It's Monday! What are you reading? 5/20/13

Last week I read:

Enchanted (Woodcutter Sisters #1) by Alethea Kontis- I thought this story had a very slow beginning, but it got interesting after I was half way through it. 

Last week I read these books to my son:

That is not a good idea! by Mo Willems- We love Mo Willems' Elephant and Piggie series. 

Everyone can Learn to Ride a Bike by Chris Raschka

This is not my Hat by Jon Klassen- I read Jon Klassen's I Want My Hat Back and LOVED IT!  I think my son liked it, too.   

Millions, Billions, Trillions by David A. Adler

I started reading:

Rock God: The Legend of BJ Levine by Barnabas Miller

If I Stay by Gayle Forman (audiobook)

It's Monday! What are you reading? 5/13/13

I know.  It's Tuesday.

Last week I finished reading:

Son of the Mob by Gordon Korman- Funny title that involves a high school romance between a boy whose dad is a mobster and a girl whose father is the FBI agent investigating him.

Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen- I listened to this title as part of my #bookbootcamp project about romances for tweens/teenagers.

The Bronte Sisters: The Brief Lives of Charlotte, Emily and Anne by Catherine Reef- I read Wuthering Heights as a teenager and loved it.  Being familiar with the work of one of the authors made me want to read this book.  It was interesting.  I am not sure how many middle schoolers have read Wuthering Heights.  And if they haven't read it, would they would be interested in reading about these authors?  I guess I will find out.

Cow Boy by Cosby Nate- Short, funny graphic novel.  I liked the artwork in several of the stories in the book.

Guitar Notes by Mary Amato- I LOVED THIS BOOK.  I first heard about this book on the Teen Librarian Toolbox when they blogged about it here.  I finally got my hands on this book and I could not put it down.  Definitely adding it to my list of romance titles for teens.

The Ghost of Graylock by Dan Poblocki- Scary.  Students looking for a ghost and mystery story will enjoy this book.  I wish I had not waited so long to read it.

I read these books to my son:

Belle, the Last Mule at Gee's Bend: A Civil Rights Story by Calvin Alexander Ramsey-





Owly: A Time to Be Brave by Andy Runton






Martin de Porres: the Rose in the Desert by Gary D. Schmidt



I'm currently reading:
Enchanted (Woodcutter Sisters #1) by Alethea Kontis

Starting my reading slow.

It's Monday! What are you reading? 5/6/13

I finished reading all of the 2013-2014 SC Junior Book Award nominees!  Yea!

Now to begin my work reading some teen/tween romance titles as part of the Middle Grade Book Boot Camp.  Interested in discussing and learning about middle grade books?  Join us!  Here is the form to enlist.  I'm looking forward to collaborating and discussing books with other middle school librarians.  We're going to be blogging, wiki-ing, tweeting and possibly Google Hang-outing.  I know.  That was cheesy.  It's the middle school in me.

Last week I finished reading:

Wild Life by Cynthia DeFelice- This book was a quick read that I will recommend to students that like to read survival stories.

A World Without Heroes by Brandon Mull- I listened to the audiobook.  I liked how this story got off to a quick start with Jason landing in Lyrian via a hippo.  Several of my fantasy readers have already finished the second book in this series.

Hurt Go Happy by Ginny Rorby- I'm always on the search for our next Read Across America/Disability Awareness Month title. The main character of this book is named Joey.  Joey lost her hearing at the age of seven.  Her mother wants her to rely on lip reading, instead of learning sign language.  Joey's world cracks open when she meets Charlie and Sukari, a chimpanzee who uses sign language to communicate.

Skinny by Donna Cooner- This is a serious title about a young woman that undergoes gastric bypass surgery.  Without realizing it, this book is also a romance.  It was hard to appreciate that as I was more concerned about the more serious health issues that this book glides over.

I read these books to my little guy:

Here Come the Girl Scouts!: The Amazing All-True Story of Juliette "Daisy' Gordon Low and Her Great Adventure by Shana Corey- I loved this title!!

Boo to You! by Lois Ehlert

Chopsticks by Amy Krouse Rosenthal- My son really liked this story about chopsticks.

The Astonishing Secret of Awesome Man by Michael Chabon


I am currently reading:
Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen

Son of the Mob by Gordon Korman

It's Monday! What are you reading? 4/29/13

Last week I finished reading:
How They Croaked: The Awful Ends of the Awfully Famous by Georgia Bragg- This book was gross and engaging.  I can't wait to share with students.  I hope they enjoy it as much as I did.

The Fairy Ring: Or Elsie and Frances Fool the World by Mary Losure- I would like to tie this story in with a lesson on evaluating pictures for authenticity.  Here is a link to a webpage with hoax pictures.

Waiting to Forget by Sheila Kelly Welch- Painful story with a hopeful ending.  I was able to booktalk this title today to several seventh grade students who immediately checked it out.

Icefall by Matthew Kirby- I could not get into this audiobook.  It was very slow paced.  All of our library copies are checked out.  I have talk to a student that has read this book to get their opinion on it.

