this (pp.129-134). New
York, New York. Penguin Books.
“Brer Rabbit Gets Even” from “The Tales of Uncle Remus” retold by Juius Lesiter in Hey! Listen to This
edited by Jim Trelease
This famous tale from African slaves tells of the ingenious ploys of a rabbit who “outfoxes” a fox and a
buzzard. Both were too proud to admit their wrongdoing in the escape of the rabbit, thereby proving that they
had, indeed, been outwitted by one who was considered of lesser intelligence.
ELL students can enjoy the outcome of the story where the underdog has outwitted his intellectual superiors.
They will find his story both amusing as well as intriguing.
Readability Level: Flesch Reading Ease—85.7; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—5.9
Lester, J. (1992). The tales of uncle remus. In J. Trelease, (Ed.), Hey! listen to this (pp.135-142). New
New York. Penguin Books.
York,
“The Indian Cinderella” retold by Cyrus Macmillan in Hey! Listen to This edited by Jim Trelease
This different version of the classical tale “Cinderella” is an American Indian tale where the “ugly duckling”
wins the love of the “handsome prince.” In the “Indian Cinderella” the prince (Strong Wind) uses a trick to test
the truthfulness of the maidens who seek his hand in marriage. Only the humble youngest daughter, )whose
face has been scared and who is forced by her older sisters to dress in rags, is able to truthfully answer the
questions presented by the handsome prince. Her sincerity wins his devotion.
Ell students will recognize this world-wide familiar tale and can enjoy the outcome of the story which teaches
us that “honesty is truly the best policy.”
Readability Level—Flesch Reading Ease—81.7; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—5.1
Macmillan, C. (1992) The Indian Cinderella. In J. Trelease, (Ed.), Hey! listen to this (pp.143-147). New
York. Penguin Books.
York, New
“Shen of the Sea” retold by Arthur Bowie Chrisman in Hey! Listen to This edited by Jim Trelease
The Chinese story “Shen of the Sea” is a legend which explains the invention of the printing press. The father
Ching Chi is an excellent wood carver who has a most defiant son Ah Mee who refused to do as he was told.
The impudent son threw his father’s glorious woodcarvings through the window and out the door thereby
hitting (and gaining the attention of) the king. Ching Chi wins the admiration of the king and becomes
employed by him. His job is to produce his exquisite carvings. His son, Ah Mee, who continues to be
disobedient, smears jam on the beautiful carvings and throws them upon the wall. This results in impressions
on the wall which in turn results in the invention of a crude printing press.
English language learners will gain valuable information that explains Chinese customs and culture. They will
enjoy the story of the father and his strong will in sticking to what he knows how to do best. They will laugh at
the antics of the son and delight in the outcome of his misdeeds.
Readability Level—Flesch Reading Ease—83.5; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—4.3
Chrisman, A.B. (1992). Shen of the sea. In J. Trelease, (Ed.), Hey! listen to this (pp.148-156). New
New York. Penguin Books.
York,
“The Emperor’s New Clothes” retold from Hans Christian Anderson
This classic tale which had both Jewish and Arabic roots shows the folly of a great emperor whose pride allows
him to take the word of swindlers who only want to better themselves by lying to him. These con-artists pose as
famous sewers who promise to make the emperor the most glorious clothing ever. The deception of the
swindlers is so evident that even a small child notices the folly of the emperor’s nakedness and points it out to
the crowd around him. The crowd is so shallow that they wish to impress the emperor by agreeing with him
and proclaiming that his new clothing is, indeed, extraordinary.
ELL students will laugh at the folly of the emperor and his followers. They will learn a valuable lesson about
truth and vanity.
Readability Level—Flesch Reading Ease—74.2; Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level—8.0
Anderson, HC. (1992). The emperor’s new clothes. In J. Trelease, (Ed.), Hey! listen to this (pp.157-165). New
York, New York. Penguin Books.
