I've been teaching children's lit in the spring for the past few years, but this year we're changing to the fall semester. So I'm giving up having a nice break between the end of last year's class and the start of this year's, but I'm gaining a chance to hold our mock awards at the right time of year — just before the real awards are announced.

I'm not changing much on the syllabus this year, except to add a title to our nonfiction week. But I am planning to change how we hold our discussions on this blog. Instead of making separate posts for each book, we'll just put everything for the week into one post. As always, I hope all of you will chime in with your reactions to our books, and to the other comments.

Here's a list of the books and articles we'll be reading, week by week. Posts will go up on Wednesday nights just after class and students are asked to comment by 5 p.m. Monday, two days before class.

Posting Oct. 5 for class #1 on Oct. 12

• Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak


• Mirror by Jeannie Baker


• Three Horn Book articles about creating picture books:
  
  
  
  • https://www.hbook.com/2012/11/creating-books/making-picture-books-the-words/
  
  
  • https://www.hbook.com/2012/11/creating-books/making-picture-books-the-pictures/
  
  
  • https://www.hbook.com/2012/11/creating-books/design-matters/
  
  
  
  

Posting Oct. 12 for class #2 on Oct. 19

• Mr. Tiger Goes Wild by Peter Brown


• That New Animal by Emily Jenkins, illustrated by Pierre Pratt


• There Is a Bird On Your Head! by Mo Willems


• Ling and Ting: Together in All Weather by Grace Lin


• Picture This by Molly Bang

Posting Oct. 19 for class #3 on Oct. 26

• The Stories Julian Tells by Ann Cameron, illustrated by Ann Strugnell


• Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key by Jack Gantos


• The Birchbark House by Louise Erdrich


• Articles about Jack Gantos and books for second graders:
  
  
  
  • http://www.embracingthechild.org/agantos.html
  
  
  • https://www.hbook.com/2003/09/using-books/school/teaching-new-readers-to-love-books/
  
  
  
  

Posting Oct. 26 for class #4 on Nov. 9

• Actual Size by Steve Jenkins


• Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave by Laban Carrick Hill, illustrated by Bryan Collier


• Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer: The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement by Carole Boston Weatherford and Ekua Holmes


• Feathers: Not Just for Flying by Melissa Stewart, illustrated by Sarah S. Brannen


• Me…Jane by Patrick McDonnell


• Three articles about Dave the Potter:
  
  
  
  • https://www.hbook.com/2011/07/authors-illustrators/csk-illustrator-award-acceptance-2011/
  
  
  • https://www.hbook.com/2011/07/authors-illustrators/bryan-collier-2/
  
  
  • https://www.hbook.com/2011/07/using-books/home/dave-the-potter-and-stevie-the-reader/
  
  
  
  

Posting Nov. 9 for class #5 on Nov. 16

•  Mrs. Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile by Won-Ldy Paye and Margaret H. Lippert, illustrated by Julie Paschkis


• Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella by Paul Fleischman, illustrated by Julie Paschkis


• Poetrees by Douglas Florian


• A Kick in the Head by Paul Janeczko, illustrated by Chris Raschka


• Horn Book article about using poetry in classrooms:
  
  
  
  • https://www.hbook.com/2005/05/using-books/school/purposeful-poetry/
  
  
  
  

Posting Nov. 16 for class #6 on Nov. 30

• Charlotte's Web by E. B. White


• Smithsonian article about E. B. White and Charlotte's Web:
  
  
  
  • http://www.smithsonianmag.com/ist/?next=/arts-culture/How-EB-White-Wove-Charlottes-Web.html