2022 Non-Fiction Book Nominees

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Bookmarks

Using Primary Sources (General Information):
The Library of Congress- Using Primary Sources
Primary Source Nexus
National Archives
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The Brilliant Deep: Rebuilding the World's Coral Reefs: The Story of Ken Nedimyer and the Coral Restoration Foundation by Kate Messner  (2018)

​Curriculum:  science
Subjects: coral reefs, conservation

All it takes is one: one coral gamete to start a colony in the ocean, one person to make a difference in the world, one idea to help us heal the earth. The ongoing conservation efforts to save and rebuild the world's coral reefs—with hammer and glue, and grafts of newly grown coral—are the living legacy of environmental scientist Ken Nedimyer, founder of the Coral Restoration Foundation.
ALA Notable Children’s Book Award
NSTA-CBC Best STEM Trade Books Award
Junior Library Guild Selection
ILA Teacher’s Choices

Lesson Ideas:
Book Study from The Curriculum Corner
Library Lesson
Coral Restoration Foundation
Activities from Book Page
Take a Reading Road Trip
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Research other endangered ecosystems, environments- devise solutions to save them.


Read-Alikes:
Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean's Most Fearless Scientist by Jess Keating
Manfish: a Story of Jacques Cousteau by Jennifer Berne
Coral Reefs by Jason Chin
​Coral Reefs by Gail Gibbons
Coral Reefs by Seymour Simon
At Home in the Coral Reef by Katy Muzik
The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry
​Don't Let Them Disappear by Chelsea Clinton
Where is the Great Barrier Reef? by Nico Medina
Coral Reefs by Precious McKenzie
Coral Reef Ecosystems by Tammy Cagne
Amazon Adventure by Sy Montgomery
Coral Reefs Matter by Julie Murphy
Coral Reefs by Maris Wicks
Coral Reefs by Laura Purdie Salas
​Whale Fall Çafe by Jacquie Sewell

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Homes in the Wild: Where Baby Animals and Their Parents Live by Lita Judge (2019)

Curriculum:  science
Subjects:  animals, habitats, homes, habitats

 Wild creatures―from beavers to bobcats, and sloths to squirrels―aren't so different from us after all.  Just like us, every baby animal has a home.  But all homes, regardless of where they are or how they're built, serve the same purpose: providing shelter where a baby can eat, sleep, learn, and stay safe while growing up.
2020 NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book for Students K-12

Lesson Ideas:
Teachers Pay Teachers Animal Homes $
Animal Habitat Lesson Plans
Where Animals Live Lesson Plan
Animal Homes Lessons
​Hidden Picture Activities:
#1
#2
#3
Research other animals – where they live, how they build their homes
Make a crossword puzzle


Read-Alikes: 
Even an Octopus Needs a Home by Irene Kelly
The Home Builders by Varsha Bajay
Mama Dug a Little Den by Jennifer Ward
Welcome Home by Lisa Mundorff
Born in the Wild: Baby Mammals and Their Parents by Lita Judge
Home for a Penguine, Home for a Whale by Brenda Williams
Welcome Home Bear by Il Sung Na
What Do Animals Do All Day? by Wendy Hunt
50 Reasons to Love Animals by Catherine Barr
About Habitats by Cathryn P. Sill
What Footprint is That? by Darrin P. Lunde
A Nest is Noisy by Dianna Hutts Aston
Animal Habitats by Sam Hutchinson
If Animals Built Your House by Bill Wise
Animal Architects by Libby Romero
​A House in the Sky by Steve Jenkins
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Just Like Rube Goldberg: The Incredible True Story of the Man Behind the Machines by Sarah Aronson (2019)

Subjects:  STEM, engineering, cartoonist, biography, inventor

Rube Goldberg was a real cartoonist who got really, really famous by inventing a whole lot of crazy, brilliant, impractical, funny stuff. None of which ever got made.