“The Search for the Magic Lake” retold by Genevieve Barlow from Hey! Listen to This edited by Jim Trelease
This tale from the Inca empire of South America shows the importance of a father’s love for his son. The
young boy was extremely ill and his father worried that when he died, he would not have a successor. The
emperor was desperate for a cure for his son. The sons of a poor farmer were desperate too. They needed food
and money to help their family survive. They concocted a story about magic water which would heal the
emperor’s son. When their deception was discovered, they were ordered to jail. It is up to the youngest
daughter to save the brothers and the reputation of the family which she does.
ELL students will enjoy the twist to the story which allows for the female to be the heroine of the story. They
will learn the value of telling the truth at all costs.
Readability Level—Flesch Reading Ease—86.2; Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level—5.9
Barlow, G. (1992). The Search for the Magic Lake. In J. Trelease, (Ed.), Hey! listen to this (pp.166-174). New
York, New York. Penguin Books.
“The Magic Thread” from Hey! Listen to This edited by Jim Trelease
This classic French tale has no known author and has probably been handed down from many storytellers over
the years. It is truly a story about wishing your life away as humans are wont to do. Peter was a young lad who
was constantly dreaming about what he would do with his life. He wanted nothing more than to be at a place in
his future where he felt his dreams would come true. It is truly a story about wishing your life away as humans
are wont to do. Peter was a young lad who was constantly dreaming about what he would do with his life. He
wanted nothing more than to be at a place in his future where he felt his dreams would come true. When he met
an old woman in the forest who promised to help him fulfill his wishes, he was delighted to take a gift from her.
It was a ball of string which contained magic thread which would allow Peter to take a tug and make his future
speed up to a place in time which suited him. We are devastated by the outcome of poor Peter’s shortening of
his life but are delighted in the surprise ending which shows it all to be merely a dream.
English language learners will be relieved with the outcome of this story and will be able to identify with the
idea of speeding life along to a better place. They will learn a valuable lesson from Peter’s recklessness and
will be able to appreciate the relief in the happy ending.
Readability Level—Flesch Reading Ease—88.9; Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level—3.5
The magic thread. (1992). In J. Trelease, (Ed.), Hey! listen to this (pp. 175-182). New York, New York.
Penguin Books.
Yashima, T. (1955) . Crow boy. New York, NY: Penguin.
This book describes how a Japanese boy is ostracized by his classmates when he starts to school. Luckily, a
kind teacher befriends him in the 6th grade and he becomes respected by his classmates. His talent of
mimicking crows wins the admiration of his classmates in the end of the story. This story would be useful for
ELL’s because they may feel disregarded when forced into a completely new culture. This story would be
useful for other students to teach them empathy for children who seem different.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease-89.5
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level-3.2
Polacco, P. (1988) . The keeping quilt. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.
This book describes how a quilt is passed down in a family from one generation to another. The story begins
with the great-grandmother coming to America from Russia bringing her babushka (blanket) with her. At the
end of the story a baby is wrapped in a quilt made from the babushka. This story would benefit ELL’s because
it mentions how the young girl had trouble understanding English at first. Other children in the classroom
would benefit from hearing this story by remembering things from there childhood that have been passed down
to them from their grandparents.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease-65.9
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level-8.4
Andrews-Goebel, N. (2002) . The pot that Juan built. New York, NY: Lee and Low.
This story is written in the pattern of The House That Jack Built. In this story Juan makes beautiful pots using
paints and clay. The author describes in detail the processes Juan uses to make these magnificent pots. This
story would be useful for ELL students who are of Mexican ancestry because it would give them a since of
pride in their heritage. Other students would also benefit from hearing this story because they could learn about
the processes involved in making pots.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease-93.4
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level-4.3
Isadora, R. (2010) . Say hello. New York, NY: The Penguin Group.
In this story the little girl Carlitta meets many friends of different languages and cultures. Carlitta says hello in
Arabic, French, Spanish, Italian, and Japanese. This story would help ELL students to feel welcome at the
beginning of the year. It could be used for the whole class at the beginning of the year to encourage friendships
with people of different cultures.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease- 58.3
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level- 6.6
Rumford, J. (2008) . Silent music. New York, NY: Roaring Book Press.
