Book Purchases

I made a trip to Cover to Cover this week and picked up a stack of books.  It is so different shopping as a classroom teacher than it was to shop as a librarian.  I understand the way kids are changing as readers. I know which books are being passed around.  And I can predict ways I can stretch a child from one type of book to another. Today's trip was one with few expectations. I didn't really need anything so I wasn't sure what I was looking for. But a few titles caught my eye because I knew they might move readers.  I left with a bag of a few new titles that I am excited about and a few not-so-new titles that I think might be perfect for a few students ready to grow in new directions as readers.

I am very excited about Follow Follow: A Book of Reverso Poems --I loved Singer and am excited about this new book of Reverso poems.

I read about Athlete vs. Mathlete on the blog Mary Lee's kids are keeping about 2013 books. Columbus Dispatch Kid Readers is a great resource for 2013 books and I think it will be an expensive blog for me to read.

I also picked up some new Goosebumps titles.  A few students have had their first Goosebumps experience with the graphic novel so I thought I'd share some of these with them.   I picked up some brand new ones as the one I have are old and tattered. Excited to see if these hook anyone.

One of my students, a Hunger Games fan, just decided to try the Gregor series because he loves Suzanne Collins. He read Gregor The Overlander (Underland Chronicles, Book 1) which is the only one I have in the room. So I thought I'd pick up #2 and #3 in case more kids start reading this.  Not many kids read it before Hunger Games but it seems to be more popular now.

I have a group of kids who has been reading We are the Ship by Kadir Nelson.  In January, they discovered Walter Dean Myers book The Journal of Biddy Owens, the Negro Leagues, Birmingham, Alabama, 1948 and loved it.  I realized that there are more historical fiction books in this journal form by Myers so thought I'd pick a few up. I think the kids who liked the other book may like them. I also think they might appeal to my I Survived fans.

And I am MOST excited about Lisa Graff's new book A Tangle of Knots. I love Lisa Graff and have yet to be disappointed by any of her books. This one looks fabulous and I hope to read it soon!

Poetry Friday -- Ummm...

Ode to the Word on the Tip of My Tongue

You're so...
(I'm speechless)

Whenever you...
(I'm mum)

The best thing...
(I'm silenced)

I love how you...
(struck dumb)


© Mary Lee Hahn, 2013

Tara has the Poetry Friday Roundup at A Teaching Life.

Navigating Early

Navigating Early
by Clare Vanderpool
Delacorte Press, 2013
review copy ARC provided by Cover to Cover Books for Young Readers

It's been a long time since a book has grabbed me by the collar and sat me down in a chair and refused to let me up until I finished it.

Navigating Early wiggled its way into my school bag and forced me to read during SSR time, as I ate lunch, and while my students were at art.

I fell in love with Jack, from flat, wide open Kansas, who pukes the first time he looks at the ocean. And I fell in love with Early, who listens to Billie Holiday when it rains. I fell in love with the stories within the story -- the travels of Pi that match both the digits of Pi as well as the adventure Jack and Early have in the backwoods of Maine.

I couldn't help myself -- I dogeared the page corner at Chapter 21 -- the first time I can ever remember encountering fly fishing in a children's book (not to mention a spirited argument about why Jesus could possibly have been "a likely candidate for fly-fishing").

Navigating Early is mysterious and magical, brimful of surprising characters, and with an ending that's a sigh of satisfaction.

Move Navigating Early to the top of your must-read list. You won't regret it.



Also reviewed by
Kevin at Kevin's Meandering Mind
Katherine at Read, Write, Reflect
Colby at Sharpread

Amelia Bedelia -- Celebrating 50 Years

Amelia Bedelia Fiftieth Anniversary Edition
by Peggy Parish
illustrated by Fritz Siebel
Greenwillow Books, 1963/2013
review copy provided by the publisher

Hard to believe that Amelia Bedelia has been blundering along taking life literally for fifty years. I bet she still makes a mean lemon meringue pie!

This Fiftieth Anniversary Edition of the original picture book comes with seven pages of backmatter, including original advertisements, The Story Behind the Story with information about both Peggy Parish and Fritz Siebel, and a timeline of the ways Amelia Bedelia has been portrayed in illustrations from 1963 to the present.

It doesn't seem fair that while all the rest of us have been aging these last 50 years, Amelia Bedelia has been getting younger -- she began as a somewhat grandmotherly housekeeper and now she's a skinny legged girl in polkadot tights!

Peggy Parish's died in 1988, but her nephew, Herman Parish, continued the series in 1995. Amelia Bedelia can now be found in I Can Read! books (levels 1 and 2) and in short chapter books.

Amelia Bedelia Collection (I Can Read Book 2)

Amelia Bedelia Hits the Trail (I Can Read Book 1)

Amelia Bedelia Chapter Book #1: Amelia Bedelia Means Business

For more anniversary fun, visit Amelia Bedelia's website at HarperCollins, and follow her on Twitter @AmeliaBedelia.

