It’s Monday! What are you reading?
Each week I share a reading photo of the week or two (or three . . . )
Book sharing circles were a big hit this week.
We perused numerous picture books from our collection.
And as always, buddy reading with the kindergarten class was a joy!
For our #classroombookaday, I pulled out some older favourites and the beloved Boy + Bot which got a lot of love!
It inspired some robot drawings.
We went on to paint our robots and cut them out. This week we will be designing robot landscapes.
Join Jen from Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki from Unleashing Readers and share all of the reading you have done over the week from picture books to young adult novels. Follow the links to read about all of the amazing books the #IMWAYR community has read. It’s the best way to discover what to read next.
On the blog:
It was a pleasure to share the progress my readers have made: Celebration: Readers Happened Here
For Nonfiction Picture book Wednesday: Tooth by Tooth
Slice of Life: What I Shouldn’t Say
Books I enjoyed:
Swatch: The Girl who Loved Color by Julia Denos
This book is all kinds of bright and beautiful. It begs to inspire – numerous rereads, art projects, poems. I want to walk outside and give every colour its own special name – like bravest green (which shoots up in March). Wouldn’t you like to be a colour collector?
Finding Wild written by Megan Wagner Lloyd and illustrated by Abigail Halpin
Again, a book to inspire. Where can you find wild? What is wild to you? Why do we need wild? How is wild beautiful and dangerous all at the same time. Just so full of wow.
Whose Story is this, Anyway? written by Mike Flaherty and illustrated by Oriol Vidal
Its hard to tell your own story when other characters keep happening by . . .
One student is convinced this book is made just for him and, well, could the author make some more like this soon please? You know with pirates and dinosaurs and aliens and all? Major kid appeal here!
Solomon and Mortimer by Catherine Rayner
Oh these cheeky, sneaky crocodiles. I read this book and was convinced that these characters are actually my students masquerading as crocodiles. This book is funny and charming and will be the first book I read aloud this week.
Flora and the Peacocks by Molly Idle
Oh Flora, you sure can move. And this time with not one, but two, dancing partners. Stunning all around!
Charlotte and the Quiet Place written by Deborah Sosin and illustrated by Sara Woolley
A book about needing and finding a quiet place and then recreating it despite the noise. Perfect for our mindfulness practice.
Happy Birthday Madame Chapeau written by Andrea Beaty and illustrated by David Roberts
Rhyming text and pages and pages of creative, incredible hats!
Otters Love to Play written by Jonathan London and illustrated by Meilo So
I adored this title and learned a lot about otters. Baby river otters spend the year doing all things otters do, especially the thing they do best – play! Loved the pages about otters in the snow.
Hour of the Bees by Lindsay Eagar
This book transports the reader to a time and a place and a family and a story that you want to walk around in and sense every tiny sensation – the smells of the Mexican cooking, the sound of a lone bee buzzing in your ear, the vastness of a desert ranch, the tingling feeling of a story that is wrapped up in history and magic. I don’t always love magical realism but in this story, it worked. I wanted to believe all of it. And maybe I should . . .
Reading Progress updates:
2016 Chapter Book Challenge: 20/75 complete
Goodreads Challenge: 158/400 books read
#MustReadin2016: 17/30 complete
Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge: 23/100 titles
Diverse Books in 2016: 19/50 books read
Up next? I am reading House Arrest by K.A. Holt
There's a Book for That 
Flora and the Peacocks is superb. My students loved it this past week when I shared it.
I haven’t shared it aloud yet! But our librarian read it to my students who loved it.
A lot of terrific picture books. Thanks for posting. I just read your Hour of the Bees review on Goodreads and I am sold on that too.
It is a MUST read!
A great book selection, as always! I will have to tuck your idea for using dots as book reviews for my school library. Quick and kid-friendly way to spot good books!
It’s a lot of fun! Happy reading!
I know just the grand-girl who will love Whose Story Is This Anyway, Carrie. Plus loved the look of Solomon & Mortimer, and Charlotte & The Quiet Place. Hour of The Bees is on my list, a must get to it soon book! Thanks for all you share!
Read Solomon and Mortimer aloud today to lots of giggles! And nodding “Ohs”
I loved Swatch and Hour of the Bees! You’ve got a lot of cute ones that you’ve reviewed and in your ClassroomBookADay section. I ordered Bugs In My Hair! from the library, because lice is a big problem in our school. Hope things are going well for you as you wrap up your school year.
Thanks Jana. I have lots to do to pack and move. And many books to bring . . .
So many wonderful books! Love the projects inspired by Boy + Bot especially. Will definitely be thinking about how to incorporate #ClassroomBookaDay next year …
It is one of the best things I have done this year!
Oh no, Solomon and Mortimer and Whose Story Is This Anyway are not available at my library. Just wondering – do you think Hour of the Bees will be a Newbery contender next year?
I think Hour of the Bees will definitely get some buzz (sorry couldn’t resist!) I think it is one of best MG titles I have read in a while.
Oh how I love the Flora picture books, so beautiful and elegant. We’re on the home stretch of the school year!
Molly Idle is just brilliant.
I am becoming very impatient for Finding Wild to come in at my library.
And yes, Hour of the Bees… so stunning. Love Love Love!
You will love Finding Wild. The perfect book to inspire writing.
So many wonderful books! I am so glad that Boy + Bot inspired such #booklove. I find the robots your students made very charming and hope you’ll share pix of the robot landscapes. I was very excited to find Finding Wild at my library–just placed a hold! How I love being able to check books out rather than purchase! When I left high school teaching, I thought I was leaving teaching, so I left ALL my books. Ha! So much for that plan….. (But I do love thinking about that insane classroom library–literally every inch of wall space covered with bookshelves and books–I had 3K+ books–living on….)
Sounds divine – that library!! I need some new book shelves as I feel I am going to end up in a smaller space . . . So need to go tall and up the wall!
I literally had books hanging from the ceiling: I strung clothesline around the room and draped books over. Whiteboard and chalkboard trays were makeshift bookshelves. Window sills, lined up along the floor, and then the many shelves and the stacks on top of shelves. Students got the message from the second they walked into the room: she’s crazy, and we’re going to read in here. They were smacked in the head by books–literally!
But that is exactly the message we want to send!
There is just so much to love here. I am resurrecting my Pinterest board again, thanks to you, so I can keep track of the books I HAVE to find.
🙂 Happy hunting!