What I'm Reading Now

Zero Day - Addie Webster disappeared from the governor's mansion 8 years ago. At the beginning of this book, she's escaped from her kidnappers and found her way home - but home is quite different as in her absence her father has become president of the United States. Everything is not quite as it seems... Although it got a bit predictable by the end, I really enjoyed the fast pace of the book.
To Catch a Cheat - To be honest, I didn't finish this one. This is the second in the series and I definitely think I should have started with the first one - The Great Greene Heist. Fun, fast paced, realistic characters - there's a lot here to like. If you like the Randi Rhodes Detective novels I think you might like these as well. There's a lot here that's very realistic to middle school kids, but plenty of movie-type action as well.

Illinois 2017 Monarch Winner!

The official 2017 Monarch winner has been announced...

Congratulations to Gaston!

Interested in seeing the full list of votes? Follow this link.

Illinois 2017 Bluestem Winner!

The official 2017 Bluestem winner has been announced...

Congratulations to El Deafo!

Interested in seeing the full list of votes? Follow this link.

Breatkout EDU: Attack of the Locks

As I'm getting geared up for our next round of Breakout Box lessons, I realized I hadn't shared the pictures of my sixth, seventh and eighth graders first try at breaking into the box!  

 

Some of the groups that successfully solved the puzzles and "broke in" to the box:

Only ONE group out of the many that participated got in without a single hint from me:

#theypersisted

2017 Rebecca Caudill Award Winner!

Our winner of the Rebecca Caudill Award has been chosen. Fourth through eighth graders who read at least three of the nominated titles were able to vote.

And the Disney winner is...

And the official state winner was just announced. The Illinois 2017 Rebecca Caudill Award Winner is...

(For anyone who's interested, The War that Saved My Life  came in second for the state.)

Thank you to all who voted!

Disney 2017 Bluestem Winner!

The votes are in! Fourth and fifth graders have voted for their absolute favorite Bluestem nominees.

In third place tied with 25 votes each...

In second place with 30 votes...

And the winner with 35 votes is...

If your favorite title didn't win, don't despair. All votes were tallied and sent in to the state library association. Stay tuned for the official winner!

Disney 2017 Monarch Winner!

The votes are in! Second and third graders have voted for their absolute favorite Monarch nominees.

In third place with 39 votes...

In second place, tied with 45 votes each...

 

And in first place, eking out the win with 46 votes...

Drum roll please....

If your favorite title didn't win, don't despair. All votes were tallied and sent in to the state library association. Stay tuned for the official winner!

What I'm Reading Now

Absolutely Truly I must admit I've never read any of the Mother-Daughter book club series but they are very popular in our library. Written by the same author, this first book in the Pumpkin Falls Mystery series was very enjoyable. Truly Lovejoy has moved with her family to the tiny town of Pumpkin Falls, New Hampshire where she tries to build a new life for herself among a charmingly eccentric group of characters. K - I think you might like this one.
Flunked I love a fairy tale retelling so I was immediately drawn to this first book in the series Fairy Tale Reform School. Main character Gilly is caught stealing one too many times and is sent to reform school where she's taught by the evil queen from Snow White, the wolf who terrorized Little Red, and other "bad guys" from favorite tales. Could it be true that they have all reformed? Or is someone at the school up to no good? Fans of the Whatever After series who are looking for something else to read might enjoy this one. D?
Randi Rhodes Ninja Detective The fact that Octavia Spencer is the author has been a big draw for this series. Middle school detective Randi Rhodes and her friends DC and Pudge solve mysteries they find in the world around them (much to the chagrin of her famous author father.) Good if you're looking for a realistic fiction mystery - I? Z?
Saint Anything I love anything Sarah Dessen and this one did not disappoint. Sydney and her family deal with the aftermath of her brother's reckless behavior.

Monarch Award: Goldy Luck and the Three Pandas

This retelling of the Goldilocks story finds Goldy Luck visiting her next door neighbors, the pandas, on Chinese New Year. The pandas are not at home and trouble ensues.

Monarch Award: Families, Families, Families

Students loved this fun book about all different types of families represented by different animals. We talked and wrote about our own families. Then students decided what type of animal their family would be and drew family portraits.

Monarch Award: Gaston

Gaston is a bulldog raised in a family of poodles - who is about to meet a poodle raised in a family of bulldogs.