Southwest Children's Literature

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Coyote School News

In the book Coyote School News by Joan Sandin, the characters/students in the story created a school newspaper. They published articles and illustrations about living in the desert Southwest, and about their home and school lives. Over the course of several lessons, our students at Ironwood Elementary School heard the story. After meeting a present day southwestern vaquero (cowboy), they were given the opportunity to compose their own newspaper articles, just as the students in "Coyote School News" did! Now, you can enjoy this edition of Ironwood School News

Note: The "Little Cowpuncher" newspapers, on which the book is based, were published without being edited by adults in order to ensure that their voices could be heard, unrestrained. Some of the fourth grade students at Ironwood Elementary School composed the following newspaper articles and illustrations. Their work, too, is presented here, unedited.

Ironwood School News

December 2004


School Happenings (see below)

The western people
Today I met a real live cowboy. His name is Jesse. He made me want to write this artical. I'm just going to tell you what he taught me. He said that his dog Prima helps him alot. One of the things the dog does is help him gather up cattle. It is called hearding. She also keeps him company because she goes every where he does evan to our school! Jesse showed us how to lasso. He lassoed the fire hydrant. I liked meeting Jesse.
By Courtnay

Jesse The Vaquero
Jesse is a cowboy which in Spanish means "vaquero." Jesse rides horses and ranches. He likes cows and brands the calves to put a symbol on them that shows the calves belong to his ranch. He rides around the ranch looking for fences to fix. He uses his spurs to make the horse move faster. I have learned a lot about Jesse! Jesse also has a dog named Prima. She helps him a lot and keeps Jesse company.
By M.C.

Jesse with his dog Prima at the ranch.

Courtnay
Jesse with his dog Prima at the ranch.

Jesse and Prima outside the classroom

Sam
Jesse and Prima outside the classroom

Jesse The Vaquero
Jesse is a vaquero. He is a big cowboy. He wears long pants and over them he wears chaps. He wears a long sleeved shirt and over his shirt he has a vest. He wears spurs on his boots to kick the horse to go. He rides horses to see how fast they go and how much energy they have. They also burn the horses to put a brand on them so everyone will know who it belongs to.
By S.T.

Jesse Davis
Who is Jesse Davis? What does he do at the ranch? How long has his farm been there? Does he have a pet? If he does what is its name? What is at his ranch?
Jesse Davis is a cowboy who came into our class to tell us all about what a cowboy does. He said he lives on a ranch that his family has owned for five generahons. On the ranch there are calves, horses, and cows. He spends his days looking for broken fences and fixing them. He also heards the cows and calves. He has a dog named Prima who goes wherever he goes and helps him with his jobs. I really enjoyed Jesse coming into our class.
By Sam

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