Library Bag Fave: Albie's First Word - A Tale Inspired by Albert Einstein's Childhood by Jacqueline Tourville & Illustrations by Wynne Evans

While I was teaching, I would head to the library a couple times a week. I'd grab as many new picture books as I could, making sure my bag was still light enough to carry to the car. Before teaching a tech lesson, I chose one new picture book to read to my classes FIRST. This is something I struggled with ...should  I be taking time from tech? But over and over it would prove to be a favorite time for all of my students. Especially the older kids, because they rarely got the chance to still read or check out picture books. And you know about peer pressure and looking "babyish". One day I needed to get the kids going on a project in tech, skipping reading a book. One of my redhead fifth grade boys (whom I'll lovingly NEVER forget) looked at me and said, "We're not going to read a book first?" with the saddest and most disappointed look on his face. It was one of the key moments when I knew reading to them was the right thing to do. My hope is that I instilled the love of books and reading in my students because I loved it myself, showed them, and read to them.

Now that I've retired, I haven't changed my habit at all. My Goodreads 2015 goal is 365 books and I'm 20 books ahead of schedule. Finding and reading new picture books really is one of those simple things in my life that brings me pure joy. When I walk up to the shelf with the new picture books, more times than not, I will start giggling at one of the covers. Or I will get really excited because someone I LOVE is featured in a new book. This time it was a new book about Albert Einstein. (Check out a previous post on an Albert Einstein book titled "On a Beam of Light".)

From debut illustrator Wynne Evans' gorgeous illustrations to the what if question posed by author Jacqueline Tourville, we have "Albie's First Word". She has written many books about child health and development. An article she read about Einstein being a late talker interested her. She herself had a child that was a late talker and so did I. I would call my mom and fret about our son STILL not talking. She'd tell me that he was fine and when he started talking we'd wish he'd stop. And of course she was right. Albie's mother worried, too, and took him to a doctor who suggested taking him to the symphony, a professor's lecture, and being around other children...like at a local boat race. Albie won the race but still did not talk when he was presented the trophy, he just held it high in the air. Albie's parents decided if he never spoke one word, they would always love him anyway.

We know of course that he became a brilliant scientist and a great mind of our times. Tourville gives us a delightful "tale" of what that first word could have been. Of course, no one knows for sure, but I think she came up with the perfect choice. I'm not tellling, so, what do YOU think his first word might have been?

Library Bag Fave: Is There a Dog in This Book? by Viviane Schwarz

You can't tell, but the yellow part is a different piece of paper that covers the cats. This SHOULD have given me a clue that INSIDE the book would have flaps and cutouts. But, no, I was delightfully surprised. Lots of fun in this story and the illustrations....many, many giggly surprises! The cats talk to the reader, inviting us into their story. Two of the cats discover there is a dog in the book...the third asks what a dog is. The dog in the book is just the cutest little thing. I particularly love his thought bubbles...they are kiddish line drawings of what he is "hearing" the cats tell him. Schwarz has cleverly hid the cats under flaps because they are afraid of him. Well, except Tiny, she wants to be friends. She eventually convinces the other two to feel his soft fur. But then they ask the reader if they want to cuddle their new dog friend. The reader sees the dog looking at them with sheer terror, his ears straight up in the air, with a line drawing of a human in his thought bubble is hilarious! He runs off and hides...behind flaps of course! Such a delightful, unique, fun book! Grab it at your nearest library or independent book store! YAY BOOKS!

Reading Goals, and Young Adult Titles

Go here to read Colby Sharp's reading goals he set for himself. He is one of my favorite sources for everything books and teaching. He and John Schu, another of my go-to sources, collaborate often about books. Colby's goals are sensible and logical, instead of just a number. Colby's Reading Goals

One of his goals is to read young adult books...this is the one that caught my interest. So...of course I had to suggest a BUNCH of books and decided to post it here, too. 

Colby, I LOVE your idea! I’m particularly interested in your YA reads…I’m a little obsessed with YA at the moment…well, for chapter books. I still get a boat load of new picture books each week. May I make a few suggestions regarding YA? (Notice how I’m going to go ahead. And I KNOW that you probably know all of these books and authors…so basically, these are MY favorites.) Maggie Stiefvater: Scorpio Races was a fave of hubby and I…and it’s going to be a movie, but we have joyfully devoured ALL of her books. Libba Bray’s Beauty Queens…wicked hilarious…reminds me of adult writer Christopher Moore. Markus Zusak…Book Thief, of course, but his I Am the Messenger is SO different from BT but fab…I think every teenager should read this book before graduation. Brandon Sanderson’s Steelheart series, think reluctant boy readers. John Green, goes without saying. Eleanor and Park, Rainbow Rowell…another ALL teenagers should read…great music references! Perks of Being a Wallflower. Every Day, David Leviathan. Seraphina by Rachel Hartman…half dragon/half human…waiting for sequel in March! On the lighter side but the story telling is exquisite, think reluctant girl readers, Cinder series by Marissa Meyer. Colby, I admire you…thank you for doing what you do!

Blood Red Road by Moira Young

Moira Young was an actress, dancer, singer, and opera star when she took a bad fall. During her recovery she discovered a forgotten old goal...to write a novel. Promptly taking a class in writing, she is now an award winning novelist with her first attempt, Blood Red Road, the first in her Dustlands trilogy.


