Friend Friday #93 (The Dumbest Idea Ever by Jimmy Gownley)...

Hi!  we are Nathan and Micah and we read the book called The Dumbest Idea Ever written by Jimmy Gownley.

We thought this book was great because it had so many funny parts in it that made us laugh out loud.  Literally it did because Mr. Andrus even heard us.    

Our favorite part in the story was when he scored a bunch of points because it was an awesome moment in the story.  

The character that we liked best was Jimmy because he was the main character and so fun to read about.  He reminded us of ourselves.  

We think the author wrote this book because he wanted to entertain fourth grade readers with a super funny and great book.  We hope there is a sequel.  

We would recommend this book to our friends because it is really good and we know the kids in our class will like it as much as we do.  

Reading to us is cool and the best because there are so many great books out there and they entertain us, especially stories like this one.  

*Micah and Nathan each had a copy of this book.  They started reading it on their own, but ended up doing a "shared" reading together.  

Trailer Thursday #93 (GreenGlass House by Kate Milford)...

GreenGlass House by Kate Milford (Middle-Grade Novel)

Life Lesson #34 - Enjoy Summer and Give Back...

"Make It an Awesome Summer and Give Back"

*This is our last Life Lesson for the year.  Our writer's notebooks will go home this Friday so the parents can see all the great writing we have done this year.

*I wanted something light and fun for this last "life lesson".  My class loves Kid President.

*Being both silly and meaningful was an attractive feature of this video clip.

*After a quick class discussion, we viewed the video several times.  

*The writers then got busy in their notebooks.  They can record their thoughts, reactions, connections, emotions/feelings, or reminders.  

*The writing time lasts between five and ten minutes.  We end with some sharing of what was written.

Life Lessons from this Year...

Life Lesson #1 - Be Brave

Life Lesson #2 - Be Kind

Life Lesson #3 - Be Courageous

Life Lesson #4 - Be Motivated

Life Lesson #5 - Be a Buddy, Not a Bully

Life Lesson #6 - Be Inspired: Never Give Up on Your Goals

Life Lesson #7 - Be SHOUTful (Shout Your Success)

Life Lesson #8 - Be Spooky (Halloween Week)

Life Lesson #9 - Be Kind (Part Two)

Life Lesson #10 - Be Happy

Life Lesson #11 - The Power of Literacy (Be a Reader)

Life Lesson #12 - Be POWERful

Life Lesson #13 - Be a Team

Life Lesson #14 - Be Merry

Life Lesson #15 - Be Giving

Life Lesson #16 - Be Brave (Part Two)

Life Lesson #17 - Be Positive

Life Lesson #18 - Be Dancelike

Life Lesson #19 - You Can Do It!

Life Lesson #20 - Be a Hero (Celebrating Day 100)

Life Lesson #21 - Be A Friend

Life Lesson #22 - Be Kind (Part Three)

Life Lesson #23 - Be Strong and Courageous

Life Lesson #24 - Be Fearless

Life Lesson #25 - Be a Sportsman/Sportwoman

Life Lesson #26 - Be Different

Life Lesson #27 - Think Outside the Box

Life Lesson #28 - Live Your Dream/Share Your Passion

Life Lesson #29 - You've Always Had the Power

Life Lesson #30 - Pay It Forward

Life Lesson #31 - Give & Get a Compliment

Life Lesson #32 - What's Stopping You From Achieving Your Goals

Life Lesson #33 - Be Amazing

Wonder Wednesday #93 (A Surprise)...

Wonder Wednesday - A Pleasant Surprise 

*Sometimes things just fall into place without much effort.

*I really didn't have an idea for today's "Wonder Wednesday" post.

*As the day went on, I was hoping something would "pop" into my mind to blog about.

*Sure enough, it fell right into my lap, or in this case my computer.




*I received an email this afternoon from an educator out there in our cyber world.

*I've posted the email below.  I took out the names and places to keep the "innocent or guilty" out of this post.

*This blog is a labor of love and fills my passion of reading and books.

*I really do it just for myself and the few followers I think I have for it.

*Never in my wildest dreams did I think it was being used to such an extent by others.

*Here is the email that was sent to me.  This is truly a wonder for me...

Hi Mr. Andrus, 

I hope I have the right person -- looking for Patrick Andrus who has the readwonder blog. 

