Constitution and Citizenship Day

Monday is Constitution and Citizenship Day. If you're wondering why you should recognize or celebrate it, consider this point of view from the Teaching Tolerance website:

"In many ways, the nation's history can be read as a struggle to embrace who 'We the People' are."

Here are some books and web links to help you plan your recognition of one of the greatest documents in human history -- The Constitution.

BOOKS FOR CONSTITUTION DAY:

1787 by Joan Anderson
Historical fiction from the point of view of James Madison's aide during the Constitutional Convention.

We the Kids: The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States by David Catrow
The Preamble in kid-friendly language.

Shh! We're Writing the Constitution by Jean Fritz
A fun and fact-filled account of the Constitutional Convention of 1787. Illustrated by Tomie dePaola.

D Is For Democracy: A Citizen's Alphabet by Elissa Grodin
An A-Z trip through our country's democratic form of government.

Everyone Counts: A Citizen's Number Book by Elissa Grodin
This tour of U.S. governments is number based. (How many justices on the Supreme Court?)

If You Were There When They Signed the Constitution by Elizabeth Levy
The story of the signing of the constitution in question/answer format.

A More Perfect Union: The Story of Our Constitution by Betsy Maestro
An excellent, well-balanced version of the story of the constitution.

We the People by Peter Spier
This beautifully illustrated 1987 classic is out of print. Check your library for availability.

WEBSITES FOR CONSTITUTION DAY:

Blackwell's Best: Constitution Day
A huge collection of links for Constitution Day.

The Constitution For Kids
From the U.S. Constitution Online comes this EXCELLENT site which translates the Constitution into kid-friendly language. The link is for K-3 students, but you can navigate to versions for older kids from this page.

Teaching Tolerance
Constitution Day activities for the Anti-Bias Classroom.

Constitution Day
Lessons and links from the group that founded Constitution Day.

Teaching With Documents: Observing Constitution Day
Lessons from the National Archives site.

Celebrate Constitution Day
Lessons from The Bill of Rights Institute site.

Poetry Friday -- Special Delivery

Even if you're completely overwhelmed by ARCs and review copies, you gotta admit: your heart beat a little faster this week when the L.L. Bean Christmas catalog came.


Why I Have A Crush On You, UPS Man
by Alice N. Persons

you bring me all the things I order
are never in a bad mood
always have a jaunty wave as you drive away
look good in your brown shorts
we have an ideal uncomplicated relationship
you're like a cute boyfriend with great legs
who always brings the perfect present
(why, it's just what I've always wanted!)
and then is considerate enough to go away
oh, UPS Man, let's hop in your clean brown truck and elope !


The rest is here. Round up is at Hip Writer Mama.

Best of 2007--So Far--New Series Book Characters

Two new series book characters that I LOVE and highly recommend--

MOXY MAXWELL of Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little by Peggy Gifford

and

VIOLET BING of Violet Bing and the Grand House by Jennifer Paros


Two new characters you really can't live without!

Remembering September 11

Educating Alice has a powerful post remembering September 11.

Best of 2007--So Far--Professional Books

I haven't spent as much time as usual reading professional books. But the ones I have read are great. These are the 5 that I have found the most helpful for my literacy teaching. I highly recommend all of them.

Smart Answers to Tough Questions by Elaine Garan, in my opinion, is a book that we all need to have on our shelves. For anyone who is teaching well in this climate of testing and politics, this book reminds us of the reasons we do what we do in our classrooms. Garan also gives us research for further support of our work.
Adolescent Literacy by Kylene Beers, Robert Probst, and Linda Rief gives us the best thinking from the best thinkers in the field on adolescent literacy. Although I teach grades 3-5, this book is applicable to all that I do too.

Mentor Texts by Lyn Dorfman and Rose Cappelli is a great new book on ways to use great children's literature in our writing workshops.

Don't Forget to Share by Leah Mermelstein is a great reminder on the importance of share time in writers' workshops. This is a great book on how to take advantage of the teaching possibilities during share time.

The Reading Zone by Nancie Atwell brings us back to the original intent of the readers' workshop. We want kids to fall in love with books and to become lifelong, passionate readers and learners.

Picture Book Carnival

NYC Teacher is looking for submissions for the next Picture Book Carnival at Mentor Texts & More. Deadline is October 5.

Best of 2007--So Far--Middle Grade Novels

This is my longest list. I think it is a GREAT year for middle grade novels. There are some years where I just can't find great new books for my 3-5th graders. But this year, I found lots that I love. I decided not to include YA stuff in my "BEST OF 2007--SO FAR" lists. I don't really keep up on those and I don't really know that age reader as well. So, I am listing these as the best of for upper elementary students. I love every one! For me, every one of these would be a great read aloud and they are all perfect titles to add to classroom libraries and school libraries. (For this list, I am going to link back to the blog entries where I reviewed each book. For the few that I haven't had time to review, I'll add a few words.)

Middle Grade Novels
Larger Than Life Lara
Aurora County All Stars
Castle Corona
Paint the Wind
The Invention of Hugo Cabret
Emma Jean
Into the Wild by Sarah Beth Durst
Beth at Cover to Cover recommended this book to me. It is a great fairy tale where we come to know favorite fairy tale characters in new ways. Similar to the SISTERS GRIMM series, the reader gets an inside look at fairy tales although this book has a bit less humor and a bit more depth than other fairy tale takeoffs that I've read. The concept of this one is great and the characters are quite believable.

Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat by Lynne Jonell
This one may have been the most enjoyable read for me in terms of middle level novels. It is really a fun book. So much is combined from some of my favorite reads--a child who isn't getting lots of attention from her parents, a mean nanny, magic and friendship. It is a very unique story told in a way that makes it fun and suspenseful.

(I did not include new series books in this list--those will be in a separate list later this week!)

llama llama mad at mama by Anna Dewdney

A New Llama Llama book! So very exciting! I wasn't going to buy it but when I read it and realized that it clearly explained the experience of grocery shopping with cranky children, I had to have it. This one ends a bit pleasant--everyone leaves the grocery store happy, but something to shoot for, I guess.

