1.31 {BookFlix Friday} Two more great NF trailers

Today is

Few things can draw a reader to a new book like a book trailer can. Each Friday I will endeavor to bring a couple to you—some new or recent, some teasers of upcoming books, and a few “classics”. Get the popcorn ready.

Lights…Camera…Action!


Time for some more NF [non-fiction] book trailers… or NF book-related videos. We read NF to find out about the fascinating world and people around us.

From Goodreads:

The critically acclaimed Scientist in the Field book about how one boy’s interest in backyard science inspired a career in scientific discovery.

When Tyrone Hayes was growing up in South Carolina, he didn’t worry about pesticides. He just liked to collect frogs. Tyrone’s interest in science led him to Harvard University, and though he struggled at first, he found his calling in the research lab of an amphibian scientist.

Meanwhile, scientists discovered that all around the globe, frogs were dying. The decline has many causes, including habitat loss and disease. Tyrone discovered that the most commonly used pesticide in the United States, atrazine, may also play a role. Tyrone tested atrazine on frogs in his lab at Berkeley. He found that the chemical caused some of the male frogs to develop into bizarre half-male, half-female frogs. What was going on? That’s what Tyrone wants to find out.

A discussion with featured Frog Scientist, Tyrone Hayes:

Forum
Description

The story of America and African Americans is a story of hope and inspiration and unwavering courage. But it is also the story of injustice; of a country divided by law, education, and wealth; of a people whose struggles and achievements helped define their country. This is the story of the men, women, and children who toiled in the hot sun picking cotton for their masters; it’s about the America ripped in two by Jim Crow laws; it’s about the brothers and sisters of all colors who rallied against those who would dare bar a child from an education. It’s a story of discrimination and broken promises, determination and triumphs.

Kadir Nelson, one of this generation’s most accomplished, award-winning artists, has created an epic yet intimate introduction to the history of America and African Americans, from colonial days through the civil rights movement. Written in the voice of an “Everywoman,” an unnamed narrator whose forebears came to this country on slave ships and who lived to cast her vote for the first African American president, heart and soul touches on some of the great transformative events and small victories of that history. This inspiring book demonstrates that in gaining their freedom and equal rights, African Americans helped our country achieve its promise of liberty and justice—the true heart and soul of our nation.

This interview is pretty cool:
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1.29 {Whatever Wednesday}: A former student on American Idol

Whatever Wednesday — a chance to post something I’ve seen that I’m diggin’. Though often a cool quote or poster, it might simply be a picture.

Enjoy!… and consider posting your own Whatever.


Sure, I usually focus on books…

but this is too cool to pass up.

Last Sunday I caught a headline in the Buffalo News. It informed me that a former Buffalo resident was going to be on American Idol. I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m an Idol fan, so this caught my attention.

Then I saw the picture… and that face looked familiar. Maybe a little hairier…

And I read the name… Carlton Smith.

I taught this guy years ago.

I dug up some information to share. Unfortunately, they didn’t focus on Carlton during the show, but he did get a golden ticket so I hope to see him in Hollywood… and beyond.

GOOD LUCK CARLTON!

From WBOY.com, a news station in West Virginia:

Morgantown, W.Va. – A West Virginia University Police Officer, Carlton Smith, 26, recently traded his badge in for a microphone for a weekend and headed to Boston, Mass. to audition for American Idol.

“It would just be a dream come true,” Smith said, “I couldn’t not take that opportunity, so I packed up and hit that road.”

Smith, a Buffalo, N.Y. native, loves to sing.  He explained that he sings from the time he gets up until he arrives at work.  The passion for singing and music runs in the family.  He grew up watching his sister, Akia, sing gospel tunes in church and decided to give it a try.  He pursued his passion of singing by practicing and taking chorus classes to better his singing voice.

He knew that he would have to make a solid career choice to continue with his passion and also pay the bills.

