Who’s Reading What?
My goal is encouraging students(especially the fifth grade) to elect to read. This week I interviewed staff and students the books they have in their hands at the moment. Here is what I found out:
Dan Gutman’s time travel-baseball series (Honus and Me, Jackie and Me) are a hit with several fourth and fifth grade boys. Peyton, 4th grade, says he likes going back in time.
Jessica, 5th grade, is reading Diary of a Fairy Godmother. She thinks it is fun as well as being a “good fit” book for her.
Ember, 2nd grade is working her way through the A to Z mystery series.
Gordon Korman’s books Kidnapped and Fugitive are checked out by fifth grade students who like spies and running away form things.
Kylie, 5th grade, loved the Babysitter Club books so she is trying the Main Street series by the same author, Ann Martin. She read the first book in two days and is on the second.
Austin, 5th grade is into Trollfell. He is enjoying is and I think wants to prove us wrong by getting it read all the way through (so far, no student has finished it).
As for staff:
Mr. Yates, 5th grade teacher has Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein. He is engulfed in periodicals at the moment and hopes to get to the book soon.
Mr. Dowell, Professional Staff Developer, is reading Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson. Hey, I have that one on my bedstand as well. Have not started it yet.
Mrs, Starr, library media assistant, is multitasking with her reading. She is in the middle of A Girl Named Zippy by Haven Kimmel, Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson PLUS she is listening to Pretties by Scott Westerfeld and The 39 Clues by Rick Riordan.
I am almost finished with the unabridged Little Women (all 17 CD’s). I am reading some of the reader choice nominees: My Name is Sally Little Song by Brenda Woods and Looking for Bapu by Anjali Banerjee. I am excited to discover Banerjee’s blog. She lives in the northwest! I have an “ARC” of another northwest writer, J.A. Jance. This one(title escapes me) I am starting tonight after finishing March (and waiting word from the national boards). Sometimes you need a good mystery for distraction.
What are you reading?
Happy Reading.
MsMac
November 19th, 2008 at 2:15 pm
The “so many books, so little time” fits my reading style. There are so many that I want to read and they are stacking up in my favorite places. I take books to meetings with me, in hopes that I will find a few minutes to read. I read “The Shack” by William Young at a high school band awards meeting this week. I managed to turn several pages even though the band director was turning the lights off and on during the inspirational video. I started “Freakonomics” by Steven Levitt on Veteran’s Day while sitting at a small table outside an ice cream store in the mall while my grandkids played 54 holes of Glo-golf. “Coraline” by Neil Gaiman has been sitting patiently on my desk waiting it’s turn. I think I would like books on CD, but I only live two miles from work. My grandson read Jeff Kinney’s “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” in ten minute installations last spring on our way to school. Laughing and driving can be a bad mix. So, read on! Books are treasures to me.
November 19th, 2008 at 9:01 pm
I love hearing what people are reading! I’m eager to read that non-Percy Jackson Rick Riordan book, but last I checked Multnomah County hadn’t bought a copy yet.
November 19th, 2008 at 9:51 pm
My third grader is also working through the A to Z mysteries. She’s also starting on her first Nancy Drew.
Thanks for visiting my site. Hope to get the opposites poem lesson up soon.
November 20th, 2008 at 10:25 am
Yes! I love to hear what everyone is reading these days.
My son is in kindergarten and he loves the Jigsaw Jones mysteries.
November 20th, 2008 at 8:12 pm
You are so right about encouraging 5th graders in their reading.
Here in the Lone Star State, 5th grade is the last grade in elementary school and keeping the kids motivated and interested is especially challenging.
Interestingly, I’ve noticed the same attitude towards library time when the kids are in 8th grade, which is the last year in jr. high. Something about that last year…
November 25th, 2008 at 8:41 am
I just read “Among the HIdden” by Margaret Peterson Haddix on Saturday (what a haunting book!) and I’m in the middle of “Ghost Medicine” by Andrew Smith (I met him at a SCBWI event and HAD to read the book after his talk). Next up is Percy Jackson book 2 and Inkdeath.