I want to send a copy to the mom who sold the Pokemon cards that her kids snuck into her cart at the grocery store. Did you read about it? Her blog is quite a hoot too!

FIRST THE EGG by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

I am always looking for great books with simple text--predictable text that support new readers. I found a great one yesterday! It is called FIRST THE EGG by Laura Vaccaro Seeger. This is a simple text that follows a simple pattern..First the egg then the chicken. First the tadpole then the frog...and so on. The painted illustrations are very engaging and each includes a cut out so that adds a little surprise to each page.

A great addition to any K-1 library as well as a great book to include in a study of life cycles.

Love it!

Best of 2007--So Far--POETRY

I added several poetry books to my classroom library collection this year. The following are my absolute favorites.

Shout!: Little Poems that Roar by Brod Bagert--is a fun book for reading aloud. The colorful illustrations add to the fun. My students have been having a great time reading this one together on Poetry Friday!

Here's a Little Poem by Jane Yolen--a favorite book for readers of all ages. This one would be a great gift for young children but it also has great poems for older readers. The illustrations are quite happy! This one seems great for all elementary grade levels.

DOGKU by Andrew Clements--I loved this one by Andrew Clements because it is a story about a sweet little dog told in Haiku. I loved the whole concept--it was a great story told completely in haiku--even the author blurb and the front flap follow the haiku theme!

This is a Poem That Heals Fish by Jean-Pierre Simeon--I am sooo happy I found this poem. An amazing book to start conversations with students about what poetry is and what it means to different people.

For more "BEST OF 2007-So Far", visit Mother Reader.

Best of 2007--So Far--PICTURE BOOKS

Mother Reader had another GRAND idea. She's invited us all to think about and post our "Best of 2007--So Far". It is a great opportunity to look back at the reading from this year and reflect on those books that stayed with us, those that we love and those that we hope win some award when the awards come out.

So, this week, I'll be posting one or two lists each day. My Best of 2007-So Far in various categories. Today's category--Picture Books. (I'll link to the blog entry where I reviewed or mentioned the book during the year.)

Best Picture Books of 2007--So Far

THAT SPECIAL LITTLE BABY--I have a hard time finding new books that make great baby gifts--that would appeal to both baby and parents. But this one meets that need. A great story about a new baby and how she grows and how much she is loved.

TAKING A BATH WITH THE DOG -AND OTHER THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY-by Scott Menchin--I love this one for lots of reasons. A great story to share with children, a great book to help students think about writing ideas, etc.

THE BIGGEST THING IN THE OCEAN by Kevin Sherry--The simple text, bright illustrations, and large size make this a fun book that kids are drawn to. The surprise ending is quite a treat!

ORANGE PEAR APPLE BEAR by Emily Gravett-I think that this book is brilliant. How an author created a book with 4 words and surprising illustration is amazing.

17 THINGS I'M NOT ALLOWED TO DO ANYMORE by Jennifer Offill--This has been a favorite since my daughter introduced it to me. It makes me laugh every time I read it. And the illustrations include real artifacts in the background. I am not sure which age this book would appeal to but I LOVE it!

GOLDILOCKS AND THE THREE BEARS by Caralyn Buehner--I do not usually buy new versions of traditional tales but the cover of this one caught my eye. Something about the bears' expressions makes it a version I needed to have. Goldilocks is quite adorable, in a devious kind of way. And she jump ropes throughout the books which adds to her character a bit.

Poetry Friday, Root Canals, and... a CONTEST!

So I went to the dentist for my regular check up this week. And, yes, the dentist thinks I may need a root canal. She is sending me to a specialist for an
evaluation. So, I started to write these to amuse myself while I was accepting the fact that I am old enough for a root canal. I thought it might be fun to try a FIB and I went from there.

Root Canal Fib

Root
Canal
Old age
Pathetic
X-Ray could be wrong
Don’t want one at all


Root Canal Haiku

Abscess? Is it true?
Is it cuz I’m forty plus?
How much will it hurt?


Root Canal Question Poem
Did you know an abscess is a glob of puss?



Then I wondered if I could write a limerick, or some other form of poetry about root canals. Imagine the possibilities! Then I figured it might be more fun to have a contest. (We have never run a contest, but we have loved the contests that Lisa Yee, Three Silly Chicks, and Mother Reader have run.

The Contest:
So, choose any form of poetry you like. Write a poem in that form about root canals. Submit it in the comments. We will announce and post the winning poem for next Friday's Poetry Friday post so you have until Thursday night--September 13th.

And the prize is.....

an PERSONALIZED, AUTOGRAPHED copy of Lester Laminack's book Trevor's Wiggly-Wobbly Tooth (okay, so there are not so many children's books about root canals, but this is a great picture book and it IS about an issue with one's teeth!).



So..enter away!
Amuse me before I go to the specialist for a more thorough evaluation!

2 New Picture Books for Early Readers

As you know I am not a huge fan of using solely leveled texts in classrooms of K-1 students who are learning to read. I love leveled books by The Wright Group, Rigby, Seedlings, etc. but I worry when the entire classroom library is filled with ONLY leveled books and no children's literature. But I know how important it is for kids to have books that they can read on their own successfully. So, I have been on the lookout for books that support new readers just as leveled books do, but that aren't published just because they meet certain "level" criteria. Below are two great new books I just found that would be perfect for K-1 classrooms. I know that leveled books fill a need for our new readers but I believe strongly that our youngest readers need more than a diet of leveled books. So here are two new ones I found. Big and Little by John Stadler is a lift-the-flap circus story. The text is simple and the flaps are sturdy. I think this is one of the few lift-the-flap books that could survive in a classroom. The story is fun and the illustrations keep you in suspense. A "big" elephant is trying to dive into a "little" glass of water. Can she do it? You'll find out if you read to the end! The flaps, the predictability, the illustrations, and the simple text make this perfect for new readers. Barn Dance! by Pat Hutchins Pat Hutchins seem to really understand young readers. Her text and illustrations always go together to create an amazing story. In this new one, a barn full of mothers decide to dance a bit while their babies sleep. Lots of trouble comes and the ending is a fun one that readers will like. There is lots of rhyme and rhythm in this story and the illustrations make this a fun story that children will enjoy.