“I want to make my parents proud, and I knew I need a strong footing,” he said.  Smith graduated with a bachelor’s in criminology from WVU in 2009 and began doing different jobs around campus assisting the university before joining the WVU Police Department.

Smith enjoys helping students and residents, but he still wants to further the impact he has on the world.

“Music is one of the biggest ways to make an impact on a larger scale.  Everyone can relate to it. One person could listen to a song or 100 million people could listen to a song and they would all get something different out of it.  Either way, I want to be making a difference.  I want to help people, and I want to make a difference.”

Smith will be on tonight’s episode of American Idol.

 

More from WVUtoday.

1.27 It’s Monday! What are you reading? #ShadowThrone

A new week, a new batch of books—both finished and being read. Today is…

Ring-the-Bell Monday & It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

20120117-111701.jpg 20120819-185816.jpg

This meme is originated by Jen and Kellee at TeachMentorTexts. Thanks!

{Celebrating the books we’ve read in the past week & the titles we are currently reading.}

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ARC—Book will be born on February 25

I have to say that I’m a little sad to see the Ascendance Trilogy come to an end. I’ve grown rather fond of Sage and Jaron… And Imogen… and Amarinda, Roden, Tobias, Mott… The list goes on. One thing is for sure: Jaron is incorrigible.  I remember author Jennifer Nielsen telling us via Skype how she stops when writing each situation to think about the most audacious response—and that’s what Jaron would do.

Everything comes full circle in Shadow Throne. So many of the little details that Nielsen dropped in False Prince and Runaway King are used in the climax of Shadow. Yeah, you have to suspend reality a little bit—but I’m not reading this series because I want a realistic Medievalish novel. I want swashbuckling, bold-faced heroes who do anything for honor, love, and kingdom. That is the Ascendance Trilogy.

§

What were PARENTS reading last week? Let’s check it out… (Thank you, commenters, for contributing to our book awareness. Reading is not a “school thing”.)

For every parent who leaves a comment on TODAY’S POST with what you’re reading, I’ll give your child a BUSTED ticket…

§
[Check back throughout the day for updates of my students’ reading.]
These past few weeks, my A Class read:
17 books
My B Class read:
18 books
My C Class read:
14 books
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Codename Zero
Coming in February
Description

From Chris Rylander, author of The Fourth Stall, comes an incredibly funny and clever mash-up of middle-grade school story and spy adventure, in the vein of H.I.V.E. and NERDS.

There are places in the world where heroes are born. There are places where brave men and women fight a never-ending battle against evil in order to keep our country and all other countries safe. There are places where the fate of our planet is being decided, even at this very moment, the consequences of which will echo through history.

None of these places is in North Dakota.

Carson Fender, seventh grader and notorious prankster, knows this. He’s lived in North Dakota for his entire life, going to the same boring school every day, the same boring movie theater every week, the same boring state fair every year. Nothing ever changes, and nothing ever happens. That is, until today. Because today a desperate man hands him a package with a dire set of instructions. And that package is going to lead Carson to discover that there’s a secret government agency operating in his small, quiet North Dakota hometown.

And that this agency needs his help.

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Here is a great interview with Mrs. Anderson on NPR:
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13412377
This is the conclusion to Starters.
Starters (Starters, #1)
I learned last year that a two-book series is called a duology.

This week, students will be leaving their current reading in the comments.

I hope it works ;-}

Thanks,
David Etkin

1.24 {BookFlix Friday} More great NF trailers

Today is

Few things can draw a reader to a new book like a book trailer can. Each Friday I will endeavor to bring a couple to you—some new or recent, some teasers of upcoming books, and a few “classics”. Get the popcorn ready.

Lights…Camera…Action!


Time for some more NF [non-fiction] book trailers… or NF book-related videos. We read NF to find out about the fascinating world and people around us.

First, I’d like to highlight this trailer that one of last year’s students, Amanda A., made for The Diary of a Young Girl.

Book Description

Release date: June 1, 1993
Discovered in the attic in which she spent the last years of her life, Anne Frank’s remarkable diary has since become a world classic — a powerful reminder of the horrors of war and an eloquent testament to the human spirit. In 1942, with Nazis occupying Holland, a thirteen-year-old Jewish girl and her family fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding. For the next two years, until their whereabouts were betrayed to the Gestapo, they and another family lived cloistered in the “Secret Annex” of an old office building. Cut off from the outside world, they faced hunger, boredom, the constant cruelties of living in confined quarters, and the ever-present threat of discovery and death. In her diary Anne Frank recorded vivid impressions of her experiences during this period. By turns thoughtful, moving, and amusing, her account offers a fascinating commentary on human courage and frailty and a compelling self-portrait of a sensitive and spirited young woman whose promise was tragically cut short.

§ § §

Selected by Indie Booksellers for the Winter 2009 
“Knucklehead is an absolute scream, detailing the misadventures of Jon Scieszka and his five brothers growing up together. There are horrible Halloween costumes, broken bones, unbelievable nicknames, pee fights, weird Cub Scout rules, socks for birthday presents, and that’s just the beginning.”
— Sarah Todd, Children’s Book World, Haverford, PA

How did Jon Scieszka get so funny, anyway? Growing up as one of six brothers was a good start, but that was just the beginning. Throw in Catholic school, lots of comic books, lazy summers at the lake with time to kill, babysitting misadventures, TV shows, jokes told at family dinner, and the result is Knucklehead. Part memoir, part scrapbook, this hilarious trip down memory lane provides a unique glimpse into the formation of a creative mind and a free spirit.

§ § §

In honor of the just-passed MLK Holiday, here’s…

From Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s daughter, Dr. Bernice A. King: “My father’s dream continues to live on from generation to generation, and this beautiful and powerful illustrated edition of his world-changing “I Have a Dream” speech brings his inspiring message of freedom, equality, and peace to the youngest among us—those who will one day carry his dream forward for everyone.”

On August 28, 1963, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington, Martin Luther King gave one of the most powerful and memorable speeches in our nation’s history. His words, paired with Caldecott Honor winner Kadir Nelson’s magnificent paintings, make for a picture book certain to be treasured by children and adults alike. The themes of equality and freedom for all are not only relevant today, 50 years later, but also provide young readers with an important introduction to our nation’s past. Included with the book is an audio CD of the speech.


About the Illustrator

KADIR NELSON is the acclaimed illustrator of Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom and Henry’s Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad, both Caldecott Honor books. His other titles includeWe Are the Ship, a Robert F. Sibert Medal winner and Coretta Scott King Award recipient, and Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African-Americans.

BONUS VIDEO: The best-known part of the speech–

1.22 {Whatever Wednesday}: Losing Reading

Whatever Wednesday — a chance to post something I’ve seen that I’m diggin’. Though often a cool quote or poster, it might simply be a picture.

Enjoy!… and consider posting your own Whatever.


In honor of Sure Signs of Crazy and the main character Sarah, who is infatuated with To Kill a Mockingbird—I bring you a cool quote and poster.

May we never love to read for this reason:

.

1.21 It’s Monday! What are you reading? #SureSignsofCrazy #ShadowThrone

A new week, a new batch of books—both finished and being read. Today is…

Ring-the-Bell Monday & It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

20120117-111701.jpg 20120819-185816.jpg

This meme is originated by Jen and Kellee at TeachMentorTexts. Thanks!

