What Are You Reading: March 2016

We believe it is important for educators to be readers and writers, so every month we take a day to report out on what we're reading. Join in by sharing your current reading list in the comments.

Maggie is reading Courage for Beginners by Karen Harrington. Maggie explains, "This is a sweet story of courage, friendship, and finding your way through middle school. Mysti has an agoraphobic mother who doesn't leave the house, and at the end of summer, her father has a bad accident and ends up in the hospital for an extended period of time. As a result, Mysti ends up taking on the role of provider and dealing with some big challenges during her seventh grade year. This story is a great reminder that we don't always know as teachers what our students are dealing with outside of our classroom."

Jaimie says, "I'm actually reading What's Math Got To Do With It?  by Jo Boaler. Yes, a 'math' book. :)  I am a part of a book study.  I am finding the book very interesting.  The concepts and instructional strategies that Boaler recommends, I find very easy to relate to literacy.  It is neat making the connections between the two contents."

Sharon says

Sharon is reading RTI - Roadmap for School Leaders - Plan and Go by Tom Hierck and Chris Weber. Sharon says, "I really got to thinking, we keep looking at Tier 2 and Tier 3 trying new interventions in order to move those students up/out of our groups.  Are there other ways to look at RTI? This book explains why Tier 1 is the most important tier and informs all RTI decisions."

Heather is reading An Elephant in the Garden by Michael Morpurgo. Heather describes it as, ". . . a young adult book that takes place during WWII.  This book is a story of saving an elephant from the zoo, who is going to kill all their big and dangerous animals before they are bombed."

Andrea just added Jennifer Abrams's Hard Conversations Unpacked:  The Who's the Where's and the What-ifs  by Jennifer Abrams to her pile. She says, "I haven't actually started to dig into it yet, but I can say that it looks like it really focuses on how to provide feedback that will help us grow.  I'm also interested in the fact that she addresses how race, culture, gender and generational filters influence perceptions and offers ideas on how to account for them."

Barb finished My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry by Fredrik Backman. Barb says, "This was the inaugural choice for a book club my friend started. I only finished it because of the book club, and I have to admit that I liked it a lot better after talking with people about it."

Carrie (who is at home with a new baby!) just started The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy by Rachel Joyce. Carrie says, "It is the companion novel to The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. I'm excited to see the 'other' side of the story of the lost love between Harold and Queenie." 

Julie is reading I Am Reading: Nurturing Young Children’s Meaning Making and Joyful engagement with Any Book by Kathy Collins and Matt Glover. Julie says, "This book shows how to support and nurture the earliest of readers, before they can even read the words in a book."

Barb read most of Unmistakable Impact by Jim Knight. Barb says, "Unmistakable Impact discusses Knight's model for whole-school reform, with coaching as one component. I abandoned it for something that focused more specifically on coaching."

Maggie read Stonewall: Breaking Out in the Fight for Gay Rights by Ann Bausum. Maggie describes it as, ". . . an excellent nonfiction read that tells the story of the Stonewall Inn of Greenwich Village in New York and the Stonewall Riot that changed the course of history for gay rights. This is an engaging book that highlights significant events in the gay rights movement."

Maggie also read Stars Above by Marissa Meyer. Maggie says, "This is a collection of short stories from the author of The Lunar Chronicles and the stories are fun little missing chapters or prequels to the different books highlighting the back stories of the characters. I love it!"

Barb read George by Alex Gino. Barb says, "George tells the story of fourth-grader, George, who wants to play the part of Charlotte in her school's production of Charlotte's Web. This on-stage role is an opportunity for her family and classmates to see George as she sees herself - a female."