You Can Help!

A bit off topic but...

Help a cause near and dear to my heart! Fourth Watch Productions needs your help to tell the world the fascinating story of an amazing family! Please visit this link and view the awesome promo for this proposed documentary. It's a story that needs to be told, but it can't be told without your help!

Go visit now and see for yourself!

I'm sorry about the lack of posts this past week. I had friends and family in town, and didn't get around to posting like I had hoped. Regular posting has now resumed again. :)

I Never Was Much of a Reader-A True Confession!

I once heard a lecture of some sort (on a video, I believe) in college about teaching reading to children. The lecturer said that many of us reading teachers have a difficult time relating to struggling or reluctant readers, because we never were this kind of reader ourselves.

This seems to be true a lot of the time. So many teachers, librarians, authors, mothers, etc. have stories about how they loved reading from a very young age. Many spent the majority of their childhood with their noses in books. They have long lists of books they have read. They have favorites they have read over and over again. They visited the library often. Perhaps they were even teased for being such a bookworm?

I don't have a story like that to share. I never struggled with reading. I have actually always done quite well in school. But I would say I was a bit of a reluctant reader. I don't think anyone would have ever described me as a bookworm.

My childhood was not completely devoid of reading experiences. Not at all. My parents read picture books to my siblings and me frequently while we were growing up. I have many fond memories of that. I can even remember the pride I felt when I completed my first chapter book on my own! When I got to be about school age though, most of the reading I did was required reading (from school). Reading books wasn't how I chose to spend much (if any) of my free time.

There were some spatterings of reading interests during my childhood. I loved Sweet Valley Twins and read many books in that series. I loved Jack Prelutsky and memorized many of his poems (No I won't turn orange if I eat this orange...). I probably read all of the Molly books in the American Girls series (this was when the books were at least as popular as the dolls). In general though, I didn't view reading as much of an enjoyable past time while I was in grade school. And I sometimes mocked those who did bury their nose in a book on the bus ride home.

My second year in high school I started being homeschooled, and finished off my high school years this way. This is probably when my interest in books grew a bit more. I had an awesome family friend that taught my sister and me literature (a retired literature teacher). I fell in love with Louisa May Alcott's books (The Inheritance, Moods, Long Fatal Love Chase). My sister and I laughed out loud together as we read plays like "You Can't Take it With You." I stayed up late many nights reading Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, and Tess of the Durbervilles.

When I got into college and decided to study education, I discovered children's literature all over again... in a completely different - and amazing - way. While working in preschools (throughout high school, college, and beyond) I realized I had a knack for reading with children, and that I loved lessons that were centered around great books.

... And the rest is history (as they say).

This is not the typical story of how a children's lit. enthusiast grew up. And I'm sometimes embarrassed when I hear my peers in this field discuss their literature-loving childhoods and can't identify with that. Do I really belong here?

The answer is Yes! Because I do know what it' s like for a child to not "get" what's so great about reading. I can identify with that. And hopefully that perspective makes me a better teacher. And maybe a better mother too.

Were you a bookworm growing up, or are there others out there that were like me growing up? If you're out there, speak up and let me know I'm not alone!

I'm up for a reading challenge!

Biblio File has posed a great reading challenge. It's based on one of those "1000 Books You Should Read Before You Die" lists. We've all seen those, right? And then felt terrible because we've only read a few, if any, of the books listed. No? Just me?

I've accepted the fact that I will probably (OK, certainly) never read all of the books on the list, but this challenge is a way to feel a little bit better about myself by reading at least a few of them.

Remember parents, it's important to be a reading role model! Come on and join me. You can sign up at the Biblio File blog.

Recycle You Old Horn Book Magazines

Isn't it pretty??

Garage Sale Library

Went garage sale-ing today and hit the mother load at one sale. I bought about 18 children's books, and could have ended up with many more if I hadn't stopped myself. I complimented the seller on her great book stash and she revealed that she was a teacher and does home schooling... I knew it! :) I could definitely tell she had some teacher in her by how well kept the books were. I bought some Ezra Jack Keats titles, some Don Freeman, Vera Williams, Charlotte Zolotow, to name a few. Then at another sale I picked up some Captain Underpants and Time Warp Trio books. Woohoo!

