It's always good to end the week on a positive note. Sometimes we concentrate on the negatives. We have a choice. Choose positive. Choose to celebrate. I will be joining Ruth Ayres and her weekly link-up, Celebrate This Week. Check out all the other celebrations HERE
1. My back is getting better, but wow, it's been a slow recovery. I work out 6-7 days a week, so this not being active thing is killing me! I did go for a 30 min. walk today and I was glad to be moving. That's about all I can handle right now.
2. We continued Picture Book Month with a couple of my intervention groups. I wrapped the books up in butcher paper, and even though it wasn't pretty wrapping paper, the kids said, "it's just like Christmas when we do this!" Love it :) This week we shared: Press Here, The Most Marvelous Thing, My Teacher is a Monster and The Watermelon Seed!
3. Yesterday we had our first Mock Newbery meeting with 4th graders. It was amazing! I'll write more about it on Tuesday.
4. Yesterday I also did a book talk with our 4th grade reading students about some of the new books that I've recently brought in to school. I had to hold a raffle for Amulet and Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul. Keeping in mind these kids are kids where reading is hard for them, and it's generally not the first thing they choose to do. The fact that I had to hold a raffle is awesome! But it was the excitement in their faces and the jumping up and down when their name was called that will stick to me. One student who is so very quiet, never usually talks - when her name was picked second for Wimpy Kid, turned around and said in a very loud voice to the boy who won (who already had his nose in the book), "READ FAST!!" I love that it was a book that made her use her voice so forcefully! Another boy who was waiting and waiting to hear his name pulled for Amulet was dying to see who was next, let out a "chimichunga!!!" I just cracked up because again, here was a boy who never really read until this year and now they can't wait to get their hands on a book! It was amazing. So happy to see this change!
5. Don't know what to read next? Have 500 books waiting for you to read? You may or may not want to visit this link. Especially the middle grade section!!! Oh the books I need to read.... Check out Scholastic's spring releases via Mr. Schu's website HERE
Have a fantastic weekend!
How fun to be discussing potential Newbery titles! Can't wait to read your post on Tuesday!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Earl--can't wait to hear more about the Mock Newbery group. I still have several books I must read before the ALA announcements. Glad your back is slowly getting better. Exercise is very important to me too and I know how frustrating and depressing it is not to be able to get your workouts in! I absolutely LOVED reading about all the #booklove for the new books. My son and I read the new Wimpy Kid this week--he was SO EXCITED when I pulled it out of the box the day it was published. He felt like he was the first kid in the whole state of South Dakota to read it--and it might have been!
ReplyDeleteLove the stories about your students and reading, Michele. What a gift you've given them! Glad your back is improving, & sorry for the long recovery, too. I'm not sure I do want to see that Scholastic list-what-500 books! (But thanks!) Our librarians have started the Newbery club, & I need to ask what the students think about the books they've read so far.
ReplyDeleteI really should have read that last warning more carefully! Yikes. Lots of titles. Wow. Sounds like a great week for you with students!
ReplyDelete