Intro
Hi and welcome to Books Between - a podcast for teachers, parents, librarians, and anyone who wants to connect kids between 8-12 to books they’ll love. I’m your host, Corrina Allen - a mom of two girls, a 5th grade teacher, and yeah...starting to have those back to school bad dreams where I’ve arrived at school and I have no lesson prepared or all the furniture has been removed from my room or I’m suddenly teaching Kindergarten!
This is Episode #33 and today I’m talking about launching a reading community in those first few weeks of school and then I welcome author Celia C. Pérez to the show to chat about her debut middle grade novel The First Rule of Punk.
But first I am excited to tell you that today’s episode is sponsored by WriteAbout.com - a writing community and publishing platform that is perfect for classrooms. If you are like me and are looking for an engaging and authentic way to make sure your students are writing every day, you are absolutely going to want to visit WriteAbout.com to check it out. My favorite thing right now is the thousands of ideas across various genres and formats to inspire your students to write more and write more thoughtfully. So - at the end of the show, I’ll share with you a few of my favorite writing ideas I found on WriteAbout that will get my students excited about writing about their reading this year.
Main Topic - Launching a Reading Community
As the summer winds down and I head back to school, I have been thinking a lot about how I want to make this year different. Make it count. Make it matter. And be more focused and intentional about cultivating that reading community from the start. So today I’ll share some thoughts about how to really develop a strong community of readers before school starts, on that first day, and in those first few weeks.
Before School Starts
Cultivating that new community of readers started this week before I even met my students. I finally got into my classroom this week after our custodians have been busy waxing and cleaning. (Everything revolves around that waxing schedule, right? There was one year I came this close to shimmying through the window to get into my room!)
This morning, I was able to walk through the door - so things are good! And before my new 5th graders even step foot into the classroom, there were three things I knew I needed to take care of:
- Make sure I have scheduled time every day for them to read and for me to read to them. From the very first day. And treat those times as sacrosanct.
- Make sure they can see themselves in our classroom library. On recent episode (#28 if you want to scroll back in your feed and listen) I talk about the diversity audit that my students did to analyze the books in our library. And over the summer, I have been working on adding a better variety of titles. When I dust off those shelves and put those books in those genre bins and select some enticing titles to feature face out, making sure those books are as diverse as my class and as diverse as their world is crucial.
- Create those displays that will get them excited about the reading they’ll do this year. In the hallway right before they enter our room, they’ll pass this giant #ClassroomBookADay display that I have been diligently working on. A big shout out to Lori Lewis in the #ClassroomBookADay Facegroup group who shared (for free!) this cool display of polaroid picture templates for each of the 180 books we’ll be reading this year. So I have been cutting and trimming and measuring and tapping and it’s an impressive display and a promise of what’s to come. And as in year’s past, I also create a “My Reading Life” display for the door where I showcase covers of some recent reads and some all-time favorites. And eventually that will be turned over to my students for their own displays. And of course I always have my own “Mrs. Allen is Currently Reading….” chalkboard display.
On the First Day
That first day is so crucial in setting the right tone and really conveying your priorities by your actions and what you pay attention to. On the first day of school, I have two goals:
- Get to know my students as much as possible. Pronounce their names correctly, start to learn their interests and passions and strengths. And start to build that trusting relationship. Because if I am going to ask them to open themselves up and take risks as readers (and writers!) this year, they have to know that I care about them and want to know their authentic self.
- I want them excited to come back. Gone are the days when I used to start with an extensive review of the syllabus and grading procedures and setting up the rules. Nope. We are having fun. There will be music and movement and an engineering challenge.
And at least one read aloud - probably two! And a chance for them to do some book tastings and exploring what’s available in our classroom library. And - some down time when they can dive into those books and start to build back up that stamina for focused independent reading.
During the First Weeks
During those first few weeks is when that classroom culture of reading really starts to emerge as routines and relationships are established. Within that first week, I like to give a reading survey to get a sense of their likes and attitudes about reading. This is also really important because a carefully crafted survey can give you great data when you compare the answers to those questions at the end of the year. I used to give a paper one but now I use a Google Form. If you want to take a look at a really good sample, Pernille Ripp has a great one on her site that I will link to for you.
