FF - Books for Reluctant Readers

I've been doing quite a bit of thinking about what makes readers and how to create readers.  It saddens me tremendously when I hear my kids MOAN and GROAN about having to READ yet ANOTHER BOOK.  (Part of me wants to point out that I do teach English, what'd they expect?!  But, for the most part, I hold my tongue). So, I perused through my previous postings under "middle grades" and "young adults" to find five books that I could recommend to those that run for the hills when they hear the word b-o-o-k... BOO!

No really, he's my BOO Bear

1. Touching Spirt Bear - Ya'll this is such an amazing freakin' read.  I teach it every year and all of my students dig it.  And let me tell you what, it is hard to find books that both 7th grade boys AND girls dig.  Delinquent Kid who gets into one to many fights goes through a Native American judicial process called "Circle Justice".  Delinquent Kid gets shipped off to remote area in Alaska to live off of nature for a year and learn about himself.  And, you know, change his ways... #redemption

2. Diary of a Wimpy Kids - Come on peeps, you would have to be living under a rock to not know about our lovable protagonist, Greg.  He went through major hardships and growth spurts and battles with his brother and HE TOUCHED THE CHEESE.  Plus, this series is not so wimpy in its series-ness.  The drawings are hysterical (I am quite the fan of the stick figure drawings...) and it's a total LOL experience. #middleschoolantics

3. Schooled - I have to admit that I haven't read anything else by Gordon Korman because I'm terribly afraid that all of his brilliance went into THIS BOOK.  Hippie lovin' granny raises kiddo on a commune that only consists of the two of them until she falls and breaks something.  Hippie kid must now brave the hallways of school and general population.  Sure they look upon him strangely when he does his yoga exercises before classes and wear his tye-dyed clothes.  But heck if there isn't a lesson to be learned here for us all.  #warmfuzzies

4.  Thicker Than Water - Okay...prepare yourself...I'm going to say the V-word.  This book is about Vampires.  I'll wait for you to stop rolling your eyes.  This book will get all of the girls.  Goth chick living with parent issues and sickness issues starts hanging out in underground clubs and begins dating a vamp.  But there's a catch.  And it's a huge GINORMOUS one that makes this novel much more enjoyable right when you get to that last page.  #realitybites

5.  Football Hero - This is a new read for me, as in I read it this year and I'm not a huge football fan.  But it was still good plain fun.  The sports fans are going to love the athletic aspect and everyone else will be rooting for our protagonist, the underdog.  Oh, plus, evil Fake Parents and the Mafia almost always intrigues twelve year olds.  #touchdown

So, I'm curious....you tell me what you would add to this list.  


[1]So I might have gone a wee bit CAP-overbored. I can't help it.  I'm #bi-winning right now man!
[2] Oh yeah, I so just through out a Charlie Sheenism.

Friday Five - Welcome to My Class

'Ello peeps!  It's been freakin' for-EVER since I've done a Friday Five.  Since I've been bogged down so much with school stuff, I thought I'd share where I spend the majority of my hours.

WELCOME TO MY CLASSROOM!

1. Warm Fuzzy Kind of Teacher - It's true.  I'm one of those teachers that tell students from the get go that while we're in my classroom, we treat each other like family.  Middle school students can be so mean and the competition is fierce.  Learning is all about taking risks; I want them to feel safe to take those risks without their peers making fun of them.  On the first day of school I share with them a poem about A Quilt and we discuss what quilts represent.  Then each student is given an index card to decorate and personalize.  Over the weekend I "sew" it together* and it hangs up in the classroom as a constant reminder.  

This year

Last year

2.  Group Work - You probably noticed that my desks are arranged in groups.  I strongly promote collaboration, and I mean, let's face it...if there is one thing that middle schoolers can do a lot of is TALK.  I'd much rather their conversations be focused.  Students are grouped together based on lexile (reading level) and then assigned a Johnny Depp character.  Every day they come into class and rotate through the various stations with their group.  

3. Johnny Depp - There is only one person who could compete with D, but considering he is living in France with his model girlfriend and children, D is not too concerned!  I've been crushin' on JD since I was a middle schooler myself.  My room is all decked out in JD fanfare.  I totally play it up because it gives the kids something to tease me about and gets me off the hook when answering questions about my personal life ("Miss!  Do you want to get married?"...I respond with, "I'm waiting for Johnny Depp, of course".)  My students bring in tons of Johnny Depp paraphernalia, and then, I turn it into something educational - like the Book Detective, or just add it to my little shrine.  

He IS our Book Detective 

Only a portion, all given to me.

Oh yeah, it's at least 4 ft tall!

