This past week my husband's stepmom, Ruth, (we called her Nona which is Italian for grandma) passed away. While her death was not unexpected--she had a rare disease called amylidosis, which she was diagnosed with last summer--it nonetheless was a sad time. Coincindently, it was also the last full week of dance lessons for my daughter and the recital was held over the weekend. That all being said, it was a L-O-N-G and very emotional week for my family. When not attending to familial matters or dance rehearsal, I was lying in the sun with my nose in a book.
Among the multitude of normal summer to-do lists I create at the beginning of each summer, this year I committed to reading the "Twilight" series (a little behind the times, I know, but better late than never) as well as the 12 books that are Mark Twain Award Nominees (
http://www.maslonline.org/?page=marktwain_readers). Since I will be teaching 5th grade this year, I thought it would be great to create a blog for my students that would allow them to 'talk' about the books on the list, as well as any other books they have read. Using technology to foster a communication about literature is something I have wanted to do for a long time, and with older students, now is my chance.
As I feel it is important to be able to connect with students personally when encouraging them to do something that may not be their first choice ("You mean I have to read a book, a whole book, with no pictures and lots of pages!! AND you want me to talk/write about it?!?"), I have completed 3 of the 12 (2 in one day!!) and afterwards I will blog about each. It is my hope that reading my blog (really just my reading response) will inspire students to keep reading the quality literature on the list and maybe find authors, genres, subjects, characters, and/or themes that will leave them wanting more!
This past week my husband's stepmom, Ruth, (we called her Nona which is Italian for grandma) passed away. While her death was not unexpected--she had a rare disease called amylidosis, which she was diagnosed with last summer--it nonetheless was a sad time. Coincindently, it was also the last full week of dance lessons for my daughter and the recital was held over the weekend. That all being said, it was a L-O-N-G and very emotional week for my family. When not attending to familial matters or dance rehearsal, I was lying in the sun with my nose in a book.
Among the multitude of normal summer to-do lists I create at the beginning of each summer, this year I committed to reading the "Twilight" series (a little behind the times, I know, but better late than never) as well as the 12 books that are Mark Twain Award Nominees (http://www.maslonline.org/?page=marktwain_readers). Since I will be teaching 5th grade this year, I thought it would be great to create a blog for my students that would allow them to 'talk' about the books on the list, as well as any other books they have read. Using technology to foster a communication about literature is something I have wanted to do for a long time, and with older students, now is my chance. 
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