The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

So I had never heard of this book before this past weekend. While in New York for the Scholastic Teacher Advisors weekend, I met two middle school teachers who told me about this book. They both raved about it and when we all had dinner together, one of the Scholastic book club editors was telling me about the plot, I decided to give it a shot. I cannot believe I almost didn't read this book.

I will not give away too much, but I will say it's one of the most powerful stories that I've ever read. I am so attached and connected to the main character, and I honestly feel for her. I am not finished reading the book, but I wanted to blog about it because I think it's amazing. It's hands down, one of the best books that I've ever read, and I'm only on page 200.

There's a second book called Catching Fire, and then the last book Mocking Jay isn't released yet (August). I cannot wait to see what will happen in the books to come.

This isn't a book that I would recommend for children in elementary school. The concepts are too mature, but I think some middle schoolers would appreciate the book and it would be a great read aloud for older children.

Review of The Hunger Games

I give this two thumbs up!!

Hoppy Reading!

Maniac MaGee by Jerry Spinelli

Maniac MaGee is a wonderful book about a young man who is unfortunate enough to not have a home or family of his own. He becomes a legend of his own right, and makes quite a name for himself. This book is in three different parts, and each one builds up to the final adventure of his life.

I think this book would be appropriate for children in grades 4-6 and has some complex themes. There are things that happen to Maniac that the reader will read about and hurt for Jeffrey "Maniac" MaGee.

The book has a great ending and is told with ease. It doesn't take a lot of effort to read, and the reader will want to read more. My fourth graders really enjoyed this book and couldn't wait to hear the next chapter!

Hoppy reading!

Mrs. Walker

Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman

Age Level: 4-8
Interesting Facts: This book is an interactive book! You read the novel and also watch videos that are found on the internet, that go with the plot.

Skeleton Creek is an incredible book!! I found that several of my fourth graders were totally scared after the first video, so they opted not to be in the room while I read it aloud. It's not for all kids, but the ones that can handle it-- absolutely LOVE it!

I think I like it so much because it's the type of media that this generation of kids will totally eat up. They are the tech-savvy generation and this book uses the website with the plot and it's a perfect marriage. It's amazing that this hasn't been done before this point! I definitly think this is the new trend in books and I can't wait to read more!

The basic plot is that a boy named Ryan and his best friend Sarah decide to poke around the "old dredge" and end up getting more than they bargained for. The book is written as Ryan's journal and has various entries and they're all dated. Ryan's parents have forbidden him from seeing or communicating with Sarah and so they get around this (as all teens do) by emails and videos. Sarah uses her webcam to send messages to Ryan, which are viewed on her website that goes with the book.

They end up biting off more than they can chew and the book ends with a shocking ending that leaves the reader with tons of questions and the excitement to read the second book Ghost in the Machine.

I highly recommend this book and think that it's one of the all-time most favorite books of my students. I think fifth and sixth graders would love it the most!

Hoppy Reading!
Mrs. Walker

Scholastic

As many of you know, I've been selected to be one of Scholastic's Teacher Advisors for the 2010-2011 school year! I'm so honored and thrilled to be apart of such a wonderful company and can't wait for my trip to New York City next Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday!

Two women came to my classroom on Thursday to spend the day with me and my students and it was great. One is the editor of the Arrow Book Club and the other is the editor of the speciality catalogs (social studies, math and science, united we read, etc.). They also brought lunch for my entire staff at school and spent some time talking to the different people that I have the pleasure of working with. It was amazing!

While in my classroom talking, they suggested that I blog about my favorite books... and I thought about it. I mean, I have this blog, but why not use it to talk about one of my most favorite things... books?? So that's what I'm going to do (or at least attempt to do this). I'm going to pick a book and write a little about it and tell why I love it so much. I'm going to start with a new entry (after this)... so leave me some love about what you think!!

:)
Mrs. Walker

Question for Monday 9-14-09

I'd like you to tell me about your favorite thing to eat for breakfast. If you could eat anything, absolutely anything at all, what would you have for breakfast?

Using Blogging With My Students

I don't think I realized how difficult it would be to show my kids how to blog, and have them blog in my classroom. Every blogging site that I looked at requires students to have their own email address. This is a HUGE problem when my county does not give my kids their own email to use.

I think I found a way to get around this, but I'm not sure. I wanted to use this blog for my kids to comment on various topics, and to get their opinions out there and to share their thoughts/feelings, but we'll see. It could end up being just my blog about teaching.

Wish us luck as we try this out tomorrow!!

:)
Mrs. Walker

It's Been A While!

Hello!
It's been quite some time since I last posted, so I thought I'd take a minute and write something today.
We're in the third quarter now and that means that the school year is already more than half over. It's amazing to think that we've been together for more than 100 school days! We've been working on story elements and have learned about plot, conflict, and Pourquoi Tales. The class has been writing their own Pourquoi Tales (Pourquoi means "Why" in French) and then they're going to be putting them into Movie Maker. It should go quickly now that they've had some practice with MM.
We're almost ready to track out. A week from Tuesday is our track out day and I can't wait! When we return in February we'll only have 15 weeks of school left.
Well, that's all I can think of to post for now. Check back again soon and see if I thought of anything else!!
:)
Mrs. Walker