Book Wednesday- 12/11/14

Happy Wednesday! Oh my goodness I am already feeling the pressure for this half term and a week and bit in I am exhausted! Parent consultations, IEP reviews, MTP planning due, observations, visits to other schools, work with consultants etc has left me feeling a little bit argh! But I have still managed to sneak in a bit of reading!

One highlight of parent consultations has been the wonderful feedback from so many about how much more their child is actively reading, sharing books at home and coming home raving about the books we have been reading at school. That just makes everything worth it!

Anyway onto the reading for the week!

Currently Reading

I am still reading Sleuth on Skates by Clémentine Beauvais and the Reading Workshop book from last week.

I started reading Baby Aliens Got My Teacher with the class today and they love it already. Perhaps they like the possibility of aliens getting the teacher a little too much...

I like to take part in the Red House Children's Book Awards with the class and last year we loved reading the shortlist and voting. This year will be the same. Have a look here and it would be great if you managed to share with your class and take part! On a side note I also read them the The Pirates Next Door that I wrote about last week and they loved it. I read it as part of a lesson on inference and they did fantastically picking things out of the text.

Read This Week

Good Dog, Bad Dog by Dave Shelton- This was a cracking read. A canine detective story with a real element of fun which had me laughing out loud quite a bit! Take a look at what Dave Shelton himself says about the book!

Cakes in Space by Philip Reeve and Sarah McIntyre- I adored Oliver and the Seawigs by this super pair and so it was with great excitement that I grabbed a copy of Cakes in Space at the school book fair I had organised. The children were pleased too as they were fans of Oliver when we read it (they still keep asking to draw pictures of sea monkeys) but I was mean and nabbed it to read over the weekend. Bad teacher! I thoroughly enjoyed Cakes in Space and really cannot recommend it enough.

Wishlist

Blizzard by John Rocco- I have read Blackout by John Rocco which I (and the kids) loved and so I was pleased to read there is now Blizzard to add to the collection.

So that's my reading for the week! What have you read this week? Please do share in the comments below!

Book Wednesday- 5/11/14

Ah the heady days of half term are over and the second part of the Autumn term is in full swing! I have had one INSET day and one teaching day (and a parent consultation evening) and I am exhausted already!

Currently Reading

Sleuth on Skates by Clémentine Beauvais- I love reading books set in Cambridge and this is an interesting tale of a super sleuth on skates. 

Revisiting the Reading Workshop: A Complete Guide to Organizing and Managing an Effective Reading Workshop That Builds Independent, Strategic Readers by Barbara Orehovec and Marybeth Alley- I am very interested in enhancing the teaching of reading at school and in my classroom and I am intrigued by the reading workshop approach I have seen mentioned a lot online.

Read this Week

First Light by Rebecca Stead- This was a random purchase in Heffers and I am quite glad I did as I couldn't put it down. The story tells of a parallel world hidden under Greenland and shows what happens when two worlds collide. I loved the fantasy elements of the story as well as the science commentary on global warming. A great read for upper key stage 2.

The Pirates Next Door by Jonny Duddle- a visual feast of a book that shows pirates aren't that bad after all!

Lots of fantastic teaching blogs- so much inspiration out there! If you have a education/ children's literature focused blog please feel free to leave your link below and I will come and visit!

Wishlist

Witch Wars by Sibeal Pounder and Laura Ellen Anderson- I saw Robin Stevens mention this on Twitter and so had to add it to my wishlist but it looks like it isn't out until March! Argh the wait!

What has been on your reading list this week? Do you have any recommendations to share? I can't wait to read your comments!

Book Wednesday- 29/10/14

Hello there! Over the week I read a lot of books and I thought having one weekly blog post where I share what I have read (with and without the class) would be a good way to keep track of books and hopefully share with you some fantastic reads! Also due to people constantly dangling recommended books in front of me (I am not complaining at all!) I will share some of my wishlist items as well. So here goes!

Read this week

The Firework Maker's Daughter by Philip Pullman- this is the book I am basing our topic work on this term. We finished it on Friday and the children actually begged me to finish it before we finished for half term.

Oliver and the Seawigs by Philip Reeve and Sarah McIntyre- this was our just for fun class novel and as soon as we finished it the children demanded (very nicely) another one by Reeve and McIntyre.

A Boy and a Bear in a Boat by Dave Shelton- For my Children at Heffers book group. An interesting read but oh my goodness that ending! What do others think?

The Grunts in Trouble by Philip Ardagh- An enjoyable read that will immediately go in my recommends box in the classroom as I know my children will really like it. Reminiscent of Dahl's 'The Twits' but the Grunts aren't quite to horrible. I adore the character of Sunny and can't wait to see what happens next.

Fairy Tale Twists by Katie Dale- We had Katie Dale visit our school and as a result I (and the class) have nearly devoured all of the series.

Wishlist

Sleuth on Skates by Clementine Beauvais.

Good Dog, Bad Dog by Dave Shelton. A graphic novel by the author of A Boy and a Bear in a Boat. I am looking forward to a comparison of the two books.

The Book with No Pictures by B.J. Novak. This was highly rated at my book group and I really want to read it!

What have you read this week? What is on your wishlist? Please leave a comment and share! Happy Reading!