This is a story about a little boy named Ali who lives in Baghdad. He enjoys things that all boys like and
especially calligraphy. His love for calligraphy keeps his mind off the war that is happening all around him. Ell
students could relate to this story because it describes how writing can be used to calm your nerves when you
are afraid. This could especially be useful for Ell’s that come from war torn countries. In the classroom teachers
could use this story to describe different cultures.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease- 82.0
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level- 3.9
Stock, C. (1993) . Where are you going manyoni?. New York, NY: William Morrow and Company.
This story is about a young African girl’s walk to school and the animals she meets along the way. Some ELL
students would relate to walking to school. Teachers could use this story at the beginning of the year when they
teach about school activities. This book would also be good to refer to when learning about different cultures
and how people are alike and different.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease- 82.9
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level- 3.3
Lewis, R. (2007) . Every year on your birthday. New York, NY: Little Brown and Company.
This is a poignant story of an adopted Chinese girl and her mother’s thoughts as she has a birthday each year.
Ell students would relate to this book because they have also been removed from their native land. Teachers
could use this story to teach about families formed through adoption. Children who are adopted would
definitely benefit from this story.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease- 84.8
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level- 6.6
Onyefulu, I. (1997) . Chidi only likes blue an African book of colors. New York, NY: Cobblehill.
This is a book about the colors in the African environment. The little boy in the story has a favorite color
which is blue. Several symbols and items of importance are described through colors in the book. ELL students
and other students would learn colors from listening to this story. Teachers can use this story at the beginning
of the year when students are learning their colors.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease- 82.0
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level- 4.1
Mosel, A. (1968) . Tikki tikki tembo. New York, NY: Henry Holt and Company.
This is a story about two brothers in China one with a short name and one with a long name. When the brother
with the long name falls into the well, the other brother finds it hard to get help for him because of his long
name. ELL students would relate to this story because some of them have names which may be long or strange
sounding to Americans. Teachers can read this story at the beginning of the year when students learn the names
of people in the classroom.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease-78.7
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level- 7.3
Katz, K. (2007). My first Ramadan. New York, NY: Henry Holt and Company.
This story discusses the Muslim holy month of Ramadan through the eyes of a little boy. This book explains
the customs and family events associated with Ramadan. Teachers can use this story when they teach
celebrations around the world. ELL’s who are Muslim would be glad to be represented in this book. They
could go into further explanation into their beliefs as Muslims.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Ease- 89.2
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Grade Level- 3.1
How Tia Lola Came to (visit) Stay
In this story a young boy struggles to accept his Dominican heritage while living in a predominately white town
in Vermont. All of this is occurring in the midst of his parents’ divorce and his subsequent move to this town.
To make matters worse his mother has invited his flamboyant Tia (aunt) Lola to visit. Will he be able to accept
his culture and be able to fit in and make new friends?
I think that many ELL students are able to relate to the feelings that this young boy feels. They feel different
from the other students and are trying to fit in with both their native culture and their new culture. They may
often feel lonely or embarrassed about their differences. This story shows them that they do not need to be
afraid of their differences and that they will be able to find people who like them.
Alvarez, Julia. (2002). How Tia Lola came to (visit) stay. New York, NY: Yearling
Reading Level: 5.1
Red Scarf Girl: a Memoir of the Cultural Revolution
This is a non-fiction story written by Ji-Li Jiang about her life as a child during China’s Cultural Revolution. In
this story you see her struggle between loyalty to her country and its regime and her family. In the book she
goes from being popular and well liked by her peers to being shunned. She must decide if being a loyal member
of her family conflicts with being a good Chinese girl during Mao’s Cultural Revolution and which is more
important.
Ji-Li’s struggle to decide between her family and her country parallels the struggle that some ELL students
might feel when torn between their family and their home culture and trying to fit in to their new environment.
Some students may feel pressured to forget their old culture and assimilate entirely into the new one. Through
reading this book students will see that it does not just happen to them and they will learn some aspects of
Chinese culture and history at the same time. I could draw attention to the historical and cultural aspects by
using images from my image collection to add a visual to the story they are reading which would help all my
students but especially ELLs.
