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The Junkyard Wonders

Patricia Polacco

Start date: November 1, 2012

Finish date: November 30, 2012

Discussion leader: Ronyell

Why we're reading this: Winner for the November Picture Book School themed books.
[close] Winner for the November Picture Book School themed books.

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Jun 16, 2011 Ronyell rated it it was amazing

Shelves: goodreads-group-reads, biography, patricia-polacco, disabilities

As a young girl, author Patricia Polacco was diagnosed as dyslexic and she was put inito special classes, however in this book, “The Junkyard Wonders,” young Patricia Polacco has discovered a very special teacher named Mrs. Peterson who teaches her and other students like her that they are special no matter what anyone says about them! “The Junkyard Wonders” is truly one of Patricia Polacco's best works ever created for children!

Beautiful, simply beautiful! I have read many books that depicts Pa As a young girl, author Patricia Polacco was diagnosed as dyslexic and she was put inito special classes, however in this book, “The Junkyard Wonders,” young Patricia Polacco has discovered a very special teacher named Mrs. Peterson who teaches her and other students like her that they are special no matter what anyone says about them! “The Junkyard Wonders” is truly one of Patricia Polacco's best works ever created for children!

Beautiful, simply beautiful! I have read many books that depicts Patricia Polacco's troublesome childhood when she was coping with dyslexia, but never have I read a book that truly showed the power of true friendship in such a hopeful light! Patricia Polacco has done a magnificent job at both writing and illustrating this book about a group of kids who each have a disability and how they learned to believe in themselves through an inspiring teacher. Patricia Polacco's writing is dramatic and heartwarming at the same and I truly felt sad for Trisha and her friends as they were teased at school because of their disabilities, but I loved the way that Trisha and her new friends stick together through all the hard times they had at school and I also loved the way that Trisha and her new friends spend so much time with each other after they met which proves how close they are to each other. What I truly loved about this book was the teacher, Mrs. Peterson and it was so inspiring about how she helped the children with disabilities believe in themselves and see that they are special in a good way. I also loved her definition of a genius as it defined that everyone in that classroom are all geniuses and it does not single anyone out. I also loved the fact about how Mrs. Peterson showed the class about making new objects out of something old in the junkyard and it was truly special in how they built an airplane together since it showed how everyone came together to make something that represented the whole class. Patricia Polacco's illustrations are truly beautiful and heartwarming at the same time and I loved the illustrations of Patricia Polacco as a child as she always wears pigtails and a dress and has a hopeful expression on her face. My favorite image was of Mrs. Peterson coming into her class and you can see all the children including Trisha staring up at Mrs. Peterson thinking that she was intimidating, however I really loved the appearance of Mrs. Peterson as she does have an appearance of a strict teacher as she wears a gray dress, wears glasses and has her hair in a bun, but she has such a kind face and wisdom beyond her years that I immediately fell in love with her!

All in all, “The Junkyard Wonders” is a truly memorable book for children who have disabilities and want to believe in themselves. It makes me really want the teachers that Patricia Polacco had when she was small because they were all truly inspiring teachers! I would recommend this book to children ages five and up due to length of the book being a bit too long for children. ...more

6 likes · Like · see review

Jul 20, 2010 Krista the Krazy Kataloguer rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-childrens-books

This story picks up some time after Thank You, Mr. Falker. After Mr. Falker helps her learn to read, the young girl in the story chooses to live with her father and go to a different school, hoping to be put in a regular class. Instead, she finds herself in a special ed class again, but, luckily, with a very special teacher, Mrs. Peterson. Mrs. Peterson teaches the class how to see themselves as just as smart as the other children, as able to accomplish great things just like anyone else. I wish ...more

6 likes · Like · see review

Jul 22, 2010 Luann marked it as to-read

Shelves: picture-book

Apr 27, 2012 Dawn VanLerberghe rated it really liked it

Shelves: older-pic-book-read-alouds

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