gitty daneshvari & tami lewis brown @ southern festival of books

The second session we attended on Saturday was Tween Life - Writing Characters With a Sense of Self with Gitty Daneshvari & Tami Lewis Brown.  We were a little late to this session.  Blame it on the Parnassus tent offering up the books of all the participating authors. 

Gitty draws inspiration from Roald Dahl.  She originally imagined her School of Fear series while wondering what it would've been like to go to a school that helped her overcome fears when she was younger.  Outlines are a key part to her writing process & she credits them with helping her become a more focused & stronger writer.  She is also one of the most recent authors to write for the Monster High series.  Gitty's upcoming series, The League of Unexceptional Children, was inspired by a time when almost all the other kids in her class won awards, but not her!

Tami also draws inspiration from Dahl, which we noticed was a theme with several authors!  We loved hearing her share that her book, Soar, Elinor!, was written alongside her students at the time.  She was helping them write biographies and decided to do one with them!  What an inspiration!!  Tami also shared how outlines have helped her grow as a writer.

Both Gitty & Tami shared how book tours help to reset their calibration & keep them in touch with their audience.  Yay for book tours!  We also appreciated the fact that both of these authors steer away from the "sexy non-sex", as Gitty put it.  They are truly writing to entertain these tween readers.

Gitty finished the session with this thought about endings, they don't "have to have a happy ending, but a hopeful ending."

ed young @ southern festival of books

The Southern Festival of Books is a free annual event held in the shadow of the capitol building on War Memorial Plaza in downtown Nashville.  Last year was our first year attending & we immediately knew it would also be an annual event for us.  We've decided to devote a post for each author session we attended, rather than cramming it all in one post.  Up first, Ed Young.

Ed Young's session focused on his newest book, Nighttime Ninja, written by Barbara DaCosta.  While seeking a diversion from his work on The House that Baba Built, Ed was cleaning out drawers.  He came across a small, self-published work by DaCosta.  Taking it upon himself to storyboard the 90 word book, the bumpy road toward publishing began.  The seemingly easy task of publishing the book became complicated due to creative disagreements between Ed & the publisher. He had created all the collages for the book, but was asked to reconsider using the original sketches instead.  "Well," Ed was prompted, "maybe you should just think about it."  His response?  "I'm done thinking.  Maybe you should think..."  Eventually the book was taken to another publisher and more of Ed's creative genius was allowed to shine.

Listening to Ed describe different artistic decisions I couldn't help but be reminded of my Choice Literacy workshop with Franki Sibberson this summer and our discussions about visual literacy.   Ed was extremely intentional about every decision, even down to how the ninjas dropping down the endpages turn into the title page.  At one point the book's designer made the decision to put a spoiler of sorts on the cover flaps.  Again, Ed's response was unwavering.  "Well, why don't you just tell the whole story right there?"  He believes that the pictures tell the story and the words only confirm.  He also shared his belief that certain stories demand certain colors, mood, & tone.

Ed's book dedication stems from his belief that it's all about suspense & that kids like that.  "There's something about mystery that intrigues us all."  Cheryl & I also loved his final thought - "Two minds are better than one if you want to make something great.  More minds are better than two."

it's monday!

from Mandy:
Liar and Spy by Rebecca Stead: When You Reach Me is one of my all-time favorite books.  My students tease me that I say this about all the books, but this one really is!  I was so excited to read Stead's latest book.  I felt that, like her other books, there were little hints for the reader that really got me wondering more about the characters.  Here are some of my favorite quotes:
"Because I would rather be a jerk's victim than a jerk's friend."
"Life is really just a bunch of nows, one after the other."
"She said she felt full of whatever it was that was about to happen to her."

Capture the Flag by Kate Messner: What a fun story!  I'm a huge fan of the National Treasure movies and loved how this book had a similar vibe.  Kate did an amazing job of developing the 3 main characters.  This book will provide the opportunity of lots of great conversations in my classroom.

My first book order arrived today!  The TBR pile just keeps growing!

from Cheryl:
The Dot by Peter Reynold: Our school celebrated National Dot Day in many ways. Thanks to our amazing literacy team, we all got copies of The Dot. Middle school students decided to "make their mark" by writing their goals and signing their name. What a powerful message for kids.

