Text Set: Books for Earth Day

 Texts for this Text Set have been posted daily on Instagram. Follow @TextSets there to get daily updates! 

I'm not a big theme teacher. I don't usually pick books because of a holiday or an event or a celebration.  But recently, I've discovered so many great books that match the Earth Day theme that I figured..Why not?  These books would definitely fit into this week if you are looking for texts to share for Earth Day. But they are also incredible books to use any time during the year for a variety of reasons. 

Having just won the Caldecott Medal, We are Water Protectors is a perfect book to share this week as we think about taking care of our Earth. I would pair this book (now or anytime during the year) with other books about water access and water protection. A connected book my 5th graders learned a great deal from is Young Water Protectors by Aslan Tudor and his mother. Water is such an important issue and there are so many other books to add but these are two of my favorites. 

I discovered Zonia's Rain Forest this week and love it so much. This is the story of Zonia who lives in the Amazon Rainforest. It is a beautiful story that celebrates all the beauty and wonder of the rainforest. And it also addresses threats. I remember rainforest units of the past that never acknowledged the people of the rainforest. This book does that and the back of the book gives us more information about the Asháninka, the largest Indigenous group living in the Peruvian Amazon. 

 

I have always had several books about Wangari Maathai in our classroom library. I love her story and the way she cared for the Earth. Mama Mita is one of my favorites but I think her story is one that needs to be explored through several books.(So look for the other picture book biographies about Wangari.)  This month, I discovered a book I could pair with the stories of Wangari. The Wisdom of Trees: How Trees Work Together to Form a Natural Kingdom. This nonfiction book is incredible and I learned so much. The combination of poetry and short informational blurbs work together to explore the connectedness of trees. It is packed with information that was new-to-me. There is more information at the end of the book, including information about the future of forests and ways we can help.

Plastic. So many problems caused by plastic. These are two very different books that focus on the impact of plastic in our world. The Last Straw is a poetry/nonfiction text that highlights ways kids everywhere are working to help the problems caused by plastic. And this book is filled with fabulous features at the end--timelines and more. Ocean Soup is more of a narrative that focuses on the impact of plastic on our oceans. The combination of these books helps readers understand how big the problem of plastic is as well as what we can do. 

I love books that have stand-alone pages. These books are both made up of two-page spreads that can stand alone for readers. Each two-page spread is essentially its own infographic. Each page gives readers so much information and it is all organized in ways that make the information accessible. What a Waste focuses on trash and recycling and Our World Out of Balance focuses on climate change. Both books include ways readers can help.

This week's books were linked at Cover to Cover Children's Bookstore. If you are looking for a fabulous children's bookstore to support, this is an amazing one. We are lucky to have them in Central Ohio!

Follow @TextSets on Instagram for next week's Text Set!

Still Learning to Read: Tracking Our Thinking in Read Aloud

This is one of a series of blog posts that continue the conversation around Still Learning to Read--teaching reading to students in grades 3-6.  This series will run on the blog on Tuesdays starting in August 2016 and continue through the school year.

I want my students to have experience with a variety of ways to track their thinking during reading.  There are so many tools and right now, I just want them to see how powerful it is to stop and notice your thinking. I want them to be able to choose tools that work for them and I use the first 6-8 weeks of school to make sure they have experience with several ways to annotate.  Since our focus is on the thinking and process, the tool is really up to the child once they see some  possibilities. So for read aloud this time, I chose the book Lucy by Randy Cecil.  This is a book that I fell in love with this summer.  I chose it for several reasons.

• The illustrations in this book are key. There is a black and white illustration on each page and I want my 3rd graders to talk around both words and pictures. I find that often, at this age, readers are more apt to talk about what they notice or wonder in a visual than in text so this combination seemed perfect. I also know they will naturally find evidence in the illustrations as they talk and the "What in the book makes you think that?" type of conversation will grow.
• I was able to get 12 copies of the book from our public library.  This makes it possible for groups of 2-3 to share a book. 
• I assigned them a Thinking Partner for this read aloud. So they share their book with the same person and will think through this book with one person. Thinking with the same person across a book is different than thinking with different people every day.  There are benefits to both but as we build relationships and conversation skills, having the same partner through the book is important.
• There are 3 characters in the book whose story lines come together--Eleanor, her father, and the dog, Lucy.  As readers begin to read more complex text, I want them to think about characters and how characters stories and relationships are often key to narrative.

So each pair of students was given a copy of the book and a stack of sticky notes and they have been jotting and talking every day before we come together and share thinking as a group. 

