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| Rock on, girlfriend! |
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| The power of positive thinking! |
Tuesday, August 30, 2016
Juicy Nibble
A great first day of school for the students in room 23!!! Smiles in and smiles out, who could ask for more?
So many great outfits today. But the shoes and sneakers!!!! All new or nearly new footwear. Parents, can you find your child's shoe? Leave a comment using specific details if you can identify your child's footwear. Be careful, look closely, there are a few, "tricks in these pics!"
Monday, August 29, 2016
Juicy Nibble
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| My haul from the Atlantic this year. I made the candle myself! |
Here are a few pictures of me and my family enjoying the end of summer before heading back to school. See you tomorrow!
Mrs. Williams
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| Getting in one more beach day with Mr. W at 2nd Beach in Newport, RI. |
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| Luke after 3 weeks, "down the shore." |
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| With Liv the night she left for college. |
Tuesday, August 16, 2016
Juicy Nibble
Class placement letters have been mailed and should be arriving to your home soon. Perhaps you have already received yours and you know that you have me, Mrs. Ann Williams, as your 4th grade teacher. There are two teachers named Mrs. Williams teaching 4th grade this year. I am the shorter one with curly, brown hair. Mrs. Erin Williams is MUCH taller than me and has straight, blond hair. This is a picture of us taken last year so that you can see who is who. We called this picture, "Dress like a Williams," Day. :)
I have posted a letter for you and one for your family in the Important Documents gadget on the right. Just click on those documents to learn more about 4th grade and what the year will be like. Also, take some time to scroll through my blog posts and see what has been going on this summer. Feel free to leave a comment on the blog, the directions are on the right, just make sure that you check with your parents first. Enjoy the rest of the summer and I will see you soon! I can't wait!
Summer Fun
Hiking, swimming, spending time at lakes, in the mountains and...in trees, READING!! Way to go, friend! I thought you would keep going with that series by Kate Messner. :)
Wednesday, August 10, 2016
Picture Book 10 for 10
How can I take something old and make it new again? This is just one of the many questions that I asked myself as I began the Caldecott Challenge as presented by Laura Given, better known as LibLaura5 . I had many other questions like, how will I obtain the books, especially some of the books from the 1930s and 1940s? How long will it take me to read all of these books? What if I really don’t like a book? What if a book promotes ideas of sexism, racism or is culturally inaccurate? How long will this challenge take me? Most of all, how will I communicate this reading goal to my students and how I will I make it relevant to them? With all of these questions rolling around in my head, they really all boiled down to just one, “How can I make old books seem new and exciting to students in 2016? Since I began the challenge in April, I have already gotten answers to several of my questions. For example, it is going to take me about one year to complete this challenge, and I really do not like some of the books that the committee selected as winners or honor books. In my opinion, several of the books from this era are sexist, racist and culturally inaccurate, but for the most part, many of the books that the committee selected are truly wonderful literary works. For #PictureBook10for10, I am sharing 10 books from the 1930s and 1940s that are Caldecott winners or Honor books. I will be sharing these books with my students this fall and throughout the school year. My hope is that I can make something old seem new, similar to finding a long lost toy in the bottom of the toy box, it will be like reconnecting with an old friend. Thanks to Cathy Mere and Mandy Robek for hosting this event!
In early fall, we always take a trip to the public library with our students. I will be showing my students the process that I have gone through to obtain some of these out of print and hard to find books which will serve as a model to them for how to use the many resources the library has to offer. My Caldecott Challenge journey would not be complete without the help of my local librarians, Jen and Janyce, and I am forever grateful to them for all of their help and assistance in helping me reach my goal of completing The Caldecott Challenge. As Jen says, “You and your badges!” I have read over 130 of the 332 Caldecott Winners and Honor books and have reviewed many of them on Goodreads (I am in the process of adding the 2000-2016). I have linked my #PB10for10 to my Goodreads account and posted them below. If you decide to take up the Caldecott Challenge or just want to read some classic literature, have a great time and enjoy the journey. I promise you, the trip will be amazing.
1939
Andy and the Lion by James DaughertyMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Loved the dedication, loved the story! A great story to share with students about the power of imagination.
