BOOKS THAT CHANGE LIVES

So, I admit that I bought 2 copies of THE FAULT IN OUR STARS the day that it was released.  I was really looking forward to this book.  So was my 21 year old daughter. And I really wasn't in the mood to share this one. And I figured having two would allow me to share it with lots of people. Anyway, I read the book and loved it.  I couldn't even start another book for a while because of the impact it had on me.

I decided I wanted my husband to read it. My husband reads a lot. He reads James Patterson, Harlan Coben, Dan Brown. He reads a bazillion sports blogs and anything Phillies. He reads tech articles and tech magazines.  But I decided it was time that he read a book that would change him. So I recommended THE FAULT IN OUR STARS and told him it was time for him to start reading books that changed him.  He rolled his eyes but picked up the book.  He read the first few chapters and I asked, "So, has it changed you yet?"  He said, "No,"

My 12 year old (who had not read the book) jumped right in, "It had to have changed you by now!!" We proceeded by asking him lots of questions.  We asked him if he met some characters that were different from people he knew in life.  We asked him if he understood anything about a character that might help him understand someone else someday. We asked him if it made him think about something he had never thought about. Or made him think of something that had ever happened to him with new insight.....Of course he said yes.  Of course the book had already changed him.  He read the book quickly and quietly and although he is not one to talk as much as I do (hah!), I know it changed him and I predict he will read more life-changing books in the near future.

This all happened in January.  As we were all anxiously awaiting the announcements of the ALA Youth Media Awards. As I was waiting for the award announcements I had already decided that THE FAULT IN OUR STARS had to win something big NEXT January. How could it not?

Then I read WONDER by R.J. Palacio and THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN by Katherin Applegate.  Two more unbelievable books that changed me. Books that I will never forget.

What a lucky month January was. Three books that will live with me for a very very long time.  Three books that I want to tell everyone about. Three books that truly changed me. New characters who I came to love and who I think about often, long after finishing their stories.

These books have already touched so many readers in so many ways. Teri Lesesne wrote about THE FAULT IN OUR STARS and Colby Sharp shared his thinking about WONDER.

So, I have been thinking about the awards and the disappointment that often goes along with the announcements. I know that I always hope for those books that have had a powerful impact on me to win and I am often sad when they don't. (Although I do get over it and I often see new things in the books that do win and usually acknowledge that they too, are amazing books:-)

But I am rethinking my approach to the awards from now on. I will always love the ALA awards, but I think this January's reading helped me to realize that although the awards are nice, the books that didn't win anything, still had a powerful impact on me and on so many other people. Award or no award, those books matter incredibly.  Nothing can change the power they have to change lives.

So, 11 months before ALA announcements in 2013, I am already anticipating a few books I hope to see on award lists. And I am assuming (from my history) that a few of the books I fall in love with will not be awarded anything.  But I am also realizing that some books are so amazing that it really doesn't matter if they win an award or not. The power they have to change lives is what matters most.

Read Across America: Who Are You as a Reader?

Read Across America Week will be here before we know it.  This is always a challenging week for me. I want to celebrate but I don't want the celebration to be about the week. I want us to celebrate literacy every day all year.  And I want whatever we do during Read Across America Week to be authentic. I also want it to fit into our bigger goals for our school reading community.

One thing we are doing this year is having staff begin a schoolwide conversation around living your life as a reader.  We want our entire school community to begin to think about who we are as readers. One way we hope to start this conversation is by hanging posters of our lives as readers. We are hoping that by having these posters in the library, the commons area, and around the building, lots of conversations will begin.  You can't help but look at some of the posters and begin to think about similarities and differences of people as readers.

As a classroom teacher I did lots of projects like this and have always found that these really helps readers reflect on who they are as readers and how they've changed. It also naturally invites goal setting as readers.  And they start great conversations. When I listened to Donalyn Miller speak at CCIRA and share her schools "My Reading Life" door project, I thought it might be fun to try something similar on a whole school basis.  Personally, creating this poster helped me to see how my reading has changed in recent years and how many different tools I use for daily reading. For students, we hope it opens possibilities for thinking about themselves as readers.

