A Must Read for Teachers of Reluctant Readers

Knucklehead: Tall Tales and Almost True Stories of Growing up Scieszka by Jon Scieszka

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


A must read for boys or other reluctant readers. In the vein of Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Lots of short, funny chapters. Jon wasn't named National Ambassador for Young People's Literature for nothing! Also explains where he got his ideas for his books: The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, and others.



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Christmas Present

Kill Shakespeare Volume 1 by Conor McCreery

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Fun! It's the beginning, and took some getting used to. The characters stay true to their natures, but it was strange at first to see them doing new things. I should have known Richard III was a villain; he's always a villain. When you know the original stories so well, you predict what will happen next. This was fun, because they did something new. It just takes me some time to adjust to change. I will want to continue reading, though. Just to see what they do.



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In Honor of Banned Books Week

See original post here. Thanks to Kate Messner for sharing this on her blog.

Our school librarian does a phenomenal job making sure that there are books of interest to every student in our building. That’s a lot of students. A lot of different students.

This middle school serves sixth graders as young as ten years old and eighth graders as old as fifteen. Five years is a big gap, and those are no ordinary five years. The difference between ten and fifteen is the difference between Legos and iPods, the difference between trick-or-treating and Homecoming Dances. The difference between child and young adult.

Our kids are not only different ages; they arrive at school with different reading levels, different backgrounds, and different experiences that have shaped their lives in both positive and negative ways. They have different needs when it comes to reading.

The book that is perfect for your wide-eyed sixth grade girl isn’t likely to be a good fit for a fifteen-year-old boy repeating eighth grade. The book that eighth grader will read and love is probably not one that would be right for your sixth grader right now. But as teachers and librarians, we have a responsibility to serve all of the kids who come to us. We have a responsibility to offer literature choices that speak to all of them and meet all of their diverse needs.

Kids, in general, do a fantastic job self-selecting books, and when they find they’ve picked up something they’re not ready for, they’re usually quick to put it down and ask for help choosing something else. As teachers and librarians, we’ll offer recommendations and steer kids toward books that are age-appropriate, and we encourage you to talk about books with your kids. We have multiple copies of many titles in our library. Let us know if you’d like to check out two copies of a book so you can read together. And if you find that your student has chosen a book that you think might not be the right book for him or her right now, talk about that, too.

We respect your right to help your own child choose reading material, and we ask that you respect the rights of other parents to do the same. If you object to your child reading a particular book, send it back to the library, and we’ll help your student find another selection. We’ll put the first book back on the shelf because even though you don’t feel it’s the right book for your child right now, it may be the perfect book for someone else’s.

Our library will continue to have a wide range of choices for kids – to meet all of their varied needs and help them all develop a love of reading. If we can ever be of help to you in recommending titles for your family, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Gone by Michael Grant

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I would compare this book to "Lord of the Flies." But in a way it was creepier, because it's set in modern times, with things and children, I'm more familiar with. It made the changes more harsh. Great themes of loyalty, friendship, courage, choices, etc. Only to the n-th degree. Action packed. Complex plot. A mystery still to be solved.



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10 things I think teachers should unlearn…

"borrowed" from ED (but aren't teachers known for borrowing?)

1. Teachers know all the answers.

2. Teachers have to be in control of the class.

3. Teachers are responsible for the learning.

4. Students are obliged to respect teachers.

5. Learning can be measured by a letter or a number.

6. Teachers should plan activities and then assessments.

7. Learners need to sit quietly and listen.

8. Technology integration is optional.

9. Worksheets support learning.

10. Homework is an essential part of learning.

In my opinion, all of the above are outdated ideas. I won’t elaborate at the moment, as I’d rather have your input! Which ones do you agree with? Disagree? Challenge? Question?

The Sixth Grade Nickname Game by Gordon Korman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Gordon Korman does a great job of thinking like a kid. In this book, he takes the universal theme of boys fighting over a girl, couples it with Shakespeare's question, "What's in a name?" and produces a funny outcome. Of course, the real hero is Cassandra, but the two boys learn that their friendship is a bigger prize than any girl. A great read-aloud for upper elementary/6th graders. It really fits into my class, because our geography teacher gives each student a nickname. I can really run with this novel as a theme/idea starter.

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A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Richard Peck is a great ya/children's author. He writes this novel, and it's prequel from the point of view of Joey and Mary Alice Dowdel who spend time with their grandmother in her small Illinois town. As everything is seen through the eyes of the kids, the action and motivations of Grandma are not always clear. In this novel, Mary Alice spends a year during the Depression living with Grandma to save her parents money. She has many adventures with Grandma Dowdel, an imposing woman in both size and personality, who has eyes in the back of her heart.

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