The One With Bookworms in Sheboygan #slice2014

Every Tuesday, I participate in the Slice of Life challenge at Two Writing Teachers. If you want to participate, you can link up at their Slice of Life Story Post on Tuesdays or you can just head on over there to check out other people's stories. For more information on what a Slice of Life post is about, you can go here. 

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This weekend we had a great time up in Sheboygan, Wisconsin at their Children's Book Festival. After Peanut's soccer game on Saturday, we drove up just in time to make it to Dave Roman's session. It was fun to see a room full of kids drawing their own super heroes or villains and coming up with stories. The boys got to work right away. Little Bean drew Frankendile and Peanut drew Clawboy. They were pretty proud of their creations!

Afterwards, Little Bean got his face painted like a tiger and practiced his roar knowing he was going to meet Peter Brown on Sunday. He's a natural.

 On Sunday, we were up early for breakfast and a swim before heading off to Bookworm Gardens to ramble and use our imaginations with Terri Murphy. I'll share more pictures of Bookworm Gardens in another post because it's worth its own post...but here are a few pictures of our adventures in imagining and drawing what we discovered there.

We even ran into Curious George!

 

After some fun at Bookworm Gardens, we headed back to hear Peter Brown talk about his books. The kids loved hearing him read Mr. Tiger Goes Wild and Creepy Carrots. They each wanted their own copy of Creepy Carrots to take home and Peanut was excited to buy My Teacher is a Monster! (No, I Am Not.) for his kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade teachers...which I hope they enjoy.

 Love these faces!

 I'm so glad the weather cooperated and we had such a perfect weekend at the Sheboygan Children's Book Festival. We're already talking about going again next year. Do you have a favorite book festival to share?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 10/13/14

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA! 

It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journeys. It is a great way to recap what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and to plan out your reading and reviews for the upcoming week. It's also a great chance to see what others are reading right now...you just might discover your next “must-read” book!

Kellee Moye, of Unleashing Readers, and I decided to give It's Monday! What Are You Reading? a kidlit focus. If you read and review books in children's literature - picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels, anything in the world of kidlit - join us! We love this meme and think you will, too. We encourage everyone who participates to visit at least three of the other kidlit book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them. 

Announcement:

The winner of
The Top Secret Diary of Celie Valentine: Friendship Over
by Julie Sternberg is...
Christina Williams

Last Week's Book Adventures:

Jen Says: Can you believe I'm still listening to Seeing Red? I'm on the last CD so I'll finish it super soon though and then I need to go to the library for another audiobook. I finished The Top Secret Diary of Celie Valentine. I grabbed Raina Telgemeier's Sisters at the Sheboygan Book Festival this weekend and chose to get started on that instead of Fantasy League.

Reviewed Last Week:

*I'll have the Rafflecopter up all week so you can enter to win a copy of Sam and Dave Dig a Hole!*

Click on any picture above to go read my review/post.

Upcoming Book Adventures: 

Jen Says: I'll finished up Seeing Red and then I know I'm going to devour Sisters and then I'll get into Fantasy League.

This Week's Reviews:

Check back throughout the week to read these reviews/posts. 

So, what are you reading this week? 

Link up below and don't forget to check out other blogs to see what they are reading!

To help build our community and support other bloggers, 

we ask that you comment on at least three other blogs before you. 

Also, if you tweet about your Monday post, don't forget to use #IMWAYR!

