Here are books Arlene knows older boys will like.






What is a typical guy moment, anyhow? Daniel Pinkwater remembers thedisappointment of meeting his Lone Star Ranger hero up close and personal. Gordon Korman relishes the goofy ultra violence of the old Looney Tunes cartoons. Stephen King realizes that having your two hundred- pound babysitter fart on your five-year-old head prepares you for any literary criticism. And that's just a sampling from Guys Write for Guys Read, a fast-paced, high energy collection of short works: stories, essays, columns, cartoons, anecdotes, and artwork by today's most popular writers and illustrators.



Murderers, mob bosses, and convicts . . . these guys are not your average neighbors. Unless you live on Alcatraz. It's 1935 and twelve-year-old Moose Flanagan and his family have just moved to the infamous island that's home to criminals like notorious escapee Roy Gardner, Machine Gun Kelly, and of course, Al Capone. Now Moose has to try to fit in at his new school, avoid getting caught up in one of the warden's daughter's countless plots, and keep an eye on his sister Natalie, who's not like other kids. All Moose wants to do is protect Natalie, live up to his parents' expectations, and stay out of trouble. But on Alcatraz, trouble is never very far away.




Joey Pigza's got heart, he's got a mom who loves him, and he's got "dud meds," which is what he calls the Ritalin pills that are supposed to even out his wild mood swings. Sometimes Joey makes bad choices. He learns the hard way that he shouldn't stick his finger in the pencil sharpener, or swallow his house key, or run with scissors. Joey ends up bouncing around a lot - and eventually he bounces himself all the way downtown, into the district special-ed program, which could be the end of the line. As Joey knows, if he keeps making bad choices, he could just fall between the cracks for good. But he is determined not to let that happen.


The Chronicles of Narnia have enchanted millions of readers over the last fifty years, and the magical events described in C. S. Lewis's immortal prose have left many a lasting memory. For here is a world where a witch decrees eternal winter; where there are more talking animals than people; and where battles are fought by Centaurs, Giants, and Fauns.



Follow Harry from his first days at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, through his many adventures with Hermione and Ron, to his confrontations with rival Draco Malfoy and the dreaded Professor Snape. From a dangerous descent into the Chamber of Secrets to the Triwizard Tournament to the return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, each adventure is more riveting and exhilarating than its predecessor, and now all six books are available together for the first time in an elegant paperback boxed set.



Palmer LaRue is running out of birthdays. For as long as he can remember, he's dreaded the day he turns ten––the day he'll take his place beside all the other ten-year-old boys in town, the day he'll be a wringer. But Palmer doesn't want to be a wringer. It's one of the first things he learned about himself and it's one of the biggest things he has to hide. In Palmer's town being a wringer is an honor, a tradition passed down from father to son. Palmer can't stop himself from being a wringer just like he can't stop himself from growing one year older, just like he can't stand up to a whole town––right?



Unfortunately, Roy's first acquaintance in Florida is Dana Matherson, a well-known bully. Then again, if Dana hadn't been sinking his thumbs into Roy's temples and mashing his face against the school-bus window, Roy might never have spotted the running boy. And the running boy is intriguing: he was running away from the school bus, carried no books, and-here's the odd part-wore no shoes. Sensing a mystery, Roy sets himself on the boy's trail. The chase introduces him to potty-trained alligators, a fake-fart champion, some burrowing owls, a renegade eco-avenger, and several extremely poisonous snakes with unnaturally sparkling tails.



Stanley Yelnats is under a curse. A curse that began with his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather and has since followed generations of Yelnats. Now Stanley has been unjustly sent to a boys' detention center, Camp Green Lake, where the warden makes the boys "build character" by spending all day, every day, digging holes: five feet wide and five feet deep. It doesn't take long for Stanley to realize there's more than character improvement going on at Camp Green Lake. The boys are digging holes because the warden is looking for something. Stanley tries to dig up the truth in this inventive and darkly humorous tale of crime and punishment—and redemption.




In Dorchester, New York, Kevin is doing his homework when suddenly an arrow comes out of nowhere and pins his baseball cap to the wall. The man who shot the arrow claims he fell off a tiger . . . and wound up in Kevin's room. It's not long before Kevin realizes that the man, who calls himself Chu-mong, or Great Archer, is no ordinary burglar, but a traveler from far away in both space and time.




Sometimes I feel like I have walked into the middle of a movie. Maybe I can make my own movie. The film will be the story of my life. No, not my life, but of this experience. I'll call it what the lady who is the prosecutor called me.








