People of older generations will remember Henry Winkler as "The Fonz" from Happy Days. Today's generation know him as a children's author, as well as an actor. He co-writes with Lin Oliver on the Hank Zipzer and Ghost Buddy series.
Ghost Buddy books are always on the Book Fair and I had been trying to convince Isaac to read one. Last spring, his second grade teacher gave him the third book in the series as an end of the year gift, so we started reading it over the summer.
The premise of the series is that the main character, Billy Broccoli, moves to a new house and new school when his mom remarries. The house is also inhabited by Hoover Porterhouse, III, otherwise known as "The Hoove," a pre-teen ghost from the early twentieth century. There is the cranky new older step-sister and the neighborhood bully to deal with, as well as Billy's school-yard crush on the pretty girl in class, all of which The Hoove helps Billy navigate. The third book finds The Hoove being restricted in his hauntings because the Higher Ups do not deem him responsible enough to enjoy the freedom of moving around, so Billy sets out to make The Hoove learn responsibility by bringing home a pet for him to take care of.
Unfortunately, Isaac could not give "The Fonz" two thumbs up and an "Ay!" on this book. To be honest, I don't think we even finished it. The Hoove is rather annoying and the plot moves rather slow. Neither of us really cared whether or not the boy ghost regained his freedom, we just wanted him to stop whining about it.
So, sorry Fonzie. I don't think Ghost Buddy is for us. But I still think your cool.
22 February 2014
21 February 2014
Graphics Galore
I realized that the book I was planning on writing about tonight was another one that received a lukewarm reception. Rather than have two fairly negative posts in a row, I chose instead to share a book that I knew Isaac did enjoy.
Isaac reads a lot of comics and has begun reading graphic novel series beyond the Marvel and DC heroes that many people are familiar with. He shared why he liked Fangbone with you and has since read the next two books in the series. Another series he has begun is Bone by Jeff Smith, He has only been able to read the first book so far because they are rarely checked in at the library and he cannot find the second. (He is like his mother -- reading a series out of order is not done.)
Smith's characters, the Bone cousins, are run out of their homeland of Boneville because, according to Isaac, they threw a big picnic to which they invited all of the Bone people. They brought a "big blimp thing like you see in a parade" to the picnic, but the wind blew it around and the balloon destroyed the party. This apparently angered the other Boneville inhabitants and the cousins were banished. They find their way to a forest where they meet a dragon and "a bunch of things" that try to eat them. Thus their adventures begin.
I can see why the books are so popular. And, since it has been months since Isaac read the book, his recall of the story details is pretty good, a good sign that the story has hooked him. Funny, bizarre characters appeal to him. Which is why the book I will share tomorrow was not one of his favorites.
Isaac reads a lot of comics and has begun reading graphic novel series beyond the Marvel and DC heroes that many people are familiar with. He shared why he liked Fangbone with you and has since read the next two books in the series. Another series he has begun is Bone by Jeff Smith, He has only been able to read the first book so far because they are rarely checked in at the library and he cannot find the second. (He is like his mother -- reading a series out of order is not done.)
Smith's characters, the Bone cousins, are run out of their homeland of Boneville because, according to Isaac, they threw a big picnic to which they invited all of the Bone people. They brought a "big blimp thing like you see in a parade" to the picnic, but the wind blew it around and the balloon destroyed the party. This apparently angered the other Boneville inhabitants and the cousins were banished. They find their way to a forest where they meet a dragon and "a bunch of things" that try to eat them. Thus their adventures begin.
I can see why the books are so popular. And, since it has been months since Isaac read the book, his recall of the story details is pretty good, a good sign that the story has hooked him. Funny, bizarre characters appeal to him. Which is why the book I will share tomorrow was not one of his favorites.
20 February 2014
Not Quite Ready for Disaster
Last spring we bought a copy of Masters of Disaster by Gary Paulsen. After reading the summary on the back cover, I thought it would be a good book to read to Isaac over the summer. It sounded like a great boy book. Here is the Amazon summary:
"Roped into wacky attempts to break world records, imitate scenes from books, and other inspired ideas, Riley and Reed follow their fearless leader Henry into the wilderness, the bull-riding ring, a haunted house, cataclysmic collision with explosive life forms, and off the roof of a house on a bike."
We started the book, but it did not capture Isaac's attention like I thought it would. The antics of the characters were funny but the vocabulary the author used was a little too hard for Isaac to fully follow the action. We did finally finish it, but it is not a book that we will keep and re-read.