BRAVE GIRL by Michelle Markel

At Cover to Cover the other day, Beth handed me a stack of books she thought I'd like (She's nice like that:-)  One of the books was one I knew I had to have once I saw the cover. BRAVE GIRL:  CLARA AND THE SHIRTWAIST MAKERS' STRIKE OF 1909 Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers' Strike of 1909 written by Michelle Markel and illustrated by Mellissa Sweet.

This is a great picture book biography about young Clara Lemlich who fought the working conditions  and led the largest walkout of women workers in US history.

I loved the story. It brings an important issue to a level that young children can understand without taking away the seriousness of it.  It is also a story of a person we don't read about often, but who made a huge impact on our world.

I have been trying hard to figure out how to make our upcoming government unit more accessible to my 4th graders. Such big concepts. Books like this seem to be perfect in helping kids understand democracy, the constitution and how laws are made/change/etc.
Looking forward to sharing this one with kids.

2 Upcoming Wordless Books from Chronicle

I was excited to get a package from Chronicle this week that contained two upcoming wordless picture books. I feel like I can never have enough of these if they are good ones. So many opportunities to teach and explore for all ages.  I love when I find new ones to add to my collection.

Inside Outside by Lizi Boyd is a gorgeous new wordless picture book that captures ordinary days and the way one boy spends them both inside and outside.  There are fun die-cuts in most of the pages that connect the story and that add fun to the book. Lots to notice on each page. And the color choice is unique which I love.  Kids will want to revisit this book often and really, it just makes me happy to read it. I love the story as well as the art and the details make it even more fun.

The other book is Flight 1, 2, 3 is one that didn't draw me in from the start but one that I fell in love with once I opened it up! Now, this book will definitely draw young readers in with the cover--trains, trucks, planes, and cars do that and this cover has lots to look at (airplane, airport, etc.). At first I thought this book would be like the Donald Crews classics about forms of transportation but I was thrilled to see that it was so much more. The book takes the reader on a journey they will take if they go on a flight--from the cab ride to the airport to getting to the destination, this book captures the experiences of travelers today. I love the inclusion of throwing away liquids before security as well as the stop at the restroom before getting on the flight. But I also love the fact that the author has taken the wordless to a new level with information. Throughout the book are signs you will see in the airport as well as a diagram of the seating on a plane. A bird's eye view of how the planes are organized at gates is also shown.  This book is really packed and fun to look at. I can imagine young children will look at it over and over again.  So many possibilities for conversations and learning!

Both of these books are due out in March!

My Reading: Learning More about BYOD

We have a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) policy at school.  Early in the year, most of my kids didn't have their own devices and those that did pretty much used them for ebook reading. A Kindle, a Nook, an iPod touch. But since  the holidays, more of my students have mobile devices.

Smart phones, iPods, Kindles, Nooks, etc.  All of a sudden in January, kids are involved in all kinds of writing projects and they understand the power of these tools beyond ereading.  They watch me take photos of their work on my iPhone/iPad to drop into my conference folder. They've seen me take notes on my phone when we have a guest speaker or when I need to remember something. They knew I had my twitter feed up during the Newbery announcements (not for them to follow as it was filled with inappropriate spam) but just in case the live feed stopped working.  We have one cart in the school that houses laptops, ipads and ipods.  They learned some apps early and have used the iPods/iPhones/iPads for videotaping, notes, photos, etc. as the year has progressed have started using their devices in new ways.  I have an old iPod and and iPod shuffle that I want to add to the mix of what is available to kids and the kids are (very quickly!) learning new ways to use their devices for learning.  

With all of this comes lots of learning for me. I have a Kindle Fire, but have no idea how to get a child's writing from their Kindle Fire to my dropbox. I have an iPod but again, my notes feature has a setting that automatically drops it in my email. One student mentioned a DS and I have never actually touched one of those.  So, lots of learning for me. How to find the right tools for kids on devices I don't know and how to get their work to where it needs to be. If a child writes a blog post on their iPod, I have to figure out how to get that when the children do not have email accounts.  Not huge things, but interesting challenges, nonetheless.

As I've been reading to find information on these issues, I have come across some great articles.  I have tried to look at articles that do not focus on 1:1 schools, but schools like mine that have some devices and a BYOD policy.  I am going to add these to my Pinterest board so I have them at my fingertips. These are mostly articles I'd read before but with more devices, we have more opportunities for learning. I find at this age, parents of students are very supportive of their students using these devices for their learning. We are all trying to find apps that will help them as readers, writers and learners.

I am excited about the whole BYOD option, especially now that so many more students have a tool. Between the ones they bring in and the school's technology, kids are really changing the focus on their learning.  And I am learning lots too.