I stumbled upon your blog a while ago and liked it so much I shared it with another teacher.  She enjoyed your blog so much she started using it with her class.  She has shared many of the "life lessons", "music Mondays", etc.  A few weeks ago I visited her class and many of the kids had purchased books from the book fair based upon recommendations from your blog. Thank you for putting together such a great resource. 

I know the school year is almost over but I was wondering if you might have time to visit with her and the class. I know they would love it. 

Please let me know.  Thank you!  

Picture Wednesday #36 (Friends Forever)...

"Friends Forever"

*This is our last Picture Wednesday as I'm sending home the writer's notebooks this Friday.

*Being the last Wednesday I had several photographs to choose from.

*When I couldn't decide I picked all five.  They were thrilled to see more than one picture.

*This was the perfect topic for the end of the year.  Our writing was all about friendship.  

*After they wrote for quite some time, a few of the kids shared out what they wrote.  

*Some wrote about one picture, some wrote about all, and some just wrote about the topic of friendship.  It was a great chunk of time spend in our notebooks.  

Treat Tuesday #93...

Treat Tuesday - Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Sandwich

*We saw this recipe on Facebook and wanted to give it a try.

*It seemed like it would be a perfect sandwich for the summer season.

*A perfect lunch/dinner meal to eat while you read the perfect book.

Ingredients...

• 1 boneless pork loin roast (4 pounds)
• 1 can (14-1/2 ounces) beef broth
• 1/3 cup plus 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce, divided
• 1/3 cup plus 1/4 cup Louisiana-style hot sauce, divided
• 1 cup ketchup
• 1 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup prepared mustard
• 10 kaiser rolls, split

Directions...

• 1. Cut roast in half; place in a 5-qt. slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine broth, 1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce and 1/3 cup hot sauce; pour over roast. Cook, covered, on low 8-10 hours or until tender.
• 2. Remove roast; discard cooking juices. Shred pork with two forks. Return pork to slow cooker.
• 3. In a small bowl, combine ketchup, molasses, mustard and remaining Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce. Pour over pork. Cook, covered, on high 30 minutes or until heated through. Serve on rolls. Yield: 10 servings.

Treat Tuesday:  Middle-Grade Novel

The Boy on the Porch by Sharon Creech

Treat Tuesday:  Adult Novel

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

Class Read Aloud #7: Hero by Sarah Lean

Class Read Aloud #7 - Hero by Sarah Lean

*After I read this novel earlier this year on my own, I knew I wanted it to be one of our read alouds.

*I made the right choice because it was a sure-fire HIT.

*This story is so great and has such a powerful message.  

*Here are a few thoughts that my listeners had...

I thought this book was…

*Awesome because it was an awesome story

*Good because it had so many life lessons in it.  

*Great because I loved Jack Pepper.  


I liked it when…

*Leo found the dog because I like dogs.  

*The boys let Leo into their group because I thought that was cool of them.
*The sinkhole was made because that is really what made the whole story.   

My favorite character was…

*Jack Pepper because he was a dog and I'm in love with logs.  
*Leo because he was a nice guy but wanted to be popular so that took over.  
*Jack Pepper because he was cute, white, and so fuzzy.  Or at least I pictured him that way.  


My favorite part in the story was…

*The ending because it was such a happy ending.  
*When Jack Pepper was safe at home because it was happy and I like happy.   
*When the sinkhole was created because it was a pretty amazing moment.  

It was interesting when…

*The dog was lost because it was surprising and interesting.  
*He pushed that bike into the lake because I did not except that.  
*Grizzly and Leo made up a story at the end instead of telling the truth because I wasn't thinking that would happen.   

I was frustrated when…

*The dog got lost because it was sad that the dog got lost.  
*The dog was in the hole because it was so sad. 

*He was about to join a mean group of friends and do something he does not want to do to get in it because I was saying in my head don't do it.  

I give this book _____ stars!  

5 STARS =  14 Students
4 STARS =  7 Students
3 STARS =  2 Students
2 STARS =  0 Student
1 STAR =  0 Students

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (5/25/15)...

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… 

King Dork by Frank Portman

*My young-adult novel on audio

My Book Review





Books I Will (continue to) Read this Week… 

House of Echoes by Brendan Duffy

*My adult novel

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

*My young-adult novel

The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri

*My adult novel on audio

The Truth about Twinkie Pie by Kat Yeh...

How I Heard About It:  I believe it was a tweet from Colby Sharp that brought this book to my attention.  When I saw it on the shelves of the local book store, I grabbed it up and brought it home to experience.

