March 6, 2008


Dear Mrs. Schachner,

My name is Kiley Green and I am writing to inform you that you have won the Laughs and Giggles Award. This award was created for a class project in the Elementary Education block of Penn State, Altoona. My classmates and I were asked to create an award, provide criteria, select books for the award, and nominate a winner. Once a book has been chosen, we were asked to mail the award and a letter to the author.

The Laughs and Giggles award was to be presented to a book for its excellence in making children laugh. I have chosen your book, Skippyjon Jones, to receive my award. Not only does your book contain humor, but it also shows that children can have a wild imagination and have fun with it. Children should be encouraged to use their imaginations and I feel that Skippyjon Jones is the ticket for exploring imaginations. Many of my classmates had nominated many other books for my award, but Skippyjon Jones is far more worthy of this award.

Congratulations and thank you for your wonderful book and I hope Skippyjon Jones' adventures continue!

Sincerely,



Kiley L. Green

"Accidents of Nature" is a very touching story about a girl with Cerebral Palsy. This book is more suitable for young adults because of its language and references to sex and communism. Jean has gone to a Normal school all her life and one summer goes to a cripple camp when she is seventeen. Jean meets many other people with disabilites and experiences life like she never has before. She befriends a very outspoken girl named Sara, who envisions equality for people with disabilities and introduces her own human rights movement. Jean spends ten days coming to terms with her disability and leaves with a new outlook on life. Through Jean's eyes you are truly able to see what it is like to have a disability and feel the rollercoaster of emotions that she experiences.

"Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret" is a novel about a preteen girl who grows up struggling with religion, menstruation and peer pressure. Judy Blume tells it like it is. This would a good book for girls to read as they are growing up to relate to Margaret and her young life.

What a better way to read about a young girl's immagration to the United States than through a diary. Each page even has the Spanish translations after the English. The illustrations are filled with vibrant colors that are pleasing to the eye. This would be a great resource for children to read and understand what some children experience as they move "from here to there".

"America, My New Home" tells a young girl's journey to America through poetry. She compares her new home to her old one in Jamaica in twenty-three different poems. This book shows that you don't have to tell a story the old-fashioned way. You can do it using poetry as well. A great way to get children to write poetry is through a story about themselves like the girl did in the book.

The illustrator of "Owl Moon" creates beautiful illustrations with the use of watercolor. The colors are done to fit the setting perfectly. "Owl Moon" is about a father and daughter who share a special experience as they go owling.

"Ty's One-man Band" is about who runs into a man with a wooden peg leg who surprises Ty by making music from a cup, plate, and a spoon. Ty is so fascinated that the man sends him home to get a wasboard, two wooden spoons, a tin pail, and a comb. When Ty asks for these items he is told that they don't make music, but the one-man band proves them all wrong and makes wonderful music for the town. Music is everywhere around us and we should appreciate it for what it is. You can make music out of anything, even language. This would be a great book to read to children to show that music isn't just in music class.

"Once Upon a Time" is a heartwarming story about a girl who struggles with reading and gets teased at school. Sarie's old friend Auntie Anna is the one person who understands the difficulty she has with reading. Sarie learns to read when she finds a book that she likes and Auntie Anna supports her and gets her imagination going. Once Sarie accomplishes this, she is able to read in school and no longer gets teased. I would recommend this book to those children who are struggling with reading. Sometimes they just have to find something that interests them and that they enjoy to help them in the reading process. I would read this in a classroom of my own because many children can relate to what Sarie is going through.

"Sometimes I'm Bombaloo" is a great story about a girl who loses her temper. The author uses a funny word as a metaphor for angry. This book shows what Katie is feeling when she is angry and what helps to calm her down so she is herself again. This would be a very helpful book for children who seem to have some trouble dealing with their anger.

This is a story about a little girl who takes pride in how she became a part of a family. She was adopted by a single mother and loves to hear the story of how she was adopted. She wishes she had a father but she has a grandfather and a friend's father to fill in the gap. Her life is very fulfilling and the story shows that she gets plenty of love and support even though there isn't a father in the picture.

The Laughs and Giggles Award goes out to books that can make children laugh. How does the saying go, "laughter is the best medicine"? Children today are forced to grow up way too fast and need some humor in their lives. They need a break where they can just be silly and have a good time. What better way to do it, than through children's literature. On page 276 of Battling Dragons, Violet J. Harris states that "books are powerful". Books have the power to elicit many emotions from readers. Children need to know that it's okay to be happy and laugh in the midst of their stressful lives. This award requires colorful illustrations and most importantly, humor. The books must be realistic fiction or pure fantasy. They must also be suitable for children ages 5-9. If the book can make you laugh, it's bound to make a child do the same. The author who can erupt laughter or even just a smile will receive this award. Nominations are due no later than Tuesday February 19, 2008.