#classroombookaday

One of my students was on a picture book reading binge. She brought me The Pencil, by Allan Ahlberg and suggested it for #classroombookaday. In the story (which another student thought had the feel of a religious creation story) nothing exists but a pencil. Then the pencil draws the world into existence. Things start getting out of hand, so the pencil draws an eraser. Even that doesn't work, so the pencil draws another eraser and they annihilate each other (Noah's Ark, anyone?). The pencil starts over. Carefully.

While we were on the subject of erasers, I had to read my favorite eraser book, The Eraserheads by Kate Banks. These erasers come to life and have adventures. Are the eraserheads alive for real, or just in the imagination of the boy? You decide.

I had just read The Book of Mistakes by Corinna Luyken, and it seemed like the perfect next read. In it, the creator, in the course of drawing, makes mistakes and then makes the mistakes into something wanted. Total surprise ending in this one. It will blow your mind.

The fourth book in this set is one I put out for students to pore over and ponder on their own because it's wordless -- Lines by Suzy Lee. In this book, the lines are made by the blades of an ice skater's skates.

Then, surprise of surprises, this weekend I read Sam & Eva by Debbie Ridpath Ohi. Two children (are they drawing on the walls?!?!) can't agree on what to draw. Then, their drawings pick up on the escalating disagreement and things really start to get out of hand. Literally. The two children draw an escape and start over -- each offering an olive branch to the other.

There's something quite magical about the connections between books!

Classroom BookaDay

Our daily #classroombookaday (Thanks Jillian Heise and Donalyn Miller) is a favorite part of our school day.  We spend the last 5-8 minutes enjoying a book together. These books are often just fun reads that help us end the day with joy.  I am paying attention to new books I read this summer and creating a stack of possible #classroombookaday books. Usually I look for a shorter picture book that is light--I use the other, more complex picture books at other times during the school day. Here are a few books I've discovered this summer that might make great #classroombookaday selections!

Caring for Your Lion--a fun how-to book with lots of humor!

Give Me Back My Book--a fun read aloud with lots of great dialogue!

Nothing Rhymes with Orange-Poor Orange, nothing to rhyme with. Orange's side comments are quite amusing!

Professional Crocodile--a wordless book with a clever surprise!

Little Fox in the Forest

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 have a HUGE collection of wordless picture books. Over the years, I have realized the impact they can have on readers in grades 3-6.  First of all, there are so many gorgeous wordless books and kids can spend hours with them. And many of these books have incredible depth--so much meaning and so many layers embedded in the illustrations. What I love most about wordless picture books are the way they level the playing field for readers--the text is not an issue so for readers who are insecure or reluctant, wordless picture books often allow them to engage in a different way.  I use wordless books often and just found a new favorite.

Little Fox in the Forest is my new favorite wordless book!  I don't want to say too much about it but it is FABULOUS! I don't know where I first saw it but I ordered it right away.  It is happy with a fabulous message and lots to think about as you read the pictures.  Last week, I shared the Kindle version with my kids so they could take time with the pictures as they were on the large screen. This is a must-read, must-have, don't-let-out-of-your-sight new book! You'll definitely want a copy or two!

Little Fox in the Forest by Stephanie Graegin

Picture Book 10-for-10 -- Incidental Diversity

I first encountered the term "Incidental Diversity" in the HornBook article "2015 in Review: The Year in Pictures" by Julie Danielson. Incidental Diversity is "the appearance of characters of color whose ethnicities are incidental to the story."

Now I'm actively on the lookout for such books. Here are 9 books that Julie featured in her article, plus 1 more too good not to share:

Bright Sky, Starry City

Narrative nonfiction about space/planets and light pollution.

Leo: A Ghost Story

Leo is a ghost who has a hard time making friends.

When Green Becomes Tomatoes: Poems for All Seasons

A beautifully illustrated collection of "poems for all seasons."
(truth in advertising!)

One Word from Sophia

Sophia wants a pet giraffe, and with every ask,
is required to be less verbose. 

Great mentor text for writing persuasion.

The Snowy Day

A Classic. Peter goes out and plays in the snow.

Water is Water

"A Book About the Water Cycle" (more truth in advertising!)

Sonya's Chickens

The joys and sorrows of raising and keeping chickens.