View all my reviews
1939
Barkis by Clare Turlay NewberryMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
A good lesson for students about sibling relationships. I loved the drawings too! Barkis is cute and students will love the art.
View all my reviews
1940
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Amazing pictures and much information about the 16th president. Students will enjoy this book. I had to get it from the archives at one of the public libraries in northern MA. It took about one month to receive and was worth the wait!
1940
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Love, love, love. A true classic that many students will know. The art is wonderful and the message is timeless.
1943
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
1942 Caldecott winner. A beautiful story with beautiful pictures. A winner in 1942 and a winner now. So many talk worthy discussions here.
1944
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book came all the way from the Massachusetts College of Art with a special book strap on it. It was so precious and delicate to hold. I loved the story and the pictures and when it is time to study Canada, I will request this book again. Students will love it!
1944
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book came all the way from St. John's University in Queens, NY to my local library in Whitinsville, MA. Thanks so much to Jennifer and Janyce at the WSL for helping me to obtain this literary treasure. The illustrator Plato-Chan, was 12 years old when this book was selected as a Caldecott Honor Book. He is the youngest person to win the coveted Caldecott prize ever! The illustrations are beautiful and it was surreal to hold this book in my hands, as it was a first edition copy. There are so many lessons to be learned, not only from the story, but about following your dreams and doing what you love as evidenced by Plato-Chan. I especially loved the introduction. Hopefully it won't have to come all the way from St. John's the next time I ask for it, but it probably will! And it will be worth it!
1945
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
So many fond memories of my grandmother reciting these nursery rhymes to me. This is a classic and should be in every book room in every elementary school.
1946
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
A touching story with amazing pictures! Some great lessons here, for students AND adults.
1949
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Nice story, beautiful pictures. This will be great to share with students in the winter, during the weather unit or before the first big snowstorm. Some great poetry and writing opportunities can be created from this story.
Monday, August 8, 2016
Summer Fun
I just can't stop posting videos from the beach! I hope that you have had a chance to get to the beach this summer to go swimming or some other fun place to cool off. Maybe I can get Liv and Luke to participate in a video before the summer is over. Cross your fingers!
Friday, August 5, 2016
Summer Fun
A few weeks ago, Mr. Williams and I were watching the Food Network and we saw this hot dog stand called Walter's on one of their programs. Mr. Williams loves hot dogs and we thought it might be fun to stop there on our way to the Jersey Shore some time. Well, tonight was the night! We stopped at Walter's and the food was fabulous! Travelers, can you find the city in which Walter's Hot Dog stand is located? Use the exact location of 40.94 degrees north and 73.74 degrees west to find this famous hot dog stand. Submit your answers to me in a comment or send me your answer in an email. Come and see me on the first day of school to see if you are correct. Have fun!
Thursday, August 4, 2016
Bookworm Buzz-Caldecott Edition
I am making more progress with the Caldecott challenge. I am pnly posting a few of my reviews here. If you want to see all of them, just check out my Goodreads gadget. I have all but 2 books left in the 2000s, and 17 to go from the 1930s and 1940s. Thanks to my librarian, Jennifer, at the Whitinsville Social Library for helping me get my hands on so many of these books. She is awesome! Next week I will be joining the Picture Book 10 for 10 cyber community to review 10 picture books. I am looking forward to writing that post and getting your thoughts on my selections. Keep Reading!
Prayer for a Child by Rachel Field
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Very popular, I'm sure many students have read or own this one!
View all my reviews
Prayer for a Child by Rachel FieldMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Very popular, I'm sure many students have read or own this one!
View all my reviews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
So many fond memories of my grandmother reciting these nursery rhymes to me. This is a classic and should be in every book room in every elementary school.
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book also brought back such fond memories of my grandmother and when she would sing nursery rhymes to me. Someone in her youth took the time to sing them to her and she remembered them so well she passed them on to 12 children and 39 grand children. I am lucky!
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Amazing pictures and much information about the 16th president. Students will enjoy this book. I had to get it from the archives at one of the public libraries in northern MA. It took about one month to receive and was worth the wait!
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book came all the way from the Massachusetts College of Art with a special book strap on it. It was so precious and delicate to hold. I loved the story and the pictures and when it is time to study Canada, I will request this book again. Students will love it!
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