Fox Valley Reading Council
March 2020 Newsletter
A Note From Our Presidents:
Dear Fox Valley Reading Council Members,
Thanks for all you are doing during this stressful time of the pandemic. It is unprecedented and difficult for teachers, students, and parents. Dawn's school district teachers are preparing daily lessons and using Microsoft Teams to meet virtually with their grade level teams and their students. I've heard some are using Zoom or Class Dojo. Some are on Spring Break and have yet to experience what is to come. Whatever your vehicle, we are all working to stay connected. It has certainly raised our anxiety levels. So, hang in there and do the best you can. We will be stronger after this and realize that we are far more capable and appreciated than we ever knew! Here's a little comic that we thought fit the situation perfectly.
Also, just to let you know, our Spring event with Maria Walther on April 25 will be rescheduled. More information on that will be available at a later date.
We had a great time with our last Sip & Create event. Thanks to Karen Laukaitis for inviting Tom to stop in. It made our day! Dawn will share Pat Braun and Marianne Stremsterfer's ideas with Tom Lichtenheld's illustrations, as well as a few pictures, later on in the newsletter.
Please stay safe and healthy!
Your co-Presidents,
Camille & Dawn Lutz
IRC and ILA Dates
Keep in mind for Fall that both IRC and ILA have conferences.
IRC's is Oct. 1-2; here is their link:
http://www.illinoisreadingcouncil.org/conference.html
ILA's is Oct. 15-17; here is their link:
Membership By Julie Siemianowski
Warmer weather and smiles soon, Fox Valley Reading Council Members!
We are well into 2020 now and there are so many things to READ! We recently celebrated together for a Sip & Paint event; a little vino, drawing lessons, and a meet and greet with Tom Lichtenheld! This author experienced “the vapors” in meeting a favorite author/illustrator!
We’re happy to tell you that our membership continues to strengthen. We’re now 152 members strong! If you know of someone whom our membership has lost, please remind them to re-enroll. It’s a great way to network, share ideas, talk about books, and socialize.
We can’t wait to hear from you and we look forward to seeing you soon. We hope that you and yours can spend some of our “at home time” with books. Read to someone, with someone, and listen to someone else. Audible is wonderful for a change of pace.
In the meantime, we wish you the safest, healthiest spring. We look forward to a season of new: new kindness, new empathy, new social practices, new hobbies, etc. Let us know what’s new in your literacy world.
E-Learning Tips By Diana Wilkie
Teachers are being bombarded with e-learning resources. Weareteachers.com pulls a lot of it together. This is just some of what you will find:
· 25 Ways Kids can read free eBooks
· The Big List of Children’s Authors doing online read alouds and activities
· 26 Best Podcasts for kids of all ages
· 35 Must-watch TED Talks for kids and teens
· 27 Awesome free websites for practicing reading
Middle School/High School: Go to Kellygallagher.org to find his newly developed coronavirus unit. He is also posting digital daily discussions under “Teaching in a Time of Uncertainty”. Continued and powerful PD!
Google Drawings Meme Generator
Keep it simple and keep it fresh! It has been suggested that when our work day ends, we unplug for awhile – actually urged to do so. At this time, we may be staring at screens longer than we should be. Unplug and slow down and just BE.
The Harbor By Mike Smith
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OjjWh-8Iv0&feature=youtu.be
Illustration Fun By Dawn Lutz
Use of Tom Lichetenheld's book, Duck! Rabbit!, was the one lesson of our Sip & Create event with Pat Braun and Marianne Stremsterfer on Feb. 28, 2020. Pat & Marianne are both from Springfield, former teachers, and part of the Speaker's Bureau of Illinois Reading Council. They continue to be involved in many aspects of education.
Our group first read the book aloud with two different people reading as the characters. Then, Pat suggested making an Opinion Writing lesson and having the kids pick a side (Duck or Rabbit), state their reason for choosing Duck or Rabbit, provide text evidence, refute a counterclaim, and sum up their reasoning in a conclusion. Our group did it orally and shared amongst ourselves in a turn & talk. It was a lot of fun. Feel free to adapt for your grade level.
Next, Marianne then gave us a few art lessons using a few easy and simple art supplies: Q-tips, a bit of water, Crayola Watercolor Markers, a pencil, and a paper that can bleed a little (we used Blick Watercolor 11x15, 140lb weight paper.) I think for kids that regular construction paper might work. Marianne also gave us a page of facial expressions she made especially for this event, after researching Tom Lichtenheld's illustrations.
On the water color paper, Marianne instructed us to draw a figure with the head first, then a neck and the body using shapes. Then after that we tried a beach scene and separated our landscape into three parts with a pencil line: land, water & sky. Last, we used a marker to outline our pencil and shade using the Q-tip and water. It might be hard to imagine, so I am including my very non-artsy picture . It was super fun to do, as well as inexpensive and creative. Marianne was an awesome teacher.