What James Said

What James really said and what came back to the main character via the mouths of several friends are two different things.

Lizard in the Park

The trials and tribulations of raising a dinosaur in the city.

Little Robot

Okay, I'm cheating a little on this one. It's a nearly wordless graphic novel, not a picture book per se. But it's so fun, and it goes together with Peter Brown's WILD ROBOT in such interesting ways...robot washes ashore, learns how to be himself, is hunted down by the Robot Corporation to be taken back and made to be
what is expected from a robot.

Circle by Jeannie Baker

I have been a fan of Jeannie Baker's wordless picture books since the beginning of my wordless picture book obsession. Her art and the messages in her books are always powerful.

Circle is a different kind of book for Jeannie Baker but I loved it and can't wait to share it with our 3rd graders next year.  We have a basket of bird books in our classroom and I've try to create a basket with a variety of topics within the bigger topic of birds. I know kids often begin their reading with bird guides as they want to learn to identify various birds. But I've noticed that some readers move on from the basic identification of birds to bigger issues. The book Circle takes us on a journey with the bar-tailed godwit ("who undertake the longest unbroken migration of any animal") as they migrate from Australia/New Zealand to the Arctic and back again.  Baker creates text that helps us understand time and distance as well as the amazing thing that this journey is.  And her illustrations help us appreciate the various places on Earth that are part of the godwits migration.  Not only does she help readers understand all of that but she also invites them to understand the bigger idea of how connected our world is and that changes to one part of the world can have consequences for another. The map in the back of the book showing the migration is also fabulously helpful.  There are so many layers of conversation and learning that I think can happen because of this book and I am excited to add it to our classroom in the fall.

(Another book about this journey is The Long, Long Journey by Sandra Markle. Pairing these two would invite even more great learning.)
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It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

I am finally back into the habit of reading after a few months of a tiny reading slump!  Some of my favorite recent reads:

The Secret Subway

A true story about the first underground train in NYC.  Amazing illustrations too!

Flora and the Peacocks

This may be my favorite of the 3 Flora wordless books!

Guess Who, Haiku

A fun book of Haiku riddles. This would be really fun for younger readers.

You Must Be This Tall

A pretty hysterical book that I can't wait to share with my students.

The Night Gardener

Definitely one of my favorite picture books of 2016. One that I've read several times already.

The Key to Extraordinary

The new book by Natalie Lloyd is fabulous. I was worried that I could not possibly love it as much as I loved Snicker of Magic but I loved it just as much, if not more!

If You Plant a Seed

If You Plant a Seed 
by Kadir Nelson
Balzar + Bray, 2015
review copy from the public library

Just yesterday, I talked to my students about not judging or making assumptions, and yet, count me guilty as charged! I saw this gorgeous cover over and over again during #pb10for10, but it wasn't until my reserve came in at the library and I held it in my hands did I notice who the author/illustrator was. Kadir Nelson...does BUNNIES???

Well, come to find out and do a little research, this isn't the first time Kadir Nelson has done a book featuring animals, instead of people, but not surprisingly, the animals are every bit as expressive as his humans. LOVE the two double-page wordless spreads just before all selfishness breaks loose -- first with the rabbit and mouse (just about to enjoy their harvest) looking at the birds looking at them, and then a full-on view of the expectant and hopeful looks the birds are giving rabbit and mouse. A great place to turn-and-talk.

This is a story about what happens when we plant selfishness vs. what happens when we plant kindness. A good reminder for gardeners of all ages in the garden of Life.

It's Monday! What are you Reading? and Summer #Bookaday

(Visit Teach Mentor Texts for the It's Monday! What Are You Reading? round up.)

I love Donalyn Miller's idea of #Bookaday Challenge. Each summer, she puts out a challenge to herself and to others to read an average of a book-a-day over the summer.  I know I read a lot, but I also know that many of my teacher friends read far more than I do.  And summer is a good time for me to catch up. This summer was a busy one so I knew lots of my books would be short reads. I counted the days of summer and set my goal for 82 books.  I met that goal easily once I got started.  Last week, I was at 99 books. (For the most recent list, you can check out my goodreads account.) Here is how my numbers ended up last time I checked:

57 Picture Books
2 Wordless Picture Books
1 Poetry Books
16 Middle Grade Novels
2 Young Adult Novels
2 Adult Novels
16 Nonfiction Children's Books
3 Graphic Novels

