It's Monday! What Are You Reading? November 25

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA! 

It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journeys. 

Kellee Moye, of Unleashing Readers, and Jen of Teach Mentor Texts decided to give It's Monday! What Are You Reading? a kidlit focus. 

What I've finished since my last post:

MG/YA:

Eye of the Storm by Kate Messner

I have been a fan of Kate's since her first book, The Brilliant Fall of Gianna Z. Unfortunately I've fallen a little behind in reading her books, lately, but I'll get caught up! I love Kate's writing. Her characters are real, her story lines are fun, and I can always confidently recommend her books to anyone! 

Adult:

Along the Way: The Journey of a Father and Son by Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez

I've been working on this one for a while, and gushing about it when ever I have the chance. Even if you are not as huge a fan of Martin Sheen as I am, this is such a beautiful book. The story of their respective journeys in the entertainment industry is fascinating, but their reflections on their choices and their relationship as fathers and sons are amazing. I highly recommend the audio- Martin and Emilio narrate.

What I'm currently reading:
I have several books in process right now and some I may end up abandoning until a future date when I can pick them up again. This is completely due to the constraints on my time and the limits on number of renews at the library and absolutely nothing to do with the books themselves.

YA:

The Reason I Jump by Naoki Higashida

Adult:

Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger's by John Elder Robison

And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

I started with the print book and have switched to the audio because of library due dates. I love the audio because it is read by the author. 

Professional:

Pathways to the Common Core by Lucy Calkins, Mary Ehrenworth, Christopher Lehman

Reading in the Wild by Donalyn Miller

Teach Like a Pirate by Dave Burgess

Curriculum Re-reads:

Farewell to Manzanar by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston & James D. Houston

My juniors will start this book this week. We just finished Arthur Miller's The Crucible and will tie that and Farewell to Manzanar together with a discussion of the American Dream.

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

I will start this with my freshmen and sophomores after the Thanksgiving break. We are just now wrapping up Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet, which we have be reading through the lens of relationships. Among other themes in A Tale of Two Cities, we will be looking at our responsibility to our fellow man. 

Natalee Stotz is Head of High School at Windham Christian Academy in Windham, Maine. There she teaches English for grades 9-12 as well as Civics. She also advises the preK-12 school on curriculum, professional development, and literacy. Her passion is for connecting readers with books, and her goal is to create life-long readers. You can follow her on Twitter, @nataleestotz, or read her blog at nataleestotz.blogspot.com

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? October 28, 2013

Please visit the amazing blogs: Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers who host this terrific meme each week.

Please click on the picture to go to the book's page on Goodreads to learn more about it.

Picture Books

Spork

by Kyo Maclear

Illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault

Adorable little Spork is searching for his place in the world.  He's not a fork, nor a spoon and the other utensils shun him.  Until one day a messy "thing" arrives. 

I read this to my 4th graders and they loved it.  They especially liked guessing what the messy thing was and rooting for Spork to find self-acceptance. 

Not A Box 

by Antoinette Portis

Oh the wonders and possibilities of a simple, empty cardboard box.  In this book the rabbit uses the box as a spaceship, robot and a car just to name a few. 

Good for ages 4-8. 

Bob and Otto

by Robert O. Bruel

Illustrated by Nick Bruel

I was delighted to find this book at my library.  I love Nick Bruel's illustrations and after looking into it more, I discovered that Nick Bruel found this story his father had written after his father passed away. He made some minor changes and did the illustrations. 

This is a story of friendship.  Bob and Otto are great friends and enjoy spending their days together on the ground.  

You can read the book online at the site below.

http://us.macmillan.com/bobandotto/NickBruel

Good for grades K-3

Nonfiction Picture Book

 Harlem's Little Blackbird

by Renee Watson

Illustrated by Christian Robinson

This picture book biography is about Florence Mills, a singer/dancer from Harlem in the 1920's. She was lesser known than some more famous African-American performers of the time, but just as influential.  Strangely enough, there are no known audio or video recordings of her voice on record, so her story has been passed down by generations of story tellers. 

Good for grades 3-5.

Poetry

A Stick is an Excellent Thing

by Marilyn Singer

Illustrated by LeUyen Pham

This is a really fun book of short poetry to celebrate outdoor play.  It made me want to roll in some leaves and jump off a swing.  Good for grades 2-4.