Jiang, Ji-Li. (1997). Red scarf girl: a memoir of the Cultural Revolution. New York, NY: Harper Collins
Publishers
Reading Level: 5.6
The Story of Ferdinand
Ferdinand is a young bull in Spain. He is very different from the other bulls. Rather than fight and butt heads
with the other bulls, Ferdinand prefers to sit alone under a tree and smell the flowers. One day he is taken away
by some men to fight in the bull fights in Madrid. But, Ferdinand does not like to fight and after he refuses to
fight he sent back home and he continues to sit under his tree and smell the flowers.
This story shows children that it is alright to be different. Through this story they can see that one can be
perfectly happy being themselves. They also learn some aspects of Spanish culture when they read about the
bullfights and the matadors.
Leaf, Munro. (1966). The story of Ferdinand. The Viking Press Publishers
Reading Level: 4.6
Doña Flor: A Tall Tale about a Giant Woman with a Big Heart
Doña Flor is a giant woman. When she is younger she is made fun of because she is so large and because she
talks to animals. Eventually the town grows to love her and she becomes their hero after she solves the problem
of the puma near their village.
This story is an example of a tall tale from a Spanish background. This can be used in a unit of study about tall
tales and students can compare tall tales from different origins/cultures. Spanish ELLs will enjoy this story
because they can recognize their culture/language within the story. This story also shows how being different
can be helpful and that it is important to accept all people regardless of how different they appear.
Mora, Pat. (2005). Doña Flor: A tall tale about a giant woman with a big heart. New York, NY: Alfred A.
Knopf.
Reading Level: 4.1
Monsoon Summer
In this novel the main character Jazz is unhappy about having to spend the summer doing charity work in an
orphanage in India with her family. Her mother was adopted from this orphanage in India and she is also very
much into humanitarian work while her father is white and hesitant to participate in humanitarian efforts. Jazz is
very wary of doing any kind of charity work after she tried to help a homeless woman and it backfired. Jazz is
also very unsure of herself and does not have a lot of self confidence. Through her stay in India Jazz comes to
realize that she is a beautiful girl and even begins to enjoy helping at the orphanage. She also learns a great deal
about her Indian heritage.
This book would appeal to students who have a mixed heritage because they may identify with Jazz and the fact
that she originally identifies more with only one part of her heritage. Eventually she begins to appreciate her
Indian heritage as well. Students may be encouraged to identify positive traits in themselves from both
heritages. Also this book includes cultural information that students may find interesting and by using images
from my image collection I can add to their understanding of the story.
Perkins, Mitali. (2006). Monsoon summer. New York, NY: Laurel Leaf
Reading Level: 4.8
Baba Yaga
Baba Yaga is a Russian folktale in which a young girl wanders into the forest to look for turnips that may be
growing wild because she lost the money her mother gave her to buy turnips at the market. Baba Yaga is an old
woman who lives in the forest in a house that roams on chicken legs while Baba Yaga searches for bad Russian
children to cook in a stew. Marusia, the girl, is caught by Baba Yaga along with a prince who was born a
hedgehog to human parents. They eventually attain their freedom and live happily ever after.
This story is a good one to incorporate into a unit of study about different folk tales from various countries.
Students can see the similarities between this story and stories from their own cultures. This story also shows
students to be kind to others even if they are different just like Marusia was kind to the hedgehog prince.
Small, Ernest. (1966). Baba Yaga. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company
Reading Level: 6.5
Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale
Mufaro has two beautiful daughters, Manyara and Nyasha. Manyara is cruel and mean to her sister, while
Nyasha is kind to everyone and everything. She tells her that one day she will be queen and that Nyasha will be
her servant. It is announced that the prince seeks a wife and wishes to see all the beautiful maidens. In an
attempt to beat all the other maidens to the palace and to win the heart of the prince, Manyara leaves her village
alone and is tested three times along the way to the palace. She is cruel to all she meets on her way. Nyasha
however is kind to all she meets and passes the tests. She becomes the queen and her sister becomes a servant in
her house.
This story is another good one to incorporate into a unit of study about different folk tales from various
countries. Students can see the similarities between this story and stories from their own cultures. This story
also shows students to be kind to others even if they are different just like Nyasha was to all that she met.
Students can also see some aspects of African culture.
Steptoe, John. (1987). Mufaro’s beautiful daughters: An African tale. New York, NY: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard
Books.
