It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 11/20/2017

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

It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. 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:

I'm so behind on my reading! So behind! There's just a lot going on and I was doing sooooo good at getting writing in. I did read more of Rhyme Schemer and Solo but I'm still not finished. I did read Hi, Jack! by Mac Barnett with illustrations by Greg Pizzoli and I had mixed feelings about it. I also started reading Roshani Chokshi's Aru Shah and The End of Time it's completely gorgeous so far. The voice is fabulous.

Upcoming Book Adventures: 

My brain is reeling with ideas from NCTE...I mean, I have so many ideas! Since it's Thanksgiving week I really hope I'll have time to sit and read Aru Shah and The End of Time but also to get back to Braving the Wilderness. I even hope I can finish up with Rhyme Schemer and Solo. Seriously, I can do it.

On a little bit different note, Peanut and I are going to be working on a Story Corps project so we're going to be listening to some interviews as we get ready to do our own. It's not really reading but it is consuming if you think of it as gathering information. Then we'll be creating when we do our own interviews. I'm super excited to help him see the power of story.

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!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 11/13/2017

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

It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. 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:

Last week was amazing! Tuesday we celebrate Day on Writing (check out my Celebrate post to see pictures!) and then Peanut and I got to go see an advance screening of Wonder the movie (I shared a recap of this too!) I read more of Solo, Rhyme Schemer, and Braving the Wilderness.

Reviewed Last Week:

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

Upcoming Book Adventures: 

I plan to finish up Solo and Rhyme Schemer this week before I'm off to NCTE where I'll be busy soaking up all the amazing-ness that is NCTE. I can't wait!

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!

Let's Celebrate Day on Writing 2017!

It's time to CELEBRATE This Week with Ruth Ayres from Discover. Play. Build.  Every week Ruth invites us to share our celebrations from the week and link up at her blog. What a fun way to reflect on everything there is to be thankful for. 

*                  *                   *

This week I'm celebrating Day on Writing 2017!

*throws confetti*

On Tuesday, we celebrated our first ever Day on Writing at Carl Sandburg Middle School! It was such a blast. I had an amazing time spending the day with students and talking about writing. We kicked off the day with everyone watching this video and brainstorming ideas to write about in hoemroom.

Then students used sensory details to write about a memory that has shaped them with Maria Villareal, Director of Programs at 826CHI.  

 

We ended our day with a visit from Kwame Alexander and students sharing their writing with each other. We invited two of our students to introduce Kwame. I'm so proud of them for stepping out of their comfort zones! 

Kwame Alexander!!!!

It was so fun to be able to bring Day on Writing to our middle school. I'm already brainstorming ideas for next year!

What are you celebrating this week?

WATCH: Are Latino Men Naturally Machista - The Kat Call

Earlier this year I watched 13th with my husband. It's a remarkable documentary that clearly shows how the 13th amendment abolished slavery but how institutional racism continued and is still pervasive in our country today. It opened my eyes because I never realized how specific decisions have contributed to what black people experience in the United States today. 

Then I discovered this video after following Mitú on Facebook. They have a segment called The Kat Call where a woman named Kat calls people out on what they're thinking or how they're acting. This particular video was called "Are Latino men naturally machista?" and it really made me think about the stereotype that has been created around Latino men. 

I've been thinking more and more about stereotypes, where they come from, and why they continue. Personally, this is why I write...to share my story, to add my perspective to the narrative, and to give others a book to read that hopefully open their eyes a bit. When I read, I get to walk around in someone else's shoes and to me, it's the best way to understand others better. 

Watch and think about any biases you might have or you might have had at one point. What contributes or contributed to your thoughts? How do your biases change or how have your biases changed over time? Does this video add to your thoughts on how Latino men are portrayed in the media? Can you recognize any other stereotypes or biases that this makes you more aware of? How might your own writing break down biases or stereotypes? 

We each have a unique story to tell and in my opinion, the more voices we add to the mix, the better.

Wonder The Movie!

Five years ago I fell in love with Wonder. As I read, I thought of people I would recommend it to...like my student Michelle and so many other students, teachers, librarians, and principals I worked with, friends and family. Everyone needed to read this book and I love that so many people still read it. 

And now...it's a movie! Peanut and I were able to go to an advance screening of Wonder the movie last night and it was awesome. They did such a great job. It was very true to the movie with some changes of course. I was crying right from the beginning but as much as I cried throughout, I also laughed. There were so many moments when Peanut and I were cracking up. I'm sure kids and adults will love this movie just as much as we did. We definitely recommend you go and see it on November 17th!

I have a little bonus information to share! I'd never been to an advance screening before and it just so happened that we didn't just get to see the movie early but after the movie Daveed Diggs who plays Mr. Brown, Auggie's teacher in the movie, was there to answer questions. Peanut and I have been listening to Hamilton together so it was cool to know Daveed from the original Hamilton cast but also from Wonder.

Peanut asked Daveed what was his favorite children's book when he was young and he said, The Velveteen Rabbit, Goodnight Moon and Where The Wild Things Are. 

But then he said he still likes to read children's books and said he really likes the Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! books! We got a kick out of that. I mean, how cool is it that Daveed Diggs reads the Pigeon books!?

And my final tidbit to share is that RJ Palacio, the author of Wonder is in the movie! We spotted her at the end, cheering at the assembly. (I hope that's not a spoiler for anyone...I think it's vague enough.) She looks just like she does in the pictures I shared in this post so be sure to see what she looks like before you watch the movie so you can spot her!

I'd love to give a huge thank you to Walden Pond Press for the opportunity to attend an advance screening of Wonder the movie! It was a night that neither of us will forget!

When you see the movie, I'd love to hear your thoughts!!!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 11/06/2017

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

It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. 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:

I spent a lot of time on Halloween festivities this week and then on thinking about where I'm going with my novel revisions. I did start reading Rhyme Schemer and a so fascinated by it. I still have a ton of books I'm in the middle of...

Last Weeks' Posts:

Upcoming Book Adventures: 

Kwame is coming to one of my schools this week to celebrate our (belated) Day on Writing!!!! I'm soooooooooo excited! I can't wait. I made this awesome video to get students excited about writing and the awesome day we are going to have. I'm super excited to write with kids on Tuesday and to keep writing but I'm also going to zone in on finishing up Solo this week so I can celebrate it here!

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!

JOIN: Celebrating Playlist Power

Every Saturday, join me as I CELEBRATE This Week 

with Ruth Ayres from Discover. Play. Build.

This weekend I'm celebrating how helpful a playlist can be! I started collecting songs related to an idea I had for a novel early in 2015. I finally wrote the first draft of that novel this summer, over two years later. I still find songs I want to add to playlists I create and I find myself listening to the songs as I'm writing. 

The playlist for the novel I'm currently revising - or rewriting to be honest - really helped me think through what changes I'd like to make as I rewrite. It also helped me remember what I initially thought this book was going to be about. It's mostly still what I thought it would be but I'm learning about first drafts and about all the next drafts as I think about what I thought I was going to write, versus what I did write, and what I plan to make the writing into now. Sometimes things just go where they go...but now that I've written something, I can go back and makes changes to it. 

It's kind of like working towards the center of a Tootsie Roll Pop. Every lick gets you closer until you finally get to that chewy goodness in the middle. Every draft gets me closer to what the story is meant to be. 

This week I'm celebrating how helpful my playlist was as I'm starting on this new revision. I'm not doing NaNoWriMo this year but I have a few friends who are! If you're reading, keep going! And if you aren't doing NaNo, I still wish you happy writing!