Day 226: Finn's First Favorite!

It's happened. The moment I've been eagerly anticipating throughout my many nights of snuggled up reading sessions with my son. At thirteen months old, he now has his first favorite book!!!

Finn's newest must-read material is a lovely book titled A Kiss Means I Love You. Even if it wasn't for the fact that I've read this book umpteen times now and been able to watch my son's adorable reactions to every page, I think I would still love it. It uses colorful photographs to explain the meaning of different non-verbal gestures and facial expressions. The pictures capture his interest immediately and feature children from many diverse cultures.

My son loved this book immediately. After the first read, he flipped it over and opened it back up for me to read again.

He LOVES the pictures. Watching him interact with the book makes me smile every time. He laughs at the page where a little girl is laughing. He claps when the author writes "a clap means I like it." And don't even get him started on the "roar" page. It's his favorite! He pages through just to find it and giggle.

This book has not yet failed to grab Finn's attention, no matter what the circumstances. Whether it's during play, fussiness, or even some 3 am teething tears one night, this book brings Finn an instant smile.

I'll be honest, reading it eight times in a row some days has made me wish for a little variety on occasion. I've hidden it, put it back on the shelf, and tried to distract him with other reads. Every time, he finds it, points to it, and with an emphatic "THAT!" persuades me to read it again.

But what can I say? My son loves a book. What more could a mom ask for from her Reading Promise?

Happy Reading!
Mrs. Hartman

Day 150: Wonder

Looking for a great book to share with your Reading Promise readers? Our class is in the middle of the book, Wonder, by R.J. Palacio. I can't say enough great things about this book, but I want to wait and have my students tell you their thoughts once we're done. For now, I'll let just a few of this book's awards speak of it's wonder.

#1 New York Times bestseller

A School Library Journal Best of Children's Books 2012

A Publishers Weekly Best of Children's Books 2012

A Kirkus Reviews Best of Children's Books 2012

A Booklist Best of Children's Books 2012

Can't wait to hear if you add it to your reading list. You won't regret it!

Happy Reading!

Mrs. Hartman

April Book Club

 No school Friday meant that BOOK CLUB could happen Thursday night.  Our read this time around was Harriet the Spy.  I must say, the LRHB and I had a tough time biting on this one.  In fact (sigh), we didn't finish the book.  Nope.  First one we didn't finish.  After watching the movie, I asked if he wanted to keep going and he said no, let's just move on.  I said we had plenty of time, due to crazy spring commitments, to finish before starting the next one.  "What's next?"  he asked.  I hadn't decided was my reply.  "No, I really am not interested in it, Mom," was the come back.

Okay.  I could beat myself up.  Or I could relish the fact that the others in the group discovered that after the first Harriet the Spy, there were others and they've moved onto those!  Yep, that's what I am going to do.  Love the fact that my club readers are finding more to love about reading.

And I introduced my boy to Amelia Bedelia tonight, by reading some of it to him. He took off and finished the first and a second book.  Yes, it is below his "reading level," but the laughing from him over her antics just warmed my heart.  My reader found more to love about reading tonight.  Isn't that what my PROMISE to him is... keep him loving reading?

Momma Holmes

Book Club Updates

We read the classic My Dog Skip by Willie Morris.  I love that this was a non-fiction read for the kids.  It took them back to a time when kids ran through their small town community with their friends, growing up together and having adventures without worrying about "predators." Yes, Mr. Morris addressed issues of the time like WW II and equality among different races, however, he touched on it as if it were truly through the eyes of a young boy, not an old man recalling his life.  Oh, did I hear about it though, for choosing this book.  The vocabulary was QUITE IMPRESSIVE and daunting for a few of us!  So be warned, if you decide to tackle this book, you can 1) keep a dictionary by your side OR 2) skip the big words and insert your own word OR 3) some of both.  I would skip a few, change a few or use the big words and just show my boy how to learn the meaning of the word from its use in the text.

I will say this, I had a hard time getting the movie for our read.  The library had one copy.  I got it and promptly had to return it.  Whoever took it after me, kept it and payed fines because I was number one on the waiting list for two weeks!  So the day of book club, I was a bit in a panic.  The other copy still hadn't been returned.  None of the box stores near me had it, but Barnes & Noble did, so I was off to buy it when I passed a Blockbuster Store.  WOW!  I didn't even know they were still in business!  Would they have it?  I looked and looked and looked.  On my way out empty-handed, I mentioned the title I was looking for.  SOMEHOW I HAD OVERLOOKED IT!  So I now have a new Blockbuster Video account.  And since it is Spring Break, I think we'll be renting some videos.

