Mrs. Yusko Reads
Reading: Mischief and the Magical Librarian
Friday Five: Holiday Read Alouds
#Bookmas 2019
If you need help finding just the right book for the child, teen, auntie, friend, or teacher in your life, I recorded several "Friday Five" videos to help you. (Spoiler alert... there's more than 5 books in each video). They are:
Holiday Read Alouds
Hawaii Life: Getting you in the Aloha spirit
KidLit (PreK-4th grade)
YA Lit (5th- 12th grade, and adults who like YA)
You can find each video and the accompanying list of titles mentioned on my website. I've also included the videos in this newsletter.
For my COMPLETE list of gift book suggestions for all ages PreK- Adult, check out the blog post here.
Happy Reading and Happy Holidays!
TED Talk: Jacqueline Woodson: The Power of Reading Slowly
#classroombookaday
"Freedom Soup" by Tami Charles follows the story of Belle and Ti Gran as they make traditional Haitian Freedom Soup. Ti Gran teaches Belle the story of the soup, of Haitian independence, of family, and the importance of making the recipe every year.
A necessary book for all elementary libraries, and for sharing with students/families of all ages. Whenever you might talk about the importance of food, sharing stories, heritage, and traditions. For older readers, pair it with Jacqueline Woodson's TED Talk (linked above).
Recipe is included in the back, as well as an author's note.
Pair with other 2019 #ownvoices titles about food, families, and traditions:
Fry Bread (Maillard)
Bilal Cooks Daal (Saaed)
Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao (Zhang)
I recommended this one in the Holiday Read Alouds video at the top of this newsletter and/or here.
Happy Reading!
Here's a Few Festive Ones To Try!
Based on the Book: Let It Snow on Netflix!
Nonfiction Friday:
One of the books that I mentioned in my Gift Books: YA Lit edition (see video below) is Torpedoed by Deborah Heiligson (the author of one of my FAVORITE NONFICTION EVER, "Vincent & Theo").
"Torpedoed" tells the true story of the British passenger ship SS City of Benares which was torpedoed by the Germans during WWII killing 258 people, including 77 children who were being sent to Canada as part of the evacuation of London to escape the blitz.
Obviously well-researched and told through the lens of many of the children on board, this would work in World History classes or with units on survival. You could hand this to middle school (and older) fans of "The War that Saved my Life" (Brubaker), readers interested in war stories, or students that have read everything you own on the sinking of Titanic.
For a fiction/nonfiction display or booktalk, pair this with "Lifeboat 12" (Hood).
You can find many author interviews about this book and the research process on the author's website (scroll past the reviews), including an interview with School Library Journal.
I recommend this for readers in 6th-10th grade, or older/adults interested in history, WWII, and survival stories.
END OF THE YEAR Sale on Teacher-Librarian Subscriptions
FYI: I can take Purchase Orders (contact me), PayPal, Venmo, or pay through the website...whatever works best for you.
- In the spirit of giving: Buy one Teacher-Librarian subscription, and get one FREE to gift to a fellow educator! The Teacher-Librarian subscription currently includes a PDF copy of the 2019 "What's New" seminar handbook of your choice PLUS, unlimited access to exclusive online booktalks/webinars about the best new books for your library/classroom, and these monthly newsletters. All for $89! Offer valid through 1/15/20. Purchase a subscription for yourself, then contact me and mention this newsletter sale and I will tell you how to claim the free subscription for gifting. ACT FAST!
- Pre-order either of my 2019 "What's New" seminar handbooks (Kidlit or YALit) for only $39! Books will be available by 12/21/19.
- I've also added several Skype PD options and put those ON SALE. GREAT options for your staff or your class. (And each option comes with one Teacher-Librarian subscription for YOU).
The most affordable way to get all the books from my all-day seminar, but from the comfort of your living room. A great value compared with attending my BER seminar...for those with a limited PD budget, or no seminar in your area this year.
Join now! Happy Reading!!