But don’t dismiss the power of casual conversation about books during those snippets of time throughout the day like arrival and dismissal and in the hallway. Absolutely share what you are reading but that authentic reading community happens when kids can share with each other their thoughts and feelings and reactions (both good and bad) to that book they brought home last night. A huge part of fostering that reading culture is providing engaging and authentic ways for kids to talk about the books they are choosing to read.
The days of me assigning a diorama of Hatchet or a cereal box craftivity about Wonder are done. So instead, we’ll have book clubs, we’ll write blog posts and share them with a real audience, we’ll use WeVideo to do booktalks and post them on a YouTube channel, we’ll Skype with authors and other classes for the Global Read Aloud, we’ll create #BookSnaps of our favorite parts, and we’ll tweet our favorite lines and tag the author and cross our fingers for a response! And - most importantly - we’ll do even cooler things that are ideas my students bring with them!
So - I am so so excited for fantastic year of reflecting and growth and learning with my students and with you. I would love to know how you launch your school year to cultivate a community of readers.
You can tag me on Twitter or Instagram - our handle is @books_between or email me at booksbetween@gmail.com . I would love to hear from you.
Interview Outline - Celia C. Pérez
Today I am really really excited to welcome Celia C. Pérez to the podcast. She is the author of the recently released middle grade novel The First Rule of Punk. We chat about her inspirations for the novel, zines, and The Wizard of Oz!
The First Rule of Punk
Your debut middle grade novel, The First Rule of Punk, has been getting all kinds of buzz - everyone is talking about this book! I just cannot wait for the world to meet Malú.
Can you tell us a bit about this girl - and a bit about her story?
One of the aspects that makes this novel so unique are the zines that are included between some of the chapters. And - I will be honest and tell you that the word “zine” was something I had heard of but the mental image I had was nothing close to the truth. So - for those, like me, who might not be aware...
What are zines?
And what was your process like for creating the zines that are in The First Rule of Punk?
When Malú and her mom move to Chicago, one of the first things they do is scope out and find the neighborhood coffee shop and the neighborhood library.
What was your childhood library like?
There is this tension between Malú and her mother about how to dress and behave. She thinks her mom wants her to be this ideal Mexican-American “senorita” and Malú want to dress in a more edgy style.
Did you feel that cultural tug-of-war in your own family?
I noticed this recurring thread of The Wizard of Oz in the book!
Are you a fan?
I was so intrigued by Malu’s worry dolls - can you tell us a little more about them?
So, I have to ask…. cilantro or no cilantro?
Your Writing Life
What were some of the challenges with writing this book?
What’s next for you - do you think you’ll stick with middle grade?
Your Reading Life
What were some of your favorite books as a child?
What have you been reading lately that you’ve liked?
Thank You!
Closing
Okay - that wraps up our show this week. If you have a question or an idea about a topic we should cover, let me know. You can email me at booksbetween@gmail.com or message me on Twitter/Instagram at the handle @Books_Between.
Thank you so much for joining me this week. You can find an outline of interviews and a full transcript of all the other parts of our show along with all of our previous episodes at AlltheWonders.com. And, if you are liking the show, please help others find us too by telling a friend, sharing on social media, or leaving a rating on iTunes or Stitcher.
And thanks again to WriteAbout.com for supporting the podcast this month - if you head over to their website you’ll find awesome ideas to get your students writing about their reading this year. One of my favorites is: “You have to choose a character from a book you’ve read to lead a group or team you are part of. Who do you choose and why?” (I know who I’d pick!) But I think the prompt I’m going to start with this year is the one called “My Life As A Reader – Memories of Reading” Definitely check that one out when you head over to the WriteAbout site.
Thanks again and see you soon! Bye!
