Clements, Andrew. 
FRINDLE
New York : Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1996
IL 3-6, RL 4.8
ISBN 0689806698

(7 booktalks)

Nicholas Allen is known for his creative ideas that always entertain his classmates.  But Nick meets his biggest challenge yet when he enters Mrs. Granger's 5th grade language arts class.  Known for her X-ray vision, obsession with the dictionary, and strict rules, Nick struggles to break Mrs. Granger down.  Then, Nick finds a way to work his magic once again. He decides to create his own word. From now on, a pen is no longer a pen-it's a frindle. Will frindle be successful and become the new fad? Or will it crash and burn and be quickly forgotten? Find out as you follow Nick on his journey in this unique story about creative thought and the power of words.  (Andrea Fisher, AN-Fisher2@wiu.edu, college student)

Booktalk #2

Little kids make up words all the time when they are first learning to talk. But what happens when a fourth grader makes up a word and convinces the whole school to use it? Well, Nick Allen always loved a good joke so he decided to get his friends to never use the word pen again and, instead, call it a Frindle. Their English teacher, however, does not think it is as funny as the kids do, and tries to punish them for changing words. Their struggle continues and you would never believe how far a fight over a made-up word could go.  (Ellie Rickelman,  eam-rickelman@wiu.edu, college student)

Booktalk #3

Well hello there, my name is Mrs. Granger, or as some of the students call me, Granger Stranger.  I am the 5th grade Language Arts teacher at Lincoln Middle School.  This year was unlike any others, yet it started just like a normal first day of school would; lost students in the hallways, the smell of freshly sharpened pencils, the chatter of friends reconnecting after the summer, and students trying to get out of their first day of homework, especially one student in particular.  Now I had heard from his past teachers that this student was known for his special tricks to get teachers off task to waste class time, but I was prepared for Nicholas Allen…well, at least I thought I was, little did I know what the year would entail.
Follow the peculiar relationship between Mrs. Granger and the infamous Nicholas Allen during his fifth grade year and on through adulthood; it will definitely be a year unlike any others with a heartening ending.  What will become of Nicholas Allen?  Will Mrs. Granger be able to handle Nicholas's orneriness while keeping the class in order?  All of these questions will be answered with a story that starts with the word, frindle.  See how this one word can make a world of change in the story "Frindle" by Andrew Clements.  (Melissa Downin,  ma-downin@wiu.edu, college student)

Booktalk #4

Little kids make up words all the time when they are first learning to talk. But what happens when a fourth grader makes up a word and convinces the whole school to use it? Well, Nick Allen always loved a good joke so he decided to get his friends to never use the word pen again and, instead, call it a Frindle. Their English teacher, however, does not think it is as funny as the kids do, and tries to punish them for changing words. Their struggle continues and you would never believe how far a fight over a made-up word could go. (Ellie Rickelman,  eam-rickelman@wiu.edu, college student)

Booktalk #5

This is a fiction book about Nicolas Allen a boy with many mischievous ideas. He uses there ideas on his teachers so they forget about homework. He was always successful until he got into Mrs. Granger's 5th grade class. Well she doesn't tolerate this behavior because she is very serious about education. One day they are learning about the meaning of different words and Mrs. Granger tells him that the reason the word dog means an animal that barks because everyone in America agrees that's what it means. Nick decides he is going to test this theory by making up a new word for “pen.â€? The word he comes up with is "frindle." This upsets Mrs. Granger because she thinks he is just trying to disrupt the class. Nick and all his friends start calling pens a frindle, it become very popular and the teacher wants him to put an end to it. The new word becomes so catchy that it starts speading across the country and there is nothing Nick can do to stop it. To find out more read Findle By Andrew Clements.  (Sherri Varek, sa-varek@wiu.edu, college student)

Booktalk #6

Have you ever wondered why we call a dog, dog? Who says a pen has to be called a pen? Why not called it a frindle? Nick Allen has always had plenty of great ideas, although some of them have gotten him in trouble- and really he just wants to liven things up at school. He has gotten away with a lot until he meets his match, Mrs. Granger. She is Nick’s fifth grade Language Arts teacher whose favorite book is the dictionary.  Everyone knows she has eyes in the back of her head and will not tolerate any mischief. But, when Nick learns some interesting information about how words were created, suddenly he's got the inspiration for his best plan ever -- frindle.  Things begin innocently enough as Nick gets his friends to use the new word. Then other people in town start saying frindle. Soon the school is in an uproar, and Nick has become a local hero. Mrs. Granger wants Nick to put an end to all this nonsense, so she threatens to keep kids who use the word after school. When parents find out about their kids being kept after school, they also want him to end the fiasco, but the funny thing is frindle doesn't belong to Nick anymore. The new word soon spreads around the country and there's nothing Nick can do to stop it. If you're looking for a book with some goofiness and a heartfelt ending that may surprise you, read about Nick’s story, in Frindle by Andrew Clements.
(lauren, lp-judickas@wiu.edu, college student)

Booktalk #7
 

Hi! My name is Janet Fisk, a friend of Nicholas Allen. Our story began during 5th grade, 7th period. Language Arts with Mrs. Granger. Nick, as we call him, always asks questions to distract our teachers, and he is very good at it. He decides to ask, who says what words truly mean and Mrs. Granger simply answers that the people do. Nick decides to do an experiment and makes the word "Frindle". Read the great contemporary realistic novel, Frindle, by Andrew Clements to see what a Frindle really is and to join Nick on his journey to try to make a new word.  (Andrea Lopez,  Am-Lopez3@wiu.edu,  college student)