The book and conversation are inviting great talk and we are learning so much about tracking our thinking, backing our thinking with evidence in the text, character development and having good conversations. 

(You can follow the conversation using the hashtag #SLTRead or you can join us for a book chat on Facebook that began this week by joining our group here.)

Our new edition of Still Learning to Read was released last week!  You can order it online at Stenhouse!

A Community Garden Booklist

Our school has started a community garden and everyone is excited about it. Our third grade classes worked all year to get the garden designed and created it in the spring. This coming year, it will be up and running and most of the school will be involved in some way.

Knowing that the whole school will be busy working on and thinking about the garden and that the kids will be extra excited this fall, I have been keeping my eyes open for books that might connect in some ways to the garden.  I am envisioning an area of the library dedicated to gardens, etc. similar to the inquiry displays set up at THE ALLEN CENTRE.  I have learned so much about what is possible in an elementary library from visiting their site. If you have not had a chance to look at the site and the invitations they create for kids, they are amazing. Connecting that thinking to the thinking I get from Georgia Heard and her book A PLACE FOR WONDER,  I am hoping to create a space for exploring ideas connected to gardening while also including a variety of books that invite children to think in different directions.  You never know what the work in the garden might spark in terms of an interest for a child so I am trying to be broad in my connections at this point. These are the books on my list so far:

GREGOR MENDEL: THE FRIAR WHO GREW PEAS by Cheryl Bardoe is a great picture book biography that fascinates me. This is a great introduction to genetics and the man behind the thinking about heredity in plants.  This is a longer picture book and one that might be interesting to older students. It is also a great story about someone who did what they loved and made a difference in the world.


FIRST GARDEN: THE WHITE HOUSE GARDEN AND HOW IT GREW by Robbin Gourley is a new book that focuses on Michelle Obama's garden and the purpose behind it.  It tells about Michelle Obama's goals for the garden, how it came to be and the history of gardens at the White House.  I think this is a timely one to include this year. Kids will like the story about something that happened so recently.


RAH, RAH, RADISHES!:  A VEGETABLE CHANT by April Pulley Sayre is one that Mary Lee reviewed here a few weeks ago. After the review, I had to buy it. This is a perfect one for shared reading and the photographs are gorgeous!



HOW DID THAT GET IN MY LUNCHBOX by Chris Butterworth is a great book about how the foods we eat came to be in our lunchboxes. Starting at the beginning, each food is examined so children understand where food comes from.  The art adds a great deal to the information.



SEED, SOIL, SUN by Cris Peterson is one of my favorite nonfiction picture books this year.  It has amazing photographs and is written with language that is amazing and surprising at the same time.





BUSY IN THE GARDEN by George Shannon is a poetry book that I'll include. This one is great for all ages, but especially fun for young children and for shared reading. (April's blog review is here.)




DO YOU KNOW WHICH ONES WILL GROW? by Susan Shea doesn't connect exactly to the garden but focuses on the difference between living and nonliving things. It was a favorite read aloud with young children this spring so I think they'll love revisiting it this fall.





MY GARDEN by Kevin Henkes How can I not include this wonderful book?  This one is ALWAYS checked out from our library!  (A book on my list of BOOKS I COULD READ A MILLION TIMES)

Bird, Butterfly, Eel

Bird, Butterfly, Eel
story and illustrations by James Prosek
Simon and Schuster, 2009

I knew that birds and butterflies migrated, but I had no idea, until I read this book, that eels do, too.

The story begins in the summer, when bird is raising a nest of babies and butterflies eggs are turning to caterpillars, cocoons and new butterflies. The eel has been in the pond for many years and is eating and storing energy for her upcoming journey.

The bird flies to Argentina for the winter, the butterfly flies to Mexico, and the eel swims out of the pond into the creek and then the ocean and eventually to the Sargasso Sea near Bermuda. The barn cat, who is in all the pictures at the beginning of the book when the animals are being introduced in their habitats near the farm (pond, meadow and barn), lays at the window watching it snow.

Spring comes, and bird, butterfly and eel's babies return to the farm.

One of the best things about this book are the illustrations. For most of the book, when Prosek is telling about their differences, each animal gets its own page. But three times during the book (fall, winter and spring), when the animals are similar in their readiness to migrate, in their winter homes, and upon return to the farm, the page is split horizontally into three sections and the animals are shown together. The only illustration I would quibble with is the map that shows where each animal goes for the winter. Instead of doing separate illustrations of the continents (main idea) and the location of the pond (detail), Prosek stretched the northeastern United States, shrank South America, and made it one illustration. Artistic license, I guess. The rest of the book is so beautiful that it can be forgiven.

