It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading is a meme hosted by Jen of Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee of Unleashing Readers. Visit their blogs to see the round up and discover great new books!


Here are some highlights from my latest reading.

Two Recent Picture Books I've Loved:

Sophie's Squash

Henny (Paula Wiseman Books)

A New Early Reader Series I Discovered 

Thanks to CYBILS Finalist Lists:

Urgency Emergency! Big Bad Wolf

New Nonfiction Picture Books I Love:

The Long, Long Journey: The Godwit's Amazing Migration

Eat Like a Bear

Handle With Care: An Unusual Butterfly Journey (Nonfiction - Grades Prek-4)

(I reviewed this one last week on the blog.)

My Latest Adult Read that I Highly Recommend:

Flight Behavior: A Novel

Books We are Enjoying in the Classroom:

Outfoxed

The Thing About Georgie

Poetry Friday -- Recipe

Recipe

The yellowed newspaper clipping
is attached to an index card
with brittle cellophane tape.
"Nov. 1949
Women's Day Kitchen"
is written in faded ink
at the top of the card.

Her canned tomatoes
were from the garden,
mine are from the store.
Her biscuits were made from scratch,
mine are a boxed mix.

She washed up the prep bowls
by hand,
tired after a long day's work.

Some things don't change.


©Mary Lee Hahn, 2014



I am participating in Month of Poetry (#MoP) again this year. It is coordinated and led by Australian poet and children's author Kat Apel, a "friend in my head" (never met her in person) from the March Madness 2012 poetry tournament. The discipline of writing a poem a day for at least a semi-public audience is good practice for April. It's a healthy reminder that I have to take what I get in the 20-30 minutes of #nerdlution writing I've promised myself on a daily basis. I wrote this poem while dinner was cooking last night.

The actual recipe is in Mom's recipe box. It's a childhood favorite that I cooked for her while I was home at Christmas. I copied the recipe down (not word for word) to bring a little HOME back home.

Hamburger Cobbler
Nov. 1949 Women's Day Kitchen

1 sm onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3/4 lb hamburger
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp marjoram
1/4 lb sliced cheese
1 (cup) can drained diced tomatoes
2 T worcestershire sauce
3 T ketchup

(ingredients for homemade biscuits)
2 1/4 c Bisquick + 2/3 c milk

Sauté onion and garlic, then add hamburger and seasonings and brown. Spread in a 9x9 baking dish. Put sliced cheese on top, then the tomatoes mixed with worcestershire and ketchup. Put blops of Bisquick on top of the tomato mixture. Bake at 450° for 25 minutes.



Donna, at Mainely Write, is cooking up the Poetry Friday roundup this week.

History in Graphic Novel Format

Now that I've started thinking about creative "right brain" ways to expand and enrich the ways I am (and my students will be) responding to informational texts (common craft videos, illustrated note-taking), new possibilities keep cropping up everywhere I look:

Why not take a page of text and do an erasure poem with it? Or, as Austin Kleon calls them, a newspaper blackout poem?

How about a ThingLink?

And maybe you could take a complicated historical event, like the Boxer Rebellion in China, and make it a two-part graphic novel that explores both sides of the story.

Boxers & Saints Boxed Set
by Gene Luen Yang, First Second, September, 2013
review copies from the public library

I think it's fair to say that I would never have picked up a history of the Boxer Rebellion to read in my spare time if it hadn't been in graphic novel format. And I think it's fair to say that a historical description of the rebellion/movement would never have given me such a deeply personal glimpse into both sides of the story.

An added bonus was finding this review on GoodReads by FirstSecond, and gaining an even deeper appreciation for the complexity of what Gene Yang created in these two books:

One of the things that makes both Boxers and Saints fascinating is how the author treats religion. 

Boxers features a magical realistic element; the Chinese gods (who the characters know mainly through the opera) possess the Boxer rebels and help power their rebellion; when the rebels go to war, they feel that they are taken over by the gods and protected and driven by them. In the book, Gene draws the gods as they are taking over the Boxers and propelling them into battle. The pictures aren't just people saying, 'a god is possessing me!' while nothing is happening -- a god is _there_. 

This is clearly meant (through our 21st-century lens) to be magical realism; these gods aren't something that we today are meant to be like, 'drat those gods possessing people and causing rebellions all the time; you'd think they would know better after all these years of being gods and all.' 

This is all thrown into question in a fascinating way in Saints, when Gene (a devout Catholic) draws the main character seeing an actual Catholic saint -- Joan of Arc -- and at one point, seeing Jesus. In the same way that the Chinese gods appear on the pages of Boxers, the Catholic saint and deity appear throughout the pages of Saints. Does their more-convincing reality (both in our culture today and in the author's life) throw into question the reality of the Chinese gods? Does this set-down-on-paper reflection of the beliefs of that time, both equally devout -- call into question the veracity of our own beliefs today, and the amount our contemporary culture is influencing what our beliefs are?