Reading Level: 5.8
Crossing Bok Chitto: A Choctaw Tale of Friendship and Freedom
Bok Chitto is what the Choctaw called the Mississippi river. On one side of the river lived the Choctaw and
they were free and on the other side of the river were plantation owners and slaves. In this story a Choctaw girl
crosses the river and befriends a slave boy and his family. After the family finds out that the mother has been
sold, they escape across the river with the help of Choctaw and are free.
This is an excellent book to use in a social studies class. Students learn about both Native American and slave
cultures as well as some aspects of people’s lives during the antebellum period. This book is especially useful
for ELLs because it has great pictures and it talks about friendships that cross racial lines. Also, the Choctaw
girl in the story speaks two languages.
Tingle, Tim. (2006). Crossing Bok Chitto: A Choctaw tale of friendship and freedom. El Paso, TX: Cinco
Puntos Press.
Reading Level: 4.4
Sitting Bull Remembers
This is the story of Sitting Bull’s life and Sioux culture told as a flashback from Sitting Bull’s perspective. He
recounts the culture of his tribe as well as the encroachment of white settlers and soldiers and eventually the
battle with Custer and his men. He is telling the story while he is a captive of the white men.
This story is great to use with ELLs during social studies and a unit on westward expansion. It has beautifully
illustrated pictures which will also help ELL students. At the end of the book there is a historical note so that
students can gain even more information about the events that this book retells.
Turner, Ann. (2007). Sitting Bull Remembers. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.
Reading Level: 8.5
Niño’s Mask
In this story a little boy wishes to participate in a fiesta in which the villagers wear masks and costumes and act
out chasing and capturing a tiger which will protect the villagers’ crops. He is often told he is too young, but he
creates a mask on his own and participates in the fiesta and becomes the star of the reenactment.
This story again has colorful and eye catching illustrations. It also uses both Spanish and English words which
may help Spanish speaking ELLs feel more comfortable and included when reading this story. It also imparts
some information about the culture of some Spanish speaking communities.
Winter, Jeanette. (2003). Niño’s mask. New York, NY: Dial Books for Young Readers
Reading Level: 3.0
America Is… By Louise Borden & Illustrated by Stacey Schuett
This book answers the question “What’s it like to live in America?” In poetic text, the author evokes many
aspects of our nation---its farmlands, prairies, cattle country, cities, rivers, mountains, deserts, waterfalls,
beaches, and the many kinds of people who live and work here. The illustrations are beautiful and colorful and
show people from many different cultures. Because of its large size and bold pictures, I would use this book as a
read-aloud to instruct and inspire ELLs and English students. The message is that no matter where we came
from or what we look like; if we live in this great beautiful country, we are all Americans.
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level= 4.7
Borden, L. (2002). America is… New York, NY: Margaret K. McElderry Books.
El Gusto Del Mercado Mexicano/A Taste of the Mexican Market By Nancy Maria Grande Tabor
I was so excited to find this book in one of my book baskets. I forgot I had it! This is a bilingual book which
takes you on a trip to the Mexican market. Along the way you can compare, weigh, count, and learn about
culture and customs in Mexico. The Spanish text is on the left page, while the English text is on the right page.
The beautiful illustrations are photos of intricate cut-outs of food---fruits, vegetables, seafood, and breads; as
well as other typical items sold in a Mexican market. This book could easily be used to compare and contrast an
American grocery store or farmer’s market with a Mexican market. This book could also be taped in English
and put in a listening center so that students could follow along looking at the Spanish text. I believe any
Spanish speaking students would be proud to see that their culture is being shared. It might be a way to have
them feel a little more comfortable sharing some of their known information. I could see this as an opportunity
to provide the Spanish ELLs with a chance to feel like experts in a very unfamiliar setting.
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level= 5.0
Tabor, N. (1996). El gusto del Mercado mexicano/ A taste of the mexican market. Watertown, MA:
Charlesbridge Publishing.
