Tag Archives: scholastic

Middle School #5: Ultimate Showdown

AGES 8 - 12, BOOK REVIEW, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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Title: MIDDLE SCHOOL: ULTIMATE SHOWDOWN

Author: James Patterson

Publisher: Cornerstone

Number of pages: 256

Type of Book: Contemporary, Fiction, Interactive/Activity

Age: 8+

Buy it here: https://www.laternabooks.com/laterna_product_details.php?v=17304&c=210; https://www.amazon.com/Middle-School-Ultimate-James-Patterson/dp/0316322113/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1481486426&sr=8-1&keywords=middle+school+ultimate+showdown

Price: N3,000; $8.53

MY SUMMARY

In this book, the siblings Rafe and Georgia Khatchadorian humorously argue about their views on some of the features and happenings in middle school like farting, bullying, cafeteria food, school dress code, dancing, etc. Rafe is the carefree, rule breaking, Khatchadorain while Georgia is the serious, rule keeping Khatchadorian. Both are opinionated, smart and good with words. Read this book to enjoy and actively participate in the lively debate between Rafe and Georgia and to try the dozens of incredibly fun activities scattered all over the book.

THUMBS UP AND DOWN

UP: It is a GREAT interactive/activity book. Readers are kept busy with all sorts of activities like drawing cartoons and comic strips, cutting out bookmarks, writing stories, going through mazes, doing crosswords puzzles, etc. They also participate in the debate between Rafe and Georgia by writing their own points of view in spaces provided in the book! Kids, boys and girls alike, will love this book. Perfect for keeping them busy for hours on end.

Another major highlight: It tackled a few important issues. One of them was Bullying. The section on bullying was quite informative especially the bit on word bullying, one of the prevalent problems faced by children in schools today.

It’s a great book for reluctant readers.

DOWN: This is not exactly a chapter book (which is ideal for children this age). It’s more like an activity book or a magazine.

RATING

5 Stars

TRIVIA

  1. Types of Bullies? Word bullies and cyber bullies.
  2. A country named after a vegetable? Brussels (from Brussel sprouts!) Newsflash, the vegetable was actually named after the country.
  3. Georgia’s reaction when Rafe tricked her into dyeing her hair green? She decided to put purple dye in his body wash to turn his skin purple! (Luckily for him, she changed her mind)
  4. When does Rafe think jeans (trousers) become perfect? When you’ve worn them for 100 days without washing them, climbed at least five trees in them and worn a hole in the knee.
  5. Rafe thinks fairy tales are for babies, Georgia thinks they’re great. What do you think?

Read a preview here: https://issuu.com/jamespatterson/docs/ms_ultimate_showdown_preview_pdf?e=1711515/7128636

Watch the book trailer here:

 CHALLENGE: Middle School #5: Ultimate Showdown

CREATE (WRITE a Story/Poem OR DRAW)

  1. Write a story about bullies. (200 words) (8 – 9 year olds)

OR

  1. Draw a 2-paged comic strip on bullying.

 

  1. Write a 300-essay story titled ‘All you need to know about Word Bullies’ (10-12 year olds)

OR

  1. Draw a 4-paged comic strip on bullying.

Send your answers to ugochinyelu.anidi@gmail.com

Entry requirements: Entrants must be within the 8-12 age range. The first correct entry will be announced on this page and will win a copy of this book.

Answers must be submitted before 12:00am on Sunday, December 18th 2016.

Next Book of the Week:

OKIOJO’S CHRONICLES: 1897 by Adeniyi Adeniji

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photo credit: Amazon.com

 

 

 

The BFG: A Set of Plays

AGES 8 - 12, BOOK REVIEW, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Title: The BFG: A Set of Plays

Author: Roald Dahl

Publisher: Puffin

Number of pages: 119

Type of Book: Classic, Fiction, Play

Age: 8+

Buy it here: http://www.amazon.com/The-BFG-Plays-Roald-Dahl/dp/0142407925; free download of The BFG (The Book not The Play) here: http://www.freeport.k12.pa.us/cms/lib2/PA01001445/Centricity/Domain/253/The_BFG.pdf; buy The BFG (The Book not The Play) here: http://product.chelisbookazine.com/product/the-bfg/

Price:$5.99; N1580

MY SUMMARY

Life is as normal as can be for little orphaned Sophie until one day, she spies a tall dark person in a black cloak, holding a large suitcase and a thin trumpet in his hands, walking on the street in the middle of the night. This person is not just any tall person, he’s four times taller than the average person. He’s a giant! This chance encounter sparks the beginning of the adventure of a lifetime as the giant thrusts his big thin hand in her window, snatches Sophie from her bed and takes her with him to Giant country! There Sophie meets all sorts of scary man-eating giants, visits the Dream Country, etc.  Read the book to learn about Sophie’s adventure with the giants and how she became an international sensation!

THUMBS UP AND DOWN

UP: The BFG (Big Friendly Giant) was the major highlight of the book! With his bad English and funny behaviour, he’s the type of character that readers never forget.  The book also sports detailed instructions on how kids can produce the play at home or in school including tips for sound effects and lighting, costumes, props, etc.

