Gingerbread Men Loose in the Library

I've had the best week at work! 

http://www.vvsd.org/news/index.php?id=3841

This is what I did- first i created 21 places/stuffed animals  for the kids to "visit" on their search. In addition there was a starting code on their table(me holding the speech bubble with the QR code in it) and an ending code on their gingerbread man. I wrote a script for each code.  Each table scanned 5 codes, so that was 35 script items. I used http://vocaroo.com to record the audio because it has a "save as QR code" option. Super easy to use! I used a google doc to save all the codes in one place. I labeled the codes, which comes in handy when kids get "lost". I tell them to make sure they are only scanning codes with their table number - this was really helpful for 2nd & 3rd grades. Then I cut and mounted the codes on construction paper, and hung them around the room.  I also had my 5th grade shelf elves make foam gingerbread guys.I read "Gingerbread Man Loose in the School". Then I told the kiddos that 7(1 for each table group) gingerbread men were lost/loose in the library. They used the iPads to scan the codes to find the gingerbread guys (that were hiding under the crayon baskets all along). They started with a code on the table, went to 3 locations and back to their table. The hunt lasted about 7-10 minutes. I borrowed 5th & 4th graders to help kindergarten. (Huge help!!!) It was like MAGIC with the little ones..."how did he get there??" Prep time was about 3-5 hours, but that is for 22 classes. It has been so much fun...can't wait to create something for 4-5 with the Bluestem Award Books. 

5th Grade Story by Disney App Success

  I wanted to share the project I did with a group of  5^th graders yesterday afternoon. We used Story by Disney – a FREE app to create a digital storytelling project of library rules. It took 27 minutes start(brainstorming rules) to finish(watching what we created). I did not do it during a regular library time (we are atill on a fixed schedule), the teacher came in with his class during one of my open times. The teacher stayed with the class and handled the management of the class while I did the tech teaching part. It was a great collaboration. The kids had a great time and I can already think of “a million” other things to do with the app. My next mission… to get the app on ALL of the iPads in the library AND to get us new adaptors to use our iPad 4s with the projectors. **watching the finished project is DIFFERENT in the app vs on the computer with the link- the link “show” is MUCH better than watching it in the app!!! 

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

If you haven’t picked up a copy of “The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore” by William Joyce, you should!!!!!!!!! It is awesome. There are two apps from Moonbot Studios that are awesome that go along with it. Today I’ve been playing around with these two apps with the kids. The IMAG-N-O-TRON app (app 1) needs the physical book to work. I believe it is an app that works with augmented reality. (Wish I would have went to more sessions on this at IETC, but I was too busy listening to Kevin Honeycutt.)  I have the iPad hooked up to the lcd project so the kids are seeing what I’m seeing. You act like you are taking a picture of the book page and then things start to happen like words jump off the page and books fly around. The app also knows which page you are on and reads the page to you.  There are pages that tell you to “look around” and you angle the camera around the room (at the kids) and all of a sudden they are part of the page with books flying around or Mr. Lessmore flying through the room. The quick animoto video shows screen shots of what it looks like with the book expanding off the page and into the library with the kids.

 

The other app, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, is very similar to “Rocket Learns to Read” app that many of us used last year with the Monarch book. The app will read the story to the kids and there are things to do on each page to make it interactive – you can make the tornado swirl, play a song on a piano keyboard, open books, make books fly, etc.

 

William Joyce’s “short” film inspired by the book won an Academy Award, and the film is part of the second app (you can watch the short on youtube, but this one is commercial free).

 

The first app is.99 and the second app is 4.99. Well worth EVERY PENNY I paid for them. I’ve been using it with all grade levels today and every class LOVED it!

 

 

 

App 1 - IMAG-N-O-TRON: "The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore" Edition by Moonbot Studios LA, LLC

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/imag-n-o-tron-fantastic-flying/id534396897?mt=8

 

 

App 2 -The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore by Moonbot Studios LA, LLC

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fantastic-flying-books-mr./id438052647?mt=8

 

One last plug for William Joyce – book 4 of his Guardians of Childhood book came out last week, is called Sandman and the War of Dreams ( I think). Can’t wait until Friday at my B&N bookfair to pick up a copy. I LOVE the series and highly recommend it to ALL!!!!!

 

So Many Books...so little time to Blog about them!

It has been way too long since my last Blog post! I have been reading like crazy and am happy to FINALLY update all of my readers!

What I have finished reading since my last post:

Dark Hills Divide - this was a book that I put down for about a month. I finally picked it back up, and boy am I glad I did! I really liked it, and can't wait to read the other books in the series! 

Spirit Animals by Brandon Mull- I LOVED this book! I really liked the 4 main characters, and I really enjoyed the story. I'm looking forward to book 2, but I'm a little worried because it is by a different author. 

Stranded by Jeff Probst- Many of the girls had been chatting about this one after the book fair. To be honest, I was a little skeptical reading something that the host of the hit tv shoemw "Survivor" wrote. Wow! This book was pretty great. I really enjoyed it!

The Girl & the Seven Theives- this book was given to me by my favorite book vendor. It was a book I was thinking about, and was glad I read it. It is a modern day Snow White story set in New York. It is a great read for girls in higher grades that might not be reading at grade level. The overall story is familiar with a twist. 