4. Bookcase - My kids do not read.  Some of them truthfully barely can.  I have students on reading levels ranging from BR (beginner reader) to 9th grade.  Most tend to fall in the 3rd grade - 6th grade reading level.  Knowing how they struggle with reading, I try to make it as approachable as possible.  You will find everything from Judy Moody, Junie B. Jones, and Dr. Seuss with contemporary young adult fiction and non.  All books are purchased by moi.  My book buying habit is not just a greedy one.  *smile* But come on man, most of these kids don't even SEE books in their homes.  Sad.

The shelves are still growing...

5. Penguins - I bet you spotted them on the shelves, huh?  Yup.  I collect penguins.   I refer to my Corki as my Penguin Kitty.  (He's a tuxedo cat).  The penguins just caught on.  Once again this is a collection acquired after years of teaching, from students and staff.  

The big one is squishy!

Sooooo, there's my Friday Five.  I love my job.  I feel absolutely privileged to say that.  I mean, sure, I've been utterly exhausted lately and emotionally drained, but there's no way I would ever trade it.  I especially adore working with the high risk students that I do.  Every day is a new experience, sometimes a battle, but mostly a win.  *giggles* I will stop with my cheesy I-believe-the-children-are-our-future gushing.    Cut me some slack, though.  I don't want children (like, ever...) so this is the most maternal I ever get.

And finally just one more picture.  My desk last week.  Not too messy, is it?  Hahaha.

Friday Five Illustrative Me!

This week I thought I would share five things about myself and - wait for it, wait for it, - actually include some pictures!  *gasp*  I know, right?  Look at me following through with my new year's resolution.

1.  D and I dress our cats (aka "kids") up for holidays.  You know: Christmas, Halloween, just for fun.  Sometimes they're not happy with us. 

This is Corki

This is Little Girl, but she's not that little.

This is Charley

2.  I fancy myself a little punk rock. *smile*  During my "off months" - summer - I dye my hair different colors.  Pink, purple, red.  This summer, I'm thinking blue.  I also have my eye brow pierced and three tattoos.

Stripes!

3.  I hate shoes.  Despise them.  Also, I cannot tell you the last time I wore sneakers.  I work out in flip flops or barefoot; I hike in flip flops; I wear sandals at work even during the winter; and even when we explored caves, I was in flip flops.

Last year or so ago, hiking.

4.  I love most animals. I feed them too.  I am especially fond of goats.

On vacation, in a park.

5. Trees are gorgeous.  It's my favorite part of nature.

South Florida, park.

Friday Five - ReReads

 I am the first to admit that I never hardly ever re-read books (re-read or reread? huh).  It's true.  I feel guilt. All of the lonely unread books on my shelves STARE at me while I'm curled up on the couch with a reread.  But, I've been trying to be okay with it.  Baby steps and all.  So, today's Friday Five I thought I'd share what I would read if I ever get the guts to stare those unread books back in the cover.


1.  Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky - This book came out in the 90's I think, but I read it for the first time in 2009.  I was blown away; it was such an honest look at adolescents that I WISHED that I had read the book in high school.  Also, why hasn't he written anything else?

2.  Six Characters in Search of an Author by Luigi Pirandello - It's a play and one that I always mention when discussing anything reality bending.  This one will probably be reread this year.

3. Still Life with a Woodpecker by Tom Robbins - Has ANYONE else read anything by Tom Robbins?  I love this man.  Still Life was the first Tom Robbins book I read (but not my favorite, that goes to Skinny Legs and All) and I feel the need to reminisce a bit.

4.  House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski - This book captured me in a way that I've never experienced with any other book.  It was a complete visceral reaction.  Actually, I would even say that at times it tormented me.  I know that I'll love the reread, but it's such a commitment.  I don't know if I'm up to it yet.

5.  The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne - I read this book in high school and really appreciated it.   Since that was, like, fifteen years ago I think it would be interesting to see where it stands in my adult mind.


So, I would love to hear what your rereads would be!  Let me know!

Friday Five - Personal Resolutions

I did my reading resolutions last Friday and thought I'd share more of the personal goals I've been contemplating.

1.  Create and Craft - I used to be such a little creative thing.  I did everything from sketch, cross-stitch, paint and design picture frames, photo collages and more.  (Of course not all things I tried showed talent - I'm looking at you Sketch) But, it was fun and a great stress reliever.  Plus, I liked having something to SHOW afterward.  Something tangible. Even if it does end up sucking and end the garbage.  It's all about the process really.  Therefore, my goals for this year are to: return to cross stitching, learn how to crotchet, and also I'm really excited a about making these bookmarks I saw.  If the bookmarks do come out, I'll be thrilled to mail out some to you guys!

