About carriegelson

Elementary teacher passionate about all things literacy.

Celebrating the Week

Posted on January 18, 2014 by carriegelson

Celebration honoured. This is the loveliest of reasons to share. Join Ruth Ayres who shares a Celebration Link up on her blog each week.

Things I am celebrating:

1. On Tuesday morning, I was rushing upstairs to my classroom after a short meeting and I noticed a few children walking down the hall reading. I love when kids can figure out walking and reading at the same time! I looked closer and realized each of these reader/walkers was one of my students. Hurray, the transformation to lifelong readers is beginning!

2. We had a wonderful surprise in our classroom this week. One of our students had his work shared on an author’s blog! Our whole classroom was so proud! Thank you to Melissa Stewart for sharing this on her blog, Celebrate Science. One little boy now has dreams of being an illustrator for nonfiction picture books. My class has LOVED reading Melissa’s book No Monkeys, No Chocolate.

3. Back to school means back to my student book club. Our book club is beginning a favourite title of mine: One for the Murphys by Lynda Mullaly Hunt. But more than this – some of the girls in my Grade 2/3/4 class wanted to be in a book club too. So I have started a Jr. Book Club and our first book is Charlotte’s Web! Growing new little book club members! I am so excited.

4. Every week the K/1 class comes up for buddy reading with my students. We always begin with mindful breathing. To look up and see this every week is pure joy. All of the children practice mindful breathing in their classrooms three times a day. The power of two classrooms together is a beautiful thing!

5. Canadian #booklove. My post, Look to the North featuring ten Canadian illustrators that I love was posted on the Nerdy Book Club blog today.

This is my first time participating in sharing weekly celebrations. I am so excited to read more of the Celebration posts shared.

Wishing everyone a wonderful week!

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday: Buzzing about Bees

Posted on January 15, 2014 by carriegelson

It’s Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday!

Psst! Bzzz! Buzz! Buzz!

This week I was fascinated with bees. It started with an information story book about community gardening and then led to a search for more books about bees that I might share alongside this title – one book new to me and one that I have in my nonfiction read aloud collection.

Big City Bees written by Maggie de Vries and illustrated by Renné Benoit (published in 2012)

I am a huge fan of the information story books that local author Maggie de Vries writes. I have often gifted these titles to my children, nieces, nephews and friends – love sharing stories about the natural world that are local, relevant and fascinating for children. This title – Big City Bees is a story about siblings Sophie and Matthew, who want to grow pumpkins in their community garden plot with Grandpa’s help. The children know that they need bees to help the pumpkins grow and worry that there won’t be any bees to find their pumpkin flowers in the big city. Grandpa takes them walking in the busy downtown streets looking for “big city bees”. They discover beehives atop a hotel roof and the story then shares all of the details of raising bees in hives.

We learn that bees are essential to the possibility of a pumpkin on a pumpkin vine. Each blossom (some male, some female) bloom for just one day. They must be pollinated by bees in order for a pumpkin to grow. My favourite page is of the two children crouched next to their pumpkin vines on a cold early morning before sunrise, determined to watch for the bees that might come and find their pumpkin flowers on the day that they will bloom. Oh the anticipation as the children wish, “Please come bees.”

The illustrations of the bees dusted with pollen are stunning – they look as if they are wearing gold sparkle. This story highlights both the importance of bees to the garden and the wonder of learning about growing things together in a family. With such a trend towards urban gardening in the city, this is an essential and timely title to share with children.

Follow this link to Maggie’s site to hear about why she was inspired to write this book. This title was inspired by Graeme Evans, who was both head of housekeeping and a beekeeper at the Fairmont Waterfront Hotel in Vancouver. Yes – there really are “big city bees”!

Wanting some more information about bees led me to this title: Buzz about Bees by Kari-Lynn Winters (published in 2013)

Organized in chapters with full of full colour photographs, labelled diagrams and many fun true and false quizzes, this book provides much information about bees. Parts I was particularly interested in:

a page with close up photographs detailing the differences between bees and wasps (yellow jackets)
a two page spread that explains (with step by step photographs), how to build a nesting box for orchard mason bees
information about colony collapse disorder and other reasons that bees are seriously endangered like parasites, shrinking habitats, pesticides, pollution and infections (bacterial, viral and fungal)
10 ideas to “BEE the Change the World Needs” – ways to make a difference for bees – some I wasn’t aware of
this quote from Albert Einstein mentioned numerous times: “If bees disappeared, humans would have only 4 years left to live.”

I also pulled out a favourite title – The BumbleBee Queen written by April Pulley Sayre and illustrated by Patricia J. Wynne (published in 2005)

Lyrical text, detailed illustrations and additional facts shared on each page – this book about the life of a bumblebee queen reads like a information story book. I love reading this title aloud.

