It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's Monday! Today, I join fellow Nerdy Book Club members & friends Jen and Kellee on their fantastic blog Teach Mentor Texts as we chat about our reading for the week.

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:
After a week off for Spring Break, it was back to school for me. My reading consisted mainly of chapters for library school. I'm learning so much in my courses about librarianship, but I'm also discovering some things about myself as a learner. I learned that I don't read nonfiction as quickly as fiction, and that if I'm going to be assessed on something, it takes me even longer to read it! I had just started reading the book pictured below, and I decided to use the strategies Chris Lehman describes.

ENERGIZE RESEARCH READING AND WRITING
by Christopher Lehman
Publisher: Heinemann

So I guess you could say I was testing these out for myself! After I took notes the way Chris Lehman suggested, I realized I was understanding & remembering more content. I want my students to know this, too. I don't want them to just copy things! I know that with so much tech available, note-taking will eventually look different. But they will need to take notes in the future & I want them to do it in a meaningful way that helps them as writers, too. I highly recommend this book! It will help you see research writing in a whole new way.

PLATYPUS POLICE SQUAD: THE FROG WHO CROAKED
by Jarrett J. Krosoczka
Publisher: Walden Pond Press

This books is about platypuses who are also detectives. Doesn't that sound awesome? It is! Zendo is new to the force, and his partner O'Malley sees things a little differently than he does. Together they're looking for a missing schoolteacher and also trying to figure out who is selling illegal fish. It's clever and action-packed, and everywhere along the way I kept reminding myself these were platypuses. This book even had me doing research on the platypus. (And I took notes using Chris Lehman's strategies.) I think kids will respond to the mystery and adventure here. I love that the same person who gave us LUNCH LADY graphic novels now gives us platypuses who drink root beer. There are lots of interesting characters here. I really enjoyed this one! I look forward to many more middle grades from Mr. Krosoczka.

 

 

MY LIFE AS A STUNTBOY

By Janet Tashjian (illustrated by Jake Tashjian)

Pubisher: Mac Kids Books

Derek is the main character of this book, and he really doesn't like to read. He draws wonderful stick pictures of his vocabulary words, and he has a pet monkey (sort of). In this 2nd book in the series (Book 1 is MY LIFE AS A BOOK), Derek gets the opportunity to be a stuntboy for a movie. He's really excited about it, but lots of other things happen that get in the way. I enjoyed this book as much as the first, and it was even better the second time around. The plot involves a monkey's misadventures, and many funny and honest moments. Book 3 (MY LIFE AS A CARTOONIST) is released in May.

WHAT I'M READING NOW:

 

 

What are YOU reading?