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The Good Times of Pelican Rise: Save the Joeys [16pt Large Print Edition]
Grade sixers Sunday Moon and her besties Ockie, Kirra and Lottie are MAROONED in after-school care at Club Koala with the karaoke-loving grade twos and nit-infested preppies for company. It's not exactly the way these legends thought they'd be ending their time at Pelican Rise Primary! But after the worst summer of bushfires ever, Sunday is determined to use her last year at Club Koala to make a difference: OUT with the headstand competitions and IN with knitting pouches for injured wildlife !
356 pages, Paperback
Published October 19, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 29, 2021
Thank you to Affirm Press for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Target Audience: Middle Grade
Genre: Contemporary
Published: 27 July 2021
This is an adorable story about Sunday Moon, a year 6 student at Pelican Rise Primary in South-East Australia. After hearing about the devastating impact of the recent bushfires on the local flora and fauna, Sunday and her friends put together a project to help save the joeys.
Characters
I adored the diversity of this cast. So many kids will see themselves represented positively in this book and that makes me one happy teacher.
The banter and shenanigans of the characters were humourous and I loved how driven the children were to make a difference to the world around them. Plus the adults in their lives empowered them to do this!
Overall, the kids acted like kids and the adults acted like adults. You would be surprised at how uncommon this is in books. I appreciated this.
Plot
It was so refreshing to read a middle grade contemporary novel, set in a primary school, that didn't revolve around friendship issues. This positive plot is much needed for children right now.
The main plot was enjoyable, but there was also enough interest gained by the side plots that they kept things moving.
Since the main storyline is centred around a year 6 project, the book really gears itself towards this year level and thus it could be challenging for younger students to connect to the story. However, it could also encourage year 5 students to consider their leadership potential for the following year and what they'd like to achieve in their final 12 months of primary school.
Trigger/Content Warnings:
-Death of an animal
-HP reference (MC owns two funko pops for characters from this franchise, referenced twice)
Audience response
Thinking about the children I've taught over the years, I can see this being a great novel for some quieter students in year 5 and 6. Sometimes it did read a little young, so I can see this being perfect for those who are not as strong in reading, but still need to engage with appropriate content for their age. It is by no means a swash-buckling adventure, but it is a quaint and sweet story that brings up lots of discussion topics important for this age group.
Teaching Content
Personal and Social Capability Y5/6
- Reflect on how personal strengths have assisted in achieving success at home, at school or in the community (VCPSCSE026)
- Describe what it means to be confident, adaptable and persistent and why these attributes are important in dealing with new or challenging situations (VCPSCSE027)
- Explore and discuss behaviours that demonstrate sensitivity to individual, social and cultural differences (VCPSCSO029)
-Define and recognise examples of stereotypes, discrimination and prejudice and discuss how they impact on the individual (VCPSCSO030)
-Describe the characteristics of respectful relationships and suggest ways that respectful relationships can be achieved (VCPSCSO031)
- Identify the characteristics of an effective team and develop descriptions for particular roles including leadership, and describe both their own and their team’s performance when undertaking various roles (VCPSCSO032)
Geography Y5/6
- Impacts of bushfires or floods on environments and communities, and how people can respond (VCGGK095)
- Influence of people, including the influence of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, on the environmental characteristics of Australian places (VCGGK094)
- Factors that influence people’s awareness and opinion of places (VCGGK097)
English Y5
- Identify aspects of literary texts that convey details or information about particular social, cultural and historical contexts (VCELT313)
- Understand, interpret and experiment with sound devices and imagery, including simile, metaphor and personification, in narratives, shape poetry, songs, anthems and odes (VCELT316)
English Y6
- Identify and explain how analytical images like figures, tables, diagrams, maps and graphs contribute to our understanding of verbal information in factual and persuasive texts (VCELA340)
- Analyse strategies authors use to influence readers (VCELY345)
About the Author
-Pronouns: She/Her
- Spent years working as an editor in children's publishing
- Currently studying to be a primary school teacher (welcome to the teacher club!)
Target Audience: Middle Grade
Genre: Contemporary
Published: 27 July 2021
This is an adorable story about Sunday Moon, a year 6 student at Pelican Rise Primary in South-East Australia. After hearing about the devastating impact of the recent bushfires on the local flora and fauna, Sunday and her friends put together a project to help save the joeys.
