The World of Diane Alber

I knew the first set of books that I talked about after a 6-year hiatus had to be really good and I am hopeful these will not disappoint!! 

Looking through Amazon Unlimited for books to read to my students since school has shut down has provided to be somewhat problematic.  Most of them seem to be for very young readers and/or chapter books.  It is important that I preview all of the books before I introduce them to my students, so chapter books weren't really an option right now.  However, since scouring the pages of Amazon Unlimited, my eyes have been opened to the world of Diane Alber.

Diane Alber's books are full of everyday objects that have the sweetest, most gentle, and funniest way of teaching everyone (kids and adults alike) that life is tough but we all have room to grow, get better, and overcome!  On top of all that, it looks as though all of her books are available on Amazon Unlimited.  So if you have a subscription, you can read them for *free*!

This is the first book of hers that I chose and from the moment I read the first page, I was hooked! This is Sticks.

Sticks is about a popsicle that takes a walk in the sun and melts.  He immediately regrets his decision and wishes he never stepped foot outside.  Stick meets several friends that help him see that even though he may be different than he used to be, he still has a place in this world!

Next, we have Scribble Stones!

Our book starts with a large stack of rocks.  One special rock could not wait to be chosen from the pile and be put to some grand use.  Unfortunately, he was the only rock not chosen and ended up as a paperweight.  But wait!  There are some nearby friends that give him a new purpose!

This was a highly requested book by my nieces and they loved it! It is called Never Let a Unicorn Scribble!

This book (and the others in the series) show the beauty that comes with creative imagination!  

Last but not least, I wanted to share this series of books all about a little Spot.  This one is a great place to start.  The title is A Little Scribble Spot.

This book teaches kids about emotions and the colors that can often be associated with each one.  It is a great introduction to feelings and could lead to some amazing art and craft projects!  In this series, there is a book for just about every emotion - A Little Spot of Anxiety, A little Spot of Love, A Little Spot of Anger, etc.  They are wonderful and perfect for counselors and to have on hand to help younger kids understand emotions and how they work!

That's it for my first official book post since 2014!  What sort of books would you like to know more about?!?  Let me know!

*All book images from amazon.com

All It Took Was A Pandemic

Guess who's back....back again...

I would like to say that it's been a *hot second* since I've added to this blog but that would be a gross understatement.  Where have I been?  Why haven't I written anything in such a long time?  Let me take a second and fill you in on the last 6 years!!

In the fall of 2013, I started working on my master's degree in Children's Literature.  That same year I left the classroom and worked as the intervention teacher on my campus.  Leaving the classroom was extremely difficult but I am so glad that I took the position.  The workload of my master's classes was unbelievably heavy and there was no way I could have juggled both the classroom responsibilities and the assignments at the same time.  As the intervention teacher, I had ZERO time to read to my students.  I saw small groups of students for 30 minutes at a time and was told to do a very strict scripted phonics program.  I read very few picture books for my master's classes.  It was the perfect storm.  I had no reason to add to my classroom library when there wasn't a need or even time to use it.  So, I fell off the children's book wagon.  I quit looking for books every time I would walk through Walmart or Target.  I stopped going to Barnes and Noble just to browse through the children's section.

In the fall of 2018, I went back into the classroom and taught 3rd grade.  I could not wait to pull out all of my old favorite read aloud books and spend the last 20 minutes of every day reading to my students JUST FOR FUN.  Not for a grade.  Not for an assignment.  Not for any other reason than just for the love of the story.  But, much like my time as the intervention teacher, I was given a scripted reading and writing program and we had to read the books listed in the lessons or connected to the topic.  Because we were departmentalized (I only taught ELA and Social Studies), there was virtually no time to read the books I wanted to read.  It was heartbreaking and I absolutely hated having no room for "just for fun" books.

This year I started my 19th year in education in a new state.  Being with my family has been amazing and I am so thankful the door was opened for me to be here.  However, learning a completely new way of teaching (aka Common Core) has absolutely rocked my world.  I had no clue what a steep learning curve would come with this move or just how much time it would take for me to feel barely adequate enough to teach it.  The time that I would have loved to really pour into my students through stories and books just wasn't an option for me this year.  I did the best I could with holiday books but it was nothing compared to what I had hoped this year would bring.  To be honest, I did the best I could just to stay afloat!

Enter Covid-19.  First, let me say that this online teaching thing is for the birds.  Bravo to all of the teachers that do it on a regular basis.  It is not how I feel my students learn best and it is definitely not how I teach best.  We make do with what we have and what we have is online virtual learning.  What is has done, however, is give me a chance and the time to explore books once again.  I decided that even though I didn't have time during the school year to read many books to my students that I would make it a priority during this pandemic.  Since all of my books are locked in my classroom away from the world, I joined Amazon Unlimited.  I find the best books available, record myself reading them, and then share the video with my students.  Reading these books to my students is like coming home again.  The excitement of finding a new book or a new author stirs so much joy in me that just cannot wait to be shared!!

So here I am in the middle of a pandemic reading and sharing books with my students and with you!  I hope you enjoy what I have and please let me know what you would like to see!