{Celebrating the books we’ve read in the past week & the titles we are currently reading.}

Screen Shot 2013-12-31 at 10.32.21 AM

Description

Love can be a trouble word for some people. Crazy is also a trouble word.
I should know.
You’ve never met anyone exactly like twelve-year-old Sarah Nelson. While most of her friends obsess over Harry Potter, she spends her time writing letters to Atticus Finch. She collects trouble words in her diary. Her best friend is a plant. And she’s never known her mother, who left when Sarah was two.
Since then, Sarah and her dad have moved from one small Texas town to another, and not one has felt like home.
Everything changes when Sarah launches an investigation into her family’s Big Secret. She makes unexpected new friends and has her first real crush, and instead of a “typical boring Sarah Nelson summer,” this one might just turn out to be extraordinary.

Sarah is a plucky, quirky character who I rooted for all the way through this thought provoking book. She had so much character, life, and insight. She has some big questions to answer over this summer of her life. We learn that when one family member suffers from crazy, there is a domino effect on those who remain. I put To Kill a Mockingbird on my TBR list after reading this book. I enjoyed how Sarah wrote to Atticus Finch—an idea I just might have to try with my students…

We did a little Tweeting about Sure Signs of Crazy, too…

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§

What were PARENTS reading last week? Let’s check it out… (Thank you, commenters, for contributing to our book awareness. Reading is not a “school thing”.)

For every parent who leaves a comment on TODAY’S POST with what you’re reading, I’ll give your child a BUSTED ticket…

§
[Check back throughout the day for updates of my students’ reading.]
These past few weeks, my A Class read:
18 books
My B Class read:
15 books
My C Class read:
7 books
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17667561
SO excited to get my hands on this ARC so I can finish The Ascendance Trilogy. I’m about halfway through.
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Here is a great interview with Mrs. Anderson on NPR:
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13412377
This is the conclusion to Starters.
Starters (Starters, #1)
I learned last year that a two-book series is called a duology.
Codename Zero

This week, students will be leaving their current reading in the comments.

I hope it works ;-}

Thanks,
David Etkin

1.13 It’s Monday! What are you reading? #WeWereLiars @elockhart

A new week, a new batch of books—both finished and being read. Today is…

Ring-the-Bell Monday & It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

20120117-111701.jpg 20120819-185816.jpg

This meme is originated by Jen and Kellee at TeachMentorTexts. Thanks!

{Celebrating the books we’ve read in the past week & the titles we are currently reading.}

Screen Shot 2013-12-31 at 10.32.21 AM

This was a fascinating book. I’m glad Ms. Minnich drew my attention to its presence on Netgalley. It was also fun having multiple conversations about the end of the book on Twitter, Facebook, and text. Mysterious!

I’m looking forward to hearing and seeing readers’ reactions to this book once it hits the shelves. Its birthday is on May 13th.

From Amazon:

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from National Book Award finalist and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart.
Read it.
And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.

§
Looking for some good picture books? Here are a few:
{Dan Santat with some more great illustrations…}
§
What were PARENTS reading last week? Let’s check it out… (Thank you, commenters, for contributing to our book awareness. Reading is not a “school thing”.)

For every parent who leaves a comment on TODAY’S POST with what you’re reading, I’ll give your child a BUSTED ticket…

§
[Check back throughout the day for updates of my students’ reading.]
These past few weeks, my A Class read:
17 books
My B Class read:
15 books
My C Class read:
19 books
Screen Shot 2013-12-31 at 10.32.08 AM
Screen Shot 2013-01-15 at 9.39.48 PM
 
13412377
This is the conclusion to Starters.
Starters (Starters, #1)
I learned last year that a two-book series is called a duology.
Codename Zero

This week, students will be leaving their current reading in the comments.

I hope it works ;-}

Thanks,
David Etkin

1.10 {BookFlix Friday} NF books (1.3 REDUX)

Today is

Few things can draw a reader to a new book like a book trailer can. Each Friday I will endeavor to bring a couple to you—some new or recent, some teasers of upcoming books, and a few “classics”. Get the popcorn ready.

Lights…Camera…Action!


From Today’s SHMS Morning Show announcements:

     +     

Here is the site for the series.