Characters
I adored the diversity of this cast. So many kids will see themselves represented positively in this book and that makes me one happy teacher.
The banter and shenanigans of the characters were humourous and I loved how driven the children were to make a difference to the world around them. Plus the adults in their lives empowered them to do this!
Overall, the kids acted like kids and the adults acted like adults. You would be surprised at how uncommon this is in books. I appreciated this.
Plot
It was so refreshing to read a middle grade contemporary novel, set in a primary school, that didn't revolve around friendship issues. This positive plot is much needed for children right now.
The main plot was enjoyable, but there was also enough interest gained by the side plots that they kept things moving.
Since the main storyline is centred around a year 6 project, the book really gears itself towards this year level and thus it could be challenging for younger students to connect to the story. However, it could also encourage year 5 students to consider their leadership potential for the following year and what they'd like to achieve in their final 12 months of primary school.
Trigger/Content Warnings:
-Death of an animal
-HP reference (MC owns two funko pops for characters from this franchise, referenced twice)
Audience response
Thinking about the children I've taught over the years, I can see this being a great novel for some quieter students in year 5 and 6. Sometimes it did read a little young, so I can see this being perfect for those who are not as strong in reading, but still need to engage with appropriate content for their age. It is by no means a swash-buckling adventure, but it is a quaint and sweet story that brings up lots of discussion topics important for this age group.
Teaching Content
Personal and Social Capability Y5/6
- Reflect on how personal strengths have assisted in achieving success at home, at school or in the community (VCPSCSE026)
- Describe what it means to be confident, adaptable and persistent and why these attributes are important in dealing with new or challenging situations (VCPSCSE027)
- Explore and discuss behaviours that demonstrate sensitivity to individual, social and cultural differences (VCPSCSO029)
-Define and recognise examples of stereotypes, discrimination and prejudice and discuss how they impact on the individual (VCPSCSO030)
-Describe the characteristics of respectful relationships and suggest ways that respectful relationships can be achieved (VCPSCSO031)
- Identify the characteristics of an effective team and develop descriptions for particular roles including leadership, and describe both their own and their team’s performance when undertaking various roles (VCPSCSO032)
Geography Y5/6
- Impacts of bushfires or floods on environments and communities, and how people can respond (VCGGK095)
- Influence of people, including the influence of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, on the environmental characteristics of Australian places (VCGGK094)
- Factors that influence people’s awareness and opinion of places (VCGGK097)
English Y5
- Identify aspects of literary texts that convey details or information about particular social, cultural and historical contexts (VCELT313)
- Understand, interpret and experiment with sound devices and imagery, including simile, metaphor and personification, in narratives, shape poetry, songs, anthems and odes (VCELT316)
English Y6
- Identify and explain how analytical images like figures, tables, diagrams, maps and graphs contribute to our understanding of verbal information in factual and persuasive texts (VCELA340)
- Analyse strategies authors use to influence readers (VCELY345)
About the Author
-Pronouns: She/Her
- Spent years working as an editor in children's publishing
- Currently studying to be a primary school teacher (welcome to the teacher club!)
September 5, 2021
Good Times Of Pelican Rise: Save the Joey's! by Samone Amba.
✍️This middle grade book series follows four Grade six best friends who are in after school care together at Club Koala. After the disastrous shock of bushfires that occurred and the multitude of wounded wildlife they decide they want to try to help salvage as many Joey's they can by knitting, sewing or crocheting pouches for them with the help of their friends, school , community and the local radio station.
This was such a sweet and heartening story about a group of inspirational and kindhearted kids wanting to make a difference in the world. The storyline was intelligently formed and authentic along with being thoroughly comical and enjoyable. The characters were all a delight and I adored and appreciated the fact that they were all diverse. The cover design is very pretty. I was absorbed till the end ✍️
✍️This middle grade book series follows four Grade six best friends who are in after school care together at Club Koala. After the disastrous shock of bushfires that occurred and the multitude of wounded wildlife they decide they want to try to help salvage as many Joey's they can by knitting, sewing or crocheting pouches for them with the help of their friends, school , community and the local radio station.
This was such a sweet and heartening story about a group of inspirational and kindhearted kids wanting to make a difference in the world. The storyline was intelligently formed and authentic along with being thoroughly comical and enjoyable. The characters were all a delight and I adored and appreciated the fact that they were all diverse. The cover design is very pretty. I was absorbed till the end ✍️
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews