Category Archives: readers workshop

Author Bryn Barnard with us this week

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If you are a 2nd or 3rd grader, you are one of the lucky Elementary Students who get to spend time with our visiting author and illustrator Bryn Barnard this Thursday or Friday. Bryn will be presenting in the ES Library on Thursday at 2 pm for Third Grade and on Friday at 8.10 am for 2nd grade; parents are always welcome.

If you would like to buy any of Bryn’s books, we have two of the hardback books he has authored in the MS library, for 125 rmb. The 4 books he has illustrated and will be discussing with ES students are 30 rmb, and 55 rmb for the larger book, Sold, A Mothematics Adventure.

Bryn comes to us with a diverse background, being fascinated and interested by science, art and history from a young age, and wanting to combine the three for a successful career; he has certainly done that.

Ordinary becomes Extraordinary

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A lovely colleague, who also happens to teach my 7 year old, read a book to her class the other day, thrust it into my hands, and urged me to share it. Thank you Shauna. The book is called Ordinary Mary’s Extraordinary Deed and was written by Emily Pearson, and illustrated by Fumi Kosaka.

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This is not a new book, it was published in 2002, nor is its theme a new one. The concept of paying it forward gained exposure in recent times with the Kevin Spacey/Helen Hunt film Pay it Forward in 2000 (is it just me or are you shocked that ‘recent’ movie is now almost 15 years old?) and the idea of doing good deeds for others, in particular those you don’t know, has been around a lot longer.

“In the order of nature we cannot render benefits to those from whom we receive them, or only seldom. But the benefit we receive must be rendered again, line for line, deed for deed, cent for cent, to somebody.” Ralph Waldo Emerson-1841

In 1916, Lily Hardy Hammond wrote, “You don’t pay love back; you pay it forward.”

However, for the students I’ve read the book to this week, the idea was new, and wow, did they embrace it! Ordinary Mary sets off a chain reaction through a random act of kindness that changes the lives of millions in this story. My students were fascinated by this idea, we sat and talked for a long time about people having choices about how they act, and that peoples actions can really have an effect on others. Hearing kids discuss the phrases ‘ripple effect’ ‘pay it forward’ ‘random act of kindness’ and the conversation that followed was rich…and often humorous!

“That happened to me once when I was in a bad mood, and then my friend let me have one of his Pokemon cards, and I was happy and so I was nicer to my little sister.”

“Once when my Mum told me off I was sad but then my Dad was really nice to me and I felt better and I went back and talked to my Mum and then she was happy again, so then at dinner she was really happy and the next day Mum was friendly to her sister and her sister was in a good mood because sometimes my Mum is really mean to her but not this day so maybe she was nice to five people then.”

I’d encourage anyone who wants stimulating conversation to share the book with others, I promise it won’t be dull. I wonder what ordinary deed YOU do, and what extraordinary effect it will have on others…

I Know Here

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I Know Here by Laurel Croza (2010)

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Certainly one of my favorites as a writing teacher, this is a beautiful companion book to Patricia Mc Lachlan’s What you know First or Rylant’s When I was Young in the Mountains when studying memoir with older students or as a delightful read-a-loud for any age group. It’s also perfect for dealing with transitions; something our international students are no strangers to. Now I just need to buy From There to Here, which came out in 2014 http://laurelcroza.com/

What a Classic… or is it?

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“Wow…what a classic!” is something you may have heard before regarding a good book or film. But what is it exactly that makes something a classic? In regard to books, there are a HUGE amount of differing opinions on the subject once you start searching.

Each year our third graders at SAS do a unit on ‘the classics’ and while I could easily just head to destiny and select the usual suspects… it got me thinking. I did a lesson with students where I shared a book I’d read as a 5th grader, Nicholas, and had loved it, lost it, and rediscovered it again in my late 30’s… School Library Journal claim: “This classic book about a mischievous schoolboy and his friends, originally published in French in 1959, is now available in English.” Did you see it? Did you see the word classic? I read this in the 80’s, searched for it in the 90’s, finally found it in the ‘naughties’ and introduced it to my students in the mmmmm, 2010! But had I thought of it as a classic? Never.

