#TCRWP 2018

[lewisfavorites]

Snook Alone

Marilyn Nelson

A faithful little dog must survive on his own in the wild in this evocative tale of loss and reunion from acclaimed poet Marilyn Nelson and the inimitable Timothy Basil Ering. (Ages 4-7)

Abba Jacob is a monk who lives on a far, far away island with his loyal rat terrier, Snook. Every day, from the wee hours of dawn till the sun sets over the sea, Snook keeps Abba Jacob company as he prays or works, tending the gardens or fixing the plumbing of the little hermitage he calls home. But when the two are separated by a ferocious storm, Snook must learn to fend for himself in the wild, all alone in a world of fierceness and wonder. Will he ever again hear the loving voice that he waits for? Simply and lyrically told by award-winning poet Marilyn Nelson and beautifully illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering with wit, warmth, and affection for the natural world, this captivating tale of friendship lost and found conveys the power of faith against all odds.

[rethinkela]

A4: I work with an 100% traumatized population in an alt setting. I've noticed a connection between academic independence and emotional stabilization-- literacy offers some kids strategies and opportunities to self-regulate. they can read, or write, or doodle symbols. #tcrwp https://t.co/BdfOyQDHYv

— Dulce-Marie is writing. (@DulceFlecha) December 13, 2018

[teacherscollege]

The sun starts to set on spring 2018 with summer officially arriving on #TCWay this Thursday ☀️🌺🌸🌼 #SummerInTheCity #TeachersCollege #Columbia #ColumbiaUniversity #SpringIntoSummer #SummerSolctice #CUatTC #TCRWP (at Teachers College, Columbia University)

[sandykolbo]

WHAT DO THESE THREE PHOTOS HAVE IN COMMON?

This blog seems to be dedicated to reading, writing, retirement, and movies.

Lucy Calkins is the originator of the Columbia Teachers College’s Reading / Writing Project (TCRWP). Her writing advice is designed for K-12 teachers and their students. First, she advises, you must carve out at least 60 minutes of your day for writing and guard that time ferociously.

I used to write much of my working day. Now that I’m retired, it’s hard to find 60 minutes to write. You might think it’s because I’m over involved in volunteer activities. That’s not it. I promised to give myself a full year before I decided what activities I would like to be involved in (other than church). Exercise (and/or physical therapy) are major items in the day, but I think now is the time to find that 60 minutes.

January 19, 2018: Movie Night – We saw the movie Phantom Thread. Daniel Day Lewis plays the lead, Reynolds Woodcock, who is a fashion designer. By this point in the movie, it appears that Mr. Woodcock has a very rigid, self-centered temperament, and it’s intimated that he has had a series of sexual relationships with models (note the name Woodcock).

He stops at a restaurant, orders a huge meal, and chooses his next dalliance, the waitress who waits on him. However, he has met his match in this young woman, Alma.

As she says early in the movie, “If you think you can beat me in a staring match, you are very wrong.”

There are many threads used to weave together the fabric of this story. Woodcock has a mother fixation that exceeds reality. He lives with his sister, whom he refers to as “Old so and so”. Interestingly, the cure to his misogyny and mania as applied by Alma is mushrooms (also a phallic symbol), which can indeed be both curative or caustic.

January 20, 2018: This brings me to the book I’m reading, Outline by Rachel Cusk. The first step to writing when I was in school was to create an outline. My professional writing as a public relations specialist, however, was driven by an image or photograph. In addition, for me, reading offers both insight and inspiration for my writing (Reading/Writing Project).

On page 13 of Outline, a man on a plane tells the main character in this book that he is divorced. He explains,“Like the loose stitch that causes the whole garment to unravel, it was hard to piece back this chain of events to its original flaw. Yet these events,” he continued, “constituted the majority of his adult life.”

This echoes the Phantom Thread and inspired this blog entry. Both also offer good advice for sustaining a marriage relationship into retirement. Don’t be so rigid and enjoy a mushroom omelette from time to time.

[lewisfavorites]

The School is Alive!: A Branches Book (Eerie Elementary #1)

Jack Chabert

Eerie Elementary is one scary school!This series is part of Scholastic's early chapter book line called Branches, which is aimed at newly independent readers. With easy-to-read text, high-interest content, fast-paced plots, and illustrations on every page, these books will boost reading confidence and stamina. Branches books help readers grow!In this first book in the series, Sam Graves discovers that his elementary school is ALIVE! Sam finds this out on his first day as the school hall monitor. Sam must defend himself and his fellow students against the evil school! Is Sam up to the challenge? He'll find out soon enough: the class play is just around the corner. Sam teams up with friends Lucy and Antonio to stop this scary school before it's too late!

