Popular: A memoir- Vintage Wisdom for a Modern Geek

by Maya Van Wagenen

I can't believe it is just about the middle of August! This summer has been quite busy for me as I teach in a literacy program during the month of July. I'm always on the look out for "just right books" for my students, and I found some interesting reading for myself as I navigated through the local library's website. I actually stumbled upon the book Popular by Maya Van Wagenen as I read one of the librarian's blogs.

First of all, I think it is helpful to remember the old saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover". The cover has a paper doll theme and leads one to believe it is intended for a younger audience. Well, I guess that is not too far fetched as the author is a girl in her early teens. As I read further into the blog, which was from the library's "Readers Corner", I became intrigued with the concept of how the book came to be written.

In 1951 a book had been published by a young woman by the name of Betty Cornell, entitled Betty Cornell's Teenage Popularity Guide. It was an book that offered advice to teenage girls on ways to become well liked. Maya's father had come across the book at a thrift store and looked through the old torn pages reading the "outdated ideas." Considering it a piece of "vintage pop culture", Maya's father purchased the book. As the author describes, the book sat in her dad's office for years until being found by Maya's mom, who then gave the book to Maya. Discovering this book, and being encouraged by her mom, led to a wonderful adventure/experiment for Maya. Maya followed the advice in Betty's book for one year, her eighth grade year of middle school. She wrote about her journey, including her feelings and other's reactions, and soon discovers the true meaning of being "popular".

What I like best about this book is that it really makes me think about my own teenage years, as well as my students experiences. Being a kid can be hard and, sadly, outward appearance many times makes or breaks how people are viewed. I love the message of this memoir, the relationships Maya has with her family, friends/peers, and the connection she makes with Betty Cornell.

I would highly recommend this book to adults as well as pre-teens/teens. It is thought provoking and forces the reader to consider what truly is important in a person. Below is a link that will bring you to the Today Show's Book page featuring Popular from earlier this year, including an interview with the author.

http://www.today.com/books/popular-1960s-style-approach-becoming-cool-modern-world-2D79513955

If you decide to read Popular by Maya Van Wagenen, I'd love to hear from you!

READING BLOGS ON ALL SUBJECTS CAN BE VERY HELPFUL IN THE CLASSROOM

Now that summer has arrived, I have found some time to read and search for new ways to increase technology in my classroom. Believe it or not my search begins in my personal email account!  As a teacher, I subscribe to many newsletters and websites that send out some great links and ideas for educators. Unfortunately, during the school year, I tend to get bogged down with the daily instructional lesson planning, school email, etc. Some subscriptions go directly to my personal email account. If you're a teacher, you'll understand how easy it is to look at our personal accounts and say, "I'll read that later", and later turns out to be in the summer!

This morning I decided to get a cup of coffee and my laptop to begin my online reading/research. I found a great blog from "We Are Teachers" that I thought was very useful. The blog topic is "20 Simple Ideas for Teaching Math to a Classroom of Multi-Level Kids". This caught my eye as this year my grade level will no longer be differentiating our classrooms by switching for math class by level. Instead, each teacher will keep their homeroom and differentiate instruction for multiple math levels within the classroom. From the first of the twenty simple ideas,  integrate math into every part of your day, to the last, check for understanding frequently, I found this blog very useful and worthy of passing along. I am including the link below so that you may visit the blog.


http://www.weareteachers.com/community/blogs/weareteachersblog/blog-wat/2014/04/10/20-simple-ideas-for-teaching-math-to-a-classroom-of-multi-level-kids

Do you read any blogs that you feel offer great tips for the classroom?

Exciting News!

Last year I blogged about Luanne Rice's book, What Matters Most (February, 2013). On May 27th Luanne Rice's The Lemon Orchard is coming out in paperback. Even better, if you are part of a book club, Luanne offers a reading group guide for the book! There is also a Kindle edition available.

http://luannerice.net/lemon-orchard-reading-group-guide/



http://luannerice.net/lemon-orchard-paperback/
http://www.amazon.com/The-Lemon-Orchard-Luanne-Rice-ebook/dp/B00AEBESK8

The Lemon Orchard In Paperback 5/27/14

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A heartrending, timely love story of two people from seemingly different worlds—at once dramatic and romanticLuanne Rice is the beloved author of twenty-two New York Times bestsellers. In The Lemon Orchard, one of her most moving and accomplished works yet, Rice gives us an affirming story about the redemptive power of compassion, set in the sea- and citrus-scented air of the breathtaking Santa Monica Mountains.It’s been five years since Julia’s daughter died. When she arrives to housesit at her uncle’s home in Malibu, she longs only for peace. But to her surprise, Julia becomes drawn to Roberto, the handsome man from Mexico who oversees the lemon orchard. When Roberto reveals his own heartbreak, Julia recognizes his pain, but their stories have one striking difference: Roberto’s daughter was lost—and never found. What ensues is a page-turning search across the U.S. and Mexican border and a captivating novel of love, both enduring and unexpected. “Entrancing.” —People (***)   “Rice’s fans will appreciate the evocative setting and unconventional romance, as well as the harrowing . . . depictions of border crossing and the fascinating parallels drawn between Julia’s research interests (she studies the Irish who arrived in America over a century ago) and modern-day Mexican immigrants.” —Publishers Weekly PREORDER

      

 

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  The Lemon Orchard

  From bestselling author Luanne Rice—a captivating and sexy novel of love, both enduring and unexpected Buy the Book Amazon • Barnes & Noble • Books-a-Million 

Time sure flies when you have a busy classroom!