Middle Grade

Fortunately, the Milk

by Neil Gaiman

Illustrated by Skottie Young

Although this book was not a favorite for me, many kids will enjoy it for it's over-the-top silliness. A father gets delayed bringing milk home for his two daughters.  The tale he tells about why he is late is the basis for the book. Traveling through time, being captured by pirates and rescued by a stegosaurus in a hot air balloon are just a few events from his tall tale.  The fun, messy illustrations are the best part of this book. 

Good for grades 3-4.

Currently Reading

Frog Burgers 

by Lee Mandel

The Graveyard Book 

by Neil Gaiman

Currently Listening

Waiting for Normal

by Leslie Connor

What Are You Reading Friends?

Gigi McAllister teaches at Great Falls Elementary. In her 21 years as an educator, she has taught K-6 special education for 10 years, spent one year at grade 5 and is currently in her 10th year of teaching 4th grade. She is serves on the executive board of the MRA and on the planning committee for nErDcamp Northern New England (have you signed up yet?) You can visit her blog (The Late Bloomer's Book Blog) where she posts about books, reading and classroom practices here. You can also find her on Twitter and on her professional Facebook page. 

It's Monday, What Are You Reading?- September, 30 21013

Please visit the amazing blogs: Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers who host this terrific meme each week.

Please click on a picture to go to the book's page on Goodreads where you can learn more about it.

With the craziness of the first weeks of school and my amazing time at NERA last weekend, I did not have time to post last week.  So, here are some of the books I have read lately.

Picture Books

Crankee Doodle
by Tom Angleberger

Crankee Doodle is hands down the funniest picture book I have read in a while.  I was actually laughing out loud.  Yankee Doodle is bored and cranky and wants something to do.  His trusty horse recommends that he "go to town". Well, "Crankee" doesn't want to go to town and he gives many funny reasons for not wanting to do so.  Then his horse suggests that maybe he could get a feather for his hat and it just keeps going from there. My 11 year-old daughter, Molly, also  loved this book. 

Have You Filled a Bucket Today?

by Carol McCloud

Every child need to hear this book.  The author writes about how everyone has an invisible "bucket" inside them.  When the bucket is filled up with positive thoughts and kindness a person feels happy.  When their bucket is empty or others dip into their bucket, they feel sad. I love this metaphor and I think kids will really understand what kindness does inside a person after reading it.  A MUST read!

Hello, My Name is Ruby

by Phillip C. Stead

Sweet, little Ruby is in search of friendship and her place in the world.  She is fearless and asks the other birds lots of questions including "Would you like to be my friend?"  This book would be a great addition to any collection about friendship, empathy or courage.  It also got the Molly 2 thumbs up.  She really felt for Ruby who faced rejection several times, but did not give up. 

Hank Finds an Egg

by Rebecca Dudley

This wordless book is too adorable not to share with children.  Hank finds an egg that has fallen from its nest. Hank shows great ingenuity and determination as he tries to put the egg back where it belongs.  The story is simple and lovely.  On the jacket I read that the author creates everything on each page by hand, right down to each tiny leaf.  This book got the seal of approval from Molly with a big "Awww that's so cute!"

Middle Grade

The Boy on the Porch

by Sharon Creech

My friend Justin Stygles, book talked this book at our MRA open house last week so I decided to pick it up. I am glad I did.  It is a very quick read because of its number of pages and because it is really interesting.  A sleeping boy is left on the porch of a childless couple, John and Marta.  The boy seems to be about 6 years old and is unable to speak.  The boy produces a note that asks the couple to take care of "Jacob" and they will return for him.  Goodhearted John and Marta take the boy in, but they do not report finding him to the authorities. There is a great undercurrent of suspense as the couple grows to love the boy and foster his unique musical and artistic talents.  Will his parents return for him? Should they tell the authorities?  Who do you root for?  I think this book would make a great book for late 4th through 6th grade.  It would certainly spark many important discussions. 

Currently Reading

Reading in the Wild

by Donalyn Miller

I was lucky to win an advanced reader's copy of The Book Whisperer's newest gem at the NERA conference last weekend and, so far, it is a fantastic as you would expect. 

Please read more about my NERA experience and how I met Donalyn Miller and Penny Kittle here. 

Gigi McAllister teaches at Great Falls Elementary. In her 21 years as an educator, she has taught K-6 special education for 10 years, spent one year at grade 5 and is currently in her 10th year of teaching 4th grade. She is serves on the executive board of the MRA and on the planning committee for nErDcamp Northern New England (have you signed up yet?) You can visit her blog (The Late Bloomer's Book Blog) where she posts about books, reading and classroom practices here. You can also find her on Twitter and on her professional Facebook page.