Lesson Ideas:
Summary and Response to Literature 
Teachers Pay Teachers $
STEM Lesson
Read Aloud
How to Make a Rube Goldberg Machine
Tinker Lab
Activity Sheet

National Inventors Month –
Inventor’s Tool Kit (from Celebrate Picture Books web site) Every idea begins as a jumble of seemingly unrelated parts. Gathering whatever types of material inspires you and keeping it in a box ready to go when inspiration hits is a great way to support innovation and spark experimentation.
Supplies
§  Small parts organizer with drawers or compartments, available at hardware stores and craft stores
§  A variety of parts or craft materials that can be combined, built with, or built on
§  Some hardware ideas—pulleys, wheels, small to medium pieces of wood, wire, nuts, bolts, screws, hooks, knobs, hinges, recyclable materials
§  Some craft ideas—clay, beads, wooden pieces, sticks, paints, pipe cleaners, string, spools, buttons, glitter, scraps of material, recyclable materials
Directions
1.    Fill the organizer with the materials of your choice
2.    Build something cool, crazy, silly, useful


Read-Alikes:
Rube Goldberg's Simple Normal Humdrum School Day by Jennifer George
Build Your OwnChain Reaction Machines: How to Make Crazy Contraptions Using Everyday Stuff by Paul Long
Crazy Contraptions: Build Rube Goldberg Machines That Swoop, Spin, Stack, and Swivel by Laura Perdew
Rube Goldberg: Invention by Maynard Frank Wolfe
The Art of Rube Goldberg: (A) Inventive (B) Cartoon (C) Genius by Jennifer George
Sparky and Spike by Barbara Lowell
The Marvelous Thing That Came From a Spring by Gilbert Ford
The Crayon Man by Natascha Biebow
Balderdash! by Michell Markel
Radiant Child by Javaka Steptoe
The Book of Mistakes by Corinna Luyken
The Astronaut Who Painted the Moon by Dean Robbins
Pocket Full of Colors by Jacqueline Tourville
​Matisse's Garden by Samantha Friedman

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Let 'er Buck!: George Fletcher, the People's Champion by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson (2019)
​Curriculum:  social studies

In 1911, three men were in the final round of the famed Pendleton Round-Up. One was white, one was Indian, and one was black. When the judges declared the white man the winner, the audience was outraged. They named black cowboy George Fletcher the "people's champion" and took up a collection, ultimately giving Fletcher far more than the value of the prize that went to the official winner. 
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Western Writers of America 2020 Spur Award: Best Western Storyteller/Children’s Illustrated Book
2020 Will Rogers Medallion Award: Western Nonfiction/Young Readers/Illustrated Book
2020 American Library Association Notable Children’ Book
2020 Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People (National Council for Social Studies and the Children’s Book Council)
Chicago Public Library Best of the Best Books for 2019
Kirkus Reviews Best Children’s Books for 2019
Booklist’s Top 10 Biographies for Youth, 2019
Booklist’s Top 10 Sports Books for Youth, 2019
National Council of Teachers of English Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction 2019
New Mexico-Arizona Book Award for “Children’s Picture Book”

Lesson Ideas:
Book Review
National Cowboy Museum
Black Cowboys in Oregon
1911 Pendleton Roundup
Pendleton Roundup Video (YouTube) Bucking Contest starts at 13:22
Read Aloud
Book Review and Interview
Book Connections
Activity Sheet

Read-Alikes:
Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy US Marshall by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson
The Adventures of the Negro Cowboys by Philip Durham
Bill Pickett: African-American Rodeo Star by William R. Sanford
The Black Cowboys by John Wukovitx
Black Heroes of the Wild West by Ruth Petz
The Forgotten Heroes: The Story of the Buffalo Soldiers by Clinton Cox
Black Cowboy, Wild Horses: A True Story by Julius Lester
Between The Lines by Sandra Neil Wallace
Jackson Sundown by Doris Fisher
Bill Pickett, Rodeo-Ridin' Cowboy by Andrea Davis Pinkney
Presenting Buffalo Bill by Candace Fleming
Black Jack by Charles R. Smith, Jr.
Black Heroes of the Wild West by James Otis Smith
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Magic Ramen: The Story of Momofuku Ando by Andrea Wang (2019)

Curriculum:  social studies
Subjects:  Japanese food, noodles, ramen, Japanese culture, inventions

Inspiration struck when Momofuku Ando spotted the long lines for a simple bowl of ramen following World War II. Magic Ramen tells the true story behind the creation of one of the world's most popular foods.
Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
2020 Sakura Medal Picture Book Award Winner
2019 Freeman Book Award Honorable Mention
Smithsonian Ten Best Children’s Books of 2019
Center for the Study of Multicultural Children’s Literature (CSMCL) Best Books of 2019
Penn GSE The Educator’s Playbook The Best Books for Young Readers of 2019
May 2021 NEA Read Across America Elementary Level selection
2021 Connecticut Nutmeg Books Award nominee
2021 Nevada Young Readers’ Award nominee
2020-2021 Washington Children’s Choice Picture Book Award nominee
2022 Illinois Monarch Award nominee
2022 Iris Award Picture Book nominee

