Poem #22--Did Someone Say Only 30 More Days?

Overheard at Spinning Class

or

The Last Six Weeks of School

(or both)

Hold that load!

Don't touch that knob!

You've got one more chance

to push yourself to a nine!

Everything that's left in your tank?

Give it now!

Stay strong!

Go for it!

by Mary Lee Hahn, copyright 2010

FARM by Elisha Cooper

I so loved Elisha Cooper's book BEACH last year, that I was thrilled to see his new book FARM on the shelves. FARM is easily recognizable as Cooper's work if you have his book BEACH. In this new book, readers learn the workings of a farm. The cycle of the year and the way the farm works is all part of this book. There is a lot of information about farms in general and a short glossary at the front of the book adds to the learning. The information is told in a kind of story format in which we learn the names of the animals and about the children's chores.

The thing I love most about this book is the language and the humor spread throughout. Just as in his first book, this shows times on the farm in which several things happening at once. The layout helps readers understand that the farm is a busy place.

This book would be a great one for anyone who teaches about the farm. So much information packed into a gorgeously written picture book. It would fit nicely into many social studies units. But, even if you don't teach something related to this topic, this is a great mentor text for writing. Children can learn a lot from Cooper's writing.

Poem #21--Haiku Response to Literature

This week, I gave my students the option to write their responses to their nightly reading in haikus instead of sentences. I thought I'd give it a try.

I'm listening to Bill Bryson read his book, Shakespeare: The World As Stage:

So few facts are known;

what we "know," we speculate.

Still fascinating.

by Mary Lee Hahn, copyright 2010

Google Search Stories by Favorite Book Characters!

So, I have been fascinated with the concept of Google Search stories for the last several days. Mary Lee included one in her poetry post earlier last week. Kevin at Kevin's Meandering Mind shared his students' stories too. I love how the searches tell stories. I wanted to learn but hadn't given myself the time to figure it out. But....today, I LOVED the two that Sesame Street released--search stories from Cookie Monster and Bert. (I find Bert's to be HYSTERICAL!)



I was totally inspired and realized how fun this would be for kids. What story would) their favorite book character tell with a search story? I am all about making myself learn these new tools so I tried one today. And the first favorite character that popped to mind was Pigeon of course! So, here is my first try. How much fun is this? Wish I had nothing to do but to make more search stories today. Kids could have a ball with this. My daughter helped with this one and I imagine she'll make her own sometime soon. Kids could even make them as riddles--others could guess who did the search story. I am not into book projects or gimmicky things but I find these search stories totally fun and love the possibilities of our favorite fictional characters creating their own search stories as a way to learn and play with this tool.



If you have not had time to play with these, I would highly suggest it. I am amazed at the stories that people have created. Time to create your own:-)

The BEAUTIFUL STORIES OF LIFE by Cynthia Rylant

I pretty much buy anything new that Cynthia Rylant writes. She is one of my all-time favorite authors and she rarely, if ever, lets me down with her books. I had somehow missed THE BEAUTIFUL STORIE OF LIFE: SIX GREEK MYTHS, RETOLD by Rylant when it came out last year, but my friend, Jennifer, shared it with me. Maybe I did see it last year, but hadn't paid much attention to it. But this year, with so many kids reading the Percy Jackson series and wanting more to read connected to Greek Mythology, I was thrilled to see something on mythology by Rylant. I was also surprised--mythology didn't seem like something Rylant would take on. But the inside flap of the book says this:

The ancient Greek Myths

are among the oldest stories

in the world.

These are tales of love and loss,

pride and forgiveness,

courage and cowardice,

and hope.

They are the beautiful

stories of life.

Of course this type of book makes sense for Rylant. Her work is all about the beautiful stories of life.

I loved the Disney CINDERELLA that Rylant recently rewrote. Her language and view of the world makes her version my very favorite ever. She seem to do the same with the six Greek Myths that she retells in this new book.

The book is a small one and only 70 pages long. Each of the six stories is about 10-12 short pages long. These pages include great black and white illustrations by Carson Ellis. As we expect from Rylant, these stories are each retold in a way that only Rylant can do. Her great use of language and her deep understanding of the mythology and life in general, make for great storytelling.

These six myths--Pandora, Persephone, Orpheus, Pygmalion, Narcissus and Psyche would make great read alouds for middle school kids. And I can see many fans of Greek Mythology reading this book on his/her own. Each story is short enough to be read in one sitting. So much in each story. This is a great introduction to Greek Mythology and also a great way to stretch those kids who have become interested in mythology because of Percy Jackson.