Thanks to Alyson from Kid Lit Frenzy for the inspiration to read and share more nonfiction picture books in 2014! Follow the link to Alyson’s blog to read about more nonfiction titles.

My goal is to read 65 nonfiction picture books for 2014. Progress: 12/65 complete!

Monday January 13th, 2014

Posted on January 12, 2014 by carriegelson

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

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. One of the very best ways to discover what to read next!

First week back and my students were as excited as I was to be back together and share lots of reading time together. I shared highlights of our first week back in this post on our classroom blog. It’s worth a peek to read a poem two of my girls wrote called Girl Drama.

I found lots of picture books (both fiction and nonfiction) to treasure this week. Here are my favourites:

The Bear’s Song by Benjamin Chaud

This book was first published in France and wasn’t available in the North American market until 2013. I love lots of things about this book – the gorgeous colours on the cover, the fact that it is big and tall and that inside, each page is a visual delight. If one wanted to skip the story and just flip through the pages, it’s possible just to get lost in the details on each page searching for Little Bear as Papa Bear chases him into the city. But the story is simple and sweet – Little Bear has been lured by a bee and is rewarded after grand adventures with a sweet treat and snuggles from his Papa.

Here is a link to this book featured on the blog Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast

Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Maker’s Strike of 1909 written by Michelle Markel and illustrated by Melissa Sweet

A fabulous story made even more spectacular by Melissa Sweet’s illustrations. This book tells the story of Clara Lemlich who was instrumental in the labour movement in the garment industry in the early 1900s. Introduces children to themes of work place safety, worker’s rights and individual strength and resolve. An inspirational story, this title is another book I would love to own for my picture book biography collection.

Trouble Gum by Matthew Cordell

All about little siblings, mischief, and candy sneaking (in this case gum). Imagine chewing gum and little ones and you might be able to predict some of the “uh oh” happenings of this story. Lots of amusement and kid (in this case piglet) antics.

Maude The Not-So-Noticeable Shrimpton written by Lauren Child and illustrated by Trisha Krauss

I was surprised to find that this book was only written by Lauren Child, not illustrated by her as well. I think I might have preferred her signature style with this story. Still, this is an interesting exploration of a quieter daughter in a flamboyant, expressive family. Turns out her ability to just blend in and not stand out becomes a definite asset.

Mole Had Everything by Jamison Odone

The message with this book is clear – having too much stuff just takes too much time and takes away from living life. Who wants that? Must admit I had a happy little smile when Mole prioritized and included in his “just enough” things one bookshelf for books. Because there is always room for books!

Henry’s Map by David Elliot

This book is absolutely adorable. It went right into my book bag for school as soon as I finished reading it as I must experience this as a read aloud! Henry the pig draws a map of the farm yard, carefully locating each structure and each animal. But when the animals all gather around Henry to admire his work and then look out to the farm, all of the animals detailed on the map seem to be missing! They all race back to the farm to investigate. Silly and clever, a wonderful book to inspire mapping your community.

Best Foot Forward: Exploring Feet, Flippers, and Claws by Ingo Arndt

I book talked this title early in the week and have watched it make its rounds around the classroom. My students have loved sharing this during buddy reading and marvelling at the various interesting animal feet that different animals use to walk, climb, dig, paddle, etc.

This is our House by Hyewon Yum

A house holds so many memories when multiple generations are raised beneath its roof. Tells many stories – immigration, raising children, different stages of life, sharing a home across generations. Would love to share this story with my students and see what kinds of conversations are sparked – either of living with grandparents or of missing them because they don’t live here in Canada.

I also finished three novels (all of them YA), the first two from my #MustReadin2014 list

Legend by Marie Lu

In the last few months I have been reading many dystopian trilogies and kept seeing this title (and the next two in the trilogy) by Marie Lu receiving high praise on various #IMWAYR posts. After reading this first book, I can understand the enthusiastic reviews. Full of drama, action, intrigue and compelling characters, I was hooked within pages.

Boy 21 by Matthew Quick

Wow. What a story concept. There are themes that one might encounter in many YA novels – friendship, romantic relationships, searching for a way out of a town and a way into a better future. But this book is also rich with strong characters, upsetting secrets and the trauma of grief. Highly recommended.

Where the Stars Still Shine by Trish Doller

This was one of those books I found myself finishing in one long late afternoon into evening reading sessions. Another title that had come highly recommended via the #IMWAYR community. Callie was kidnapped by her mother at age five, has never been to school except for a brief stint in Kindergarten and has never had security or routines. Suddenly at seventeen, she is swept back into a full and busy Greek family who has missed her desperately and wants to make a place for her. But never having had friends, anyone to be accountable to or the belief in herself that she matters, Callie’s learning/adjustment curve is steep. Very engaging YA drama.

Next up? I’ve started Prodigy by Marie Lu and then plan to read Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick and The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour Lots of reading – yes! But nothing is a better cure for a miserable, rainy January than great books!

Reading Goal updates:

2014 Chapter Book Challenge: 4/100 novels complete

Goodeads Challenge: 27/650 books read

#MustReadin2014: 3/30 complete

Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge: 6/65 complete

Happy Reading everyone!

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday: The mysteries of the underwater world

Posted on January 8, 2014 by carriegelson

It’s Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday!

So excited to be participating in this meme again! I was inspired to read so many more nonfiction titles in 2013 thanks to #nfpb2013 and Alyson Beecher from KidLit Frenzy for the inspiration! I wrote about my favourite nonfiction picture book titles read in 2013 here. All of this reading meant many more fantastic titles being shared with my class! What could be better?

This week, I’m not sharing a recent title but it is one that is new to me and it was so enjoyed by my class that I felt the need to give it some more #booklove (of the nonfiction variety).

My students’ responses will help make the point of how accessible this book is to primary students.

Manfish: A Story of Jacques Cousteau written by Jennifer Berne and illustrated by Éric Puybaret (published 2008)

Picture book biographies, when well done, strike the important balance between inspiration and information. This title does this so well. The illustrations are magical – just the different shades of blue in the water on various pages is worth flipping through to notice. The theme that came through clearly was that Cousteau was fascinated by a world that he couldn’t spend prolonged time in. Without being able to breather underwater, how could Cousteau explore its mysteries? His invention of the aqua lung changed everything for him and for future ocean exploration.

What I loved most about this story is how it depicts the interests and passions of Cousteau at all ages and stages. It helps reinforce the message we want to send to our children – be curious, wonder, figure things out and care for our world. An ideal introduction to Cousteau.

Some student responses:

Ibtihal wrote: The most important thing under water is to breathe. The aqua lung helped Jacques to be a Manfish. When he was young he was curious. He loved to invent and draw things. He did writing and made his own movies. There’s a lot of fish in the water!

Heman shared: Jacques Cousteau was a person who loved fish. When Jacques was a little boy, he was curious about how rocks sink and boats float. He always wondered how to breathe underwater. So he invented the aqua lung to solve his problem which let him be a Manfish.

Hyo Min wrote: When Jacques goes deeper it gets colder and darker. He invents things. With his goggles he can go underwater.

Kevin wrote: I wonder how to breathe underwater? I learned that if you go deeper, it gets colder. The flippers made the men go faster and the rubber suits made them warm. Jacques liked to invent, draw and write. He wants to explore under water so he invented an aqua lung. They made an exploring boat.

Kassidy shared: Jacques was interested in how to breathe underwater. He and his friends were having a race in the water. Who can go the fastest and stay under water longest? But they needed to stay under for longer.

Andrew shared: Jacques went diving with his friends Didi and Phillipe. He invented the aqua lung/water lung. Just when he went down it was like a new world to Jacques. He felt so good. He saw two worlds together. He was a Manfish!

We read this title over two days in my classroom and did a lot of talking, wondering and writing. Students asked if we could learn more about how to save the ocean from pollution to be like Jacques Cousteau. There was much upset and talk about how people are throwing their trash in the ocean. We will continue exploring this topic. At the back of Manfish in the author’s note are some suggestions of how to have “more Cousteau” in your life. Caring for our planet is discussed.

I then shared an IMAX movie (Deep Sea) with the students so that they could get a sense of how incredible life in the ocean can be. They were fascinated by the predator/prey relationships, examples of symbiosis and the somersaulting manta rays! After the movie, students did some wonderful art work and writing.

Other titles to share on this topic . . .

Another picture book biography:

Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle by Claire A Nivola (published 2012)

I think this is a wonderful read aloud to share with upper primary (and older) students about finding your passion and making it your life’s work. I love this book for many reasons. The depiction of Earle’s curious childhood in the water, descriptions of moments in her life that truly shaped and changed her, beautiful and enticing illustrations and this very important message: “You can’t care if you don’t know.” In this story, this message applies to ecology and caring for our natural world but it is a message that applies to so many things. One worth thinking a lot about.

Books to inspire wonder about the ocean world:

Coral Reefs by Jason Chin (published 2011)

In One Tidepool: Crabs, Snails and Salty Tails By Anthony D Fredericks and illustrated by Jennifer DiRubbio (published in 2002)

My goal is to read 65 nonfiction picture books for 2014. Progress: 5/65 complete!

