Blog Carnival-END the R-Word

If you have not seen the "We Need a New "R" Word" video created by 16-year old Noah Gray and all of the follow-up work this group is doing, today is the day to make time to watch. Take some time today to watch this video and others created by people around the world as part of this campaign.

Tuesday, March 31 has been named SPREAD THE WORD TO END THE WORD:

"It is time to “Spread the Word to End the Word,” and on Tuesday, March 31, events throughout the United States and around the world will make people stop and think about their hurtful and disparaging use of the word “retard.” "

As part of the campaign, Laura at "25 Days to Make a Difference" is hosting a Blog Carnival.

As teachers, helping students see the power of their words is critical. Here at A Year of Reading, we believe books are one of the best ways to start conversations and to help all of us understand the world. We are taking today to share a few of our favorite books that we would use in the classroom inviting long-term conversations about hurtful words. These aren't all books specifically about intellectual disabilities but the conversation is the same. I love the idea of this day. I also know that conversations like this can and should be ongoing throughout the school year. Books are often a good way into these conversations as readers come to know and love the characters they read about. Here are some of the books we've used in the past that help begin and continue conversations about the power of our words.

Rules by Cynthia Lord
Be Good to Eddie Lee by Virginia Fleming
Along Came Spider by James Preller
So B. It by Sarah Weeks
Emma Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree by Lauren Tarshis

The Thing About Georgie by Lisa Graff
Stand Tall Molly Lou Melton by Patty Lovell
Edwardo, The Horriblest Boy in the Whole Wide World by John Birmingham

Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko (thanks for this addition, Jenny:-)

**We are posting this today, a little early, in hopes that many people from the Kidlitosphere join in on the Blog Carnival to support this important campaign.

Live Blogging from #Nerdcampmi Monday and Tuesday

JWe know we didn't do such a great job of live blogging from All Write, as we had planned. But Franki will be at #NerdcampMi and she'll be adding live updates to the blog as the throughout the event. This is one of our favorite events of the year so we'd also recommend following it on Twitter if you are not attending.  (We will update on the top of the post each time we update so read from the bottom up!)

A session about writing for The Nerdy Book Club blog by Donalyn Miller and Cindy Minnich.

We love that we can connect with people all over the country at Nerdcamp!  But we also love having time to learn within Dublin colleagues.

Session on Nonfiction Mentor Texts led by Jen Vincent!

I went to a great session led by John Scovill on Reading Engagement in the Upper Grades.  You can access the resources from this session here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_dS9WjknquqGINy8VY40Ss5uoVKBRiNGxy0vmvm9yLs/edit_

Look what I got!--DAY 2

Dublin's very own, Jessica Ardela was the first female to finish the Nerd Run 5K!! wooohoooo!

Team Saunter ready for Nerd Run!

Really, there is nothing better than hearing John Schu (@mrschureads) talk about books!! 

So happy to have s chance to hear Brad Wilson (@dreambition)) talk about digital writing!

Amazing kickoff to Nerd Camp today!  Brilliant talks by Ruth Ayres, Pernille Ripp,  Sue Haney, Lisa Graff and Donalyn Miller.

After dinner, Jillian (@heisereads) invited us to see all the new picture books she got at ALA last week.   Katie (@katiedicesare) and I went down. And we made new friends over books--, Aliza (@alizateach) and Kim (@fins025) Such a fun way to end the day!

Within minutes of arriving, we ran into one of our fave authors  (and fave #teamsaunter teammates) Jess Keating (Jess_Keating).  She happened to have her two upcoming books in her bag--wow!  We are excited about both of them. The third in her Middle Grade Novel series and a new nonfiction book, Pink if for Blobfish)

Marisa (@MarisaReads) pulled out her new Selfie Stick--purchased jut for the occasion!

About 30 of us started off the fun with dinner at Klavon's.  Our annual #nerdcampmi tradition now!

Math Monday -- A Mosaic is an Array!

Yes, I know it's a stretch to share my monthly mosaic as a Math Monday post, but #arraychat is a real thing on Twitter! Math in the real world. It doesn't get any better.

Row 1 -- The first three are from North Market. The last one in this row and

Row 2 -- the first one in this row are a glimpse of hope for spring! The next three are William and his sunbeam, what a kitty has to do when his sunbeam gets too warm, and the face of a contented cat.

Row 3 -- #DubLit15 -- my Tech Kids, Chris Lehman learning from Franki's Tech Kids, Lisa Graff signing, the cookies donated by Wonderopolis for our afternoon snack.