Poem #20 Lightning Thief Metaphor Poems (and a testing poem)

Did I tell you about my students' National Poetry Month project? When they heard I was going to write a poem a day, one girl said, "We should write a poem a day about the people in our class."

And that's what we've done every day since April 5. We've written poems for about 10 of our classmates so far. (that's almost 200 poems!!!) On the day we write poems for them, they write a poem for me. I wish I could share some of the beautiful poems they've written, but most often, the recipient's name is part of the poem.

I gave my students the instructions for writing yesterday's "If-You-Were" Metaphor Poems, but we haven't had a chance to talk about how they work or for the students to see my examples. Today during his free time after testing, one of my students wrote these poems for a friend who LOVES The Lightning Thief:

If you were the lightning bolt

and I was the clouds

I'd let you streak

under me.

If you were a god

and I was a demigod

I'd let you shine

above me.

Whoa. Did that knock your socks off like it did mine?!?!?

Here's my poem for today:

SOUNDS OF TESTING

Silence.

Uncharacteristic silence.

Focused silence.

Pages turning.

Pencils scratching.

Erasers rubbing.

Birds singing in the trees outside the window.

Roofers pounding on the condos next door.

Children screaming from the playground.

Silence of working.

Silent cheer of finishing.

Almost silent rustling of waiting.

Waiting...

Finishing...

TIME'S UP!

YAY!

by Mary Lee Hahn, copyright 2010

TRACKERS by Patrick Carman

I am a huge fan of Skeleton Creek and so are many of the 5th graders at our school. It isn't so much the genre or story. I liked those though. But I am a fan because Patrick Carman has tried something new and powerful with books for kids. In Skeleton Creek and Ghost in the Machine, he embedded video in the book so that the text told part of the story and the video clips online told the other part. This was done in a way that worked--the two parts of the book worked so well together and I could see how motivating this could be for kids. So, I was happy to see TRACKERS, another series by Patrick Carman, that did the same thing. (I am imagining books like this on things such as the iPad where the video can just play at a certain point in the book. I am starting to understand the whole concept of this type of reading so much better thanks to Carman.)

Trackers is a thriller/adventure/science fiction story about 4 kids who are trackers. They are pretty much spies with very cool gadgets that they've created and perfected. This may sounds Spy-Kid like and it is but it is intended for a more sophisticated audience than Spy Kids. My thinking is 5th grade and above. There is a lot of technical "stuff" that kids need to semi-understand in order to understand this book.

Adam, the main character in the book, has created a space for himself that he calls "The Vault". His father owns and operated a computer repair shop and since he was little, Adam played around with gadgets, etc. When he turned 9, his father gave him a little room in the back of the shop for him to fiddle around in. The room is an amazing concept and one that hooked me into the book immediately. A kid who has a place to play and create and figure things out on his own. He is quite the little prodigy.

I won't give too much away about the book but Adam is discovered by some people who threaten him unless he solves a very important computer code for them.

The entire story is told by Adam who is relaying it in a "classified location" letting the readers assume that Adam has been "caught" and is in trouble. The entire story unfolds as Adam tells the story and then "shows" videoclips throughout. As we get to each clip, we, as readers, are given a site and password so that we can watch the videos. As with Skeleton Creek, Carman has done a great job of embedding the video throughout. The two forms of media work together to tell the complete story.

The one difference in this book, which I think I like, is that you CAN read the book without watching the videos. Each video is transcribed in the Appendix of the book. So, instead of watching the clip on a computer, the reader can instead read the transcript at the back of the book. I tried a bit o both. I liked watching the videos--it breaks up the story for kids a bit and gave me scenes, etc. visually. But the appendix pieces did a great job too. I know that I had kids who could not read Skeleton Creek because they did not have Internet access at home. This will allow kids who do not have access to the Internet to experience the entire book. There were also times when I was reading at night,when I really did not want to get up and watch the clip. Having the option of the transcribed video was a nice option to have:-)

The only thing I didn't like is that the book ended in quite the cliffhanger!? Now I have to wait for the 2nd book! I should have remembered this from Skeleton Creek but I don't think I was totally aware that Trackers is the first in a series. My thinking was that things would tie up and fall together neatly by the end of the book. I guess I'll have to wait for the next book in the series to get some more answers.

This book will be released on May 11. I am thrilled to see Patrick Carman continue with these books for kids. I already have several 5th graders who are dying to read this one--even without knowing the basics of the story, they know that Patrick Carman writes fresh stories that grab them from the beginning. So many kids have moved on to Carman's other books once they discovered Skeleton Creek.

