Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday - Sniffer Dogs: How Dogs (and Their Noses) Save the World

Thank you everyone for all of the great posts each week for the Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge 2014.  ​

Sniffer Dogs: How Dogs (and their Noses) Save the World

Nancy F. Castaldo

HMH Books for Young Readers (July 8, 2014)

Ages: 9 to 13

Nonfiction * Animals * Dogs * Senses

IndieBound * WorldCat

Kirkus Review | Author Website 

Description from the Publisher:

Anyone who has ever spent time with a dog knows that dogs love sniffing! They sniff out hidden food, dirty socks, and the visitor who comes to the door. But some dogs work with police officers, soldiers and even scientists to put their "sniffers" to work. Sniffer dogs make use of the amazing biology behind their noses to protect people from bombs, catch criminals smuggling drugs, or help researchers locate a hard to find snail in a forest.
A dog's nose is so sensitive that if a human could see as well as a dog could smell, we would be able to see the small letters on an eye chart from four (four!) miles away. Is it any wonder then that dogs can be trained to find missing people in piles of rubble or a certain flower blooming amongst hundreds or thousands of other smells?

In Sniffer Dogs you will meet many dogs and their handlers and learn all about their jobs. Some of these dogs are raised from birth to detect blood sugar levels in their owners. Others are rescued from animal shelters and their boisterous personalities help make them excellent sniffer dogs. Featuring a balance between science and social science, Sniffer Dogs will appeal to dog lovers and science lovers alike. 

My thoughts on this book:

Children love dogs, and learning about dogs and their incredible ability to detect things with their noses can make for fun and informative reading. Nancy Castaldo has created a comprehensive look at Sniffer Dogs.  This 160 page book is packed full with information. Readers are provided facts about the relationship between dogs and their handlers, the science behind sniffing, and various types of tasks that sniffer dogs can perform with amazing accuracy. Facts and information are intertwined with stories about real sniffer dogs and how they perform their jobs.

Sniffer Dogs is written in an engaging way and it allows students to either read straight through or jump around a bit to learn about specific types of sniffer dogs.  The end includes several pages of additional resources including suggested reading, websites, glossary, and more.   

This is a book that is worth including in your classroom or school library, and one that students will find fascinating.

Video - Zuma: Early Puppy Detection Training:

Video: The Ultimate in Bomb Sniffing Dogs/CNN:

Video: Training a Sniffer Dog

​Don't forget to link up your nonfiction reviews:

Slice of Life - Readers & Writers

Remember my 13 year old niece that I have mentioned in previous Slice posts? Her name is Jax and she decided this summer to write a novel. Unlike adults, she doesn't have daily word totals to meet or a deadline.  She has created character profiles, a general outline, and what type of weapons her characters would use in a battle.  Jax has also discovered that you can fall in love with your characters and they can surprise you with what they do.   

Recently, Jax let me read her WIP.  As I read, I noticed that her writing clearly marks her as a reader.  Throughout the pages of dialogue and action and even descriptive language, I can see the influence of the books that she has read.  The adventure, fantasy, and dystopian novels that she has devoured over the years act as unofficial mentor texts for her writing.  I wonder how aware she is about this, or if the stories are so embedded in the fabric of who she is as both a reader and a writer that it has become a natural extension?

Today, I had lunch with a teacher colleague and friend.  She has a daughter who is a couple of years younger than Jax but also a voracious reader. As we were talking about some literacy projects for the fall, she told me about entering her daughter's room the other day.  When she walked in, her daughter Andy was surrounded by books and she too was writing her own novel.  Andy explained to her mom that she wasn't copying from the books because that would be plagiarism but that she was using them to learn about the elements she would need in her novel. Smart kid. 

I had to smile because neither of these girls probably even know the term "mentor texts", yet both of them are more aware of how the writing of others influence their writing. What an amazing testimony to the power of books on a child's academic and personal life.

As I think about returning to work and training and coaching teachers to improve reading and writing instruction, I want for all our students what I see in Jax and Andy. I want them to love reading. I want to see that whether they are native language speakers or acquiring a new language that books can be a gateway for learning that goes beyond what can happen solely in the classroom.  And I want them to never doubt that they are both readers and writers.   

It's Monday! What are you reading? From Picture Books to YA - 7/28/14

It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Sheila of Book Journey.  Jen from Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki from Unleashing Readers have adapted it to focus on Picture Books to Young Adult Books.

This Wednesday I am heading back to work, and I am trying to squeeze in a few more books before I call time on summer #bookaday.  Since May 30th when I started summer #bookaday, I have read 165 books and made a serious dent in several categories of books that I have been meaning to read. One category was nonfiction, which I have been trying to catch up on new and older releases.  I managed to read 53 nonfiction titles this summer (29 nonfiction titles from 2014 * 5 nonfiction titles from 2013 * 19 nonfiction titles from 2012 or older).  

