Wow, it's been quite a while since my last post! I've had a very busy month: writing curriculum, attending a week-long children's lit conference, taking gradutate classes, planning for next year, household chores, and spending time with family. You know, all those things teachers do while they have the summer "off."
One of the hightlights of the summer was attending the Shenandoah University Children's Lit Conference. The theme was "Getting Boys Hooked on Books." I got to hear some terrific authors: Jon Scieszka, Ralph Fletcher, Jack Gantos, Jerry Pinkney, Gordon Korman, Chris Crutcher, David Macaulay, among others. It was great fun to hear how some of their books came about and their thoughts on motivating boys to read.
One author suggested having a "Guys Only" section of reading material in the class. I like that idea very much, and it got me to thinking that I might try a "Recommended by Guys" section. Middle schoolers love to share their opinions and having their peers recommend a book might be the encouragement my boys need to do more reading.
I returned home with some fresh ideas and fantastic new books to share in August. I'll be writing more about the conference in future posts.
So, how's your summer going so far?
One of these days I will actually get to Shenandoah's conference. I hear it's terrific! (And it's so close I should be ashamed I keep missing it.)
ReplyDeleteIt is terrific! This is the first year I've gone, but I hope to attend again next year. Maybe I'll see you there! : )
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