Poem #19--"If-You-Were" Metaphor Poems

Back in January, Father Goose (Charles Ghigna), introduced a new poetry form: the "If-You-Were" Poem. He explains the form in this post, saying,

"Here's a fun verse form that everyone can write! I created this simple 4-line format many years ago to help introduce students and teachers to metaphor. It's exciting to see how quickly it catches on!

Instructions:
Think of a person you like.
Compare that person to some thing (inanimate object).
Now compare yourself to some thing associated with the first object."

I'm asking my students to try this form this week, so I thought I better see how it goes so I can give them some insider tips. Here are my attempts:

If you were the pencil

and I were the answer,

we'd find each other

like the dance finds the dancer.

If you were the wonder

and I were the thought,

we'd play hooky in springtime

and never get caught!

If you were the butterfly

and I were the net,

I'd watch without catching

and have no regrets.

by Mary Lee Hahn, copyright 2010

Apple Crisp is on the Menu Today at the Alphabet Soup Kitchen

Jama Rattigan, at jama rattigan's alphabet soup, is hosting a potluck for National Poetry Month. Here's how she describes her yummy project:

"I've set the table, chilled the wine, hired a string quartet (don't worry, some jazz musicians will be joining us later), and am ready to enjoy a month's worth of poems written by some of the wonderful folks I've met through Poetry Friday.

I've been hooked on PF ever since I first started blogging in 2007. Every week, I look forward to seeing what beautiful, inspiring, funny, or thought provoking poems these friends will post. Whether they've written the poems themselves, or have chosen the work of others, I'm grateful for the momentary glimpse into their emotional lives.

I thought inviting them to the alphabet soup kitchen for a potluck would be the perfect way to celebrate National Poetry Month. I asked each to share an original poem and a favorite recipe, and they all, without hesitation, enthusiastically agreed (further evidence of their overall awesomeness). They came through for me in a big way, even sharing recipe photos. Friends, this is going to be a supremely delicious month -- a bountiful, nourishing feast for body, mind, and spirit!"

Today, it's MY turn to share the spotlight! Head on over to alphabet soup and enjoy a helping of apple crisp. Thanks, Jama, for inviting me to your feast! It's an honor to sit at your table with

the other (real) poets!

Moving Toward My Vision for the SMARTBoard in the Library

I see huge possibilities for creation and collaboration if this took is always available to students. Because the size of the board is so large, it is so much more natural to collaborate and problem solve around it than around a keyboard. I can see so many ways that kids can collaborate in their creations. Creation demands collaboration and it seems that the SMART Board can really support those goals.

But, as I said, patience is key. I have to spend lots of time setting up possibilities for the students and inviting them to try different things. This week, my goal was for students to understand that the SMART Board was really just a giant/touchscreen computer and that anything they could do on the computer, they could do on the SMART Board. So, we tried several of our favorite things on the SMART Board--Pixie, Tumblebooks, Pages, etc. One of the things we did with a few classes was a collaborative story. After spending some time looking at the new episodes in the Exquisite Corpse, kids took turns adding to a story. Wouldn't it be fun to have an ongoing story that several kids/classes added to like Jon Scieszka's Exquisite Corpse? I could see an ongoing story like that in the future--watching kids collaborate around writing was fun. As expected, when given the choice to use these tools on the SMART Board independently, the collaboration and conversations were amazing to listen to. As I assumed, the tool almost demands thinking together.

This week, we'll try some Stopmotion editing on the SMART Board with a few groups of 4th graders. I see them huddled around the laptop screen deciding on their next editing job, but the SMART Board should make it so much easier for everyone to be part of the decision-making.

This week, I was thrilled to look over and see 3-5 kids using the board on their own for various purposes. Since it is new for so many of them, learning the basics of how to move an object, how the pens work, how to get the keyboard, etc. are all happening as they explore on their own. I am working hard to help kids see that this is not a teacher tool-that the board is one that can be used for a variety of reasons and that they can use it independently of me. I adamantly believe that for these tools to be worthwhile in the classroom, kids need to be using them to create and collaborate. This will take a while, I know. My thinking is that for the next several weeks and for the first several weeks of next school year, kids will see many of the possibilities of the SMART Board. Then they will take it from there, realizing when the tool will support what they are trying to do.

And, of course, I'll utilize our SMART Board Team. I am hoping to meet with them in the next few weeks to determine where to go next with the board.

Other blog posts on the SMART Board in our library:

http://readingyear.blogspot.com/2010/04/poetry-and-smart-board.html

http://readingyear.blogspot.com/2010/04/poetry-and-smart-board-part-2.html

http://readingyear.blogspot.com/2009/05/smartboards-in-readingwriting-workshop.html