Reached by Ally Condie

Reached by Ally Condie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I love a good series and the Matched trilogy did not disappoint. I kept wanting to manipulate the characters to a different path in their lives but that is not my prerogative. The message I liked best about this series is that creativity is important and that hand writing is a simple art form. Yes, yes all that stuff about the Society repressing and lying to its citizens is a bad thing to do but really, don't we see that in our own lives already? Books like this are wonderful because it sends a message to young people that they have value to a community and they can make a difference for the good of all.

Now if you are like me, you aren't just satisfied with a great read, you need to know more about the author, illustrator, and those delicious back stories that inspire the tale.
Here are a couple of links to set you on your path:
The Matched Department/Quotes
The Matched Wiki   LOVE it! All the info you need.

I encourage all readers interested in YA Fiction to read the entire Matched Series. It will be such a treat now that the series is complete and you won't have to wait in agony for the next release date. What are you waiting for? Reserve it now from your local library or run to your nearest bookseller.


View all my reviews

This is What Book Love Looks Like

Student created projects based on books nominated for the 2012-2013 Texas Bluebonnet Award

This is what Book Love looks like

It's January and that means time is running out for students to complete reading at least five of the twenty books nominated for the Texas Bluebonnet Award. My students are also encouraged to create original works reflecting their understanding of their favorite books. Bluebonnet Projects can be anything a student can dream up-a poster, song, rap, poem, sculpture, game, quiz, performance or digital work. I will not turn down any project as long as it shows how the student connects to their reading. Encouraging my elementary and middle school students to express themselves creatively based on their book choices has been such a positive experience and has been a great way to replace the Accelerated Reader Program that our school district discontinued funding this year. I am amazed at the level of research that students have contributed towards their projects and have learned quite a bit myself from them. Having students create Bluebonnet Book Projects began as a simple way for me to determine if students were truly reading their books and comprehending the literature. Soon, kids were asking if they could make projects for other books as their need to express themselves grew. I just hope my poster board and supplies hold out. A bonus has been that I have been able to introduce students to many technology and mechanical skills. As you can see in the picture, the die cut machine presses have been very popular for creating letters for signs. My favorite part has been observing students working in small teams conferencing with each other and dividing up tasks. They read aloud to each other and discuss passages from the story. How beautiful is that? Keep in mind, this is all voluntary work. They are discovering the secret to loving books.

Visit our Bluebonnet Book Club wiki to see how we are connecting to the Texas Bluebonnet Books.

Learn more about the Texas Bluebonnet Award

Family Reading Celebration

 We are having a Family Reading Celebration.

Activities include story times and crafts for these titles:
Philomena's Tooth-rific Story-time and free dental health gift bags
Pete the Cat Saves Christmas Story-time and Pete, the Cat craft activity
The Gingerbread Man Readers Theater Performance and gingerbread craft
The Elf on the Shelf Story-time and activity
Origami Party-Texas State Museum of Asian Cultures shares secrets of the art of Japanese paper folding.
Michael Recycle Meets Doug Litterbug Story-time with free goodies for kids and grown-ups.
'Twas the Night Before Christmas"P. J. Story-time-come dressed in your p.j.s and fuzzy slippers.


What a busy few weeks this has been gearing up for our December Family Reading Celebration. As a librarian who understand the value of a family's impact on a child's reading success, I wants to encourage families to read together and experience the joys that reading brings. At our celebration,  will be introducing several new titles and reading some classical Christmas tales too. Although our main goal is to celebrate reading together as a family, our secondary goal is to encourage families and Barnes and Noble customers to mention our school when they make their holiday shopping purchases. We will receive a small percentage of the day's sales that will go towards infusing our library collection with new titles as they are released throughout the year. Our small book budget money is spent early in the year so we miss out on new titles that are later released.

If you are in Corpus Christi, Texas on Saturday, December 8th stop by the Barnes and Noble Booksellers at 5129 Blanch Moore Drive and join us for some festive fun. If you are doing some online holiday shopping with Barnes and Noble, please consider marking the box "Check this box if it is a Book-fair Order”  ECDC Bookfair ID #10919413

How Your Holiday Shopping Can Help the ECDC Library

TELL B&N you are supporting the ECDC Bookfair when you purchase 

books, gifts and even Cafe items

Here's How:

Shop in B& N at our Family Reading Celebration on December 8th
OR shop at our ECDC online Barnes and Noble Book Fair these days:

December 8, 2012- December 13, 2012
and the ECDC Library will receive a small percentage of the sale to help us purchase new books.

BN.COM/bookfairs

ECDC Bookfair ID #10919413 

New to BN.COM?

1. Go to BN.COM/bookfairs, and click  “Start Shopping Now”
2. Shop from the entire site – almost everything is eligible for the ECDC bookfair
3. Set up a new account when you are ready to check out
4. On the very bottom of the payment page, check the box where it asks “Check this box if it is a Bookfair Order”
5. Type the ECDC bookfair ID #10919413  in the space provided and continue with checkout

Already Have An B&N Account?

