ED 112 -- Journal Entry Guidelines

Font: Times New Roman, or Bookman, 12 point

Margins: 1 inch all sides
Bold section labels, such as Genre, Subjects, Summary, Evaluation, etc.
The rest of the text should not be bold unless you are emphasizing some text.
Your Name:
Date of Entry
Assignment #

Andrew Geller
10/3/16
1

Title of Assignment

Entry #
1
Title of Book
Hannahs Night

APA Citation of book

Komako, Sakai (2013). Hannahs Night. Wellington, New Zealand: Gecko Press.
Age Range
2-4
Genre:
Fiction Young Children
Subjects: list at least two
Fiction Family life.
Fiction Adventure.
Summary:
Hannah, perhaps three years old, wakes up very early one morning before anyone else.
She uses the opportunity to roam the house, joined by her cat Shiro, doing things that
ordinarily an adult would prevent. She ends up falling asleep at daybreak on her
sisters bed with Shiro.
Hannah is the main character, Shiro plays a quiet supporting role. Her slightly older
sister, mother and father are all mentioned and shown in illustration, but only asleep.

The story takes place inside the family house and likely over the course of about an
hour. Having the freedom to safely pursue forbidden adventure dominates the story.
A narrator relays the story, which is chronological. The words and sentences are
simple, probably so an early reader can read it on his/her own.
Excerpt:
My favorite sentence in this work by Sakai (2013) was So even when Hannah gave
Shiro some milk and ate some cherries without asking, nobody told her off (pp. 1113). While enjoying her freedom in the house, these are the first two activities she
does, knowing at other times they likely would be forbidden by adults.
Evaluation:
Its a nice short story about a young child safely being on their own and enjoying
some forbidden pleasures.
Activity/Lesson Idea/Curricular Idea:
I really dont know.

Entry # 2
Title of Book
Summer Birds: The Butterflies of Maria Merian
APA Citation of book
Engle, M. & Paschkis, J. (2010). Summer Birds: The Butterflies of Maria Merian. New
York, NY: Henry Holt.
Age Range
Genre:

7-8

History

Subjects:
Caterpillars Juvenile Literature
Butterflies Metamorphosis Juvenile Literature
Summary:
Told in the first-person by Maria, a 13-year-old girl living in 17th century Germany, this
story focuses on her desire to prove an ancient superstition incorrect. For centuries,
people believed that butterflies and other insects were evil and spontaneously emerged
from mud. Maria knew this wasnt true based on careful observations conducted in
secret. She had to hide her research because it could have been considered witchcraft
at the time.
The sole character, Maria documents the life cycle of many types of butterflies, making
detailed paintings of every stage in their life cycle, as well as the food consumed by the
caterpillars and butterflies. She also shows that frogs develop from tadpoles.
She thinks of herself as a pre-flight summer bird and dreams of traveling to far away
lands when she is old enough so she can paint their butterflies and flowers.
The story is told in the present tense first person. Accompanying illustrations show her
in a house and outdoors, but others are truly fantastic and cause me to believe that
this story is being told to someone, as if catching one up on whats she doing.
The idea of persevering toward your dreams in the face of tremendous opposition and
at potentially great risk runs throughout Maria story.
Theres also a historical note following the story which tells of the real Maria Merians
life and her impressive accomplishments.

Excerpt:
My favorite passage is when Engle (2010) has Maria say I know the grown-ups are
wrong about summer birds. Insects are not born from mud. I have seen their whole life
cycle with my own eyes (pp.15-16). I can hear myself thinking this same sentiment
repeatedly throughout my life about many topics. Holding firm to ones beliefs in the
face of opposition, especially when you have proof supporting your position is a
valuable experience.

Evaluation:
I enjoyed the story very much and the illustrations are spectacular, full of the vibrant
colors and patterning representative of various butterflies. This would be a great book
for a young person (girl in particular) interested in science and animals (insects in
particular). It also shows that standing up to mass opinion can have value.
Activity/Lesson Idea/Curricular Idea:
Again, really uncertain and would like some guidance.