Thanks to Alyson from Kid Lit Frenzy for the inspiration to read and share more nonfiction picture books in 2014! Follow the link to Alyson’s blog to read about more nonfiction titles.

Monday January 6th, 2014

Posted on January 5, 2014 by carriegelson

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

Speaking of what to read next? Do you have a TBR list that needs to be tamed? Join a number of bloggers who have chosen some titles as must read titles in 2014. Follow #MustReadin2014 on twitter and read more here. If you want to join in – send me your list/blog post via twitter to @CarrieGelson and I will add it to this post! Everyone is welcome! 🙂 My Must Read List is here. On the Gathering Books blog there is also a wonderful challenge called Check off Your Reading Challenge where you can keep track of and include reviews of books you read. Many of us are participating in both of these challenges!

The picture books (fiction and nonfiction) that I loved this week!

Manfish: A Story of Jacques Cousteau written by Jennifer Berne and illustrated by Éric Puybaret

Gorgeous. What I loved most about this story is how it depicts the interests and passions of Cousteau at all ages and stages. It helps reinforce the message we want to send to our children – be curious, wonder, figure things out and care for our world. An ideal introduction of Cousteau for children. I want to add this title to my picture book biography section and will share it with students this week.

Who Says Women Can’t be Doctors? The story of Elizabeth Blackwell written by Tanya Stone and illustrated by Marjorie Priceman

I love the style of this book – both visually and the narration. It makes the story both interesting and accessible for young readers. And what a story! An important biography about determination, changing general opinion and beliefs and following a dream. While I want all of my students to hear this story (I have ordered my own copy and will share it soon), there are some children that I specifically have in mind who will rejoice in the messages of this book.

Duck by Randy Cecil

A very sweet little story about a duck from a carousel who befriends a duckling. How can she teach duckling to truly fly? Little bits of melancholy in this gentle book.

Without You by Geneviève Côté

Perfect friendship story to spark discussion with the younger set. The message is a simple one (full of all of the complexities of interpersonal relationships!) Without you . . . many things just aren’t as good. With you, it all is better. My favourite line?

But my book is funnier when I read it with you!

I am the World text and photographs by Charles R. Smith Jr.

A wonderful celebration of children and culture from around the globe.

Minji’s Salon by Eun-hee Choung

What a delightful little find at the library this week. This story is all about the celebration of make believe. A little girl peeks at her Mother at the salon and then decides to have her own salon day with her dog! The back and forth between Mom at the salon and little “hairstylist to be” playing at home is wonderful!

Novels I finished:

Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy

This was my final book on my Must Read in 2013 list and I squeaked in finishing it 45 minutes before midnight on New Year’s Eve. A lovely way to “read in” the New Year – with humour, heroics (of sorts) and creative license with all of the fairy tales we think we know! My son adores this series and I can see exactly why it appeals to him so much!

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (the first title I finished on my #MustReadin2014 list)

If you are no longer 18 years old, you might forget that fact while reading this book. All the vulnerability, fear, brutal soul searching and life lessons will come hurtling back at you as you experience the characters of Fangirl. Rainbow Rowell writes characters that are all about raw and true. Brilliant.

Next up? I am almost finished reading Legend by Marie Lu and will probably jump right into Prodigy as I am trying to read the series without many breaks. I’m reading The Vengekeep Prophecies by Brian Farrey as a read aloud with my children and it is lots of fun! A great MG fantasy/adventure.

Heading back to teach tomorrow, I feel a little sad to give up the long hours of reading I managed to do this holiday! But lots of read aloud adventures await me with my students and for this, I am excited! I was capturing our last two weeks of learning/activities on our class blog Curiosity Racers today – no wonder I was tired at the end of December! Wow, were those last two weeks busy!

For all of you heading back to teaching this week, good luck! Happy Reading to everyone!

#MustReadin2014

Posted on January 2, 2014 by carriegelson

For anyone out there with a To Be Read list that seems like it will never end, this challenge is for you! This is all about making your own personal list of books 5? 10? 20? 30? more?that you want to commit to reading in 2014. Books can be published in any year, be from any genre, and from any category -adult, YA, MG, Graphics, NF, etc titles. All that matters is that they are books you want to be sure not to forget as that TBR list continues to grow! These aren’t the only titles you will read over the year, but a list to help guide your reading.

Join Maria Selke from Maria’s Melange and myself to take part in the #MustReadin2014 challenge. Thank you to Linda Baie from Teacher Dance for joining us and creating a button and image for us to use!