The format of the graphic novel has huge possibilities both as a launch-pad for introducing readers to new information (history, science, etc), and as a way for readers to process their learning of informational text.

3 New Picture Books!

I picked up 3 great new picture books last week.

Alphablock is going to be my new go-to Baby Gift Book!   It was on display at Cover to Cover and it became an instant favorite for me!  It is this amazing chunky little alphabet book!  The design of this book is amazing as each letter is cut out as a page of its own.  The text is predictable and the illustrations are more detailed than I realized at first glance.  Really, a pretty perfect book for home and school. The images on the Amazon page will help you see the inside pages.

Outfoxed by Mike Twohy is one that was on my Goodreads "Want to Read" list.  I picked it up at Cover to Cover and laughed out loud.  I am trying to read more books with humor as they are not always my faves. This one is quite hysterical and I know my students will love it.  (Even my daughter, who is 14, laughed when she read it to herself on the way home from the bookstore.)

Fossil is a new wordless book from Bill Thomson, author of one of my favorites--Chalk !  I was happy to see this from him and know that kids will make some connections between the two. This one is similar to Chalk with some important differences. Definitely one I am glad to add to my collection of wordless books.

New Books Coming in January

Here are some books being released in January. These are the books I am most excited about this month!

Poetry and Picture Books

Poem-mobiles: Crazy Car Poems

Baby Bear Angel Island

Henny

I am Abraham Lincoln (Ordinary People Change World)

Middle Grade Novels

Winter Sky

Seven Stories Up

Marty McGuire Has Too Many Pets!

Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy

Graphic Novels
Lunch Lady and the Schoolwide Scuffle

Adult Fiction

Still Life with Bread Crumbs: A Novel

The Invention of Wings: A Novel

My First Read of 2014

Thanks to a Facebook post by the amazing Kate Messner,  I discovered the new book Handle With Care: An Unusual Butterfly Journey (Nonfiction - Grades Prek-4) by Loree Griffin Burns.  It was a great first read of 2014!

I have been struggling with pulling my science teaching together this year as it's a new grade level and new content.  I love teaching science when it is authentic and kids are involved in real world issues and thinking. But it always takes a little while for me to find the right resources when starting a new grade level.   I have worked to add some great books to my collection lately--books that really share the work of real scientists.  My students believe that all information comes from reading and as much as I want them to see the power of nonfiction reading, I want them to understand that real research is about discovery and often happens out in the world.

When Kate posted about Handle With Care, I knew I had to have it. First of all, it was recommended by Kate so it had to be good!  And, it looked gorgeous from the cover.  It also ties into our science study on life cycles.  And it seemed to offer a unique story instead of the typical "life of a butterfly" type story.  In this book, the life cycle info is embedded in the story of a butterfly farm in Costa Rica.

The book begins in a museum, where a mysterious package arrives filled with pupa! The the author/photographer team take us back to the butterfly farm where they began. Readers learn about the importance of the farm, what it takes to keep the caterpillars safe and healthy, and information on the life cycle of this butterfly.

I love so much about this book. First of all, I love stories of science/research that are new or behind-the-scenes. Important work by important people. I love how this book embeds the important work of so many people. I love how the content and vocabulary is embedded in an engaging, current science narrative.  And the pictures are not only gorgeous, but they are full of information. (The endpages deserve their own award:-)

I love that the author and photographer share a bit at the end about their research process at the end of the book and in the "about the author" blurb.

But what I  love most is that this book is accessible to younger readers than most books that include this kind of complex information. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Scientist in the Field series but they are a bit too intense for my 3rd graders. This book does a similar thing in that it explores the life and work of real scientists on real projects, but it does so in a way that allows younger children to engage without making it too simple for older readers to also learn from and enjoy.


It wasn't until I finished this book that I realized I already LOVED this author. She has written my very favorite Scientist in the Field book  (and the one that hooked me on the series), The Hive Detectives: Chronicle of a Honey Bee Catastrophe (Scientists in the Field Series) . And she also wrote Citizen Scientists: Be a Part of Scientific Discovery from Your Own Backyard, another of my favorites.

Other Great Books by Loree Griffin Burns

I can see this book in every K-5 classroom. The photos will engage the youngest readers and the information will captivate students of all ages.  I think I'll read this one aloud to my students. It is still not easy to find compelling nonfiction read alouds for 3rd graders but this one is EXACTLY what I look for!  I am sure they will all want to read it independently too. And I think they'll be as excited as I am to discover this amazing science writer.  Anxious to introduce my students to Loree Griffin Burns with this incredible book!

