Booked by Kwame Alexander

Booked

Kwame Alexander

Reading Level: Y

I became an instant Kwame Alexander fan after reading The Crossover. Booked just added to my admiration of his craft. Alexander has created a relevant book that all readers will enjoy --  he mixes sports, poetry, teenage problems and a message in a completely relatable way.  Nick is an 8th-grade soccer player whose best friend plays on a competing team. In addition to navigating the soccer field, he has to stand up to bullies and see if he has enough nerve to ask a girl out. At home, things are even more complex as his father demands Nick memorize vocabulary words and Nick witnesses his parents' marriage unravel. Nick discovers that the power of words can influence everything he does. 

What I love the most about this book is how Alexander uses words to conveys so many different meanings. As a book written in verse, word choice is extremely important. As I tell my students who are reading books in verse, they need to go back and re-read the passages so they can dive deeper and deeper into the multiple meanings. Take for example the title. Booked has so many different meanings and interpretations within the novel. 1. Yes, it is a book. 2. Booked is also a foul in soccer. 3. Nick's father makes him read words out of their own special book. 4. The action of memorizing these words according to Nick is like a "Shawshank" or being booked in prison. 5. Nick's mother has left the family or "booked out." 6. Nick is trying to get up enough nerve to "book a date" with April. 7. Nick's favorite teacher is the librarian - the guardian of books.  I love all the double plays with words. I think it is really fun!

The Winnetka connection I made, seen in the photograph above, is on the soccer playing field with the New Trier High School library in the background. The confluence of sports and academics is so prevalent in Winnetka. However, I often wonder about the incredible pressures placed on young people today - to excel at levels in everything they do while managing to navigate the highs and lows of being a teenager. 

9.14.18 Week in Review in 182

Our theme this week was tone and mood. In Language Arts, we continued character work and noticed what can affect the characters actions and reactions. We noticed how the author creates the tone (emotion expressed)  and how that affects the mood (emotion felt) of the readers and the characters. We also noticed that other characters affect our protagonist in either positive or negative ways. We wondered how these reactions will move the plot forward.

Our character work has been a great segue to the social-emotional and teambuilding work we continue to develop. We discussed how tone and mood affect us in our work and how it affects how we interact with other people.  Using an improv exercise I learned in a Winnetka University class, students gave of a case scenario using a specific tone of voice and the other students had to react with the proper mood. We also used a variation of this technique during MAP testing by writing down something that made us feel happy so we could help our mood when we felt stressed.

In Social Studies, we finished working on the characteristics of a civilization using the GRAPES acronym (ask your child what the letters mean). Next, we will see how those pieces needed to evolve as early humans went from hunter-gatherers living in caves to organized and developed communities.

As a reminder, please pack a healthy and hearty snack to be eaten @9:50AM. Also, please only send water to drink as sticky spills attract pesky pests. 

Upcoming dates:

Monday, September 17 - bring your cell phone to school - the students don't know, but they will be texting you a pledge to use capital letters and correct spelling in their texts. If they don't own a cell phone, that is OK, we can use their iPads.

Tuesday, September 18 - 6th-grade Team Building Field Trip  - please pack a lunch and a drink, wear closed toe shoes and clothes you won't mind getting a little bit dirty.

Wednesday, September 19 - No School - religious holiday 

Week of October 15th - Conferences (student attended).  20-minute slot sign-ups will be available at the end of next week -- remember to sign up only once on your advisor's link. You will spend the first ten minutes in the advisor room and then switch to the team room for the next ten minutes. 

Have a great weekend. Go Cubs!

Love and Logic for the US Open Finals

I love tennis. I love playing it. I love watching it. I love using the game in my classroom as a metaphor for learning and life. So yesterday, I was excited to watch newcomer Naomi Osaka take on veteran Serena Williams. They were playing for so many firsts: first Japanese finalist, first mother, first modern 24 grand slam wins. Unfortunately, the finals will be remembered for a different kind of first: the first time an umpire instituted penalty points and games in a Grand Slam final that considerably affected the outcome. As I sat in disbelief as I watched a fantastic match unravel into a spectacle I wondered, "What am I going to say to my students?" Many people might think, just ignore it, but the more I reflected, the more I saw the parallels to my classroom and wish the umpire had read and utilized Jim Fay's Love and Logic.

First, everyone brings a certain amount of stress to a situation. There were at least four high profile ads that ran constantly during the Open featuring Serena. From the heartwarming Nike ad featuring home movies to  Chase's "Don't Call it a Comeback,"  and "Serena can buy anything she wants on the go" to the Nicky Minaj's "Queen" there was a lot of hype surrounding Williams. Can that amount of pressure stress you out even if you are Serena Williams -- you bet! The problem with stress is that it can explode with a seemingly harmless trigger and snowball from there. As an educator, I know that my students have stressful situations outside my classroom that I have no idea are affecting them adversely. Something as small as forgetting your gym uniform first period can create so much stress in some students that it affects their entire day. It is my job to recognize when the anxiety is building and not add to it -- something the umpire at the US Open did not do.

Second, don't punish a kid for someone else's mistake. Patrick Mouratoglou was caught by the umpire coaching Serena. Violation of the rules - yes. But should Serena be punished for it? If a student passes a note to another student or looks at another student's paper for an answer, is the second student to blame? Should they get the lecture or the penalty? You can totally understand why Serena kept saying over and over, "it's not fair."

