I am now in the 11th day of self-quarantine. I suspect that there are many more days ahead as BH and I try our best NOT to become a statistic. While many of my family and friends mark on being bored and needing to get out, I pick up a handful of picture books or grab a YA title from the shorter stacks or read with my ears. No chance of boredom ( Read more... )

Karin Perry and I are presenting at the Missouri Early Learning Conference. Here is the link to the conference home page: http://www.missouriearlylearning.com. We are looking forward to seeing new faces and making new friends. I hope teachers who work with PK-3 will come and ( Read more... )

This week is my official vacation for the summer. Meetings begin next week. Classes open then as well. Despite the short, short, short nature of the time off between semesters, I still am excited about the new school year. Every years holds out hope; it has the promise of new beginnings; there are new faces (even though I see them online ( Read more... )

Had a text today from my friend, Lois Buckman, who ws excited that, when she was going through some donations to the public library where she now works, there was a copy of SEVENTEENTH SUMMER by Maureen Daly. She told me her director did not know the significance of the donation. We texted back and forth for a few minutes recalling the course ( Read more... )

Three days at the Heinemann Boothbay Literacy Retreat was refreshing in so many ways. Of course, the weather was literally a breath of fresh air. Cool temperatures, brief bits of rain late at night and early in the morning left the lawn and plants glistening in the sun. At night, the ocean breezes through the trees provided a constant ( Read more... )

I was drawn to this post by the title: Want Great Literacy Instruction? Trust the Teacher: http://russonreading.blogspot.com/2016/02/want-great-literacy-instruction-trust.html. Citing research by Hoffman and Pearson, the author, ( Read more... )

Yes, I am leaving on a jet plane today, heading home to BH and Scout. Tomorrow we will gather for Thanksgiving with family and friends (and mimosas). I have been on the road for 2 weeks in a row. I have one suitcase filled with dirty clothes, another one with books and audio collected from NCTE and ALAN, and the "spare" bag that contains the ( Read more... )

Or as Yogi would have said, "It ain't over till it's over." Today is Day 2 of the ALAN Workshop in Minneapolis. Even though I have been on the road since November 12, and I am more than ready to be home with this guy


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I finished reading and grading the first assignment for the new fall semester for my YA literature courses. As I did 30 years ago, and as my professor did himself when he was a grad student, my students had to create their reading autobiographies. They could write a personal narrative, create a power point or timeline, or use any app or web site ( Read more... )

Highlights from yesterday's Boothbay Literacy Retreat in a series of phrases and snapshots ( Read more... )