Many of us began sharing using the #MustReadin2014 hashtag on twitter and in sharing our lists, we realized we were a little community of readers with a common goal – tackling the TBR list! Make a list on Goodreads or share titles in a blog post and include the titles you want to be sure to read in 2014. We will try and connect over the year through the twitter hashtag and likely through blog posts four times this year: April 1st, July 1st, October 1st and a year end review to share our progress.

These are the lists shared so far

Mine is here: My Must Read Novels of 2014

Maria Selke‘s list is here: Must Read in 2014: The Challenge Begins

Linda Baie shared her list here: Books I Must Read in 2014

Elisabeth Ellington shared here: #MustReadin2014

Lorna Wheaton‘s list is here: 2014 Reading Intentions

Leigh Ann Eck shared here: Check off your Reading List Challenge

Earl Dizon‘s list is here: Reading Challenges

Lauren Strohecker has a great list of 2014 books she wants to read here.

Christina Williams shared her list here: Must Read in 2014

Alyson Beecher‘s list is here: My Must Read in 2014 List

Hannahlily Angus shares her list: Must Read Titles of 2014

Julie from The Fun Librarian blog shared her list is here: Must Read in 2014

Holly Fairbrother shares her list: Must Reads for 2014

Julee Murphy lists her must read titles in this post: My Must Read List for 2014

Ann King shared her list here: Must Read in 2014

Crystal Brunelle shares her must read list from Goodreads here

Julieanne Harmatz shares her list here: #MustReadin2014

Margie Myers-Culver posts her list here: #MustReadin2014 This is an interesting list put together using Pixie Clip (Virtual Post it Boards) Margie explains how to do this in her post!

Adrienne Gear shares her list: #MustReadin2014

Michele Knott has a brand new blog and here is her post: My #MustReadin2014

Holly Mueller shares her list here: #MustReadin2014

Gigi McAllister added her list: My Must Read in 2014

Stacey H. shares her list here: Must Read in 2014

Tricia Barton shares a number of middle grade must read titles: #MustReadin2014

Megan Ginther shares her list here: Must Read in 2014

Jen Hong added her list: Must Read Books 2014

Cheriee Weichel shares her list here: Must Read in 2014

Please contact me via twitter or leave a comment and I will add your list if you would like to participate! Everyone is welcome! But be warned, reading other lists may grow your own! 🙂

Gathering Books has a Check Off Your Reading List Challenge you can learn more about here. All the wonderful ways to be part of a community of avid readers! Read Myra’s post here to discover how we are all beautifully connected!

Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge 2014

Posted on January 1, 2014 by carriegelson

I’ve been inspired once again by Alyson Beecher at KidLit Frenzy to participate in the 2014 Nonfiction picture book challenge! Link up here to join in!

According to Goodreads, last year I read 66 nonfiction picture books – my goal had been 60 titles. I read 44 nonfiction picture books in 2012 so it was wonderful that participating in this challenge allowed me to increase the titles I read by a third! Wonderful for me and wonderful for my students as my passion for these titles has spilled over into some amazing read aloud experiences! And the learning . . . Wow!

This year when I selected my favourite titles of the year, including nonfiction picture books was a priority – I credit this challenge with my new absolute love for this genre. Thank you Alyson and all of the fantastic bloggers sharing favourite reads all year!

I would like to keep reading at the nonfiction pace I read last year – so I am choosing 65 titles as my goal. Again, I will try and read many recently published books, but there are many 2013 (and even older) titles that I really want to get to so I will be reading both new and older titles. When I can, I will include favourites and link to Alyson’s Wednesday nonfiction posts.

One of my most popular posts of the year was for this challenge: Wonder Inducing Nonfiction Read Alouds. I have been using this list to guide which books I share with my students. In my timetable, I have set aside two guaranteed nonfiction read aloud times each week. Often, it is more. We read a lot of nonfiction in my room!

Like last year, I am excited to learn about a variety of nonfiction titles shared via the bloggers participating in this challenge! Reading passion is wonderfully contagious!

My ten nonfiction favourites read in 2013 (not just published in 2013) included:

The final 3 titles on this list were on my Favourites of 2013 list and four of these books were on my Gift Books 2013 list. Testament to the nonfiction love!