A couple great non-fiction books for this week:

Description

Over the course of history men and women have lived and died. In fact, getting sick and dying can be a big, ugly mess-especially before the modern medical care that we all enjoy today. How They Croaked relays all the gory details of how nineteen world figures gave up the ghost. For example:

It is believed that Henry VIII’s remains exploded within his coffin while lying in state.
Doctors “treated” George Washington by draining almost 80 ounces of blood before he finally kicked the bucket.
Right before Beethoven wrote his last notes, doctors drilled a hole in his stomach without any pain medication.
Readers will be interested well past the final curtain, and feel lucky to live in a world with painkillers, X-rays, soap, and 911.

Here is a trailer for a movie about Temple Grandin. It gives you a pretty good idea.

Description

When Temple Grandin was born, her parents knew that she was different. Years later she was diagnosed with autism.
While Temple’s doctor recommended a hospital, her mother believed in her. Temple went to school instead.
Today, Dr. Temple Grandin is a scientist and professor of animal science at Colorado State University. Her world-changing career revolutionized the livestock industry. As an advocate for autism, Temple uses her experience as an example of the unique contributions that autistic people can make.
This compelling biography complete with Temple’s personal photos takes us inside her extraordinary mind and opens the door to a broader understanding of autism.


And for good measure—because we enjoyed his “Yoga Pants” song yesterday… And because it goes along so well with our read aloud, Poop Happened:

Here is the original, “Dust in the Wind”, if you want to compare it to the parody.

1.6 It’s Monday! What are you reading? #TooManyToCount @gaepol @joknowles @origamiyoda @sarahalbee

A new week, a new batch of books—both finished and being read. Today is…

Ring-the-Bell Monday & It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

20120117-111701.jpg 20120819-185816.jpg

This meme is originated by Jen and Kellee at TeachMentorTexts. Thanks!

{Celebrating the books we’ve read in the past week & the titles we are currently reading.}

Screen Shot 2013-12-31 at 10.32.21 AMThis is actually the past couple weeks…

I’m looking forward to telling you more about this book—but the author herself has sworn me to secrecy until it is closer to its birthday.

From Goodreads:

Still reeling from her little brother’s drowning death, a girl finds her herself holding back – from summer trips to the ocean, friendship, budding romance – till she meets another young boy who may be her brother’s reincarnation, which awakens her to new possibilities.

12384984

This was a beautiful book. Powerful and emotional. I don’t want to say too much. Special thanks to Kailey K. for letting me borrow it—my daughter got to read it also. Here is the summary from IndieBound:

Selected by Indie Booksellers for the Summer 2012 Kids’ Next List
“Knowles plunks the reader down amidst a set of warm, loveable, flawed characters who have to deal with the unimaginable. As a middle child, Fern feels adrift while her busy family tumbles in different directions. When tragedy strikes, through Fern’s eyes we experience the unraveling that can happen to any loving family confronted with a huge loss. Knowles takes the reader’s hand and deftly winds through the maze of grief and shows how navigating with our hearts will always lead us back home.”
— Jane Knight, Bear Pond Books of Montpelier, Montpelier, VT

Description

Starting middle school brings all the usual challenges — until the unthinkable happens, and Fern and her family must find a way to heal.

Twelve-year-old Fern feels invisible. It seems as though everyone in her family has better things to do than pay attention to her: Mom (when she’s not meditating) helps Dad run the family restaurant; Sarah is taking a gap year after high school; and Holden pretends that Mom and Dad and everyone else doesn’t know he’s gay, even as he fends off bullies at school. Then there’s Charlie: three years old, a “surprise” baby, the center of everyone’s world. He’s devoted to Fern, but he’s annoying, too, always getting his way, always dirty, always commanding attention. If it wasn’t for Ran, Fern’s calm and positive best friend, there’d be nowhere to turn. Ran’s mantra, “All will be well,” is soothing in a way that nothing else seems to be. And when Ran says it, Fern can almost believe it’s true. But then tragedy strikes- and Fern feels not only more alone than ever, but also responsible for the accident that has wrenched her family apart. All will not be well. Or at least all will never be the same.

