It's Monday! What are you reading?

So recently I've been a little inspired

by a wonderfuly adorable blog

by a fellow teacher.

Teaching in Cute Shoes.

Who then,

inspired me to follow another blog,

Teach Mentor Texts.

Well this week I've decided to link up,

and join in on the

"It's Monday!  What are you Reading?!"

party.

Lately, I've been pushing myself to

read a few books from my classroom library

so that I can recommend them to my students.

Sounds kinda geeky,

but I'll do anything to get my kiddos hooked on reading.

Thanks to the recommendation from

Teaching in Cute Shoes,

I just finished The Friendship Doll by Kirby Larson.

Some of my girls would love this book,

though they swear they hate historical fiction.

It's about this Japanese doll

and the stories of the girls who come across the doll.

Of course, I'm still reading Mockingjay

but part of me is slow to start it because I know

I'll have to reread it when the movie comes out.

And with my kiddos, we're right in the middle of

When You Reach Me.

I love this book!  Well, I am partial to realistic fiction,

but there is just something about this book that I love.

It reminds me a lot about my life as a kid

and the friendships I had.

And I'm a sucker for Newberry Award Winners.

And what's even better is

I hit the jackpot at the library last weekend

and scored a copy of this on audio CD.

And lastly,

my latest impulse buys at Barnes and Noble:

This looks hilarious!!

Kids with superpowers from their braces, inhalers, and more!

And I let my boyfriend pick out this one:

Ahhhh...I am so jealous of my students sometimes.

They love reading.

LOVE IT!

And it makes me love to share more and more books with them.

So they'll love it even more!

...

I wish I loved to read when I was a kid.

I love when I'm tricky!

I read to my kids every day after lunch.  

These days, not all kids have the opportunity 

and the treat of being read to.

I've made it a point to switch up the genres

every time we finish a book.

So far we've read

The Tale of Despereaux 

(fantasy)

 

And Maniac Magee

(realistic fiction)

In January it was time to start a new book,

so I let my kids vote on the genre.

I didn't give them choices that they were too familiar with:

historical fiction, poetry, or autobiography.

Though not thrilled, they were forced to choose

and they landed on poetry.

Little did they know it would be a genre 

they'd learn to love.

The first day I started on page 1

and began reading the poems in order.

A few days past, and I could see them

pretending they didn't like them

but they really did.

So then I decided to make it an assignment 

to choose a poem and read it to the class.

As I explained we'd be focusing on expression,

pace, and eye contact with the audience,

they looked at me as though this was my worst idea yet.

But after a few volunteers took a brave leap of faith,

they started to realize how great poetry can be.

It's February now,

and they have eaten it up!

They giggle. They smile.

They beg to see the pictures.

And they love the snaps instead of applause at the end.

The moment I knew they were absolutely hooked was this week.

I checked out Falling Up

I quietly set it on the whiteboard tray,

hoping someone would ask to read it.

First one girl, and then a few boys.

Now, we've got a sign-up list going on.

Then today, music to my ears:

"Miss Friedrich, can we read a poem for the class from this book too?"

I've done it again!

Caught ya!  

Loving what you're learning!

And you don't even realize it.

Ha!

I love when I'm tricky.