Sally and I had the pleasure of attending MRA a few weeks
ago. Sally had won a MEEMIC
conference grant and I took the whole family up to Grand Rapids for the
weekend. We both had the joy of
seeing R.J. Palacio, Penny Kittle, Smokey Daniels, Cris Tovani, and Donalynn
Miller. In addition, Sally
attended a session on student led book clubs and I attended a session on
Lit-Hop: Hip Hop and Poetry.
I know for some people it is work. Yet for me, talking about books and literacy gets me so
excited! Listening to Donalynn
Miller give book-talks on Sunday morning with a warm cup of coffee was just
like heaven. Sally and I
have contemplated having staff book-clubs for a while but listening to Donalynn
Miller was just the inspiration we needed.
This is what we would like to propose. We would like to hold a monthly
voluntary staff book club where we read young adult literature. We know that one of the best things we
can do as teachers is to get good books into the hands of kids. As Donalynn says, “children like what
we bless.” This would allow staff
the opportunity to read at least 9 new young adult books a year. We are still figuring out the logistics
but are hoping to find a way to put this idea in the School Improvement Plan
and Title budget in order to supply staff with the books. For now, we are going to try out Books and Breakfast using battle books
for May and June. Our first
meeting will be Friday, April 11 at 8:10 in the lounge to discuss the structure
of our book club and hand out Belly Up. Our next meeting will be Friday, May 2. Of course we will come away with good
ways to use books with students but most importantly we hope to find time to
enjoy each other and the pleasure of a good book. Finally, look for a new blog coming soon on book reviews by
several Cooper staff. Make a
comment if you are interested and look for more information to come!
Donalynn Miller did give some great sites for finding good
books.
- The Nerdy Book Club
- Bookwhisperer.com
- Title Talk
- Classroombookshelf.blogspot
I have 5 pages of notes about the books she recommended
which anyone is welcome to copy.
The following are just some of the great books she talked about.
Graphic Novels:
Comics Squad Recess! A graphic novel anthology by the
best names in the genre
Sisters by Raina Telgemeler, author of Drama
and Smile
Picture Books:
Aviary Wonders, Inc Spring Catalog 2031 by Kate
Samworth. This book is a
commentary on ecology where all birds are extinct and you can only order one
from this catalog.
Weasels by Elys Dolan. Weasels plot world domination.
Nonfiction:
The Griffin and the Dinosaur by Marc Aronson,
Adrienne Mayor, and Chris Muller.
The myth of the griffin compared to dinosaurs. Great for the Rick Riordan fans.
Ken Jennings Junior Genius Guides by Ken Jennings of
Jeopardy fame. Apparently,
Donalynn can’t keep these on her shelf.
The Port Chicago 50: Disaster, Mutiny, and the Fight for
Civil Rights by Steve Sheinkin, author of Bomb. Depicts the prejudice black men and
women in the armed forces faced during WWII.
Poetry:
Firefly July: A Year of Short Poems by Paul B
Janeczko and Melissa Sweet
Middle Grade Fiction
4-6 grade:
Loki’s Wolves (The Blackwell Pages) by K.L.
Armstrong. What Riordan has down
for Greek Mythology, Armstrong is doing for Norse Mythology.
The Night Gardener by Jonathon Auxler. Two Irish siblings travel to work as
servants in an old English Manor but the house is not quite what it seems. Scary but not too scary Victorian ghost
story.
Nightingale’s Nest by Nikki Loftin. A homage to Hans Christian
Anderson. When the girl sings,
wound are healed.
“If you have a garden and a
library, you have everything you need.”
Cicero
Thank you to…
Melodie, Karen, and Sandy for their hard work at the String
Fling. Cooper students sounded
wonderful on Wednesday night!
Melodie for presenting the 6th grade music
curriculum on Tuesday night.
Sally for her hard work in leading the upper elementary
Guide Reading Learning Lab. Also,
a big thank you to Sue Krekeler, Michelle Kopacko, Victoria Estes, and Tara Daraskavich
for participating this year.
Big Rocks:
Livonia is being visited by the external review team for
AdvancED. Cooper is not being
visited but Sarah does have to provide transportation for the members on Monday
and Tuesday. The following schools
are being visited on Tuesday: Churchill, Johnson, Holmes, Riley, Emerson,
Hayes, Roosevelt, Buchanan, Garfield, and Kennedy.
Teams are continuing to meet and plan for Leadership
Day. Thank you for all of your
hard work. There is synergy in
action and everything is really coming together.
There will be another storage container delivered in the
west lot next week for the team working on the beginning renovations.
Sarah placed an article on the difference between Rude,
Mean, and Bullying in everyone’s box this week. I personally think it’s an excellent read that I would love
to share with parents.
For the Week of April
7, 2014…
Monday: 7:45 Sarah transports External
Review Team from the Holiday Inn to Central
Office
7:45 Terry at FHS for
LEADS meeting
Tuesday: 7:45
Sarah transports External Review Team from the Holiday Inn to
Roosevelt
8:00 IST
9:15 ASSET
12:50 Sarah transports ERT
from Roosevelt to Buchanan
3:45 Clubs
3:45 5th Grade
Variety Show practice
4:10 Sarah transports ERT
from Buchanan to Holiday Inn
Wednesday: 8:00
EPT
Emerson RCR Meetings at Cooper in conference room
Kopacko and Lorenz to Cobo Hall
3:00-3:30 Sarah at CO for ERT Exit Report
3:45 6th Grade Variety Show practice
3:45 Planning Team
Thursday: 8:15-3:45
CCSS meeting at CO (Sarah and Wendy)
12:00-4:30 EPM (Sarah and Terry)
3:45-4:45
Extended Staff Meeting
6:00 PTA
Meeting
Friday: 8:00
Books and Breakfast
Sports Day and Board Game Day
MRA was a great way to reconnect with what's new in literature. Sarah and I hope to share many of the latest titles highly recommended by the author of The Book Whisperer, Donalyn Miller. We are excited to host the first "Books and Breakfast" next Friday, April 11. Look for an email early next week, asking for an RSVP.
ReplyDeleteSo sad that I didn't go this year to MRA. Love Donalyn and have sat in on her "teaching" many times over the years, even got to chat one on one last year when I arrived early for her session. I think having a young adults book club is a great idea. I've been reading young adult books for the last three years and really try to keep up with what is current so I can put new great reads in my kids' hands. :) Excited to read with you!
DeleteI am very excited to be a part of "Books for Breakfast" My only issue is the time because I do bus duty:(
ReplyDeleteSally and Sarah,
ReplyDeleteCan you post the details from our book club meeting somewhere? I was a few minutes late (as usual) to the meeting on Friday and missed the part about blogging and posting reviews. Thanks, Wendy