Retro Book of the Week: How To Speak Politely and Why

How To Speak Politely and Why
By Munro Leaf

This book goes beyond retro. It's vintage. 1934, to be exact. Even though it is a children's book, How to Speak Politely and Why is a good book to read with middle school students. It covers the basics of being polite, such as a saying "please" and "may I." However, the book also covers good grammar. Children are taught how to use verb tenses and adverbs, and how to avoid double negatives. Munro has crafted a clever and cute book that teachers grammar in a non-threatening way.

Though students would likely not be interested in checking this book out on their own, it could be a great teaching tool. Students could create similar pages for grammar rules that they learn, or a class could compile their own kid-friendly set of grammar rules. They could also do this digitally, using a Prezi or a PhotoStory presentation. We have many books on grammar, as well as children's books, that are available for teachers to use in lesson plans -- check one out today @ your library!

[Retro Book of the Week celebrates the oldies-but-goodies in our media center. Books with faded covers can still have modern appeal! Sometimes I just want to celebrate the books that have influenced YA literature and my literary past, and sometimes I want to give new life to timeless classics. These features will be heavy on books from the 80's and 90's.]