One of the things we are hoping with this project is that the posters show all of the ways we read. We want to value lots of reading--not only book reading. We want to see the impact of technology and we want to see how our reading lives have changed. We purposefully decided on construction paper  (very large construction paper) rather than asking readers to create digital projects. We believe that the conversations students and staff will have standing around looking at these posters will change conversations around reading.

This is the invitation we gave to staff:

Read Across America

Teachers as Readers

Read Across America Week is the last week in February (February 27-March 2). We would like to use this week as an opportunity to help our school community begin to think about who we are as readers. To begin the conversation, we’d love each teacher to create a poster--to be hung in the library or commons area—showing who you are as a reader. This can be as simple or as crafty as you would like it to be.  We are hoping once we have ours up, students will begin to create their own posters and begin to think about themselves as readers.  Below are some ideas to get you started. We’d like to start hanging these up as you finish.  Please don’t focus only on “book” reading. 

Some ideas to get you started:

Where do you read?
When do you read?
What kinds of things do you like to read? (Include not only books but also websites, blog posts, magazines, scores, etc.  Anything and everything)

What kinds of things are hard for you to read?

What is on your NEXT READ STACK?

What were your favorite books from childhood?

Who do you read with?
Who do you talk to about your reading?

What are you currently reading?

What are some favorite books?
Do you reread books? Which ones and why?

Do you listen to audiobooks?

Do you have an ereader?

Do you keep track of the books you read?
Do you set goals for yourself as a reader?
Do you have a favorite author or series?
Are there certain kinds of things that you don’t enjoy reading?

How has your reading life changed?

**Be Creative—use photos, book covers, screen captures, etc. to show us who you are as a reader.

We are just getting our first posters in this week and we are hanging them up as people finish them. It is already fun to listen to the conversations and I can't wait til the kids start creating their own.

Poetry Friday: A STICK IS AN EXCELLENT THING: POEMS CELEBRATING OUTDOOR PLAY

Most people who know me know that I do not love the outdoors. I much prefer being inside, even in nice weather. A character flaw, I know.  But I did spend a great deal of my childhood playing outside. We lived in a house on the corner--which meant we had a big yard.  Our yard was a gathering place--for kickball, and swinging, for neighborhood carnivals, and playing "gas station" in the driveway.  We had Kool-Aid stands and we sold painted rocks.  We caught lightning bugs and played jump rope.  It was a good yard and I guess, there was a time when I did prefer to be outside. Who knew?

The new poetry book, A STICK IS AN EXCELLENT THING by Marilyn Singer (illustrated by LeUyen Pham) makes me happy.  It is all about playing outside. And it is about the real play that I remember from childhood.  Blowing bubbles and playing jacks. Hanging upside down on monkey bars and playing Monkey in the Middle.  Every page celebrates some part of play--the timeless games that kids have played forever.

The book begins in the morning and ends at night. It celebrates all of the play that happens on a perfect summer day.  Singer and Pham are two of my favorites and I love that they've paired up for this one!  This is a great book for the (hopefully) upcoming spring weather. A fun book to share with children as summer draws near and one they will enjoy throughout the year!

Myra has the Poetry Friday roundup at Gathering Books today.

Presidents' Day Picture Books

Looking at Lincoln
by Maira Kalman
Penguin Young Readers Group, 2012

If I had to pick one word for the feeling I get when I read Looking at Lincoln, it's meditative.

You open the book to Lincoln's Gettysburg Address printed on the endpapers. Then, the story begins in the voice of a small girl telling about seeing a very tall man one day who reminded her of someone, but she could not think who. Of course, it was Abraham Lincoln, sixteenth president of the United States.

The girl goes to the library to find out more about Lincoln. The facts she learns are printed in standard font, but her response / reflection / interpretation of the facts is printed in handwriting. The sort of conversation that the girl has with the facts is absolutely charming. It's like looking over her shoulder as she learns about this great man.

In the end, after Lincoln's death, she says, "But a great man is never really gone. Abraham Lincoln will live forever. And if you go to Washington, D.C. in the spring you can walk through the cherry blossoms and visit him. At his memorial you can read the words he wrote near the end of the war. '...With malice toward none, with charity for all.' And you can look into his beautiful eyes. Just look."