The Tree Lady by H. Joseph Hopkins and illustrated by Jill McElmurry

Is This Panama? A Migration Story written by Jan Thornhill and illustrated by Soyeon Kim

No Monkeys, No Chocolate written by Melissa Stewart and Allen Young with illustrations by Nicole Wong

The Case of the Vanishing Golden Frog: A Scientific Mystery by Sandra Markle

My First Day by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page

A Little Book of Sloth by Lucy Cooke

Even an Octopus Needs a Home by Irene Kelly

Lifetime: The Amazing Numbers in Animals’ Lives written by Lola Schaefer and illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal

On A Beam of Light- A Story of Albert Einstein by Jennifer Berne and illustrated by Vladimir Radunsky

The Boy who Loved Math: The Improbable Life of Paul Erdos written by Deborah Heiligman and illustrated by LeUyen Pham

$The Boy who Loved Math NF Picture Book Favourites of 2013 There's a Book for That$

I feel compelled to share this post to highlight all of the love this book had in my classroom: For the Love of Math

My Must Read Novels of 2014

Posted on December 30, 2013 by carriegelson

The season of reading goals – and books to read next are always foremost on my mind!

One of the best things I did last year was to take a serious look at my TBR lists and piles and think about what I wanted to make sure I read over the year before new titles kept me from ever getting to important titles on my list. Last year I had 20 must read titles. This year it is 30. Of course, I plan to read many more books over the year but this list ensures I don’t miss books that are real priorities.

Last year my focus was on some specific genres: fantasy, historical fiction and books set in other places. This year I have some more realistic fiction on the list. These titles just sort of organized themselves in this way. I went through my To Read Shelf on Goodreads, various book stacks around the house, my library holds and then checked out my children’s bookshelves. (Often I suggest book titles for them from Grandmas and Aunties that I want to read too!)

In no particular order . . .

Sequels, next in a series – titles I can’t miss and am eagerly waiting for!

1. ~~Jinx’s Magic by Sage Blackwood~~ (Read June 22nd, 2014)

2. ~~The Shadow Throne by Jennifer A. Nielsen~~ (Read March 31st, 2014)

3. ~~Blue Lily, Lily Blue (Raven Cycle 3)~~ by ~~Maggie Stiefvater~~ Had to share this gorgeous cover here – had been impatiently waiting for release of this title, cover and official publication date (October 28th, 2014) (Read December 27th, 2014)

4. Rose Under Fire by Elisabeth Wein (Read December 28th, 2014)

5. ~~Allegiant by Veronica Roth~~ (Read March 23rd, 2014)

6. ~~Cress (Lunar Chronicles #3) by Marissa Meyer~~ (Read July 5th, 2014)

Titles by authors I have loved

7. ~~Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell~~ (Read January 3rd, 2014)

8. Flora and Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo (Read February 15th, 2014)

9. ~~A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray~~ (Read December 22nd, 2014)

10. ~~The Summer of Letting Go by Gae Polisner~~ (Read July 15th, 2014)

11. ~~Threatened by Eliot Schrefer~~ (Read April 18th, 2014)

Realistic Fiction/Potential emotional reads

12. ~~Boy 21 by Matthew Quick~~ (Read January 11th, 2014)

13. Me, Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews

14. ~~Forgive me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick~~ (Read January 25th, 2014)

15. ~~The Boy on the Porch by Sharon Creech~~ (Read March 20th, 2014)

16. We were Liars by ~~E. Lockhart~~ (Read July 15th, 2014)

Thieving (borrowing) 🙂 from my children’s book shelves

17. ~~Small Medium at Large by Joanne Levy~~ (Read March 6th, 2014)

18. ~~Listening for Lucca by Suzanne Lafleur~~ (Read February 23rd, 2014)

19. ~~After Iris by Natasha Farrant~~ (Read October13th, 2014)

20. Wake up Missing by Kate Messner (Read December 30th, 2014)

21. The Grimm Legacy by Polly Shulman

22. ~~Every Day After by Laura Golden~~ (Read March 6th, 2014)

Other titles based on persuasive recommendations from the #IMWAYR community and book loving friends:

23. More than This by Patrick Ness

24. Witchlanders by Lena Coakley

25. Prisoner 88 by Leah Peleggi

26. ~~Legend by Marie Lu~~ (Read January 7th, 2014)

27. The Living by Matt de la Pena (Read January 31st, 2014)

28. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by ~~Sherman Alexie~~ (Read April 20th, 2014)

29. ~~Better Nate than Ever by Tim Federle~~ (Read March 19th, 2014)

30. ~~Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee~~ (Read May 15th, 2014)

Anyone else out there have must-read titles in their huge To Be Read pile? Please share!

To learn more about #MustReadin2014 – read here.

Sunshine Sharing . . .

Posted on December 30, 2013 by carriegelson

Many of you have seen the posts circulating – some call it “homework” some Sharing the sunshine . . . But it basically works like this.

Acknowledge the nominating blogger.  Share 11 random facts about yourself.  Answer the 11 questions the nominating blogger has created for you.  List 11 bloggers. They should be bloggers you believe deserve some recognition and a little blogging love!  Post 11 questions for the bloggers you nominate to answer and let all the bloggers know they have been nominated. (You cannot nominate the blogger who nominated you.)