The other thing was that no one finished the book (partially due to the vocab, partially due to inability to find the book) except me.  So when I mentioned something about how it ended, the moms, wine glasses in hand, were quite alarmed at how their girls would handle it.  Sorry.  I mean, it is a book written in the 90's about a dog that lived in the 40's - it wasn't hard to predict the ending.  And in the movie, as in the book, it was handled delicately and gently and appropriately.  So don't let that be a deterrent from reading the book.  We needed an upbeat read next, so Harriet the Spy it is!  

Anyone reading this?

Anyone read Wildwood by Colin Meloy yet?

We're one week into this new book.

Would love some company as we work through this big fat book.

Care to read along?

Book Club Update

I love our book club. Moms sharing life's joys and struggles while our munchkins watch a movie about a book we've read to them.  It's been awesome.

The group is growing; unfortunately for my boy, it's growing with girls.  Last month our read was Matilda. Many of the kids had seen the movie, but not read the book and they were pleasantly surprised how much the book was like the movie. And I think having a picture of Trunchbull in their mind, at least for my boy, helped make the book a bit less scary.

Next up, My Dog Skip. 

I got permission to photograph the group, but by the time the movie had finished, our crew was ready for bed, so that will happen next time.  In the meantime, happy reading!

Momma Holmes

Day 109: Giving the Joy of Reading

Happy Belated Valentine's Day to you! Or, Happy Belated International Book Giving Day, if you are a children's book enthusiast or had a special someone in your life that you shared a book with last Thursday.

When I introduced the idea of International Book Giving Day to my students a few months ago, they were so excited! I asked students to check with their families to see if they had any new or gently used children's books at home that they would be willing to donate to others. Students were great about bringing in books to give to others! The response was wonderful. I collected some books from Scholastic orders with my bonus points, but students and their families were the main donators of the books that we gifted. Between the 24 students in our classroom, we collected over 60 books to give away to others! 

My class' initial idea was to find a younger classroom of students to visit and present with books. From there, they expanded their idea to reading to their younger peers.

I found a first grade classroom in our district that was excited to partner with us. A few weeks prior to our visit, students selected books to read aloud to their buddies and also books to give as gifts. The kids rehearsed their books to be read aloud and practiced their skills as fluent readers.

We spent time filling out bookplates to glue inside each of the books to be gifted. Our class also decided to wrap the books to make it more exciting and special. Some students even made extra gifts for their first grade buddies that related to the books they were reading.

Since our classroom of first grade buddies had only 18 students, we had LOTS of extra books to give away. Students found other great ways to get those books into the hands of other children.

Some books children took to doctor's appointments to leave in waiting rooms.

Other students grabbed a book for a younger neighbor, friend, or sibling.

All of the other books that we still had left, our class decided to donate to a program sponsored by our local Keystone State Reading Association branch called Laundry and Literacy. This program donates baskets of books to local laundromats for students to read during their visits to do laundry with their families.

Because of all of my students' generous donations and hard work, I had a Book Giving Day surprise of my own for them. Throughout the past several months, I had been collecting books to give to them in celebration of International Book Giving Day.

When the students arrived back from lunch in the afternoon, they found our class meeting area covered with gift-wrapped books. We took turns opening them, sharing about the books we found, and had a class book swap among students. Each student went home with a brand new book to read and enjoy.

Overall, the students really enjoyed their experiences. I saw lots of smiles and excitement over the simple act of reading. And that makes me smile.

Did you participate in International Book Giving Day? How did you use a book to bring a smile to someone today? Check out other great stories of how people chose to celebrate.

Happy Reading!
Mrs. Hartman

International Book Giving Day

We all know that February 14th is a day reserved for celebrating those we love and cherish, but did you also know that this Thursday is International Book Giving Day? What better way to combine your love of books and others to recognize the people that we love the most by giving them a book?

International Book Giving Day was started as a way to help get books into the hands of children across the globe. It is a volunteer initiative that encourages people to give a book to a child on February 14th. The International Book Giving Day's website invites people to participate in three ways:

1. Give a Book to a Friend or Relative. Celebrate International Book Giving Day by giving a child a new, used or borrowed book. 
2. Leave a Book in a Waiting Room or Lobby. Choose a waiting room where kids are stuck waiting and there are few to no good books available. Purchase a good book, and deposit your book covertly or overtly in your waiting room of choice. The goal here is to spread the love of reading to kids, so choose a fun book, nothing controversial.
3. Donate a Book.
   Wrap up a box of children’s books that your kids have outgrown and get them in the hands of children who could really use a book or two. Donate your books to your local second hand store, library, children’s hospital, or shelter. Alternatively, donate your books to an organization working internationally to get books in the hands of kids, such as Books for Africa.