Bob By Tracey Campbell Pearson
This is a colorful and fun book about a rooster named Bob who speaks the wrong “language”; he clucks instead
of crowing. He goes about on a quest asking all kinds of animals to teach him how to crow. When they tell Bob
that they don’t know how to crow; they teach him to make their own unique sounds instead. The next morning
Bob finally found a rooster who taught him how to crow. When he returned back to the chicken coop that night,
Bob was too excited to sleep. He was wide awake when a fox came. He let out a big “Cock-a-doodle-do!”, but it
didn’t scare the fox. He then let out every animal sound he had learned along his journey. The fox was terrified
by the number of animals in the coop and ran away forever. From that day on, Bob would wake everyone up
with a big “Cock-a-doodle-do!” or anything else he felt like saying---“Meow-Woof-Ribbet-Mooo-Yum-YumBugs!” This book is great as a read-aloud to prove the point that all languages have value---even in the same
culture. I think it also teaches that even though you learn other languages, it’s good to hold on to your “native”
tongue. This book also teaches animal/sound concepts and sequencing. This would also be appropriate as
independent reading for some of my better readers.
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level= 1.1
Pearson, T. (2002). Bob. New York, NY: Farrar Straus Giroux.
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? By Bill Martin, Jr. & Illustrated by Eric Carle
This is a wonderful book with predictable text and large colorful renditions of animals and culturally diversified
students. I use this book with early emergent readers to provide a feeling of success and a confidence boost. It
would be excellent to use for making predictions and to help shy students become more involved in the reading.
Having students take turns using a pointer to practice one-to-one matching is very effective with the big book
version of this book. This is also an effective book for independent or small group reading. It includes many
high frequency words and color words.
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level= 0.6
Martin, B. (1992). Brown bear, brown bear, what do you see? New York, NY: Henry Holt and Company.
Is Your Mama a Llama? By Deborah Guarino & Illustrated by Steven Kellogg
I have the big book version of this book. This is another wonderful book with predictable text that is easily used
to teach making predictions and early reading strategies. In this story a curious baby llama wanders off from his
mother. Trying to find his mama, he asks every animal he meets, “Is your mama a llama?” All the animals
respond by giving characteristics of their own mothers. This book not only lends itself well to teaching reading,
but it also shows diversity among a population. It could lend itself to writing/driting opportunities about what
makes each person in the class unique. It is a great read-aloud and shared reading book.
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level- 0.3
(I believe this level is too low.)
Guarino, D. (1989). Is your mama a llama? New York, NY: Scholastic.
The Alphabet Lift-the-Flap Book By John Blackman
This is a book of questions. The answers are found under the letter flaps. For instance, the first question says
“What kind of fruit begins with a?” When you pick up the a flap, there is a picture of an apple with the words
“an apple”. The pictures are colorful and interesting. There are very few people in the illustrations, and the
people shown are all “white”. I do not feel that the lack of cultural diversity takes away from the usefulness of
this book. Most of the illustrations are animals or objects. I have used this book to help students become active
participants in the learning. I have read the questions and had students lift the flaps and give the answers. It is
excellent emergent practice for visual discrimination of a, an, and the. This book would also be helpful as a
source of vocabulary and alphabet practice for ELLs. This would also be a good take-home book for ELLs to
share with their non-English speaking parents. I did note that the “q” in this book was not shown as “qu”.
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level= 0.9
Blackman, J. (1993). The alphabet lift-the-flap book. Wilton, CT: Wishing Well Books.
The Kissing Hand By Audrey Penn & Illustrations by Ruth E. Harper and Nancy M. Leak
There is a touching foreword at the beginning of this book that explains why it was accepted for publication by
the Child Welfare League of America. In the foreword Jean Kennedy Smith writes, “The Kissing Hand is a
story for any child who confronts a difficult situation, and for the child within each of us who sometimes needs
reassurance”. What a perfect book to share with ELLs! In the story, Chester Raccoon is scared to go to school
for the first time. His mother tries to reassure him by telling him about all the wonderful activities he will
experience. When Chester is still not convinced, his mother shares “a very old secret” with him. She tells
Chester to open his hand. She then kisses it and tells him that whenever he is sad or lonely at school, just place
‘the Kissing Hand’ next to his cheek and think, “Mommy loves you. Mommy loves you.” This seemed to do the
trick for Chester. Now he knew that his mother’s love would go with him wherever he went---even to school.