The story follows three boys as they try to make themselves famous. There is a ring-leader, of course, who plans and leads each adventure. But the boy who is always chosen to carry out the planned stunt is the timid, weaker one. The story is more about this awkward boy gaining confidence in himself in that crucial time leading into middle school than it is about the failure of the boys to gain fame.
While Isaac wasn't quite ready for this book, I think it would be a fun read for an older boy with a wider vocabulary.
"Roped into wacky attempts to break world records, imitate scenes from books, and other inspired ideas, Riley and Reed follow their fearless leader Henry into the wilderness, the bull-riding ring, a haunted house, cataclysmic collision with explosive life forms, and off the roof of a house on a bike."
We started the book, but it did not capture Isaac's attention like I thought it would. The antics of the characters were funny but the vocabulary the author used was a little too hard for Isaac to fully follow the action. We did finally finish it, but it is not a book that we will keep and re-read.
The story follows three boys as they try to make themselves famous. There is a ring-leader, of course, who plans and leads each adventure. But the boy who is always chosen to carry out the planned stunt is the timid, weaker one. The story is more about this awkward boy gaining confidence in himself in that crucial time leading into middle school than it is about the failure of the boys to gain fame.
While Isaac wasn't quite ready for this book, I think it would be a fun read for an older boy with a wider vocabulary.
19 February 2014
Great For Him, But Not My Thing
I have kept a list of some books that I wanted to write about, ones that either we have read together or that Isaac has read on his own. So I thought I would write a few short posts to catch us up over the next few days.
The Christmas before last we bought Isaac the full set of Captain Underpants books. I have said before that I refuse to read these, and I still do. There is really no need to. Dav Pilkey has created a character that is both appealing to boys and revolting to adults. I choose not to read things that revolt me.
So, why did I buy them for Isaac? Simple -- because he will read them. A few weeks before we bought them, Isaac and I drove to Charlotte for the Color Run. The drive takes over an hour, especially on a Friday afternoon, and Isaac spent the entire drive reading one of these books. He would proudly update me on how far he had gotten, what page or chapter he was on, throughout the trip.
This was a quarter of the way through second grade and Isaac was starting to read chapter books on his own, but preferred to stick with easier books. I fully support kids continuing to read picture books after they have gained the stamina, ability and fluency to read chapter books. But getting over that threshold of transitioning between a 28 page book and an over 50 page book is a big jump for some kids and Isaac was balking at making it. To find a book that he would sit and read like that was wonderful to see. And it boosted his confidence. So, yes, I bought him a whole set of books that I will never read.
He has gone back and forth between reading those and reading other series. His rising confidence gave him the courage to try other chapter books. The last Captain Underpants book was finished around Christmas this year, 12 months after we got them. Isaac made sure we knew that he had finished.
In October, I invited students to decorate a pumpkin as their favorite book character to display in the school library. Being the librarian's son, Isaac had to do one. Being my son, he chose a character that would require little artistic talent. He made a Captain Underpants pumpkin and I displayed it proudly.
16 February 2014
Little Nudges
I have fallen off the wagon and am finding it very hard to catch up and climb back on. I think about posting often, but then do not find the time to sit down and get it done. I started this post weeks ago, but after a couple of paragraphs it just sounded whiny so I made myself stop until I could get in a better frame of mind. No one wants to read a whiny blog, though I am sure this one has devolved into that tone often enough. I have thought about just not bothering anymore, but an experience at a conference last weekend made me think again. It was a small moment, but I have been remembering it all week. One of the session leaders briefly shared the blog she had started just a few months before. Browsing through it, I skimmed her first post where she outlined why she was finally jumping into blogging. She stated that she had always struggled with wondering what she had to say that people would want to read. A sentiment I can closely relate to. But she realized that blogging isn't, or shouldn't be, about what other people will want to hear. You write for yourself, not for the readers.
That statement has been nagging at me all week and it is why I am writing this today. I am not writing this blog for you or anyone else reading. I am writing it for me, and for Isaac and Matt. Matt used to keep a blog when Isaac was young. He stopped writing about the time I started. Together, our posts chronicle Isaac's life and are a way of holding on to memories. Isaac's development as a reader and the books we share is a major part of his growth and saving these moments is valuable to us. And that is reason enough to find the time to keep posting here.
Not that I kid myself into believing that I will be posting with any more regularity than I have been in recent months. The stress of 3rd grade is kicking this mom and librarian in the butt. The high stakes have been set and policies have been adopted to ensure that all students are meeting the goal. We are assessing and testing and setting nightly reading goals all while trying not to pass the stress on to the kids. I can't keep up with what we are supposed to be doing each night. Add to that the afternoons spent at GOFAR or board game club or mad science or church or drum lessons and often it is Thursday before I remember to ask if we are ready for the weekly spelling test. Most weeks the answer is "no."
