Rock Out with Lupe Lopez (and e.E Charlton-Trujillo and Pat Z. Miller

MARTHA MERRITT, Congratulations!  You are the winner for Ashley Belote's book LISTEN UP LOUELLA!   Thanks for following along with PBJamz!  Be sure to review Ashley's book if you love it,  (and I KNOW you will, because it is PRECIOUS FUN!) and share PBJamz with your teacher friends and author friends! Thank you Ashley for your generosity!

A Rockin' Conversation with authors e.E. Trujillo & Pat Zietlow Miller

What a fun conversation with E and Pat!  We cover everything from KISS to Macy's balloons -- and that's a lot of ground to cover! :-).They share their inspiration, their process and so much more!  Lupe is definitely a larger-than-life character who deserves to be on your shelves (and maybe one day in the Macy's parade, who knows?)  In book one, she tackled school rules as she started kindergarten and in book 2, she learns to read as a first grader.  Check out the interview for an exciting spoiler alert, too! 

LUPE LOPEZ (Rock Star Rules and Reading Rock Star)

Both of these books feature larger-than-life primary student, Lupe Lopez.  As a beginning kindergartener, Lupe struggles with rules, since she is obviously a "rock star".  In Rock Star Rules, she learns to adapt to a new environment and how rules change from one place to another.  She also learns some valuable lessons about friendship and teamwork!  In Reading Rock Star, Lupe is now a first grader and tackles learning to read, which she is sure to "rock" -- except she doesn't -- at least at first.  Read both of these books to see how Lupe learns to be a rock start problem-solver and more! These books will appeal to all the little rock stars in your world. With vibrant, star-studded illustrations, by Joe Cepeda, Lupe Lopez will leap right off the page and into your heart!

A Little Jam. . .(The Music Kind)

This little ditty is also perfect for kid rockers who like to "bend the rules".  It's fun to dance to, sing along, or just listen.  If you're in a classroom setting, you could maybe use this as a challenge for students to create their own "flipgrid" video (or other platform) to share the rules of the classroom in a fun way. Or it could simply be a great opener for  a discussion about the rules. However you listen or use it, it's sure to "bring the house down."  If this song isn't your style, there are lots more on the YouTube playlist I created for Lupe Lopez.  Check out the rest of the list down in the links section!

Teacher Tips, Tricks and Topics

Lupe is a perfect book to use for the beginning of school as you are discussing rules and procedures, and she is sure to make it lots of fun!  If you teach in a primary school, these books would make a great addition to any rockin' classroom!  I've got loads of decor ideas pinned if you want to rock out your decor and go full-on rock 'n' roll for the year!  Both of these books lend themselves so beautifully to the classroom, since they are set in school and deal with school issues!

Other topics you could tackle with Lupe Lopez:

• Geography (Texas, of course!). There are all sorts of Texas-sized ideas in the links section.  You could go as simple as pointing Texas out on the map or use this as a jumping-off point to learn lots more about The Lone Star State, including the flag, nickname, motto, capital, etc. 
• Figurative language/creative use of language  These books lend themselves to talking about language. From word play to figurative language there are lots of examples to explore.
• Explore musicality of language  While these books don't rhyme, they are full of onomatopoeia, rhythm, alliteration and other tactics that make these stories sing! Point them out, discuss them, have kids illustrate them, make a list . . .find the music in the story!
• Rock Star Rules is a perfect book to introduce and explain rules:  why we have them, why they're important, how they help us, etc.
• Lupe is a larger-than-life character!  Which makes this book perfect for talking about character.  Since Lupe dresses very specifically, this book would be great to talk about what characters are like on the outside vs. on the inside.
• Lupe wants fans and ends up with friends.  This would segue beautifully into a discussion of friendship:
  • What makes a good friend?
  • Should friends always agree with you?
  • What is the difference in friends/fans?
  • Would you rather have fans or friends?
• Lupe also learns in this first story to be a creative problem-solver.  Another great discussion topic  
• Stories like this always lend themselves well to creating math problems if you'd like to apply the book in math class as well. Some items for your story problems might include:
  • Pencils/drumsticks
  • Drums
  • Number of rules
  • Number of friends
  • People who attend concert
  • Kids in the class
• Check out the writing prompts section and the music concepts area for more ways to use these books in the classroom!
• Do you have other ideas or fun ways you've brought Lupe into your classroom?  Please share in the comments!

