AR: 4.7

4.5 stars

This is a very charming story about the 6 school-age children who live in a tiny Dutch fishing village called Shora (in Friesland). They get to wondering about why storks settle in all of the other villages, but never Shora, and how they can attract the birds. They decide that they need a wagon wheel to put on a roof for the birds to nest in and the bulk of the story is of the children searching all over the village for a wheel. They end up developing relationships with some of the older members of the village and the entire community gets involved in the stork project.

My mom read this aloud to me and my siblings when we were young and I remember we all liked it a lot; I read it to two of my nieces (ages 6 and 8) and they really enjoyed it, too.

The only reason I'm giving it 4.5 stars instead of 5 is that some of the sentences are a bit lengthy and include interjections that make reading it aloud a bit awkward at points. I also wish there had been a quick pronunciation guide included at the beginning of the book to help with the Dutch names. I got most of them right but had to Google a couple. ( )

Why did the storks no longer come to the little Dutch fishing village of Shora to nest? It was Lina, one of the six schoolchildren, who first asked the question, and she set the others to wondering. And sometimes when you begin to wonder, you begin to make things happen. So the children set out to bring the storks back. They had to overcome many obstacles, including the fierce and threatening sea. But they wouldn't give up - and soon their determination and their vision got the whole village working, until at last the dream began to come true.

reviewed

I vaguely remember that this is about kids getting storks to nest in a Dutch village. I remember thinking at the time that the dialogue sounded too American rather than Dutch. ( )

This is a great book-- I can see why it won the Newbery medal. And I was heartened to see that even in the '50s we were encouraged to see beyond our own limited views, to see the value that others, old or young, thin or "fat", can bring to a project. Now on to more Newbery winners! ( )

I love this book. Mr. DeJong writes with true humanity. ( )

Newbery Medal 1955. Pleasant story of how the children's search for a wheel to put on the school so the storks can nest in a Dutch dikeside village works to change the attitudes of the whole town. ( )

Slow read. But the children got into what was going to happen. They also enjoyed reading about a different culture of kids. Slow read though. Rich. Long. Classic. ( )

This cute book won the Newbery Award in 1955. It is illustrated in black and white by Maurice Sendak.

This story takes place in the small village of Shora in the Netherlands. Theonly girl of the 5 students at the town school, Lina, writes a story wondering why Shora doesn't have storks like the neighboring towns. The teacher tells the kids to wonder about it. Which leads to their discussing it. They learn that Shora did have storks, and their oldest neighbors remember them. The students learn they need a wheel on the roof, for storks to nest on. They search for a wheel, and pretty soon the whole town (and neighbors from another town) is involved. They meet older neighbors they have been afraid of or just never spoke to, they have adventures, and they learn each others' strengths. A very sweet story about how you can accomplish something if you work hard, work together, and think outside the box. ( )

You can't judge a book by its cover. You can't always judge a book by its synopsis either.
Synopsis: A group of six school children in Holland at some unspecified time in the past, decide they need to put a wagon wheel on the roof of their school so migrating storks will have a place to nest, and will do so in their town, bringing good luck. The entire book is pretty much the story of the kids, and adults that they drag into their scheme, trying to first find a spare wagon wheel, then get it to the school, get it mounted on the roof, and then attract storks. And yet, the book was fun, endearing, and occasionally exciting.
There are no bad guys. A few of the children are benignly naughty, as all children are from time to time. A few of the adults are cranky or short-tempered, as all adults are from time to time, but you always know everyone is good. Whereas most YA books seem to be about family, friendship, or both, this book is more about community and cooperation. What can happen when everyone works together towards a common goal.
It was the 1955 Newbery winner, and I have to wonder if it seemed old fashioned even then. It does now, but in a good way. And although set in Holland, this is not one of those Newbery winners that seem primarily trying to teach another country's life and culture to American children. The story is about things all children will relate to.
I'm not sure who today's audience would be. It seems rather long to engage many 3rd or 4th graders, but they would probably enjoy it the most. Today's middle schooler would probably find it rather naively sweet and therefore something to scoff at. But this 52 year old enjoyed it. ( )

This is one of those children's classics that I had never read. It caught my eye because of the cover with a Maurice Sendak illustration. I enjoyed all the little illustrations inside. The story was good too. ( )

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book, the Newbery winner in 1955. It was quite the page turner with some very touching moments and a great deal of excitement. I fell in love with the characters especially as I watched their growth. I'll be interested to hear what my book group thought of it. ( )

I'm on another Newberry kick. This book is about kids in a fishing village in Holland that decide they want storks to nest in their village. So they go on a quest to find a wagon wheel to put on the roof of their school as a nesting site for the storks. It is a nice story about imagination and curiousity and people working together to make something happen. It was a little too adventurous towards the end for my tastes, otherwise I may have given it four stars. ( )

Summary: A story about a little town that had only six school children. In the beginning a little girl named Lina, read a story she wrote to her class about storks. The teacher let them go early that day, but they had to think about why the storks do not nest in their little town of Shora. They figured out that the reason is because they had no wagon wheel on the top of their roof. They spent most of the book finding a wagon wheel. Each of the six students went on a different a path to locate a wagon wheel. IN the end, they found one, put it on top of the school, and caught two storks and put them with the wheel on top of the school house.

Personal Reflection: The story reminds me about a young Lieutenant during a war was asked to deliver a message to President Garcia, but was not told anything, the LT. had to figure it out on his own. I told that story many times to my Soldiers throughout my career.

Classroom Extension
1. The same lesson that was taught in the book, could be used in any school, and the children could figure out why a bird or other animal is no longer in their immediate area.