Episode Links:
Celia’s website: http://celiacperez.com
Witch's Sister by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
The Dollhouse Murders by Betty Ren Wright
Encyclopedia Brown Series by Donald J. Sobol
The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton
Tex by S. E. Hinton
Rumble Fish by S. E. Hinton
That Was Then, This is Now by S. E. Hinton
The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora by Pablo Cartaya
The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street by Karina Yan Glaser
The Red Velvet Underground: A Rock Memoir, with Recipes by Freda Love Smith
The Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling
Intro
Hi everyone and welcome to Books Between - a podcast for teachers, parents, librarians and anyone who wants to help connect kids between 8-12 to books they will love. I’m your host, Corrina Allen - a mom, a teacher, and really excited that I got to see the solar eclipse this afternoon! Here in Syracuse we had about 70% (ish) coverage and my daughters and husband and I hung out in the backyard with glasses our neighbors so kindly gave us and we saw the light dim and the shadows get eerie. I couldn’t quite get the colander trick to work but that’s okay - I loved all of your photos of your experiences that you shared online.
This is Episode #32 and today, as promised last week, I’m sharing with you a conversation with Betsy Bird - librarian, host of the new Fuse 8 n’Kate podcast, and the editor of the fabulous new short story anthology called FUNNY GIRL! We chat about the book, what makes her laugh, our least favorite picture books, and, and......I challenge her to a fart noise contest!
Take a listen….
Interview Outline - Betsy Bird
For those listening who may or may not be familiar with you, can you give us a little introduction of who you are and what you do in the world of children’s literature?
Where does the name Fuse 8 come from?
Funny Girl
You’ve mentioned that Funny Girl was the result of noticing that kids wanted funny books and there weren’t too many options written by women. So you proposed the idea to your editor..
Once this project was a go, how did you go about finding authors to contribute and what was your criteria when you pitched the idea to them?
Have you read any of the stories with your own kids ?
So, you’ve mentioned that girls are often discouraged from using humor as a coping mechanism. In your own life - either now or as a kid - what were some times when using humor has helped you?
It was interesting - when I got the book and looked at the Table of Contents and I was browsing all the authors, i was thinking “Ooooo...this is going to be awesome!”
But - the authors whose stories made me laugh the most, were NOT the ones I was expecting! I actually loved that - it helped me find new people to get to know.
Aside from stories like those in Funny Girl, what are some things that make you laugh? What’s your sense of humor like?
Fuse 8 n’ Kate Podcast
So you have a new podcast! What made you decide to jump back into podcasting?
What is a popular picture book that you don’t like?
Your Reading Life
What were some of your favorite books as a child?
As a parent, how do you make time for reading with your family? And what does that that look like?
What have you been reading lately that you’ve liked?
Where do you see a gap in the world of children’s books?
Thank You!
Closing
Alright - that wraps up our show this week. We have some great topics and interviews and book talks coming up including some thoughts on building a community of readers, conversations with Celia Perez about The First Rule of Punk, and Alan Gratz about Refugee AND Ban This Book. So be on the lookout for those.
And if you have a question or an idea about a topic we should cover, I would love to hear from you. You can email me at booksbetween@gmail.com or connect on Twitter/Instagram at the handle @Books_Between.
Thank you so much for joining me this week. You can find an outline of interviews and a full transcript of all the other parts of our show along with all of our previous episodes at AlltheWonders.com.
And, if you are liking the show, please help others find us too by telling a friend, sharing on social media, or leaving a rating on iTunes or Stitcher.
Thanks again and see you soon! Bye!
Episode Links:
Betsy Bird ’s Fuse 8 Production Blog on School Library Journal
Listen to Fuse 8 n’ Kate Podcast here on iTunes or Soundcloud
Betsy’s Books:
Wild Things!: Acts of Mischief in Children’s Literature
Books and Other Things We Discussed:
Sipping Spiders Through a Straw: Campfire Songs for Monsters by Kelly DiPucchio & Gris Grimly
Akilah Hughes’ YouTube Channel - Akilah, Obviously!
Accident by Andrea Tsurumi
If I Ran the Zoo by Dr. Seuss
The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson
Paeony Lewis’ blog post comparing Picture Books in bookshop chains in the US and UK
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss
Horton Hatches the Egg by Dr. Seuss
In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
Bumble-Ardy by Maurice Sendak
Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister
The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
Love You Forever by Robert Munsch
Furious George Goes Bananas: A Primate Parody by Michael Rex
Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
The Birchbark House by Louise Erdich
A Time to Keep by Tasha Tudor
Wait Till Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn
Ghost Cat by Mark Abley
The Girl With the Silver Eyes by Willo Davis Roberts
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Patina by Jason Reynolds
Betsy’s blog post about Patina
Orphan Island by Laurel Snyder
Betsy’s blog post about Orphan Island
Betsy’s Blog Post “Where Are All the Black Boys?”