What It Is About:  GiGi (Galileo Galilei) and DiDi (Delta Dawn) are two sisters living on their own after their mother has died.  DiDi is a high school drop out, but wins a contest of a million dollars.  She is a hair stylist and wants the best for her younger sister.  GiGi is very smart and DiDi knows it.  They move from their trailer park to New York where DiDi enrolls her younger sister in a private expensive school.  Gigi's job is to get top grades while DiDi works hard at the salon and keeping their life together.  After starting her new school, GiGi meets the "cool" boy in the school and decides to re-image herself.  The problem is that Mace, the popular girl in the school, doesn't like that GiGi is becoming so close to this boy.  Mace ends up becoming friends with DiDi which of course her sister doesn't like.  As the year goes on, GiGi begins to learn that what she thought was her family's past, may or may not be the actual truth.  

What I Thought Of It:  This was a great middle-grade novel.  I loved the characters of GiGi and DiDi and how they were out on their own and making the best of what they had.  GiGi was so fun to read about and I really admired the sacrifices that her older sister gave up in order for GiGi to succeed in life.  The recipes that were sprinkled throughout the story were so fun to read and added greatly to the story. There are several twists and turns throughout the book which kept things quite interesting.  

Who Should Read It:  If you enjoy middle-grade novels, then this is the perfect book for you.  I could see this as an excellent read loud for students in grades five or six.  If a student were to read this on their own, I think they should be in grades six or above.  Happy Reading!  

Rating:  5 STARS out of 5 Stars

King Dork by Frank Portman...

How I Heard About It:  Browsing the library shelves for my next audio book I came across this novel.  I recognized the title, but not sure where I had heard of it.  I checked it out and decided to give it a try.

What It Is About:  This is a bit hard to summarize, but I'll give it a shot.  Tom is a sophomore in high school.  He is described as a dork, actually a king dork.  Tom doesn't have many friends, but a few other "dorks".  He loves music and he and his buddies continually try to create a band with the coolest band name.  Tom comes across a copy of his dad's copy of Catcher in the Rye with a mysterious message inside of it.  His father died, but the way he died as remained a mystery.  After finding the book and the message, Tom begins a quest to find out what really happened to his father.  During this time he goes to see a therapist, tries to find the love of his life, and win the ultimate band contest.

What I Thought Of It:  This story was kind of all over the place.  I found it hard to follow on audio.  There was so much going on that I couldn't really keep track of everything.  I would enjoy parts of the story, but then other parts were not that interesting to me.  There were times when I was going to "abandon" the  book, but I stuck with it until the very bizarre ending.  I didn't love this young adult novel as much as I have with other books, but I could see high school readers really getting into this story.  

Who Should Read It:  This is definitely a story for high school readers.  I could see them relating to many of the different topics and themes that are covered throughout the book.  If the reader is a music lover, then I think they would also be drawn to the story of Tom and his sophomore year in high school.  

Rating:  3 STARS out of 5 Stars

The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides...

How I Heard About It:  I am a fan of Jeffrey Eugenides and his novels, but I never read what I think is his first book.  When I saw it on the audio shelves at the library I decided it would be my next story to listen to on my commute to and from work.

What It Is About:  The Lisbon family is living in Michigan during the early 1970's.  They have five daughters.  Something strange is going on in their home and within the family.  After one of the daughters kills herself, the family becomes even more dysfunctional.  The neighbor boys watch closely as they try to figure out what is going on with the remaining four girls and their parents.  There are times when the girls try to streamline into society and school, but these times are far and few between.  As the family becomes more shut into their home, each of the girls tries to take their life one after another.  Each one will choose a different method and the family as they know it will come to an tragic ending.    

What I Thought Of It:  I know this book sounds completely depressing and yes it is a heavy subject matter, but I found the story compelling, touching, and disturbing all at the same time.  Jeffrey's writing style is stunning and quite beautiful.  He certainly knows how to tell a story.  I enjoyed that the narrator was one of the neighbor boys and told from his viewpoint of an outsider.  I listened to this book on audio and the reader was excellent.  All and all I enjoyed the novel even though it is on a quite difficult topic.

Who Should Read It:  Being that this has such a heavy subject matter this is definitely an adult novel. I believe adult readers will be drawn to this book more than other age groups.  If you have read anything else by this author, then I fairly certain you will enjoy this book.  The writing is incredible and there are so many incredibly beautiful words, sentences, and paragraphs.  Don't let the title and subject matter scare you away.  This is a top-notch adult novel.  Happy Reading!