This is a book that could be included in a study of migrating animals, habitats, Colonial America (didn't they eat lots of eels? didn't you ever wonder about the life cycle of the eel?), similarities and differences, nonfiction with a circular text structure, or just because it's beautiful!

On Second Thought

Squiggles: A Really Giant Drawing and Painting Book
by Taro Gomi
Chronicle Books, 2007
review copy compliments of the publisher

I grew up with coloring books and paper dolls. I learned to keep my coloring inside the lines and my cutting on the lines. I can only wonder how my life would be different if I had had this drawing and painting book that is filled with partially drawn pictures to be completed however one wants, and provocative sentences that pluck one's creativity strings (for example, in the "Time to Eat" section -- "This is going to be very difficult to eat.")

Initially, this book went up on the gifts-to-give shelf in my closet to wait for the children of my friends to be old enough to enjoy and provide a "guest review." ON SECOND THOUGHT...I am going to take this book to school and give it to my students for homework. Stay with me here: each child will take the book home for a night and complete one of the pictures in any way he or she desires. It's a big book ("A Really Giant Drawing and Painting Book") so everyone will have a chance to do more than one page over the course of the rest of the year. We will make a very different kind of class book that will preserve these students' art and writing in a unique way.

The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook: Junior Edition
by David Borgenicht and Robin Epstein
Chronicle Books, 2007
review copy compliments of the publisher

This seemed at first glance to be the perfect mentor text for a unit of study in writing workshop on "how to" writing. The book is divided into four chapters where a child's survival skills would be tested: at home, at school, in her/his social life, and outdoors. In each chapter, there are about a half a dozen "How To" situations, ranging from "How to Survive Being Grounded" to "How to Survive Farting in Public." Each survival situation begins with an introductory paragraph and a short numbered or bulleted list of steps. Perfect, right? Well, ON SECOND THOUGHT, I considered the very serious, very difficult, very un-frivolous survival situations that several of my students are going through right now. This book will be a part of my classroom library, and we'll discuss the format of the book when we look at nonfiction writing. I will probably invite students to add their own survival tips on 4x6 index cards in a pocket I'll make in the back of the book. But I don't think that in this class this year I will use this book for a whole-class project on "How To" writing.

BOOKS THAT CHANGE LIVES

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

WARRIORS: THE LOST WARRIOR

Her love affair with the WARRIORS series began when she was in 4th or 5th grade. Upon her recommendation, I read one of them back then. (It's pretty powerful when the teacher reads the student's recommendation, rather than vice versa.) I brought her ARCs from NCTE. (Getting the next book in a favorite series before it's out in the bookstore? Priceless.)

She's in 7th grade now, but when TokyoPop sent the uncorrected proof of the new graphic novel parallel series, I knew she was the expert I would need to call on for an opinion.

Her life had been taken over by the middle school theater production when I dropped the book off at her house, but we had a good chat about it when she brought me my Girl Scout Cookies.

The graphic novel is not exactly the same as the novels, she was quick to point out. "You wonder when Greystripe is coming back, and the graphic novel shows what happened to him. It also shows how he motivated to leave house cat life."

She sees the graphic novels as companion books to the regular series. They have a mixture of new story lines and they fill in between the parts of the series. And she is absolutely savvy to the marketing of the graphic novels, "They will lure in young readers and get them ready for the series."

Nevertheless, she plans to own all of the graphic novels, because they will "complete my collection...my library."

She recommends the Warrior Cats website and writes: "The field guide comes out May 29. I have the new book and after today and a little of yesterday reading I am on page 167. It is so good. Also Graystripe the lost warrior (cough title of cough manga cough book cough cough cough) comes back with Millie (cough another cough cat from cough manga). There is already another book coming after this called Dark River. Now I can't wait until September because an extra book called Firestars Quest comes out. I love when you get the unedited versions when I can read them. I wish I could meet Erin Hunter it would be so cool.




According to her book this is how the books go in order:

Warriors

Into the Wild
Fire and Ice
Forest of Secrets
Rising Storm
A Dangerous Path
The Darkest Hour

Warriors: The New Prophecy

Midnight
Moonrise
Dawn
Starlight
Twilight
Sunset

Warriors: Manga

The Lost Warrior

Warriors: The Power of Three

The Sight
Dark River- not out in stores yet

Warriors: Extra

Field Guide: Secrets of the Clans

MY ONE HUNDRED ADVENTURES by Polly Horvath

MY ONE HUNDRED ADVENTURES Is a book that is showing up on several Mock Newbery lists and one that I wanted to be sure to read before the Newbery announcement on January 26. Let me say that I would be VERY, VERY HAPPY if this book wins the Newbery. I love it. It is DEFINITELY one of my favorite reads of 2008. I am not sure how kids will respond to it or whether it should be in a K-5 library. It seems like 5th/6th/7th grade for me. I am not so sure about the age 9-12 marketing--not sure that the issues aren't above 9-10 year olds. I don't think that matters though--it deserves every starred review it has received--and it has received many.

