Simon School Bus

Helping Teachers & Librarians discover #greatreads and share the #loveofreading. This blog is run by Simon & Schuster Canada.

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While Mother Nature is busy freezing the ponds for winter and waking up the bulbs in spring, she lets creatures she calls humans watch her children, Fear, Envy, Hate, Greed, and Fickle, not knowing that their personalities would seep their way into human nature...

Suite for Human Nature is an exquisitely illustrated folktale about our human shortcomings and the one trait—love—that can overcome them all.

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A boy who’s the last in his class to go through puberty tries to fake it till he makes it through a series of cringe-worthy and hilarious events in Spurt, by Chris Miles. A balls-and-all coming-of-age novel that’s Judy Blume for boys!

Learn more about Spurt here. 

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Meet the youngest known child to be arrested for a civil rights protest in Birmingham, Alabama, 1963, in THE YOUNGEST MARCHER by Cynthia Livinson, a moving picture book that proves you’re never too little to make a difference.

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Ten years after Alex and Aaron Stowe brought peace to Quill and Artimé, their younger twin sisters journey beyond the islands in this first novel of a new sequel series to Lisa McMann’s The Unwanteds, THE UNWANTEDS QUESTS: DRAGON CAPTIVES.

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Kelp doesn't mind being a little different from the other narwhals. But when a strong current carried him away, Kelp encounters some mysterious, sparking creatures who leave him wondering if maybe... just maybe... he isn't a NARWHAL at all. Learn more about Not Quite Narwhal.

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3 on a Middle Grade Theme: Black History Month

February is Black History Month, and we wanted to mark this important time by sharing these three powerful, heartbreaking, and educational middle-grade reads.  

Chains, by Laurie Halse Anderson

As the Revolutionary War begins, thirteen-year-old Isabel wages her own fight...for freedom. From acclaimed author Laurie Halse Anderson comes this compelling, impeccably researched novel that shows the lengths we can go to cast off our chains, both physical and spiritual.

Stella by Starlight, by Sharon M. Draper

When the Ku Klux Klan’s unwelcome reappearance rattles Stella’s segregated southern town, bravery battles prejudice in this New York Times bestselling Depression-era “novel that soars” (The New York Times Book Review) that School Library Journal called “storytelling at its finest” in a starred review. 

As Brave As You, by Jason Reynolds When two brothers decide to prove how brave they are, everything backfires—literally—in this piercing middle grade novel by the winner of the Coretta Scott King – Johnson Steptoe Award.

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3 on a Picture Book theme: Groundhog’s Day

As we celebrate the fact that our local groundhog did not see his shadow, we also thought we’d explore some of our favourite picture books that teach young readers about the sleepy habits of animals! 

Hibernation Station, by Michelle Meadows

The sweet rhyming text of this book will calm even the most rambunctious kids and have them dreaming about what it’s like to hibernate. Young readers will be soothed and delighted as this story introduces them to different types of hibernating animals.

Bear Wants More, by Karma Wilson

When springtime comes, in his warm winter den a bear wakes up very hungry and thin! Bear's adventures (like being too fat to fit through the doorway) will entertain and delight young readers.

Go Home, Little One! by Cate James

Winter is approaching, and Florence the hedgehog wants to go outside and play in the woods with her squirrel friends before it's time to hibernate. As it starts to get cold, Florence isn’t sure she’s having fun anymore, and when a fox chases them, Florence definitely wants to go back home! With the help of her friends, she’s able to make it home in time for dinner and her long winter snooze.

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3 on a Middle Grade Theme: Year of the Rooster Today marks the beginning of Chinese Lunar New Year. 2017 is the year of the First Rooster, so we’re sharing our favourite poultry-themed books. Roosters are characterized as observant and hardworking according to Chinese astrology, and we think these characters fit the bill. Extraordinary Warren, by Sarah Dillard

Warren, a bespectacled chicken, is bored with the everyday chicken routine: peck, cluck, feed; peck, cluck, feed. There must be more to life, no? And there must be more to Warren. He leaves the farm to discover what makes him special—and with the help of an unhatched egg and a snarky, hungry rat, he just might get some answers.