Added to the day-to-day stress is my struggle not to pass my angst on to Isaac. I have had to remind myself many times since August that just because I was never satisfied with less than an "A" does not mean that Isaac has the same mindset. He wants to do well and he is a solid student, but he can easily accept an average grade whereas "B's" to me always meant "bad." It has been a hard lesson for me this year to learn how to set expectations that are realistic for Isaac's ability and personality.
The worry among many educators who are in the trenches, seeing the students every day, is that we are killing their love of reading. Isaac is a good reader, falling right where he should for his age and grade level. He likes to read, though it is not his favorite thing to do. Most of the time the nightly reading gets done willingly. I have come to the realization this year, though, that sometimes the best thing I can do to ensure that he likes to read, is to let him skip a day or two of the "30 minutes every day" routine. Life is busy, as much as Matt and I try to keep a balance between work and down time. And, though we (teachers) are trying not to pass the stress on to the kids, it seeps down. A month or so ago it hit me, in the midst of an evening breakdown during which Isaac was in tears because he hadn't had time to play and here we were telling him he had to go to bed, that he is stressed. He doesn't know how to articulate that, but the signs are in his behavior.
I am trying to be more aware of how our home routines are structured to help him deal with his anxiety, because the school routines are not going to ease up. And if there are evenings when the choice is to force him to spend his last 30 minutes before bed reading or let him play a video game with Matt or watch an episode of Adventure Time, then reading may get pushed aside. The next night he may choose reading over the game or the TV show, but ultimately it has to be his choice. If I want him to choose reading later, then I need to allow him to make other choices now.
The effort he puts into school and the time he spends reading are his decisions. All I can really do is encourage, help, set examples and nudge. And record our memories along the way.
That statement has been nagging at me all week and it is why I am writing this today. I am not writing this blog for you or anyone else reading. I am writing it for me, and for Isaac and Matt. Matt used to keep a blog when Isaac was young. He stopped writing about the time I started. Together, our posts chronicle Isaac's life and are a way of holding on to memories. Isaac's development as a reader and the books we share is a major part of his growth and saving these moments is valuable to us. And that is reason enough to find the time to keep posting here.
Not that I kid myself into believing that I will be posting with any more regularity than I have been in recent months. The stress of 3rd grade is kicking this mom and librarian in the butt. The high stakes have been set and policies have been adopted to ensure that all students are meeting the goal. We are assessing and testing and setting nightly reading goals all while trying not to pass the stress on to the kids. I can't keep up with what we are supposed to be doing each night. Add to that the afternoons spent at GOFAR or board game club or mad science or church or drum lessons and often it is Thursday before I remember to ask if we are ready for the weekly spelling test. Most weeks the answer is "no."
Added to the day-to-day stress is my struggle not to pass my angst on to Isaac. I have had to remind myself many times since August that just because I was never satisfied with less than an "A" does not mean that Isaac has the same mindset. He wants to do well and he is a solid student, but he can easily accept an average grade whereas "B's" to me always meant "bad." It has been a hard lesson for me this year to learn how to set expectations that are realistic for Isaac's ability and personality.
The worry among many educators who are in the trenches, seeing the students every day, is that we are killing their love of reading. Isaac is a good reader, falling right where he should for his age and grade level. He likes to read, though it is not his favorite thing to do. Most of the time the nightly reading gets done willingly. I have come to the realization this year, though, that sometimes the best thing I can do to ensure that he likes to read, is to let him skip a day or two of the "30 minutes every day" routine. Life is busy, as much as Matt and I try to keep a balance between work and down time. And, though we (teachers) are trying not to pass the stress on to the kids, it seeps down. A month or so ago it hit me, in the midst of an evening breakdown during which Isaac was in tears because he hadn't had time to play and here we were telling him he had to go to bed, that he is stressed. He doesn't know how to articulate that, but the signs are in his behavior.
I am trying to be more aware of how our home routines are structured to help him deal with his anxiety, because the school routines are not going to ease up. And if there are evenings when the choice is to force him to spend his last 30 minutes before bed reading or let him play a video game with Matt or watch an episode of Adventure Time, then reading may get pushed aside. The next night he may choose reading over the game or the TV show, but ultimately it has to be his choice. If I want him to choose reading later, then I need to allow him to make other choices now.
The effort he puts into school and the time he spends reading are his decisions. All I can really do is encourage, help, set examples and nudge. And record our memories along the way.
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