I have always been a Polly Horvath fan. EVERYTHING ON A WAFFLE hooked me to her work right away! This is by far her best, in my opinion. It seems to be a tiny bit different from her other books. MY ONE HUNDRED ADVENTURES still has the quirky characters and events that make Horvath's books unique. But there is something about the writing of this book that makes is more powerful than the others. It just seems to have a different feel--if that makes sense.

I knew early in the book that it was going to be a great book, when I read:
"The library in summer is the most wonderful thing because there you get books on any subject and read them each for only as long as they hold your interest, abandoning any that don't, halfway or a quarter of the way through if you like, and store up all that knowledge in the happy corners of your mind for your own self and not to show off how much you know or spit it back at your teacher on a test paper."

The writing is definitely Newbery-worthy. So many lines jumped out at me throughout the reading:

"They wear hats with fruit on them. When I get bored I stare at their fruited hates. I wonder if we can convince some of the younger old ladies to take up fruited straw hats. Like passing the torch. Or will they regard this as some kind of next-in-line-for-the-tomb designation?"

"Suddenly I realize that everyone in the whole world, is, at the end of a day, staring at a dusky horizon, owner of a day that no one else will ever know."

"No one really understands a family but the people in it and even they each understand it differently."

"We all belong here equally, Jane...Just by being born onto the earth we are accepted and the earth supports us. We don't have to be especially good. We don't have to accomplish anything We don't even have to be healthy."

I do this often when I read great books. Tab pages of lines that I love, that I want to revisit. Then, when I am finished with the book and am having that feeling where I wish I wasn't quite finished, I go back and reread the pages that I've tabbed, looking for the lines I've loved. It is a great way to reexperience the book and to reread some of those favorite lines. A habit I started when I read WALK TWO MOONS years and yeas ago. Only when the book has lots of lines that seem to hit me as wanting to go back to.

I love this book and would love to see it win the Newbery or any other award. It is one that has great characters and great messages about life and people.

Bill The Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman

I am always looking for great picture book biographies. I especially like the ones about people who are not famous.  So I was thrilled to find Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman by Marc Tyler Nobleman. I recognized the author from another great picture book biography, BOYS OF STEEL which was quite popular in the library last year.

I am not a huge Batman reader but I do love popular culture and stories of creativity.  I loved this new picture book for so many of reasons and I can't wait to share it with kids.  The book is a good length-not too short and not too long. It is filled with the story of Bill Finger who co-created Batman as an anonymous writer. It is a fascinating story of a man who loved to create. Even more fascinating is the Author's Note in the back that gives even more information about Bill Finger and the research involved in publishing this book--the only book EVER that focuses on him.

I am excited to share this book with kids for lots of reasons. First of all, it is a great story and with so many comics/graphic novels fans, I am sure I will have kids who will be instantly interested in the topic. But it is also the story of writing and creating--how and where ideas come from and how storytelling is often collaborative.  The story is also a great example of someone who made a big difference in the world even though he was not famous. I worry about fame and our typical use of biographies. I want my students to know that there are many ways that people make the world a better place and you don't have to be famous to make a difference. And finally, the research involved in finding the story of Bill Finger life and the outcome of the research is worth sharing with students.  Research isn't so easy and it certainly is not the book research that kids often think of when we say the word research. Nobleman makes much of his research process public and that will be great for kids.

I totally enjoyed this book for lots of reasons. One of my favorite nonfiction books of the year for sure!

Dublin Literacy Conference 2011

We LOVE the Dublin Literacy Conference. The conference is an annual one sponsored by Dublin City Schools (Ohio, not Ireland:-) and run by a committee of teachers. 2011 is our 22nd year and we host between 600 and 800 teachers each year. We have both been on the planning committee for as long as we can remember and the planning is almost as fun as the day itself. Most of our teachers come from around the Central Ohio area but we have been getting people from all over.  It is a great one-day event and we love it. It is a great day of learning and literacy.  If you are free and live close enough to drive, you should think about joining us!  (We have written lots about this conference over the last 5 years. You can read more in these posts.)