Happy Earth Day!

It's Earth Day! Yay! So in celebration, I wanted to point you toward some blogs that can help you make every day Earth Day. These blogs will give you lots of info about not only making the earth a healthier place, but also will give you info about making your family healthier. They are great resources that I go to all the time. Take some time to check them out. You'll probably find yourself returning!

Nature Moms Blog - Check out the giveaway going on right now!

Green Baby Guide

Green and Clean Mom

Crunchy Domestic Goddess - Check out the giveaway going on here too!

These are a few favorites. And you'll be able to find more as you begin exploring these few I've listed. They often have giveaway drawings for great products for your home and family. I entered a few this week! Let me know what you think of these sites!

... And I'll try to return to some more literary posts here soon!

Recycle Your Take-Home Crafts and Activities

I'm not even going to bother starting this post off with another apology. I guess you can just expect my posts to be a bit fewer and farther between. Especially as my due date creeps closer and closer.

Continuing with our Earth Day theme we've got going, I want to encourage you to be recycling your child's crafts that they bring home. whether it's a Literacy Launchpad activity or a project from school. It's obvious that you can't keep everything your child brings home, no matter how much you want to. If there's a particular project they made that you want to remember, take a photo of it, then toss the project itself into your recycling bin (you do have a recycling bin, right?).

I've been trying to make an effort to reduce the amount of non-recyclable materials I use in our Literacy Launchpad activities. You'll notice that the "Three Billy Goats Gruff" magnets from this week were sent home in a paper pocket instead of a plastic baggie. So once those magnets make it safely onto your fridge, make sure you recycle that paper pocket.

Recycled Crafts

This is my first blog posting in celebration of Earth Day on April 22nd!

This blog post was inspired by some poking around I was doing on the internet today. See, I'm in need of some coasters for my living room, and I know there are many ways to make coasters out of things I probably already have, rather than going and buying coasters. (I'm all about NOT buying things NEW!) So I was searching for some coaster-making ideas when I stumbled onto some great crafting websites!

I figure, if you're visiting this blog, it's probably because you either have children, or work with children. Either way, I'm sure you could use some resources for cool craft ideas to do with your kiddos from time to time. So listed below are some places to visit for how-to instructions on making craft projects out of recycled materials. There are literally hundreds of ideas among these sites collectively. So get creative, and find a way to tie a recycled craft project in with a fun story! With this many ideas, it shouldn't be tough!

I wish I could incorporate more of these ideas into my Literacy Launchpad activities, but the volume of supplies I usually need often makes using recycled materials challenging. Hmm... I probably just need to be more resourceful. I'm open to suggestions if you've got 'em!

Make-stuff.com
Eco-Artware
All Free Crafts
Makingfriends.com
Kaboose


There are a few to get you started. You'll find tons more if you decide to start surfing around! Let me know if you find an especially cool idea, or if you give any of these ideas a try!

Spreading The Love of Reading

This week I began doing some volunteer work: childcare for children whose mothers are taking an ESL class. My hope in volunteering for this gig is that I can do at least a little bit of my Literacy Launchpad magic with these children.

I'm presenting the books to the children in a casual manner, not forcing anything on them. Last night I simply laid a bunch of books out on the floor, and asked them if they wanted me to read one. After I read one, they kept asking for more!

The language difference is a bit intimidating. I'm not really sure how much of what I read and say they actually understand. And I speak NO Spanish... But they seem to be enjoying the books!

Most of our time together last night was spent playing outside, so we didn't have time for any crafts or activities to accompany the books. I'm sure we'll have time for all that eventually.

I'll keep you posted on how it goes!

Ahhh... (a sigh of relief)

I'm finally beginning to really feel settled in my new house. The little issues that pop-up when you move into a new place are dwindling. There are still issues to be dealt with, but not so many that I feel overwhelmed by them.

I'm slowly easing back into reading my children's lit. listserv and blogs regularly, and it's so refreshing and encouraging. I'm feeling all inspired and revved up for October.