1. Go to BN.COM/bookfairs, and click  “Start Shopping Now”
2. Shop from the entire site – almost everything is eligible for our bookfair*
3. Once you have logged in, after you Proceed to Checkout, from the Checkout page, click on the Change button on upper right of the Payment tab.
4. Payment screen will expand, and you will see the “Check this box if it is a Bookfair Order” on the bottom of the page.
5. Type the ECDC bookfair ID #10919413 in the space provided and continue with checkout.

Thank you very much for your generous support of our school.

Christmas with Pete

Picture Book Month Celebration

Day 30 theme: Holidays

I did it! Big pat on the back. I dutifully wrote a posting for each themed day of Picture Book Month. This has really been an eye opener for me. I now have such respect for Writers and the discipline it takes. Now I understand why writers set daily writing goals for themselves. I think I will stick to what I do best-introduce the magic of wonderful books to readers. I perform a pretty darn good read aloud and I am also a whiz at creating finger-plays. 

Picture Book Month has been a happy success at my school. The library tables were overflowing with colorful choices beckoning readers to choose them. My voice has been hoarse almost all month from reading so many titles. Today kiddos will finish up their Picture Book Month challenge and will earn library badges for reaching their reading goals.

We will take Picture Book Month to the finish line with our good friend Pete the Cat as he comes to Santa's rescue and saves Christmas.

Browse inside the book here

'Twas the day before Christmas and Santa was ill.

In the cold winter wind he had caught a bad chill.

Will Christmas be canceled? Will it come to that?

"Never!" cried Santa. 

"Let's call Pete the Cat!"

In this rockin' new spin on the traditional tale The Night Before Christmas, Pete the Cat proves that giving your all in the spirit of Christmas is the totally groovy thing to do.

Pete the Cat Crafts and Activities
 Download all the groovy  Pete the Cat songs here
Harper Collins Pete the Cat Saves Christmas Activity Booklet
Pinterest is a great way to find curated Pete the Cat crafts and activities
Check out these two boards:  Bonnie Munn    Erin Meehan

Picture Book Month Day 29 theme: FOOD   Hot Diggity Dog The History of the Hot Dog by Adrienne SylverIllustrated by Elwood H. Smith Did you know that the first astronauts to eat hot dogs in space were aboard the Apollo 11? The year was 1969. Did you know that each July, Americans eat enough hot dogs to circle the Earth seven times? These are just a couple of the fun facts you’ll discover in HOT DIGGITY DOG – THE HISTORY OF THE HOT DOG. The book tells the story of how the hot dog was brought to America and how it became one of our favorite foods.(from the author-Adrienne Sylver) Play this old radio commercial  Armour Hot Dogs - 1950s Commercial Song Hot dogs, Armour hot dog What kind of kids eat Armour Hot Dogs? Fat kids, skinny kids, kids who climb on rocks Tough kids, sissy kids, even kids with chicken pox love hot dogs, Armour Dot Dogs The dogs kids love to bite! Here is a fun video someone made to match the song.   1965 Oscar Mayer Wiener commercial Have you ever heard of the Oscar Mayer Wiener mobile? Follow @Wienerbobile on Twitter Tour the Oscar Mayer Wiener mobile Learn what a "Hotdogger is" Visit Hot Dog City and learn more about franks. How are we using this book in our school?  Texas Bluebonnet Award nominee Hot Diggity Dog   student created book project for Hot Diggity Dog

Dang! That's a Bright Idea!

Picture Book Month Celebration

Day 28 theme: Clothing

Levi Strauss Gets a Bright Idea 

A Fairly Fabricated Story of a Pair of Pants

by Tony Johnston

Illustrator: Stacy Innerst

Publisher: Harcourt's Children's Books

September 2011

 

Oh to pay homage to the humble blue jeans. 
The pants that built American and kept it in comfort too.  

"GOLD!" somebody yelled. Next thing anybody knew, the whole world rushed to California and started digging up the place. The trouble was, they rushed so fast, they lost their pants.

Dang! What a fun way to introduce this book. My students will be laughing before page two and clamoring to claim the right to read it first. In fact, most of the vocabulary in this story is hilarious. The story is quick paced and pops with excitement. Everyone is rushing here and there either for gold or with needles. This clever tale is a good introduction into many topics:inventors and their inventions, goods and services, west-ward movement, the birth of a city and more. The Book includes an author's note about a bit of the real history of the life of Levi Strauss, an apparently good man, but I like this version much better.

(Book Description:)

Wild West chaos and creative problem solving are the force behind a well-loved American institution. What’s a California miner to do when gold dust sifts right out of his holey pockets? With such a raggedy wardrobe, he may as well be mining in the vanilla (that is, his birthday suit)! Good thing Levi Strauss is out west, ready with his needle and a head full of bright ideas. With some quick thinking, quicker stitching, and handy arithmetic, Levi keeps all the gold rushers clothed—and becomes a modern American hero. A Wild West tall tale, Levi Strauss Gets a Bright Idea celebrates creativity, innovation, and the ubiquitous item that fills the closets of grateful jeans wearers worldwide.

 Literacy Connections:

How are Blue Jeans Made? (Discovery Channel)



The Invention of Levi's Jean

The Inventor of Blue Jeans from Inventor of the Week

Re-purposing  Blue Jeans

Blue jean crafts

Squidoo recycled blue jean crafts