This book can be used with students up to age eight to help teach them the importance of valuing what they have. A teacher can draw a connection between extinct animals in this book with any animal that is currently endangered. Students can draw pictures of their favorite animals to help them understand the importance of animals in the world. Nelson, Marilyn. A Wreath for Emmett Till.

The deeply historical aspect of this memorial to a teen who was lynched in 1955 makes this book only appropriate for students aged 14 through 18 years. The "wreath" is a cycle of 15 sonnets in a highly formalized style that makes readers reflect on the events while also calling attention to the events. This book would be useful in an American History course. A teacher can draw parallels between the way Emmett Till was mistreated and other forms of mistreatment that continue currently.

Pearson, Susan. Grimericks.

Grimericks is filled with ghoulish, gothic limericks about ghosts, skeletons, banshees, and the like. The poems are clever with an emphasis on the macabre. Use of this book can be especially useful around Halloween because it can still be used within the curriculum, but the themes of the poems would be fitting for the time of year. This book is for students aged six to nine years.

Prelutsky, Jack. Awful Ogre Running Wild.

Recommended for readers aged four to eight years, this book is about the awesomely gross Awful Ogre. The reader follows Awful Orge on a picnic, a...

An important lesson this book teaches is the importance of being comfortable with what you are doing. Although the reader may consider what the ogre does gross, the ogre himself is content.
Silverstein, Shel. Giving Tree

Giving Tree is the story of a young boy's relationship with a tree. The tree loves the boy very much and gives the boy whatever he needs. The tree gives the boy shade, apples, and branches to swing on. The tree even lets the boy cut it down so he can make a boat to sail on. When the boy returns to the tree stump as an old man, the stump gives him a place to rest.

Giving Tree can be incorporated into curriculum with a lesson on the value of giving. The appropriate age group is five through eight years of age. A useful illustration for this lesson would be an example of a marriage in which a wife and husband each sacrifice for each other to make each other happy.

Smith Jr., Charles R. Hoop Kings.

In this book, Charles R. Smith, Jr. uses rap-inspired word plan to describe 12 of the best professional basketball players in the NBA. He profiles the playing styles of Tim Duncan, Shaquille O'Neal, and Kevin Garnett, just to name a few. This book can be useful for students aged 12 to 15 who like basketball. An illustration can be made that correlates success with hard work and reminds all students that it is nice to have talent, but nobody is really successful unless they work hard.