Rating:  4 STARS out of 5 Stars

Friend Friday #92 (The Magic Goose by Daniel Pinkwater)...

Hi!  I am Marissa and I read the book called The Magic Goose written by Daniel Pinkwater.  

I think this book was amazing because it had so much adventure in it.   

My favorite part in the story was when they meet Mr. Inkblotter because it was a really funny part of the story.   

The character that I liked best was the mom because she kept on sleeping like I would do.  

I think the author wrote this book because he wanted to entertain kids with a great story.  

I would recommend this book to my friends because I am almost positive they would like it.  

Reading to me is fun because learn so much.  

*Marissa is a fourth grade reader in one of my three language arts classes.  

Trailer Thursday #92 (The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri)...

The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri (Adult Novel)

Life Lesson #33 (Be Amazing)...

"Be Amazing"

*I love all the days of our writing, but Thursday hold a special spot.

*Teaching children "real life skills" is actually more important to me than some other "skills."

*We will watch the video and chat about it as a class.

*The writers will write their connections, thoughts, ideas, reminders, or observations.

*The class will usually spend between 5-10 minutes writing in their writer's notebooks.

*At the end, volunteers can share what they wrote!  

Life Lessons from this Year...

Life Lesson #1 - Be Brave

Life Lesson #2 - Be Kind

Life Lesson #3 - Be Courageous

Life Lesson #4 - Be Motivated

Life Lesson #5 - Be a Buddy, Not a Bully

Life Lesson #6 - Be Inspired: Never Give Up on Your Goals

Life Lesson #7 - Be SHOUTful (Shout Your Success)

Life Lesson #8 - Be Spooky (Halloween Week)

Life Lesson #9 - Be Kind (Part Two)

Life Lesson #10 - Be Happy

Life Lesson #11 - The Power of Literacy (Be a Reader)

Life Lesson #12 - Be POWERful

Life Lesson #13 - Be a Team

Life Lesson #14 - Be Merry

Life Lesson #15 - Be Giving

Life Lesson #16 - Be Brave (Part Two)

Life Lesson #17 - Be Positive

Life Lesson #18 - Be Dancelike

Life Lesson #19 - You Can Do It!

Life Lesson #20 - Be a Hero (Celebrating Day 100)

Life Lesson #21 - Be A Friend

Life Lesson #22 - Be Kind (Part Three)
Life Lesson #23 - Be Strong and Courageous
Life Lesson #24 - Be Fearless
Life Lesson #25 - Be a Sportsman/Sportwoman
Life Lesson #26 - Be Different
Life Lesson #27 - Think Outside the Box
Life Lesson #28 - Live Your Dream/Share Your Passion
Life Lesson #29 - You've Always Had the Power
Life Lesson #30 - Pay It Forward
Life Lesson #31 - Give & Get a Compliment
Life Lesson #32 - What's Stopping You From Achieving Your Goals

Wonder Wednesday #92 (Summer Reading)...

Wonder Wednesday - 
Use Reading in the Summer


*I ran across this article on the "net" recently and really enjoyed reading it.

*I always worry about my readers and if they will continue to read as much as they did during the school year.



*I encourage them to read as much as possible with reading lists, book ideas, recommendations, and lots and lots of book talks right before we leave for the summer.

*This article had a lot of great and WONDERful ideas to help with the encouragement of reading and preventing that summer slide.

*Enjoy...

Six Ways to Use Reading to Prevent the Summer Slide

Picture Wednesday #35 (Tent City)...

"Tent City"

*I try to pick a variety of photographs to share with my students on Wednesday.

*When I ran across this one, it caught my attention and was completely different than anything we have observed and written about this year.

*After a quick class discussion, the fourth graders get busy writing.

*They can record their thoughts, feelings, emotions, connections, or ideas.

*Some of the writers also create a fiction story.  

*At the end of our time, a few of the writers will share what they wrote!  

Treat Tuesday #92...

Treat Tuesday:  Lava Cake

*When I saw this on Facebook, it sure caught my attention.

*We printed the recipe and will be trying it very soon.

*The pictures alone make my mouth water.

*Hope you enjoy it!  

Ingredients...

