Saturday, February 23, 2013

And the Winner for Newbery Book of 2013 is.....

THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN
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The One and Only Ivan, by Katherine Applegate, is told through the eyes of Ivan, a sweet gorilla who lives in a mall. He watches his limited world through the glass that encases him and only has the friendship of an elephant, a stray dog and Julia (a young girl who comes at night while her father cleans the mall). What you learn through Ivan's eyes are poignant, enlightening and somewhat sad. The drawings sprinkled throughout, by Patricia Castelao, are a perfect combination to the story.

February Calendar of Children's books and Lesson Plans

2013 Calendar of Children's Books
By , About.com Guide


 Children’s Books and More for February
    February 1 - Birthday of Author Jerry Spinelli
  • Stargirl - Award-winning novel for ages 10 to young teens about responding to bullying and peer pressure
    February 1 - Birthday of Poet Langston Hughes
  • Book Review: My People - Sepia-toned portraits by photographer Charles R. Smith, Jr. give added meaning to the poem by Langston Hughes
    February 8 – Birthday of Anne Rockwell
  • 100 Days of School - One of a number of picture books about Mrs. Madoff’s elementary school class by Anne Rockwell, with illustrations by Lizzy Rockwell
    February 14 – Birthday of Illustrator Paul O. Zelinsky
  • Z is for Moose - Funny alphabet story by Kelly Bingham, illustrated by Zelinsky
    February 19 – Birth Date of Louis Slobodkin
  • The Hundred Dresses - Short children’s novel about bullying by Eleanor Estes, illustrated by Louis Slobodkin
    February 28 – Birthday of Lemony Snicket
  • Who is Lemony Snicket? – All about the author of A Series of Unfortunate Events
President's Day: do a Venn Diagram and compare and contrast the different aspects of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln's lives. I did this with all of the students from grades 2 on up to 6th.
I also gave the students an anticipitory guide where they read a statement about Washington or Lincoln and had to decide which president it was. Then I read a few paragraphs about the presidents so that they could see if they were right. It held their attention very well.

    Friday, February 15, 2013

    God Never Blinks



    I'm reading a book called "God Never Blinks" by Regina Brett. It's fabulous and a book of wonderous thoughts to ponder, 50 of them, about life.  The chapters are short and pointed.  One of the chapters is called You Can get through Anything Life Hands you if You Stay Put in the Day You Are in and Don't Jump Ahead.

    She quotes another author by saying..."Andre Dubus once wrote in "A Father's Story": "It is not hard to live through a day, if you can live through a moment. What creates despair is the imagination, which pretends there is a future, and insists on predicting millions of moments, thousands of days, and so drains you that you cannot live the moment at hand."

    She continues, "I no longer squander today being afraid of tomorrow or wallowing in guilt or resentments of the past. God isn't present in the past or future. The great I Am is in the present moment. When I claim that presence, I can get through anything today. That's all that is required of any of us, to live today."

    Amen. :)

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