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Is Nicholas a classic because it “expresses some artistic quality–an expression of life, truth, and beauty” which is one of the definitions given by About.com here. Well… not really; although Nicholas does hark back to a simpler time, a more honest time perhaps?

“It seems to help if the author is dead ” says Laura Miller writing for Salon.com in January this year. Indeed, author of not only Nicholas, but the wonderful Asterix books, Rene Goscinny passed away in 1977, yet his legacy lives on. Miller goes on to say “It has stood the test of time…It captures the essence and flavor of its own age and had a significant effect on that age.” I certainly feel that the latter is the case, the students I’ve been reading to are laughing hysterically about kids running around with guns, smoking cigarettes, calling each other fat, idiots, stupid etc… Our kids cannot get enough of this ‘forbidden fruit-so Un-PC’ As for the test of time… is 55 years long enough? One commenter on this Goodreads thread suggests that 30 years is long enough…I think not.

So, what do you think? What do you think makes a book a classic?

Which of these books, listed by Jim Trelease here, would you term a classic?

MIKE MULLIGAN & HIS STEAM SHOVEL

MAKE WAY FOR DUCKLINGS

RIKKI-TIKKI-TAVI

SYLVESTER AND THE MAGIC PEBBLE

TIKKI TIKKI TEMBO

THE UGLY DUCKLING

AESOP’S FABLES

THE BIGGEST BEAR

BRAVE IRENE

THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT

IF I RAN THE ZOO

IRA SLEEPS OVER

THE ISLAND OF THE SKOG

THE LITTLE HOUSE

LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD

 

 

 

List Lovers of the World Unite

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As a librarian, I’m constantly recommending books.

I clearly remember my first day working in the library (I’d been a 5th grade classroom teacher for 7 years at SAS, and a High School and Middle School English teacher in Australia for a decade before that). All of a sudden, it was expected that I had read EVERYTHING that ever existed, because, hey, I was a librarian! In the early days I admit lying a little, the odd fib here and there “Yes, I’ve read it” “Oh, I know which book you mean” “Mmmmm, I loved that series” because otherwise I felt so ignorant; I had NOT read all the books people were asking about because hey, I’m only human!

A couple of years into my new role, I have read many more books, and have not read many, many, many others. I have several ‘go-to’ sites that I couldn’t live without… sites where others have painstakingly gone through blog after blog, and compiled list after list of great books. I feel grateful towards these sites every single day. They help me help the students walk away with books just right for them. Thank You Bloggers.

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Mia Wenjen is a PragmaticMom you need to keep an eye on if you want to be up to date on the best of the best that is out there… whether she’s compiling book-lists about responsibility, a collection of authors on a theme or books for advanced readers, there is something for everyone.

I love Travis Jonker’s 100 scope notes where you can find all manner of information, I especially love reading this blog around ALA award time. Linked are some of the great lists I follow with this blog during the year.

Melissa Taylor’s Imagination Soup is another great blog that both Amy Hossack and I turn to for all sorts of tech and library ideas. I ordered books based on one of her chapter book lists just today.

The Horn Book is another tried and true location for finding books, based on all manner of topics such as St. Patrick’s Day and the Olympics; I do love reading their reviews.

I’ve only just discovered this gem through a friend on twitter, From the Mixed up Files of Middle-Grade Authors is a goldmine for the avid reader. I must have been living under a rock to not know about this blog…

 

And the winner is…

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My favourite time of the year is coming up in the Library… The ALA library awards will be announced on January 27th 2014.

Many people wonder how books are judged… if you want to learn more about that, the ALA site tells you all about the judging criteria for awards like the Newbery and the Caldecott Medal.

I’m fortunate at SAS to have a wonderful team around me who support our purchasing of the latest and greatest books. This school year, I’ve also acquired many ‘mules’ who are able to bring me back new books for January to accompany the many we have digitally on kindle and ibooks. The books I’ve been buying come from the lists below… so if YOU want to keep your eye on the prize… have a look through the following links to see how many books you have read.

