Beautifully quirky: 10 titles to read and ponder #pb10for10 2017

Posted on August 9, 2017 by carriegelson

Picture book 10 for 10 is here! This is one of the best days of the year to increase your knowledge of amazing picture books. It may also be a tad expensive . . . You’ve been warned!

This celebration of picture books is hosted by Cathy from Reflect and Refine: Building a Learning Community and Mandy from Enjoy and Embrace Learning. Thanks to both of them for the work they do to promote this wonderful day of picture book sharing!

This is my sixth year participating in this event. In 2012, I shared ten beloved titles. In 2013, I went with a theme: Connections across the generations. In 2014, I shared ten “go to” titles on various themes like generosity, courage and forgiveness. In 2015. I highlighted favourite historical fiction titles. Last year I chose books that may inspire philosophical discussion

This year’s theme is the theme I chose for #classroombookaday with my Grade 4 and 5 class during the last week of school. I told them I was going to read books that were beautifully quirky and that I wanted to be sure I shared with them before our year together ended. Beautifully quirky is a great category. These books lead to awe and wonder. Questions and discussions. And many rereads.

These books are wonderfully odd. My kind of odd. I hope your kind of odd. Books that leave you thinking. That awe you with the wild and the beautiful and the unexpected or unexplained.

Sam and Dave Dig a Hole by Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen (2014)

This book will always be about the shouting audience. “No! They missed it again!” “Oh my God!” “Seriously?!” This book is all about theories. Digging in, around and but never really out is highly satisfying.

Goldfish Ghost by Lemony Snicket with illustrations by Lisa Brown (2017)

This book really is about a goldfish ghost who travels around in search of a place to belong. Quietly clever and speaks to some important themes: the cycle of life, belonging and companionship.

Not Quite Narwhal by Jessie Sima (2017)

Kelp was born in the ocean and raised by narwhals. Something has always seemed not quite right. Then one night, he discovers unicorns. Is this the answer to everything? Or just some things. Who we are, where we belong, how big all of this can be. Lovely little book.

The Book of Mistakes by Corinna Luyken (2017)

This book begins with an eye that was drawn too large. Where it ends up? Oh my! A creative and inspiring journey.

The Snurtch written by Sean Ferrell with illustrations by Charles Santoso (2016)

Well, if we all have a Snurtch – and I suppose we do – I would hope that mine is this cute. A charming story that reminds us of all the emotions and moods inside of us. Because, oh yes, it isn’t all happy happy joy joy.

The Day I Became a Bird by Ingrid Chabbert and Guridi (2016)

I am utterly enamoured by the illustrations in this book about a boy willing to be a bird to attract the attention of the girl he swoons over.

Du Iz Tak? by Carson Ellis (2016)

Invented language. Over the top stunning illustrations. This book invites the reader to climb inside and help tell the story over and over again.

The Liszits written by Kyo Maclear and illustrated by Júlia Sardà (2016)

I use the word quirky every time I pick this book up. It is absolutely captivating. The story. The lists. The illustrations. I can’t share this with anyone without reading them the entire book and then we both just sit back in awe. Inspired.

Papa’s Mechanical Fish written by Candace Fleming with illustrations by Boris Kulikov (2013)

Creativity. Focus. Absurdity. Inventiveness. The language is fun. The entire family is involved and Papa models the curiosity and persistence of an inventor. This book is “almost true” based on the life of Lodner Phillips who really did build The Whitefish, an actual functioning submarine.

Bug in a Vacuum by Melanie Watt (2015)

Who better to introduce children to the stages of grief than a bug swallowed up in a vacuum? Right? Huh? Love this book! Students do too.

Follow along on twitter using the #pb10for10 hashtag. All posts will be linked on the Google Community Site for Picture Book 10 for 10

What titles would make your beautifully quirky list?

Happy picture book reading!

Monday December 5th, 2016

Posted on December 4, 2016 by carriegelson

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

Each week I share a reading photo of the week. These photos are from when our intermediate Resource Teacher, filling in for the K teacher (who didn’t get a substitute) brought the class upstairs and performed Hooray for Hat for my class! Doesn’t get much cuter! Picture book to the rescue!

We have continued to explore themes for our #classroombookaday titles. We had a week of silly.

And then a week of serious.

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:

Celebration: And then this happened . . .

Books I enjoyed:

The Sound of Silence written by Katrina Goldsaito and illustrated by Julia Kuo

Okay, so, wow! This book is just incredibly beautiful in its simplicity – the search for silence. One to own and share and share again. The illustrations completely captivated me.

Imaginary Fred written by Eoin Colfer and illustrated by Oliver Jeffers

I found this title quite charming. The importance of friendship, of being needed and of spending time doing things you love with someone who matters – whether real, imagined or somewhere in between.