Here is what stood out from this past week's stack....

Drop It, Rocket! by Tad Hill (Schwartz & Wade, July 8, 2014) - I love the Rocket books and this new early reader is a fun read. I really enjoyed this one.

The River by Alessandro Sanna (Enchanted Lion Books, March 4, 2014) - This nearly wordless book has the most amazing illustrations.  It really is an amazing collection of paintings. 

Fear the Amoeba (Squish #6) by Jenni Holm and Matt Holm (Random House, July 21, 2014) - I simply love Squish. 

This One Summer by Mariko Tamika; Illustrated by Jillian Tamika (First Second, May 6, 2014) - I love the artwork in this book, though I am still processing my thoughts about this one. 

My Country, 'Tis of Thee: How One Song Reveals the History of Civil Rights by Claire Rudolf Murphy; Illustrated by Bryan Collier (Henry Holt & Co., June 3, 2014) - I was fascinated with the approach that Murphy took by looking at the progression of this song and the history of civil rights. 

Mix It Up! by Hervé Tullet (Chronicle Books, September 16, 2014) - Yes, there is a follow up to Press Here and it is just as much fun. 

So, what are you reading?

Celebrate This Week - July 26, 2014

This year, I am trying to increase my awareness of the many good things that happen, which are frequently overlooked by me.  To help me, I am joining Ruth Ayers' Celebrate This Week.  

Today, I am celebrating people and conversations.  Over the course of July, I have had numerous conversations with author, Melissa Stewart about nonfiction books and writing and learning.  Yesterday, that conversation continued some on twitter and Carrie Gelson joined in.  Here is a snippet of the conversation. 

I love that it not only inspired Carrie to do a 3 part blog post on how she is using nonfiction in the classroom but these conversations have been the inspiration for thinking and learning and future blog posts for Melissa and I.  These conversations also prompted me to reach out to my Common Core IRL buddies (Mary Ann Scheuer, Cathy Potter, Louise Cappizo, Amy Koester, and Jennifer Reed) to access the hive mind.

This past Wednesday, I had a lovely opportunity to hang out and have coffee with author/illustrator Arree Chung (Ninja!) before his visit at Vroman's Bookstore.  We continued the conversation for a little bit upstairs where he introduced me to his buddy, Brian Won (Hooray for Hat).  I loved chatting books and more with both of them. 

Below is Brian drawing his own ninja character along with the audience. 

Since Wednesday seemed to be a book day, I attended the Fierce Reads Tour at Barnes & Noble at The Grove.  It was fun to listen to YA authors - Leigh Bardugo, Marissa Meyer, Anna Banks, and Ann Aguirre.

But the bonus was getting to meet Mary Van Akin, publicist for Macmillan Kids Books. I don't always get a chance to meet the wonderful people behind the scenes and Mary and I have been emailing back and forth for months about different books and authors, which is one of the reasons I met Arree Chung. So, to be able to chat and visit with her and celebrate books was an extra special treat. 

Though it may look like all my conversations were on twitter or at book events, I also spent three days in a training for Project-Based Learning. Listening in on conversations and sharing ideas with teachers from different school districts was also stimulating and gave me a few interesting ah-ha moments. 

I am thankful for ways that all parts of my world collide at different times and that I can celebrate the people and the conversations. 

Spotlight on Chaucer's Bookstore - Santa Barbara

Last weekend, my family and I (Carolyn) took a short vacation to Santa Barbara. Anytime I’m visiting a city, I always love to find a local independent bookstore and stop by. Asking around, I was told that I absolutely had to head to Chaucer’s Bookstore. Stopping by Chaucer’s quickly became a highlight of our trip.

Chaucer’s Bookstore was founded in 1974 and has maintained a loyal following ever since. Santa Barbara’s local Border’s and Barnes and Noble bookstores closed their doors several years ago, leaving Chaucer’s as the only brick and mortar source of (new) books for most Santa Barbarans (there are some used bookstores).

Most independent bookstores are smaller and have a very limited inventory or risk feeling cramped. However, Chaucer’s was very large, and well stocked. As my sister put it, it had a homey and comfortable feel to it. When chatting with an employee, I was informed that the owner takes pride in having almost everything available. They had an extensive Children’s section, as well as a large YA section.

Every time I visit an independent bookstore, I make a conscious effort to buy at least one book there, even if I can get books for less through Barnes and Noble or Amazon. Sometimes this can be hard, as many independent bookstores often don’t have a large inventory and if they do have a book I am looking for, it tends to be in hardcover, not paperback. This was not the case with Chaucer’s. In about 5 minutes I found almost a dozen different books I had been looking for, and they were all in paperback. Chaucer’s also had a wide selection of new releases, including A Girl Called Fearless, one of my favorites.

If you live in the Santa Barbara area or are just visiting, I highly recommend you stop by Chaucer’s Bookstore.