This year, the Dublin Literacy Conference will be held on Saturday, February 25.  It looks to be another great year and we are both so excited about our speakers. We typically host 4 featured professional authors and 4 featured children's authors. This year, the following speakers are part of our conference.  If you want to see more details, the printable program with registration information is on our district website. 

Professional Authors
Kelly Gallagher, author of READICIDE, DEEPER READING, TEACHING ADOLESCENT WRITERS and others.  Kelly will be our morning keynote. If you'd like to know more about his work, you can read a recent interview we did with him here.

Patrick Allen, author of CONFERRING: THE KEYSTONE OF THE READING WORKSHOP and PUT THINKING TO THE TEST will be another of our featured speakers.  Patrick also has an amazing blog about his teaching and learning life.

Troy Hicks' work focuses on the Digital Writing Workshop. His books (THE DIGITAL WRITING WORKSHOP and BECAUSE DIGITAL WRITING MATTERS) , blog posts, presentations and tweets have helped so many of us move forward in our thinking about this issue.

Christian Long is another speaker who has great insights into 21st Century Learning. His company Be Playful Designs focuses on school design and innovative environments.. He is a school planner, technology expert, and advocate for innovative communities and educators.

Children's Authors
Brian Pinkney is our afternoon keynote speaker.  His work includes so many powerful titles.  His newest book, written by Andrea Davis Pinkney is SIT-IN: HOW FOUR FRIENDS STOOD UP BY SITTING DOWN.

Loren Long is an Ohio author and illustrator that we love. We first met him when he visited Columbus on the TRUCKTOWN tour with Jon Scieszka.  We have since fallen in love with OTIS, DRUMMER BOY and most recently, President Obama's picture book OF THEE I SING.

Amy Krouse Rosenthal's work has been an inspiration to so many of us, especially her BECKONING THE LOVELY project. (If you have not watched the video, you must do it right now!). Her newest book is THE WONDER BOOK. Others include LITTLE HOOT, DUCK RABBIT, COOKIES: BITE SIZE LIFE LESSONS and BEDTIME FOR MOMMY.

Wendy Mass is another children's author that will be part of our conference. Her newest book CANDYMAKERS is quite fun and popular with middle grade/middle school children. As are all of her books. Those of you that read this blog may remember when I wanted to start a Wendy Mass fan club after reading JEREMY FINK AND THE MEANING OF LIFE. 

On top of our amazing list of featured speakers, we run about 20+ concurrent sessions two times during the conference.  These sessions are put on by Dublin teachers as well as others who submit proposals. If you are blog readers, you will recognize lots of people from our local bloggers' group on the program.

Local Bloggers 
Cathy Mere (REFLECT AND REFINE) and Katie DiCesare (CREATIVE LITERACY) will be talking about "Picture Book Possibilities: Using Literature to Collaborate with Learners.

Mary Lee Hahn  will share ideas for "Promoting Reading Engagement In and Out of School"

Scott Sibberson (SCOTT SIBBERSON) will present on "Web 2.0 Tools for Teachers".

Mandy Robek (ENJOY AND EMBRACE LEARNING) session is titled, "Something Old, Something New"

Julie Johnson (RAISING READERS AND WRITERS) and colleagues will present "Count on Communication: Weaving Writing and Conversation into Your Math Class".

Maria Caplan (TEACHING IN THE 21st CENTURY) will be presenting with her school's Technology Specialist on "Integrating iPods and Technology into Your Classroom".

Bill Prosser and Karen Terlecky (LITERATE LIVES) "The Best and the Brightest Books of 2010".

Tony Keefer (ATYCHIPHOBIA) "Crafting Digital Picture Books".

and I will be talking about  "How Can Technology Tools Impact the Reading Workshop".

Add these to the amazing Dublin teachers who are sharing their learning, how can it not be an amazing day of learning. I wish I could hear everybody!

On top of the great speakers, they'll be lots of great books for sale, time for lunch and chatting with colleagues, a Technology Playground and student work on display.    What a great way to spend a Saturday. It is one of our favorite days of the year! We hope you can join us.

