Wonder Wednesday #141 (Book Trailers)

Wonder Wednesday - Book Trailers

*Something new I learned about a few years back was that book trailers were being made to promote books.



*I loved this idea and even started to feature "trailers" on Thursdays on this blog.

*One of my goals as a teacher has been to have my own students create a trailer on a book that they have read or experienced during our year together.

*It seems the end of the school year always snuck up on me and we never had time to create these trailers.

*This year I wasn't going to let that happen. Today was the day!

*Everyone picked a different book to create a trailer on.  The students were so excited.

*Here is a look at our first day on this project that I'm so glad I'm finally having my students experience...

Picture Wednesday #35 (The Writing Man)

"The Writing Man"

*This has to be one of my favorite images that I use with my fourth grade writers.

*I've had it for several years and always enjoy presenting it to the students to see what they think.

*There is so much to look at, observe, and study in this photograph.  

*Not only do I enjoy reading what they write about, but what types of discussions come from the image.  

*Each Wednesday we write in our writer's notebooks about a particular image.

*They can record their thoughts, reactions, connections, likes/dislikes, reminders, noticings, or anything else they would like.  

*Some of the writers choose to write a fiction story based on the picture.

*We write between five and ten minutes and then do a quick share at the end.  

*The photos always lead to lots of conversation and the sharing of ideas.  I try to get them to write first and then we can share what we wrote and what we were thinking.

*The writers are really enjoying writing and talking about these photographs.

Treat Tuesday #141 (Book Release Day)

Treat Tuesday:  Cranberry Chunk Cookies

*Graduation season is upon us.

*A close family friend has a son graduating and they requested my wife make these cookies.

*She usually makes them during the Christmas season, but made an exception and made them for the party.

*Lucky for us there were left-overs which we will be enjoying this week!


Ingredients…
*2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened (my wife used butter)
*2/3 cup brown sugar
*2 large eggs
*1  1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
*1  1/2 cups flour
*1 teaspoon baking soda
*1/2 teaspoon salt
*1 6-ounce package Ocean Spray Craisins (Original Dried Cranberries)
*2/3 cup white chocolate chunks or chips

Directions…
-Preheat over to 375 degrees.

-Using an electric mixer, beat butter or margarine and sugar together in a medium mixing bowl until light and fluffy.

-Add eggs, mixing well.

-Combine oats, flour, baking soda and salt in a separate mixing bowl.

-Add to butter mixture in several additions, mixing well after each addition.

-Stir in dried cranberries and white chocolate chunks.

-Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

-Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.  (We did 12 minutes)

-Cool on wire rack.

-Makes approximately 2 1/2 dozen cookies.



Treat Tuesday:  Middle-Grade Novel

Treat Tuesday:  Young-Adult Novel

*Released 2015

*Released today








Treat Tuesday:  Adult Novel

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (5/23/16)

Thanks to Jen and Kellee for hosting this idea on their site.  Here is a link to their site...

                

 http://www.teachmentortexts.com/

Books I Read this Past Week… 

Just My Luck by Cammie McGovern

*Middle-Grade Novel

*5 STARS out of 5 Stars

My Book Review







Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews

*Young-Adult Novel

*4 STARS out of 5 Stars

My Book Review





Books I Will (continue to) Read this Week… 

Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrik Backman

*My adult novel

All the Rage by Courtney Summers

*My young-adult novel

Highly Illogical Behavior by John Corey Whaley

*My young-adult novel










Finding Perfect by Elly Swartz

*My middle-grade novel

Still Waters by Ash Parsons

*My young-adult novel (audio)

Music Monday #31: The World is Ours by David Correy & Aloe Blacc

"The World is Ours" by David Correy and Aloe Blacc

*This particular song was used by our Spanish teacher a few years back as a school wide theme.

*The students loved it and I loved it just as much.

*I used it the following year as a selection and it was a hit.

*This year I have a bunch of soccer players in my class and I know they are going to enjoy this song.

*This was our 31st Monday where we featured a musical selection.

*Each Monday I highlight a piece of music to share with my writers.  

*We begin with showing a video that goes along with the musical selection.

*The class will watch the video between 1-2 times.

*After the second viewing, the writers begin to record their thoughts in the notebooks.

*As they write, I play the music in the background (minus the video).

*My fourth graders can record their thoughts, ideas, connections, likes/dislikes, or reactions to the song.  They can also write about the message of the song.  

*I have my students write between 5-10 minutes.  At the end of our writing time, I see if a few of the writers would like to share what they wrote.  

