Aspiring to be Mock Worthy

40 days

No, that’s not the number of shopping days remaining before Christmas (23 for that count).  Nor is it the number of days until my birthday.

It is the, however, the number of days remaining until the ALA Youth Media Awards winners will be announced. 

“The 2016 Youth Media Awards will be announced at 8 a.m. Eastern time on Monday, January 11, 2016, during the ALA Midwinter Meeting & Exhibition in Boston. 

My students and I will be exploring a handful of books that just might catch the Caldecott committee’s eye this year and conducting our own Mini Mock Caldecott.  Along the way we will be taking a close look at what criteria a book’s illustrations must stand up to as part of the Caldecott process. 

We will be looking at these books:

Last Stop On Market Street by Matt De La Pena

Gingerbread for Liberty by Mara Rockliff

Drum Dream Girl by Margarita Engle

Boats for Papa by Jessixa Bagley

Float by Daniel Miyares

Fire Engine No 9 by Mike Austin

While the list of books my students will be considering during their Mock Caldecott is small, the number of big ideas behind the process is unlimited.  Let the selection begin!