(Looking at Lincoln was more thoroughly reviewed at Jama's Alphabet Soup earlier this week.)

George Washington's Birthday: A Mostly True Tale
by Margaret McNamara
illustrated by Barry Blitt
Random House, 2012

George Washington gets the final word in this book. He tells the truth. He tells us that this book is a work of fiction, even though there's a lot of truth in the story. He goes on to tell us what parts are true, and to point out that "It's funny to think that a story about the truth was actually not true!"

This is the story of a 6 year-old boy who is afraid that everyone has forgotten that it is his birthday. On most every spread is a text box that explains a fact or a myth about Washington's life that is related to what's happening in the story. George gets so frustrated at one point that he loses control of the axe he's using to help his father prune cherry trees and he chops one down. (Myth. The truth, though, is that  Washington was always very truthful.)

At the end of the story, George finds out that no one has forgotten his birthday, and, of course, no has forgotten his birthday for hundreds of years now!



Happy Presidents' Day on Monday!  

CHOPSTICKS X 2!

What are the chances that I buy two books titled CHOPSTICKS on the same day?

CHOPSTICKS is a new book by Amy Krouse Rosenthal. Last year, when Amy visited our school, SPOON was a big favorite. Kids loved it!  Amy mentioned this companion book when she visited and it has been a long wait. (but well worth it!)  I picked up CHOPSTICKS at Cover to Cover this week.  It is a book full of fun. The story is about a pair of chopsticks who do everything together.  But then something happens and they have to separate a bit and explore the world on their own.  As with all of Rosenthal's book, there is lots of fun and subtle word play. For example, on the top corner of the cover, Spoon says, "Not exactly a sequel to SPOON. More like a change in place setting." Lots of other fun words spread throughout. Scott Magoon has done the illustrations for this one too so it is a great companion to SPOON. (And Spoon does make a few guest appearances:-)

This is a great story with a good message about friendship and life:-)

The other CHOPSTICKS I bought was a young adult novel. It is by Jessica Anthony and Rodrigo Corral.   I've read it once but need to reread it.  It is fascinating to me.  It not only looks like an amazing story, but the format is new and different. The story is told through photos and news articles and text messages and letters and more. It is different from any book I've ever seen and I am anxious for both the story and the experience of reading something in such a unique format.  There is also an app that is available which is another way to experience the books. The Youtube videos, etc. are embedded in the app. This was one of those books I have to reread.  I read reviews and saw some new insights and once I revisited a bit, I can see some new things. I am all about reading books with new formats so we understand what it is our kids are reading and what is possible, and that's why I picked this one up. But I loved the story and I loved Glory, the piano prodigy--the main character in the book.




You can see the trailer here:

2011 Cybils

The 2011 winners have been announced!

Go on over to the Cybils website, take a peek, and come back to comment -- Any surprises? Any particular favorites?

I was lucky enough to be able to work with Poetry Organizer Jone Rush MacCulloch (Check it Out), and Judges Julie Larios (The Drift Record), Diane Mayr (Random Noodling), Laura Purdie Salas (Writing the World for Kids) and Andi Sibley (a wrung sponge) in the final round judging of the Poetry category.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

This is my first time to take part in It's Monday! What Are You Reading, sponsored by Teach Mentor Texts.

My current audio read is Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand. It's been rough going the past couple of weeks, with Louie Zamperini on a raft in the Pacific and then in Japanese POW camps.

I'm not sure what my next audio read will be...Bill Bryson? The Art of Fielding? Black Swan Green (re-read/listen)?

On my to-read pile are a couple for my classroom:

I'm an avid reader of the Magic Tree House series. This one will be a quick 15-20 minute read.

One of my students read No Ordinary Day, and we compared notes on what it was like to read a book that wasn't particularly fun to read. For V., this book started out hard, but got better and happier as she read. For me (listening to Unbroken), the reading started happy and then got hard. On her recommendation, this book has made it to my TBR pile.

Another recommendation has come from my brother. He saw the play Wit and then read the script twice through, in back-to-back readings. It's been since college that I have read a play, but I'm intrigued because of David's strong recommendation. I have the movie on reserve from the library, but I won't watch it until I've read the play.