2. Friends, Fried Green Tomato Style - This year I want to focus on creating more intimate relationships with people that I know.  I am incredibly lucky because I have many interesting people in my life.  In fact, there's hardly a night that goes by where I don't have the opportunity to call someone up if I'm in the mood to go out.  This is great if I want to feel popular, but for me, I'm much more interested in quality outside of quantity.  In college I had some wonderfully close friends that I would spend hours with, divulging secrets, hopes, and fears.  Unfortunately, I had some mishaps in that part of my life (separation) and lives took different turns.  I miss having a few close "go to" people.  For as much as I can be a social butterfly, that's all pretty superficial.  What matters to me the most stays pretty private.  So here's to "fried green tomato" friends.

3.  Cuisine Please - This one is easy. No long paragraph to explain.  I want to try out new recipes.  I'm pretty good about doing this to begin with, but I'd like to aim for at least 20 new recipes in 2011.

4.  Techno-savvy - Or not.  Heh.  Cuz really, to turn me "savvy" you'd have to send me to an IT program. But dude, there's so much that I have to do in bloggy wise.  And, like, it would be cool if I could finally figure out how to make a blasted button.  So yeah, this blog needs some good old fashion organization.  Thank goodness for Blogiesta coming soon!

5. (Dare I say it?) Health - Let's face it.  I'm awesome in spurts.  Before the holidays hit us, I was lovin' my kettleworx workouts.  And I kept it up for almost four months straight.  But consistency people.  That's what I lack.  I need a support group.  Someone who will text me and tell me to get my ass off of the couch and working out.  It's not a fabulous job; there's no glory to it.  Interested? *grin*

Friday Five - OUT

1. Dude. Has it really been two weeks since my last post? 'Tis crazy, yo. I'm hoping my lack of posting will change once I find balance. I have been keeping up with reading my GReader, however. And I've tried to comment here and there.

2. No posts, means no reviews. But, I'm not stressin'. I'll get around to the back log SOMETIME.

3. Fridays make me excited, though. My classes all participate in DEAR (drop everything and read). It's a lovely day to be a teacher.

4. And, I'm starting a school book club this year. Super duper uber excited about that. Even though I'm not quite sure the ins and outs of book club etiquette. I figure I'll wing it.

5. Finally, oh my! Is that a slight breeze I feel in the stuffy Florida weather. Yippee. My favorite months are quickly approaching. Where all things become pumpkinated - pumpkin pie, pumpkin froyo, pumpkin bagels, pumpkin cream cheese, pumpkin coffee, pumpkin pancakes. *Le sigh* I can eat pumpkin year round.

Friday Five - The Vampire Edition

1. So I am super duper excited because some of the coolest chicks that I know will be coming over tomorrow so we can catch up on the latest three episodes of True Blood. Storing them away for a mini marathon day works out just fine. We drink, chat, drool, and eat. Very few things could be better for a Saturday.

2. Don'tcha love how the world now lives in divided triangles (Are you Team Peeta or Team Gale? Team Edward or Team Jacob? Team Bill or Team Eric?). I play along; it's kinda fun. Ya know in that juvenile giggle-shriek-squeal-charming kinda way. Team Peeta. Team. Edward. Team Eric. Easy enough.

3. Now the Team Edward and Team Jacob was really a no brainer for me. I can NOT get pass the werewolf issue. I dunno it just sorta wigs me out. I mean - WEREWOLVES - they're like, ANIMALS. I don't think I can get all dreamy and googling eye over a human that changes into an animal. I mean, sure, vampires aren't humans (heh, they're not even real people, but let's suspend our disbelief shall we?) but at least they LOOK like humans. And can sorta ACT like humans. Seriously. When was the last time you saw Bella having an existential conversation with Jacob in his changed form? Uh, neverah!

4. Oh and overall I'm pretty impressed with my girls at school, as in the female population in my classroom? They're still into reading the Twilight series. (I feel booktalks of the Twilight nature will continue to haunt my classroom for years to come). But they're kinda perceptive. When we talk in that good ole "Team Eddy or Team Jakey" talk most of the girls who swoon over Edward will still saying that he's a bit controlling and ALL of the girls who go mushy for Jacob claim they prefer him because Bella is allowed to be herself. Sure, sure, they're probably taking into consideration Jacob's six - twelve pack, but *still* I think that they might have a chance surviving the woes of dating.

5. Where are the super hot female vampires? Pam? Uh know. And actually I was discussing this with one of the beforementioned cool chicks that are coming over tomorrow (yay!) that Pam was sooooo much cooler in the novels than the show. In the novels she came across as H.O.T. and spunky. In the show, I'm just not feeling it.

Friday Five: Better Late Than Never

1. So I just got back from my last out-of-town vacay. *happy dance*. We went to Sarasota, Siesta Key, Venice, Lido Island to kayak, hike, and swim. And guess what?! We saw lots of dolphins. I mean, like two to three a day no matter where we went. Aaaannndddd...actually were like less than 50 yards swimming with two out in the ocean. Squeal. Pics coming soon. Er, not of the dolphins. Cuz they're quick sea critters.

