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Build a classroom community through a celebration of books! The March Madness PICTURE BOOK edition is here! Your students will love listening to the 16 picture books I have selected (you can select your own too), compete in a class friendly book bracket, and grow as readers along the way. Each student will receive their own March Madness bracket to keep score of the best book that opened the magic. Students can vote with paper pencil or vote through a Google form. I have also included comprehension and SEL questions to ask your students before, during, and after reading. 





What does this March Madness Picture Book Edition include? P.S…… It is updated yearly!

  • Picture Book List
  • Bracket creation materials 
  • Google Slides version of March Madness resource 
  • Digital voting forms
  • NEW: Does the book have a secret cover and fun wallpaper chart
  • NEW: Pre-Game, Post Game, Game Time Decision Questions 

Want to learn more about this March Madness Picture Book Edition resource? 

March Madness Picture Book Edition Instagram

March Madness Picture Book Edition Podcast Episode





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Courtney

Picture book organization has always had my heart. What did not have my heart is at 10pm on Sunday night and I can't find my copy of "On Account of the Gum" to use when I introduce narrative writing elements to my 5th graders. Have you ever had that problem too? I am here to solve ALL of those problems with a simple picture book spreadsheet. 

The Ultimate Picture Book inventory is unlike any other resource available. This book inventory contains almost 3,000 books (and will continue to grow). You will forever have access to this database and the Ramona Recommends team will update the list every 3 months. 














What sets this inventory apart? There are seven ways to organize your book inventory in alphabetical order: picture book title, author, illustrator, subject, publisher, publisher data, and my personal favorite spine color. There are are also separate tabs at the bottom of the inventory for each of the 18 main subjects. This is perfect when you are trying to find a book for a specific lesson. #gamechanger

I also wanted to give you the chance to personalize this inventory. I created a "My Personal Library" column in which you can use the drop down menu to select "Own It" or "Need to Buy!". Another personalized column is the "My Rating" column. Here you can use the drop down menu to give books a 1-5 star rating.

My hope is that this inventory will help you discover new books to add to your library and find new books you love. I also hope that this inventory will allow you to go to bed earlier because you will just have to use the color spine locator and voila book found!

This inventory will continue to grow and I am always up for suggestions on how to improve it. Please remember this is my personal inventory and it might not have certain books you are looking for, but that is a great opportunity for you to grow your list to fit your needs. 

You can purchase the inventory in two places: My blog or Teachers Pay Teachers.







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Courtney



I have been looking forward to this interview for awhile. You are going to love meeting Trudy Ludwig who is the author of many children's books including The Invisible Boy and Quiet Please, Own McPhee and her newest book Brave Every Day. She says that her focus when she writes is to help kids connect with each other in kinder and more caring ways. She is definitely good at that. You will learn what profession she had before she was compelled to start writing children's books. You will learn about her concept of bibliotherapy. Trudy is a treasure trove of social and emotional wisdom. I learned so much from her and I can't wait for you to learn, too. She also shares insights about how her newest book Brave Every Day came to be. I know you will enjoy this episode as much as I did. Click HERE to listen to this week's episode.


Ways to connect with Trudy: Website, Twitter, Instagram


Below you will find the Amazon affiliate links for the books mentioned in this episode. Just click to purchase.
The invisible Boy
Quite Please, Owen McPhee
Brave Every Day
Calling the Wind
Counting By 7s


Open The Magic,






@ramonarecommends {instagram}
Ramonarecommends.com
Magic Wear Shop
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Courtney


This week you will love meeting the dynamic author/illustrator duo of Ella Schwartz and Dow Phumiruk. They both share about their careers before working on picture books and how their love of reading grew more slowly because of their family's immigrant background. You will learn the background story about Her Name was Mary Katherine: The Only Woman Whose Name is on the Declaration of Independence. You will enjoy learning about the special relationship that an author and illustrator have when working on a book together. They also were able to share about their upcoming books and projects. I know you will enjoy getting to know these two special people.  Click HERE to listen to this week's episode.
Ways to connect with Ella: Website, Twitter and Dow: Instagram, Website, Twitter
Below you will find the Amazon affiliate links for the books mentioned in this episode. Just click to purchase.
From Ella Schwartz:
Her Name was Mary Katherine: The Only Woman Whose Name is on the Declaration of Independence
Can you Crack the Code?: A Fascinating History of Ciphers and Cryptography
Is It Okay to Pee in the Ocean?: The Fascinating Science of Our Waste and Our World
From Dow Phumiruk:
Hugsby
New From Here
Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13
A Life of Service: The Story of Senator Tammy Duckworth
@ramonarecommends {instagram}
Ramonarecommends.com
Magic Wear Shop






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Courtney



You are going to love getting to know Kirsten Larson who used to work for NASA and came to be a picture book author when she realized how much she and her children loved the nonfiction section of the library. She shares how she likes to focus her writing on strong women in history. She shares her research process of using both primary and secondary sources. She discusses the idea that reading a picture book involves both the reading of words and the reading of pictures and how that brings meaning and Confetti Moments to readers. She shares the story of her latest book A True Wonder: The Comic Book Hero Who Changed Everything which chronicles the creation and evolution of Wonder Woman and inspires readers to see themselves as heroes of their own story. Kirsten is such a gift to the nonfiction picture book community. Click here to listen to this week's episode. 
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Courtney



This week you are going to love getting to meet former elementary school teacher Tami Charles who is the author of All Because You Matter. We talk about who she was as a reader growing up and who inspired her to become a picture book author. We really connect over our thoughts on the importance of picture books. She shares some of the authors she looks up to as a writer and the influence they had on her students. We also discuss her growth as a writer and her habits of writing. You will learn all about her book All Because You Matter and where the story came from. We also discuss the author/illustrator relationship and how that influences the outcome of a book. Tami is a treat and you are going to love this episode. Click here to listen to this week's episode. 

Ways to connect with Tami: Website, Instagram, Twitter

Below you will find the Amazon affiliate links for the books mentioned in this episode. Just click to purchase.



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Courtney



I am so excited about this week's episode. I am happy to introduce you to Lisa Robinson the author of The Sweetest Scoop which is the biography of Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream. She shares about her amazing upbringing with parents who were in the Peace Corp. You will be fascinated to learn all the places she has lived. She is currently a practicing child psychiatrist, mom and author. She has a beautiful take on the importance of picture books and their impact on social-emotional learning. Lisa shares the story behind The Sweetest Scoop: Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Revolution in addition to all of her family's favorite ice cream flavors. You will learn about the other books she has written as well as what books she has coming in the near future. You will see that she loves to learn about strong women in history. Lastly, you have to find out the very unique hobby that Lisa and her daughter's share. I did not expect it! Click here to enjoy this yummy episode!

Ways to connect with Lisa: Instagram, Twitter, or her website


Below you will find the Amazon affiliate links for the books mentioned in this episode. Just click to purchase:

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Courtney

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