The Fault in our Stars by John Green: Once I got started, I couldn't put it down. I loved the poetic language, the honesty, the inside look, the metaphors, the repeating lines, books that change our life, the characters we want to be...Hazel Grace. May we all find someone to love us that much.

it's monday

From Mandy:

The Unusual Suspects (The Sisters Grimm #2) by Michael Buckley:  I was finally able to finish this one!  I have really enjoyed this series & have several students interested in them.

Explorer: The Mystery Boxes edited by Kazu Kibuishi:  This collection of short comic stories all answer the same question, "What's in the box?"  This would be a perfect book to prompt students to write their own story answering the question.  It will also expose them to several authors & illustrators in this genre.

Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms by Lissa Evans:  What a fun book!  I knew I would like it as soon as I saw that the endpapers were maps, one of my favorite features!  I'd read several reviews & tweets about this book & was excited to finally read it.  I wasn't disappointed!  The length will be very manageable for my readers & the exposure to quirky vocabulary is a definite plus.

Capture the Flag by Kate Messner:  I just started this one yesterday & I already know my students will love it! 

The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha:  One of my friends told me about this book.  Whenever something awesome would happen she would say, "That should be in the book of awesome."  It took me a few times to realize it was an actual book!  The book contains everyday occurrences that should be celebrated, like flipping the pillow to the cool side before going back to sleep.  Awesome.  The pieces are short... sometimes a few paragraphs, sometimes a few sentences.  I can't wait to integrate this book into my writer's workshop!  Finding an unexpected book that makes for perfect mini lessons?  Awesome.

From Cheryl:

The Recess Queen by Alexis O'Neill: Sixth graders used this book to examine character motivation, then to write summaries. After quickly identifying what the characters want, they were able to think about the characters in their chapter books in a new way.

We looked at ways setting impacts character, plot, and theme using The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins by Brian Selznick, The Lotus Seed by Sherry Garland, and Sister Anne's Hands by Marybeth Lorbiecki. Students were only provided with text on the first page (where setting is described) of these picture books, then they had to predict what the characters would be like, what possible event they could predict to see in the text, the conflict that may arise, and the possible theme of the text.

The Red Necklace by Sally Gardner: I'm including this book on my "great leads" list. This story takes place in Paris during King Louis XVI's reign. Paris is getting ready to turn upside-down, and the writer builds this tension on the very first page..."This is Paris; here the winds of change are blowing, whispering their discontent into the very hearts of her citizens..."

Schools That Work by Richard Allington: This text explores the situation of reading programs today and the impact of NCLB. It provides qualities of successful reading programs, as well as, ways to develop school in which all kids read and write. Allington emphasizes the need for effective teaching and getting books into the hands of our students. It makes me think of ways to increase opportunities for my students to read and write.

made

I always try to make sure my classroom is welcoming with little pockets of my personality.  I'm sure that most of you have heard of the great new time-waster... Pinterest.  I've gotten some great ideas for my classroom on Pinterest!  It's like going to a great conference, collaborating with other teachers from across the country, even taking a peek into their classrooms, but all from the comfort of your own couch!  Genius.  Here are some projects I had ready for the beginning of school.  Some are from Pinterest.  Some are just from my brain.  Enjoy.

I love all the cute pennant banners!  I made this one to hang over my classroom door in the hallway.  Each pennant is a different type of print: R is an excerpt from Bridge to Terabithia from an old short story anthology, E is from the comic page, A is an "a" page from a vintage school dictionary I rescued from the free pile at a library sale, & D is from an old atlas.  I sewed the pompom fringe (which just makes everything happier) onto cardstock pennants, then attached the page to the pennants and drew on the letters.

I'm always looking for great storage ideas & bookshelves.  I love the 9-cube shelves that are made to hold those fabric organizer cubes.  I had the idea to get one of those to face into a cubbyhole reading area and attach a whiteboard to the back.  I thought the whiteboard would be a place where I could do small groups or students could work in pairs.  This picture shows the aftermath of our how to pick a good fit book lesson, thus the bag of shoes!