I’ll be spending January’s library time discussing with students the best of the best, and what makes them so.

Check out these great sites today so that you know what’s being discussed, what’s hot, and what may win the 2014 awards. Remember, so far, these sites just share books they think might be included in the Newbery and Caldecott discussions… as for now, nobody knows for sure which books will make it all the way through, but these lists give great indications about books that have created a lot of buzz this year.

I’ll start you off with a nice small list from the School Library Journal which includes a couple of my favourites; If You Want to See a Whale and The Thing about Luck.

How many of the books above have you read? Come and check one out today… 69 new books JUST arrived!

I’m proud to say that ALL of the books on this next long list will be in our library as of January 8th… which is quite an achievement considering we live in China and many of them are newly released (thanks mules!)

If you’re a non-fiction lover, you’ll enjoy this post which ponders that not many non-fiction books have grabbed our attention this year, however, imagine the irony if a book about Randolph Caldecott won a Newbery prize…

Another list I’ve done my very best to purchase all of is this one from the ALA looking at the 2013 Notable Book Nominees. I know that 5th grade teacher Mrs Rekate LOVED Escape from Mr Lemoncello’s Library and will wonder why that isn’t noted (it came out five days later), but quite a few of the other books she’s read recently made it onto the list… so check it out if you haven’t done so yet.

We’ll have all of the actual books listed here by your first school day in 2014, and we already have them on kindle, so check out this short list and make sure you read as many as you can by January 27th… I’m sure at least one of these will make it all the way!

Goodreads has a wonderful selection of books listed here, with full information on each. Sign up for goodreads, and you can start keeping a great ‘real-life’ journal of what you’ve read, what you want to read and what you’re reading.

Wayyyyyy back in January, the amazing Jonathan Hunt from School Library Journal made some predictions about books he thought would stand out this year. Having served on the Newbery Committee in the past, his advice is always to be taken.

Finally, my list wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t check out what Horn Book had to say. I love seeing how many of the blogs I follow list the same books; when the same trusted reviewers point me towards a certain book time after time… I just know I have to read it, and better still, share it with YOU!

Finally, I can close some of the tabs I’ve had open for weeks…. which drives Mr Power crazy!

Happy New Year 2014 and get ready for the Year of the Horse beginning on January 31st.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Book Recommendations

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Every day I am asked by teachers, students and parents to recommend books. Here are some of the favorite sites I use and some lists with some of the best new release books on them.

The Best Books from Amazon for Children and Teens have many sublists including editor’s picks, new release books, picture books and more. I often start somewhere like here because I end up with many new links to follow and a great list of books to upload on the kindles, Ipads and Ipods.
Students often ask when I can get the latest new books like “Jabba”, “Hard Luck”, “Survivors” “Hades” and “I even Funnier” and I let them know I’ll have them the VERY DAY they come out, digitally… but not til August 2014 in paperback, unless I find them (or you find them for me) on a vacation somewhere… Anyone heading to the USA? Hint Hint

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Other Great Sites I use

For Boys: Guys Read where I go straight to the ‘Books for Guys’ and ‘Guys Read Library’ Tabs. Here you’ll find all sorts of recommendations from amazing authors who have contributed to a growing niche market of wonderful books for Middle Grade boys. The Guys Read series is really popular in the library and I love how it can get kids turned on to author’s they’ve never heard of before.

guys read

For Girls: A Mighty Girl has a great Facebook page I follow so I’m always up to date with the latest ‘Girl Power’ reads and issues. Here you’ll find not only empowering books for females introducing a variety of amazing role models for your daughters (and sons) but also a great range of movies, book recommendations for parents, cool clothing and some fantastic ‘best of’ lists under the ‘best of’ tab.

a mighty girl

For Everyone: Common Sense Media has been a favorite of mine for years since my techie husband Simon Power introduced it to me. Here you’ll find a whole range of great resources including ratings on films, books, games and more. There are recommendations from parents, educators and the people who really count:your children! Check out this must have resource today and bookmark it for further use; I visit it at least once a day!

common sense media