[lewisfavorites]

Inspector Flytrap (Book #1)

Tom Angleberger

From husband-and-wife team Tom Angleberger, creator of the New York Times bestselling Origami Yoda series, and Cece Bell, author/illustrator of the Newbery Honor graphic novel El Deafo, comes the start to a funny and clever illustrated chapter-book series about a mystery-solving Venus flytrap. With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, this early-chapter-book series is a must for beginning readers.  Inspector Flytrap in the Da Vinci Cold introduces kids to the humorous and wacky world of Inspector Flytrap’s Detective Agency, home to the world-renowned solver of BIG DEAL mysteries. The plant detective works tirelessly with his assistant Nina the Goat on his community’s unsolved cases. There’s no case too big, but there are definitely cases too small for this endearingly self-important plant detective.   Celebrating the disabled yet enabled, the character of Inspector Flytrap is wheeled everywhere (on a skateboard, of course) by his goat sidekick as this mystery-solving duo works on cases such as “The Big Deal Mystery of the Stinky Cookies” and “The Big Deal Mystery of the Missing Rose.”   On his first caper, Inspector Flytrap heads to the Art Museum’s Secret Lab to discover what important message lies in a mysterious glob on a recently discovered Da Vinci flower painting. The ingenious solution: Da Vinci was allergic to flowers, and the glob is, er, evidence of that ancient sneeze.   Combining wacky humor and a silly cast of characters with adventure, friendship, and mystery, the powerhouse team of Tom Angleberger and Cece Bell have created a uniquely engaging series that is perfect for newly independent readers and fans of Ricky Ricotta, Captain Underpants, and the Galaxy Zack series. Also included in these books are some graphic novel–style pages that will attract reluctant readers.

[lewisfavorites]

Big Foot and Little Foot (Book #1)

Ellen Potter

Hugo is a young Sasquatch who longs for adventure. Boone is young boy who longs to see a Sasquatch. When their worlds collide, they become the unlikeliest pair of best friends.   At the Academy for Curious Squidges, Hugo learns all manner of Sneaking—after all, the most important part of being a Sasquatch is staying hidden from humans. But Hugo dreams of roaming free in the Big Wide World rather than staying cooped up in caves. When he has an unexpected run-in with a young human boy, Hugo seizes the opportunity for a grand adventure. Soon, the two team up to search high and low for mythical beasts, like Ogopogos and Snoot-Nosed Gints. Through discovering these new creatures, together, Big Foot and Little Foot explore the ins and outs of each other’s very different worlds but learn that, deep down, maybe they’re not so different after all.  

[lewisfavorites]

Her Right Foot

Dave Eggers

"A friendly reminder of how America can be at its best." – Entertainment Weekly

If you had to name a statue, any statue, odds are good you'd mention the Statue of Liberty.

Have you seen her?

She's in New York. She's holding a torch. And she's in mid-stride, moving forward. But why?

In this fascinating and fun take on nonfiction, Dave Eggers and Shawn Harris investigate a seemingly small trait of America's most emblematic statue. What they find is about more than history, more than art. What they find in the Statue of Liberty's right foot is the powerful message of acceptance that is essential of an entire country's creation.

**A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year A School Library Journal Best Picture Book of the Year A 2018 Orbis Pictus Award Honor Book A Junior Library Guild selection

Seven Starred Reviews

"In a time when immigration is a hot-button issue, it's good to be reminded that Lady Liberty continues to lift her lamp beside the golden door." – Booklist, starred review

"Thought-provoking." – Bulletin for the Center for Children's Books, starred review

"A timely immigrant's tale." – Shelf Awareness, starred review

"Crucial." – Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Heartfelt throughout and indisputable timely." – Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"Unique and important." – School Library Journal, starred review

"Vital." – School Library Connection, starred review

"As enlightening as it is charming." – The New York Times

"Witty, moving." – *The Wall Street Journal***

[lewisfavorites]

Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut (Denene Millner Books)

Derrick Barnes

**A Newbery Honor Book A Caldecott Honor Book A Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book A Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Book An Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Award Book An Ezra Jack Keats New Illustrator Honor Book A Society of Illustrators Gold Medal Book

Named one of the best books of 2017 by NPR, the Huffington Post, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, the Los Angeles Times, the Boston Globe, the Horn Book Magazine, the News & Observer, BookPage, Chicago Public Library, and more**

The barbershop is where the magic happens. Boys go in as lumps of clay and, with princely robes draped around their shoulders, a dab of cool shaving cream on their foreheads, and a slow, steady cut, they become royalty. That crisp yet subtle line makes boys sharper, more visible, more aware of every great thing that could happen to them when they look good: lesser grades turn into As; girls take notice; even a mother’s hug gets a little tighter. Everyone notices.

