Tuesday, December 21, 2010

List

Hello Room 2308 Readers!


We keep hearing about Gabriel and Frita's lists of things they are scared of, but do not know exactly what are on them, especially Frita's.

What things do you think Frita might have on her list and why?
What would you put on your own list if you made one?

Happy Blogging......
Mrs. S

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

The Liberation of Gabriel King By K.L.Going

Today we started a new read a loud, The Liberation Of Gabriel King.  We read the first two chapters.  Share with us your reactions so far.  Do you have any questions about the book so far, or predictions........any connections to something else you have read before?

Happy reading and Blogging!
Mrs. S

Monday, December 13, 2010

Second Time Around

Today we read "Voices In The Park"  by Anthony Browne.  You all agreed that you noticed much more and "got it" a lot better after re-reading it. 
I love this book so much, and every time I read it with a different class I notice new things.  Often, we need to re-read books for clarity or to get more out of it. That is something that good readers do.


1.   Have you ever re-read a book and noticed things that you had not noticed the first time around?  Tell us about it; when you read it the first time, when you re-read it and why it might have been different. 
Sometimes we may not be mature enough to understand certain parts of a story we are reading.  Sometimes we may not be concentrating when we are reading because we are distracted by something else going on in our lives.  Sometimes we just missed something the first time around.

2.  Tell me about some things that you noticed today when we read "Voices" again that you did not catch on Friday.  What new insights did you have into the story today?  How important were the pictures to Mr. Browne's story?  Tell me why you think that way and give examples.

Happy Reading and Blogging....don't forget to use your blog page to keep track of your posts this week and the requirements!
Mrs. S

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Spiderwick

Hello Room 2308 Goblins!



What did you think of the Spiderwick Cronicles?  I love it, but then again, I tend to love the genre of fantasy.  Do you? 
Some of my favorite books are from this genre.  One I really loved when I was in 5th grade was "The Last Of The Really Great Wangdoodles".  I think I liked that so much because of the idea of using your imagination to travel to a secret world.  I also loved the crazy, wacky characters.
The Narnia series was also a favorite, I think I read them all about 5 times each!  There was a secret world involved there as well....hmmm....seems to be a pattern for me...:)
Tell me about your involvement with the fantasy genre.  Do you tend to like to read fantasy?  What are some of the best fantasy books that you have read?  Tell me what was so good about them.
If you do not particularly like fantasy,tell me why.  Tell me about a fantasy book that you have read and what may have turned you off of the genre.
Happy Goblin and Fantastical Creature Hunting.....
Mrs. S

Monday, December 6, 2010

Point of View

Hello Room 2308'ers!
Happy Monday!
Today we read "Gila Monsters Meet You at the Airport"by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat.  We talked about point of view and how authors can choose different points of view to tell their stories.  Different points of view can change how a story is told, and each person's point of view comes from their own experiences, history and who they are.
In your independent book, think about what point of view the story is told from.  Explain to us in your post who's point of view the story is told from ( please include the title and author of your book).  Why do you think the author chose that point of view?  How is it important to the story?  How could the story change if it was told from another point of view?
Happy Blogging!
Mrs. S

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Bell Curve

Hello Readers!


Did you enjoy "Edward and the Pirates" today?  I love to read stories about other readers, especially when they use their imaginations and show good reading practices!

We talked about the "shape" of stories, or, as Jayme put it, "story maps".  In class we have talked about Hero Cycles and Bell Curves. 

Here are today's discussion points:
1.  What is your favorite picture book?  If you are like me and can't pick just one, pick one that you like a lot. 
2.  Does it fit either of the "shapes" that we have talked about in class?  Tell me which one and how it fits.  If it does not, what does the shape of that story seem to be?