We haven't been paying enough attention to Brian Selznick's detailed illustrations in Frindle. Look at a few now. Pick your favorite. Tell us the page and describe it. What are the best details in the illustration you chose? Is there any sly humor in it?

I like the very first illustration in the book. It shows a baby (Nick?) wrapped in a blanket with all letters on it. I believe his father is holding him and Baby Nick is reaching for a pen in his dad's pocket.

Nick Allen likes words and I think it is humorous and sly that the illustrator put letters on his blanket. Also, since I've read the book, it is funny that he is reaching for a pen ... You'll see why.

"Every good story needs a bad guy, don't you think?" Do you agree? Does every good story have a villain? Give some examples from your reading. Can you think of any good stories that don't have a villain? Hmmmmmmm...

ALL, I'm not seeing many examples. So, who is the villain in The Family Under the Bridge?

So, if certain books don't have villains, why not? What kinds of books don't have villains? Are they still good books?

Have you ever created your own word for something? Did you have your own special word for something when you were little? Does your family have any special words? Let's share.

My parents told me that when I was about 18 months old, I always said "te, te poc" when we went for rides in the car. One day, they figured out it meant gas station. I wonder how I came up with that one.

Think deeply about the MAIN characters in The Wind in the Willows. Which one matches your personality most closely? Explain the ways in which you are similar. Respond to your friends' posts too.

I am absolutely certain that I am most like Mr. Badger. He is oldish and seems like the senior member of the group. I am one of the older members of this class and our faculty. Like Badger, some folks think I am old and wise. On page 24, Rat tells Mole what Badger is like. He says that Badger is shy and he hates society, invitations, dinner and having company. I'm sort of like that. I don't like to visit people or have them to my house. Like Badger, I would enjoy living in a cozy home underground ... most of the time. But, don't be mistaken. Badger and I both love our friends and we would do anything to help them. We would both take them into our homes if they needed a place to stay and we would make them feel welcome and very comfortable. Like Badger, I would try to help a friend if I thought he was heading for trouble. (See Chapter 6).

Edward, I am wondering what you have in common with Otter. You're right, we haven't learned much about him so far. As we read the rest of the book, let's look for things you and Otter have in common. I'm also trying to decide if I think you have more in common with Badger or Mole.

I have a problem and I am counting on all of you to help solve it. I would like to begin an RLA class Twitter. In fact, the account is already set up. But, I have way too much to say. Can you help whittle it down so we can tweet it out to parents and other folks? I'm hoping that each time we tweet, we can include a question so folks can respond. Okay, here's what I have so far ...

We are excited about our first class book, a classic called The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame. We discovered that there are many different versions of this book, but our class is reading the Scholastic Junior Classics edition. We had some conversations about what makes a book a classic. We think that classic books are mostly old and that their stories have been retold and reread for many, many years. We also agree that most people think that these are very good books that are well- written. Many of us feel that our parents and grandparents like certain classic books that they are excited to share with us or read to us. They often say, "I read this when I was your age. You'll love it!" They are usually right and we DO love their classic books even though they often seen old-fashioned. We realized that the word classic can be used to describe many things including cars like the Camaro or even movies such as Star Wars. So we are wondering how old something has to be in order to be
considered a classic and who decides that something is a classic. How is it decided that a book is a classic? Do they nominate books and then there is a meeting to decide? Is there a vote? Does an author get a prize if his/her book is picked to be a classic? Is it like a Newberry Award? At this point, we have more questions than answers.

See, it's way too wordy. I know you can help. Please use the ideas above to draft a tweet about our first book. Try to include a question so folks can respond to us and maybe they will help us figure out exactly what a classic is or tell us about their favorite classic book.

Think about a few sentences and a question that you can link together about one topic. For example, maybe you could focus on the idea of a classic.

Spicer,
Your question is a great one to ask. Can anyone use Spicer's question and expand on it?