Pennsylvania Young Readers Choice Award

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(No Transcript)
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Pennsylvania Young Readers Choice Award

• 2009-2010
• Grade 3 Grade 6

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Kickoff! by Tiki Barber and Ronde Barber As
Tiki and Ronde Barber leave elementary school
they look forward to junior high where they can
play football for their school. But things dont
go as smoothly as the boys had hoped. For the
first time in their lives the twins are in
separate classes which forces each to be more
independent and try outs for the football team
prove to be a challenge as well. Will the Barber
twins make the team and rise above the many
obstacles they face? Kickoff! holds all the
answers. /
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The Puzzling World of Winston Breen by Eric
Berlin Winston Breen finds puzzles everywhere,
even on pizzas, and solving them is what he does
best. But when his sister uncovers mysterious
wooden strips with words and letters that even
Winston can't figure out, the entire family is
obsessed. It turns out the strips are part of a
scavenger hunt set up for the children of one of
the towns eccentric residents. If all four sets
are put together, they will lead to a ring worth
thousands of dollars. Cooperating seems like a
no-brainer to Winston, but to solve the puzzle,
the group has to overcome mysterious threats,
mutual mistrust, 25-year old clues, and
participants who will do anything to keep the
treasure for themselves. Chock full of puzzles to
solve some involving the mystery and others
Winston runs into along the way. This treasure
hunt will keep readers challenged right to the
end. If you go to the authors website, you can
download and print the puzzles in the book so no
one needs to write in your library copy.
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Room One by Andrew Clements illustrated by
Chris Blair Ted attends a one-room school in
Plattsford, Nebraska that is a really small town.
He has been delivering newspapers every morning
for two and a half years until one morning he
sees a face in the window of an abandoned
farmhouse. Ted tries to make friends with the
face but he is told to keep it a secret. The
ghost family is in trouble with no money, job or
food. Ted does not know whom he can trust with
the secret and whom he can get to help the
family. Read the story to find out what happens
to Teds ghost family.
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Hey Batta Batta Swing! The Wild Old Days of
Baseball by Sally Cook and James Charlton
illustrated by Ross MacDonald What color is the
uniform for the team you play on? Did you know
that uniform jerseys showed the position of the
player not the team? That would be confusing! To
get a player out who was off base, players used
to hit him with a ball. Arent you glad thats
not a rule anymore? In olden days, there was only
one umpire, and players used to cheat. These are
just a few of the facts about baseball that you
can learn in Hey Batta Batta Swing. But people
still love baseball, and each team will always
try to find new ways to win, so check out this
book for some fantastic baseball history.
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Surfer of the Century the Life of Duke
Kahanamoku by Ellie Crowe illustrated by
Richard Waldrep Surf is up! Way up! Imagine
riding nearly two miles on a giant wave! Duke
Kahanamoku introduced surfing to the world and
was a champion Olympic swimmer. Surfing body,
board or otherwise-is a sport that is in a class
by itself. And for those who indulge in it, here
is a wish that the surf may always be breaking
big, fast, clean and fine for you.
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The Gollywhopper Games by Jodi
Feldman illustrated by Victoria Jamieson To
twelve-year-old Gil Goodsons delight, out of
4,500 kids standing in line when the gate to the
Golly Toy and Game Company opens, he miraculously
manages to be one of the few selected to get into
the Gollywhopper Games Competition. The winner of
the Gollywhopper Games will receive cash, a
college scholarship, and all sorts of Golly toys
and games. The main reason Gil wants to win,
however, is to clear his fathers name. His
father, a former employee of the Golly Toy
Company was wrongly accused of embezzlement.
Follow along with him as he desperately tries to
solve the increasingly difficult brainteasers and
puzzles, traveling through the maze of games to
the finish. Have fun figuring out all of the
challenging Golly Whopper brainteasers along the
way too. Read to find out how this suspenseful
game ends.
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The Fabled Fourth Graders of Aesop Elementary by
Candace Fleming What a perfect way to brush up
on your Aesops fables in a modern setting. No
teacher wants to teach this year's fourth-grade
class at Aesop Elementary. Just as Mrs.
Struggles, the principal is about to give up, Mr.
Jupiter appears with a flawlessly huge resume.
The class tests him, but he wins them over as the
year progresses through these 23 stories.
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Just Grace by Charise Mericle Harper Meet Just
Grace, one of four Graces in her third grade
class. To distinguish them their teacher calls
them Grace W., Grace F. (the Big Meanie), Gracie,
and Just Grace. Grace tries to explain that she
wants to be called Grace not Just Grace, but
her teacher isnt listening. Just Grace has
unique talents. One is her special super power to
tell when people are unhappy and she always does
something to make them feel better. The second
talent is drawing comics to make herself feel
better. Her first super power gets her in lots of
trouble when she tries to cheer up her next-door
neighbor, Mrs. Luther, who is sad because she
accidentally falls on her beloved cat. Read and
find out what happens when Just Grace sends
postcards from the cat to cheer up Mrs. Luther at
the same time Mrs. Luthers scared cat goes
missing.
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Sisters and Brothers Sibling Relationships in
the Animal World by Steve Jenkins Robin Page
Here, Steve Jenkins and Robin Page investigate
sibling relationships throughout the animal
kingdom. In this book you will learn that
anteaters are always only children and
nine-banded armadillos are always born as
identical quadruplets. You will also learn that
falcons play-hunt in the sky and that hyena cubs
fight to the death. This is the perfect book for
animal lovers young and old!

