My FAVORITE book to read whole class is Wonder by RJ Palaccio, as you can see by my beat up copy. I have read this book with 5th, 6th, and 8th graders in the different classrooms I have taught. Each year and each group of students loved it just as much, if not more, than the class before! Students, and adults alike, are fascinated by the story of Auggie overcoming challenges. It is a great way to start the year with discussions of differences, acceptance, and kindness. It tends to become a motto in our room, "when given the choice between being right or being kind, always choose kind". We take this motto and tie it into character education and take the kindness pledge. 

Welcome to the world of Greek Mythology! The Percy Jackson and the Olympian series is the modern day version of my Harry Potter magical gateway to reading. I usually read this book in tandem with D'Aulaires Book of Greek Mythology. The D'Aulaires book is a work of art alone, but the images and stories combined give such clear stories. Having this background knowledge, they make better inferences and connections to the fictional additions in the Percy Jackson series. Students, in my experience, rarely stumble onto Greek mythology on their own and when they do, they don't realize there is reading out there that includes this type of adventure! We only read book 1, Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief, together as a class, but soon after, our classroom and school library runs out of Rick Riordan books! 

I've noticed some students will read within the comedy genre and never leave it, sticking to Captain Underpants, Diary of a Whimpy Kid, and any joke book, while other students have never picked up this genre. Towards the spring I love reading Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar. It is a quick read, light hearted, and each chapter doesn't necessarily connect to the last, except repeating characters. This book is OFTEN on Scholastic's $1 list, so I purchased a class set so students are holding their own book as we read. 

I found affordable flashlights on Amazon. These EverBrite flashlights were sold in a pack of 18 for $16 (at the time) AND they came with batteries! They are miniature and fit in your palm, but provide a great amount of bright light for reading in the dark. 

We have some expectations for our Flashlight Reading time. With the room so dark, students need to stay where they are; so they must have 1-2 books ready to go so that no one has to move. We talk about safety with shining bright things on someone's eyes, so therefore lights have to shine on and only on the books. If we are not able to follow the expectations, the consequence is not having a flashlight to join us. 

My students genuinely love this activity and want to follow the rules and WANT TO READ. They have a book of their choice and are building reading endurance in addition to reading and writing skills! 

I found this simple and plain heart at the local Dollar Store. I added my favorite seasonal "Valentine's" quote, I say that because I think we should notice an love the little things all year long. 

This large felt envelope was in the Target Dollar Spot this month. What will you do with it? I've seen it hang from the back of a chair as a place to put your Valentines. For me, I have plans to attach to to a bulletin board. Meanwhile, the Student Council and I have been selling candy grams all month. I made a could extra to place the candy grams that are going to a certain teachers' classrooms. 

How cute is this felt mini mailbox? While this is a Valentine's Day purchase from Target, it will have a year long placement in my classroom. We have a "Quiet Corner" in every classroom. It is a place for students to take a break when they are upset, it has fidgets and a special T-mail paper. T-mail is teacher mail, students can use the quiet corner to write to me about something they want me to know, to explain why they are upset, or virtually any reason they would like. Now we have a great mailbox for them to drop their letters in! I made a couple of these too, there was no way it would be ok for me to bring this in the building and not share the idea with others. 

My proudest moment was when I handed Mr. Van Allsburg a bound book made by my students. It was inspired by his picture book, The Mysteries of Harris Burdick. They took his beautiful illustrations and the mystery behind Harris Burdick to create their own answers to the illustration. The pride students had in sharing their work with the author was amazing. 

​Turn into a Turkey
Students took the time to design their own feather. On each one is their name and the things they are thankful for. 

​Signed, Sealed, Delivered
These valentines are all mine!

During our last trimester of the school year, the 5th and 6th grade met on Fridays to work together on a Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Book Clubs. It was a wonderful opportunity for our classes to combine, to work with new teachers, students, and experience the magical world of Harry Potter.