I LOVE these seats, but my students love them even more than I do!  I had seen a few different versions of these on Pinterest, but modified them to fit my needs.  The top lifts up for more storage.  One of them has clipboards, and I'm planning on putting stations in them once those are up & running.  My dad helped me make them.  I made sure to buy crates that had an inside edge made for hanging folders, then we cut a piece of board to nestle inside the crate.  I cut 3 pieces of foam... the bottom piece was a pre-made foam seat cushion from a fabric store that was just a little bigger than the board, the top two pieces were from an "eggcrate" foam mattress cover that were cut a little smaller than the board.  I used spray adhesive to attach all that together and to the board.  I stretched the fabric (I used fat quarters) around the foam & board, then stapled it.

Fun pencils!!  As soon as I saw this post linked on Pinterest I knew it may be the solution to the on- going case of the missing pencils.  It may backfire if students really like them, but hopefully not!  I modified the original directions, found here, for pencils. 

Hope you've enjoyed this peek into my classroom!

it's monday!

from Mandy:

Woolbur by Leslie Helakoski: Do you know Woolbur?  I do!  Isn't he great?!  I really do adore this book.  I always use it the first few weeks of school during our genre study, and also as an example of characters that "keep on & don't give up".

The Junkyard Wonders by Patricia Polacco:  This is one of those books that makes me emotional!  Not only because of the events that take place, but also the very last page... it makes me think of those childhood connections.  This is another book I use during our beginning of year genre study and those characters that keep on.

A Writer's Notebook by Ralph Fletcher: I read the first chapter from this to my students today as one way of introducing writer's notebooks.  Then,  I shared some of my personal notebooks... one of my favorite parts of the year

Wonder by R.J. Palacio: I chose this book as my first read aloud for my 6th graders.  This is the first group of students I've shard this book with & I couldn't wait to experience this book with them.  So far, so good!  Tomorrow begins the Halloween section.  Here we go, friends...

Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper: I chose this book as my first read aloud for my 5th graders, and again, they are the first group of students I've shared this book with.  It's one of those books that kids beg to hear more of everyday when I close it... just like I knew it would be!

from Cheryl:

Giant Steps that Changed the World by Spike Lee & Tonya Lee Lewis: I love the poetic language that draws the reader in on the first page. This book describes people who have changed the world in some way: Neil Armstrong, Mother Theresa, and Jesse Owens. It provokes the reader to fill the big shoes left by these people from the past.

Enemy Pie by Derek Munson: Love this take on getting rid of enemies! Kids write about a time that their parents have played a trick on them to get them to do something.

All the Places to Love by Patricia McLaughlan: Need I say more? Sixth graders wrote about all their favorite places using the great descriptions provided by the author.

Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein: We used this as one of the texts to develop our classroom guidelines. Seventh graders came up with, "Being an interrupting chicken might cause you to miss out on the best parts."

it's monday!

from Mandy:
Close Encounters of the Third-Grade Kind: Thoughts on Teacherhood by Phillip Done - I loved his first book 32 Third Graders and One Class Bunny.  I was so excited when I saw this at our local used bookstore.  It was a quick read & so true to life in a classroom. 

Do Unto Otters by Laurie Keller - The first day of class I ask students to help me come up with some guidelines for class.  After that discussion I read them this book.  There are so many cute plays on words... & I love it when my new students get them!

The Secret of the Fortune Wookiee by Tom Angleberger - I really liked the message of the book & loved how Angleberger ended it.  I put it out for my students first thing last week & held a drawing for who would get to be the first to read it.  The excited looks on there faces were precious & the winner yelled & jumped out of his seat when I pulled his name out of the basket. 

from Cheryl:
This is the Tree by Miriam Moss - I found out about this book from Aimee Buckner's Non-fiction Mentor Texts session at the Choice Literacy Conference in Michigan this summer. It is a great model for writing. I had the students follow the pattern "This is the tree..." and make their own introduction poem beginning with, "This is the class that..." We posted our poems on big sticky notes.

The Junkyard Wonders by Patricia Polacco - We used this as one of the texts to help us write our class guidelines. We noticed that we are all smart in different ways, and if we work together we can create something bigger than ourselves.

Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes - by Eric Litwin - Text and audio. We like singing along with this predictable book, but love the moral at the end. Seventh graders think that this text teaches us that it's okay to make mistakes as long as we progress and not regress.
Insurgent by Veronica Roth - I'm really into the characters in this series. Tris is a strong female character that is trying to find out who she is. Roth does a great job with plot development and building suspense.

ready... set... go!

One of my favorite parts of the back-to-school season (other than new school supplies, of course) is getting my classroom ready for the new year.  A few years ago I started displaying a "biography of me" displayed through books.  I thought this would be a fun way to, not only start sharing my love of books with students, but also let them learn more about me in a unique format.  Some books stay the same from year to year and some are new.  Here is this year's version:

• ish by Peter Reynolds: Who doesn't love his books and messages?  And, I love adding -ish on the ends of words.
• The Wonder Book by Amy Krouse Rosenthal:  I love her.  Love.  So quirky & fun!  I added this book because it is just a hodgepodge of quirky & fun stuff.  I also like it from a design standpoint... black & white line drawings.
• Our Day with Louise Borden by me:  We've been fortunate to have an author visit our classrooms every year for the past several years.  Louise Borden was one of my favorites!  I took lots of pictures from the day and put together a photo book for the classroom library.  I would really like to go back and do this for all the visits we've had. 
• Bodies From the Ash by James M. Deem: A cool non-fiction book.  Love the use of actual photgraphs.  And, I got to visit there last summer when I went to Europe with an amazing group of friends!
• The Mysteries of Harris Burdick by Chris Van Allsburg: Do I even have to explain this choice?  I do like to use this choice to start talking with my students about noticing & thinking outside the box.
• Someday by Eileen Spinelli: This is another title that helps students think about possibilities.  I also adore Rosie Winstead's illustrations.
• Skippyjon Jones Class Action by Judy Schachner:  Skippyjon is one of my favorite book characters.
• All Kinds of Families by Mary Ann Hoberman, illustrated by Marc Boutavant: Another book that gets students thinking about our classroom as a "family".  And objects with cute faces make me happy :)  These illustrations are probably my favorite of any book.
• All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon: Again, another title that gets us thinking about expanding our horizons.
• Penguins by Liz Pichon: I like that this book lets me share with students my love of photography in a fun way.  It also has a cute interactive feature at the end, and I like books with fun surprises at the end.  It was also a gift from one of my dearest friends... which goes to show that people that love books get & give books as gifts.
• The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins by Barbara Kerley, illustrated by Brian Selznick:  Author's notes are my favorite book feature.  I love to read about what made an author want to write about a particular topic or more facts they uncovered during research.  Brian Selznick is one of my favorite illustrators and I love that his illustrator note is also included.  When we visited Europe last year my request for London was to go to Crystal Palace & see the actual dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins.  They were beyond amazing.  When you love books you seek out the places that make special books come alive.
• The Flim-Flam Fairies by Alan Katz:  Basically I put this up to show kids I'm not afraid to read gross books about boogers & bodily functions to them.
• Encounter by Jane Yolen: Another one of my favorites!  I think I put it out to share that there are two sides to every story.
• Henry's Freedom Box by Ellen Levine, illustrated by Kadir Nelson: Kadir Nelson is another one of my favorite illustrators.  This also shares that I love lesser known stories from history.  Cheryl & I visited the Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio on our way home from the Choice Literacy workshops in Michigan this summer & saw a display about Henry "Box" Brown!
• The Incredible Book-Eating Boy by Oliver Jeffers: I love how Oliver Jeffers uses mixed media & old books to create his illustrations.  This story is also hysterical!
• Mammoth Cave: one of my hobbies is visiting National Parks & collecting National Park Passport stamp cancellations.
• Olivia Goes to Vencie by Ian Falconer: Olivia is another one of my favorite characters.  She cracks me up!  This book helps me share how I like to share stories about things that happen to me when I travel. 

I can't wait to start sharing these books (& many more!) with my students this week!  Happy back-to-school!

it's monday!

From Mandy:

This past week (while cruising to Key West & Nassau, which was fabulous!!), I finished:

Matched by Ally Condie - I wasn't sure if I would like this or not, but really enjoyed it once I got going!  I'm thinking my students may be a little young for this book. 

Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner (adult book) - The cover of this book didn't match this story at all for me!  I did enjoy the story and was glad the book ended the way it did.

Currently reading:

Notes I've made all summer on things I want to do in my classroom!  We go back to school on Thursday and our students join us a week from tomorrow!

The Unusual Suspects (The Sisters Grimm #2) by Michael Buckley  - I have already fallen  in LOVE with this series and can't wait to share it with my students.

I think this is my shortest book post all summer!  I still think I have vacation brain.  I've spent the last 2 days working in my classroom.  I've taken lots of pictures of new projects and can't wait to share them in the coming weeks!

From Cheryl:

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand (author of Seabiscuit). This is my second audiobook this summer! Mandy had recommended this book last year, so I got the sample for my Kindle. I traveled last week to visit family ten hours away by myself, so I decided to try it in audio. First, I must say that I have never known anyone to have lived through what the main character had to experience. Next, Hillenbrand is such a suspenseful writer...I literally was sitting at the edge of my seat. At times I had to take a break, the story was so intense.

This has been a wonderful book week! I've been getting my first of the year book stack ready for my first read alouds, while trying desperately trying to finish my summer book stack, and time is running out. August days are more valuable than June days - I am more protective of them.

Manfish A Story of Jacques Cousteau by Jennifer Berne. I received this lovely copy at the Choice Literacy Conference in Ypsilanti last week. What a great mentor text for non-fiction writing!  I was drawn in by the poetic language, as well as the beautiful artwork by Eric Puybaret. I hope kids will see what a difference one person can make.

Now & Ben the Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin by author/illustrator Gene Barretta. I love that a biography doesn't have to start with..."Benjamin Franklin was born in..." I think this text is a great model for narrowing the focus. The story is set up with "Now we have..." & "Ben was the person who made this possible..." It covers his most well-known inventions, as well as some lesser-known ones like the rocking chair with a fan on top and one that churned butter. Who knew?

Three Times Lucky by Shelia Turnage. This might possibly be my first 6th grade read aloud! (Wonder will be my 7th.) If the wonderful language doesn't make you fall for this book, the amazing characters will. The protagonist, Moses LoBeau, is a rising sixth grader and lives with the Colonel and Miss Lana. She was washed up in a basket after a hurricane as a baby (that's how she got her name) and has no idea who her parents are. Her life is about to get exciting when a community member is found dead. Together, with her best friend Dale, they are trying to find the murderer. Thank you Mandy for recommending this!

it's monday!

From Mandy:
I have hit the travel bug portion of my summer break!  Last week I was visiting with family in Alabama, this week I'm with Cheryl in Michigan for Choice Literacy workshops, and next week I'm cruising to the Bahamas!  My mind wanders way too much during audio books, so my reading time was a little limited last week. 
I finished:
The Fairy-Tale Detectives (The Sisters Grimm #1) by Michael Buckley - A new series to love!  I was lucky enough to pick up the next 3 books in the series when I visited one of my favorite book stores last week.  I'm pretty sure these will be a big hit in my classroom.

In Search of Mockingbird by Loretta Ellsworth - My favorite thing about this book was that it was set in the 80's!  I have a whole list of 80's fads that were mentioned, like crimped hair, jelly shoes with lacy socks, banana clips.

Currently reading:
Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage - I'm almost done with this and actually hope to finish it right after I'm done posting!  Mo, the main character, is my favorite kind of character... a quirky, spunky girl who learns about herself while taking control.  Coming to love Mo while reading this has me thinking about all those spunky girls and some new thoughts are still swirling about all of them...

From Cheryl:
I read started Divergent by Veronica Roth and couldn't put it down. It is filled with great writing & fabulous characters. I found myself wondering what faction I would have chosen, but I think I agree with Four, I want to be all five. Must find sequel.

Fourth Stall chapter 3. As recommendation from Mandy, I've picked this book up many times and was intrigued by the teaser on the back. I'm curious as to where this story is going when you're office is in a bathroom stall.

I'm just starting What Really Matters for Struggling Readers by Richard Allington. One of my summer goals was to read professional books that I didn't have time to read during the school year. Mandy picked up this copy for me on her visit to Alabama. The title for chapter 2: "What Really Matters: Kids Need to Read a Lot." Allington writes, "the more effective teacher routinely had children reading for forty to forty-five minutes of each hour allocated to reading instruction." It is making me rethink the structure of my reading block.

it's monday!

from Mandy:

Something major happened to my reading plan this past week.  I visited my favorite used bookstore & also discovered a new store (kind of like Big Lots & TJ Maxx had a love child) that had an amazing selection of books!  In my world, new books mean new plan.  Luckily it's ok for plans to change!  So, here's what I'm reading:

American Boy The Adventures of Mark Twain by Don Brown.  I bought this because a) I'm a sucker for picture book bios, b) I'm a sucker for Don Brown, & c) I thought it would pair nicely with The Adventures of Mark Twain by Huckleberry Finn by Robert Burleigh.  The past few years Cheryl & I have had our 6th graders write biographies.  I've found that Don Brown's books are a great tool for me to use as mentors.  His style is evident throughout each book, but I love the varied ways he chooses to begin them.  I rely heavily on his books for my "Biography Beginnings" lessons.  This particular title is organized my date, so will also be good to use for sequencing or timelines.  Great addition to my collection!

Benjamin Pratt & The Keepers of the School We Are the Children by Andrew Clements.  I think the biggest reason I loved this book is because of how different it seems from the stock Clements books.  It is the first in a series & as I was reading I wasn't sure if I would be intrested in the rest... until it pulled me into the adventure & ended in a big fat cliffhanger.  This book begins with the fact that Ben's "harbor-side school is going to be bulldozed to make room for an amusement park.  It sounds like a dream come true... Or is it more like a nighmare?"  Ben realizes the school is holding a few secrets & sets out with his friend Jill to save the day.  And, I can't wait to read book 2!  I think this will be perfect for my 5th graders.  This is my favorite quote from the book, "That was the moment when Ben first glimpsed how every single moment happens only once during a person's lifetime; and how each moment arrives in a particular order, one event after another; and how every separate event shapes all other events that come next.  Forever."

Firegirl by Tony Abbott.  I think I picked up this book because the title & cover reminded me of Stargirl (one of my all time faves), and I read The Postcard by him last year & really liked it.  It was a quick read, I think it will appeal to my 6th graders, but I felt it just hinted at a bigger possibility.  One of the TN reading standards deals with characters having moral dilemmas.  This book is perfect for helping students understand that.  It's full of moral dilemma.

Dragonbreath by Ursula Vernon.  I had seen these books in stores, but hadn't really paid much attention to them, read them or added them to the classroom library.  Franki, at A Year of Reading, had it on her list last Monday, then I saw some on my book shopping last week, & decided to try one.  Danny is so quirky! 

Northward to the Moon by Polly Horvath.  This book is a sequel to My One Hundred Adventures.  I really love Polly Horvath.  Lots.  I love how she uses words.  This story starts with Jane & family out West, but Jane is longing for her Massachusetts coast.  Horvath describes Jane as worrying that her little brothers will have the prairie as their "place memory of growing up."  I love the idea of place memory & it makes me want to explore my own place memory of growing up.  I liked MOHA better than the sequel, but there were moments of the same beauty from the first book.  Since I am also all about adventures, like Jane, this is my favorite quote: "It is not a place I would ever have thought to come on my own.  Sometimes it is good to have things happen to you outside of your control.  There are parts of yourself you would never discover otherwise."

I just started the first book in the Sisters Grimm series by Michael Buckley yesterday.  Again, Cheryl has been telling me to read these.  Again, I don't know what took me so long... I love fairy tale twists!  Loving it so far & already can tell I will need them all!

I'm still working through ChoiceWords & didn't make it to The Wednesday Wars.  I added the second Percy Jackson book (yes, Cheryl, finally!) & Welcome Home or Someplace Like It by Charlotte Agell.

from Cheryl:

My Maggie Steifvater books were never in my classroom library - middle schoolers loved them! So even though I got Forever as soon as it came out, I never got more than halfway through before someone wanted to read it. I finished it this week! Great ending to the triology. One of my favorite quotes from one of the main characters, Grace, as she was looking at the titles of someone's personal collection of books: "I wanted a library...a cave of words that I made myself." I feel at home surrounded by books too, a cave of words.

I'm working on To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, again. After hearing Rachel Thompkins speak at the Niswonger Symposium about it, I felt like I needed to try it again. I'm appreciating it so much more. I am swept away by her real characters.

I read the picture book, Have I Got a Book for You! by author/illustrator Melanie Watt (Scaredy Squirrel). Mandy & I heard Debbie Diller read this at her Institute in Richmond, and I knew I "needed" it. It is fabulous for teaching propaganda techniques, as well as a great addition to the Recommend a Book work station.

I'm reading Teach Like a Champion: 49 Techniques that Put Students on the Path to College by Doug Lemov. This would be a great text to use in a teacher preparation program. It's well written and organized in a user friendly manner, but most of all Lemov describes practical strategies that can easily be implemented in any teaching situation from grades K - 12.

I recently finished What Readers Really Do: Teaching the Process of Meaning Making by Dorothy Barnhouse & Vicki Vinton. Wow! My copy is full of sticky notes and writing in the margin. This book looks at current practices and considers a deeper approach to making meaning of narrative texts. It is grounded in Peter Johnson's work, while weaving in common core expectations. I will definitely visit this text while planning my lessons this year!



it's monday!

This is my first It's Monday post!  Don't know why I haven't joined up before, but am looking forward to keeping it up now!  So, what am I reading?

Today I finished up two books I'd been reading off & on for the past week.  The first was Aliens on Vacation by Clete Barrett Smith.  I thought it would have a little more action in it, but really liked how Scrub ended up solving a huge problem.  I know several of my students will really enjoy this book.  Next, I finished The Fourth Stall by Chris Rylander.  I had read the sample on my kindle app when this first came out, but just now got around to actually reading the entire book.  I loved it!  I think there are some really strong characters, especially Mac & Vince.  I want an entire book of nothing but Vince's grandma's hysterical sayings!

This past weekend I finished two books Cheryl let me borrow, one I requested, one was strongly suggested.  Do you have a friend that strongly suggests books to you?  If you don't, find one!  She knows books I will like, even if I'm questioning the choice!  I had requested The Maze Runner by James Dashner.  I was really pulled into this story almost immediately.  I couldn't quit trying to figure out the Glade while I was reading it!  So many questions just kept coming.  I can't wait to read the sequel.  The suggested book was Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury.  Seriously, I wasn't so sure about it.  But, I should know by now not to doubt what Cheryl tells me to read.  I loved it.  Totally not what I was expecting.  It's probably the book I've read the fastest this summer, because I couldn't wait to see what would be revealed!

The professional book I'm reading is Choice Words by Peter H. Johnson.  Like others have said I thought this would be a quick read full of great thinking.  Well, it's full of great thinking, but I'm really having to make myself slow down & let it all soak in!

I'm rereading Wonder by R. J. Palacio to get ready for the Twitter book club next week.

Next up?  Well, for sure...
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt
Hazel Green by Odo Hirsch
Northward to the Moon by Polly Horvath.  I love Polly Horvath!  Really looking forward to this one.

A Visit with Robert Burleigh

"Writing is a way of attending to the world around you."  This was just one of many bits of advice our visiting author, Robert Burleigh, shared with our students last week.  We were very excited to host this award winning children's book author in our classrooms.  Burleigh has published over 40 books including such titles as: Home Run: The Story of Babe Ruth, The Secret of the Great Houdini, Night Flight: Amelia Earhart Crosses the Atlantic, Pandora, One Giant Leap, and Stealing Home: Jackie Robinson Against All Odds.

Sixth and seventh grade students worked on publishing a piece of writing to be on display for a free community author's night. Most of them chose to write some form of poetry (found poems, 100%, fortunately/unfortunately, etc.) During this time, Mr. Burleigh spoke with families and community members about "One Writer's Journey."

  

During his classroom sessions, Mr. Burleigh connected with the students by asking, "Who wants to become a writer some day?" He said at their age he was more interested in sports, but sometimes "a book or a poem can change your life." He said that's what happened when he read Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." He said it felt like "a homerun with words." He shared where he gets his subjects for writing: from his reading, from his life, and from his imagination.

He explained that he writes a small part of a person's life, for example, Amelia Earhart's flight across the Atlantic Ocean. He wants to give the reader a "feeling of being in the person's head." He narrows his focus to a small event, like in his book Home Run. This book describes only one of Babe's at-bats.  As is always the case with an author visit, hearing the stories behind their books makes them all that more interesting!

Mr. Burleigh shared with the students how he keeps a writer's notebook. This is a place to keep ideas or noticings safe. He also uses a little notebook that he can carry wherever he goes. He quoted Langston Hughes by saying, "Poems are like rainbows, you gotta catch them before they're gone." He emphasized the importance of keeping an idea list. 