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Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat by Lynne
Jonnell art by Jonathan Bean No one in school
seemed to notice Emmy, although she tried hard to
be good. The only one who seemed to notice her
was the class pet, a rat. And after he bites her
finger, Emmy thinks she can hear him talkingand
even if he is the only one who notices her, he
isnt very nice. Why do herparents keep going
away and leaving her with her nanny, Miss Barmy?
And what happens when the rat bites one of Emmys
classmates, twice? Will he ever return to normal
size??
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Henrys Freedom Box written by Ellen Levine
illustrated by Kadir Nelson Henry Brown is one
of the Underground Railroads most famous runaway
slaves. He thought up a clever plan to travel
from Richmond, Virginia to Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania. While working in a tobacco factory
with a cruel foreman, he learned that his wife
and children were sold and taken away from him.
This injustice gave him the strength and courage
to dream up an ingenious escape. With the help of
his friends, James and Dr. Smith, a white man who
knew slavery was wrong, he climbed into a wooden
crate and was mailed to a friend with a sign
printed on the crate to William H. Johnson, Arch
Street, Philadelphia Pennsylvania. Dr. Smith also
printed in extra large letters THIS SIDE UP WITH
CARE. Will Henry Browns daring plan work, or
will he be caught?
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The Year of the Rat by Grace Lin The first
twelve animals to arrive at the Emperors
celebration became the twelve animals in the
Chinese New Year cycle. Since the rat finished
first, his year symbolizes new beginnings fresh
starts. But fresh starts mean changes, and for
Pacy that change comes unexpectedly when her best
friend Melinda moves across the country to
California. Changes in her friendships, family,
and school challenge Pacy to discover that though
things in life change, they can still be
wonderful.
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Different like Coco by Elizabeth Matthews Coco
Chanel was different. She lived in an orphanage.
She looked different. She was poor. But she had
big dreams. She worked hard. She made different
work for her. Everyone thought clothing for women
should look a certain way. It was wartime in
France and fabric was very expensive. So, Coco
had an idea. She made clothes that were
different. Coco Chanel changed the way that women
dressed. People remember Coco and are glad that
she was not afraid to be different.
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Gimme Cracked Corn and I Will Share by Kevin
OMalley After Chicken has a dream about buried
treasure under a great pink pig, he grabs his
friend George and the two go off on an
eggs-pedition in search of a tasty treat of
cracked corn. Pig will not move so that the
eggs-cavation can begin, but that does not stop
resilient Chicken who is determined to fulfill
his dream. If you like puns and corny jokes then
join the fun with Chicken in his quest for buried
treasure.
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Remember, it is easy to participate. Just read or
listen to at least 3 books from the list by March
1, 2010. At that time your librarian or media
specialist will distribute ballots. Votes will be
sent to the awards committee by March 15 and the
winning titles and authors will be announced at
the annual Pennsylvania School Librarians
Conference.Keep reading!!!
Annotations adapted from psla.org.