It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Jen Vincent and Kellee Moye co-host It's Monday! What Are You Reading weekly on their blogs. Some of my best book recommendations come from seeing what others are reading each week. To see what others are recommending or to participate, be sure to check out their blogs Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers on Mondays.

While I haven't been writing much on Mondays this summer, I have been reading. However, a lot of my reading has been related to the curriculum I have been writing this summer. Last week, I was able to find time to spend at our library and the book store so I enjoyed some picture books.

Doug Unplugged by Dan Yaccarino is a book that I will be buying for our kindergarten classes. Doug is a robot who learns about his world from information downloads.  When he disobeys parental orders, he unplugs and he flies all over the city, investigating various parts and places and making friends in the park. Since our curriculum involves learning about communities, I love the content, but I also enjoyed the message about becoming present and learning about our world by actually experiencing it.

I have been paying attention to unusual and unexpected how-to books so How To Bicycle to the Moon to Plant Sunflowers by Moricai Gerstein caught my eye at the library. While classroom teachers could definitely use this book to teach some of the elements of procedural writing, they could also use this book to inspire creative thinking and ingenuity.

Ben Rides On by Matt Davies, has been a book that I have been looking forward to reading. Social curriculum is so important for children and this is a book that could inspire conversations about doing the right thing, how to handle disappointment and anger, and the importance of forgiveness.

One other favorite picture book of the week was The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywait. What an amazing mentor text for teaching young elementary students voice in persuasive writing! All of the crayons have issues with how Duncan is overusing or underusing them. Children will love thinking from the perspective of the crayons, but they will also be exposed to powerful techniques in relaying messages and opinions.

I am slowly working my way through And the Mountains Echoed by Khalid Hosseini and if anyone is looking for a beautifully written adult read, I recommend it. I'm also looking forward to re-reading Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver, since it is on my daughter's summer reading list and is one of my all-time favorite books.

Enjoy your reading,