One more read aloud for the beginning of the school

I usually begin my read alouds with picture books and then move to a short easy novel before I start reading books that might be at or above my students' reading levels. Lots of my students haven't read all summer long, and I am modeling what they need to do to rebuild their fluency and stamina: start with lots of quick, easy reads to build confidence and refresh skills.

I just finished a great book for a first-week or early-in-the-year read aloud:
Monday with a Mad Genius (Magic Tree House #38)
by Mary Pope Osborne

It's the first day of school for Jack and Annie, and Jack is his typical worry-wart self. Luckily, time freezes in Frog Creek, PA when Jack and Annie travel with the magic tree house, because 10 minutes before the first day of school, they travel to Florence, Italy to meet Leonardo da Vinci and try to learn another secret of happiness to help Merlin.

At first, da Vinci tells Jack and Annie that the secret of happiness is fame. But by the end of the book, he has changed his thinking. He realizes that the secret to his happiness is curiosity.

Jack and Annie get back to Frog Creek at the moment they left, and they run to school filled with eager questions rather than nervous questions about the beginning of the school year.

Books About Books and Reading -- Revisited

In early August, a post at Creative Literacy caught my eye -- Picture Books About Books.

Our list of Books About Books and Reading has been sitting over there in the sidebar along with 100 Cool Teachers in Children's Literature just waiting for some new additions.

So, here's the list! Let's look again. Do any new books come to mind? What kinds of conversations do these books spark in your classroom or library?

Picture Books

How a Book is Made by Aliki
Read Anything Good Lately? by Susan Allen and Jane Lindaman
Souper Chicken by Mary Jane and Herm Auch
The Best Place to Read by Debbie Bertram and Susan Bloom
The Best Time to Read by Debbie Bertram and Susan Bloom
Wolf by Becky Bloom
The Day Eddie Met the Author by Louise Borden
Across a Dark and Wild Sea by Don Brown
Arthur and the Race to Read by Marc Brown
But Excuse Me That is my Book by Lauren Child
Petunia by Robert Duvoisin
Book! by Kristine O'Connell George
Check it Out! The Book About Libraries by Gail Gibbons
The Incredible Book Eating Boy by Oliver Jeffers
Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen
Jake's 100th Day of School by Lester Laminack
Book by George Ella Lyon
Santa's Book of Names by David McPhail
Edward and the Pirates by David McPhail
Edward in the Jungle by David McPhail
Tomas and the Library Lady by Pat Mora
Amelia Hits the Road by Marissa Moss
Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne
Reading Makes You Feel Good by Todd Parr
The Girl Who Hated Books by Manjusha Pawagi
Aunt Chip and the Great Triple Creek Dam Affair by Patricia Polacco
Thank You, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco
Reading Grows by Ellen Senisi
Wild About Books by Judy Sierra
The Hard Times Jar by Ethel Footman Smothers
From Pictures to Words: A Book About Making a Book by Janet Stevens
The Library by Sarah Stewart
Library Lil by Suzanne Williams
The Old Woman Who Loved to Read by John Winch
The Librarian of Basra by Jeanette Winter
Baby Bear's Books by Jane Yolen

Chapter Books

Magic by the Book by Nina Berenstein
The Sisters Grimm series by Michael Buckley
Matilda by Roald Dahl
Seven Day Magic by Edward Eager
Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
The Big Green Book by Robert Graves
Fly By Night by Francis Hardinge
The Book of Story Beginnings by Kristin Kladstrup
Looking Back: A Book of Memories by Lois Lowry
Summer Reading is Killing Me by Jon Scieszka
At the Sign of the Star by Katherine Sturtevant
The Great Good Thing by Roderick Townley

Poetry

Good Books, Good Times by Lee Bennett Hopkins
The Bookworm's Feast by J. Patrick Lewis
Please Bury Me in the Library by J. Patrick Lewis

Quotations

Quotations for Kids by J.A. Senns

Books For Adults That Could Be Used For Exerpts

Life is So Good by George Dawson
Grand Conversations by Ralph Peterson and Maryann Eeds
The Polysyllabic Spree and Housekeeping vs. the Dirt by Nick Hornby
Better Than Life by Daniel Pennac
How Reading Changed My Life by Anna Quindlen


* * * * * *

Check this out, too: A Notes from the Windowsill annotated bibliography of book-books by Wendy E. Betts.

Poetry Friday--First Week of School

Whose idea was it to have five days of school the first week? Three or four would have been plenty!

Here are the schedules I/we have worked to coordinate and finalize this week:

Special Education
Reading Intervention
Spanish
Speech
Guidance
Bubble activities (sounded great this summer, but a nightmare now)
Title One Math
Reading Assessments
Math Assessments
Spelling Assessments
Fire Drill
Mentor/Mentee

We have had various meetings before school every day, after school most days, and at our grade level planning period several of the days.

The poem for today and for this crazy first week:

Psalm
by Stuart Kestenbaum

The only psalm I had memorized was the 23rd
and now I find myself searching for the order
of the phrases knowing it ends with surely
goodness and mercy will follow me
all the days of my life and I will dwell
in the house of the Lord forever only I remember
seeing a new translation from the original Hebrew
and forever wasn't forever but a long time
which is different from forever although
even a long time today would be
good enough for me...

(the rest of the poem is here)
(Roundup is at MentorTexts)

Edward's Eyes by Patricia MacLachlan

I had to make one last run to Cover to Cover today to set myself up for the first few days of school--new books always help me get my head around where I hope to go with our talk. I picked up some great new picture books that I'll share later in the week. But, I also picked up Patricia MacLachlan's new book, EDWARD'S EYES.

EDWARD'S EYES is an amazing story about a family told by Jake--a child in the family. Edward is Jake's younger brother and Jake adores him. Edward is amazing and so are his eyes--something Jake noticed the first time he saw him.