Music Monday Selections (2015-2016)…

Week #1:  What I Am by will.i.am
Week #2:  Proud by Heather Small
Week #3:  Dreamer by Chris Brown
Week #4:  Live Like a Warrior by Matisyahu
Week #5:  Sunshine by Matisyahu
Week #6:  Better When I'm Dancin' by Megan Trainor
Week #7:  Thriller by Michael Jackson
Week #8:  Hopeful by Bars and Melody
Week #9:  Keep Your Head Up by Andy Grammar
Week #10:  The Rainbow Connection from The Muppets
Week #11:  What Does the Fox Say by Ylvis
Week #12:  Hall of Fame by The Script
Week #13:  Clouds by Zach Sobiech
Week #14:  Do They Know Its Christmas by Band Aid
Week #15:  What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong
Week #16:  Am I Wrong by Nico & Vinz
Week #17:  Humble and Kind by Tim McGraw
Week #18:  Today's the Day by Pink
Week #19:  Hold My Hand by Jess Glynne
Week #20:  Fireflies by Owl City
Week #21:  Superheroes by The Script
Week #22:  Happy by Pharrell Williams
Week #23:  Waka, Waka - This Time for Africa by Shakira
Week #24:  Candyman by Zedd and Aloe Blacc
Week #25:  Something New by Axwell/Ingrosso
Week #26:  Broken Arrows by Avicii
Week #27:  Rise Up by Andra Day
Week #28:  The World's Greatest by R. Kelly
Week #29:  One Call Away by Charlie Puth
Week #30:  Can't Stop the Feeling by Justin Timberlake

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews

How I Heard About It:   I have actually had the hard copy of this novel for quite some time.  It just never seemed to make it to the top of my pile.  I had also heard mixed reviews about it so was torn as to whether I wanted to read it or not.  Last weekend while at the local library, I came across the audio version of the book and decided to give it a try.  While commuting to and from work, I listened to the entire story.  

What It Is About:  Greg has a plan for his senior year and he is going to fly under the radar.  He isn't going to attach himself to one single group.  He is going to be friends with everyone.  He refuses to be a part of a clique.  Greg's plan lasts for a few hours and then his mother intervenes.  She asks Greg to call Rachel who is also a senior, but the two of them haven't been friends since years earlier.  Rachel has just been diagnosed with cancer and Greg's mother thinks she needs a friend.  Greg thinks this suggestion is quite ludicrous, but decides to give it a try.  At first Rachel wants nothing to do with Greg, but eventually these two form a "sort" of friendship.  Greg decides to bring in his really only friend Earl into the mix.  Greg and Earl have a history of making "bad" films together.  While getting to know Rachel, and her getting to know them, she requests they make a film for her before her life changes too much.  

What I Thought Of It:   This was an absolute delight to listen to on audio.  As opposed to most of the audio books I listen to, this one had an actual array of narrators representing the variety of characters in the story.  It was almost like watching a movie, but with just the listening part.  I truly enjoyed the story of Greg, Earl, and Rachel.  It was quite different from other "Cancer" stories I've read and I appreciated it.  This one was told with much humor and I actually laughed out loud while driving my car.  Greg, who was the narrator, had such a great sense of humor during this difficult time in his life.  I also enjoyed Earl.  He was a bit more raw, and there was a scene in the book that bothered me greatly, but he was a necessary part of the story.  Even though the story was about Rachel and her cancer, it actually focused more on Greg and his being witness to this nasty disease.  

Who Should Read It:  In my opinion this would be a great novel for both the adult reader and the young-adult reader.  Even though it is about a serious subject matter, there is lots of humor and funny moments throughout the story.  The telling of the story is also quite different being as it is told from Greg's train of thought, but I thought it worked wonderfully.  I know there are mixed reviews of this book, but I think it was darn good and would bring hours of pleasure to any reader.  Happy Reading!  

Rating:  4 STARS out of 5 Stars

Just My Luck by Cammie McGovern

How I Heard About It:   During a recent shopping visit to the local book store, I came across this title on the shelf.  I was drawn to the title and the cover.  After reading the book blurb and checking out some reviews on GoodReads, I decided to purchase the book.  Am I glad I did!  

What It Is About:  Bad luck seems to be following fourth grader Benny.  His best buddy has moved away.  He can't seem to get the hang of regular things fourth graders should be able to do, like riding a bicycle, and he isn't impressed with Mr. Norris, his fourth grade teacher, who is supposed to be quite a teacher.  After Benny's father has an accident that he blames himself for, Benny feels like the world is out to get him.  Nothing is going right at either home and/or school. His biggest encourager is his mother and she promises him that things will get better.  He just needs to take life one step at a time.  Benny makes it his mission to earn as many "footprints" at school for good deeds and to find out why Mr. Norris isn't measuring up to his reputation.  

What I Thought Of It:   When I find a novel that I don't know anything about, give it a try, and love it; that makes me quite happy.  That is exactly what happened with this book.  The character of Benny had me right from the get-go and kept me by his side the entire story.  The writing in this book was incredible and spot-on depicting middle-grade characters.  The supporting cast both at Benny's home and school, were strong and added greatly to the plot.  The story was tender, heart-warming, suspenseful, and thought-provoking.  I found myself reading it quickly because I was so interested in finding out what was going to happen.  Anytime a male teacher is featured as a character I'm extremely pleased.  This will definitely be a story I'll be sharing with my fourth grade class next fall.  

Who Should Read It:  Just My Luck is the perfect novel for students in grades four, five, and six.  The  length isn't too long and the arrangement of the writing will be pleasing to these readers.  Even though I wouldn't say there was a lot of "action" in the story, I think it will totally keep a reader's interest throughout the whole book.  I also think the novel would make for an excellent read aloud in these same grades.  Adults who enjoy middle-grade fiction definitely need to get a copy of this book and experience the magic of Benny and his quest for luck!  Happy Reading…

Rating:  5 STARS out of 5 Stars