Tips and Topics for Music Teachers

The music room is a perfect place for a rockin' themed classroom -- and lots of rockin' picture books!  Check out the Pinterest board in the links section if you want to deck out the classroom or find lots of ways to integrate Lupe and music!

Here are some possibilities for integrating Lupe themes into the music room:

• Texas songs (state song, songs that mention Texas, or famous Texas musicians)
• Percussion!  Since Lupe is a rockin' little percussionist, drums and percussion instruments would be a perfect focus!  Your students could learn about and explore various percussion instruments, make their own percussion instruments,  or explore famous percussionists.
• Drums!  Specifically Lupe loves drumming!  Kids love drumming too!  You could dig into a unit or a lesson on various types of drums, integrate lots of bucket drumming, desk drumming, cardio drumming, hand drums or whatever else you have on hand they could use -- pencils with duct tape maybe? ;-)  Coffee cans, oatmeal canisters, etc. make for nice drums if you don't have enough "fancy"/store-bought drums.  Kids can drum on anything!
• Rhythms  This book is a great one to introduce rhythms! There's lots of onomatopoeia in the book to represent rhythms.  You can talk about how to tap those out or assign words from the story based on the notes you want to practice:
  • Drum = quarter note=1 beat
  • Lupe = two eighth notes = 1 beat etc.
• Rock 'n' roll as a genre of music: characteristics, history, artists, etc.
• Collection of rock 'n' roll picture books:
  • Pete the Cat 
  • Rock Star Recess
  • How to be a RockStar
  • Lupe Lopez
    • (Talk about similarities and differences in the books, common conceptions of rock stars, etc.)

Writing Prompts from Tonnye

• What does it mean to be a rock star?
• Do rock stars have to follow rules?  Why/why not?
• Who is your favorite rock star?  Why?
• If you were a rock star, how would you dress and what instrument would you want to play?
• Which is better: friends or fans? Explain.
• Have you ever had trouble following the rules?  Why was it hard?  How did you learn to follow the rules better?
• Write Lupe a letter explaining why she should/should not follow the rules at school.
• Are rules the same everywhere you go?  Explain your thinking.
• Help Lupe out.  Make a T-chart of places she: Can play drums/Cannot play drums.
• Write your own onomatopoeia for drum sounds.
• Do you think Lupe is really a rock star?  Why/why not?
• Would you want to be friends with Lupe? Explain.
• Make a list of things Lupe can try to help her not drum when she shouldn't.
• Write a poem about your favorite instrument or playing music

Writing Tips from e.E. and Pat

1. Read picture books published in the last five years. Lots and lots of them.
2. Write a lot of drafts of picture books. Don't pin all your hopes and dreams on one story.
3. Set your stories aside and then come back in a month or so and revise. Read more picture books and write more stories while you wait.
4. Get feedback from other writers you trust. (Your family and friends love you and will probably love your books, but they likely don't know what makes a successful picture book.)
5. Read THE COMPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE TO PUBLISHING CHILDREN'S BOOKS by Harold Underdown. You aren't an idiot, but this will answer practically any question you have.

Links, More Fun, Extensions for Families and Everyone!

YouTube playlist with lots of fun songs and music to go along with Lupe Lopez: Rock Star Rules, along with interviews and read alouds.

Pinterest board with tons of decor ideas for a rock star classroom, school activities, Texas lessons/activities, musical fun and more!

​Teaching Books page for Lupe Lopez: Rock Star Rules

​Making Friends lesson from University of Colorado

PBJamz Snack -- Peanut butter fries!

Egg roll wrappers smeared with peanut butter?  Deep fried until golden? Sprinkled with powdered sugar?  Served in a cup with a pool of jelly at the bottom?  Oh my, and yes, please!  What a fabulous snack for after a rule-following day of school!  Or a snack with friends!  Or a rockin' snack for a rock 'n' roll concert!  Wherever you eat them, these are sure to please!  Get the recipe here.  

Guest Links and Giveaways

To purchase Lupe Lopez: Rock Star Rules
To purchase Lupe Lopez: Reading Rock Star

For e.E Charlton-Trujillo's website

For Pat Z. Miller's website

e.E and Pat have graciously signed a copy of Lupe Lopez to give away to one lucky winner during this episode.  To be eligible to win, leave a comment below on the blog by 11:59 PM on July 5!  Winner will be announced on the next episode and on Twitter!