NCTE in Words and Pictures: Franki's Version

Mary Lee inspired me to share my NCTE convention week in words and pictures!  As did everyone else, I had a great time and learned lots.  The energy at the convention was amazing and I came home with my head spinning from all of the new learning. I mentioned earlier that I heard several sessions on 21st century literacies and am glad to have had the chance to hear Karl Fisch after having followed his blog for so long.  I loved his message. Too often I got to "tech" workshops and the focus is on the technology or the product but the actual teaching goes against what I believe about kids and learning.  But Karl Fisch is grounded in good teaching and understands learning. It was definitely a highlight.
The convention opened with speaker Gary Knell, President and CEO of Sesame Workshop. What a great opening!  So many great things going on at Sesame Street. As always, I was amazed with their mission not only in the US but around the world. I was also happy to hear that "THE ELECTRIC COMPANY" will be returning! Wooohooo!  We saw some great clips and it was a great celebration of learning and literacy. And guess who joined Gary Knell at NCTE?  One of my favorite muppets--GROVER! What a treat!  You can see that my friend, Shari Frost, and I had our photo taken with him after the opening celebration. Check out the Sesame Street website and keep your eye out for The Electric Company that is sure to be a hit again!

Another treat was the Books for Children Luncheon featuring children's author, Tomie dePaola!  It was a great celebration with so many children's authors--one at every table. It was so fun to be in a room with so many children's authors and children's books!  I was excited to be able to sit at Tomie dePaola's table and I received a copy of his new and gorgeous pop-up book, BRAVA, STREGA NONA: A HEARTWARMING POP-UP BOOK  I LOVE this book. Growing up in a 100% Italian Family, this book is a true gift. Strega Nona gives us her secrets to a magical life and they include things like family and friends and food! The pop-up art is amazing and Tomie dePaola demonstrated how to open and close the book properly to see the gorgeous art! I had not heard dePaola speak for about 15+ years so it was such a treat. He talked a bit about some of the books he has coming out soon so we can look forward to those as well. But if you are looking for a great gift for a family member (especially an Italian one) this new pop-up book says so much!


If you don't know Nancy Johnson, she was a key person on the Elementary Section Steering Committee who organized the luncheon and she is the perfect person to do this! (You should check out her book THE WONDER OF IT ALL: WHEN LITERATURE AND LITERACY INTERSECT.) Here she is with Ralph Fletcher getting last minute details figured out before the event. Ralph announced this year's NCTE Excellence in Poetry Award winner which will be announced on the NCTE website soon!



Other highlights included Kathi Yancey's general session on Sunday, Barbara Ehrenreich's talk on her book NICKEL AND DIMED IN AMERICA, and Regie Routman's talk entitled, "Raising Expectation, Results and Enjoyment for All Learners: What Does It Take?" If you have the chance to hear any of these speakers, they were phenomenal!

Professional Books I Am Revisiting to Get Ready for the School Year

I have 3 tall shelves full of professional books.  They take up a lot of space and there are times when I wonder why I keep them. Friends sometimes ask why I keep them--haven't you already read them? they ask.

Today, I remembered exactly why I have kept so many professional books.  My classroom is nearly finished and I've attended lots of professional development over the summer. I've learned about Common Core and new things that will be in place this school year.  The children come on Wednesday and these next few days are the days that I have to really think and plan those first few days of school.   I have the pacing guides and curriculum standards.  I know the routines that I'll put in place. The room is set up and I have the books and resources organized so students have the learning tools they need.  But these next few days are about getting my head in the game, remembering what really matters in those first few days. These books will help me do that.

I spent about 20 minutes in front of my three shelves this morning scanning the shelves for books I needed to revisit over the next few days.  Books that will help me take my time and do the right things during these first few weeks of school.  I won't read these books cover to cover but I'll pop in and out of them as I plan for the first 2-3 weeks of the school year.  Digging in will help the planning be more smooth and it will help me be more intentional about each of these first few days.

These are the books I am digging back into a bit as I think and plan for this most important week of the school year.

What's Most Important?

These are the books I revisit to reground myself. These three books are probably the most important books I've read--books that really help me think about the language I use with children and the messages (intentional and unintentional) I give them by the things I say and do.  It is easy to forget these things in the chaos of the first few days--when I don't know the kids and they don't know me.  But they are listening closely and I am setting the stage for what learning means in this classroom so I need to reread pieces of this to remind me how important it is to stay true to the language I believe in.

Choice Words and OOpening Minds: Using Language to Change Lives by Peter Johnston
I'm not sure how I taught before I read Choice Words but I have revisited this book more times than any other professional book I own. So important!  His new book, Opening Minds is just as important and I need to revisit it in order to build more of that into my early days this year.

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carolyn Dweck
This is the most important idea I need to carry around with me, all day, every day.


Those First Few Weeks of Literacy Workshop
Setting up workshop routines never gets easier. The only thing that makes it easier is the realization that it's always hard and there is always a day when I think to myself, "I'm not sure I can do this!". So, I have to think carefully about the routines I put in place right away, the conversations that begin our year together and the tools we have for learning.