2. In a science class, teach nesting habits of different birds, and why they nest in the same area each year.

I have a fairly dim recollection that this was read to me as a child. My recollection is that it was read in school, but since we had this copy when my brother and I were very young, it may be that my mother read it to us. At this point all I remember is that the wheel was for storks to nest on. ( )

Enjoyable read. Six schoolchildren in Holland set out to bring storks to their community and bring the community together, including some unusual heroes, in the process. ( )

Very charming story that read much like a fairytale. There weren't any surprises but the heartwarming bits came thick and fast. If I have a complaint, it's that the names are so similar it was hard to keep track: 2 Jans, a Jana, a Janus, and a Janka for instance. And in one family, Lena the mom, Lina and Linda the daughters. I was asea more than once due to name confusion. I wish I'd read this when I was 9, but I'm glad I read it at this late date. ( )

What a lovely little book. As the teacher says, "sometimes when we wonder, we can make things begin to happen." This small story of six children who wonder about storks and then begin to change their village life discover friends where there weren't any before and bring their village together. ( )

I had decided, at one point in time, that reading every Newbery Award Winning book was something I wanted to persue. The sad story was that I didn't have any books with the awarded title in my house. Well, I didn't have any that I had not yet read. While searching every book shelf in the house,(and we have many) I came across The Wheel on the School. The first thing that caught my eye was the cover which reminded me of something from back in my childhood. At that time I couldn't figure it out but I decided that since it was an award winning book and on my list, I should start with it anyways and figure out what was bothering me later. The book starts off slow but then again, does it? Looking back I would have to say no, it doesn't, it just starts off...differently.

Differently like the way A Tale of Two Cities starts out differently. Differently like the way Hamlet starts out differently. I guess the right way to say it would be to say that it is different, different due to the fact that the writing style has an old story telling feel to it.

And that is when it hit me...

The Wheel on the School is just that, a story tellers book, not one which is made to make a profit but one that is written just for the sake of telling a story. I suppose it lies in the style of writing or the tone and voice. Whichever it is,I was instantly reminded of Caddie Wood awn, Strawberry Girl and Miracle on Maple Hill. All three are Newbery Award Winners, all written about girls who ask questions and go into action and all three are written by story tellers, not authors. Some may say that there isn't much of a difference but there is, one writes a story for one to read to themselves and the other writes a story that is meant to be read--aloud. I remember the other three stories vividly. The cover of each book was old and ancient looking and I didn't think at all that I would care to read them. In fact, if it had not been for the school reading contest I would have put them all back. But, I didn't and I'm happy for that because when I put them down, each one of them, I sat back and reflected on each book. I read them all in elementary school so I was no more than 11 during this time of reflection but still, I did my thinking on what I had just read and in the end I decided that yes, I would add all three of these books into my favorite books of all time.

And here I am, more than 20 years later, adding another to that list of books. What amazed me about this book was the fact that it was able to take a simple problem and turn it into something adventurous. One child's question became an adventure for a whole school and it pulled together an entire community. All of this happens without being preachy and forced. In fact, that is the good part of a good story and in this one, you walk away not only learning something but also yearning for something.

I walked away learning that sometimes a simple question has a simple answer and yet it can all be so wonderful. And, in the end I found myself yearning for something simple in return; simple reading, simple writing, simple story telling and maybe, just a simple life with a bit of adventure in it, just for fun.

I feel that this book is something worth reading, not just for yourself but for others. Pick it up, read it to your children, grandchildren, niece and nephews, cousins and whom ever comes your way. I think you will find the joy in this book by becoming the storyteller. ( )

A marvelous book. Quiet. Wonderful illustrations. Won Newbery in 1995. ( )

This read aloud, published in 1954, took us forever to get through -- partly because we've been so busy, and party because it started so slow. I'm so glad we stuck with it, though, because we loved it. If it started slow, it picked up in a big way about halfway through, with breathless action! This is a charming portrait of a bygone era -- a tiny fishing village in Holland, where the six school-aged children attend the one-room school in their wooden shoes, and their fishermen fathers spend long weeks at sea. Young Lina is distracted from her studies because her aunt told her of storks who come every year to nest on her town's roofs. Lina wonders why storks never come to Shora, and her teacher challenges the children to find out. They learn, and decide to bring them back. The problem: the steep roofs of Shora are not hospitable to storks, and similar towns solve the problem by putting wagon wheels on their roofs. Thus begins a mission to find a wheel for their school's roof -- an unlikely and improbable task. The result, however, unites the tiny community like never before. This is a very moving read and terrific storytelling. I'm so glad we stuck with it!

This is an amazing book. It tells the story of a group of schoolchildren in rural Holland who work together to bring the storks back to their town. The plot sounds somewhat dry, but the story is masterfully told, the dialogue and characters are excellent. Because it won't seem appealing at first to a typical child, I recommend this book as a read aloud for nearly any elementary age. My three children (ages 9, 7, and 5) have enjoyed this book immensely. They have laughed and cried as I read. Well deserving of the Newbery Medal.

An extraordinary gem, among the greatest children's books of all time. ( )

This is truly an odd story. A village in Holland is sad because no storks come to nest in their town. The children and their teacher decide to change things by making a project of it; they will find an old wagon wheel and put it on top of the school for storks to nest in.Pretty soon, the whole town is involved in the project. Everyone is out looking for wagon wheels. Everyone is figuring out how to put the wheel on the school. Everyone is helping put the wagon wheel on the roof of the school. There are plenty of difficulties in the task, including finding the wagon wheel in the first place. The project creates unexpected side benefits of a strong community spirit and new friendships. ( )