Coyote School News

This is a wonderful book about kids who go to a one-room school in southern Arizona in 1938. There are twelve of them, most from Mexican-American families; a nice young teacher, Miss Byers; and her dog Chipito, who lives at the school with her. The school bus is a beat-up old car that bumps over dirt roads from one ranch to another picking up children and sometimes breaking down - and once running over a rattlesnake, whose 5'7" skin hangs on the schoolroom wall next to President Roosevelt's picture. Monchi, a fourth grader, tells about the big events of the year, like Miss Byers' swell idea to start a newspaper, and the Halloween party and roundup on the ranch. And everyone writes stories or draws pictures for the "Coyote News" paper, which is printed in the book, so we can read about the nurse's visit and Christmas wishes and Miss Byers' radio and Loli's lost tooth and the school's float at La Fiesta de los Vaqueros in Tucson. Joan Sandin weaves these events into an absorbing story that easily incorporates some Spanish words (a glossary is provided.) Her bright, detailed pictures tell even more about ranch and school life and about the twelve children of Coyote School. To look at their group picture on the last day of school and then back at their first-day picture is to see how well we have come to know each one, and how pleased we are at how they've grown. This lively story should fascinate kids, who will discover that in spite of the unique setting and the long-ago time, Coyote School children aren't all that different from themselves. The range of the children's ages makes it a great book for family read-alouds. And it's just the kind of book a good teacher looks for: it's full of information, but first of all,it's a good story.