• 1 brownie mix (family size for 9x13 pan) plus ingredients needed according to brownie mix instructions (normally oil, water, and eggs)
• 1 large egg (in addition to the eggs called for in the brownie mix instructions)
• 16 Dove Dark Chocolate Promise candy pieces (each piece weighs .3 oz), or similar
• whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, optional
• raspberries or strawberries for garnish, optional

Directions...

Empty brownie mix into large bowl. Whisk to remove large lumps. Coat 8 (6 oz) custard cups with cooking spray. Add a small amount of dry brownie mix to each cup and rotate cups until completely lightly coated; tap and shake out excess back into brownie mix bowl. Set aside. In separate bowl, whisk together wet ingredients called for in brownie mix instructions (oil, water, eggs), plus 1 additional egg. Add wet ingredients to brownie mix and stir until well combined. 

Spoon batter into each custard cup or bowl until 1/2 full (approx. 1/3 cup of batter for 6 oz. cup/bowls).  Stack two Dove candies and press them down into the center of the batter; spoon batter over candy so it is completely covered. 

Place in microwave and cook at full power for 1 minute for 1 cake (microwave power and times may vary). May cook up to 4 cakes at one time, adding 1/2 minute to cooking time for each additional cake. 

To remove cake from bowl: Immediately, run a thin knife around the edge of the cooked cake. Place a small plate on top of the cake bowl. Flip the plate and bowl over, so the cake is inverted on top of the plate. Gently lift the bowl, leaving the inverted cake on the plate. If any melted chocolate remains in bottom of bowl, spoon it on top of inverted cake. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream; garnish with berries, if desired.

Cakes may also be eaten directly from the custard cup they are cooked in (without inverting them on a plate). May also be cooked and served in half-pint mason jars.
(If eating cakes directly from bowl or jar, it isn't necessary to spray or coat them before adding batter and cooking.)

MAKE AHEAD: Batter may be mixed and added with chocolate pieces to custard cups or jars in advance. Cover and refrigerate up to a week. Remove from refrigerator and warm to room temperature 30 minutes before cooking.

Treat Tuesday:  Middle-Grade Novel

Pickle by Kim Baker

Treat Tuesday:  Adult Novel

The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (5/18/15)...

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… 

The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides

*4 STARS out of 5 Stars!







The Truth about Twinkie Pie by Kat Yeh

*4 STARS out of 5 Stars!







Books I Will (continue to) Read this Week… 

House of Echoes by Brendan Duffy

*My adult novel

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

*My young-adult novel

King Dork by Frank Portman

*My young-adult novel on audio

Music Monday #31 - Somebody - Lemonade Mouth

"Somebody" - Lemonade Mouth

*This song goes back to when my own two kids were little.

*I've used it off and on and really do enjoy it.

*The videos will be shared with my students and we will discuss as a class.

*My writers will then record their thoughts, feelings, reactions, connections, or ideas.

*They write for about five to ten minutes each day in their writer's notebooks.

*At the end of our writing time, a few of the kids will share what they wrote.  

Music Monday Selections for 2014-2015…

Week #1 = What I Am by will.i.am and Sesame Street Characters

Week #2 = Proud by Heather Small

Week #3 = Dreamer by Chris Brown

Week #4 = Roar by Katy Perry

Week #5 = What Does the Fox Say by Ylvis

Week #6 = Rainbow Connection from the Muppets

Week #7 = Good Time by Owl City and Carly Rae Jepson

Week #8 = Thriller by Michael Jackson

Week #9 = Hall of Fame by The Script and will.i.am

Week #10 = Pure Imagination from Willy Wonka

Week #11 = Count on Me by Bruno Mars

Week #12 = Superheroes by The Script

Week #13 = Something New by Axwell Ingrosso

Week #14 = Clouds by Zach Sobiech

Week #15 = Do They Know Its Christmas by BandAid
Week #16 = What A Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong
Week #17 = Shooting Star by Owl City
Week #18 = Happy by Pharrell Williams
Week #19 = The World's Greatest by R. Kelly
Week #20 = Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) by Shakira
Week #21 = Somewhere Over the Rainbow from The Wizard of Oz
Week #22 = I've Lived by One Republic
Week #23 = I Believe by Yolanda Adams
Week #24 = The World is Ours by David Correy
Week #25 = Dream Big by Ryan Shupe and the Rubberband
Week #26 = Fireflies by Owl City
Week #27 = My Fight Song by Rachel Platten
Week #28 = My Wish by Rascal Flatts
Week #29 = Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield
Week #30 = Geronimo by Sheppard