The Friday Five: Booking It into the Weekend
Sorry I've been a little scarce online this week. I was racing to finish this book because it was due back today (not renewable--it was on loan from another branch, and there was another patron waiting for it; I wasn't going to abuse my work privileges and override the renewal block). BTW, the book was pretty good. Even had some laugh-out-loud moments about both campus life and the perspective of a lapsed Quaker on an evangelical college. Even though I'm not an evangelical, the university did remind me a lot of the conservative college I went to for my first two years as an undergrad. With even more rules. Also, I think I got an idea of what my church might look like to someone almost completely outside of it. And that we actually could get along.
Work demands also had me all over the place this week. Spent one day at the middle school doing booktalks for half the seventh graders. I sound like a freak when I say that it feels sooooo good to be in school. I can't explain it. It really does.
The seventh graders weren't quite as engaged an audience as their sixth grade compatriots were. Both experiences were very revealing, though. So I offer you the five things I learned about sixth and seventh graders from doing booktalks:
1. They do judge books by their covers, but it's not always the flashy covers that get their attention. For example, the sixth graders often asked me to talk about this book--that's an uprooted tree flying across the cover.
2. Along the same lines, it's really hard to predict which kids will ask about which books. I was a little surprised when a seventh grade boy in the back row asked me about not one but two very obviously chick-y books. (Then again, maybe he thought the girls on the covers were hot. . .)
3. Some kids will groan when you mention one of Sarahk's favorite books.
4. Others, however, will come up to you afterwards for a copy of our list of books and series related to that very "sucky" topic.
5. Sharks and Bigfoot just might win a few of them over to the Nonfiction side.
And there's more--I get to booktalk to the other half of the seventh grade on Monday. I'm taking a nonfiction book on Amelia Earhart, because she is a major character in an upcoming movie--curious to see if anyone picks up on that.
Have a nice weekend! And hey, if you're reading anything good, pass it along in the comments if you want.
Work demands also had me all over the place this week. Spent one day at the middle school doing booktalks for half the seventh graders. I sound like a freak when I say that it feels sooooo good to be in school. I can't explain it. It really does.
The seventh graders weren't quite as engaged an audience as their sixth grade compatriots were. Both experiences were very revealing, though. So I offer you the five things I learned about sixth and seventh graders from doing booktalks:
1. They do judge books by their covers, but it's not always the flashy covers that get their attention. For example, the sixth graders often asked me to talk about this book--that's an uprooted tree flying across the cover.
2. Along the same lines, it's really hard to predict which kids will ask about which books. I was a little surprised when a seventh grade boy in the back row asked me about not one but two very obviously chick-y books. (Then again, maybe he thought the girls on the covers were hot. . .)
3. Some kids will groan when you mention one of Sarahk's favorite books.
4. Others, however, will come up to you afterwards for a copy of our list of books and series related to that very "sucky" topic.
5. Sharks and Bigfoot just might win a few of them over to the Nonfiction side.
And there's more--I get to booktalk to the other half of the seventh grade on Monday. I'm taking a nonfiction book on Amelia Earhart, because she is a major character in an upcoming movie--curious to see if anyone picks up on that.
Have a nice weekend! And hey, if you're reading anything good, pass it along in the comments if you want.
Comments
Is audio an option for you? Either CD's or podcasts? There's also a new format called a "Playaway" that's like an mp3 player with a book on it--you just plug in your ear buds. We started building a collection of those at my library (juvenile/YA/adult) and are getting a good response.
I usually enjoy audio books, but my commute is so short that it wouldn't be worth it. My kids really it. We've done long trips and put on audio books.