Row 4 -- The walkway to Tucci's for the after-conference author dinner -- a winter wonderland. In contrast, don't get me started about the over-plowing of our street. Why do so many streets go unplowed, and yet the Snow Warriors come back again and again to our street, plowing shut every driveway on our street repeatedly and throwing slush up onto cleared-off sidewalks. There's no good reason for it.  (deep cleansing breath) The third shot is a jazzy shot of a jazz band at Natalie's. Next is a science shot -- the dark leaf got warm enough to melt down into the snow beneath it.

You can see all these pictures larger and un-cropped on Flickr here.

It's Math Monday! Join Mandy at Enjoy and Embrace Learning for the Math Monday link up!

Newbery Predictions from Friends

We asked some of our smart, book expert friends, to send us their recommendations for this year's Newbery award. We love hearing everyone's thoughts on the award. Some great thoughts on books in general:-) The conversation is always such fun! Here is what they said:

From Ray Barrett, one of the great children's librarians at the Dublin Library says:

"I've had a chance to finish "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins and I enjoyed it more than anything else that I've read recently (Juvenile or Adult!). The themes that form the basis of the book are serious, but are handled in such a way that I don't believe it would be too much for an excellent Middle School reader to handle. After all, they are constantly surrounded and inundated by similar situations in the world in which they live today. The main characters are very well developed with individual personalities, beliefs, and observations on the state of their lives as they compete in the games. The main character, Katniss Everdeen, definitely evolves and grows throughout the course of the book, and she is the personification of self-sacrifice as she makes the difficult decisions with which she is faced. I found the book extremely difficult to put down and continued to think about it in the time between my reading opportunities. When I had finished it, and after re-reading the last few pages several times, I actually felt a sense of loss that my visit to this world was over! The good news is that it's the first book in a trilogy, although the reader is unaware of this until the last page. It was such a powerful reading experience, and it was written so effectively, that I believe it will appeal to both an older Teen audience as well as to younger Middle School readers who are interested in a book that stresses the values of personal identity, self-sacrifice, and resistence to the status quo. "The Hunger Games" is the type of book that could win the Newbery or the Printz (or both?), and it's my pick for this year!"

From Jen Allen, Literacy Coach in Maine and author of Becoming a Literacy Leader

"When Franki asked me my pick for this year's Newbery award I have to admit
that I took a deep breath. It seems like I am always in left field with
my selections. But with that said, I have to say that The Life and Crimes
of Bernetta Wallflower by Lisa Graff is one of my favorite reads of the
year. This story is all about the choices that we make and the
consequences for our actions. I especially like the story because it is a
real kid grabber and truly appeals to students in the intermediate grades.
I think too often I pick books that appeal to me as an adult and at
times lose sight of what kids want in a book. As my son often tells me,
he is not always looking for books with deep meaning. He just wants to
lose himself in the book with the characters. He helps me to remember the
beauty of being eleven and the power an adventurous and sometimes
outrageous storyline can have on the desire for kids to engage with books."

From Larry Swartz, our good friend from Toronto and author of GOOD BOOKS MATTER (review to come soon), LITERACY TECHNIQUES, and THE NOVEL EXPERIENCE has some predictions as well as some titles that can't win the award but are worth the read!

OK... once again I will give some thoughts to the Newbery.. but they never listen to me.. i'm still grieving over HOME OF THE BRAVE by Applegate not getting recognition last year.. it was the best, so there!...

I'd certainly give recognition to THE UNDERNEATH.. a beautifullly written book.. but a bit strange.. and somewhat schizophrenic... it's about many things.. and the illustratioins don't work.. and get rid of that cover.. the book, I think, is for a narrow audience (strong readers (girls) in grade 5 or 6)... but i enjoyed the read and it's layers.

Probably the award should go to SUNRISE AT FALLUJAH by Walter Dean Myers.. He really is a hero of young adolescent literature... this book is an encyclopedic... historic overview of the IRAQ war and for it's importance, I give it a vote.. will 'they' give it to a YA novel? assumption: a different intended audience for the newbery ...

I wouldn't mind if BROOKLYN BRIDGE by Karen Hesse or THE WILLOUGHBYS by Lois Lowry were recognized.. does the committee care if these were previous winners? do they care if they are authorspeople have heard of?

colleagues at the book store love THE HUNGER GAME by Suzanne Collins.. but I ain't a sci fantasy fan so it doesn't get a big rah rah from me....the books I particularly enjoyed this year don't qualify.. cuz they ain't american.. i really liked the Canadian book WORD NERD by Susin Nielsen... and the australian book NAKED BUNYIP DANCING by Steven Herrick... and Michael Morpurgo's (british)..BORN TO RUN
there's some monday morning thoughts from north of the 49th parallel...just

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

For more great lists from bloggers participating in "It's Monday! What Are You Reading?", visit Teach Mentor Texts!

