African-American Read-In Week

We are excited to be hosting guest readers from the community for our African-American Read-In all of this week. I've selected books by African-American authors and illustrators, many of them Coretta Scott King Award honors and winners, for our guests to read in the classrooms. There are just SO many wonderful books to share by and about African-Americans that I've had a rotating display up on our library shelves all month long too.

Here are also some links to a few of my favorite African-American authors' and illustrators' websites:

• Walter Dean Myers (http://www.walterdeanmyers.net/)
• Jerry Pinkney (http://www.jerrypinkneystudio.com)
• Christopher Paul Curtis (http://www.randomhouse.com/features/christopherpaulcurtis/)
• Rita Williams-Garcia (http://www.ritawg.com/)
• Nikki Grimes (http://www.nikkigrimes.com/)
• Sharon Draper (http://sharondraper.com/)

Finally, check out The Brown Bookshelf blog for their 28 Days Later project, celebrating African-American children's literature during Black History Month.

For my students and teachers, reading African-American literature is a part of daily life, but it's nice to highlight it with special events during this month too. Enjoy!

Love-ly books

Scholastic Book Fair

The Scholastic Book Fair 
will be held 
in the Music Room 
this week only! 


Visit us during lunch 
or before/after your 
Parent/Teacher Conferences!

Monday, February 6, 2012

11:05am – 12:40pm

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

11:05am – 12:40pm

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

11:05am – 12:40pm

Thursday, February 9, 2012

11:05am – 12:40pm

4-7pm (Parent/Teacher Conferences)

Friday, February 10, 2012

8am -12pm (Parent/Teacher Conferences)

We accept cash, check, and all major credit cards.

Can't make it to school to shop at the Book Fair? No worries! 

You can shop online too!

Just scroll down to the bottom of the page, and click Shop Now!

http://bookfairs.scholastic.com/homepage/martinlutherkingelementary

The online store will be open through Monday, February 13, so you have an extra weekend of shopping! All purchases will be shipped to the school together after that date and then will be distributed to students in their classrooms. 

Shopping at the Scholastic Book Fair not only gets your children excited about reading (owning a book is so important in a child's life!), but it also helps support our school. Plus, the books are so deeply discounted, it just makes good money sense. :) 

I love new books.

I really do. I had a case of the lazy Mondays when I got up this morning, so I was thrilled to find a box of new books waiting for me in the office.

Here are the four I'm stealing away and taking home with me before anyone else can get to them first. :)

Elephants never forget. 1, Big city Otto
741.5 SLA    Slavin, Bill.    Author's website
Published 2011
Reading Level: 3.0  Interest Level: 3-6    
Otto, a sweet-natured elephant, dons a trenchcoat and fedora and, accompanied by his pal Crackers the parrot, heads to America in search of his childhood friend Georgie, a chimpanzee who was abducted from their forest home by a man with a wooden nose.     

Charlie Joe Jackson's guide to not reading           

FIC GRE    Greenwald, Tom.     Author's website

Published 2011

Reading Level: 5.8  Interest Level: 5-8      

Middle schooler Charlie Joe is proud of his success at avoiding reading, but eventually his schemes go too far.    

Book trailer (YouTube)

The other half of my heart          

FIC FRA    Frazier, Sundee Tucker.  Author's website         

Published 2010

Reading Level: 4.9  Interest Level: 3-6      

Twin daughters of interracial parents, eleven-year-olds Keira and Minna have very different skin tones and personalities, but it is not until their African American grandmother enters them in the Miss Black Pearl Pre-Teen competition in North Carolina that red-haired and pale-skinned Minna realizes what life in their small town in the Pacific Northwest has been like for her more outgoing, darker-skinned sister.   

The limit              

FIC LAN    Landon, Kristen.   Author's website            

Published 2010

Reading Level: 4.1  Interest Level: 5-8      

When his family exceeds its legal debt limit, thirteen-year-old Matt is sent to the Federal Debt Rehabilitation Agency workhouse, where he discovers illicit activities are being carried out using the children who have been placed there.    

Book trailer (YouTube)

And the winners are...

Some of my librarian friends have spent the last few days in Dallas, Texas attending the American Library Association Midwinter Conference, and today was the day that many school and children's librarians were most looking forward to - the Youth Media Awards breakfast. It was webcast live this morning at 7:45am, and while I was at school this morning, I got to follow along as the winners were tweeted!

Here are some of the awards I'm most excited about:

2012 Newbery Medal goes "to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children."

The winner is Jack Gantos for Dead End in Norvelt.

Newbery Honors go to...

Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai and Breaking Stalin's Nose by Eugene Welchin

2012 Caldecott Award goes "to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children."

The winner is Chris Raschka for A Ball for Daisy. 

Caldecott Honors go to...

Blackout by John Rocco,Grandpa Green by Lane Smith, 

and Me... Jane by Patrick McDonnell

2012 Sibert Informational Award for "most distinguished informational book for children" goes to...

Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Parade by Melissa Sweet

2012 Coretta Scott King Awards are "given to African American authors and illustrators for outstanding inspirational and educational contributions."

CSK Author Award goes to...

Kadir Nelson for Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans

CSK Illustrator Award goes to...

Shane W. Evans for Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom

There are LOTS of other book and media awards that were also presented, but I'll just refer you to the official Press Release for the rest. Of these books, only 2 are currently available at our library, but that will change soon! :)

Happy MLK Day!

In honor of our school's namesake, I hope you have an inspiring and thoughtful Martin Luther King, Jr. Day!

Listen to his "I Have a Dream" speech below with a little African and Indian hip hop flavor. :)

I Have a Dream Remake by JamesWhetzel

Squish!

At the end of the last school year, Jennifer and Matt Holm, of Babymouse fame, introduced a new character to the world - Squish!

My students love the Babymouse graphic novels and were absolutely thrilled about a new series by this dynamic duo. Enter Squish!

If you haven't heard of the series before, here's the book trailer for Squish #1: Super Amoeba.

Fear not, kids! Squish #2: Brave New Pond will be arriving at our library before Spring Break - it's on my next book order. :)

Isn't that the most purplicious cover ever? Oh how I love it!