Intro
Hello and welcome to Books Between - a podcast all about celebrating children’s literature! If you are a teacher, parent, or librarian who wants to help connect kids between 8-12 to books they will love - then you are in the right spot! I am your host, Corrina Allen - a 5th grade teacher, a mum of an 8 and 10 year old, and baking brownies and bundt cakes and obviously binge-watching a little bit too much of the Great British Baking Show lately. And I will apologise to my British listeners for this atrocious accent. On the other hand, I do rather blame your show for my potentially not fitting into any of my school clothes since I have been craving nothing but carbs… So, if you hear me slip into a weird Britishesque accent today - I’m sorry. Too much Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry in my head!
This is Episode #31 and Today is all about exceptional anthologies and collections that your middle grade readers are going to love.
Main Topic - Exceptional Anthologies and Short Story Collections
Today we are talking all about anthologies and short story collections. First off, we’ll begin with definitions. I used to think those were interchangeable terms but I have come to realize they are not. Then, I’ll share with you some fabulous titles you might want to check out, including some really, really exceptional new releases. Then we’ll chat about some reasons why you should consider including more anthologies and short story collections in your school or classroom library.
Definitions
According to my favorite dictionary (Merriam-Webster - mainly because they have a hilarious Twitter account!) an anthology is “a collection of selected literary pieces or passages or works of art or music” and then it goes on to say “a published collection of writings (such as poems or short stories) by different authors” And that’s the key - anthologies include stories by different authors! The Guys Read Series is a good example of this.
On the other hand, a collection is a book of selected writings (maybe poems, maybe short stories, maybe essays…) all by the same author. Cynthia Rylant’s Every Living Thing is an example you might know.
But….I will say, I see those terms used as synonyms A LOT.
Fantastic Anthologies and Collections To Add to Your Library
And now - a selection - a sampling - a smorgasbord of anthologies and collections to add to your library or introduce to your children. And before we begin, I just want to give a huge thank you to everyone who offered ideas for this list when I put out a call on Twitter and Facebook for suggestions. In particular, you will not be surprised to know that Donalyn Miller was on it with a fabulous list of suggestions.
Let’s start with some classics and older releases.
Best Shorts: Favorite Short Stories to Share
This anthology was but together by Avi and includes stories by Natalie Babbitt, Rafe Martin, Lloyd Alexander, and lots more. And it includes a great mix of time travel, and animal stories, and legends and a touch of the supernatural. In particular, “The Woman in White” by Patricia McKissack is one to check out.
Every Living Thing by Cynthia Rylant
This is a collection of 12 stories - each one about how people’s lives are changed by an animal. This is a classic collection - and if you have kids who are animal lovers, this is definitely one they might enjoy.
Gary Soto has a number of incredible collections - Baseball in April and Local News are among the ones that would be good for middle grade readers.
My Life in Dog Years by Gary Paulsen
Up until last year, Hatchet was on our 5th grade required reading list and for those kids that really connected with that book, this collection was a great next book for them. Each story centers around Paulsen’s relationship with a special dog in his life. So this are also great examples of smaller memoirs.
Another great dog anthology is Because of Shoe edited by Ann M. Martin who also contributes a piece. This one features nine fictional stories that appeal to a variety of age ranges.
The People Could Fly by Virginia Hamilton
Oh how I loved this book when it first came out! This is a collection of 24 retellings of black American folk tales - everything from animal stories to supernatural tales to stories of enslaved men and women seeking freedom.
In a similar vein, Patricia McKissack has two collections worth checking out - Dark Thirty and it’s companion, which she wrote later, Porch Lies. Dark Thirty includes ten horror-themed stories with a Southern Historical flavor. And Porch Lies still has that eerie quality but also more humor. If you have a child that likes the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark Series, these would be a couple books to put in their hands next.