Sam the Man & the Chicken Plan, by Frances O’Roark Dowell

Sam the Man needs a job. So when Mrs. Kerner asks if Sam would like to watch her chickens, Sam jumps on the task. You can count on him, yes indeed. Watching chickens is more fun than he expects! But what does a seven-year-old do with all the money he’s earning? It’s too little for a bike, and too much for candy. But wait! It’s just enough for a chicken of his own—the kind that lays BLUE eggs! 

The Chicken Squad, by Doreen Cronin

Meet the Chicken Squad: Dirt, Sugar, Poppy, and Sweetie. These chicks are not your typical barnyard puffs of fluff, and they are not about to spend their days pecking chicken feed and chasing bugs. No sir, they’re too busy solving mysteries and fighting crime.

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3 on a Picture Book Theme: National Hat Day

In honour of National Hat Day (January 15th), we’re sharing some of our top picture books featuring everybody’s favourite fashion accessory! 

Red Hat by Lita Judge

An adorable crew of baby animals borrows a familiar-looking red hat (last seen on the head of Red Sled’s unsuspecting protagonist) and embarks on a joy-filled escapade—until all that is left is a long piece of red string!

Blue Hat, Green Hat by Sandra Boynton

Three earnest animals and one misguided turkey learn colors and clothes in this Sandra Boynton classic.

Brimsby’s Hats by Andrew Prahin

A lonely hat maker uses quirky creativity to make friends in this delightful picture book that will charm readers young and old.

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We’re loving Bookcave! It’s a new online journal devoted to showcasing new books for young readers. It’s a great resource to find out what’s new and exciting in the book world!

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It’s a frenemy showdown in the 11th installment in the blockbuster bestselling DORK DIARIES series by Rachel Renée Russell!

Nikki Maxwell has the worst luck. Of all the schools she could have been assigned to for the student exchange week program, she’s stuck at North Hampton Hills, her arch nemesis MacKenzie Hollister’s new school. Even worse, there might just be someone at NHH who can out-MacKenzie MacKenzie!

Can the queen of dorks survive a week at the head CCP’s new school or will it be a dorky disaster? 

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At the start of the new school year, consider asking what your students wish you knew. The responses may just give you insight and understanding to what your students are facing outside the classroom.

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Be the Change is a breathtaking companion to the award-winning Grandfather Gandhi. Arun Gandhi, with Bethany Hegedus, tells a poignant, personal story of the damage of wastefulness.

“An in-depth exploration of the connections between waste and violence... Turk’s mixed-media images create a vibrant, dazzlingly imagined backdrop for the weighty philosophical discussions at play.” – Publishers Weekly

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If you liked Diary of a Wimpy Kid, why not try…

The Misadventures of Max Crumbly by Rachel Renee Russell

Big Nate, Say Goodbye to Dork City by Lincoln Peirce

Dork Diaries, Tales From a Not-So-Fabulous Life by Rachel Renee Russell

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Hello! Mike Boldt here. I don’t know about you, but when I was young, I remember being extremely nervous on the first day of school. Now, only a couple weeks away from my next book, A TIGER TAIL’s release, I have that same nervousness all over again. It’s quite an odd sensation, as the entire time I was working on the book I couldn’t wait to share it with the world.

A TIGER TAIL is a story about Anya, the tiger tail she wakes up with, and the challenges of dealing with a situation like this on the first day of school.

Thank you for watching this book trailer.

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Happy Father’s Day! 

In this inventive interpretation of Bob Dylan’s 1970 song “If Not for You,” illustrator David Walker beautifully imagines Dylan’s lyrics as portraying the bottomless love between a parent and a child—and the magical experiences they might share together. A perfect bed time story for this Father’s Day.