2 for 2

I am 2 for 2 in the awesome video realm today. Check out Jimmy Fallon (as Jim Morrison of The Doors) singing the theme from The Reading Rainbow. It doesn't get much better than this, friends.

And if you've been hiding under a rock for the last 2 decades, here is the original theme song!

And if you aren't as old as me... here is a clip of the original Doors performing 

HELLO I LOVE YOU 

O...M...G

I usually don't use OMG (oh my goodness!), but today, I make an exception.

Draw a Stickman

I do love, love, LOVE the site drawastickman.com.  I have used this site with every single class; kindergarten through 6 and they all sit there transfixed on the screen. Kids that are shy or hesitant to speak come alive while using this site. You are prompted to draw a stickman (or woman or Spongebob like John did). Then, your drawing comes to life and you interact with the story by drawing items that your stickman needs. I've done this 12 times and have gotten 12 unique and fabulous stories! Try it! You'll like it! You'll LOVE it!

(We did this on the Smartboard and the kids drew with their fingers. You use a mouse on a desktop computer)

If You Like It Then You Shoulda Put a Pin On It!

As if I need another super cool thing on the internet to keep me from reading, cleaning, sleeping, showering... or feeding my children!  I have discovered Pinterest. Pinterest is a virtual pinboard where you can pin images you see on the web. I have installed a "pin it" button on my browser, so if I see something I love or want to come back to, I can pin it and it will be saved to one of my boards. Here is one of my boards that I have created for all of my library decor ideas:

All of the images are automatically credited to the original place on the web, so you can go back to it and give credit where credit is due. There is space to write notes, so you can include an entire recipe or a keyword. Pinterest is a very social site. You can have followers and follow others. If you see something on one of their boards, you can repin it to yours, like it or comment on it. You can instantly post your pins to Facebook, Twitter or SumbleUpoin. You can email them to friends or embed them in your blog.
Pinterest follows a high standard and doesn't allow hate or inappropriate content. There are some 4 letter words on there and nudity, so be warned.  Right now, Pinterest is invitation only- so you can visit them, enter your email and cross your fingers! If you are on Pinterest, come check out my boards! 

Repinned from Angie @ Pinterest

Awesomesauce!

click to enlarge

Ahem.  

If you can't read that, it says "Judy Blume mentioned you on Twitter." 

Judy Blume mentioned ME?!?! The author of my childhood- mentioned ME?

One of my all time favorite books- my favorite of Ms. Blume's is Tiger Eyes (a great YA choice)

Oh, my tweet: 

I feel like I'm watching Inception...

if @JudyBlume is Judy Blume but she's not "this generation's Judy Blume", 

then is she still Judy Blume?

Looky What I Got!

I am a loyal 1st Avenue Hy Vee customer during the week.  It is very close to Lemme School- I go nearly every day! (My husband works for the company and  I put myself through college working there myself!)   Each year, Hy Vee has a "Spring Time Party" where each store spring cleans and decorates the entire store in a fun theme.   To my surprise and delight, I walked in on 1st Avenue Hy Vee's Party and found a CHILDREN'S LITERATURE theme!  The entire store was decked to the nines in all of the characters and pages from classic children's books.  One of the show stoppers was a ginormous version of The Very Hungry Caterpillar.  When I saw that- I knew it had to be mine.  I asked them to hold it for me and 1 week later, it arrived- delivered by 2 very friendly and smiling Hy Vee Employees.  I was mortified to learn that this monstrosity would not fit into the building, let alone the library.   I left it outside for the night and hoped for the best.  I came to school the next morning to find that the book had magically been brought into the building by our amazing custodian, Annie.  For the rest of the morning, Annie and Mr B plotted how they would get the book into the library.  1 toolbox, a little elbow grease and a handful of very long screws later, the book arrived safely in the library.  The kids love it and I love it- I am so thankful to the friends who helped get it here!   And- a big pat on the back to 1st Ave Hy Vee for taking on such a beautiful and meaningful  theme- the community has loved it.   I love this book so much that when I retire, I may turn it into my summer home. 

The Front Cover!

The back cover!

A cute little model to put the size in perspective!