I am honoured to have been “tagged” twice – first by my friend and fellow B.C. teacher Karen Lirenman who writes this blog Learning and Sharing with Ms. Lirenman but also blogs on a classblog and has all of her Grade one students blogging and connecting with the world. I am constantly learning from Karen. I was also asked to participate by Vicki Vinton who writes the blog To Make a Prairie – reading this blog means a fresh cup of coffee and some time to let all of her wonderful writing about teaching, reading and writing sink in.

January 3rd update: And one more -thanks Sarah Soltau-Heller at Singing My Song -I’ve now answered some of your questions below. Sarah’s voice in B.C. Education is one I absolutely respect!

So here goes . . .

Eleven facts you might not know about me:

1. I have two beautiful children – eleven year old boy/girl twins who I adore. I love to read to them daily, explore amazing places and listen to their big questions.

2. These beautiful children landed me on 13 weeks of bedrest at the end of my pregnancy. Where I began #bookaday 🙂

3. I taught for two years in Nitra, Slovakia

4. My husband proposed to me by writing in the back a of picture book that he had me read aloud to him.

5. Numbers stick in my head – I can remember phone numbers and birthdays of childhood friends. But I often have to do the math to remember how old I am.

6. My first degree is in philosophy.

7. I moved nine times before I was seven years old. But my husband and I have lived in our home for 16 years except for the 10 months when we moved out to renovate a few years ago.

8. I base my opinion of small animals on what they do to my garden. Birds = love. Squirrels = evil thoughts.

9. I walk to work every day. Rain. Shine. Snow. It takes me 35 minutes if I hit the lights correctly. It’s what keeps me grounded.

10. The only food group I’m guaranteed to have every day is coffee (that is a food group isn’t it?)

11. I love puzzles. Of the jigsaw variety. I don’t do them often but when I break one out, I become obsessive. And I don’t like anyone to help.

My answers to the questions. I’m doing 5 from each blogger

Karen’s questions:

What have you been served, that you ate out of respect, but really didn’t like it?

Once during my years in Slovakia, I was given a full glass of wine at 8 a.m. for helping to interview a librarian candidate in English. I took a sip and smiled and promptly switched glasses with my Slovak colleague who had already emptied his glass!

What scares you?

Top 3: 1. The boxes in my basement 2. The prospect of any type of infestation – mice, bugs . . . 3. The idea of my children getting sick.

Runner or walker?

Always walking! It is exercise and therapy all rolled into one. And a very green mode of transportation.

What’s the biggest surprise of your life?

That I couldn’t get pregnant. I am thankful everyday for advancements in assisted reproductive technology. My twins are IVF babies and we know how very blessed we were to have success finally. A long road with an absolute pot of gold at the end! Times two!

What is your favourite season and why?

Fall. The colours on the trees . . . Wow.

Vicky’s questions:

What did you learn from your mother?

To be with people and find the humour and spirit in everyone. My Mom was a nurse in an intermediate care facility for seniors. I remember watching her with patients and thinking she had some kind of magic. But the magic was all about sincerity, love and graciousness. My Mom is my hero.

Where do you find joy in your classroom or work?

In the tiny moments of laughter and silly and strength. The children I work with are resilient and all kinds of amazing. Everyday I find multiple moments to celebrate and hang on to those.

How do you feel about being the age you currently are?

Mostly fine because I never believe I am the age I am. And also my students often guess that I am 22 (or 75 but that’s another story). With age comes wisdom and wrinkles. I like to focus on the wisdom.

If you could have dinner (or coffee or drinks) with anyone living or dead, who would it be and what would you want to ask him or her?

I would love to have coffee with Linda Baie from Teacher Dance. I know Linda only through blogging and sharing books but I have the feeling we could talk all day. What would I want to ask her? All the secrets books have taught her. Us readers, we know a lot.

What do you do to recharge?

Read. Stories allow you to steal inspiration, hope and wisdom from the pages. Every book I read enriches who I am.

Sarah’s questions:

If you could do any other job what would it be?

A detective. I love the idea of sifting through information, reading people, trusting instincts and being smarter than the “bad guys”

What is your favourite colour? Why?

Green. Trees. Forests. Ferns. Limes. New growth. My wedding dress.

What is in your freezer right now?

Never enough coffee. Although we stockpile. Frozen fruits. Banana blueberry muffins (that I made).

What were you afraid of as a child?

Slow moving white vans (Scary news story) The Green Finger (Scary story told by older cousin)

What do you do that you wish you didn’t?

Make to do lists that are not humanly possible. And then attach very human guilt/angst. Working on this.

