Chloe and the Lion book trailer

I read the ARC of Chloe and the Lion to you in class a few days ago. Here is a hilarious book trailer with Adam Rex and Mac Barnett:

Daniel Jennewein's drawings

Mr. Jennewein sent me the digital files of the pictures he drew for us yesterday. I thought I'd share them with you as we anxiously await a package from him in the mail.

Plans for reading over Christmas break

To my dear, lovely 6th graders:

Christmas break is soon upon us, and many of you have visions of sleeping late (except for Christmas morning of course), sledding in the snow, and snuggling up by the fire with a warm mug of hot cocoa.

NOT SO FAST! You need to include reading in those daydreams.

Given that you are expected to read 5 books per quarter - which equates to finishing a book every week and a half - you can't assume that Christmas break is going to be time spent away from books.

So, I want you to take some time in class to peruse the classroom library, the school library, and even Goodreads, and start making some plans for what you want to read over break. I will expect a planned-out list of 2-3 books by Wednesday, which is our first day of reading conferences.

I understand many of you will not finish two or three books over break, but you all should at least finish ONE book. I still want you to give me a list of 2-3 books even if you only plan to finish one. Why? So in case you DO finish one book earlier than expected, you have a plan for what you will read next.

And since you all know that I never make you do something I myself wouldn't do, these are some of the books I have plans for reading over break:

Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver

In this much-anticipated sequel to the young adult book, Delirium, Lauren Oliver builds a dystopian world where love is considered a disease and you must get a surgical procedure when you are 18 to be cured of it. I received the ARC of this book at NCTE and cannot wait to read it! Publication date: March 6, 2012

Wintertown by Stephen Emond

This is another ARC I received at NCTE and it has been on my to-read list for quite some time. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that this book his illustrations, which gives it kind of a "young adult meets Diary of a Wimpy Kid" feel to it.

You might also have noticed that I recently put up a poster in the room of this book cover.

Publication date: December 5, 2011

The Kitchen Counter Cooking School by Kathleen Flinn

I have been reading this book on and off since October and I think it's time I just buck up and finish it. I'm enjoying the book, it's not as if it's boring or anything, but there are so many other books that I've been wanting to finish that this one just got pushed by the wayside. I WILL finish this book over break. I can guarantee that. (Famous last words, right?)

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

I got the audiobook of this at the library because I feel like my reading life is sorely lacking in children's classics (and adult classics for that matter). This book is over 100 years old, so I'd definitely say it's a classic.

No More Dead Dogs by Gordon Korman

Gordon Korman endeared himself to me when I went to one of his sessions at NCTE about humor in writing and in the classroom. His inspiration for writing this book was that he was tired of reading sad books where the dog dies at the end. At the conference, Mr. Korman said (and I'm paraphrasing here), "Whenever a kid picks up a book with an award sticker and a picture of a dog on the cover, the kid pretty much knows that dog is going down." With a pitch like that, how can you not want to read this book?

This is another one I will be tackling on audio thanks to my wonderful neighborhood library.


Now I know what you're thinking: "Mrs. Shuam, that's FIVE books! How are you going to read FIVE books in less than two weeks?!"

Pish posh! I've been known to finish TEN books in two weeks. So, the challenge is on! Who is going to read more books than Mrs. Shaum over Christmas break? (By the way, this is a challenge I will have NO PROBLEM losing. In fact, I wish I could lose this challenge to ALL OF YOU!)

Homeroom illustrations

Next week we will be Skyping with children's book illustrator, Daniel Jennewein. He has agreed to draw some pictures for us, but to keep order in the classroom and prevent him from having to draw 60 individual drawings, we're going to limit it to one per homeroom.

This blog post is to generate some ideas of things we might want him to draw. So in the comments, give suggestions for things you might want him to draw for your homeroom. (I will delete any comments that are inappropriate or people who did not include their name with their comment).

I apologize...

...for being gone for three days.

Hopefully you can forgive me when you see all the books I'm bringing back from the conference:

These are all the books I got for free!

These are all the books I got signed!

And see the authors I met...

Laurie Halse Anderson

John Green

Jackson Pearce

Kenneth Oppel

So I hope you can all forgive me.

6th graders as picture book authors

In English this week, you're going to be creating your own picture books "inspired by" the mentor texts we've read in class.

Choose one of the following books to inspire you:

The Quiet Book by Deborah Underwood, illustrated by Renata Liwska
Take your inspiration from Deborah Underwood's The Quiet Book and make your own LOUD BOOK!


Subway Story by Julia Sarcone-Roach
Take your inspiration from this story by personifying a non-human, non-living object and telling its story


Is Your Buffalo Ready for Kindergarten? and Teach Your Buffalo to Play Drums by Audrey Vernick, illustrated by Daniel Jennewein
Take your inspiration from these books by writing your own Is Your ________ Ready for ________? or Teach Your _________ to _________

This assignment is due before Thanksgiving break (meaning, if you're not going to be in school the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, you need to turn it in on Tuesday!)

You need to create a story board before you start creating your final picture book and you also need to turn in the grading sheet with your final project.

"Still Me" Study Guide

Here are the things you need to know for your "Still Me" test:

Literary Terms:

• autobiography
• point of view
• first person point of view
• third person point of view

Short answer questions:

• What is now in the horse trailer next to the barn?
• What did Reeve imagine when he looked at the picture of the Pyramid of Quetzalcoatl?
• What has Reeve not done for his son in over three years?
• What might have been different if Reeve had fallen with his head turned a little to the left or right?

Essay:
What is Reeve's definition of a hero today and do you agree?