This is a hard story. One I really wasn't ready for today--but since I didn't know it would be a hard story, it was too late. But, I am so glad I read it. The cover drew me in and I didn't put it down at all once I'd started it. Friendship, family, love, loss. All of life in a short, simple book.

Patricia MacLachlan is one of my very favorites. Ever since BABY, one of my very favorite books of all time. And this book was no disappointment. It was all that I love about MacLachlan. A great family. Great characters. Life told as life happens. And a message that is told through all of it together.

Patricia MacLachlan is somehow able to help us celebrate life in all of her books. And she doesn't do it by pretending that life is not difficult. Somehow she gives us characters to fall in love with and allows us to experience hardships alongside them. Her sincere nature and her sensitivity make her books what they are.

This is definitely a book that will stay with me. In terms of use in school, I will definitely put it in my classroom library. I may read it aloud to my 3rd and 4th graders--I'll have to see. Another family that will stay with me for a long while.

Ask The Right Questions

On the way back to our classrooms after dismissal yesterday, my colleague asked me, "Is it really quiet on your morning walks?"

At lunch, a whole table of us had been talking about how hard it is to preserve time for ourselves once school starts. There had been the usual surface level amazement that I continue to get up at 5:00 a.m. and walk for a half an hour at 5:30, even though there is no longer a dog to make such an activity mandatory.

My colleague's after school follow-up question was far from a surface level question. She came at my morning walk from an unexpected and thoughtful direction. And she got more of an answer than perhaps she expected, because when you walk in the dark, you pay closer attention to the sounds around you. My walks right now are loud with insect sounds -- crickets and tree crickets, buzzing, chirping and whirring. As winter comes, my walks will be more and more silent, until I have the chance to listen to the different sounds of snow underfoot. Late in February or early in March, I will hear the first robin singing in the dark, and my spring and summer walks will be loud with birds singing territory-marking songs.

Her question felt like the metaphorical unplugging of a dam of talk in me. I felt myself light up when I knew I had a great answer to her question. After I shared, her affirmation of my day-to-day scientific way of living in the world made me feel really really good.

And now I'm wondering, how can I do this for my students? How can I find the right questions to ask each one of them?

• I know the lists of possible writing topics we are making and sharing in early writers' workshop will help me. I need to model listing in a way that gets beyond, "I love pizza. I play soccer."
• I need to listen carefully. Then I will hear two boys singing songs from "baby TV shows" on the way to the buses, I can ask about this, and learn that when they go home, they have to watch Barney and Teletubbies with their young cousins.
• I need to watch. I need to notice how my fourth grade siblings interact in such kind and thoughtful ways with their kindergarten brothers and sisters when they see them in the hallway.
• And I need to learn to ask questions that go beyond the obvious or the surface, questions that dig into a topic, or approach it at a slant, or come in the back door so that my students can have the feeling I had of the dam breaking and the light coming on when they answer me.

Mind Your Manners B.B. Wolf

MIND YOUR MANNERS, B.B. WOLF is a fun new book by Judy Sierra. I am always looking for books that can start classroom conversations about reading and also books that extend what we know about well-known fairy tale characters.

In this story, B.B. Wolf is invited to a tea. But his friend reminds him that he'll have to behave so they learn good manner from an etiquette book. When B.B. A few of our favorite fairy tale characters make an appearance, some lines from well-known fairy tales show up throughout the story, and the ending is a happy one. Did I mention that the tea takes place in a library?

This is a fun book--appropriate for children of all ages. My third and fourth graders loved it when I read it aloud on the first day of school--lots to see in the illustrations that connect to favorite stories.

Happy New Year!

In homes all around our school community, parents are asking students, "How was your first day of school? Do you like your teacher?"

In fewer homes scattered throughout the school community and beyond, spouses are asking the teachers, "How was your first day of school? Did you get a good class this year?"

It's good to be back. It's good to quit trying to pretend I can really be ready for a group of strangers and just go for it. Just jump in the water, no matter how shocking the temperature or the current, and start stroking hard and sure for the island in the middle.

2 New Picture Books

I found two great new picture books this week. I think both will be great additions to classroom libraries--especially K-2 classrooms. Both will also make GREAT baby gifts. I had no idea that Mem Fox had a new book coming out. WHERE THE GIANT SLEEPS is a great bedtime book for young children. Older readers will find lots to love about the book too. Just like in TIME FOR BED, Mem Fox gets readers ready to sleep but this time, she tells us where giants and fairies and other fairy tale creatures sleep. The pictures are peaceful and colorful at the same time. And Mem Fox's rhyme and rhythm is unmistakable--she is brilliant at this. (Mem Fox is a favorite at our house. Each of us has our own favorite--my youngest daughter's favorite today is THE MAGIC HAT but WHERE IS THE GREEN SHEEP is a very close second for her. I bought this new one for myself and one for a gift! THAT SPECIAL LITTLE BABY is a new book by Jane Ann Peddicord. It will make a beautiful baby gift for a new baby girl. It is a story of a baby and all of the things she does and learns. Through the book, we see her as a baby and as she grows. The repeated text will be fun for young children ("That special little baby, always up to something new..."). And the illustrations are colorful-set on white. It is a great book about a baby who is loved very much!

The First Day of School

A great piece in The Columbus Dispatch today about the first day of school--as a child, parent, and grandparent. It was written by Lisa Pettit. A perfect piece for this weekend! Enjoy!

Welcome Back to School

If you have never visited Bruce Lansky's poetry site, it is a great one to bookmark in the classroom. So many fun poems for both kids and adults. There are lots of great things to read and to try. A favorite poetry site!

I thought this one by Kenn Nesbitt worked for this week.

Welcome Back to School by Kenn Nesbitt

“Dear students, the summer has ended.
The school year at last has begun.
But this year is totally different.
I promise we’ll only have fun.

“We won’t study any mathematics,
and recess will last all day long.
Instead of the Pledge of Allegiance,
we’ll belt out a rock ’n’ roll song.

Read the rest of the poem here.

Why I'm Like This

Praise for Why I'm Like This by Cynthia Kaplan:
"Striking a note somewhere between David Sedaris and Anna Quindlen, Kaplan spins traumas personal and professional for maximum laughs..." --People

A blend of David Sedaris and Anna Quindlen? Two of my favorites...SOLD! (You want to know what a blend of Sedaris and Quindlen sounds like, and by proxy what Kaplan sounds like? Mother Reader. Check out her Tinkerbell post and her tooth fairy post and then read Kaplan and tell me if I'm not right.)

Kaplan's new book, Leave the Building Quickly was the one that originally caught my eye in the new nonfiction display at the Tattered Cover in Denver, but you might know how I am about reading books in order. I had to buy and read Why I'm Like This first. I will be buying Leave The Building Quickly as soon as I'm in a bookstore again.

I'm only about halfway through Why I'm Like This, but it gave me the first cosmic reading event of the summer. I was reading it on the plane on the way home from a "Care For An Elderly Parent" trip. Only recently have I begun to be able to consistently act like an adult when I'm back home with my mom. I've finally figured out how not to revert automatically back to a surly 13 year-old. In the nick of time, I might add. So I've just had a stressful, but successful week, and I read this:

"One of the hardest things about growing up is how one day it suddenly dawns on you that your parents are human. It hadn't occurred to you before. Why should it have? But then something happens, some thing happens, and the veil drops...These are just moments, really, blips on the parental screen, during which they reveal their humanity, and that they are in the world, flailing about as helplessly as everyone else, everyone who is not your parents. Blowing it. Surviving. Hanging on by their nails. That they are at once more spectacularly resourceful and more deeply flawed than you might have ever imagined inspires both scorn and admiration, two emotions you'd always reserved for nonrelatives. But, happily, between the blips, they are just the same as they have always been...and you breathe a sigh of relief. It is too painful for them to be human."

(I know, that's not a particularly Sedaris/Quindlen/MR-sounding quote, but it was my cosmic reading event. Go get the book, either one, and read some whole essays. See if you can read them without snorting, smirking, guffawing, or having one of your own cosmic reading events.)

If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period by Gennifer Choldenko

I was excited to see a new book by Gennifer Choldenko--If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period. Her book, Al Capone Does My Shirts caused amazing conversation in my 5th grade class a few years ago. Her topic in that book had depth and was quite surprising. The same is true for this new book.

IF A TREE FALLS AT LUNCH PERIOD is told in two voices--kind of. There are alternating chapters. Every other chapter is told by Kirsten--a 7th grader who is not fitting in with friends the way she used to. Her parents are having some marital problems and she is having a hard time. The alternating chapters focus on Walk. Walk is new to this mostly white school and is very well liked by classmates. As an African-American, he is dealing with fitting in in different ways.

Kirsten and Walk develop a great friendship.

But that is just the beginning. Gennifer Choldenko throws the reader with a huge surprise midbook. At first, I thought it was unrealistic, but now that I've finished the book, it makes more sense to me.

This book had depth. The title alone and the tree metaphor throughout is well done. I would say this book is for early middle school readers--maybe 5th grade mature kids. It is full of some big life issues as her other book is.

I read for character, not plot. I liked this book because I believed in the characters. They were real and very likable. I wanted them to be okay. I think they are characters who will stay with me.

Here is a link to a great interview with the author about the book.

Choose Your Own Adventure for Grown-Ups

A new fun book for adults (thanks to Today I Like for the recommendation).

Pretty Little Mistakes: A Do-Over Novel by Heather Mcelhatton is a fun read and one that you can read for a few minutes each day--although it is a bit addicting and you can find yourself spending lots of time reading and rereading it-creating a new adventure each time.

I have only spent a bit of time with this book but it is quite fun! A Choose-Your-Own-Adventure for grown ups. It does have a bit of a different feel when you are all grown up, reading a book like this. You know that choices are big once you've been through a bit of life. When I read some, I found myself wanting more information before I made decisions!? Overanalyzing the choices. But the fun is that you can go back to the beginning and make new choices and change your life's course.

You Read To Me, I'll Read To You: Scary Stories

I was so happy to see a new book in the You Read to Me, I'll Read to You series. This one is on very short scary tales to read together. How fun is that for a theme?

These books have been favorites every year during our weekly Poetry Friday celebration in our classroom. (We read poetry together while enjoying a morning treat--often donuts--with friends during the first 15-20 minutes of class each Friday.) My kids will be VERY excited to see this new book in our classroom library. I think it will quickly be a class favorite.

The book follows the same format as the others--poems for two voices. These poems are a tiny bit scary (tiny being the key word). Topics of ghosts, monsters, and other scary things will be fun for kids to read without having to worry about any nightmares. They are all in good fun.

This looks like a Halloween book and it will be fun to read then. But it will be one that is fun to read all year round.

If you haven't checked out the others, there is the first one of Short Stories, one of Fairy Tales, and Mother Goose Tales.

Summer Book Party Reflection

In June, I told you about our first Summer Book Party. My good friend Maureen, had this great idea to have "book parties" every few weeks during the summer--a fun way to keep the girls reading and to get them together.

Well, we had 5 book parties--once every few weeks. Since people are busy during the summer, we had anywhere between 2 and 7 girls at each party. They were all quite fun! And very easy to pull off. We set up books all over the house and made (or bought) some type of snack. The parties lasted one hour which was perfect to read a few books.


Today was our last book party. We asked the girls what they thought. They wanted to have them again next summer. They liked reading with friends. Even if they read quietly by themselves, they liked "having people around when I read". They loved reading in different places (on the patio, on the tent, the couch, comfy chairs, and lounge chairs. And, of course, they LOVED the snacks (making ice cream sundaes was a favorite). As Colleen said, "When you read a good book, it kind of makes you hungry, especially if it is a book about food!"


Hosting a few of the book parties was part of the fun. Deciding which books to put out for friends to read, what to have for snack, where we could read....



Maureen and I were laughing today as she left-- Just like us, the girls liked the fact that they could be with friends and eat good food. Good friends--Good Books--Good Food--What more could you want at any age?

The Gorgon's Gaze

The Gorgon's Gaze
Book Two in The Companions Quartet
by Julia Golding
US publication date: October 2007
review copy courtesy of Marshall Cavendish Children's Books

Connie Lionheart is no ordinary member of the Society for the Protection of Mythical Creatures. She is the only universal companion -- she is able to bond with all of the mythical creatures (dragons, pegasi, wood sprites, sirens, etc.) that live secretly in our world. To protect the mythical creatures, Society members protect the last wild spots on earth in which the creatures can survive. In the Gorgon's Gaze, that wild spot is an ancient wood (including a huge oak rumored to be the tree where Merlin was imprisoned by Nimue) threatened by a road to the new oil refinery from Book One, Secret of the Sirens.

The story is a rollercoaster of YAYs and UH-OHs that keeps the pages turning:

YAY! Connie's new companion will be a rare golden baby dragon.
UH-OH! Connie's great aunt is going to isolate Connie from nature and from the society members to "cure" her of her "sickness."
YAY! Two unknown-to-her-aunt members of the Society manage to get Connie out of the house and to Society Headquarters.
UH-OH! Mr. Codderington at the Society Headquarters is surely a bad guy. Watch out, Connie!
YAY! Argand, the baby dragon, comes to visit Connie.
UH-OH! Col's (Connie's friend and fellow society member, companion to pegusi) mother is companion to a gorgon.
YAY! Uncle Hugh unknowingly gives Connie information on how a Universal can protect herself from hostile mythical creatures. (One of Connie's ancestors was a Universal, and Uncle Hugh gives Connie some of her papers from a trunk of family heirlooms.)
UH-OH! Aunt Godiva is really mad when she finds out what Uncle Hugh gave Connie and she cracks down on Connie like never before. At the same time, Col is taken by Kullervo, the ultimate evil. (Kullervo is Connie's Voldemort -- her true companion. Her good and his evil are intimately intertwined. "He was part of her -- and she was part of him.")
YAY! With the help of Skylark, Col's pegasus, Connie goes to the rescue of Col.
UH-OH! It's a trap! Connie is taken by Kullervo!

You'll have to read the book to find out how it all turns out. I predict that the new character, a boy nicknamed "Rat," will feature prominently in the next book.

Here's my review of the first book in the series, Secret of the Sirens.

Violet Bing and The Grand House

Yes, there is another great character to love in this early chapter book by Jennifer Paros. There is lots to love about Violet Bing and The Grand House:

1. The size totally matches the character and the story. It is small book-- a small size and about 100 pages.

2. Violet Bing is VERY lovable. Violet Bing does not like to do much. She "does not have time" or so she says. She does not like surprises or things that are new or unplanned.

3. The plot is simple, yet fun. When Violet decides that she is not going on vacation with her family, she spends the time with her aunt in the Grand House instead. Because Violet says no to so many things, she is on her own a lot (with her aunt watching close-by). A little girl in a big, old, colorful house makes for a great story.

4. The illustrations throughout the book are fun. Violet has a triangular body and string-like hair. The illustrations are spread throughout the book to give the reader a better sense of what is happening. (And often the author refers to the illustrations by saying something like "Look at all of the things she has on the floor.")

5. Some surprises are in store for Violet--a lost dog, a sun room, and a secret passage.

All of this makes for a very fun book! A little girl who is a bit like all of us.

I have heard that this is going to be a series but I can't find any information on this. The end is written in a way that Violet Bing can easily visit The Grand House again soon.
I certainly hope so.

SO..HOW DID THOSE SUMMER GOALS GO? (MEME FOLLOW-UP)

In June, we participated in a Summer Goals meme and set goals for the summer. The 2nd day of summer--so much seemed possible. I thought I could accomplish so much. So today, with just a few days left of summer vacation, I thought I'd go back and see how I did.
1. Get back to exercising 5-6 days a week
I exercised 2-3 times all summer.
Not so good.
2. Read Lots
I read lots of kids books--more than ever-- but did not read the two adult books I was hoping to read.
3. See family and friends often.
I saw many old friends and caught up with people so I'll consider that the best so far....
4. Get organized for the fall
I am feeling okay about the fall. Not as organized as I'd like to be but in okay shape. I am going to work on organizing the house this weekend so I am kind of caught up.
5. Learn how to make and decorate a few really good kinds of cupcakes.
I found a great mix at Williams-Sonoma and a page from a magazine that shows me how to make sunflower cupcakes. Not exactly the gourmet cupcakes I had planned but I will make them for our next book party this weekend so I can maybe meet this goal before school begins...
6. Writer's notebook
Hmmmm...I bought a new one and only have one small entry..not good.
7. Clean every drawer, cupboard and closet in the house
What exactly was I thinking? I did a few but most of the ones I did at the beginning of summer need to be cleaned again. We are in better shape than in June so I am okay on this one.
8. Nap often.
I ACCOMPLISHED THIS GOAL!
9. Weight Watchers--
nope

Okay, so, I did TERRIBLE in accomplishing my goals. But, overall the summer was good. We had good family time, got good work done, feel semi-organized and refreshed to start the year, got together with some old friends.

TAGGING ANYONE WHO SET SUMMER GOALS WITH THIS MEME TO REFLECT--I am confident that you all did better than I did!

Poetry Friday -- Back to School Song

You can hum along with today's Poetry Friday. I've been singing this song to myself in late August for...um...lots of years now. This one goes out today to any first year teachers, and especially my former fourth grader, Courtney, who begins her career as an art teacher this fall.

From "I Have Confidence" (The Sound of Music)

Oh, I must stop these doubts, all these worries
If I don't I just know I'll turn back
I must dream of the things I am seeking
I am seeking the courage I lack

The courage to serve them with reliance
Face my mistakes without defiance
Show them I'm worthy
And while I show them
I'll show me

So, let them bring on all their problems
I'll do better than my best
I have confidence they'll put me to the test
But I'll make them see I have confidence in me

Somehow I will impress them
I will be firm but kind
And all those children (Heaven bless them!)
They will look up to me

And mind me with each step I am more certain
Everything will turn out fine
I have confidence the world can all be mine
They'll have to agree I have confidence in me

All of the lyrics are here.