Sam and Dave Dig a Hole Review and Giveaway

Title: Sam and Dave Dig a Hole 
Author: Mac Barnett
Illustrator: Jon Klassen 
Publisher: Candlewick Press 
Publication Date: October 14th, 2014 
Genre/Format: Fiction/Picture Book 
GoodReads Summary: Sam and Dave are on a mission. A mission to find something spectacular. So they dig a hole. And they keep digging. And they find . . . nothing. Yet the day turns out to be pretty spectacular after all. Attentive readers will be rewarded with a rare treasure in this witty story of looking for the extraordinary — and finding it in a manner you’d never expect. 
What I Think: This book will be available on Tuesday and I hope you have it pre-ordered because you're going to want to be in on the conversations about what in the world happens at the end of this book! As soon as I saw Travis Jonker's post on 100 Scope Notes called 6 Theories on the Ending of Sam & Dave Dig a Hole in my Twitter feed, you better believe I clicked it. I actually have a completely different (7th?) theory on the end of this book. 
     This book is suspenseful. You can't help but want to turn the page to figure out what happens next. I love how this can be a great mentor text for pacing and making sure that what you've written drives the story forward and makes the reader want to read more. The illustrations really add to this because the add so much to what the text tells us. It's as if the readers are in on a big secret (with our friend the god) while Sam and Dave have no idea what's going on. The text gives us Sam and Dave's thoughts but the illustrations let us in on the bigger story. 
     By the time I got to the end of the book I thought I had an inkling of what might happen but I was so totally wrong. I should have knew things would not go how I expected at all. My theory is that this book is a bigger metaphor for life and experiences we have throughout our lives. It took me a while to come to this decision - many discussions, and several close rereads - before I felt good about this conclusion. And I still want to hear what others think.
     So I did read this book with my kiddos (who are 7 and 4 right now) and they thought it was fun but they didn't really get what happened at the end...or notice that anything all that crazy happened. Peanut just shrugged his shoulders when I tried to ask him what he thought went down. For this reason, I believe this book would be great for older readers. In fact, I think it would spur an especially amazing and thoughtful discussion for middle school and high school readers. 
Read Together: Grades 3 - 12 
Read Alone: Grades 4 - 12 
Read With: Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett with illustrations by Jon Klassen, The Three Questions by Jon J. Muth based on a story by Leo Tolstoy, The Fourteenth Goldfish by Jennifer Holm, Our Town by Thornton Wilder
Snatch of Text:  

"'When should we stop digging?' asked Sam.

'We are on a mission,' said Dave.

'We won't stop digging until we find

something spectacular.'"

Writing Prompts: Write about a time in your life when you wanted one outcome but something else happened entirely. How did you handle the situation and how did you feel about it? 
Topics Covered: Friendship, Exploration, Life, Perseverance, Perspective

I *heart* It:

*Thanks to Candlewick Press for 

a copy of this title in exchange for an honest review 

and he opportunity to offer the giveaway below!*

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour and Giveaway: The Top-Secret Diary of Celie Valentine: Friendship Over

Julie Sternberg is the author of the best-selling Like Pickle Juice on a Cookie and its sequels, Like Bug Juice on a Burger and Like Carrot Juice on a Cupcake. Like Pickle Juice on a Cookie is a Gryphon Award winner and a Texas Bluebonnet Award finalist; Like Bug Juice on a Burger is a Gryphon Honor Book, a Pennsylvania Young Reader’s Choice Awards Nominee, and an Illinois Monarch Award Finalist. Formerly a public interest lawyer, Julie is a graduate of the New School's MFA program in Creative Writing, with a concentration in writing for children. She lives with her family in Brooklyn, New York. For more information about her life and work and to download free activity materials based on her books, visit her website: juliesternberg.com. I'm super excited to be part of the blog tour for The Top-Secret Diary of Celie Valentine!

Check out the other stops on Julie’s blog tour!

Mon, Sept 29	Mother Daughter  Book Club	http://motherdaughterbookclub.com/
Tues, Sept 30	5 Minutes for Mom	http://www.5minutesformom.com/category/feature-columns/5-minutes-for-books/
Wed, Oct 1	Sharpread	http://mrcolbysharp.com/
Thurs, Oct 2	KidLit Frenzy	http://www.kidlitfrenzy.com/
Fri, Oct 3	The Hiding Spot	http://thehidingspot.blogspot.com
Sat, Oct 4	Booking Mama	http://www.bookingmama.net/
Mon, Oct 6	Ms. Yingling Reads	http://msyinglingreads.blogspot.com/
Tues, Oct 7	GreenBeanTeenQueen	http://www.greenbeanteenqueen.com/
Wed, Oct 8	Great Kid Books	http://greatkidbooks.blogspot.com/
Thurs, Oct 9	Teach Mentor Texts	http://www.teachmentortexts.com/#axzz3DP0vkvgi
Fri, Oct 10	Unleashing Readers	http://www.unleashingreaders.com/
Sat, Oct 11	Bermuda Onion	http://bermudaonion.net/