Use this for a school play, family play, etc. I recommend this book for kids aged 8 and above, their teachers and parents.  

DOWN:  None.

RATING

5 Stars 

TRIVIA

  1. The giants love eating these ……? Human Beings
  2. A ………………… to a giant is like a lovely ice cream lolly to humans? A nice Fat Eskimo.
  3. Who said this? ‘Upgoing bubbles is a catasterous disastrophe!’ The BFG.
  4. Child-chewing giants would rather eat children than old people because…? In the words of the BFG: ‘Little chiddlers is not so tough to eat as old grandmamma’
  5. The BFG held these in his hands? A very long thin trumpet and
  6. A large Suitcase

Read The BFG here: http://www.freeport.k12.pa.us/cms/lib2/PA01001445/Centricity/Domain/253/The_BFG.pdf

Visit here: www.roalddahl.com

CHALLENGE: The BFG: A Set of Plays

CREATE (WRITE a Story/Poem OR DRAW)

  1. Write a short play with 1 act and 2 scenes.

OR

  1. Draw a picture of the BFG using the details below:

There was something coming up the street on the opposite side. It was something black …
Something tall and black …
Something very tall and very black and very thin…

It wasn’t a human. It couldn’t be. It was four times as tall as the tallest human. It was so tall its head was higher than the upstairs windows of the houses…

The Giant (if that was what he was) was wearing a long BLACK CLOAK…

In one hand he was holding what looked like a VERY LONG, THIN TRUMPET. In the other hand, he held a LARGE SUITCASE…

Send your answers to ugochinyelu.anidi@gmail.com

Entry requirements: Entrants must be within the 8-12 age range. The first correct entry will be announced on this page and will win a copy of this book.

Answers must be submitted before 12:00am on Sunday, April 10th 2016.

Next Book of the Week:

AFENI by Tolulope Popoola

The Witches

AGES 8 - 12, BOOK REVIEW, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Title: The Witches

Author: Roald Dahl

Publisher: Puffin

Number of pages: 224

Type of Book: Classic, Fiction

Age: 8+

Buy it here: http://product.chelisbookazine.com/product/the-witches/ ;

http://www.amazon.com/Witches-Roald-Dahl/dp/014241011X/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1458518772&sr=1-3&keywords=the+witches; free download here: https://vk.com/doc14694589_297706035?hash=cec1ba58b5287a43eb&dl=05d2f01cc85afbead4

Price: N1580; $4.24

MY SUMMARY

Boy, the narrator lives with his grandmother. An ordinary boy living an ordinary life until his grandmother tells him stories about witches; then he meets the first witch and then he stumbles upon the annual meeting of ALL the witches in England!! Even worse, he finds out that the witches plan to do away with ALL the children in England by turning them into mice!!! Read the book to find out the truly exciting way that Boy foils the witches’ plan and pays them back for turning him into a mouse!

THUMBS UP AND DOWN

UP:  Everything!!! Everything!!!

DOWN:  None.

RATING

5 Stars 

TRIVIA

  1. A witch is always …………..? A woman
  2. What do the Witches hate more than anything in the world? Children.
  3. The grand plan of the Grand High Witch? To turn all the children in England into mice!
  4. How did she plan to do this? Using Formula 86 Delayed Action Mouse-Maker
  5. What do the witches do to ‘Boy’ the narrator? They turn him into a mouse!
  6. The tale of the children who vanished because of witches? RH was lured away by a tall lady wearing gloves; SC took an apple from a lady and the very next day, she appeared in a painting in her home; BS turned into a chicken and laid eggs; H turned into stone and became an umbrella holder and L turned into a talking porpoise while was swimming.

Read the book here: https://vk.com/doc14694589_297706035?hash=cec1ba58b5287a43eb&dl=05d2f01cc85afbead4

Visit here: http://www.roalddahl.com/roald-dahl/stories/1980s/the-witches

CHALLENGE: The Witches

CREATE (WRITE a Story/Poem OR DRAW)

  1. Imagine waking up and realizing that you’ve become a mouse, then write a short 600-word story describing life as a mouse (the things you can see, feel, hear, taste, smell)

OR

  1. Draw a picture of the Dining room using the details below:

All over the Dining-Room women were screaming and strong men were turning white in the face and shouting, “It’s crazy! This can’t happen! Let’s get the heck out of here quick!” Waiters were attacking the mice with chairs and wine-bottles and anything else that came to hand. I saw a chef in a tall white hat rushing out from the kitchen brandishing a frying-pan, and another one just behind him was wielding a carving-knife above his head, and everyone was yelling, “Mice! Mice! Mice! We must get rid of the mice!” Only the children in the room were really enjoying it. They all seemed to know instinctively that something good was going on right there in front of them, and they were clapping and cheering and laughing like mad.

OR

  1. Write a 100-word short poem about a mouse

Send your answers to ugochinyelu.anidi@gmail.com

Entry requirements: Entrants must be within the 8-12 age range. The first correct entry will be announced on this page and will win a copy of this book.

Answers must be submitted before 12:00am on Sunday, March 27th 2016.

Next Book of the Week:

THE BFG: A SET OF PLAYS by Roald Dahl