Hello fellow readers! It's been a while since I've had time to blog about books. Rest assured reading is abundant in my very busy classroom. I've incorporated a lot of technology into my classroom this year, starting with the 6 Ipads I was awarded after submitting a "proposal" of sorts as to how I'd incorporate using this form of technology in my classroom. Fast forward 8 months since being introduced to this tool and I can't imagine not having this technology as part of our daily routine! 

It seems everything has been bumped up exponentially with technology. Aside from the Ipads, I've introduced a new way to do read aloud in my classroom. Traditionally, after lunch each day, I would read to my class. Now, with my Eike projector and accessing my Kindle library on Google Cloud, my class reads "interactively". What does this mean? Well, I project the book onto my interactive whiteboard, and the students take over. One student uses my wireless mouse (yes, another form of technology I can't live without) and becomes the "host" for the reading during that time. They are in charge of choosing students to read and clicking on unknown words to discover their meaning (I love that feature that is included on  electronic books). 

Anyway, to get to the reason for my post today, I wanted to share two books that I use with my class during our study of Latin America. Author Pam Munoz Ryan has written two books that are traditionally well received by my fifth graders. Becoming Naomi Leon and Esperanza Rising are two stories that offer a nice thematic learning experience encompassing social studies and English Language Arts. On the Engage New York website you will find a complete unit using the novel Esperanza Rising.

http://www.engageny.org/resource/grade-5-ela-module-1-unit-3-lesson-2

Esperanza Rising and Becoming Naomi Leon. Both novels are written by Pam Munoz Ryan.The following links will provide you with information on each of the books.

http://www.amazon.com/Becoming-Naomi-Leon-Munoz-Ryan/dp/0439269970

http://www.kidsreads.com/reviews/becoming-naomi-leon

http://www.scholastic.com/esperanza/

http://www.amazon.com/Esperanza-Rising-Pam-Munoz-Ryan/dp/043912042X

Happy 238th Birthday Jane Austen!

Jane Austen, English novelist, was born on December 16, 1775 died on July 18, 1817.

1811-Sense and  Sensibility
1813 Pride and  Prejudice
1814 Mansfield Park
1815 Emma
1811 Persuasion (published after Jane's death)
1811 Northanger Abbey (published after Jane's death)
1817 Sanditon (unfinished work at the time of Jane's death)

Classic Jane Austen books

A Christmas Carol

by Charles Dickens

 

 

 

‘tis the season to be jolly! What a wonderful story to revisit during the Christmas season. The story is one of realizing how living a good life will provide us with the happiness we all seek. Many versions of this movie show over the days and weeks leading up to Christmas Day. The version I love is the 1938 version with Reginald Owen, usually shown on Turner Classic Movies channel. The technology in 1938 of course was minimal when it came to magical and ghostly beings appearing in a scene, but this early movie technology adds to the charm of the presentation. Each year I watch this movie I tell myself I need to read the classic story. I have a copy of The Oxford Illustrated Dickens Christmas Books with Original Illustrations on my bookshelf. I attempt each holiday season to take the book off the shelf and enjoy a good read by my fireplace. Unfortunately, with the hustle and bustle of the season, I never have finished the book. The book contains not only A Christmas Carol but other stories written by Charles Dickens (The Chimes, The Cricket on the Hearth, The Battle of Life, and The Haunted Man).  

 

It is amazing to me that A Christmas Carol was first published in 1843. When I sit back and consider the messages that resonate throughout the story, such as to treat your fellow man with respect, the importance of family, and the difference a charitable heart can make in another’s life, I realize that this story is truly timeless. Wouldn’t the world be a better place if we all made it a point to be kind to one another and help those in need throughout the year, not just during the holidays?

 

Once again, I am going to try to make the time to sit down and read this classic literature. I love the idea of reading words from over a century ago, and applying the message to present day. The final paragraph of A Christmas Carol reads, “He had no further intercourse with Spirits, but lived upon the Total Abstinence Principle, ever afterwards; and it was always said of him, that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. May that be truly said of us, and all of us! And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God bless us every one!”

 

 Classic Charles Dicken's books

Books That Are Soon To Become Movies

Today I read an online article about 14 best selling books that will soon be on the big screen. After reading the article, I thought it was worth posting on my blog to share with all of you. The link below will bring you to the article on Buzz Feed:

<a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/ariellecalderon/books-to-read-before-they-hit-the-big-screen?sub=2331123_1304302">this</a>

I am currently reading The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, one of the books mentioned in the article and set to be in movie theaters in January, 2014. This book was one of our town library's choices last summer and was a #1 New York Times Bestseller. The book is set in 1939, Nazi Germany during World War II. The main character is a girl named Liesel Meminger, who is "The Book Thief". Very early in the story, Liesel faces many traumatic events beginning with her brothers death, being abandoned by her mother, and, finally, being placed in foster care. Feeling like so much has been taken from her, Liesel feels justified in stealing books. Death has made itself known and continues to take control of the story as the first book Liesel steals is from the cemetery where her brother is buried, The Grave Digger's Handbook. Combined with the time period, having Death as the narrator of the story is very intriguing.

At this point, I don't want to say too much more until I've finished reading the book.  I will say that it is a page turner and the writing is magnificent! Below you will find a link with purchase information for The Book Thief. If you are currently reading or have read this book, let me know your thoughts!


http://www.amazon.com/The-Book-Thief-Markus-Zusak/dp/0375842209