NIKKI TESLA AND THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE BLING by Jess Keating and Lissy Marlin

Why this book?

It’s funny, it’s a mystery and it’s packed with action! I also love the way the main character Nikki relies on her friends to help her and how they all have their own special skills—and messy real life problems. Nikki has an interesting and temperamental pet ferret to add to the mix.

Connections: science, mysteries, friendships, STEM

Activity Ideas:

Literacy – Do some research to find out more about the real-life scientists that inspired the characters in book, such as Nikola Tesla, Charles Darwin and Michael Faraday. Create a poster or a short video to tell your friends more about them.

STEM: If you could invent anything, what would you invent? Draw a design for invention. Have one of your friends look at your design and ask questions about it. Do you need to revise your design? What materials would you need to build it?

Literacy/STEM: – If you found a ring with unknown powers, what tests would you try to figure out it’s capabilities?

Art: Imagine you’ve been shrunken to the size of a ferret or other small pet. What would you see? Create a piece of art to show what your classroom or room would look like from a tiny animal’s perspective.

Watch this video by Jess Keating to learn more about the books and the science behind them:

Find out more about this book by visiting the publisher’s webpage HERE.

Find out more about illustrator Lissy Marlin by visiting her webpage here.

Additional Resources:

Check out the other books in this series:

Nikki Tesla and the Ferret-Proof Death Ray (Elements of Genius #1)

Nikki Tesla and theTraitors of the Lost Spark (Elements of Genius #3)

 

Description from the publisher:   

"For a group of geniuses who are supposed to help people, we do an awful lot of stealing."

Nikki Tesla and the rest of the Genius Academy team have agreed to pilfer a completely priceless, totally lethal high-tech ring. Why? Because a mad scientist on a power trip plans to use it to do some serious damage. And because the very same mad scientist has kidnapped Mary Shelley. Mess with one genius, and you mess with them all.

But mostly they're planning the heist of the century so Nikki can get to know her long-lost father who claims he isn't the criminal mastermind she believes him to be. After all, if a little international thievery can protect the world from evil, it just might save Nikki's family.

Nikki Tesla and the Fellowship of the Bling (Elements of Genuis #2), written by Jess Keating and illustrated by Lissy Marlin was published by Scholastic Press in 2020.

 

To find more middle grade books to read, check out Marvelous Middle Grade Monday, organized by Greg Pattridge over at his blog.

 

ANOTHER SQUIGGLY STORY by Andrew Larsen & Mike Lowery

Why this book?

What a great book for inspiring kids to write! This one is extra fun because of comic-style design and the lists of ideas. I love how it models different aspects of the writing process—generating ideas, thinking, connecting ideas, writing and revising. I also enjoyed their first book, A Squiggly Story (see my blog feature here). 

My thoughts as a creator:

I love books that contain lists and hope to write one someday, so it was interesting to me to see how they incorporated the lists into the story. I also noticed there is a lot of dialogue in this story, which was included in speech bubbles. I loved the notebook pages in the illustrations! This book includes many different levels – the writing process, the relationship with a sibling, friendships, taking a break from a challenging task, and includes some gentle humor.

My thoughts as an educator:

It’s great to see a book that contains several different writing formats –speech bubbles, lists, and autobiography. This book is great for grade 1 and 2, where kids are learning to write using sentences, and especially for introducing a writing notebook. But I would definitely read this in kindergarten to show my students how to make lists of things they love. It was great how the story also shows how sometimes, when you’re stuck, taking a break can be helpful. This story also shows a little of the process of revision, and how to improve a story by adding details and changing sentences.

Ages: 4 - 7

Grades: K - 3

Connections: writing, lists, imagination, perseverance, siblings

Activities:

Literacy: Provide children with writing notebooks to write in when they are inspired. A writing corner with visual lists could be a fun way to inspire young writers. 

Literacy: Write or draw your own list of things you love. Can you create a story about yourself?

Social Emotional Learning: What do you do when you can’t think of an idea or feel stuck doing your school work? Brainstorm some ideas for short breaks you can take

Social Emotional Learning: Think of a time when a sibling or someone else in your family helped you. Draw a picture to show how you felt.

Art: Create a self-portrait! Provide a mirror and materials for kids, with tips such as making a large shape to almost fill the paper to begin.

More resources:

 Teaching Guide for A Squiggly Story from Kids Can Press

Self-Portrait Ideas from Fantastic and Fun  Learning

12 Strategies to Support Struggling Writers from TeachWriting.org

Description from the publisher:

The kindergartener who learned to use squiggles to write a story in award-winning Andrew Larsen’s A Squiggly Story is now in second grade and learning to write an autobiography. Told in the same authentic child’s voice, this playful book encourages readers to just start, even if they don’t know how their story will go. It offers an accessible early language arts lesson on the writing process, exploring important basics (brainstorming, first draft, revising) and key terms (autobiography, editing, title, cover). Mike Lowery’s bold illustrations incorporate story panels and dialogue bubbles, keeping the energy high and giving a fresh and modern feel to the pages. A strong tie-in with early literacy curricula, this book also works well for supplementary or at-home learning. It’s a perfect choice to inspire the storyteller in every child!

Another Squiggly Story, written by Andrew Larsen and illustrated by Mike Lowrey, was published by Kids Can Press in 2022.  Go here to visit Kids Can Press for more about this book.