4 Books I've Absolutely Loved Lately

Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool

A Tangle of Knots by Lisa Graff

Grumbles from the Forest: Fairy-Tale Voices with a Twist by Jane Yolen and Rebecca Kai Dotlich

A Dog Called Homeless by Sara Lean

The Great Treehouse War

The Great Treehouse War
by Lisa Graff
Philomel, May 16, 2017
review ARC received at ALA

When I reviewed this book on GoodReads, I gave The Great Treehouse War a long string of tags:

• cats because Winnie's Buttons is truly "the world's greatest cat." 
• coming-of-age because it is a rare middle grade (not middle school) book that explores the end-of-5th-grade-going-to-middle-school phase, rather than being about 12 year-olds who already are in middle school. 
• characters because each of the ten Tulip Street/Treehouse Ten is a completely unique character who the reader gets to know through the story and the added sticky not comments, sketches, how-to segments, diagrams, and other paraphernalia (see hybrid below)
• empathy because that is Winnie's super power (she calls it Artist Vision) and what helps her to solve the problem that the epic sleepover turns into. 
• hybrid because there are fun sketches, maps, and sticky note comments from Winnie's friends.
• memoir because that's what the character Winnie is writing so she doesn't flunk 5th grade.
• incidental diversity, not because you can see the characters' differences in their physical features, but rather in their names (Aayush Asad, Winnie Malladi-Maraj) and small details like Lyle's "moms." (A student reader came and asked me if I thought that was a typo in the ARC, and I said, No, he probably just has two moms. Oh, okay, said the child, and off he went to continue reading.)
• divorce because Winnie has the most over-the-top wacky divorced parents ever. They take the fight for exactly equal time with Winnie to ridiculous lengths. Any child being pulled in two different directions will absolutely relate to the relief Winnie feels on Wednesdays, when she gets to live with neither parent, instead, staying in the treehouse that's halfway between the two houses. (She can have Wednesday to herself so that each parent has exactly three days a week with her.)

I can't wait to hand this book to my student who's writing her opinion piece on Why Kids Should Have More Rights. Winnie and her friends have some legitimate claims of parental unfairness (or extreme ridiculous fairness, in Winnie's case), but the parents have some legitimate counterclaims. The kids take a stand for their beliefs, but eventually it is Winnie's Artist Vision that helps kids and parents find middle ground.

Newbery: Predictions? Thoughts? Ramblings?

Mary Lee:

Franki and I had many years worth of Newbery discussions before this blog was ever born.

We started by trying to pick the winner. We were never right. I think my pick was an honor book once.

Then we decided you could count it a success if you had read the winner. We came closer those years.

The next stretch was "if you own it, you can count it." That was the year Franki claimed success because she had the winner in her shopping cart at Amazon.

Due to the avalanche of Notables Nominees that are shelved in my basement, I figure there's a pretty good chance the Newbery is in my house, so I'll be contrary this year and predict that the Newbery will be a book that hasn't darkened my door: Jimmy's Stars, Highway Cats, The Graveyard Book, The Porcupine Year, After Tupac and D Foster, Seer of Shadows, or The Trouble Begins at 8.

Franki:

This year, I am going to think of it more as a wish, than a prediction.  There are lots of books that I would be happy to see win. I can't name them all but I had a great reading year and I think there are so many that could win. Narrowing it down to a few, here are my wishes for Newbery (in no particular order):

THE UNDERNEATH--really, nothing could compare to the writing.  I reread the lead the other day and it is definitely "distinguished".

GREETINGS FROM NOWHERE by Barbara O'Conner-a book that has stayed with me all year. Love the characters, the story and the writing.

MY ONE HUNDRED ADVENTURES by Polly Horvath--Horvath at her best.  She is amazing and quirky with great characters and amazing writing.

JIMMY'S STARS by Mary Ann Rodman  I just finished this one. If you haven't read it, it is a must-read. I can't explain the way I felt reading it--through the whole thing.  She captured the characters perfectly.

SHOOTING THE MOON by Frances O'Roark Dowell--another one that stuck with me all year. I could easily see this one winning.

I also loved Lisa Graff's, THE LIFE AND CRIMES OF BERNETTA WALLFLOWER and DIAMOND WILLOW by Helen Frost.

