If you haven’t had a chance to check out the blog over at Two Writing Teachers, do it. I learn so much from these ladies! Which is why, I was amazed when they contacted me to be one of their guest bloggers this summer.
(You can read my post by clicking HERE.)
I’ve never told Stacy and Ruth this, but their blog format, two co-writers on a blog was the inspiration for my daughter’s blog: Over here, Over There. Her best friend is an Australian living in China. They are co-writing a blog to stay connected, to become immersed in this technology, and to share their stories of travel and life as 9-year old TCKs. It has been a great learning experience!
In 5 days we are heading to the US for our summer vacation. Hitting the bookstores in the states is something my daughter Sydney (who is 9) and I always do together. This year we’ve had some practice as Abu Dhabi has a surprising number of good bookstores. (Never cheap though.) Then, when we arrive at our summer home in Wyoming, we dust off the library cards and stock up on returnable books.
Last night, Sydney was talking about the books she wanted to read and I realized they were all from the same series! It was like a warning bell went off in my head- “Time to get a new reading diet in front of this kid!” But where to start?
One of my favorite children’s book blogs is The PlanetEsme Plan: The Best New Children’s Books From Esme’s Shelf. Esme writes great reviews and showcases books I find I’m truly interested in reading. I’m adding Esme’s blog to my daughter’s igoogle page so she can get RSS feeds about new books. (Tech integration right?!)
I’m hoping with a little help from the net I can interest Syd in some new titles this summer.
(Incidentally, I met Esme years ago when I was working at the Mailbox magazing in NC. She had written her first book Educating Esme about her first year teaching at an inner-city school. It is an interesting story, one I remember thinking non-educators needed to read!)
Isn’t it amazing to think that there is a whole world of people out there writing, posting, commenting and in general sharing through blogs on the internet?!
Today I received an email from one of my favorite writing blogs, Two Writing Teachers. They asked if I would be interested in writing a post as a “guest blogger” on their blog this summer. How fun!
I know these ladies just finished their first book for Stenhouse. If you haven’t already, check out Two Writing Teachers.
Today I checked out the blog thxthxthx: a thank you note a day which features a series of thank you notes written to “everything and everyone”. What a simple, easy way to generate shared writing opportunities in your classroom!
Here is my first “thx” writing piece:
I follow the WNY Education Associates blog. A few days ago, there were some interesting posts about kids (MS/HS age) who are abandoning Facebook because they are overwhelmed by the stress and pressure to “friend” people. As the mother of a 9-year old, this isn’t something I’ve dealt with before, but I did pass the information on to my husband who is our MS Counselor. Following the Facebook post, Angela at WNY Ed Associates wrote a post asking if we as teachers should “foster in our kids and in ourselves the ability to assess and effectively respond to the stress created by some of these realities….” Below is a list of bullets she has started brainstorming which would do just that. I must say it has gotten me thinking. If you have something to add, be sure to head over to WNY Education Associates and leave a comment.
Last week I sent out an email to a colleague from Shanghai I hadn’t spoken to in nearly 2 years. Not only did I get helpful information back within hours, I also received a healthy dose of something I’ve been missing lately- excitement. Jeff Utecht, the appropriately named TECH “teacher of teachers”, now working at the International School of Bangkok is easily one of the most knowledgeable and yet down-to-earth tech integrators out there. Following our emails back and forth I’ve once again added his blogs to my RSS feed.
Check them out: The Thinking Stick U Tech Tips
We are lucky at my school to have a large group of male teachers in our upper elementary. In two grade levels they actually out-number their female team mates. So, it is fitting then that these guys have brought up the issue of boys as readers and writers.
Fitting too that Jon Scieszka’s (author of the Time Warp Trio series) new and updated website: GUYS READ is up and running. Check it out…
Also… you might like to follow Guys With Books. Jon and other authors have come together on the Guys With Books tour to promote their books and wow young readers. Especially I expect, the male members of the audience!
This year my learning curve is even steeper as I am leading our early-release day professional development sessions. To guide me through this work (I’m in year 2 as a coach and this is my first time working as a staff developer) we purchased Regie Routman’s Transforming Your Teaching Through Reading to Understand kit. It has been the foundation needed to define our work, but I’ve also been able to add some school-specific information. (Practice what you preach… I am a responsive teacher of teachers.) Two books I’ve shared bits from lately are Beyond Leveled Books and Still Learning to Read, both written by Franki Sibberson and Karen Szymusiak.
Which brings me to a blog I love… Franki’s blog: A Year of Reading: Two Teachers Who Read. A lot. This blog has reviews of new professional books, literature, weekly poetry posts (Poetry Friday) and sometimes even interviews with authors. If you are venturing into the literacy blogosphere, it is worth a look.
If you haven’t checked out the blog MotherReader yet, do it! Below I’ve copied a post describing her blog name. F-U-N-N-Y with an important educational twist.
Here’s one of my favorite MotherReader stories: I am a Mother and I am a Reader.
When my oldest daughter was five, she asked me to play house. “I’ll be the mommy and you’ll be the little girl,” she said. I agreed and prepared myself for my role. Meanwhile, she sat down on the couch, opened a book to read and, looking over the top, said, “Go play with your sister.”
Never have I felt so much angst and pride at the same time. Of course, my mother guilt kicked in. Did she think that all I did was read? Did she feel so neglected? What kind of mom was I? But at the same time, I felt proud of the lesson she had picked up from me ? namely that Moms read, and reading’s important.
As a mother of two (now) school-aged girls, I get asked occasionally how I find time to read. I can only pat the questioner on the head with an air of pity (well, mentally), and answer that one doesn’t find time to read, one makes time to read. Looking at reading as something that’s done when everything else is finished means that you’ll never even crack open a People magazine. (Not that I read this particular journal, understand.) And this goes double, maybe triple for mothers. Every minute I read, I’ve carved that time away from something else. Sometimes I don’t put the laundry away. Sometimes I don’t shower, but I make the time to read.
While I’m taking time for myself in a self-care, Oprah kind of way, I’m also conveying an important message to my kids. Moms read books for fun. I couldn’t talk to them about reading being important and then never open a book myself. My actions speak louder than my words ever could, and believe me, I can make my words LOUD.
I’ve also been asked by parents that with today’s busy lifestyle, how can I find time for my kids to read? For this question, I allow a quick wide-eyed expression of shock so the questioner realizes the very seriousness of the inquiry. For me, it’s as if they’ve asked how I find time for my children to eat dinner. In my family, reading is a necessary and vital part of our day. We formed the habit early, and rarely break it.
Since my daughters were babies, the last part of every evening has been given over to reading. When the girls were younger, my husband or I read to them. Then each child went through a stage where we would alternate fun picture books with the beginning-reader series of the month. Now sometimes we read a book to them–a great picture book or chapters from a harder book–and sometimes we all read our own books. Often one daughter and I will recline on the couch, each leaning against the opposite side arms, our legs sharing the space in the middle. It’s comfy. It’s fun. The dishes can wait.
Want to raise a reader? Then read. Read to them, read with them, read beside them. Take it from a MotherReader.
Sometimes you just have to laugh. Today I came across a lit blog which made me LAUGH OUT LOUD! How often does that happen when you’re reading about Earth Day, Jerry Spinelli, and poetry? Check out MotherReader- I think her mini profile says it all…
One of the bestselling preschool books of recent times was Walter the Farting Dog. At the same time, the American Library Association named as one of its best books Michael Rosen’s Sad Book, a book in which Mr. Rosen talks about his despair over the death of his son. I believe that, for most of us, what we want lies somewhere between a flatulent canine and overwhelming grief.