A desolate world that has become a dusty wasteland, has a mad King who controls his slaves with a drug they call Chaw. Saba knows nothing of this outside her little world...her family lives near a dried up lake, but they get by and are happy, even though their mother died giving birth to Emmi, the youngest. Until the day the men in black cloaks come and kidnap her beloved twin brother Lugh. Her quest to find her brother will not only make Saba stronger and braver then she could ever imagine, it will lead her to the man who makes her heartstone blaze.

Tears. Not For Joy. For The Teachers. For The Children.

A friend of mine teaches in a district that is desperately trying to improve their schools. But they are going about it all wrong, They finally let the kids GO OUT TO RECESS, but they call it a "vitamin D break". What the hell?! These are elementary children. But even more heartbreaking than that? They don't allow the teachers to read aloud picture books. This weighs on my heart heavily.  How can a district go SO wrong? And it's because of scores...scores so low that they think this is the answer. I'm distraught. What can I do, how can I help? I don't know, and it makes me cry. Cry for the children, cry for the teachers.

Lifelong Readers...It Doesn't Matter HOW You Get Them Hooked!

Here is a post at Nerdy Book Club about how Rebecca O'Dell became a reader. I hope I am being pc here by just copying and pasting it to my blog. It really is a great story about how readers are born!

BREAKING THE RULES & GROWING READERS BY REBEKAH O’DELL

POSTED BY CBETHM ON NOVEMBER 24, 2014 IN READING LIVES | 8 COMMENTS

For six consecutive Sundays, we broke the rules, operating in the strictest of secrecy.

When the 9 o’clock bedtime hour struck, my brother and I went upstairs to our respective bedrooms per usual. I ran to my room, quickly turned off the light, and huddled by the door, listening for my brother’s door to shut, straining my eyes to see his light go off. I waited for my mom to come get me and silently signal the all clear.

After all,  Pride and Prejudice isn’t for younger brothers.

I padded down the hall to my parents’ bedroom — dark except for the blue glow of the television.  My dad scooted toward the edge, making room for me in the center, smushed between parents and pillows in the queen-sized bed. The screen lit up in a soft rose hue, lilting theme music commenced, and I was utterly transfixed.

This was a world I had never encountered before — ladies playing harpsichord in pretty dresses, afternoon tea, smart and witty heroines, well-spoken men. And even a 7th grader can fall in love with Colin Firth. It was everything I had ever wanted in a story, and my parents gave it to me as a gift.

Those January Sunday nights were my literary coming-of-age.

After the mini-series concluded, I voraciously read everything Jane Austen had to offer. Then, the Brontes. Then Alcott. Then – everything. Every grown-up book I could get my hands on. While I had always been a very strong reader, I was now a reader on fire — gobbling books in giant bites as quickly as possible. ThePride & Prejudice mini-series had flipped some kind of switch in me — moving me from proficient to passionate.

My parents knew me. Really, deeply knew me both as a person and as a reader.  So they connected their knowledge of their daughter with literature.  They somehow knew that 12-year-old Rebekah would adore Jane Austen, so they broke the rules and let me stay up far past bedtime. They knew Austen’s writing was just a little bit beyond what I was ready for — so they broke the rules again and scaffolded with the movie before the book and then chatted with me about the differences between the film and the book while I later read. And they knew I could keep a secret from my brother for nearly 20 years.

My parents did the same job I try to do in my classroom every day — connecting the right kid with the right book to create passionate, lifelong readers. Even if it means breaking the rules. Sometimes it means recommending the book after the movie has been viewed. Sometimes it means making room for fan fiction during independent reading.  Sometimes it means encouraging a book well below grade level. Sometimes it means allowing a student to read all fifteen books in a series that you know isn’t well-written.

Breaking our long-held rules can explode the reading possibilities for all of our students.  Our strongest readers find new, diverse areas of reading interest. Our reluctant readers find entry points, open windows into a world of words. All of our readers develop richer reading lives.  By breaking the rules, our young readers, too, can be transfixed by books.

Rebekah O’Dell teaches high school English in Richmond, Virginia. She blogs at movingwriters.org. You can connect with her on Twitter @Rebekahodell1.

Discovered a GREAT New Teacher and Blogger!

I found her at Nerdy Book Club, no surprise there, right? Her name is Kimberley Moran and she's a book loving second grade teacher. Let me tell you, we need more teachers like her in this world! Here is her post on Nerdy today, her blog, her Twitter handle is @kagmoran. She's also here under Favorite Websites! After you read the first part of her post on Nerdy today, I hope you'll understand why I said to my book loving husband, "These are the things that make me cry". ENJOY!

TEN WAYS TO GET PRIMARY READERS TO READ BY KIMBERLEY MORAN

POSTED BY CBETHM ON NOVEMBER 22, 2014 IN TOP TEN LISTS | 18 COMMENTS

As he sounds out the word painfully slowly, he looks desperately to the illustration for assistance. He looks at me. I look back blankly. He says each sound separately, but blends it incorrectly. He shakes his head. He looks at me. I look back with my gentle smile.  He glances over at the boys reading through the books in their book boxes effortlessly, happily even.