Have you ever planned something and been so excited about it, but all along the way there are “those” who just shake their heads and say “This is going to be a disaster!” Fortunately, I am good at pretending to never hear the naysayer’s so I can continue on to do what I think will [...]

While I appreciate so many of my friends and colleagues getting pregnant just so I can prepare board book baskets for them, I’m always struggling to find new titles that are just right. Betsy Bird pointed out that board books must be good “Cause when you read something 500 times, you’re either going to go [...]

Mr. and Mrs. Bunny – Detectives Extraordinaire! by Mrs. Bunny translated from the Rabbit by Polly Horvath, illustrated by Sophie Blackall. Schwartz & Wade, 2012. ISBN: 978-0-375-86755-2 $16.99 Have you experienced that moment when you are reading a new book and suddenly wished you had a class of students in front of you so you [...]

Why did I insist they get a locksmith and unlock that large glass display case? Now I have to create innovative displays frequently and I need ideas. I’m struggling with finding a compromise between a fantastic looking glass cage and a working, innovative learning idea center. While I was searching I started reading other website [...]

#1 Twilight by Stephenie Meyer. Little, Brown and Company, 2005. ISBN:  9780316015844, 235 pp. Publisher’s Description: Isabella Swan’s move to Forks, a small, perpetually rainy town in Washington, could have been the most boring move she ever made. But once she meets the mysterious and alluring Edward Cullen, Isabella’s life takes a thrilling and terrifying [...]

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Thanks for Amazon and Pixel of Ink’s letting me know that Beverly Cleary’s birthday, April 12th, is celebrated across the country on D.E.A.R. Day, with activities related to the Drop Everything and Read Program. One of the most popular and honored authors of all time, Beverly Cleary has won the Newbery Medal for Dear Mr. [...]

I am blogging for the KidLit Celebrates Women’s History site today and cross-posting here. Quick! Name ten explorers. How many of them were women? Perhaps you listed Sacagawea or Amelia Earhart? Did you include Delia Akeley, Christina Dodwell, Mary Kingsley, Florence Baker, Alexandrine Tinne, Gertrude Bell, Alexandra David-Neel, Florence Von Sass Baker, Isabella Bird Bishop, [...]

Are you following the KidLit Celebrates Women’s History Month posts? Here are some of the most recent post topics: March 20 Red Bird Sings: The Story of Zitkala-Sa and Book Giveaway! March 19 A Q&A with Deborah Kogan Ray: Sarah Winnemucca, Paiute Princess March 18 Beryl Markham: Feminist Hero? or Heroic Female? March 17 Joan of Arc: an early [...]

I am LOVING the book Green by Laura Vaccaro Seeger. I have tried it out with students in PreK, K, and 1st grade classes this week. I’ve tried it with a variety of other titles to expand our thinking and comparison skills. No matter what I do, students who are calm at the beginning of [...]