I have been eagerly awaiting Planet Jupiter, the newest middle-grade novel by Jane Kurtz. Kurtz’s novels contain the number one thing I search for in stories: HEART. Planet Jupiter is no exception. It is a deeply layered and incredibly moving. For this reason alone, I want to thrust it into the arms of young readers, […]
August
15
POLL: What Books Are You Most Looking Forward to Sharing This School Year?
posted by CBethM
It’s the time of year when so many of us are starting the beginning of a new school year and with that comes the enthusiasm of starting over. It’s also a time when our minds start to race about which titles we are looking forward to sharing in the coming weeks. We’re curious about which […]
August
14
Fact vs. Fiction: Portraying Middle-Grade Memories in a (Sort of) Truthful Light by Melissa Roske
posted by CBethM
When I set out to write my first middle-grade novel, Kat Greene Comes Clean, I knew Kat would be a fun-loving, cake-eating, Harriet the Spy-reading New Yorker whose mom has OCD. (I’m a fun-loving, cake-eating, Harriet the Spy-reading New Yorker whose dad has OCD.) I also knew she’d go to a fictionalized version of the […]
August
13
Happy Birthday to Donalyn Miller!
posted by CBethM
There are many of us who have been lucky enough to be impacted by Donalyn Miller, and so we couldn’t let her birthday pass this year without a chance to celebrate what she means to us. While this entire post is a giant birthday card to her, we also hope that you, dear Nerdy […]
August
12
Top Ten Books with Rural and Small Town Settings by Elaine Fultz
posted by CBethM
My school is in the country. I hear a rooster crow every morning when I walk from my car to the building. For many of my students, a trip to the nearest city is rare and intimidating while a ride around a field on a tractor or ATV is a daily pastime. As their […]
August
10
Five Reasons to Read The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas – Review by Deana Metzke
posted by CBethM
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas has been at the top of the New York Times Bestseller list and has been talked about all over Twitter since before it was released, so I’m not sure there’s much I can say about the specifics of the storyline of the book that hasn’t been said. As I said […]
August
08
CARE AND FEEDING OF RELUCTANT READERS by Tania del Rio
posted by CBethM
Whenever I hear the word “reluctant reader,” a little part of me withers. It’s a condition that has always mystified me, but one that has also motivated me; my greatest goal would be to convert a reluctant reader into the opposite: a rabid reader! But how do you do it? How do you get kids […]
August
07
The 5 W’s (and an H) of an After-School Book Club by Michelle Gajda
posted by CBethM
Love of books, love of reading, love of learning, love of women’s history…..what do you do when you have so many “loves” inside you? Why you share them, of course! As a teacher, it seems natural to want to share the love and joy of reading and learning. Thus, the Girls with Grit After school […]
August
06
Make Me a Match! Ten Love Connections Between YA Novels and Nonfiction Books by Oona Marie Abrams
posted by CBethM
One of many takeaways from #NerdCampNJ was the “love connections” teachers and administrators were making between texts. For example, several teachers and administrators shared that they’re now designing units that include Tom Rinaldi’s The Red Bandanna, Gae Polisner’s The Memory of Things, or Nora Raleigh Baskin’s Nine, Ten. This got me thinking about other “love […]
August
05
Authors, Illustrators Share Their Talents, Pass On Their Love of Reading, Then Pass Out Their Books by Heidi Powell
posted by CBethM
I’ve shared my love of reading in expected and unexpected ways. When I was young I book-talked with friends (before I even knew what book-talking was), participated in book clubs, and volunteered and then worked at the local library. Years later, I picked up where I’d left off and became a page at another library—only […]
