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Author Study: Laurie Keller

5/6/2020

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In Episode 1 of the "Aaron Reynolds Stay at Home Show," Aaron Reynolds recommended that you read The Scrambled States of America by Laurie Keller. Well, Ms. Cahill thinks that all of Laurie Keller's books are pretty fabulous. And there are some pretty great recordings of her books.

If you drag your cursor over each book cover, you will get a box which tells you who is reading each book. Click on each book cover to take to a video recording of the story. Which one is your favorite? Please leave a comment below. Don't just list the title, but tell us why it's your favorite!
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Cinco de Mouse-O!

5/1/2020

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​Switching to remote learning has been hard for Ms. Cahill. She really misses the interaction with her students in the library.
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But one thing remote learning does offer is the ability to hear different people read stories. But for Cinco de Mouse-O! Ms. Cahill just couldn't choose between two different versions. 

In the first version, Ms. Cahill likes the fluency and expression of the reader.

In the second version, the reader has superior Spanish pronunciations .
Which version do you prefer? Please tell why in the comments below. Maybe you don't like either version. You can comment about that, too. Please use elements from the reading to support your position.
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The Next Story: My Lucky Day

4/16/2020

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Ms. Cahill will be using the library blog as well as the Carrie Busey Library Facebook page to post videos of stories read by her as well as guest readers. 

Today's book is the delightful My Lucky Day by Keiko Kasza. My Lucky Day was the 2006 winner of the Illinois Monarch Award. Ms. Cahill was lucky enough to attend the Award ceremony and hear Ms. Kasza talk about her writing process. 
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Earth Day turns 50! Love the Earth and Plant a Garden!

4/16/2020

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This year marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Ms. Cahill doesn't really remember the first Earth Day in 1970, but she does remember making a batik banner with the Earth Day symbol in her 8th grade Art class in 1971. Her banner had the green Earth Day symbol on a bright blue background.
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​Click on the link below to see a short, animated history of Earth Day.


​ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6LUaGy1ChA
Because of the global coronavirus pandemic, there will not be the traditional gathering of people involved in service projects around the globe. Ms. Cahill hopes to celebrate Earth Day this year by working  in the garden after her school work is done on Wednesday, April 22nd. 

Since we are all at home anyway, this is a great time to start a garden. It doesn't have to be big. Many flowers, fruits, and vegetables can be successfully grown in containers. Find a sunny spot and start growing. Seeds seedlings are readily available at local stores and on the internet. Ms. Cahill's backyard garden is shown below. The picture on the left was taken this morning and the picture on the right is from last summer. We had LOTS of raspberries last summer. This year we are harvesting our first asparagus after a long 3 year wait. It takes awhile for asparagus to get established, but it is worth the wait. The freshly picked stalks are so tender!
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Here is a short video on how to start a garden. Start small with easy to grow plants like radishes, leaf lettuces, and peas. If you live in Prairie Fields, the soil is very heavy clay, but the Landscape Recycling Center in Urbana has soil, compost and mulch. They deliver, too! Happy gardening!
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October 02nd, 2019

10/2/2019

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Check out this Science Fiction book!

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Science fiction is one of my favorite genres, but I don't get a chance to read much of it, since not a lot of middle grade science fiction is published. I was thrilled to see a science fiction title on the Rebecca Caudill list this year. I just finished Space Case by Stuart Gibbs and can't wait to read the two sequels. The series is called Moon Base Alpha.
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Beauty and the Beak

8/30/2019

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I have shared the first of our 2020 Bluestem Award books with 4th and 5th grade students. Here is a book trailer for Beauty and the Beak: How Science, Technology, and a 3D-Printed Beak Rescued a Bald Eagle.
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James Naismith and the Invention of Basketball

1/20/2016

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 ​I am sharing the book Hoop Genius: How a Desperate Gym Teacher and a Rowdy Gym Class Invented Basketball by John Coy with my students this week. What a great story! It isn't often that we can see up close the birth and evolution of a game. 