The Underdogs by Mike Lupica- I am not a sports fan and thought I would not enjoy this book.  I was happily surprised.  It was funny, fast paced and full of great motivational speeches.

The Apothecary by Maile Maloy- The cover does not do this book justice.  This book has magic!  I am booktalking it to all my fantasy readers.

I am currently reading:
A World Without Heroes by Brandon Mull (audiobook)
Manuscript found in Accra by Paulo Coelho
Debt-Free U: How I Paid for an Outstanding College Education Without Loans, Scholarships, or Mooching Off My Parents by Zac Bissonnette
Hurt Go Happy by Ginny Rorby

I read these books to my little guy:
Awesome Dawson by Chris Gall
Wiener Wolf by Jeff Crosby
All the Water in the World by George Ella Lyon
Cloudette by Tom Lichtenheld
The Day Dirk Yeller Came to Town by Mary Casanova

Skype in the library and more literary cafes

I've always wanted to use Skype in the library.  This month we used Skype, not only once, but twice!  Last week, our students participated in a Poetry Slam via Skype with Michal Hope's middle school students as part of Poetry Month.

This week we used Skype to have our seventh grade Language Arts students meet author Diane Stanley and discuss her novel 'Saving Sky' which is on this year's SCJBA nominee list.  We met with Mrs. Stanley online twice for 30 minutes each time in order for all of our seventh graders to have a chance to "meet" her.  Mrs. Stanley shared with students background about the book and about her life as a writer from her home office in New Mexico.  Students had about 20 minutes for Q&A and they did a great job asking thoughtful questions.

The Language Arts teachers and students really liked the literary cafes we did for The Outsiders unit and for the myths/fairy tales/legends unit and wanted to do something similar for this project.  I set up different stations in the library where students learned about Japanese internment camps, concentration camps and the US Patriot Act.  Students wrote journals about their reaction to what they read/watched at each station.  I pulled books from our shelves and from the public library to create the following stations: 

• poetry books with poetry written by children & adults in Japanese internment camps and concentration camps. 
• picture books about Japanese internment camps & concentration camps. 
• nonfiction books about Japanese internment camps & concentration camps.
• articles from DISCUS about the US Patriot Act
• Discovery Education videos about the US Patriot Act
• Discovery Education videos about Japanese internment camps 

Our literary cafes have been a hit this year with seventh grade.  I'm hoping to get sixth and eighth grade classes in next school year to try it out now that they've had a chance to see it in action a few times.  Another nice thing that happened this year is that I've had a chance to work with many of our student teachers during these literary cafes.  One student teacher told me on Friday that she will make sure to become best friends with the media specialist at her new school.  Yea for collaboration!!!

Please share any projects you've done using Skype!

Building a Reading Culture

Last night we held an open house at our school for our upcoming sixth grade parents and students.  After a presentation from our administrative team and sixth grade faculty, I had the chance to meet and greet lots of families into the library for a quick presentation on how to encourage reading over the summer.  I also took this opportunity to invite the Manager from our local public library branch to talk about summer reading programs and FREE resources available at the public library.  She, in turn, invited the new Youth and Family Services Supervisor to join the conversation.

I'm always happy to find a way to tie in our public library to what we are doing in our school.  During our chat before the presentation, I learned that there will be a new teen center at our main branch inspired by what YouMedia has been doing in Chicago Public Library.  I'm excited about this news and am looking forward to checking it out!!!

Last week the Teen Librarian Toolbox blogged about reluctant readers for Reluctant Reader Week.  Check out the posts linked here.  It's a great resource and the timing was perfect for me.  I printed off the ten tips in this post and handed those out to parents last night.  I used this article from Educational Leadership to create the presentation below.  (The images on tips #2 and #5 are hyperlinked.)

Building a Reading Culture from Lorena Swetnam

This school year I shared weekly literacy tips in our school newsletter along with my regular library news announcements.  I used tips from this article to help me get started.  What literacy events/programs do you use to promote reading with your parents and community at the middle school level?  I'd love to hear!!

4/22/13 It's Monday! What are you reading?

I finished reading::

The Lions of Little Rock by Kristin Levine- I was hooked to this historical fiction novel about integration in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1958.  Stories about this time period are popular in our school library.  I look forward to promoting this title to our students. 

Small as an Elephant by Jennifer Richard Jacobson- I started listening to this on audiobook and had to checkout the print version to quickly finish reading it.  This story left me relieved, angry and sad all at the same time.  

City of Orphans by Avi- I was a little skeptical about this novel.  The story is set in 1893 in New York City and gives readers a taste of what life was like for immigrant families, especially children.  It's fast paced with a mystery to be solved.

I am currently reading:

The Apothecary by Maile Maloy

Icefall by Matthew J. Kirby (audiobook) 

Manuscript Found in Accra by Paulo Coelho

I read these titles aloud to my little guy:

Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin

Oh, No! by Candace Fleming

Little Dog Lost: The True Story a Brave Dog Named Baltic by Monica Carnesi

No Sleep for Sheep by Karen Beaumont

Chloe and the Lion by Mac Barnett

Road Work Ahead by Anastasia Suen

Star of the Week by Barney Saltzberg