It begins with a free and joyful act—but from then on, Michael finds it impossible even to remember what it felt like to be free and joyful. When he fires his new rifle into the air on his seventeenth birthday, he never imagines that the bullet will end up killing someone. But a mile away, a man is killed by that bullet as he innocently repairs his roof. And Michael keeps desperately silent while he watches his world crumble.



The Following books are suggested on Jon Scieszka's Guys Read web site:

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket The Baseball Card Adventure Series by Dan Gutman Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul CurtisSideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark edited by Alvin Schwartz Maze; Far Northby Will Hobbs Bunnicula by James Howe Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl The Day My Butt Went Psycho by Andy Griffiths This Can’t Be Happening at MacDonald Hall by Gordon Korman Maniac McGee by Jerry Spinelli Be A Perfect Person in Just Three Daysby Stephen Manes The Spiderwick Chronicles by Holly Black The Jumping Tree; Finding Our Way by Rene Saldana Jr.Harry Potter books by J.K. Rowling Tangerine by Edward BloorThe Beast by Walter Dean Myers October Sky by Homer Hickam Brian’s Winter; The River; Hatchet by Gary Paulsen Nothing But The Truth; Poppy by Avi My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead GeorgeThe Giver by Lois Lowry Skellig; Kit’s Wilderness by David Almond Artemis Fowl books by Eoin Colfer Smugglers, and Wreckers by Iain Lawrence The Alex Rider books by Anthony Horowitz Joey Pigza books by Jack Gantos Merlin books by T.A. Barron Tuck Everlasting by Natalie BabbitThe Moves Make the Manby Bruce BrooksChicagoby Richard Peck The Tripod Trilogy by John Christopher Frindle by Andrew Clements Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher by Bruce Coville Bud, Not Buddyby Christopher Paul Curtis Among the Hidden by Margaret Haddix Unreal; Undoneby Paul Jennings Island Boyz by Graham Salisbury The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen Silverwing; Sunwing; Firewing by Ken Oppel The Last Book in the Universe by Rodman Philbrick Cirque du Freak books by Darren Shan Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliffe

Here are some picture books Arlene knows boys will like.

Know what I do at night while you're asleep? Eat your trash, that's what! See those bags? I smell breakfast! With ten wide tires, one really big appetite, and an even bigger smell, this truck's got it all. His job? Eating your garbage and loving every stinky second of it! And you thought nighttime was just for sleeping.

When big ships get to the harbor, they need me! 'Cause I'm MIGHTY! And I can nudge, bump, butt, shove, ram, push, and pull 'em in. You think this tug's too small to pull in ships twenty times his size? Think again! This guy is 100% MIGHTY!

Joe and John Henry are a lot alike. They both like shooting marbles, they both want to be firemen, and they both love to swim. But there's one important way they're different: Joe is white and John Henry is black, and in the South in 1964, that means John Henry isn't allowed to do everything his best friend is. Then a law is passed that forbids segregation and opens the town pool to everyone. Joe and John Henry are so excited they race each other there...only to discover that it takes more than a new law to change people's hearts.

Ugly Fish is ugly and big and mean, and he won't share his driftwood tunnel or his special briny flakes with anyone. And that means the wimpy little fish who keep showing up in his tank have got to go. But then one day someone bigger and uglier and maybe even meaner arrives . . . and suddenly Ugly Fish isn't feeling quite so confident anymore.

Open this book and a massive T. rex springs out, flashing a startling jawful of jagged teeth. Turn the next spread and a ravishing raptor unfurls and appears to fly off the edge of the page. Inside the amazing Encyclopedia Prehistorica: Dinosaurs are "shield bearers" in full-body armor, creatures with frilly headgear, and weighty, long-necked giants. There are even amusing tidbits on the history of paleontology itself — like a pop-up version of a Victorian New Year's dinner in the belly of a dinosaur model, or a pair of scientists locked in a literal tug-of-war over bones.

At last the ultimate book of pirates is here! Inside is the stuff of legend, where tales of adventure and intrigue are written in blood. Read about Blackbeard and Captain Kidd. Learn about walking the plank and buried treasure. Discover what was like aboard a pirate ship -- from a pirate's strict code of conduct to the punishments that awaited those that broke them.

Leonardo is truly a terrible monster-terrible at being a monster that is. No matter how hard he tries, he can't seem to frighten anyone. Determined to succeed, Leonardo sets himself to training and research. Finally, he finds a nervous little boy, and scares the tuna salad out of him! But scaring people isn't quite as satisfying as he thought it would be. Leonardo realizes that he might be a terrible, awful monster-but he could be a really good friend.