My eleven questions – feel free to only pick some. And avoid others!

1. Go anywhere for a weekend – where would it be?

2. Who in your family is most like you?

3. What 3 strengths do you have that you would use confidently to describe yourself?

4. What is your “successful” dinner – always good and one that you might have made and shared often? (It can even be the only thing you can actually cook)

5. What household task do you always feel behind with?

6. What genre do you need to read more?

7. What change would make your current work/job better on a daily basis?

8. What do you wish you could be braver about?

9. If someone were to describe your personal style, what would they say?

10. What makes a book a 5/5 stars book?

11. Fill in the blanks. I spend too much on ____________ but it’s okay because __________________________.

I am nominating seven brilliant and inspirational bloggers to share some stories and questions. I feel like I am a little late to this “sharing” and so am bending a few rules 🙂 Anyone else who wants to participate – please add yourself to the list!

1. Adrienne Gear from Reading Power Gear

2. Beth Shaum from Foodie Bibliophile

3. Susan Antonelli from Wonder Teacher

4. Elisabeth Ellington from The Dirigible Plum

5. Lorna Wheaton from Not for Lunch

6. Ann King from King and Kids

7. Nicole Levesque from BlueStocking Thinking

Monday December 30th, 2013

Posted on December 29, 2013 by carriegelson

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

Oh how I love, love, love the reading time the holidays afford! Doesn’t hurt that my #nerdlution goal is to read aloud daily to my children (from the novel we are reading). We just skipped Christmas day because I was ill and family events took up much of the day. Other days we made up for it and read in front of the fireplace for hours! We now begin our third novel since #nerdlution began, The Vengekeep Prophecies by Brian Farrey.

I have made some “hang out and read picture books” visits to my local library with my daughter. My 10 favourites of the week:

Joone by Emily Kate Moon

I first heard of this title back during the picture book 10 for 10 event – some lovely fellow blogger recommended it to me as my list was all about books with a theme of connections across generations. This title is about Joone and days passed with her grandfather and her pet turtle, Dr. Chin. Rock collecting, swimming in the pond, reading to Grandpa – a story of sweet little moments.

Ladder to the Moon written by Maya Soetoro-Ng and illustrated by Yuyi Morales

Wow. An emotional, beautiful, significant read. A story of connection between female family members that spans generations and mortality. Images are stunning. The author’s and illustrator’s notes in the back reveal much more to this story.

Wow! Ocean by Robert Neubecker

I wish I had this book before I took my children to Hawaii for the first time. Bright colourful ocean scenes for children to get lost in! So many pages that just really are WOW! moments. Like the jellyfish page. The pull out page on whales. A page of rays. And so many details not to miss – like the nurse’s cap on the nurse shark. I used an earlier Neubecker title Wow! City to inspire an art project – art ideas just leap off the page of this one too!

Baby Bear Counts One by Ashley Wolff

Another must own title if you have little ones or grandchildren. A beautiful counting book about forest animals preparing for the winter. Colourful pages with perfect counting opportunities. One woodpecker. Two squirrels. Three beavers. Four . . .

The Pig on the Hill by John Kelly

Two neighbours. One, stodgy and set in his ways. One, creative and expressive. Much humour as the story unveils.

Lemonade in Winter written by Emily Jenkins and illustrated by G. Brian Karas

This has been on my “to read” list for ages and I loved it as much as I was anticipating. I am such a fan of G. Brian Karas and appreciated all of the muted shades of a snowy winter backdrop. Yes, I love the math connection (although not so good for me as all money pictured in back is American and Canadian money looks much different – we don’t even have dollar bills!) but I loved the story. An idea that grows between siblings and changes and adapts with the weather and various circumstances. Why not a lemonade stand in a snowstorm? Such fun!

While We Were Out by Ho Baek Lee

A little rabbit sneaks through the house while the family is out. And of course, they will never know except for the little surprises he left everywhere. Can you guess what? Very sweet.

Crafty Chloe: Dress Up Mess Up written by Kelly Dipucchio and illustrated by Heather Ross

While I didn’t love this as much as the first Crafty Chloe, I did appreciate the very real struggle of trying to please more than one friend and staying true to yourself. And wow, some pretty creative costume ideas!

Ike’s Incredible Ink by Brianne Farley

A great title for would be writers. No story ideas are coming for Ike. Maybe if he had the perfect ink? He sets out to make it using found ingredients like shadows and the dark side of the moon.

The Money we’ll Save by Brock Cole

This was another of our holiday reads. A hilarious story of a family who decides to save money by raising a turkey for Christmas dinner rather than purchasing one for the occasion. A turkey in a small apartment? You can imagine . . .