Sunshine Awards!

Winter Sunshine by Mary Lee Hahn

SUNSHINE AWARDS

The rules:

Acknowledge the nominating blogger.
 Share 11 random facts about yourself.
 Answer the 11 questions the nominating blogger has created for you.
 List 11 bloggers. They should be bloggers you believe deserve some recognition and a little blogging love!
 Post 11 questions for the bloggers you nominate to answer and let all the bloggers know they have been nominated. (You cannot nominate the blogger who nominated you.)

My first nominating blogger was Vicki Vinton! Three cheers for Vicki: one for her book (with Dorothy Barnhouse) What Readers Really Do: Teaching the Process of Meaning Making, one for her blog, To Make a Prairie, and one for her boundless enthusiasm for learning and wondering.

Next, I was nominated by Julianne Harmatz (To Read, To Write, To Be) a new "friend in my head" who I can't wait to meet at NCTE 14.

Then, this whole Sunshine thing went viral under a new name on Twitter--PLN Blog Challenge--and I was nominated by @KirstenFoti (My Life as a Middle School English Teacher).

Thank you all! 

Here are my 11 random facts:

1. I have swum in three one-mile open water swims.

2. Lynne Cox and Diana Nyad are my swimming heroines.

3. I wanted to be an architect when I was in high school. Or a classical guitarist.

4. When I was in middle school one of my hobbies was re-reading sad books on Sunday afternoons.

5. Once when I was a kid I got trapped in the middle of a goathead patch with no shoes on.

6. I love to listen to audio books on the way to work and back.

7. My favorite constellation is Orion. 

8. I have dressed as Orion for Halloween many times. (People think I'm the Big Dipper...sigh.)

9. I love caramel more than chocolate.

10. I'm a pretty amazing baker.

11. I don't love the beach or hot weather.

Here are my answers to a few of Vicki's 11 questions:

What did you learn from your mother?

I learned to love trying new foods, to eat lots of vegetables, to be creative, and to be an avid reader.
Where do you write?

At the kitchen table, at my desk, in the park, on the porch, at the library, with my students, in voice memos on my phone, in a journal, on my computer, on scraps of paper...
Where do you find joy in your classroom or work?

I find joy when the classroom routines are well enough established that my students begin to function independently and I can follow as much (or more than) I lead.

What do you do to recharge?

Swim, walk, garden, bake, travel, fly fish.

Here are my answers to a few of Julianne's 11 questions:

What is your next challenge?

Getting more of my poems published!
What technology has made your life better?

Air conditioning. I lived in Ohio without it for about 10 years, and I hope I never have to go back. I don't deal well with heat. (And, of course, pencils, computers, smartphones, the Internet, etc...)
Why teaching?

It's what I'm really good at. I realized this when I taught swimming lessons in high school and college.
How have you grown in the last year? How do you know?

I am a better teacher. I have a new principal who challenges me (in a good way) and a great team who has supported each other through a whole boatload of changes this year. I have tweaked my best practices to make them better and added new tools to my toolbox. I jumped into Bring Your Own Device with both feet and continue to learn new ways to integrate technology into my classrom.

And here are my answers to a few of Kirsten's 11 questions:

Barnes & Noble or Amazon?

Barnes & Noble occasionally, Amazon compulsively, and our local independent children's book store as often as possible.
Paper books or ebooks?

Paper books AND ebooks AND audio books.
On a scale of 1(weak) -10 (hardcore), how intense is your addiction to Twitter?

Before #nerdlution, I would have said 1 on an ordinary day and 8 at conferences. Now I'm probably 4 and 8.

How many hours of sleep do you average a night? Do you wake up thinking educational thoughts in the wee hours of the morn?

I need my 8 hours. I pretty much sleep from 9p-5a every night. And yes, I often wake up thinking about teaching, think about it during my morning walk, and think about it in the shower. One of the reasons I like listening to audio books between home and school is that is shuts work out of my brain for 40 minutes a day!

Here are the bloggers I'll nominate to carry the sunshine to new corners of the blogosphere:

@AnnieWhitlock A Year of Writing
@JenSchwanke Going Big
@TonyKeefer Atychiphobia 2.0
Deb Tyo @ChocolateAir  Chocolate Air
@Katsok Read, Write, Reflect
Ann Hagedorn Read...Write...Talk
@ColbySharp SharpRead
PatrickAllen @ColoReader All-en-A-Day's Work

Ann Marie Corgill @acorgill AM Literacy Learning Log
Kara Newhouse @Rogueanthro Rogue Anthropologist

Donalyn Miller @donalynbooks Donalyn Miller

And here are my 11 questions:

1. What's one thing you're going to make this year?
2. iOS or Android?
3. What's your favorite new organizational trick?
4. Where were did you grow up and how has that place made you who you are?
5. What is your favorite junk food?
6. Who is your hero?
7. What superpower would you pick?
8. Where would you travel next if you could?
9. What frustrates you most?
10. What's one favorite memory of childhood?
11. What's your favorite instrument in the orchestra?