Since Donalyn started this challenge years ago, I have realized how important summer and vacation reading are to me as a teacher and a reader. That extra time to read is critical and it takes far less time every day than I imagine it will.  Setting a goal of a book each day was overwhelming at first but I've discovered that it is very doable.  I have used the library lots and I spent many mornings reading a stack of new picture books.  It doesn't take long to get through a stack of picture books and discover a few gems. At the end of this summer #bookaday, I am reminded again of how important it is for me to read and keep up with new books, I believe strongly in the power of Teacher as Reader and always have.  I need to be a reader myself in order to teach reading, but I also need to read lots of children's books so that I have a menu of books to share with students each year.  (Lucky for me, I LOVE reading children's books as I believe they are the best books out there!) As I choose books and share books with students, I know that knowing 99 more books will help me be a better teacher. It is probably the most important work I do each summer.

Even with all of this summer reading, I still have a huge TBR stack. Seems like the more I read, the more I want to read! But I have so many more possibilities when I make choices about books to share with students in read aloud, mini lessons, conferences and small groups. I can't imagine going into the year without all these new titles in my head.

Some highlights from my summer #bookaday that I haven't blogged much about already:

Picture Books

Dad's First Day

Little Elliot, Big Family (coming October 6!)

To the Sea

Early Chapter Book

Francine Poulet Meets the Ghost Raccoon

Nonfiction

Swan: The Life and Dance of Anna Pavlova

Untamed: The Wild Life of Jane Goodall

Middle Grade Novels

All the Answers

Echo

Paper Things

Crenshaw

The Truth About Twinkie Pie

The Thing About Jellyfish

Graphic Novel

Sunny Side Up

Wordless Picture Book

Sidewalk Flowers

World Building

These weeks before school actually starts are some of my favorites. This is the time when we can live entirely in our imagination. We create inviting spaces we hope the students we haven't yet met will love as much as we do. We choose first books and first activities envisioning the response we hope to elicit. In our minds, a caring, connected community works joyfully and collaboratively.  I have to believe that this dreaming, imagining and visualizing are part of what helps to make all that come true as the school year begins, unfolds, develops, changes, and gels. (And, to be truthful, the beginning, unfolding, developing, changing, and gelling are ALSO my favorite weeks -- sometimes months -- of school!!)

I can't show you all the little teaching movies that are playing in my mind these days, but I can give you a peek at my new classroom. I'm really excited (to say the least) to be trying out some really new (for me) ways of thinking about seating and spaces.

Here's a pano from the doorway:

On the left, you see our office space. OUR. I try to keep my pile to a minimum, and students learn to respectfully move my stuff aside if they want to work on the big computer that sits at that desk. On the right is some common work space. My classroom library is mostly around the perimeter of the room. Fiction to the left, nonfiction on the tall shelf by the smartboard, picture books by the window, poetry and nonfiction overflow to the right. There are three shelves anchoring tables/desks: wordless picture books, word study books, and (in the "new" shelf my neighbors generously left at their curb as "trash" -- minor damage on the bottom shelf that was fixed with wood putty) folk tales and mythology.

Here are some snapshots around the room from left to right:

In front of our office space, you can see a shelf for shared supplies, and a little reading/work/meeting space around a low round table.

These two standing desks are new. Eight spots in my classroom without chairs. The idea for including standing spaces was inspired by several tweets from my principal, and by discussions with my brother, who works at a standing desk. I can't wait to see what my students think of this! As I've set the classroom up, I've found myself working at them all the time. Lots of professionals work standing up at least part of the time -- artists, chefs, scientists, conductors, singers, teachers...so why not students?!?

This table of six has stools instead of chairs. Good for building core muscles!

In the back, on the tile, we have building/making/Genius Hour materials.

This pano makes my room seem as big as an auditorium! I took it standing at the smart board and looking out into the room. I started over my left shoulder at the picture books. They are actually parallel to me, not perpendicular as they seem! Same with the nonfiction on the right -- they are beside the smartboard and are looking out into the room like I am. If you focus on the center of the room, you can see the five primary work spaces, and in front of the smartboard, our meeting space for minilessons, sharing, and such.

It's going to be a great year! I can't wait to meet my students and get started!