New For the Youngest Readers

Here's a stack of new books from Marshall Cavendish that are sure to make our preschool or kindergarten teachers very happy!

My Big Rig by Jonathan London. A little boy imagines his trip across the country in his big rig. He's home by dinner time!

Firefighters! Speeding! Spraying! Saving! by Patricia Hubbell. This is a very "noisy" book, perfect for before and after a visit to the fire station that is just down the street from our school.


Shells! Shells! Shells! by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace. Lots of information about shells is given in the course of a story about Buddy (a teddy bear) and his visit to the beach. The illustrations were made using recycled paper, markers, crayons, colored pencils, and actual shells.

And what would the start of a child's school career be without a book about adjusting to leaving mommy? In Eliza's Kindergarten Surprise by Alice B. McGinty, it turns out that perhaps mommy was missing Eliza, too!

Finding Myself in the Classroom Library

I haven't seen my class list for this coming year, but I am almost sure to have students from Mexico, Japan or Korea, the Indian subcontinent, and perhaps several more countries or cultures. It is a struggle to make sure that every child I teach can find him or herself in the books in my classroom library.

Several new picture books from Marshall Cavendish will help me with this goal.

The Furry-Legged Teapot by Tim Myers is a version of a Japanese folktale in which a tanuki (a Japanese raccoon-dog) transforms himself into a teapot. In Myers' tale, the tanuki gets stuck in teapot form until he meets the Emperor and his grandson.

The Three Cabritos by Eric Kimmel is an original retelling of The Three Billy Goats Gruff, "with a Texas twist." A cabrito is a "young goat" in Spanish, and the monster under the bridge in this tale is a chupacabra, a legendary "goat sucker" or vampire monster first reported in Puerto Rico.

I'll have to get some help from my students (if they are literate in Spanish) or our ELL teacher with Sopa de Cactus, also by Eric Kimmel. This one is written in Spanish! In the author's note (Nota del autor) I see something something Revolucion Mexicana, something something Pancho Villa y Emiliano Zapata. So besides being what appears to be a folktale, perhaps a Stone Soup variation, this one might have some Mexican cultural and political history woven in.

The House Takes a Vacation by Jacqueline Davies

I am always looking for books with word play to share with my students. Often, the humor in language often goes right past them when they don't realize how playful language can be. I have books like Agatha's Featherbed and Tough Cookie in my classroom library. Sharing these books filled with puns, gives students new ways to think about words and often this shows up in their own writing.

THE HOUSE TAKES A VACATION by Jacqueline Davies is one that I am happy to add to my collection (thanks to Marshall Cavendish Children's Books). What a find! The concept is a fun one--a family takes a vacation so the house decides to do the same. The chimney complains in a "smoky voice". The roof is sore after the long trip and says, "Man, am I sore. I feel like I've got shingles." This picture book is full of puns and word play--new things for readers to discover with every reread. (I am still finding things I missed during the first few reads!)

The illustrations add to the fun of the book--they are done by Lee White.

Definitely worth checking out to add to your word study basket if you teach middle to upper elementary grades.

Cultural Literacy

Another summer of classic movies (CAPA's 38th season) at the Ohio Theater is almost over.

Slowly but surely I am attempting to make up for a lifetime of movie illiteracy. Once, and sometimes twice a week all summer, we go downtown to the gorgeous old Ohio Theater, hear live organ music on the Mighty Morton Theatre Organ (it raises and lowers near the orchestra pit and organist Clark Wilson performs with several silent films each season) and fill some of the gaps in my out-of-school education.

This summer we have seen
"North By Northwest" with Carey Grant,
"Treasure of the Sierra Madre" with Humphrey Bogart,
"Dr. No" with Sean Connery,
Alfred Hitchcock's "Rope" with Jimmy Stewart,
"12 Angry Men" with Henry Fonda,
and in a couple of weeks, this summer's education will end with
"Charade" with Carey Grant

It was interesting to see "Dr. No" in the same summer as "The Bourne Supremacy" (dvd) and "The Bourne Ultimatum." In my mind, James Bond doesn't hold a candle to Jason Bourne.

My other movie this summer was "The Simpsons Movie." Not sure where that fits in the big picture of cultural literacy, but having seen it will probably get me brownie points with my students!

Read Alouds With a Global Perspective on Choice Literacy

Choice Literacy has a follow-up article to Shari Frost's Read Aloud article. This one focuses on great beginning of the year read alouds with a multicultural/global perspective. A great list by Mary Ann Reilly. The article has books for K-3 and for 4-6.

Me and the Pumpkin Queen by Marlane Kennedy

Beth, at Cover to Cover told me that this was a good one. And, of course, I did! ME AND THE PUMPKIN QUEEN by Marlane Kennedy (Class of 2K7) is a story of Mildred. Mildred lives in Pickaway County Ohio and dreams of winning at the Circleville Pumpkin Show. This is a great story--the author's first book. It has the feel of a Deborah Wiles book--great characters, small town charm, grief, family and friends. As an Ohioan, I love this book. A great Ohio story, based on the best Pumpkin show ever. Since I have never been to the Circleville Pumpkin Show, it was fun to learn all about it and the time and commitment it takes to grow giant pumpkins. I think I may have to attend the pumpkin festival this year. I had no idea these giant pumpkins were over 1000 pounds!? Whether you are from Ohio or not, this is a great story with great characters. The themes of family, healing, and friendship are strong and the info about pumpkin growing are woven throughout in a way that helps you cheer for Mildred to grow the biggest pumpkin. Kids will love this story--everything about it! A great story for upper elementary school. Believe me, you'll want to make a trip to Circleville for the annual pumpkin show after you read this book. And you'll be looking for the Mildreds in the crowd. (To read about the real winners of last year's pumpkin show, visit here.) Pretty cool stuff!