I finally have an office to work in again, and not just an over-cluttered book-shelf and boxes of files in a corner of the living room (that's what I was dealing with at our temporary apartment). I have my desk back, and a closet to put all my supplies in! Granted, all my books have been unpacked and are stacked on the floor of my office, but I will hopefully be housing them on some new bookshelves soon. A trip to IKEA has been planned!



I'm still waiting to hear some responses about our Cheekwood field trip. I don't know if any families are planning to come. I sure hope they do! I'm looking forward to meeting some parents, and having a fun day out!

Ideas Anybody?

So the Cheekwood Scarecrows thing is definitely a GO! I am registered and set to pick up the supplies for the basic structure of the scarecorw later this week. But I'm a little freaked out about it, because I have no solid idea about how I'm going to make this scarecrow. I want it to be something unique and creative (obviously); I want it to tie in with reading and/or literacy; and I would like the children to be able to participate in creating the scarecrow on some level. So... if you have any brilliant suggestions, please leave them in the comment section. Meanwhile, I will be reading some scarecrow-making books and brainstorming some more!

Pinwheel!

Thank you! Thank you, Fuse #8 for the great bit of nostalgia you provided today! There were many shows I watched when I was young, and this is one of them:



I endured many mockings from my older siblings for watching Pinwheel, but it was worth it!

It amazes me how ancient this cartoon looks, though. Anybody agree with my here? I'm not very old, geesh!

Anybody else a fan of Pinwheel growing up? Or please feel free to share thoughts on your own childhood cartoon favorite. Today's Special was also a favorite of mine, though not entirely a cartoon.

Anyhow, read here for Fuse #8's blog posting about Pinwheel.

Just For Fun

You scored as Elizabeth Bennet, You are ELIZABETH BENNET from Pride and Prejudice. Few people find you disagreeable. You are often described as intelligent, clever, and quite worth looking at. You are the best of company, though your family may not be. Elizabeth Bennet 69% Elinor Dashwood 63% Mr. Darcy 44% Marianne Dashwood 38% Emma Woodhouse 38% Mr. Knightly 25% Which Jane austen Character are you? created with QuizFarm.com

Farewell Harry... (No Spoilers!)

I had a fabulous Friday evening participating in the Harry Potter fanfare that was going on nationwide... and beyond! A few of my book club pals and I met-up at our local Barnes and Noble around 9 p.m. for some partying - Harry Potter style! I have to say, Barnes and Noble did a great job hosting the event.



When we entered we were given some ultra-hip (somewhat small), white, Harry glasses. We sported our cool spectacles as we made our way around the festivities. First we dropped our raffle tickets into the Goblet of Fire (a large jar). We then made our way to Diagon Alley (the music section) and made some sharp-looking wands and amulets.



Next it was off to the sorting hat! The Sorting Hat was done for fun, and was also an attempt to organize people for book-puchasing. They did not acheive the latter goal, but pulled off the former very well! A very authentic looking Professor McGonagall placed the sorting hat on our heads, as someone peeking out from behind a bookshelf a few rows back spoke the house name into a microphone (the speakers were hidden under a table behind the sorting hat). The bookstore employees really got into the sorting: I saw a boy visit the Sorting Hat, apparently for a second time, and the hat told him, "You have been here before and the answer is STILL Ravenclaw!" ...Awesome!



A couple of the gals in our group took their O.W.L.s (trivia), and did us proud! We all had our photo taken at Hogwarts Castle (a backdrop in the children's section). And a couple of us each had a school crest painted onto our arm.

Some minor chaos began when they attempted to sort us into our houses and line us up for the book-selling. This effort failed, and it basically turned into an unorganized mass of people attempting to get as close to the cash-wrap area as they could. Very hot (not in the good, Paris Hilton-ese way)! Very uncomfortable!

The count down was great though! Better than any New Year's Eve party count down I've ever been to! The anticipation in the air was palpable. And it was exciting knowing that everyone there was friends with my Harry too, and was just as eager as me to find out what he and his friends are up to next.

Spent all day Saturday, and half the day Sunday, reading the book aloud with my husband. But I promised I wouldn't spoil any of it for those who are still reading, so I will end my blog here for now.