2. ZOMG. I am reading this totally amazing super superb (yup that fantastical) book. It's called the City of Dreaming Books. And it's, like, a reader's dream world. But not. Because there are menacing books that can bite ya. And bookhunters who can kill you. Oh and the evil Shadow King that lives in the catacombs where all of the best books are hidden. But it's still a dream come true because it takes place in Bookholm where everyone is either a professional reader, writer, publisher, copy editor. . . inject more literary occupations. . . Almost done with it and cannot wait to review it.

3. And can I say on vacay we stumbled upon a Goodwill Bookstore. Yah, see, D is all about Goodwill. "Someone's trash, other person's treasure" kinda thing. Me personally, I think it's always trash. BUT not in this case. It was a Goodwill entirely devoted to books. Dude, I was like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, eyes gaping, and possibly even wheezing with excitement. Seriously. I totally expected to see some Oompa Loompa's (and for honesty's sake, I am googling how to correctly spell that! ED Note: Of course it was the most obvious!). Of course I loaded up on some books. They were $2 - $3 and I got an awesome loot! (13 Reasons Why for example. For $3! Wowzerz).

4. Bah. Dryer broke. Which means that coming home was not a bunch of paradise.

5. Still the kids (cats) missed us. So here's a pic to end the post. It's of Charlie. And if your curious about all of the toilet paper...My mom and her best friend thought it would be fun to TP the inside of our house back in April. *shakes head* What can ya do but laugh. :P

Friday Five/BBAW

• Freebie! How many of you out there have not read The Uglies (I haven't!). Weeeellllll, through Bookblips, I found out that Scott Westerfield has a pdf file of The Uglies up for the month of September.
  
  
• I got my copy of EW in the mail a couple of days ago and for you Vampire Lovers out there, you'll be thrilled to know it's devoted to these dark creatures. As a bonus? The gorgeous Neil Gaiman gives his two cents. Check it out here. You know you wanna. Oh, and I know it's more for the zombie lovers than the vampire lovers, but check out these brain cupcakes! Sweet!
  
  
• I know that I should not even begin to play around with my blog layout, but am getting that itch. I swear, if it was easier to move furniture around in the house, I would come up with new looks once a month. I'm hml ignorant so will definitely be looking around on the 'net for pre-made layouts. Do you guys have any favorite spots?
  
  
• And how many others are devastated that John Hughes died? I heard it on the radio this morning while running errands. At first I thought I misheard. The man was young, a mere 59, to have a heart attach. Oh how I have fond memories of the Brat Pack and his teeny bopper movies form the 80's.
  
  
• Swine Flu? Really? OK. I admit, when Swine Flu hit the media, I rolled my eyes. I thought back to all of the other freak outs we've had (Bird Flu, Mad Cow Disease, etc.) I'm not much of a conspiracy theorist, but a part of me does mistrust media and their ulterior goals. (Gee, Brain. What do you want to do tonight? Same thing we did today, Pinky. Take over the world). Needless to say, Swine Flu did not really cause me to reach for my hand sanitizer. And now, although I'm still not terribly freaked out about it, I am rather shocked that due to the the Swine Flu cases found at UCF, during graduation this summer there will be no hand shaking. Can you imagine? I know it's not book related, and not to be a downer, but these statistics look kind of scary.

Book Blogger Appreciation Week! I hope everyone has marked it on their calendars. With how quickly July went by, I know it'll be a blink and September 14th will be here. For those of you who still haven't registered, pop over here. This is my first year and I'm super stoked. It looks like so much fun. And from what I've read by other book bloggers last year was a huge success. Now, onto the meme!

1) What has been one of the highlights of blogging for you?

I remember when I first stumbled upon book blogs toward the end of last year. I couldn't believe there were so many cool people out there reading as much as I do. I was a bit nervous starting my own blog. My personality leads me to start projects, go totally OCD with them, and then burn out. I didn't really want to do that here. I delayed my blog until the beginning of the year ( I know, how original) with the goal of reading one hundred books in 09. I'm well nearing 80 and don't think that I would have made it without the community of bloggers I've found here. You guys are like my crazy support system that nurtures (and feeds) my book obsession. I mean, hell, here I'm not weird because I get all giddy receiving books in the mail.

2) What blogger has helped you out with your blog by answering questions, linking to you, or inspiring you?

I've stumbled upon some really cool people while here in the book blogging world. I don't really think it's fair to highlight just a couple because so many of you have inspired me, assisted me, encouraged me, and added to my TBR pile.

3) What one question do you have about BBAW that someone who participated last year could answer?

Haha, what to expect? Seriously. I don't know if I have anyone specific questions. I've been reading through the answers of the first meme - for those who participated last year. Yay for fun memes.

Finally, thanks again to Amy over at My Friend Amy for putting this all together.