Power of Series and Wordless Picture Books

Last week, Gretchen Taylor (@GretchenETaylor) and I did a session on Series Books and Wordless Picture Books.  We had a great time and gave teachers lots of time to look at wordless picture books. Here are the slide from our session.

Dublin Leadership Academy 2015: The Power of Series Books and Wordless Picture Books from Franki22

My Online Reading Life

I haven't felt like I've been reading a lot lately.  With the projects and things I have going on, I haven't been able to lose myself in a book like I usually do.  But then I read Donalyn Miller's Nerdy Book Club post about reading fast and short and realized that I have been reading a great deal of short texts. I thought I'd share some of my recent favorites.

I am a huge Carry On, Warrior fan and try to read Glennon Doyle Melton's blog daily. I especially loved this recent post and think it speaks to teachers too.
It's Just as Simple and As Hard as This by Glennon Doyle Melton at Momastery

I am a huge fan of theSkimm and I read it daily. But I recently discovered Skimm Guides. These writers help us out if we haven't been keeping up on an issue that seems important. They've written guides to summarize the issues and what is happening with them. They are so helpful. This week, I read the Guide explaining "The Supremes" and all the current work the Supreme Court has ahead.  It was an easy way to catch up and now I feel pretty smart about it!  (If you do not get the daily theSkimm newsletter, I HIGHLY recommend it. You will feel smarter every day because of it!

I laughed out loud at this Buzzed article--How To Know You've Found Your Teaching BFF. How would we survive without these fabulous colleagues who get us through some stressful moments and who make our jobs even more fun!

Bud the Teacher recently moved to a new role and I love the challenge he gave himself. I think we can all benefit from reading it and giving it a try.

Chris Lehmann, principal of the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia always has wise words and asks hard question. His post What If is an important one.

I've been exploring the new Stenhouse book, Well Played online.  I love the preview feature and have been getting to know the book before it is available. I have trouble reading the entire thing on the site but do like the opportunity to read short pieces as I think about how the book can help me as a math teacher.

Wordless News is a site I learned about from Kristin Ziemke during her All Write session. It is a great site I've been exploring--love the concept and am thinking of ways to use it with kids.

Four Must-Have New Picture Books!

I've been discovering lots of fun picture books lately--books that are great for read aloud or any kind of sharing.

I read Marilyn's Monster to the kids during the last few minutes of the day before Spring Break. They were glued --the loved it.  They immediately noted similarities to Beekle, one of their all-time favorites. This is a great author/illustrator team. Author, Michelle Knudsen, wrote Library Lion and illustrator Matt Phelan illustrated The Storm in the Barn and Bluffton.  This is such a fun story with such adorable monsters that you can't help but fall in love with it.

Goodnight Already! by Jory John is going to make a fabulous read The Terrible Two as a read aloud in my 3rd grade classroom--the kids know co-author Mac Barnett as he visited our school. It will be fun for them to get to know Jory John's picture books as they already love his Terrible Two series. This book is especially good for primary classrooms--I think kids will laugh out loud. (And if you visit Jory John's website, beware--there are some pretty cute magnets for sale so you might spend a chunk of money between the book and the magnets. Don't say I didn't warn you:-)
aloud!  I loved it when I first glanced at the cover.  It is a fun story of a bear who is sleeping and his duck friend who is wide awake--and who wants some company. The story and illustrations are quite fun.

Our literacy coach shared I Know a Bear with us last week. My kids had a very long discussion after reading the book. The book seems to be a simple story about a girl and a bear but it is more than that. It is a story of the friendship between the girl and the bear but it also brings in issues of animals/zoos.  Kids can enter this at many levels as there are many layers of invitation here.

Sidewalk Flowers is my new favorite wordless picture books. I was so happy to find this one! It is such an amazing book!  SO SO SO SO wonderful. It is the story of a little girl and her father walking home from somewhere. The little girl is busy noticing so many things around her on their walk.  The father doesn't notice so much but he is patient with her noticing.  This story is similar to many in its message and the idea of a black and white world with colorful flowers will make for great conversation. Definitely one with so many possibilities for the classroom.

These were four must-haves for me. I loved them all for different reasons but they are all perfect for elementary classrooms or libraries. Such fun and such great conversation starters.