We were able to provide each 6th & 7th grader with a copy of one of Robert Burleigh's books. He was gracious enough to personalize and sign each one.  Several students were also selected to participate in a "Meet the Author" lunch and eat lunch with Burleigh.

biographies

My 6th graders are writing biographies for their research papers.  It's been a long process.  I've read a picture book biography to them every day for weeeeeks.  Last week we looked specifically at different ways authors begin biographies.

Each student picked a biography from the basket and reread the beginning.  We gathered in our workshop space, I asked students to raise their hand if their lead contained a date, and we specifically looked at those titles.  We talked about all the different ways authors can start biographies by using dates and came up with these categories: birth linked to other historical event, birthday & what family wanted for them, building historical background knowledge, early life linked to what created fame, date of famous event.

After creating the list of categories I challenged students to settle into a writing space and write a lead for their biography subject using a type of lead from the list.  There was a lot of gathering research materials and settling down and in the middle of it all I remembered I was going to try a transition song to writing (from hearing Ruth Ayres speak at the Dublin Literacy Conference).  Once they finally got settled & writing they worked hard!  They wrote for 10 minutes and then met me back at the workshop space.  Many of them had written more than one type of lead.  It seemed to spark a renewed interest in their subject!

The next day we did basically the same thing, but looked at beginnings that relied on specific word choices (not centered around a date).  While looking at them we also noticed that those beginnings could be divided into two smaller categories- those that started when the subject was young and those that started when the subject was already famous.  This is what our list looked like: young - describe setting of hometown, describe family, description linked to future fame; already famous - a quote, description of piece of fame & linked to setting, build suspense from an important event.  Again, I challenged them to choose one and write.  I also remembered the transition song & the difference was amazing!

These discussions of specific crafts have renewed my students interest in their biography subjects. Even though we had already read all of the books we used, focusing on just the beginnings helped get my students focused on the home stretch of writing their research!

Our Dates chart.  I was digging around in some cabinets in my room and found a huge roll of paper that was like really wide register tape.  I wrote examples of each beginning on a piece and hung them on the wall beside the charts.  That is what is on the wall to the left of the chart.

A small sampling of the picture book biographies I've read to my students over the past several weeks.

Reader's Notebooks

We have had the pleasure of sharing how we use reader's notebooks in our classrooms at two recent conferences - the Dublin (Ohio) Literacy Conference and the East Tennessee Literacy Conference in Morristown, Tennessee.

Over the years we noticed that our middle schoolers needed help organizing their learning as readers. Reader's notebooks are a place to, not only record their daily reading, but a place to respond to what they're reading.

The first thing students do is number their pages in a spiral notebook (hopefully this will discourage them from tearing out pages to use for something else). Then as a group we create a table of contents by using different color sticker dots to note the four sections: response, strategies/workshop, workstations, and wonder (informational).

The first few pages are dedicated to their "Books I've Read" & "Books I Want to Read" lists. The inside cover includes a genre checklist & a monthly calendar to record their daily reading.

We labeled the first section "response." In this section, students are able to respond to what they read by writing a letter, completing a four-square, or summary/response. The next section is titled "strategies" or "workshop." This section becomes a visual reminder of the reading strategies & skills that we practice throughout the year. It is an anchor chart at their fingertips. Items in this section might include: t-charts, Venn diagrams, foldables, sample passages of text, graphs, etc. The "workstation" section is next. This is the section that students can document what they work on is literacy workstations. It keeps them accountable for the work they do while the teacher is working in small group. The last section we included is labeled "wonder." This space is reserved for informational & non-fiction reading strategies. Items in this section might include: informational poems, t-charts, examples of text features, foldables, and sample passages.

What do you see?

The Blue Between

Everyone watches clouds,
naming creatures they've seen.
I see sky differently,
I see the blue between-

The blue woman tugging
her stubborn cloud across the sky.
The blue giraffe stretching
to nibble a cloud floating by.
A pod of dancing dolphins,
cloud oceans, cargo ships,
a boy twirling his cloud
around a thin blue fingertip.

In those smooth wide places,
I see a different scene.
In those cloudless spaces,
I see the blue between.

~Kristine O'Connell George
She says poetry is like, "being startled when you suddenly see the world differently." Stop and look carefully at your world...what do you see?