Last week I shared a book about the suffragist Carrie Chapman Catt, and today I am still on the activist kick with a fun new picture book that encourages kids to speak up and change the world! The book is Rocket Says Speak Up! by Nathan Bryon and illustrated by Dapo Adeola. It is recommended for ages 3 to 7 and is part of a collection called Rocket Says.
It was very different teaching last year versus when I left teaching 17 years ago. So much has changed from technology to expectations. When I taught previously every high school used Geometers' Sketchpad and now there are free and easier to use programs like GeoGebra. Graphing calculators were a huge deal and it was hard to get students to buy them. We actually often had a class set or at least a few for the ones who could not afford them. Now if they do not have the calculators, they can use online programs like Desmos. Although I did not permit Desmos during tests since it was too hard to monitor what they were really doing on their devices with online searches and such. I discovered I liked Desmos better for some things because of the ease to use it. However, I still teach kids to use their graphing calculators because they are able to use them in standardized testing like the SAT and ACT.
When you think of the Women's Suffrage Movement in the United States, who do you think of? I am sure names like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton come to mind. Have you heard of Carrie Chapman Catt? It is because of her questions and thinking that we finally got the vote. Today I get to share a new picture book with you about her and her role as a suffragist. The book is Dare to Question: Carrie Chapman Catt's Voice for the Vote by Jasmine A. Stirling and illustrated by Udayana Lugo. It is recommended for ages 5 and up. There is also a giveaway at the end of this post!
Have you seen the Barbie Movie yet? For my birthday this year, Hazel and I went to a matinee. I also decided to try to make a Barbie cake for myself. It is hard to hear some of the criticism of the movie from people who refuse to see it. For example, Rex Huppke's column in USA Today shares many of the things said about the movie. Now being a liberal and having many liberal friends, I have many friends who have different opinions. But I am going to begin by sharing a bit of my own background.