The final recommended book on my TBR pile comes from Franki -- the ARC of Wonder is tempting me, but I'm going to make myself wait to read it until I've finished the other three.

Poetry Friday -- It's Not Easy Being Me

SELF EMPLOYED
by David Ignatow


For Harvey Shapiro

I stand and listen, head bowed,
to my inner complaint.
Persons passing by think
I am searching for a lost coin.
You're fired, I yell inside
after an especially bad episode.
I'm letting you go without notice
or terminal pay. You just lost
another chance to make good.
But then I watch myself standing at the exit,
depressed and about to leave,
and wave myself back in wearily,
for who else could I get in my place
to do the job in dark, airless conditions?

No photo, no commentary, no connections. Just the hope that you, too, gave a little snort of laughter at the end, and made the same promise to treat your self a little nicer today.

Laura Purdie Salas has the roundup today at Writing the World for Kids.

Ignite Presentations With 4th graders

Our 4th grade team is working on a 4th grade project around Making a Difference in the World.  We began this project last year and it was inspired by Amy Krouse Rosenthal.  The project combines social studies (citizenship, economics, etc.). literacy and art.  This year, we've changed a few things and added a few things.

Our 4th graders are busy creating products to be sold at our annual Art Show in March.  Students are using art time to create their own products that will be marketable to the audience. I can't wait to shop!  Last year, each child donated money earned to an individual cause--one that they cared about and had researched. We changed this a bit this year. Our entire 4th grade will be donating one cause for the money. But we wanted kids to know that money was not the only way to make a difference. We want the to understand there there are lots of ways to make a difference and raising awareness about an issue is one of them.

So, each child has been researching a cause that matters to them. These topics range from homelessness to distracted driving to foster care to pediatric cancer.  Kids have spent the last several weeks learning about these issues and collecting information using diigo (more on that at another time!).

This week, kids will begin to create IGNITE-type presentations to educate others about these important issues.  As a team, we decided on an IGNITE presentation for several reasons.  If you aren't familiar with IGNITE presentations, they are similar to Pecha Kucha sessions but in Ignite, presenters use 15 slides and each slide is up for 15 seconds.The Ignite tagline is "Enlighten us, but make it quick." I love that and it seems that there is a lot to learn when given these parameters.  This seems doable for 4th graders and it is an authentic genre.
We knew that this format would support our teaching goals--research, nonfiction writing, visuals to support message, etc.  We have noticed that although our students used keynote, the presentations are text, rather than visual driven. We knew that an assignment like this could really improve the way they thought about creating presentations of all kind.

One challenge was to find samples for the students. Since many of them were not familiar with Ignite presentations, we wanted them to spend time studying the craft of the format before they jumped in. Finding Ignite presentations (or PechaKucha) so students could get a feel for the type of work they would be doing was a challenge--many are geared to adults and not appropriate for children. However, we did find several that we used and the conversations around what was possible with these have been wonderful. One of my goals when it comes to digital writing is to collect great mentors for kids--pieces that writers can study as they think about their own decisions as writers. For this project, I found four very different presentations that have helped us think through decision making when creating this type of piece.  Each of these four slideshows is very different and each opens up different possibilities for our stuents.  The four we have focused on are:

Clowns Without Borders: Pecha Kucha


Why Blog? Ignite by Chris Lysy


Ignite: Jessica Harvey: My Beautiful Wheelchair



And, How and Why to Make Video Games by Peter Justeson


This week, students will begin their work on their Ignite presentations.  I am working on one myself and we've created some planning templates to help students move forward with these projects.

This page has 15 squares on 2 pages for students to think through and plan their presentation as a whole.

Each student will receive 15 of these half sheets for detailed work---visual, script, and notes.

I think that this project will help students learn a great deal as researchers and writers, but I think they will also learn a great deal about visuals, creating powerful presentations, and presentation skills that they will be able to carry with them no matter what they create in the future.

I'll keep you posted!

CCIRA Slides on Slideshare

I finally had a chance to post my slides from CCIRA to my Slideshare account. You can find them there now.