Here are the posts/articles I've read recently to help me make sure I am thinking broadly about the way devices can be used.  If you have any others, I'd love to add them to my reading list!

Some Schools Actually Want Students to Play With Their Smartphones in Class

Using Smart Phones in the Elementary Classroom

The One iPad Classroom

Adding the Kindle Fire HD to the Mix of BYOD Devices is Easier Than You Think

I found this entire blog on Nooks in the Classroom

Bring Your Own Technology Empowers Educators to Facilitate Learning

44 Better Ways to Use Smart Phones in the Classroom

And I love this newest post by George Couros, BYOB:  A Bare Miniumum--Love his last two paragraphs about it being the least we should be doing and it has to be about what we are doing with these devices.

Looking forward to learning more and in watching to see what my students do with the devices in the future!

January Mosaic

Not many photos in January.
It was a good month, nonetheless.

Poetry Friday

MY LIFE IN MUSIC

When I get in a rut

I remind myself:

rhythm needs jazz.

When I lose my focus

I remind myself:

jazz needs rhythm.

© Mary Lee Hahn, 2013

In January, I created a rut for myself -- I wrote a poem a day for Kathryn Apel's Month of Poetry (#MoP13) Challenge. My routine was to get up, exercise/walk, then sit down and write a poem before getting ready for school. To be able to to ready to sit down at the kitchen table and produce a poem meant that I had to have been "writing" all day long (maybe in my dreams) and during my early morning walk. By "writing" I mean constantly thinking about what I would write for the next day's poem: looking for the story, the scene, the emotion, the rich words that sounded just right together.

The biggest gain was the habit and the attitude of mind. Every poem wasn't great, of course. Very few came even close.

And there were losses. At first I couldn't figure out how to be a good group member on the private #MoP13  site where we posted our poems and commented on others'. I was posting at about 6 AM, which was near midnight in Australia when most of the other participants had already posted, commented, and gone to bed. The more I managed to get involved in the #MoP group, the less I visited Twitter (where I was already sporadic) and FaceBook (which resulted in being the last to know about things like a certain broken wrist).

I'm going to keep this rut in February, but I'm going to jazz it up a bit. I'm going to add some time (a poem every TWO days), use the dictionary (similar to, but not exactly the same way Amy LV did last April), and require every poem to rhyme. I'm also going to take today off (partly because I know what my first poem will feature a "green door").

Jazz. Rhythm.

Music -- and poetry -- need both.

April has the roundup today at Teaching Authors.

Coming Soon: February

Last month, I started a monthly series on upcoming books I am excited about.  I am not sure where January went but it seems that it is time for February's list already! I have read so little this month that I was afraid to look ahead --the last thing I need right now is to add more books to my TBR pile!  But, there are some books that you just MUST have! These are upcoming books that are MUST-HAVES for me in February!

One of my very favorite professional books of all times has a new edition coming out.  WHAT A WRITER NEEDS by Ralph Fletcher is one of the books that changed my teaching.  It is one of the staple books that helped me learn to teach writing and it was the first book by Ralph Fletcher that I read. This 2nd edition of this book is coming out in February. Just looking at the Table of Contents makes me happy--reminds me how much I learned when I read this book and how many times I've gone back to the book in the past 20 years. (And Ralph Fletcher will be the keynote at the Dublin Literacy Conference on February 23. If you haven't registered, you should check it out!)

Follow Follow: A Book of Reverso Poems by Marilyn Singer is a follow-up to one of my favorite books, Mirror Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse. Both of these books are filled with Fairy Tale "reverso" poems.  They are fun reads and I continue to be amazed at what the process of writing reversos is. So excited about this second round of reversos from Singer!

Lisa Graff is one of my favorite middle grade authors. I was thrilled to discover that she has a new book coming out in February called A Tangle of Knots. If you don't know Lisa Graff, you will definitely want to read The Thing About Georgie, Umbrella Summer and The Life and Crimes of Bernetta Wallflower.

I can't seem to find enough sports nonfiction to keep my students happy! So I was thrilled to see
Becoming Babe Ruth coming in February. I love author, Matt Tavares and from what I've read this is a great and well-researched story.

I am always paying attention to good, upcoming YA (even though I don't get a chance to read nearly as much as I'd like to!).  But the book I have on my list to remember about in February is Pivot Point. Love the whole concept and the issues around the choices we make.

And finally, a March 1 release (but close enough to February that I thought I'd include it here is Grumbles from the Forest: Fairy-Tale Voices with a Twist by Jane Yolen and Rebecca Kai Dotlich.  I love anything fairy tale but this one looks especially fun.  First of all, I am excited that Jane Yolen and Rebecaa Kai Dotlich worked together on this one. Love those two! Secondly, I love the idea of hearing the voices of fairy tale characters in poem form.  I am VERY excited about this one!