Last Saturday I spent the day at the Meadowbrook Writing Project’s Side By Side workshop for educators. Every once in a while I try to find something to reignite my creative juices. Educators teach other educators what they have found to work to effectively teach writing in their classrooms. This day proved to do just that.
My take-a-way from the day: Read MORE children’s literature! So for the next month, I am determined to read at least one new children’s book a day and let you know what I think.
I started today by dusting off my library card and perusing the shelves. After gathering a stack of eleven books, (fiction, nonfiction, poetry, prose and short story collections) I headed home to start.
My first read was “The Day Joanie Frankenhauser Became a Boy,” a short story from On Her Way: Stories and Poems About Growing Up Girl. I was not disappointed. At SOAR we are always looking for good short story reads for our higher level readers and this one measures up to that. I hope the other stories in this collection are as well written and engaging.
My next book was Snowman Magic, by Katherine Tegen and illustrated by Brandon Dorman. Not a bad choice on our first snow day, but just an OK book. No surprises and not really the magic I would have hoped for given the title.
And so the adventure begins! If you have any book suggestions send them along. I hope to continue my quest for longer then a month, but I want to get through this first month and then re-evaluate my mission.