Cheesie Mac is not a Genius or Anything- I was finally able to check this out from the JRT library! It is a great book that is on the Bluestem list this year. I think boys will love this book! It is filled with humor, and laugh out loud moments! :) 

Words in the Dust- A student suggested I read this one. I'm so glad I did. I saw the author speak at an Anderson's Author Breakfast. I loved the story he told, and I enjoyed talking about the book. 

Emily's Fortune- LOVED this! I'm going to  have a really hard time picking my favorite Bluestem this year! Boys and girls will really enjoy this fast paced adventure! 

White House Christmas Mystery by Carol March- I ordered this with my Scholastic Dollars after my book fair. It was a quick read and I enjoyed it. I like that the author has a website for a technology tie-in. 

What I'm reading now--- I'm so excited that I'm finally reading Terror Cove by Christopher Krovatin!!! This is the second book in the Gravediggers series. I was "dying" to read it! :) I'm already three chapters in and I love it! The action starts on page 1. I think readers would be ok if they didn't read book 1 first because the author reminds the reader of what happened in book 1. 

What I'm still reading to my son- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. We are over 75% through it, hope to finish by Christmas and move on to book 6. 

Well, there you have it! That is what I have been busy reading since my last update! :)  

Another Great Week of Reading!

Oldies but Goodies that I read since my last post:

Shakespeare's Secret -Elise Broach- Loved this book! I really liked all if the twists and turns as Hero tries to solve the mystery of the missing diamond. 

Loser by Jerry Spinelli

I really liked this book until the very end. The end was a bit lackluster for me. I can think of many other ways I would have liked this book to end instead of the way that it did end. 

Out of  my Mind by Sharon Draper

Loved this book so much that I read it in one day. I even brought it with me to Longhorn and read while I waited for my dinner to be served. It was fantastic! Opened my eyes to new possibilities that I didn't think of before! Awesome book! 

Waiting for the Magic by Patricia MacLachlan

Such a sweet book!  I loved the animals  in this book! I know this is going to be a hard book to keep on the shelf at my school. It is on the Bluestem list this year and it is a pretty quick read! 

What I'm reading now:

Words in the Dust by Trent Reedy 

I saw Trent Reedy speak at an Anderson's Breakfast a few years ago about this book. It didn't end up on my "must read" list until a student came into the library and book talked it to me. I'm about three chapters in and I'm enjoying it. This book is on the Caudull list, and I'm sure my 4th & 5th graders who want to participate in the Caudill program will want to read this one! 

What I'm reading to my son:

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

We have just gotten to the part where Umbridge has banned Harry from Quidditch FOREVER! Oh my!!!! I "almost" forgot how much I dislike that woman! 

The Great Book Break-Up

Up until very recently, I would never think of "breaking up" with a book. However, the more I read, the more I have learned to value my time as a reader. I always tell the kids to give it at least 2-3 chapters before giving up on a book. Some books really do take a little longer to get going. Over the past few weeks I have "broken up" with several books. Reasons for my great book break ups recently were couldn't get into the story, characters were not very interesting, poorly written, knew I wasn't going to buy it for the JRT Library within a few chapters, etc.   Despite the many books I didn't finish this week, I did FINISH and ENJOY:

Marty McGurie by Kate Messner
This would be a great read aloud to a third grade class. It has a GREAT fairy tale / fractured fairy tale tie in!

Clementine by Sara Pennypacker
Another great read aloud for 2nd and 3rd graders. I loved this because it is funny like Junie B. Jones but a little more mature. 

Al Capone Does my Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko
LOVED this. It was not at all what I expected. Great historical fiction for boys and girls! Really loved reading about life for the children living on Alcatraz.

Star in the Storm byJoan Hiatt Harlow
Another 5 star book! I loved her other book called Thunder from the Sea. I really loved this one because it was kind of a nail biter! I couldn't put it down because I HAD TO KNOW what was going to happen next!! 

Back to Work

Over the past two and a half weeks I have been making the transition back to work and fighting a sinus infection. I haven't had a TON of extra time to read or write about what I have been reading. I'm hoping now that I'm starting to feel better and get back into the routine that I'll be reading and posting more!

What I've recently finished:
I just finished Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko.  I know this book was written "a long time ago" in 2006, but I never got around to reading it back then. I heard that the third book in the series was coming out this August, so I finally decided to read it. I was really glad I read it because it was great. I'm looking forward to reading the next two books in the series to find out what happens next to the kids who live on Alcatraz! 

I also finished reading The Gecko & Sticky: Villain's Lair by Wendelin Van Draanen. I'm always on the look out for great read "transition" chapter books. I call them transition chapter books because they are great to read aloud to second and third graders who are ready to listen to longer books, but might not be ready to tackle the whole book by themselves. I liked this book because it was full of action and was funny! I think the boys will really enjoy the main character and LOVE the villains! 

What I'm reading now:
The Land of Elyon Book 1: The Dark Hills Divide by Patrick Carman. This is also an older book (2005), but I really LOVED Carman's Floors books, that I wanted to read more by him. 


What I'm reading with my son:
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix