Reading Response Log

Through my student teaching experience, I was tasked to find 5 books that correlated with my content. I have read and taken something away from each of these books. Now it is my privilege to share these books with you. :)

Title: All Creatures Great and Small

Author: James Herriot

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Copyright: 1998

ISBN: 9780312965785

Genre: comedy/drama/nonfiction

Library: Abilene Public Library

Summary: All Creatures Great and Small, we meet the young Herriot as he takes up his calling and discovers that the realities of veterinary practice in rural Yorkshire are very different from the sterile setting of veterinary school. Some visits are heart-wrenchingly difficult, such as one to an old man in the village whose very ill dog is his only friend and companion, some are lighthearted and fun, such as Herriot's periodic visits to the overfed and pampered Pekinese Tricki Woo who throws parties and has his own stationery, and yet others are inspirational and enlightening, such as Herriot's recollections of poor farmers who will scrape their meager earnings together to be able to get proper care for their working animals.  From seeing to his patients in the depths of winter on the remotest homesteads to dealing with uncooperative owners and critically ill animals, Herriot discovers the wondrous variety and never-ending challenges of veterinary practice as his humor, compassion, and love of the animal world shine forth.

Personal Comments: I first read this book by happening upon it at a garage sale. I was then transported to another time and another life full of heartache, laughter, hope, and excitement. You really connect to the young vet as he cares for the various animals; and through them the people in the area he is living. You see the struggle he has when he has to put an animal down, and empathize. Generally the vet is the bad guy for having to put a loved animal to sleep, but when you read this it helps you to really get into ones shoes and live the life of a country vet with him.

Suggested Use in Classroom: I feel this book would be good for a vet tech class. You can read it and discuss why it is important to build rapport with your customers. You could also discuss stories that the vet encountered, and determine if another method could be used today to treat the medical problem, and what   other options you could perform if you had limited resources. 

Title: Farmer Boy

Author: Laura Ingalls Wilder

Publisher: HarperCollins

Copyright: April 8, 2008

ISBN: 0064400034

Genre: Western

Library: Abilene Public Library

Summary: While Laura Ingalls grows up in a little house on the western prairie, Almanzo Wilder is living on a big farm in New York State. Here Almanzo and his brother and sisters help with the summer planting and fall harvest. In winter there is wood to be chopped and great slabs of ice to be cut from the river and stored. Time for fun comes when the jolly tin peddler visits, or best of all, when the fair comes to town.
This is Laura Ingalls Wilder's beloved story of how her husband Almanzo grew up as a farmer boy far from the little house where Laura lived

Personal Comments: This is the book that got me interested in Agriculture. I read this book and fell in love with the idea of raising a pig. So, in 4^th grade when I first read this I decided that upon entering High school I would join the FFA and raise pigs. This book teaches you morals about using your money for something that will last longer and make you more money, and Choosing to play after you finish the work.

Suggested Use in Classroom: I think I would use this in my Principles of Ag class and use it to discuss different types of SAE. In the book Almanzo uses an entrepreneurship type of SAE and I could teach students to identify which type it is. Also, the book touches up on basic agriculture economic concepts so it would be a great opener to discuss ways to reinforce making money in the agriculture world.

Title: Guide to Bees and Honey

Author: Ted Hooper

Publisher: NORTHERN BEE BOOKS

Copyright: 27 May 2010

ISBN: 1904846513

Genre: Non Fiction

Library: Abilene Public Library

Summary: This is the ideal guide for anyone wanting to start beekeeping and a revered reference book for experienced beekeepers. It includes information on all you need to know, including how to avoid swarms, plan requeening, or provide the colony with winter stores. It features key information on Varroa. It is copiously illustrated throughout. Fully revised and updated, this new edition of "Guide to Bees and Honey" also presents expert advice for readers who plan to maintain a few hives for personal recreational use, as well as those who want to expand an existing colony into a commercial venture.

Personal Comments: I found this to be very informational. I already love studying bugs and entomology but this inspired me to want to have my own personal colony of bees so that I could produce honey.

Suggested Use in Classroom: If the school I worked at had the proper resources I believe I could use this book to teach high school students how to produce honey, and use a bee farm to pollinate crops or fields. We could also use this to start discussing entomology and different mouth parts, significance and orders for bugs.

Title: Humane Livestock Handling

Author: Temple Grandin

Publisher: Storey Publishing

Copyright: June 1, 2008

ISBN: 1603420282

Genre: Science

Library: Abilene Public Library

Summary: Temple Grandin, North America's most influential advocate of humane livestock treatment, has spent her life developing stress-free facility designs and standards of humane management. In an environment of growing concern regarding large factory-farming practices, Grandin is a voice of reason explaining the benefits of keeping animals calm through every phase of their lives — benefits that include safer working conditions, higher yields of marketable meat, better-quality meat, and, of course, more humane conditions for the animals. The first half of Humane Livestock Handling reviews the natural behavior and temperament of cattle. Working with the animals' natural instincts, Grandin describes low-stress methods for moving cattle on pastures, paddocks, and feedlot pens. Slow, controlled movement reduces stress and fear, resulting in calmer, healthier cattle. They eat better, are less likely to become sick, and do not run into fences and gates, injuring themselves and bruising the meat. Calm cattle are also far less likely to injure the humans working with them.

Personal Comments: I first heard about Temple Grandin from my sister and brother in law. Their son, my nephew, is autistic and so they are really big on anything or anyone in support of autism. I was so impressed with her work that I read her book and found her book to give excellent insight on the behavior of animals. After reading her tale I found things clicking and making sense.

Suggested Use in Classroom: I would use this book in the classroom to help students understand diversity, and using it to help discuss animal welfare. If animals feel or act one way how can we work with them to increase productivity? This book would help students with critical thinking in how livestock animals should be treated and used.

Title: Riding the Chisholm Trail

Author: Toni Marie Hopper

Publisher: BlurbInc

Copyright: 2007

ISBN: 9781110131921

Genre: Photo Book

Library: Abilene Public Library

Summary: The Oklahoma Centennial Chisholm Trail Cattle Drive of 2007 was 14 years in the making. The cowboys and cowgirls spent one month pushing cattle up the trail, many times on the exact original trail of 1867-81. It's reality TV that missed its chance. This book features the photographs of many of those people, along with many of their stories. It is a book of visual delight and stories they delight in sharing.

Personal Comments: Looking through this book I was thou roughly impressed with the way it was during this specific time period. The tough exterior leads you to wonder how they acted around each other, if perhaps they hid a softer version of their selves inside. These people traveled so far to earn a better living, I kept wondering what was at their core that kept them going so far.

Suggested Use in Classroom: I would use this as an interest grabber. I have had several students in my experience so far just as a student teacher, who really like to learn about history. I feel as if I can get their attention with something as exciting as this I can keep their attention throughout the lesson and they will be excited to get involved with the activities I have prepared for them.