Third, when you see a situation spiraling out of control, don't try to force your authority on it -- you will only make it worse. All the referee had to say was "I'm sorry you see it that way, but it will be marked as a first violation warning." When Serena broke her racquet, it was a clear indication of not only frustration with her game, but frustration with the warning and how stressful the finals were for her. In the classroom, you need to make sure the atmosphere is safe and running smoothly, but the more you try to force a dysregulated student to be compliant, the opposite will occur, and your classroom will appear unsafe to all. The best idea is to anticipate how stressful something is and ease up before it becomes an issue. For example, during high stakes testing, it might not be a good idea to call out a student for a small indiscretion -- you will only create a bigger one.

Next, be consistent. What you do to one student, you must do to all. All the umpires should have been calling out coaching throughout the tournament, not just during the most high profile matches. In a classroom, students will feel targeted if you only see their behaviors and not their peer's.

Finally, remember your actions affect others, not just the one person. At the end of the match, Naomi Osaka was in tears, and they weren't tears of joy. It was probably one of the worst ways to win a match. Also, witnessing her idol having a complete meltdown did add much to her victory. For me as a viewer, it was horrible to watch. In a classroom, it is very uncomfortable to watch your classmate get reprimanded. It makes you distrustful of your teacher and does not make you want to take risks for fear of being punished as well.

So as much as I wish yesterday's final was a celebration of a new generation of tennis champions, it will go down in my memories as a learning opportunity. Of course, with all learning opportunities, the best ones create change for the better. I hope in tennis, love and logic will prevail.

9.7.18 Week in Review in 182

I so enjoyed meeting many of you at Go To School Night! Although this past week was shortened, we were still able to pack a lot in. Most of our procedures and routines are in place and as the students are getting used to them, we are getting down to business!  We do, however, continue to spend time team building and creating a positive space because if you like where you are, you will try harder. 

In reading, we began our unit study of story vocabulary and characters in realistic fiction. To understand a character's traits, we look at their WALT - words, actions, looks, and thoughts. Just like people, we make first impressions of characters, but we should expect for them to be complex and have more than one trait. We also looked at how the setting (both time and place) affects characters. We are creating character theory charts and seeing how the character evolves over the course of the plot.

Our root of the week was ology - "the study of." This root tied in perfectly to kick off archaeology and the process used in understanding civilizations from the past. They discovered that archaeologists study artifacts to understand how people from the past once lived. They examined some ancient artifacts from my basement and made conclusions as to what they were and why their function. They also went to a dig site (a paper towel) and excavated artifacts (chocolate chips) that were covered by ages of sand (cookies) by using special archaeological tools (toothpicks). They realized that they needed to be careful and that there may be items that you don't see on the surface. The more we compared our findings to classmates, the more accurate our assumptions became about how many chips are in a chocolate chip cookie. 

We will have a short again next week with Monday's holiday and MAP testing on Wednesday and Thursday.

Enjoy the weekend and remind your child to read!

8.31.18 Week in Review in 182

Week in Review in 182 8.31.18

This first week of school went by so fast!  I am enjoying getting to know your children during these first days of school. We spent a lot of time team building and reinforcing routines so when we dive deeper into academics, they will not only know where to get their notebooks but have trust in me and their peers. This trust is important going forward as we continue to build our 6th-grade community of learners. Check out our team photo below.

We are kicking off Language Arts with reading realistic fiction. They learned how the workshop model works and how important sharing and talking is to the learning process. The big ideas for the year are: Why is reading essential to my growth as a person and empowerment? How can reading and discussing texts deepen understanding? How do readers understand and enjoy a broad range of reading genres? Why is the author's purpose important to my understanding of texts? These questions are important because they underscore why the study of reading matters. Today we touched on the author's purpose. It's as easy as PIE (Persuade, Inform, Entertain). Reading through the lens of why the author is writing helps with thinking critically about the text. It also helps us observe the author's craft which will help us when we become the author and start writing entertaining, informative and persuasive pieces. 

You might have noticed a myriad of forms this week. I am happy to report that the return rate was the best I've ever seen and we will start using iPads next week. Every student has been issued a new iPad and it is in a case with a built-in keyboard. If you are unsure if you purchased insurance for the iPad, please contact the District Office.  

Have a wonderful long weekend. Let your child know that this weekend is a great time to read a book. Whether you're going on a long car ride or hanging out in the yard, a book can take you anywhere!

I look forward to seeing you at Go to School Night on September 5 at 6:30.

The Wild Robot

The Wild Robot
Peter Brown
Reading Level R

I have to admit, when everyone at the Teachers College Writing Institute this past summer was snapping up this book before Peter Brown's keynote speech, I had no idea about The Wild Robot. After hearing Brown speak about how he conceived, wrote and illustrated the book, I was intrigued.  The story of Roz the robot who is stranded on an island and needs to discover how to survive was a fun read. The idea of a robot who needs to become wild in order to survive was a completely different twist on the very old Robinson Crusoe story. Even though Roz relies on her technology to learn animal language and navigate the island, the crux of the story relies on her relationships with animals and in particular Brightbill. It is the relationship piece that makes The Wild Robot such a feel good read.

When I think about a connection to Winnetka, I thought about Lake Michigan and how quickly the beach turns into a forest. It made me visualize Roz's landing site and what it would take to scale a cliff to safety. I found it interesting that Peter Brown was inspired by the Highline in New York. A place where technology (the train line) was reclaimed by the wild. It is a cautionary tale that we always remember that we can't conquer nature and that we need to come and adapt to it.