145th Street: short stories
by Walter Dean Meyers
I loved Walter Dean Meyers novels when I was in junior high so I was very excited to see that he had a collection of short stories. As a reader I enjoyed every story in the book, but as a fifth grade teacher I quickly noticed that not everyone was appropriate for fifth graders. They are just too intense. Most of the stories would be a better fit for middle or high school but there were three stories I could see reading to my students.
In "Kitty and Mack: A Love Story," Kitty never gives up on Mack even after Mack gives up on himself. Mack was a superstar athlete and Kitty was his smart girlfriend. After Mack gets hurt, and his athletic career ends, he gives up on himself and on his relationship with Kitty. Kitty doesn't and you won't believe how hard she tries to get Mack back on his feet.
Patrolman O'Brien, who lives in the pleasant suburbs, walks the beat in tough Harlem in the short story "A Christmas Story." Despite his desire to keep his home life and work life separate he develops an unlikely friendship with Mother Fletcher. When Mrs. O'Brien and her daughter find out that Mother Fletcher has invited them to Christmas dinner, they demand to go. At the dinner, Patrolman O'Brien learns that Christmas is celebrated where he lives and where he works.
In "Block Party-145th Street Style," everyone is supposed to be having a good time and enjoying free food. Then Peaches gets into it with JT for being a trouble maker and he leaves without any food. After cooling down, she decides to take some food up to him in his apartment. What she discovers changes her opinion about JT and what she does will change your opinion of Peaches.
American Tall Tales
by Adrien Stoutenburg
Illustrated by Richard M. Powers
My fifth graders really enjoy tall tales. They enjoy the exaggerations and the adventures of the characters. American Tall Tales is an excellent collection offering a variety of tall tales.
Most of the tales start with the character's birth and end with their death. Only two don't cover the full life span. Paul Bunyan walks off into the sunset in his story while Joe Magarac shows up fully grown.
Paul Bunyan's, Pecos Bill's, Stormalong's, Mike Fink's and Joe Magarac's stories include lots of exaggerations. Davy Crockett's tale also includes a lot of exaggerations but ties in real life events too. Johnny Appleseed's and John Henry's stories include the least amount of exaggeration.
I had never read Stormalong before, but it reminded me of John Henry. Both characters compete against more modern machines and die in the process of defeating them.
The ending of the Mike Fink story was very dark. Mike was killed by one of his friends after Mike had killed another one of their friends.
I would also recommend The Bunyans by Audrey Wood. It tells Paul Bunyan's tale after he gets married. According to the book, Paul and his family are responsible for many of the natural wonders found in the United States.
Big Men, Big Country: A Collection of American Tall Tales by Paul Robert Walker and American Tall Tales by Mary Pope Osborne are excellent tall tale anthologies.
One of the genres that the state of Michigan recommends I teach my students is Science Fiction. I know science fiction isn't for everyone and that it comes in a lot of forms, from super machines to dystopian futures, so I've decided to read a bunch of Science Fiction short stories instead of reading one Science Fiction chapter book to my class. So far I have found stories in the following two anthologies to use.
Tomorrowland: Stories about the Future
Compiled by Michael Cart
"His Brother's Keeper"
by Gloria Skurzynski
Scientific advancements allow for groups of four to travel to Mars. The Holbrook family is the current group of four. Their mission is to make Mars hospitable for humans. While working in Science Fiction elements the story mainly focuses on the relationship between genius brother Kern and happy go lucky brother Dylan. Everyone should be able to relate to the jealousies and annoyances that arise from being stuck on Mars with no other children to distract them.
"The Last Dog"
by Katherine Peterson
Brock lives in a dome. He has been told everything outside the dome is a wasteland and that nothing can survive out there. He decides he wants to go out of the dome anyway. Wearing protective gear he discovers the impossible, a living breathing puppy. What will Brock do when he sees something that goes against everything he's been taught?
2041
Selected and Edited by Jane Yolen
"Lose Now, Pay Later"
by Carol Farley
Trinja and Deb discover Swoodies, a free dessert, at the mall. They fall in love with it and gain a lot of weight.
Eventually, The Slimmer opens up in the mall parking lot. For a fee, it instantly makes you lose weight. Trinja and Deb have to decide if spending all of their money losing weight is worth eating all the free Swoodies they want.
"Moby James"
by Patricia A. McKillip
This story is about relating with your brother. It just happens to take place in the future where all classes are taught by computers and students read reading disks on viewers instead of reading books.
The two brothers, Rob and James share a bedroom. James is annoyed with Rob. Rob is mad at his brother. Read "Moby James" to see if Moby Dick can help them work things out.
I would love to find more Science Fiction stories to share with my students. I've read a bunch of good one but most aren't appropriate for fifth graders. I would love to hear about any Science Fiction Short Stories that you could recommend to me.
Saturdays and Teacakes
by Lester L. Laminack
Paintings by Chris Soentpiet
In Saturdays and Teacakes the storyteller describes a typical Saturday spent with his grandmother. The two spend every Saturday working together outside, eating lunch, and always end the day by making teacakes.
Saturdays and Teacakes reminds me of Thundercake by Patricia Polacco. In both, children spend charming days with their grandmothers baking. The writing is filled with great details that help remind you of your childhood. The major difference between the two stories is that the young boy in Saturdays and Teacakes doesn't have any fears to overcome, while in Thundercake, the young girl does.
I can't take any credit for finding this story. I found it in I Can Write Like That!: A Guide to Mentor Texts and Craft Studies for Writers' Workshop, K-6. Per their recommendation I used it to teach emotional endings. It has a great ending that you can use to discuss literal and figurative language.
In addition, I definitely see myself using it again to teach personal narrative and adding specific details. The details that went into making the teacakes, from making the batter to the dialogue between the two, were phenomenal.
I loved the book and have added it to my Amazon wish list.
Published: 2004
Locations: School Library, Amazon