Launch an Intermediate Writing Workshop: Getting Started with Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5 by Lucy Calkins and Marjorie Martinelli
Although I won't use this unit lesson-by-lesson, it will help me hear Lucy's words about launching.

Significant Studies for Second Grade - Reading & Writing Investigations for Children (04) by Ruzzo, Karen - Sacco, Maryanne [Paperback (2004)]
Series books will be important to early third grade readers so I want to revisit the unit of study in this book on series books that is so brilliantly thought out.

Smarter Charts K-2: Optimizing an Instructional Staple to Create Independent Readers and Writers by Marjorie Martinellis and Kristi Mraz
I've been rethinking charts since I read this book. Then I had the opportunity to interview them and did even more rethinking.  I am definitely not being as thoughtful about charts in literacy as I can/should be so I want to think about this during these first few days.

Don't Forget to Share: The Crucial Last Step in the Writing Workshop by Leah Mermelstein
Share is a piece of the workshop that I often let go and I know better! This book helps me to remember that share is another teaching opportunity and it will remind me how to make it purposeful for the students.

From Ideas to Words: Writing Strategies for English Language Learners by Tasha Tropp Laman
(This is one I haven't had time to read yet but it is on the top of my pile and I need to dig in a bit before Wednesday!)

Math Learning
I have a stack of professional books about math teaching pulled from my shelves.  Just as the routines and conversations are important in literacy workshops, they are just as important in math workshops.  These books will help me think about how to make those happen during the first few days.

Number Talks: Helping Children Build Mental Math and Computation Strategies, Grades K-5 by Sherry Parrish
This routine is amazing and I need to dig in and think about how it will look different in 3rd grade.

Math Exchanges: Guiding Young Mathematicians in Small Group Meetings by Kassia Omohundro Wedekind
This is an amazing book on small group instruction in math.  I won't be starting groups immediately but hopefully in the first 2 weeks so I want to revisit this one to remember the big ideas Kassia shares.

So, I'm off to plan!  There are many other books on my shelves that I will revisit as the year goes on but these are the books I pulled today to help me be ready for the first few days with a new group of children.

Any other books that I need to revisit during these first few weeks of a new school year?

Author Interview: Shelley Harwayne

A few weeks ago, I reviewed the upcoming professional book by Shelley Harwayne called LOOK WHO'S LEARNING TO READ. This is a great resource for preschool teachers, childcare providers, parents, and grandparents. This book is due out in July. As I was looking at it again today, I realized that it stretches far beyond preschool and Kindergarten. I found lots of fun things I can revise a bit for older kids--in homes, classrooms, libraries, etc. By far, its main audience is parents and early childhood teachers but so much that can be used beyond age 5 or 6.

For those of you who know Shelley, she has always stayed strong in her beliefs about children and literacy. In her introduction to the book, Shelley lets us in on the principles that she honors as she works with children. Some of my favorites include:

*Children need choice. They love to be part of making decisions.
*Children deserve the finest literature. We need to be fussy about the books we borrow or buy for them.
*Children need to laugh every day. And their silly sense of humor often differs from ours.
*Children need to know that we think they are clever when they ask questions, not simply when they answer questions.

I am thrilled that Shelley has taken on early childhood education. This book is a huge contribution to the field. We spent some time interviewing her about her book. As always, Shelley gives us lots to think about.

Franki: Tell us how you've become so interested in early childhood literacy.

Shelley: I didn't choose early childhood literacy as an area of interest. It chose me! What with 5 grandchildren in my care, how could I not be fascinated by their entrance into the world of literacy? They teach me new things about language acquisition and literacy learning everyday.
Franki: One of my favorite things was the list of principles you stick to when thinking about children. Can you tell us about the basic principles that you believe are important for children.