A book of impossible objects, magic mirrors, and other amazing illusions is offered by the award-winning creator of I Spy and ,A Drop of Water.

All fine beat. All beau boy. Beautiful."This stunning volume celebrates all things boy." -Publishers Weekly, starred reviewFamed author bell hooks brings us a tight, exuberant story that captures the essence and energy of what it means to be a boy. Chris Raschka's soulful illustrations buzz with a force that is the perfect match for these powerful words.

It's a long way to a million, right?Of course it is.But do you really know what a million looks like? If you'd like to see -- actually see, right now, with your own eyes -- what a million looks like, just open this book. Be prepared to learn some interesting things along the way. Like how many shoe boxes it would take to make a stack to Mount Everest. And be prepared to do some number wondering of your own. But, most of all, be prepared to be amazed. Because a million is a LOT of dots.

The following books are suggested on Jon Scieszka's Guys Read web site:

Booklist for Young Guys
Cars That Go and Things That Goby Richard Scarry The Carrot Seed by Ruth Krauss, illustrated by Crockett Johnson.Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus by Mo WillemsGo, Dog. Go!by Philip D. EastmanFrog and Toad books by Arnold LobelGeorge and Martha books by James MarshallThe Stupidsby Harry Allard. Illustrated by James MarshallGrimm’s Fairy TalesCaps For Sale by Esphyr SlobodkinaSylvester and the Magic Pebble and Dr. DeSoto by William SteigTrucks; Trains; Machines at Work by Byron Barton I Spy books by Jean Marzollo, photographs by Walter WickDr Seuss booksThe True Story of the 3 Little Pigs! by Jon ScieszkaJumanji by Chris Van AllsburgNo, David by Dave Shannon
Ted by Tony DiTerlizziParts; More Parts by Tedd ArnoldTruck by Donald CrewsHow I Spent My Summer Vacation by Mark TeagueThe Adventures of Sparrowboy by Brian PinkneyDinosaur Bob by William JoyceFire Truck by Peter SisThe Maestro Plays by Bill Martin and Vladimir RadunskyThe Wheels on the Bus by Paul Zelinsky

Research has shown that boys across the nation are lagging behind in every level of education. In elementary schools, boys are twice as likely to be diagnosed with a learning disability. Furthermore, statistics are continuing to confirm that the number of male undergraduates on college campuses is dropping rapidly. Boys often start with lower literacy skills than girls and are less encouraged to read. How can we help solve this “boy literacy crisis”? Educators are fighting to find new ways to help boys succeed. Because boys are biologically, developmentally, and psychologically different from girls, teachers must learn how to meet individual needs. Although it has been demonstrated that family background and environment play a big role in a child’s success, a majority of his or her experiences occur inside the classroom. Due to this amount of classroom time, a child is vulnerable to the attitudes and efforts shown by teachers.

The aim of this Action Research Project is to enable teacher researchers to identify aspects of the educational process that they wish to enhance, to develop skills for implementing the change and scientifically investigating the results of the change, and to communicate the process to an informed audience. With this project we fulfilled two major goals: 1) To learn an important professional development tool, and 2) to find ways to support elementary age boys in literacy learning.

Primary Research Question:
What types of teaching methods support boys’ engagement with reading?

Secondary Research Questions:
How does the layout of the text effect a boy’s engagement with reading?

How does the level of activity in a book’s introduction effect engagement with reading?

How does the manipulation of a three dimensional object effect engagement with reading?

How does correlating full-body movement effect engagement with reading?

How does male role model involvement in the home effect engagement with reading?

What are the common perceptions teachers have regarding boys with reading difficulties which potentially effect their teaching practices?

Findings
1. Boys reading engagement is influenced by social interaction.

2. Boy’s reading engagement is influenced by authentic purpose.

3. Boy’s reading engagement is influenced by their natural inclination.

4. Boys’ reading engagement is interest driven.

5. Boys' reading engagement is positively influenced by differentiated instruction.

Preliminary Conclusions
1. Boys need to be able to socially interact, both verbally and physically, with their peers and male family members as they read and respond to books.

2. Boys need to have a clear purpose for reading that connects to their immediate needs and orientations. Intermediate skill or strategy purposes are not sufficiently engaging.

3. The topic, theme, and overall subject matter is of primary importance to engaging male readers. Interest and natural inclination must be considered when selecting reading material.

4. Teachers are aware of the underachievement in boys' reading, but due to lack of knowledge, experience, or confidence, many have remained unwilling to take responsibility for adjusting their practice to better meet the needs of boys.