Title: The Top-Secret Diary of Celie Valentine: Friendship Over 
Author: Julie Sternberg  
Illustrator: Johanna Wright 
Publisher: Boyds Mills Press 
Publication Date: October 1st, 2014
Genre/Format: Realistic Fiction/Chapter Book 
GoodReads Summary: Ten-year-old Celie has quite a few things on her mind -- fights with her sister Jo, secrets at school, an increasingly forgetful grandmother, and worst of all, a best friend who won't speak to her. How can a girl who hates change survive, when everything in her life is changing? By writing, of course! Celie's often comical and always heartfelt diary entries include notes, e-mails, homework assignments, and pages from her top-secret spy notebook. 
What I Think: I've enjoyed all the Eleanor books from Julie Sternberg but I'm definitely excited about The Top-Secret Diary of Celie Valentine. This book is written like a diary with Celie's thoughts and drawings mixed in with notes and letters she tapes into her journal. I really enjoyed Celie as a character and think that readers will relate to her. It seems like Julie did a great job of bringing her to life. There are a few times when Celie writes about some random thoughts and this really helps to see more of who she is (I pulled my favorite random thought for the Snatch of Text below!) One of my favorite parts was when they talked about Cousin Carla. I think Celie and her sister's reactions to Cousin Carla and other situations in the book are very true to upper elementary aged students.
     I love the attention on family and friendship in this book. These are definitely topics that are relevant and very real to students. Just like in the Eleanor books, Julie is able to help readers what it might feel like to be the main character and to navigate family and friend relationships. Siblings and best friends are great but there are always those times when either we hurt or are hurt by siblings and best friends. This book focuses on how to overcome and work through those times.  
Read Together: Grades 2 - 5
Read Alone: Grade 3 - 6 
Read With: Eleanor series by Julie Sternberg, Where I Live by Eileen Spinelli, The Naked Mole-Rat Letters by Mary Amato, Chloe, Instead by Micah Player, When Life Gives You OJ by Erica S. Perl, Marty McGuire (series) by Kate Messner  
Snatch of Text: 
"I feel sorry for raw chicken. It's so germy and funny-looking, and nobody gets close to it. Unless they're about to stick it in a very hot oven." (p. 22) 
Writing Prompts: Write about a time in your life when you were in an argument with a friend or family member. How did you handle the situation? How did you feel during the argument and/or afterwards?
Topics Covered: Family, Siblings, Friendship, Forgiveness, Relationships, Trust, Loyalty

I *heart* It:

*Thanks to Boyds Mills Press and Blue Slip Media for 

a copy of this title in exchange for an honest review 

and the opportunity to offer the giveaway below!*

The One With Lots of Choices #slice2014

Every Tuesday, I participate in the Slice of Life challenge at Two Writing Teachers. If you want to participate, you can link up at their Slice of Life Story Post on Tuesdays or you can just head on over there to check out other people's stories. For more information on what a Slice of Life post is about, you can go here. 

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Guess what? It's that time of year again! The Children's and Young Adult Bloggers' Literary Awards nominations are open. I'm excited to be a Book Apps judge again. If you have a favorite book app, from the last year, you can nominate it now. Just click this link for more information about how to nominate a book app or a book in any of the other great categories. 

Cybils is the only award that I have been a part of but I know lots of friends who have worked on other teams for book awards. I will forever be in awe of all the dedicated people who devote so much of their time to reading and discussing books for awards. One thing I learned by participating last year as a Book Apps judge is that by immersing myself into all the book apps, I was able to develop a better understanding of what made a quality app. 