I had a lot of fun with Jabba. Angleberger somehow keeps this series fresh—and keeps coming up with clever names for the origami Star Wars figures. This time, the crew at McQuarrie is fighting against the newly mandated state testing video review sessions. Can they defeat the evil principal and Professor FunTime? Check this series out if you haven’t.
Dark times have fallen on McQuarrie Middle School. Dwight’s back—and not a moment too soon, as the gang faces the FunTime Menace: a new educational program designed to raise students’ standardized test scores. Instead, it’s driving everyone crazy with its obnoxious videos of Professor FunTime and his insidious singing calculator! When Principal Rabbski cancels the students’ field trip—along with art, music, and LEGO classes—to make time for FunTime, the students turn to Origami Yoda for help. But some crises are too big for Origami Yoda to handle alone: Form a Rebel Alliance the students must. United, can they defeat the FunTime Menace and cope with a surprise attack from Jabba the Puppett?
With this latest episode in the explosively popular Origami Yoda series, Tom Angleberger proves once again that he “has his finger puppet squarely on the erratic pulse of middle-school life” (Washington Post).
§
What were PARENTS reading last week? Let’s check it out… (Thank you, commenters, for contributing to our book awareness. Readingis not a “school thing”.)

For every parent who leaves a comment on TODAY’S POST with what you’re reading, I’ll give your child a BUSTED ticket…

§
[Check back throughout the day for updates of my students’ reading.]
These past few weeks, my A Class read:
35 books
My B Class read:
24 books
My C Class read:
31 books
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This book is awesome! If you haven’t seen it yet, do yourself a favor and track it down.
From IndieBound:

Did lead pipes
cause the fall of the Roman Empire?

How many toilets were in the
average Egyptian pyramid?

How did a knight wearing fifty
pounds of armor go to the bathroom?

Was poor hygiene the last straw
before the French Revolution?

Did Thomas Crapper really invent
the modern toilet?

How do astronauts go
in space?

History finally comes out of the water-closet in
this exploration of how people’s need to relieve themselves shaped human
development from ancient times to the present. Throughout time, the most
successful civilizations were the ones who realized that everyone poops, and they
had better figure out how to get rid of it! From the world’s first flushing toilet
invented by ancient Minoan plumbers to castle moats in the middle ages that
used more than just water to repel enemies, Sarah Albee traces human
civilization using one revolting yet fascinating theme.

A blend of historical photos and humorous illustrations
bring the answers to these questions and more to life, plus extra-gross sidebar information adds to the potty humor. This is bathroom reading kids, teachers,
librarians, and parents won’t be able to put down!

I was scrolling through Facebook last week and my long-distance teacher friend and Nerdy Book Club pal Cindy Minnich demanded that people get the ARC of this book and read it. So I am:
My daughter brought this home from the library and I was intrigued by the first few pages. The narrator is a 12-year-old girl whose mother tried to drown her when she was only two. Whoa:
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I appreciate that Jacob C. sent me a picture of his Books on Deck stack. SWEET!:
photo (10)
Katie Davis left over Christmas break of her senior year for a short mission trip to Uganda and her life was turned completely inside out. She found herself so moved by the people of Uganda and the needs she saw that she knew her calling was to return and care for them.
 
13412377
This is the conclusion to Starters.
Starters (Starters, #1)
I learned last year that a two-book series is called a duology.
Codename Zero

[Check back at the end of the day to see the cool spinning pictures of what my students are reading.]

Click the picture below for A Class SpinCam
Click the picture below for B Class SpinCam
Click the picture below for C Class SpinCam
[If anyone else is using SpinCam or Padlet to show what your students are reading, I’d love to know about it and link to my Friday post. Thanks.]
Thanks,
David Etkin