I was delighted to find an interview with James Naismith where he discusses what drove him to invent the game. It is rare to find such a wonderful primary source of information. Check out the other tabs on the interview page. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did!

For more information about how this interview came to light, check out this article from the University of Kansas. Not only do we have the rare recording available, but we have the story of its discovery!

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The Wonderful World of Susan Goodman

10/11/2015

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 It's Sunday afternoon and I am planning my lessons for this week. The first quarter of school ends on October 16 and I can't believe how the time has flown by...

I am finishing up How Do You Burp in Space? And Other Tips Space Tourists Should Know by Susan E. Goodman with our 5th graders and introducing it to our 4th graders. I had downloaded the extensive teacher's guide at the beginning of the year, but today I took a look at her website and you should too! 

I knew that Ms. Goodman had written several books about various topics in science, but it was the inclusion of her book, The Truth About Poop, on last year's Bluestem list, that really hooked the students at Carrie Busey. I will be ordering several more of her books this week and look forward to sharing them with students soon. I am especially interested in See How They Run: Campaign Dreams, Election Schemes, and the Race to the White House. 

Ms. Goodman seems like so much fun, I would love to sit down with her and have a chat. I did just send an email to her inquiring about school visits, but for now we have to settle for her books and her website. I especially liked the project she did which she called "My Other Writing Life." a living book for the Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota, Florida. 

I hope you have as much fun exploring her website as I did. Now I need to quit playing and go back to writing those lesson plans! If you do look at the website, take a few minutes and click on comments to let others know about what you found.
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Susan E. Goodman's Website
A Living Book

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Authors Visiting Carrie Busey

10/6/2014

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               Jan Greenberg                               Keiko Kasza

Our school is very fortunate to be able to host two authors as part of this year's University of Illinois Youth Literature Festival. The festival is held every two years and free family activities will take place Saturday, October 18 at the I-Hotel, 1900 S. First Street in Champaign from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Schedule of Free Activities

Author Jan Greenberg  will be meeting with 3-5 grade students on Thursday, October 16th at 8:30-9:30 a.m. She has published fourteen books about artists from around the world. Many of her books are about American contemporary artists, but her works include books about sculpture, pottery, dance and musical composition. For more information about Ms. Greenberg, check out her website with coauthor Sandra Jordan, http://www.jangreenbergsandrajordan.com/index.html

Author/illustrator Keiko Kasza will be meeing with students in grades K-2 on Thursday, October 16 from 1-2 p.m. Ms. Kasza has published 15 books featuring delight animal characters in many different situations. Her artwork is engaging and expressive and her stories often include a surprise or twist in the ending. For more information about Ms. Kasza, check out her website at http://www.keikokasza.com/
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The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins

10/13/2013

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I am so glad that the Bluestem Committee selected this book! The author, Barbara Kerley, has written other picture book biographies, but I really think she shines here. The stage is beautifully set (pun intended) for Ms. Kerley's text with the illustrations of Brian Selznick. We are transported back 160 years to mid-nineteenth century London, where artist Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins is hurrying to his studio to prepare for some very important guests-- Queen Victoria and Prince Albert! Mr. Hawkins is about to unveil, for the first time, the life-sized dinosaur sculptures he has created.


If you enjoy this book as much as I do, you might want to check out the links below! Please let me know what you think of the book or the websites in the comments section at the end of this post.

The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins illustrator note from Scholastic
Brian Selznick writes about the research he did in preparation for illustrating the book.

Brian Selznick's Biography Page at Scholastic.com
In addition to a short biography of Mr. Selznick, the page also contains a link to a transcript of an interview focusing on The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins as well as video where the artist discusses his Caldecott Award winning book The Invention of Hugo Cabret. (The video is slightly annoying--it is shown is 15 short clips instead of streamed together.)

The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins comprehension quiz
This quiz is set up in a "Rags to Riches" game format. When you miss a question, the game over, so answer carefully. If you have to guess, make an educated guess, trying to eliminate some choices first.

The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins Jeapordy game
This game is challenging!
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