My Summer Reading List My summer reading list was disrupted at the beginning of this month. Along with my usual search for student book selections and my focus in the last years of 'own voice' text, I had learning to do. I have to learn to be an antiracist, not just a non-racist. I have… Continue reading My Summer Reading List
Author: Susan Kennedy
Susan is a literacy specialist/coach in suburban Boston and a life-long learner committed to literacy education for all.
Creating a Buzz Around Books
Creating a Buzz Around Books May 10, 2020 The laundry hums in the bathroom and I can hear someone walking around upstairs. If I'm distracted, the students probably are as well. One of the many concerns that we have as educators in this time of connected learning is keeping engagement and reading… Continue reading Creating a Buzz Around Books
Can I Touch Your Hair?
One of the last demonstration lessons I wrote before we left school in mid-March was a cross-text synthesizing lesson with this lovely poetry book, Can I Touch Your Hair? by Irene Latham & Charles Waters. While I can't find my hard copy in the sea of books I have brought home with me, I bought… Continue reading Can I Touch Your Hair?
Some Places More Than Others by Renée Watson
Some Places More Than Others by Renée Watson An advance copy of this book made it into my hands from our local independent bookstore last spring. I immediately loved it! Always on the lookout for a book that fits the complexity we hope for our upper elementary readers without being too mature for them, Some… Continue reading Some Places More Than Others by Renée Watson
Carter Reads the Newspaper by Deborah Hopkinson
Carter Reads the Newspaper by Deborah Hopkinson It's difficult to narrow my comments about Carter Reads the Newspaper to a short blog. If you asked me the title of my #1 coaching book, this is it. This book has a lot: picture book biography, amazing book for black history month, narrative arc, and author's craft. … Continue reading Carter Reads the Newspaper by Deborah Hopkinson
Fungus is Among Us! written by Joy Keller Illustrated by Erica Salcedo
At first I thought that fungus was really gross...but now I think they are good for our planet- Julia, Grade 3 They mixed a storybook with poetry and a BUNCH of facts! - Rain, Grade 3 That's a LOT of fungi! Barely any fungi in my yard! Yeast is fungi. We eat fungi ?!? -… Continue reading Fungus is Among Us! written by Joy Keller Illustrated by Erica Salcedo
Most Marshmallows by Rowboat Watkins
Rowboat Watkins’ Most Marshmallows has been floating around my book collection since February without a permanent home. Currently living in my love this book but what category bin, on the surface Most Marshmallows is a wonderfully silly tale about marshmallows. The publisher’s summary includes most marshmallows like to watch television and lead normal lives-but some… Continue reading Most Marshmallows by Rowboat Watkins
If Elephants Disappear by Lily Williams
If Elephants Disappear by Lily Williams I read that Lily Williams never imagined writing a book where poop figures prominently, but in her book, If Elephants Disappear, elephants' dung plays a critical role in tropic cascade and readers are given a front row seat to its importance to the elephant ecosystem and our own survival.… Continue reading If Elephants Disappear by Lily Williams
The Field
The Field by Baptiste Paul, illustrated beautifully by Jacqueline Alcantara A winner of many awards in 2018, The Field shows and tells the story of a girl, her brother and some friends as they pick up a soccer game in rural St. Lucia, the author's home of origin. Through stunning illustrations full of movement… Continue reading The Field
The Little Guys by Vera Brosgol
A cautionary tale from Caldecott Honoree Vera Brosgol We are the Little Guys. Yes, we are small. But there are a lot of us. Together we are strong, and we can get all we need. A new addition to my coaching bag is a sleeper tale, The Little Guys. This versatile book made the rounds of my… Continue reading The Little Guys by Vera Brosgol
The King of Kindergarten
The King of Kindergarten “It’s time to start kindergarten, and you know what, kid? You got this! It’s your time to shine and be the King of Kindergarten!” The King of Kindergarten joyfully written by Derrick Barnes and artfully illustrated by Vanessa Brantley-Newton should be every kindergarten teacher's read during the sparkling-with-opportunity first few minutes… Continue reading The King of Kindergarten