Lesson Ideas:
Read Across America Lesson Idea
Teachers Guide
STEM and Community Service Ideas for Magic Ramen
    Activity Kit for the above
​​Book It Lesson Plan
Book It Resources
Info from the Author
​How to make a Fortune Teller

National Noodle Month
Noodle Day (October 6, 2021)

Students or teacher bring in samples of different kinds of noodles to share; discuss similarities and differences



Read-Alikes: 
Fry Bread by Kevin Noble Maillard
Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao by Kat Zhang
Everybody Brings Noddles by Norah Dooley
Noodle Man: the Pasta Superhero by April Pulley Sayre
The Story of Noodles by Ying Chang Compestine
Making Noodles from Scratch by Harold P. Gershenson
The Crayon Man by Natascha Biebow
Alice Waters and the Trip to Delicious by Jacqueline Briggs Martin
The Discovery of Ramen by Philip Amara
Fairy Floss by Ann Ingalls
Pop! by Meghan McCarthy
Just Like Rube Goldberg by Sarah Aronson
Nacho's Nachos by Sandra Nickel
Balloons Over Broadway by Melissa Sweet
Gingerbread for Liberty! by Mara Rockliff
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The Proper Way to Meet a Hedgehog and Other How-to Poems selected by Janeczko (2019)

Curriculum:  literature

Subjects: poetry, how-to, rhyming
Includes a variety of poems showing readers “how-to” do something from sports to foods to nature.

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Lesson Ideas:
Library Lesson
Classroom Bookshelf Teaching Ideas
Centre for Literacy in Primary Education Lesson Ideas
Live Your Poem
Read Aloud (YouTube)
​How to Write a Poem
Activity Sheet on writing a "How to" Poem

Read-Alikes:
I Am the Seed that Grew the Tree- selected by Fiona Waters
The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires
Instructions by Neil Gaiman
The House that Wonky Built by Katz Crowley
When Your Llama Needs a Haircut by Susanna Leonard Hill
All You Need for a Snowman by Alice Schertle
How I Trained My Dog in 10 Days by Norma Lewis
Jasper and Ollie Build a Fort by Alex Wilan
Just Like Rube Goldberg by Sarah Aronson
One Minutes Til Bedtime
Thanku
The Popcorn Astronauts by Deborah Ruddell
Guyku by Bob Raczka
A Poem is a Firefly by Charles Ghingna
A New Green Day by Antoinette Portis
Guess Who, Haiku! by Deanna Caswell
Trees by Verlie Hutchens
​If You Go Down to the Woods Today by Rachel Piercey

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Saving Fiona: The Story of the World's Most Famous Baby Hippo by Thane Maynard (2018)

Curriculum:  science

Subjects:  baby animals, hippopotamus,
 
The amazing, true story of Fiona, a baby hippo born prematurely at the Cincinnati Zoo, the team of scientists and caregivers who nursed her to health, and the vast community in Cincinnati and beyond who rallied around her. 

Lesson Ideas:
Teachers Pay Teachers Hippo Activities $
VOA News Article
Lesson Ideas
Scholastic Math Activities
Video about Fiona
Cincinnati Newspaper Article
Activity Ideas
Primary Source Pairings
Curriculum Guide for Fiona the Hippo-- you might be able to get additional ideas from this book

Read-Alikes:
Fiona the Hippo by Zandervan
Baby Hippopotamuses by Kate Riggs
Fiona's Feelings by John Hutton
Fiona's Friends by John Hutton
Fiona the Hippo by Richard Cowdrey
Hippos Are Huge! by Jonathan London
Hippos by Conrad Storad
Hippo by Stephanie Turnbull
Meet a Baby Hippo by Lisa Owings

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Sisters and Champions: The True Story of Venus and Serena Williams by Howard Bryant  (2018)

Curriculum: social studies

Subjects:  biography, sisters, friendship, tennis, female athletes, African-American women tennis players

A sports biography about two of the greatest female tennis players of all-time, outsiders who just happen to be sisters.

2019 ILA Teachers’ Choices Reading List selection

Lesson Ideas:
Teachers Pay Teachers $
Book Review
Read Aloud (YouTube)
Britannica Kids Encyclopedia
Basic Rules for Playing Tennis

Research other sports figures or African-Americans who overcame adversity.

Read-Alikes:
Serena Williams: a Kid's book about Mental Strenth and Cultivating a Champion Mind by Mary Mhin
Venus and Serena Williams: Tennis Superstars by A. D. Largie
Serena: the Littlest Sister by Karlin Gray
Sisters: Venus and Serena Williams by Jeanette Winter
Game Changers: the Story of Venus and Serena Williams by Lesa Cline-Ransome
Game, Set, Sister! by Jay Leslie
Serena by Karlin Gray
Althea Gibson by Megan Reid
Serena Williams by Jodie Shepherd
The Story of Simone Biles: a Biography Book for New Readers by Rachelle Burke
Queen of the Track: Alice Coachman, Olympic High-Jump Champion by Heather Lang
​Thurgood by Jonah Winter
Playing to Win by Karen Deans
Nothing By Trouble by Sue Stauffacher
Serena Williams by Esther Porter

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Thurgood by Jonah Winter (2019)

Curriculum: social studies
Subjects: African-Americans, law, lawyers, judges, segregation, biography, US Supreme Court, court decisions

Life of Thurgood Marshall and the events that shaped his life from a boy growing up in segregated Baltimore, Maryland to landmark cases on segregation and civil rights as a lawyer for the NAACP to his decisions as a judge and as the first black Supreme Court justice.
Washington Post Best Book of the Year
Bank Street Best Book of the Year
Booklist Youth Editor’s Choice selection
Center for the Study of Multicultural Children’s Literature Best Book

Lesson Ideas:
Read Aloud (YouTube)
Biography of Thurgood Marshall
National Geographic Kids Article
Kids Connect Facts and Worksheets
Book Connections

Read-Alikes: 
Amazing Americans: Thurgood Marshall by Kristin Kemp
Streetcar to Justice: How Elizabeth Jennings Won the Right to Ride in New York by Amy Hill Hearth
Ida B. Wells: Let the Truth be Told by Walter Dean Myers
The Highest Tribute by Kekla Magoon
I Am Martin Luther King, Jr. by Brad Metzler
A Picture Book of Thurgood Marshall by David A. Adler
Rosa Parks by Kitson Jazynka
Ruth Objects by Doreen Rappaport
Ruth Bader Ginsburg by Laurie Calkhoven
​If A Bus Could Talk by Faith Ringgold

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Winged Wonders: Solving the Monarch Migration Mystery by Meeg Pincus (2020)

​Curriculum: science
Subjects: Monarch butterflies, migration

For decades, as the monarch butterflies swooped through every year like clockwork, people from Canada to the United States to Mexico wondered, "Where do they go?" In 1976 the world learned the answer: after migrating thousands of miles, the monarchs roost by the millions in an oyamel grove in Central Mexico's mountains. But who solved this mystery?
2020 AAAS/Subaru American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru finalist
2020 EUREKA Excellence in Nonfiction Awards
Best of 2020 Picture Book New Releases – Innovative Nonfiction Category winner
Original Art 2020 nominee
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Lesson Ideas:
Educational Activities
​Lesson Planet
Activity Sheet from the Publisher
Coloring Page
Coloring Page 2

Read-Alikes:
Animazes: Extraordinary Animal Migrations by Melissa Castrillon
The Long, Long Journey: The Godwit's Amazing Migration by Sandra Markle
Swallow Journey by Vivian French
Going Home: the Mystery of Animal Migration by Marianne Berkes
The Peregrine's Journey: a Story of Migration by Madeleine Dunphy
Monarchs and Milkweed by Anurag Agrawal
Monarch Butterfly by Gail Gibbons
Gotta Go! Gotta Go! by Sam Swopes
Monarchs and Milkweed by Helen Frost
Where Butterflies Go by Joanne Ryder
A Monarch Butterfly's Life byJohn Himmelman
Great Migrations by Laura F. Marsh
Parrots Over Puerto Rico by Susan L. Roth
Butterfly For a King by Cindy Trumbore
The Monarchs Are Missing by Rebecca E. Hirsch
The Incredible Migration of Monarch Butterflies by Nancy Furstinger
Many by Nicola Davies
Migration by Gail Gibbons
Migration by Mike Unwin
​Mexico of Bust! by Deborah Underwood

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