Best Selling Books by Margaret McNamara

The Robin Hill School first-graders learn about butterflies in this springtime Ready-to-Read! When a package arrives on Mrs. Connor’s desk, everyone is eager to find out what’s in it. Mrs. Connor hints that it’s something that changes from one thing to another. The children soon discover that it’s not a monster or a superhero, but a jar with five caterpillars. The class is going to learn about the life cycle of butterflies! They patiently watch as the caterpillars eat and eat and grow and grow, become chrysalises, and then emerge as beautiful butterflies. And all the children agree that butterflies are “even better than a superhero.”

When Katie draws Andrew''s name in the first-grade Christmas gift exchange, she decides not to give him a present because he has said mean things about her reindeer sweater.

Mrs. Connor''s class celebrates Thanksgiving in this Level 1 Ready-to-Read! Thanksgiving time is here, and Mrs. Connor''s class is dressing up to celebrate. When the fire alarm goes off, they share their Thanksgiving cheer with the whole school! Ready-to-read books offer children a world of possibilities at four different reading levels: Pre-Level One: Recognizing Words -Word repetition -Familiar words and phrases -Simple sentences Level One: Starting to Read -Simple stories -Increased vocabulary -Longer sentences Level Two: Reading Independently -More-complex stories -Varied sentence structure -Paragraphs and short chapters Level Three: Reading Proficiently -Rich vocabulary -More-challenging stories -Longer chapters

Individual Big Book

Usher in National Poetry Month with Mr. Tiffin and his students, stars of the hugely popular How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin? and The Apple Orchard Riddle. Once again, Margaret McNamara sets her playful, child-friendly story in the classroom, and this time, poetry—from metaphors to acrostics to haiku—is the name of the game. The focus here is on Elinor, whose confidence falters as she tries to write something "perfect" for Poem in Your Pocket Day and impress a visiting poet. G. Brian Karas''s accessible, adorable illustrations add to the fun. Includes a list of Mr. Tiffin''s tips for celebrating Poem in Your Pocket Day. "A nimble introduction to poetry as well as a sensitive look at the perils of perfectionism." —The New York Times "Pair this book with the works of Shel Silverstein, Paul B. Janeczko, Jack Prelutsky, Douglas Florian, or Robert Louis Stevenson." —School Library Journal, Starred

Fans of the musical Hamilton and their children won''t want to miss this stunning picture book biography about Eliza Hamilton, American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton''s extraordinary wife and an important figure in her own right. Includes an afterword from Phillipa Soo, the actress who originated the role of Eliza in Hamilton! We all know the story of scrappy Alexander Hamilton and his rise in American politics--but how much do we know about his workmate, inspiration, and stabilizing force, Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton? Margaret McNamara employs the letter-writing style of the period to tell the story of Eliza Hamilton, who was born into a family of considerable wealth, power, and influence in Albany, New York, in 1757. Eliza was expected to marry into a similarly powerful family . . . until she met and fell in love with the charismatic Hamilton. She stood by him throughout his tumultuous life, and after his death, she single-handedly collected his papers and preserved them for historians and musical-theater writers of the future. Eliza outlived Hamilton by fifty years; during that time she founded the first orphanage in New York State, raised funds for the Washington Monument, and kept the flame of her husband''s memory and achievements alive. This is a beautiful and informative biography featuring extensive back matter--including information about America''s revolution, the historical relevance of letter writing, and a timeline--and exquisite, thoroughly researched art that mirrors paintings from 18th-century America. Every Hamilton lover will want to gift it to the young readers in their lives.

Individual Big Book

Bakers use multiplication every day. How do bakers use multiplication? How do bakers multiply multidigit numbers? Read this book to find out.

This delightful book includes the following stories: Butterfly Garden First-Grade Bunny Earth Day Star of the Class Play Happy Graduation Mrs. Connor''s class is loving butterflies, bunnies, and the Earth during the magical season of spring. Follow along as they celebrate spring in this paperback bind up for beginning readers.

Readers of Disney Fairies, The Never Girls, and Rainbow Magic will absolutely love the fifth book in the Fairy Bell Sisters series by Margaret McNamara, a delightful chapter-book series about Tinker Bell''s little sisters for kids ages 6-10. Springtime means spring-cleaning for the fairies of Sheepskerry Island. It also means getting to search for treasure in the jumble pile—a giant collection of unwanted items outside Queen Mab''s palace. When Sylva Bell and her best friend, Poppy Flower, find Queen Mab''s old fairy dollhouse in the pile, they are overjoyed! But as the two friends play with it, they start to unlock its secrets and discover its special magic—a magic that has a history of putting friendships to the test.

Individual Big Book

Read about the Civil War battle of Gettysburg.

Mr. Tiffin and his students explore skip counting and estimation in a fun pumpkin-themed classroom experiment! This book makes a wonderful read-aloud companion to any math or science curriculum, and it''s a fun way to reinforce counting skills at home. "How many seeds are in a pumpkin?" Mr. Tiffin asks his class as they gather around the big, medium, and small pumpkins on his desk. Robert, the biggest kid, guesses that the largest one has a million seeds; Elinor, sounding like she knows what she''s talking about, guesses the medium one has 500 seeds; and Anna, who likes even numbers better than odd ones, guesses that the little one has 22. Charlie, the smallest boy in the class, doesn''t have a guess. Counting pumpkin seeds is messy business, but once the slimy job is done, to everyone''s surprise, the smallest pumpkin has the most seeds! As Charlie happily exclaims, "Small things have a lot going on inside of them." And don’t miss the newest addition to the Mr. Tiffin series, The Dinosaur Expert!

Eloise loves loves loves weddings--and now she gets to be in one!

Visit the state capitol with Mr. Tiffin and his students to learn all about how a bill is voted on and passed. This kid-friendly picture book from the perennially popular Mr. Tiffin’s Classroom series follows a group of students passionately engaged in learning how the US government works. Mr. Tiffin’s students are learning how a bill can become a law and are eagerly brainstorming ideas to make their state a better place. Mr. Tiffin announces that whoever has the best idea will have the opportunity to present their bill to Representative Noor during their class trip to the state capitol. Jeremy believes that they should name an official state cookie. At first it seems like a brilliant idea – until his classmates begin to argue over cookie flavors and pick sides! The only way to settle this debate is with a class vote. When the students visit the capitol the following week to present their bill, Jeremy realizes that even the best ideas require a bit of compromise and often yield surprising – and delicious! – results.

Read about the Lakota Indians who lived on the plains and hunted buffalo.

"Based on the art of Hilary Knight"--Cover.

Individual Big Book

Mrs. Connor''s students at Robin Hill School share their dreams for the future after learning about the day that celebrates the life and dream of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.