Books are always one of my most favorite gifts to give. I know that my son will enjoy the books he receives on Thursday. Turning the pages for us as we read is one of his most favorite activities.

My fourth grade students also were quick to jump into action to get books into the hands of children. I presented them with the idea and gave them the opportunity to decide on the best way that they wished to participate. They are excited for our plans on Thursday. I can't wait to share!

How will you celebrate International Book Giving Day?  Do you have a creative way to help give a child access to books or build their enthusiasm for reading? Check out International Book Giving Day's site for more information, ways to get involved, and awesome free bookplates designed by illustrators to include in your donated book. Share your photos and stories! We'd love to hear how you help to spread the love of reading on February 14th.

Happy Reading!
Mrs. Hartman

Day 100!!!!!!!!

100 Days of Reading!!!!

Woo hoo!! Our class has reached one of our mini milestones for our reading streak! On Friday, we officially had been reading for 100 consecutive school days!

The students had planned a fabulous reading celebration to honor our achievement. Nothing is better than finding a comfortable place to enjoy a good book so our celebration centered around reading in comfort. Students decided pajamas are the best reading wardrobe, so it was officially a PJ Day in Room 205.

Along with our pajamas, our class decided to spend the afternoon constructing a reading fort out of our desks, chairs, blankets, and bed sheets, then crawling in to read inside. I LOVE a good fort. You are never too old to build a fort and enjoy a good book inside of it. We had pillows, stuffed animals, books and Kindles inside our cozy reading lair.

Here's our final construction:

 

Part of the time was spent listening to me read aloud from our newest class read aloud, The Worst-Case Scenario: Deadly Seas: An Ultimate Adventure Novel. For the rest of the time, silence filled the classroom as students dove into their own books of choice. What better way to celebrate 100 days of reading, than with more reading?

In the words of my students, "It was epic." How have you celebrated 100 days?

Happy Reading!
Mrs. Hartman

Day 89: Triple Digits

Last week our class stopped to reflect on our reading streak. What should be our next mini milestone goal that we set for ourselves? At what day of our streak should we celebrate our accomplishments by treating ourselves to a reading reward?

After much discussion and debate among students, we arrived at our next mini milestone reading goal. Triple Digits. 100 days. Straight. Reading aloud together. Ah!

If all goes as planned, we will reach our 100 day mark on Friday, February 1st. Because simply occurring on a Friday makes any event better, the class was even more enthused to find out that we should reach our goal on a Friday. Just announcing the date led to a round of applause and cheers.

We talked about what would be a good reading-related celebration to have and decided upon and found a way to incorporate a majority of the students' ideas, and I must admit, I couldn't have come up with a better plan myself. But for now, I'll have to leave you hanging...until, of course, we reach our 100 day goal.

If you're finding your streak to be running a bit stale among your children, I'd highly recommend setting some mini milestones for celebration. I found that talking about our streak, setting a mini milestone, and planning for a reading reward was a great way to re-energize the class and get students excited about reading together again.

Have you found any ways to revitalize the enthusiasm among your streak participants? What ways do you keep your reading exciting and fresh? How have you celebrated your accomplishments? Do share!

Happy Reading!
Mrs. Hartman

Connecting Over Dinner & a Book

Feels like only yesterday when I had two little babies ...toddlers... then preschoolers shadowing my every moment.  The three of us did everything together.  At the end of those long days, I often read to them at dinner.  I ate quickly.  They didn't.  In fact, they ate so slowly I'd be tempted to just clean off their plates myself so I could say dinner was over.  My reading to them really started as a way to help me sit through those long, drawn out dinner times.

My boys aren't so little anymore.  They're now full fledged school kids hauling backpacks, responsible for homework and juggling their own after school activities.  There's no one dogging my footsteps every waking hour anymore.  Now they can eat faster than me... and on more than one occasion they have finished off my dinner...

But I still read aloud to them after dinner.

Doesn't matter if we're all running in different directions all the live long day.  Because at the end of it, we can sit down to a meal together, catch up with each other and then share a chapter or two of our current read aloud book.

I treasure those together moments.

Even more so because I got a glimpse of the teen years coming on way too fast.  Dinner and reading were over.  Homework finished.  Piano practice checked off the list early.  I asked them what they'd like to do next?  And that night, they decided they needed to have some time to chill out alone in their rooms.... which left me staring at their closed doors and wondering what on earth happened to the little boys who followed me even into the bathroom and then climbed on my lap... as I tried to sit on the toilet.....