Then there is Red Ridin’ in the Hood by Patricia Santos Marcantonio. This one was strongly recommend by Matthew Winner and with one quick glance at the description online, I can see why. This is a collection of eleven classic fairy tales retold with a twist of Latino culture. Let me read you the description of the title story: "Red Ridin' in the Hood," moves the setting to the barrio, where Red decides to brave dangerous Forest Street in order to reach her abuelita and encounters the menacing wolf in a thumping Chevy lowrider.” I have GOT to get my hands on that!
If your students or children are into graphic novels, there are several really great collections.
The Comic Squad Series have been favorites with my 5th graders. Right now there are three of them - Recess, Lunch, and Detention which just came out last month so I need to pick that one up before heading back to school.
Also - definitely check out Fairy Tale Comics! This is a very cool collection with some awesomely weird stories in it. If your kids like that one, there is also Fable Comics and Nursery Rhyme Comics.
So - if your students and children are like mine, they LOVE the Amulet Series by Kazu Kibuishi. And I recently discovered - again thanks to Matthew Winner - that he has edited a series of graphic novel anthologies called the Explorer Series. (Why have I not heard of these before? They look incredible!) Each of the three books has a different theme. So the first is “Mystery Boxes”, the second is “Lost Islands” and the third one is “Hidden Doors”. The list of comic contributors is outstanding - like Raina Telgemeier, Faith Erin Hicks, Dave Roman, Jen Wang…. I gotta go get these!
Been There, Done That - is a really special anthology which has fictional stories by award-winning and best-selling authors and also includes the real-life story that inspired those narratives. I LOVE how this could show kids how you can mine your own life for stories. This is one of those books that I’m like - how did this get by me? This is GREAT!
The Guys Read Series - This group of seven anthologies is edited by Jon Scieszka and each one has a different theme like Terrifying Tales, The Sports Pages, Other Worlds, Funny Business, and the most recent one Heroes & Villains. And, despite their name, they include stories by both men and women. For example, Dan Gutman, Kelly Barnhill, Matt de la Peña, Neal Shusterman, Shannon Hale, and so so many more!
And now onto some really fabulous new collections and anthologies that your kids are going to love.
The Time We Ran Away - This anthology is put out by Scholastic and I think is offered as the free book for Book Club orders over $50 this September. It includes eleven short stories by best-selling authors like Angela Cervantes, Sarah Weeks, and Dan Gemeinhart. I can’t seem to find it anywhere else (yet) so I think you’re going to have to get this one through Scholastic for now. https://clubs.scholastic.com/the-time-we-ran-away-10-book-pack/9781338253467-rco-us.html
Flying Lessons
This anthology edited by Ellen Oh includes new stories by Kwame Alexander, Kelly Baptist, Tim Tingle, Grace Lin among so many others. It was released last January. And I got it the day it came out and had wonderful intentions of reading it right away. And then - how can you say no to a line of kids reading over your shoulder and wanting to borrow it? So - all I can say is that what I read was good and it was passed from kid to kid to kid until school let out. Clearly - it’s a winner.
Another new anthology that I LOVED this summer was Our Story Begins: Your Favorite Authors and Illustrators Share Fun, Inspiring, and Occasionally Ridiculous Things They Wrote and Drew As Kids . Well - that pretty much says it all! This book is edited by Elissa Brent Weissman and I especially loved the images of the author’s hand written stories and diary entries and sketches from when they were young. And also hearing about the inspiration of a new typewriter or a teacher’s supportive comment on a report card or the chance to enter a writing contest. It’s fascinating to see the beginnings of these 25 writers’ journeys.
If you have students who like something a little dark, a little twisted - then Fearsome Creatures of the Lumberwoods by Hal Johnson is one they are going to love being scared by. This collection is “20 Chilling Tales from the Wilderness” told from the perspective of a cryptozoologist - a person who studies legendary beasts like Big Foot or the chupacabras. One reviewer called these “faux-lore” which is perfect. My ten-year old and I really love listening to the podcast Lore together and I think this will really be up her alley. It comes out August 22nd so be on the lookout for that next week.