There were so many others that I liked a lot!

And I'm not done reading for 2008! Next on my pile: ONE THOUSAND NEVER EVERS, THE UNNAMEABLES, ITCH, and EVER.

I think WE ARE THE SHIP can win every award out there. I would love to see it win the Newbery as well as others! An amazing book.

I would LOVE for PAPER TOWNS to win the Prinz. Love John Green and the book.  

Bottom line: in less than a week, we'll know who won for 2008 and we'll start reading the 2009 books!

#bookaday--Franki at the Halfway Point

I am LOVING #bookaday started by @donalynbooks. Whether you are participating in the holiday version of #bookaday or not, following the #bookaday hashtag on twitter will give you lots of great books to add to your TBR pile.

We are on Day 6 of vacation and I have read 8 fabulous books! I thought I'd share these quickly before I move on to the 2nd half of the event. I am all about characters and read completely for character. I have to love the characters to love the book and you will notice that I love all of the new characters I've read about. Most of my #bookaday reading has focused on middle grade novels. I find that no matter how much I read, I can never keep up with all of the great books coming out for our 3rd through 6th graders. They are the readers I have always been most interested in and it has been nice to make time to catch up on some of the books I've been wanting to read. I am anxious to share them all with students when we get back to school.

PENNY DREADFUL by Laurel Snyder was my first #bookaday read and it was a great one. I loved the the characters. This felt a little like Polly Horvath but also a little like some of my favorite books from childhood--A LITTLE PRINCESS, THE SECRET GARDEN, etc. It is a quirky,upbeat kind of book with some unique characters. This is probably a book I'll share with 4th and 5th graders.A great fun book all around.

I was very excited to get an ARC of MARTY MCGUIRE by Kate Messner. This is the first in a series due out in May of 2011. I am always looking for great new books for kids newer to chapter books and Marty McGuire is a great book for those readers. Again, I love this character in this book. This is a great read for kids who love Judy Moody, Clementine, Roscoe Riley, etc. The story is told in first person by Marty and she is a character you love almost instantly. She is a spunky girl who knows how to solve a problem and be herself. I am looking forward to more Marty McGuire books!

There are not many books that would make great reads for ages 6-12, but I think LULU AND THE BRONTOSAURUS would be a great read aloud for grades 1-5. Kids of all ages will love this book. Mary Lee reviewed the book and I immediately moved it to the top of my pile. Judith Viorst is brilliant as always, and a fun feature of the book is the way that she chats with the reader throughout the story.

I am a huge fan of James Preller and finally had a chance to read his book BYSTANDER. This is a book about middle school and bullying. The storyline and the characters are believable and this would make a great choice for a book club or read aloud. The book provides lots to talk about in terms of how kids treat each other and how they handle difficult situations. James Preller has a good handle on this age group and that is important for this story.

A LONG WALK TO WATER by Linda Sue Park was a very powerful read. I hadn't realized before I started that this story, about the lost boys of Sudan, was mostly true. I think it is hard to write about hard topics in a way that is accessible to middle grade and middle school readers but this book is done perfectly for this age. The two stories that Park tells come together brilliantly and the difficulty is clear. This is a book that will live with me for a long time and I think it would make an amazing read aloud for 5th or 6th grade.

I discovered Lauren Oliver, a great new YA author in early December. I received BEFORE I FALL in my ALAN box and read it in early December. Oliver has a new book coming out in February called DELIRIUM and I was able to borrow an ARC. I forgot how much I love YA and am thrilled to have discovered Lauren Oliver. DELERIUM tells the story of a society who has figured out a way to cure people from love. An interesting concept and great characters. Looking forward to reading everything that Oliver writes in the future. I don't have much time to read YA Lit but will make time to read anything that she writes.

THE RABBIT PROBLEM is a picture book by Emily Gravett. I love Emily Gravett and am not sure how I missed this book. This is a fun picture book around the Fibonacci problem posed hundreds of years ago. The book is set up in calendar form and Gravett includes many unique features and great humor as always.

I love every book by Lisa Graff so was thrilled to have some time to read SOPHIE SIMON SOLVES THEM ALL. This is a bit of a different book for Graff--meant for a bit of a younger audience. Sophie Simon is another character I love and the story is a great one for 3rd-4th grade readers. I haven't heard that this will become a series, but it would be great news if it did!

I love every book that I've read and recommend every one of them. I am so loving #bookaday! I am already looking forward to participating in Summer #bookaday.