When it came time for Chester to tell his mother good-bye, he took her hand, opened it up, and gave her a
Kissing Hand, too. I have read this story orally to kindergartners and their parents at Kindergarten Open House.
It seemed to help the parents more than the student. I’ve also used this as a catalyst for discussions with young
students concerning their fears about starting a new class at school and meeting new friends and teachers. Many
times we will create a traced hand out of paper and put a red paper heart in the middle. This paper hand will stay
on each child’s desk. Whenever a student feels anxious about something, he/she may touch the paper hand to
his/her cheek to know that “Mrs. Howie loves me. Mrs. Howie loves me and will do anything to help me.”
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level= 0.9
(I feel that this reading level is too low for this book.)
Fountas/Pinnell levels this book at 3.3. I feel it is a more accurate level.
Penn, A. (1993). The kissing hand. Washington, DC: Child Welfare League of America.
There’s a Big, Beautiful World Out There! By Nancy Carlson
The interesting premise of this book is that there are many things to be scared of in our world; but if you never
get out and experience them, you miss all the blessings. For instance, if you don’t go out of your house after a
booming thunderstorm, you might miss the rainbow. If you think you are afraid of roller coasters and never ride
one, you might never enjoy the thrill of the ride. If you don’t get to know people who look different from you,
you might just miss all the new friends you could have. There are many other examples of objects or
happenings with which we could all relate. The illustrations are colorful and fun. I would use this book as an
encourager for all of my students to be risk takers. It could be a great beginning for a discussion on how to take
the most negative circumstances and turn them into positive experiences. This might open the discussion for
ELLs to share their unique experiences. There is one other interesting point about this book. The last page
shows an illustration of a flag at half mast. The text underneath the flag reads, “This book was written on
September 12, 2001.”
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level= 4.5
Carlson, N. (2002). There’s a big, beautiful world out there! New York, NY: Viking.
Where Do You Live? By Marcie Bovetz
This is a Wright Group book that would be used for early emergent reading. The illustrations are photographs of
different kinds of geography and activities found in the United States. The diversity of lifestyles and people are
showcased in this little book. I would use this book in shared reading with an individual student and in a small
group setting with multiple copies. Using this book as a catalyst for personal writing would be especially
effective in schools with a diverse population.
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level= 1.0
Bovetz, M. (2000). Where do you live? Bothell, WA: Wright Group Publishing.
Whoever You Are By Mem Fox & Illustrated by Leslie Staub
This is one of my favorite books. This book teaches us that despite the differences between people around the
world; there are similarities that join us together, such as pain, joy, and love.
Each page is a beautiful oil painting of cultural diversity that looks as if it has been framed in a beautiful handcarved frame that borders each page. The text stresses that our skin, homes, lands, schools, and words may be
very different; but inside, our hearts are just the same. This is an excellent read-aloud and would also be
appropriate for the better early readers. It provides a wonderful lesson of how everyone in the class is like a
family of sorts. We should respect and embrace each other’s history and unique characteristics.
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level= 2.8
Fox, M. (2001). Whoever you are. San Diego, CA: Voyager Books.
Bbc learning. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/learning/
I have used the BBC for some time, not only for topics related to the language per se, but also for background
information on British history, specifically the Anglo-Saxons. This site has numerous resources for grammar,
punctuation, vocabulary, composition, literary analysis and test preparation. Because the BBC has a significant
global outreach (stemming, I assume, from its colonial past) the company has done much to educate its local
and international populations.
The various lessons include text, drawings, audio, and video and combinations of these. The following link
directs the user to a lesson on writing a non-fiction essay:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english/readingnonfict/gettingstartedrev1.shtml
Cisneros, S. (1994). Hairs / pelitos. New York: Dragonfly Books.
I believe this would be a good book for beginning ELLs of any age to read because of its message of inclusion.
All ELLs from places other than Western Europe (who are not likely to be beginners in English anyway) will
feel at home with the themes in this book, especially that it is okay to be different. The publication data
suggests that this book is for elementary age children, but it is a bi-lingual work and I believe it could be used as
an introductory piece for older students.
