Just a CLASSic

Can you imagine my excitement when I read that the 2015 Newberry award winner author was from Virginia (also Cece Bell, the author of one of the 2015 Newberry Honor books is also a Virginia resident--but we'll save that blog post for another time--It was a great year for Virginia authors!)? Can you imagine how much my excitement grew when I read that Kwame Alexander was from Chesapeake? In fact, he went to a high school that rivaled my own.  Pretty cool, right? Of course I had to read his book, Crossover .  I was excited to pick up my own copy and to read it to bask in the glory that is my hometown.  Part of me was worried though.  What if I hated the book?  How would I tell people about reading this book by a hometown author....but I didn't really like it? Well I think you have made the inference by now (we have been working on inferences with my fourth graders so I try to bring them up whenever possible) that I would not be writing this blog if I hated the book.  An

One of my biggest concerns as a teacher is that I am able to find books that appeal to all people.  One of the questions that I often ask my guy friends is, "What books did you enjoy as a child?"  I recognize that boys' interests are different than girls' interests, and I want to make sure that I am not shutting down anyone's excitement to read.  One of my guy friends recommended The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke.  I dutifully put it on my to-read list. When I finally picked up the audio version of this book, I was thrilled to discover that it takes place in Venice, Italy.  Not only had I heard many wonderful things about Venice, but I was planning a trip to Italy that would end in Venice.  I eagerly began the book, but had to put it on hold as I experienced Venice for myself.  I actually got to immerse myself in the sights of the Grand Canal, the islands, and the gondoliers that are all in this charming book.  Of course, after being there, the book took on a w

It has been over a year since I have written a blog entry.  I guess sometimes life gets a little busy.  Please do not think that this is the only book that I have read since then.  By no means at all! I have read so many wonderful books--children's books, teaching books, books about life.  I just have not found (or made) the time to record my thoughts on a book.  It is amazing though what four snow days can do. Since it has been a year plus since I last wrote, here is a quick update. Over the summer, I spent one final summer as a camp counselor at the camp that I have been working at for the past four summers. Through it all, I would say it was my favorite summer both in the connections that I created and connections that I further developed and in the children that I got to work with week after week.  I miss it--working there and interacting with the people daily. If you have been following this blog, you'll remember that I was in a teaching program which was origi