*Picture book for preschoolers through second graders
*Bear as main character
*Rating: Ugly Pie is the ideal picture book–cute story, wonderful illustrations and a takeaway activity.
Short, short summary:
Ol’ Bear is hankerin’ for Ugly Pie, but he doesn’t have all the ingredients. All he has is some molasses. So, he goes out looking for Ugly Pie. As he comes to each of his friends, they offer him a kind of pie, but Ol’ Bear really wants that Ugly Pie. They do give him some ingredients each time; and by the time he gets home, he can make his Ugly Pie. He sings a cute rhyme each time, too: “My-oh-my! But I’m still itchin’ for some Ugly Pie.” The very end of the book is a recipe for all the little cubs out there who are hankerin’ for Ugly Pie.
So, what do I do with this book?
1. Obviously, kids will want to make the recipe just like Ol’ Bear, but bring some math instruction into it. For advanced students, you can ask them to double or half the recipe. For some students, they just need practice with reading a recipe or even following directions. Look over your objectives you need to teach (at home schools, too) and use this as a fun activity and lesson!
2. Ask students to write about a time they were “hankerin’” for something and what they did to get it!
3. Word choice (one of the six plus one traits of writing) is very strong in Lisa Wheeler’s Ugly Pie from the playful use of language on the first page to the little rhyme Bear sings throughout. Ask students to pick a “favorite” word to tell you when they hear you read it aloud. Make a list on chart paper of these favorite words. Hang in the room for students to use in their own writing. (Personally, my favorite word is “hankerin’”.)
Danica McKellar
My generation knows Danica McKellar best as Winnie from The Wonder Years, and West Wing fans know her as Elise Snuffin (8 episodes). But that’s not why I chose to write about her on my blog on a Monday–it’s because she’s helping girls around the world (especially in the United States and Canada) improve their math skills, treat themselves and others with respect, and strive for high self-esteem and self-confidence. I am a new fan of Danica McKellar and her math series for girls. Here are the three books:
I had seen these books at Borders and Barnes and Noble and thought they looked interesting. But I never really had a reason to pick one up. Then, through my job reviewing books for The News-Gazette, I was lucky enough to review a copy of Hot X: Algebra Exposed a couple weeks ago, and I fell in love with this book. That’s hard to say about a non-fiction book that helps girls do math, isn’t it? But it’s the truth.
What I love about these books is how easy they make math–I was even working algebra problems I hadn’t solved in 20 years. But the best part of Danica McKellar’s math series is the message she is sending to tween and teen girls: “It’s OKAY to be SMART! Being SMART is WONDERFUL! Math is nothing. You have the power over math.” Love it! Love it! Love it! We need a beautiful celebrity spouting out this message, and Danica McKellar is doing just that. Besides math explanations that your daughters and students will actually understand, Danica provides advice and tips for dating, dealing with friends and low self-esteem, and lots of other problems that girls endure. She offers tips from her own life as well as quotes from REAL girls. She even has QUIZZES!! You know teens love quizzes.
If you have a daughter or a female student (the book really is for girls) who is struggling, struggling, struggling with math, then recommend any one of these books.
On a side note, Arlene from Adventure Salon (a blog about your Bucket List!), recently gave me this award: 
As part of the award, I am supposed to pick 5 blogging friends whom I can pass on the award to. All they have to do is mention my blog when they tell their readers about the award, and then pick 5 blogs that they enjoy. So, here are my five:
Thanks, Arlene. Readers, I hope you will check out these other blogs!
As I talked about yesterday, Heifer International is a wonderful organization that encourages people to help each other. They have been around for almost 60 years, helping people to obtain a sustainable food source and income. Here’s a success story from their magazine World Ark::
Ganga Khanal, who lives in Nepal, said she was devalued because she could not give birth to a son. She felt powerless to change her life against the centuries of tradition in her village. When Khanal gave birth to two daughters, her husband married her sister and also brought the sister into the home. Khanal fought with her sister. Her husband hit her when she spoke up for herself. She never had enough to eat.
Khanal heard about a women’s group in her village that had savings and received animals and training. The group (Heifer International) was looking for more members. Even though her husband opposed the idea, Khanal strated Jagrit Women’s Group, completed the Heifer Cornerstones and animal management training, and received two black and white goats.
Here’s a quote from her (World Ark, Spring 2010, page 13): “Today I am something. I have substance; I have animals; I have crops,” Khanal said. “My group gave me the inspiration, the idea, and the confidence to do all this.”
Obviously, we cannot all go to Nepal and train women like Khanal, even if we want to. But that’s the beauty of Heifer International. They make it easy to help from your living room. On their website, you can purchase animals and products from their online catalog, such as: cattle, sheep, water buffalo, goats, knitting baskets, flocks of chicks, and a trio of rabbits. Depending on the amount of money you have, you can also buy shares of these. This means, that when Heifer International has enough people who buy shares of an animal, an entire animal can be given to a family. They also provide fundraising ideas on their website if you want to raise money with a group or even with your family or even at Vacation Bible School this summer (there’s a special program for that!).
Above is one of my favorite books, which I’ve talked about on here before, that tells the story of an elementary school class raising money to Give a Goat.