Our baby, toddler, preschool years are long behind us now.  I may have started reading to them to keep them eating and to stop myself from picking at their food or wandering away from the dinner table.  But our evening ritual has continued and grown into something really special to me.  It's our time to slow down.  To be together.  To eat together.  And then to go an a little adventure, laugh over funny book characters and quote favorite lines to each other

Dinner and a book.  It's our time to connect.

From Our Reading List - Toy Dance Party

Hi there!  This is Val, Simon & Ethan.  Checking in & happy to report our reading streak is still alive.  Today marks our 196th day straight of reading aloud for at least 10 minutes a day.  Still loving it.  Still going strong.

This week's read aloud is Toy Dance Party by Emily Jenkins.  Sweet.  Warm.  Funny.  We highly recommend this book for kids of all ages.

If you're curious about what we're reading each week or want to hear about our opinions on the books we've read, I blog about our book choices each week.  You can find me here.

Happy reading everyone!

Day 82: Wonderstruck

A few weeks ago, our class finished a unique read that left us, for lack of a better word, wonderstruck (how appropriate).

When I first showed my students the book, Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick, I heard the usual gasps and exclamations of disbelief. "Whoa!" "It's going to take us forever to finish that!" "That book is HUGE!" If you aren't familiar with this beast of a book, it's massive (as far as children's books are concerned, at least). A solo picture of it does not fully do it justice. And if for no other reason than simply feeling impressive for sitting such a large book on their desks, students love it.

What is unique about this book is that the author/illustrator tells the story using both words and pictures. If you have read his other work, The Invention of Hugo Cabret (also recently made into an awesome movie, Hugo), you are already familiar with this concept. Wonderstruck is intriguing in the fact that for the majority of the book, the pictures and the words are telling two different stories, taking place with separate characters, decades apart from one another.

Ben's story (told with words) begins in Gun Flint Lake, Minnesota in 1977,

while Rose's tale (told through illustrations) is set in Hoboken, New Jersey fifty years prior.

What I love, love, love about this book is all of the comprehension skills that students need to use to understand the text. Flipping through the detailed illustrations instantaneously sparks conversations amongst the students. The way Rose's story is told through pictures lends itself to great, effortless conversations. Students are asking questions, noticing details in the picture clues, making connections between Ben's and Rose's story, inferring about characters' emotions and actions.

Seeing the story come to life, almost like a movie, gives readers the scaffolding to help them to create their own mental visualizations. And all of these discussions come with such ease because there are no words to limit the readers' thoughts or constrain their metacognition.

In addition to all of this conversational ambrosia, there are so many strands of different topics that you can explore, visit, or learn more about from reading this book. You may have guessed by now, based on some of my previous posts, that connecting what my kids read in books to the real world is another one of my favorites. Readers can learn more about deaf culture, museums, and New York, doing their own research to find out more about the true strands of knowledge in this fictional masterpiece.

You won't regret adding this visual treasure to you and your child's must read list.

Happy Reading!
Mrs. Hartman

The Value of Daily Reading

Many of you may have seen this popular infographic (courtesy of Perry Lecompton School District) floating around on social media sites recently. It is such a great visual reminder as to why reading every day is so important, not only our children and students, but to ourselves as readers.

Think about all of the learning that takes place when you open a book. Just twenty minutes a day can make all the difference in your child's education and life.

Have you enriched your child's life through a book today?

Day 119: A New Holiday Tradition

Being a new mom, one of the most exciting times of the year for me now are holidays. I love the opportunity to share cherished family traditions with my little guy, while starting new ones together.

One tradition that I was especially excited about starting this year was one I had found on Pinterest (where else?)-- a Christmas "advent calendar" of books. What an awesome way to share the excitement of the holiday spirit and the joy of reading together with my son all in one!!

The way I originally found this idea presented was to wrap up twenty-five books, put them under the tree, and have your child pick one each day to enjoy together. For this past holiday, I modified this idea a bit for my son because of his age, so instead of wrapping each gift separately, I reused the same gift bag and tissue paper each evening, but replaced the book with a new one for him to unveil each day.

I decided that I wanted to have all holiday books for our 25 Books of Christmas tradition. Choosing the books was hard (there are too many great Christmas favorites!), but finding them proved to be less difficult. I rummaged through my childhood book collection, visited used library sales, and browsed online book stores.

Each day, he really enjoyed exploring the tissue paper as he unwrapped each book. And I enjoyed cuddling up next to the fireplace and colorful Christmas tree lights to read a holiday story to my son. I can't wait for this tradition to continue again next year and grow and blossom into a cherished holiday memory.

Do you have any holiday traditions with your family that involve books or reading? What stories are a must read for your family around certain times of the year?

Happy Reading and Happy Holidays!!