Shelley: As to the list of principles, I will address them one by one. Children need choice: It's interesting to me that when there is a moment of stress with the little ones, I can usually make that go away by giving them a choice.So if Zach wants Ben's toys, I simply ask, " What would you rather do, play with Ben's helicopter or do a puzzle with Grandma?" He usually chooses the latter and if he does choose Ben's toy, we usually engage in a lovely conversation about why the helicopter is so much fun." Partly the distraction calms him, but also it's making him feel that he is part of the decision-making in the family. "So the helicopter moves so fast, it's no wonder you want a turn. When Ben finishes playing with it, it will be your turn." Children deserve the finest of literature. Quite simply, they won't say "Read it again, if it's not a great story." Then too, it's a bit of "So little time, so many books!' I don't want to waste their time. I want books that they talk about when we are not reading them. Laughter is good for young children's emotional life and for mine! There is nothing like the p words to get pre-schoolers going: pee-pee, poopie, and the like. The sillier we get, the happier they seem. There is also a great deal of laughter attached to our language play. Just ask a 3 year old if he wants a bamburger for dinner. I am just amazed at how quickly youngsters acquire language.I can recall the first time my granddaughter realized that words that sound the same can mean different things like the ant that crawls on your picnic blanket and the aunt who is married to your uncle. I deliberately use synonyms as often as I can and as naturally as I can. “Choose one cupcake. C'mon select just one. It's up to you to pick your favorite." I must admit that I work really hard not to talk about myself in the third person. There is no reason to say, "Grandma will help you," when "I will help you," is a more natural language pattern. I also took great delight the first time I heard my grandkids use such words as , "actually" or say, “Seriously, Grandma." As to a wide range of ways to use language, I think we just need to expose them to rich language in all its possible contexts.The way you root for a team differs from the way you talk to the pediatrician. The way you talk to an elderly aunt may differ form the way you talk to a repairman. Commend children for working hard. Many studies have been done in this regard. Sometimes when children are told over and over again that they are smart, they begin to fear not looking smart and therefore take less risks, accept fewer challenges. Children who are commended for working hard are more likely to accept bigger challenges because they understand and do not fear the hard work that will be needed. Asking questions is a really important one. My grandson Ben recently asked me why some NYC street signs are green and others brown. We looked it up and discovered that historic districts have the brown signs. Imagine a 3 year old led me to learn something so new. In schools as well, kids need to know that it is not how many great questions you answer but how many you ask that sets you apart and demonstrates your intellectual curiosity. Rituals, of course. Children need to know what is expected. They thrive on boundaries. Creating rituals is one way to help them understand how the world works and what is around the bend. Empathy is what we look for in our friends and neighbors, not how they scored on a fourth grade exam. Children are always watching. Adults who show empathy are more likely to raise children who show empathy. And of course, carefully selected literature puts issues of empathy on the front burner.

Franki: What is the best thing parents and childcare providers can do to support literacy?

Shelley: Read aloud, read aloud, read aloud! Be fussy about what you read aloud and talk about the books together with your child.

Franki: What are some of your new favorite books for young children—new children's books that you love and that are perfect for young children?

Shelley: Every day it seems I have a new favorite. My 3 and 4 year olds laughed out loud with GORGONZOLA. My five year old adores Eileen Spinelli's SOMEDAY.

Franki: I imagine that each of your grandchildren respond differently to the different things you do. Can you share a few favorite stories of literate moments with your grandchildren?
Shelley: Lately,my grandkids love to play Stump Me. It's written up in the book. We tell stories rather generically to one another and the other person has to guess the story. This is a favorite bathtime activity. Will the 3 year old recently initiated, Stump Me with Songs. He hums a song and asks me to guess and then we reverse roles. Our almost 6 year old has begun playing, Fortunately, Unfortunately. She begins a story and then says Unfortunately...I have to continue the story and add Fortunately and on it goes. She has also taken to MadLibs for Juniors which simply delights me. I also love walking down the city street and Ben, (3 1/2) announces, “Please Curb Your Dog.” or Will, our 3 year old spots his name in books and newspapers, minus the capital "W'.

Franki: Can you tell us some of the favorite activities (from the book) in your family?

Shelley: I would say the top activities in the book, besides Stump Me, have been the storytelling jug filled with random party favors, pretending to use a rhyming word instead of someone's name, " I want to write something. please bring me a Ben. I mean pen," and songs with a twist. We are always inventing parodies, versions, etc.

Franki: What are your next projects--things that we can look forward to?

Shelley: Well, I have a series of emergent readers coming out with Scholastic. 32 will be released this month. They are very simple 8 page books about Ben and Ruby. I think the series is called I'm Reading Now! I have just written a few dozen more.

I am also considering writing about offering young writers easier structures or containers for their writing as opposed to these "show-off" genres that are so popular today and take so much time and appear too sophisticated for most kids. The ones I am thinking about only take a week and yet you can push for high quality because the structures don't get in the way. It's just like teaching a reading strategy and then the child tries to apply it to too hard reading material. Other things get in the way. I think the same things happen with issues of craft. I prefer teaching craft issues in rather easy structures so that the child really internalizes his understanding. These are my "intermission" ideas, things to do when you are not having formal studies. Of course, I would love for teachers to let children do more free exploration in the writing workshop, another one of my intermission ideas.