The highlight of all our event though, was the surprise appearance of author Tom Lichtenheld! Member Karen Laukaitis had previously been his neighbor in Geneva and invited him to show up, unbeknown to us.. We couldn't have been more fan-struck! During the social hour we got the chance to ask questions. He also graciously posed for pictures with us. It will be the highlight of my time with Fox Valley Reading Council!
Thanks for a memorable event Tom, Pat & Marianne!
Tom Lichtenheld's Tribute to Amy Krause Rosenthal By Julie Siemianowski
The Illinois Reading Conference is an annual amazing experience! This year, I again ran into so many people that I was thrilled to see from my experiences in education. What a great opportunity to make new acquaintances, too.
Session topics were broad in the literacy field. I attended several that could be considered favorites. Two sessions that I was fortunate to be a part of were facilitated by local illustrator, Tom Lichtenheld. He and Dr. Maria Walther presented a remarkable one all about beautiful children’s books that Tom participated in creating. He demonstrated his amusing and amazing illustrations as Dr. Walther talked about the authors’ writings. They both have such talent in what they do and how they share it.
ESL Book Reviews By Katina Kastrantas
Frida by Jonah Winter
Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo was born in Mexico in 1907. This is the story of how she learned to paint, how painting saved her life, and why her paintings are like no-one else's. Like Frida's art, this is a work of the imagination, but it is also a biography. Frida’s father, from a young age, gave her lessons in color and brushwork. This is an admirable picture book for any age range. The book reflects on the author's life growing up through beautiful paintings and artistic detail.
Tia Isa Wants a Car by Meg Medina
Tia Isa wants a car but she does not have enough money. Her niece finds many ways to make money and give it to her aunt. But even with her help, will they ever have enough? But saving is hard when everything goes into two piles - one for here and one for Helping Money, so that family members who live far away might join them someday.Together the two have enough to buy an old, big car, a car big enough to hold the entire family when they are all reunited again in the United States. Will they ever be united with their family?
Two of Everything By Lily Toy Hong
Mr. Haktak and his wife lived in a humble little hut. “They were old and very poor. What little they ate came from their tiny garden. Mr. Haktak digs up a curious brass pot in his garden and decides to carry his coin purse in it. When Mrs. Haktak's hairpin slips into the pot, she reaches in and pulls out two coin purses and two hairpins... this is a magic pot! But, using the pot to double things leads to complications. The couple learns there are consequences with magic and they learn to accept new changes.
Middle Grades Book Review: Michael Vey the Prisoner of Cell 25
In the novel Michael Vey the Prisoner of Cell 25 by Richard Paul Evans, Michael is just like any other kid. Has friends, a girl he likes and a loving family. But with his best friend, Ostin Liss, Michael finds out he is anything but any kid. He is electric! As he does research with his friend he finds other kids with electric powers. But there are people that want to capture him, a group called The Elgin. To get to Michael and the other electric kids,The Elgin kidnaps his mother. With only a couple friends, his powers and his wit he will have to save himself and the people he cares about.
This is one of my favorite books because it never stops surprising you. There's always some open ended question for you to interpret. Sometimes there was action, some time there was character growth. But even though I re-read it over 10 times, it still hooks me and makes me think. This book is the first in a series of seven books. I encourage you to read all the books.
Submitted By: Jaxon Mitchell (8th Grade, Thompson Middle School - St. Charles)
Young Adult Book Review: Throne of Glass
The novel, The Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas has many thrilling twists and daring adventures written within the pages. In the start of the book, Celena Sardothien has been enslaved at a very dangerous mine, Endeavor. She is greeted by Chaoll Westfall, captain of the royal guard. He gives her an offer that Celena cannot refuse. Because of this, Celena is escorted to the capital city of Adarlan, where she meets the crowned prince, Dorian. Celena, the most feared assassin, is forced to disguise herself under the name Lillian in order to participate in trials that could lead to her freedom.
In order to win this challenge, she needed to overcome trials and beat other competitors going for the same goal. During these trials, Celena befriends Nehemia, a princess who just arrived at the castle. She chats and trains until one of the competitors is murdered. A couple of days later, another champion is found dead. After a few more murders, Celena tries to investigate their deaths. She discovers an old tomb which housed the first King and Queen of Adarlan’s bodies. She is then attacked by a hideous otherworldly beast and barely defeats it.
Afterwards, she discovers Nehemias otherworldly knowledge about these creatures and symbols that have been found at the deaths. During the final days of the games, Celena has to fight against Cain, the strongest champion in the competition. In order to make sure Cain wins, Celena is drugged before her fight with him. Celena, almost dead, is saved by the first Queen of Adarlan. She is able to overcome the drugs and defeat Cain. She is then declared victor and has gained her freedom.
I really enjoyed this book for many reasons. The characters are very well written and have fun and unique personalities that add to the story. The plot of the story is very engaging, with many plot twists and surprises that keep you engaged. After I finished this book, I had to move onto the next. This book is definitely not suited for younger audiences, but it is thrilling and great nonetheless.
Submitted By: Brynn Mitchell (9th grade, St. Charles North High School)