ML's Thinking Ahead to 2014--I'm Not Calling These Resolutions, Either

Franki's thinking ahead post threatens to makes me feel like an underachiever, but I refuse to go down that road. Sometimes we lead, sometimes we follow, and sometimes we cheer from the sidelines. It's all good.

When I look forward to 2014, I don't see so many obvious signposts. I see (or want to see) fairly calm water and steady paddling. I see more poems written, more exploration with art, a greater focus on the books I want to read rather than keeping up with the books "everyone" seem to be reading. There is no particular map, because I want to be more open to the moment at hand.

Which brings me to my One Little Word. My very first OLW. A word that seems selfish compared to the active words others have chosen, like MAKE and WONDER and CHOICE.

My One Little Word is BREATHE.

I met my OLW on New Year's Eve.

We were due to leave for our traditional New Year's Eve dinner in an hour and a half. True to my "cram-it-in-get-it-done" mentality, I decided that I had time to make the cheesecake for New Year's Day dinner before we left.

And I would have, if it hadn't been for the smoke. My cheesecakes always leak a little between the bottom and edges of the springform as they bake. There's always a little smoke as this "juice" burns off the foil on the bottom of the oven. This year, for whatever reason, there was a LOT of smoke. The smoke alarm went off. The cat ran panicked to the basement to hide and cover his ears. We opened all of the windows and brought fans up from the basement. AJ grabbed the ladder and yanked the wires out to turn the smoke alarm off. I pulled the foil out of the oven (spilling much of the "juice" on the oven floor) and put fresh foil in.

Moments later, there was even MORE smoke, boiling thick and black out of the oven vent. Apparently, it was not a good idea to leave all of that "juice" under the new foil.

This time, I turned the oven off and scrubbed as much of the charred blackness off the oven floor as I could, being careful not to burn the rag or my hands. Then I turned the oven back on, put the cheesecake back in, and texted our friends to tell them we'd be late.

All the while, I was beating myself up. Why had I thought it would work to get the cheesecake made on such a tight schedule? The house smelled HORRIBLE and it was all my fault. WE would smell like smoke. I terrorized the cat. I spoiled the group's New Year's Eve dinner plans because we'd be late. It was all my fault. I was a failure.

AJ talked me down. Advised me (not for the first time) to just BREATHE. It was done. I couldn't go back and change it. It would all work out. It wasn't that bad. It was kind of funny, actually, if I would just let myself laugh. Even the advice to BREATHE was funny, because all we could smell was cheesecake smoke.

But the cheesecake smoke made me realize that I needed the word BREATHE in my life for an entire year. I need a year of slowing down and focusing on the moment at hand, not getting myself all worked up about what's ahead, or all wrought up about how the things behind me played out.

I need to be right here, right now.

BREATHE will help me to stay in the moment, take joy in the now.
BREATHE will help me to celebrate being alive.
BREATHE will help me focus in a sensory way on this amazing world
in which we live.
BREATHE will help me listen more and talk less.
BREATHE will remind me of cheesecake smoke and make me laugh,
all year long.

Celebrate!

Check out all the celebration posts at RuthAyresWrites.com -- thanks, Ruth!

This week, I'm celebrating all the learning that comes from even a casual, intermittent relationship with FaceBook and Twitter.

I'm celebrating Paul Hankins, who posted his illustrated note taking of TED talks. I followed Paul's link to the talk and found the free (FREE!) TED app (iTunes / Android).

Then I took my first illustrated notes as I watched/listened to Diana Nyad (one of my swimming heroines, in close second place behind Lynne Cox) tell about her history-making Cuba to Florida swim. At age 64.

It was so much fun that I made an amendment to my #nerdlution: I will watch 1 TED talk per week and take illustrated notes. I'm hoping that these notes yield up some poems in their own time, but I'm not going to make that part of the goal.

Taking these illustrated notes got me thinking (along with Steve and Julieanne and Vicki and Fran) about how we and how our students read and respond to fiction vs. nonfiction. This blending of right-brain note taking with left-brain information processing might be something that will help students move past the WOW of random facts in nonfiction to making deeper connections between ideas and texts. It occurred to me that I had stumbled into this blending by accident when I introduced the option of using a common craft video as the presentation tool for my students' upcoming persuasive essays. It will be fun to see how that turns out in the upcoming weeks.

Yes, today I celebrate the fact that I don't have to commit hours to the fire hoses of information known as FaceBook or Twitter to find ideas that will become thought-changers or game-changers.