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 hat...

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...

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 pr...

These past few weeks, I have been enjoying winter break.  Well in a way.  Most of the time my mind has been racing with the upcoming semester when I will be student teaching and taking over a class. I am very excited, but yet a bit nervous too.  I have read countless blogs giving advice about classroom management or project ideas.    From all the teachers that I know (including two of my own elementary school teachers), I have eagerly asked for any advice that they could possibly give me. Also I have been spending quite a bit of time thinking about where I would like to teach next year, whether that means scouring the district's websites or filling out applications or updating my resume...again. However, in the busyness of everything, I have had a few quiet moments to read a good book. This particular book, Because of Winn-Dixie,  I actually read out-loud as my mom and I were traveling up to see the rest of my family.  It is a very qui...

There are several reasons that I am writing this post (and possibly the next few that I will be writing). So without further due, I will simply tell you. 1.  It is now fall break and why not do something that I really enjoy that is not really related to schoolwork? 2.  I went to my first literary conference yesterday.  For the entire day, I was surrounded by teachers learning about incorporating children's books into the curriculum. Ah.  What can be more inspirational to write about and read children's literature than receiving a wealth of knowledge about children's literature including words from two authors? (More about those authors at a later point, I am sure) 3.  Today, when I went to the library, I nearly walked out without having any books.  This felt wrong and utterly disappointing especially since the book that I so desperately wanted was not to be found. (Don't worry, the story gets better, just to reassure all my very concerned read...

Simply put,  The Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson is a story about a lonely boy and his new friend, Leslie, who moves next door.  This realistic fiction is well written where the characters become the reader's own friends. SPOILER ALERT:  Because of the nature of this book, the rest of this post will be dealing with the main theme of this book. If you do not want to know what happens at the end (and have never seen the movie) but have always wanted to read this book, stop reading now. Base your decision on if you read the book on the back cover blurb rather than this post.  The rest of the post is dedicated specifically to concerned parents who have heard what happens in the book. As many, of you know, this book is about a child experiencing death; in fact, his close friend Leslie dies from a tragic accident. Several years ago, I saw the movie with my brother.  All of the previews that we saw emphasized that this was a movie about ...

Growing up, I watched the musical movie version of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang starring Dick Van Dyke.  Who can really resist such a charming story about a technological car told through high energy music and dance numbers?  I f you are one of those people scratching your head at this moment thinking "Huh?  Well I never saw this film,"  then click here and watch for yourself one of my personal favorite songs "Toot Sweet" complete with an entire factory of dancing candy makers.  From the very start this movie is fun and very family friendly, and the humor of Dick Van Dyke is truly irresistible. However, I am not here to tell you all about this great movie, but about the book of the same name. Having already shared my love for the movie, one can imagine the surprise and delight that I had realizing that there was a book.  Who knew? Well come to find out this book is by the same author who created James Bond.  Though the story takes some time to ...