Draper, S. (1999). Romiette and julio. New York: Atheneum
Romeo and Juliette is recommended curriculum for the ninth grade and eighth grade honors, and like most
Shakespeare tragedies, it is not high interest for struggling readers, especially boys. This book will not only be
of higher interest than the play, but would also be good for ELLs and LEPs, because it is written in modern
English, not the early modern English of Shakespeare, an iteration of the language not even native speakers are
comfortable with.
The story is universal, widely taught throughout the world, and widely adapted in many forms on television,
film, and stage. I would couple this novel with passages from Shakespeare’s play and a viewing of West Side
Story, of particular relevance to Hispanic students.
Freedman, R. (2001). In the days of the vaqueros. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
In doing my list of resources, it occurred to me that I had no non-fiction works, and because I teach AP English
Language and Composition, based primarily on non-fiction writing, I wanted to select a title with which ESLs,
especially Hispanic students, could identify. This work is written in straightforward prose, not necessarily
challenging for a native language AP student, but challenging for a student who is not familiar with expository
writing in English.
Langan, P. (2002). The Bully. West Berlin, NJ: Townsend Press.
I found this resource with the Google query “high interest books for ESL,” and I was directed to a lesson plan
by Kathleen Benson Quinn on the ReadWriteThink web site. This book and included lesson plan combines
high interest for students with the hot topic of bullying, and the theme of going to a new school. It should
provide significant relevance for those students who have arrived here from elsewhere, especially those who do
not speak the language.
Marquez, G. G. (1970). One hundred years of solitude. New York: Harper & Row.
This novel by Nobel Prize winner Gabriel Garcia Marquez was translated from the original Spanish and could
be used in the AP Literature classroom. Because this novel is about Latin-American culture, and because it is
available in Spanish (and for that matter in many other languages), it would be ideal for use with ELL student’s.
Not only would it allow Hispanic ELL students to participate in class as an expert in the culture, it would
provide a resource for those ELL students to pick up literary nuances in the original text – a significant part of
the AP standard.
Quintero, S. (2010). Efrain's secret. New York: Random House.
This is the story of Efrain Rodriguez an ambitious high school senior and honor student who makes some poor
decisions in pursuit of his goal to escape the streets of New York and attend an Ivy League college.
Spiegelman, A. (1973). Maus. New York: Pantheon.
A graphic novel apparently doesn’t lend itself to a standard reading ease analysis. Much of the meaning is
contained in the graphics – setting, characters, expressions, and especially in Maus, the dark mood and fear
among the characters.
I would not likely attempt to use a graphic novel in an AP course, but because I also teach remedial courses
from time to time, and because many of the students are ELLs or LEPs, I could use this novel effectively
because gleaning meaning would not depend solely on decoding ability. I believe Maus would be a less
threatening way to encourage students to read and feel good about themselves.
Stirling. (Artist). (2007). Dana's tomato caper. [Web]. Retrieved from http://eslcomics.blogspot.com/
This is a website created by a cartoonist named Stirling and accessed through Blogspot. The cartoonist states,
“I developed this blog for beginning level English learners who enjoy comics and would like to read them in
English. Comics are useful tools in learning English because they usually reflect contemporary humor and
language use. They offer a sense of completion that we find in real conversation but most textbook dialogs
lack. Also, the pictures that accompany the words help readers comprehend.”
These are high interest comics because they are humorous and non-threatening; a lot of information is received
through the illustrations rather than relying totally on decoding. The cartoons deal with family and everyday
life, and each has a list of comprehension questions. Some of the submissions have an attached vocabulary.
Truss, L. (2004). Eats, shoots and leaves. New York: Gotham
This is an advanced, non-fiction, highly readable and humorous treatise on the subject of punctuation that can
be used in my AP classes for ELLs and native writers as well. Because much of what I do in the classroom in
AP English (either the language or the literature course) is composition, a high interest or at least humorous
approach to grammar could be very helpful and less threatening than droning on ad nauseum with a lecture.
This book also has the distinction of being a best seller, not common among titles dealing with punctuation.
There is also an illustrated edition that could be used effectively.