And finally - Funny Girl - edited by Betsy Bird. In fact, in our very next episode, I have the great pleasure of sharing with you a conversation with Betsy Bird about this book and LOTS of other things. We talk a fair amount about it in our interview so I think I’ll just say here that you should definitely go get it. It is truly laugh out loud funny. And oh do we need some humor in our lives. So definitely get this one and I’m...I’m hoping for a Volume 2!
7 Reasons Why You Should Include More Anthologies and Collections
I am going to say up front that I don’t have a ton of these in my classroom. But - I loved them as a child and I’ve noticed lately that my own daughters have been picking more and more of them up. I thought - I need to really expand that part of our library. So here are 7 reasons why you might want to consider including more anthologies and collections.
- Anthologies are gateways to discovering other amazing authors. So a child might pick up Guys Read: Funny Business and be drawn to the Jeff Kinney story, “Unaccompanied Minors” but then get introduced to the amazing Christopher Paul Curtis or David Lubar and suddenly discover their new favorite author.
- On the other hand, a collection of writing pieces all by one author is great when you want to go more in depth and dig into everything they have to offer. Often authors who are known for, say, novels or a certain genre - will play around in short pieces and try something new. Like poetry or a personal essay. I feel like a collection gives you a good sense of who an author is and more of a window into their life. Anyone who loves Gary Paulsen should read My Life in Dog Years.
- Anthologies and collections can help kids gain some reading traction if their stamina hasn’t been so great. They can get that satisfaction of finishing a story or an essay in a short amount of time and start to build up to longer texts. Especially at the beginning of the year or after a break, starting with something shorter can be a great idea. When I’ve had reading lulls in my ownlife, short stories can really kick-start me again.
- They are great for trying out new genres and new formats without the investment in a longer novel. My youngest daughter wouldn’t necessarily pick up a biography but she LOVED Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls. And although most of my students really love graphic novels, I’ve had more than few turn up their noses at that format. So I’ve handed them books like Comic Squad or Fairy Tale Comics and ask them to just try one story.
- Anthologies and collections introduce a greater variety of stories and perspectives into your life. On the last episode when I was chatting with Jillian Heise about #ClassroomBookADay, I was thinking about how reading a picture book each day can bring more so much more diversity into a classroom. And collections can do the same thing. In fact I was talking with my husband about this last night and he said it perfectly, “Would you rather get a box of all the same chocolates or would you rather get sampler with a dozen different flavors?” Yeah - I’m going for the flavors! And I might leave the cashew cluster for someone else, but that’s okay.
- Coming at this from a teacher’s point of view, reading the short stories and essays found in anthologies and collections are wonderful to offer as models for students’ own writing. With my 5th graders, we use the TCWRP Units of Study and our first writing unit is Narratives. And of course, I want to give them lots of examples and mentor texts. So I’ll take the first couple of weeks to read to them lots and lots of short narratives to really imprint in their mind what a good narrative sounds like and feels like. What the pacing and plotting is like in all kinds of narratives - from funny to serious.
- And finally - anthologies and collections are perfect for when you don’t want to jump into a long book yet or you only have little snippets of time to read. I think they are great for traveling. If you’re on the bus or a plane, you can finish a full a story and don’t have to worry about rereading to pick back up the threads of a plot. In a classroom, if students are in book clubs and a couple members of the group have fallen behind in their reading and need to catch up, you don’t want the other students to start a new novel. So offering them a book like Flying Solo or Funny Girl is a great option.
Closing
Okay - that wraps up our show this week. We have some great interviews and book talks coming up. Next week is the amazing Betsy Bird. And after that you can look forward to a conversations with Celia Perez about The First Rule of Punk and Danielle Davis - author of Zinnia and the Bees. I’ll also be chatting about Jason Reynold’s Patina and some really great new graphic novels. So be on the lookout for those.
And, if you have a question or an idea about a topic we should cover, I would love to hear from you. You can email me at booksbetween@gmail.com or connect on Twitter/Instagram at the handle @Books_Between.
Thank you so much for joining me this week. You can find an outline of interviews and a full transcript of all the other parts of our show along with all of our previous episodes at AlltheWonders.com.
And, if you like what you hear and value the podcast, please leave a quick review or rating on iTunes or Stitcher.
Thanks again and see you soon! Bye!