Breathe in………breathe out…….now STREEETTTCCCHHH your arms up to the sky. Bring them in front of your chest and….Namaste. Just typing these words relaxes me and quiets my mind. I found yoga for the first time while training for the Chicago Marathon in 2003, and used it then as a forced flexibility practice on […]
Category Archives: Top Ten Lists
June
10
Top Ten Books My Students Use to Question, Discover, Wonder, and Wish by Alison Daniels
posted by CBethM
It’s a Friday morning. I sit down with my 6th graders, floating from group to group, getting lost in their conversations. The barrier between teacher voice and student voice disappears until we are just a table of readers. As a table of readers, each of us possessing agency, we discover and rediscover, we see and […]
June
03
Top 10 Children’s Books to Inspire Creativity by Kristen Williams
posted by CBethM
In a time when video games seem to rule the kid scene and funding for the arts is on the chopping block, we should highlight the many wonderful books out there involving art and artists. From preschool to middle school these books are sure to inspire kids to go out and create masterpieces of their […]
May
27
10 Impressive (and Popular) YA Novels According to Mrs. Krajewski’s Students
posted by CBethM
Reading is a true passion of mine, and I make it an integral part of my high school English classroom. Ask any of my students, and they will tell you I know a lot about books. I have to, for if I didn’t, I don’t think my passion would be as contagious. Now that we […]
May
20
Ten Types of Books That Are Hooking My MOST Reluctant Readers by Wendy Gassaway
posted by CBethM
I teach reading to middle schoolers who read two or more years below grade level. I am a fierce believer in the power of reading workshop and choice, but I continue to struggle with a sizable minority of students who Won’t. Read. ANYTHING. I feel like I offer a wide range of material, and I’m […]
May
13
TEN MENTOR TEXTS FOR MY HISTORICAL FICTION WIP by Carol Baldwin
posted by CBethM
When I teach writing I say, “If you want to write, read.” Taking that motto to heart, these ten books have guided me as I’ve written HALF-TRUTHS, my first young adult novel. BLUE by Joyce Moyer Hostetter In Hickory, North Carolina in 1944, Ann Fay Honeycutt assumes responsibilities after her father leaves for […]
May
06
“E” is for “Entertaining” and “Educational”: Ten Picture Book Biographies Tweens, Teens, and Teachers Will Love! by Maggie Bokelman
posted by CBethM
Even though the “E” on a picture book spine stands for “Everybody,” sometimes it’s mistaken for “Easy.” That’s unfortunate, because many picture books are complex and thought-provoking. In their 2009 book, Teaching Literary Elements with Picture Books, Susan Van Zile and Mary Napoli write, “A majority of current picture books are particularly geared for adolescents.” […]
April
22
10 New Books Highlighting the Diversity and Strength of Girls & Women by Brittany Gendron
posted by CBethM
Far too often girls are shortchanged in literature. They deserve to see the beautiful wide world of humanity, and more definitions of ‘girl’ than just girl-chases-boy, clique-drama tropes. Here are 10 recent favorites of mine showing the beautiful wide-open world of what it is to be female! Non-Fiction Strong is the New Pretty: A […]
April
15
Top Ten Picture Books for Read Alouds by Kate Olson
posted by CBethM
As an elementary school librarian, I am always looking for ways to connect my read alouds with other books I have shared with students, and build a community of books, reading and readers. One way I do this is by choosing specific picture book “series” for each grade level and making sure to read EVERY. […]
April
01
Top Ten Books to Inspire Inventors, Engineers, Tinkerers, and Those of Us Who Wish We Were! by Kristin Schweitzer
posted by CBethM
You know that kid, the one who doesn’t understand why he can’t record Lego instructions on his reading log? Or the one who disassembles her mechanical pencils, just to see how they work? As a teacher, I have not always recognized this child. You see, my teaching life was shaped by my reading life. As […]