Leave Me Alone by Vera Brosgol

Sometimes we really have to go to great lengths to get the peace and quiet we crave. Incredibly amusing.

A Child of Books by Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston

Those of us who have had a life seeped in literacy will find this love letter to stories very relatable.

Du Iz Tak? by Carson Ellis

The illustrations? Oh my! And the invented language – I can’t wait to try this as a read aloud. Such fun.

The Day I Became a Bird by Ingrid Chabbert and Guridi

I am utterly enamoured by the illustrations in this book about a boy willing to be a bird to attract the attention of the girl he swoons over.

Little Man by Elizabeth Mann

Albert is just plain short. After seeing stilt walkers perform on the Caribbean Island where he lives, he longs to be one of them. A lovely little middle grade read.

CaveBoy Dave: More Scrawny than Brawny by Aaron Reynolds and Phil McAndrew

Oh is this funny. I book talked this title in class and everyone wanted to read it! And . . . it’s a series. Lots of kid appeal here. And poop. There is lots of poop. I did say kid appeal right?

When Friendship Followed me Home by Paul Griffin

“What are you doing?” my husband asked as I cried out reading this book and threw it down multiple times. And then a few pages later, I was weeping. This book. Oh, this book. It’s beautiful and heartbreaking and a must, must read. I adored these characters and rooted for them all.

Reading Progress updates:

2016 Chapter Book Challenge: 59/75 complete

Goodreads Challenge: 314/400 books read

Progress on challenge: 56 books behind! Yikes – worse than last week!!

#MustReadin2016: 22/30 complete

Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge: 43/100 titles

Diverse Books in 2016: 45/50 books read

Up next? Reading The Memory of Things by Gae Polisner. Wow, what a book!

Monday March 23rd, 2015

Posted on March 22, 2015 by carriegelson

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

I have been sharing a reading photo of the week each week. It is Spring Break so I haven’t been teaching this week. But in anticipation of being back in the classroom with students today, I am sharing a photo from this time last year. This is at the book selecting table during buddy reading. I love all of the book love that happens at this time 🙂

Some picture books I enjoyed this week:

The Pet Project Cute and Cuddly Vicious Verses written by Lisa Wheeler and illustrated by Zachoriah Ohora

I don’t know how I missed this book published in 2013- it is hilarious and an amazing text to inspire some fun poetry writing. Thinking it would be great to pair with titles like Prudence wants a Pet and A Pet for Petunia to have students examine all of the ways children ask for pets. Sometimes, as this title reveals, they come to their own decisions about just how wonderful (or not) a particular pet might be. Both poems and illustrations are awesome in this book.

Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt written by Kate Messner and illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal

Yes, just as amazingl as I imagined it would be. With all of the gardening I have been doing this week, this title was perfect. Simply gorgeous illustrations. I really liked the intergenerational connections and time spent across seasons. Great additional information about various creatures in the back of the book.

Home by Carson Ellis

So very beautiful. And of course, I instantly think art and writing and what will this inspire. A treasure that I had to buy. A must own.

I Had a Favourite Hat written by Boni Ashburn and illustrated by Robyn Ng

Cute little book about expressing one’s self through various seasons and for various reasons. One hat can be so many things . . .

The Spider by Elise Gravel

I know my class will be “crawling” over each other to get at this latest Gravel title!

Head Lice by Elise Gravel

Oh, head lice, how we don’t love thee! But this book lets us grin about a pretty constant annoyance. So, we’ll take it!

Hands & Hearts with 15 words in American Sign Language written by Donna Jo Napoli and illustrated by Amy Bates

Lyrical text. A wonderful day between mother and daughter.

My plan was to get many more novels read but our house has been bit by the spring cleaning bug and we are clearing out the basement and weeding the garden and my reading time was eaten up . . . I did organize some book shelves though and redid my TBR stacks so here’s to the upcoming books!

I did finish Cartwheeling in Thunderstorms by Katherine Rundell.

This title was just published in North America in the fall of 2014 but was first published in 2011 under the title The Girl Savage and was actually Rundell’s first book. My daughter and I each read this book this week and had similar reactions to specific characters. We loved Will’s spirit and rooted for her throughout the book.

Updates on my 2015 Reading Goals:

2015 Chapter Book Challenge: 14/80 complete

Goodreads Challenge: 110/415 books read

#MustReadin2015: 7/24 complete

Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge: 25/100 titles

Diverse Books in 2015: 12/50 books read

Up next? I am almost finished We Were Here by Matt de la Peña and will then start All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven. We have a family listen aloud happening right now – Doll Bones by Holly Black. I have read the book in the past but it sure is fun experiencing it with my family! I love how there is always somebody claiming, “This isn’t scary.” Which usually means we have just heard a particularly creepy part!