A fresh cut makes boys fly.

This rhythmic, read-aloud title is an unbridled celebration of the self-esteem, confidence, and swagger boys feel when they leave the barber’s chair—a tradition that places on their heads a figurative crown, beaming with jewels, that confirms their brilliance and worth and helps them not only love and accept themselves but also take a giant step toward caring how they present themselves to the world. The fresh cuts. That’s where it all begins.

Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut is a high-spirited, engaging salute to the beautiful, raw, assured humanity of black boys and how they see themselves when they approve of their reflections in the mirror.

[rethinkela]

When we first pull up next to a writer, we first need to turn off our editor self and turn on our mentor self. We need to honor and care for the words on the page...the writer’s voice. #NCTE18 #kdepride #tcrwp

— Jessie Miller (@jessiebmiller) November 17, 2018

[rethinkela]

“Literacy makes us unfit for oppression.” Powerful opening keynote from @MisterMinor #TCRWP pic.twitter.com/lsqkXmRV9I

— Stacy Kaczmarek (@stacy_liz51) November 13, 2018

[rethinkela]

12 Goals of Argument Writing 🎯❤️✊🏽🌏 (by @TCRWP) #edchat #education #Edtech #engchat #satchat #Ukedchat #aussieED pic.twitter.com/aoP0UmZR2h

— Alex Corbitt (@Alex_Corbitt) May 13, 2018

[rethinkela]

Some powerful College Application Essays About Work, Money and Social Class 📝 Did someone say mentor texts? Yes, indeed!! #tcrwp #educolor (h/t @mrsjjee)https://t.co/yQWLit3ppG

— Cornelius Minor (@MisterMinor) May 12, 2018

[lewisfavorites]

Love

Matt de la Peña

#1 ***NEW YORK TIMES* BESTSELLER

"[A] poetic reckoning of the importance of love in a child's life . . . eloquent and moving."—**People **

"Everything that can be called love -- from shared joy to comfort in the darkness -- is gathered in the pages of this reassuring, refreshingly honest picture book."—The New York Times Book Review, Editors' Choice / Staff Picks From the Book Review

**“Lyrical and sensitive, ‘Love’ is the sort of book likely to leave readers of all ages a little tremulous, and brimming with feeling.”—***The Wall Street Journal*

**From Newbery Medal-winning author Matt de la Peña and bestselling illustrator Loren Long comes a story about the strongest bond there is and the diverse and powerful ways it connects us all.****

"In the beginning there is light and two wide-eyed figures standing near the foot of your bed and the sound of their voices is love. ... A cab driver plays love softly on his radio while you bounce in back with the bumps of the city and everything smells new, and it smells like life."

In this heartfelt celebration of love, Newbery Medal-winning author Matt de la Peña and bestselling illustrator Loren Long depict the many ways we experience this universal bond, which carries us from the day we are born throughout the years of our childhood and beyond. With a lyrical text that's soothing and inspiring, this tender tale is a needed comfort and a new classic that will resonate with readers of every age.

[lewisfavorites]

Rise of the Balloon Goons: A Branches Book (The Notebook of Doom #1)

Troy Cummings

Format Paperback Subject Juvenile Fiction

[lewisfavorites]

The Heart and the Bottle

Oliver Jeffers

There is a wonder and magic to childhood. We don’t realize it at the time, of course . . . yet the adults in our lives do. They encourage us to see things in the stars, to find joy in colors and laughter as we play. But what happens when that special someone who encourages such wonder and magic is no longer around? We can hide, we can place our heart in a bottle and grow up . . . or we can find another special someone who understands the magic. And we can encourage them to see things in the stars, find joy among colors and laughter as they play. Oliver Jeffers delivers a remarkable book, a tale of poignancy and resonance reminiscent of The Giving Tree that will speak to the hearts of children and parents alike.

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