Poetry Friday -- Back to School

One of the books I reread almost every year in August to get myself jived up again for the new school year is Educating Esme by Esme Raji Codell.

Here is one of her poems from the book:



HOW TO TEACH LEARNING

Sing it
Seal it in an envelope
Twist it under a bottle cap
"You are a winner!"
Tie it to the leg of a carrier pigeon
and let it soar
Hoard it greedily, with your back turned
Then share it with magnanimous grin
and glittering eyes
Make it a surprise
shining like a quarter
under a pillow
Whisper it
like the tow of summer's breath
through the willow
Or
Hide it
just between the tart skin and sweet flesh
of an apple
Make it forbidden
Make it delicious
Then
let the children
bite


Used with the blessing of Esme Raji Codell.
Used with apologies for Blogger's erasure of line indents. (Has anyone figured out how to get around this?)

Big A, little a has the roundup this week.

MOXY MAXWELL-INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR!!

It was totally my lucky day! I was at a Choice Literacy Workshop last week and met someone who loved MOXY MAXWELL DOES NOT LOVE STUART LITTLE as much as I did. She had loved it so much that she had found the author's email. She happily shared it with me and Peggy Gifford agreed to a blog interview. Since Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little is my most recent favorite children's book, this is great fun! (As you all remember, I made a call in my first post about Moxy to find the author and tell her to write more!) Well, read away and get the latest scoop on Moxy Maxwell and Peggy Gifford.
Franki: So many people love Moxy already. Is Moxy a character who was like you growing up or is she based on someone else in your life?

Peggy: When I was interviewed by Kirkus they asked the same question and my response was that Moxy is based on Everychild - of which I am one.

Franki: Tell us a bit about your childhood.

Peggy: I spent my summers (2nd through 5th grade) in the basement writing plays. When they were finished I would recruit reluctant adults and children to be in them. I was always the director and the star.

Franki: How did you decide to write about Moxy? Can you tell us a bit about the process?

Peggy: I was in a steam room taking a break from a long nonfiction piece I had been working on, when I noticed that I was noticing my toes. It occurred to me then that I had spent a fair amount of my childhood doing that very thing. What, I wondered, was I doing all those years looking at my toes and then I remembered that I was actually doing very little. As soon as I got home I wrote the first line of Moxy.

(I had tried writing a few times prior to that but now I see that my mistake was in trying to 'sound' like a children's story rather than telling the story I knew in a voice that was most natural for me.)
Franki: The photos in the book add so much and are such fun! How closely were you able to work with the illustrator/photographer on those? How did that piece come to be part of the book?

Peggy: As I was writing, Mark kept creeping in there with his camera taking photographs and I kept writing captions for them, the entire time thinking well, if an editor does like this book, they no doubt will want to cut them. (I thought this because I had never seen fiction illustrated in that way.) When Anne Schwartz and Lee Wade decided not only to keep them but to hire the extraordinary Valorie Fisher to take the pictures as well, I was truly shocked....utterly pleased.

Franki: We are SOOOO happy that there are more books about Moxy Maxwell coming out soon. Can you tell us a bit about the next books in the series.

Peggy: MOXY MAXWELL DOES NOT LOVE TO WRITE THANK-YOU NOTES is coming out next May and after that, MOXY MAXWELL DOES NOT LOVE TO PRACTICE THE PIANO.

Franki: Will all of the Moxy books have photos?

Peggy: I've just seen the photographs from the Thank You Note Moxy and they are SO FUNNY.

Franki: What kinds of books do you like to read in your free time? What kinds of books did you read as a child?

Peggy: As a child, I was a very eclectic reader picking up this and that.... among the most memorable: Eloise; THE LITTLE LAMB ON WHEELS; A Wrinkle In Time and Don Quixote, which was read to us by my sixth grade teacher over the course of the year. It (subconsciously) introduced me to the wide range of narrative voices; subject-matter and irony that are possible in fiction.

Currently I am staring at the face-down, spine-broken, two-thirds read GRAPES OF WRATH. There is nothing like The Grapes of Wrath to give you a little perspective.

Franki: Do you have a web site where people can learn more about you and your books?

Peggy: My web site will be up by the first of September. Perhaps you would be kind enough to post the address for me when I have it?

Franki: We would love to--can't wait!

More Back to School Books

Hornbook's Monthly Special is Back to School Books that received starred reviews in recent years. Everything from picture books to YA.

Also, the theme of Hornbook's 2008 special issue is...School!

(Thank you, Read Roger, for these news items.)

In local back-to-school/book news, I have added about 1200 titles (more like 1800 books, when you consider multiple copy sets for literature circles) from my classroom library into my LibraryThing. (search the tag "school" to see my classroom library) When I get back to it tomorrow, I will tackle my nonfiction shelf. Right now the mission is to catalog all the books in my classroom library. More later on how I intend to use this behemoth database.

Great New Blog --TWO WRITING TEACHERS

We just discovered a new favorite blog--right up our alley. Ruth and Stacey have started a blog for writing teachers and it is full of great stuff. It is called Two Writing Teachers. This is their mission:

Good teaching is good teaching. Too often we get caught up in what's
happening in our own classroom walls or in the faculty lounge of our own
school building. This blog is a place that erases all of those barriers
and focuses simply on teaching kids to write and catching minds in the
midst. It's happening not only 872 miles apart, but in classrooms beyond
our Midwestern town and East Coast City.


I don't think we realize how important this is in these political times--to connect with other teachers and to learn together without the politics/specific stresses of our own spaces.

Another thing that I love is how they came to blog together (didn't you wonder when you read that they lived 872 miles apart?) Well, here is how it happened:

Ruth and Stacey met in March 2007 at the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project’s Saturday Reunion. Ruth attended Stacey’s session, which was about grant writing. Even though Ruth and Stacey live 872 miles apart, they’re in touch daily.

Gotta love that! We all know as teachers how we often find others we connect with and can learn with and from. There is no better way to learn about teaching.

So, check them out. It is a great site--one I will definitely visit regularly! There is lots more I can say, but I think it would be more fun for you to visit for yourself!