At work right now, I've been reviewing applications for a Laptop Mini-Grant that we are running. Teachers have the opportunity share how they would integrate laptops into their instruction. We invite them to be innovative and show how they can use technology with best practice in their classrooms. We offered this last year and I read over 100 applications. This year, I'm thinking of all the applications I saw last year and thinking about the applications from this year differently because of my background knowledge from last year. It's interesting how my experience shapes my perspective but also how having exposure to so many different applications helps me to better be able to recognize the difference between applications. 

It makes me think about choices. Sometimes we only have two choices and we pick the one that makes the most sense to us based on our experiences and our understanding of the world. Having limited choices can be good because then we don't feel so overwhelmed but there are times when we want more choices so we don't feel stifled in our decision-making. But in reflecting on being a Book App judge and at reviewing applications for laptops, I realized that if we don't know the scope of options, we might not even realize the range of choices that we have.

Making decisions isn't easy but for me, it helps to be able to see all the options and to be able to see the differences and similarities. Believe me, it wasn't easy to choose from all the fantastic apps that were nominated last year but it was great that we had so many apps to review because I believe it helped me to see when the really great apps stood out. 

If your curious which Book Apps made the Cybils Shortlist last year, you can find them here. The 2013 Cybils Book App award went to Disney Animated. It's a beautiful app if your interested in checking it out but the shortlist apps were great as well. 

Disney Animated

written by Disney

developed by Disney and Touch Press

nominated by Shannon Miller

I'm excited to be reading and discussing all the book apps that are nominated with my fellow Book App Judges. Here is the rest of the round 1 team:

Jill Goodman

appoLearning

https://www.appolearning.com/

@queenofappland

Emily Lloyd

Little eLit

http://littleelit.com/

@poesygalore

Cathy Potter

The Nonfiction Detectives

http://www.nonfictiondetectives.com/

@cppotter

Colby Sharp 

Sharp Read

http://mrcolbysharp.com/

@colbysharp

Stacey Shubitz

Two Writing Teachers

http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/

@raisealithuman

Erin Warzala

Falling Flannelboards

http://fallingflannelboards.wordpress.com/

@fallingflannel

Have you participated in reviewing books for an award or another similar decision-making process? I would love to hear what you learned from your experience!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 10/6/14

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA! 

It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journeys. It is a great way to recap what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and to plan out your reading and reviews for the upcoming week. It's also a great chance to see what others are reading right now...you just might discover your next “must-read” book!

Kellee Moye, of Unleashing Readers, and I decided to give It's Monday! What Are You Reading? a kidlit focus. If you read and review books in children's literature - picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels, anything in the world of kidlit - join us! We love this meme and think you will, too. We encourage everyone who participates to visit at least three of the other kidlit book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them. 

Last Week's Book Adventures:

Jen Says: Last week I finished Manhunt by Kate Messner. I just love the Silver Jaguar series but I'm excited that Kate's new book Ranger in Time. I have no idea how she cranks out such great books so fast! I'm still listening to Seeing Red by Kathryn Erskine because I switched cars with my husband at the end of the week but forgot to grab the CDs. 

Reviewed Last Week:

 

Click on any picture above to go read my review/post.

Upcoming Book Adventures: 

Jen Says: This week I'm reading The Top-Secret Diary of Celie Valentine: Friendship Over by Julie Sternberg so I can review it for the blog tour on Thursday. I'll keep listening to Seeing Red and I have Fantasy League by Mike Lupica to read as well. 

This Week's Reviews:

Check back throughout the week to read these reviews/posts. 

So, what are you reading this week? 

Link up below and don't forget to check out other blogs to see what they are reading!

To help build our community and support other bloggers, 

we ask that you comment on at least three other blogs before you. 

Also, if you tweet about your Monday post, don't forget to use #IMWAYR!