Wonderful Friends

Sorry for the blog silence.  It has been a crazy couple of months.
A friend texted me this picture and wrote that as soon as she saw it, she thought of me:

It does kind of look like me, - nerdy!
For this friend, and all of our other wonderful "mom" friends, I wanted to share a book pick now that the frenetic pace of preparing for the holidays is behind us.  If you are looking for a quick read and a good laugh about all of the craziness that goes into making the holidays magical, you might enjoy Jen Mann's book, Spending the Holidays with People I Want to Punch in the Throat.  Of all the universal truths articulated in this book, perhaps the one I can best relate to, is thinking you are so organized by Christmas shopping throughout the year, only to forget where you have hidden those gifts come wrapping time in December!

Happy holiday reading,
Christine

Similes and Metaphors in Pop Culture

My students loved this video of similes and metaphors in pop culture.  I hope you do, too.

Happy reading,
Christine

The Canterbury Sisters

Che de Milan is having a tough day.  Shortly after the arrival of her mother's ashes and directive to spread the ashes at Canterbury Cathedral, she receives another note from her long-time boyfriend, dumping her for another woman.  Upset, she decides to go to Canterbury right away, but when her hastily-made travel plans to Canterbury fall apart, she reluctantly joins a walking tour that follows the path of Chaucer's pilgrims.  Like the original pilgrims in Canterbury Tales, the women tell tales of life, love and loss.

Happy reading,
Christine

Big Little Lies

This is a great "mom" mystery.  It's a great mystery, because it is so well written, that up until the end, you don't even know who is dead, let alone who the killer is.  It's a great "mom" book, because it opens with the homicide detectives arriving at a Parent Association event, and throughout the novel, you read  the viewpoints of various parents and school staffers as they explain events that led to the death.  Seemingly insignificant events, like cupcake wars between moms who think cupcakes at class birthday parties are a rite of childhood, and fit moms who think only nutritious foods should be served; dads arguing over standardized tests; kindergartners being excluded from playdates and birthday parties; moms competing to throw the best birthday parties; and Parent Association officers drunk with power.  Best of all, is the title, Big Little Lies, which begs the question, aren't all lies big lies?

Happy reading,
Christine

Sesame Street

I was saddened to read that new episodes of Sesame Street will air first on HBO, a paid cable network.  There are so many levels of genius behind Sesame Street, but perhaps the most significant is the gap it filled for underprivileged children.  Any educator knows that all children do not start kindergarten with the same foundation.  All children are not immersed in print-rich homes with books on the shelves and magazine and newspaper subscriptions.  All children don't see adults modeling the importance of reading by not only reading to the children, but by reading to themselves for their own enjoyment.  All children don't have the luxury of a two-parent home with one parent able to take them to the library and other enriching outings.  All children don't even hear English spoken in the home, let alone read aloud in the home.  For the single mother working two jobs to put food on the table for her children, the health and safety of her children may take precedence over their literacy development, no matter how important she may realize that literacy development is.  Literacy is the most important thing that any teacher in any school teaches.  It is the foundation for all the learning that is to follow.  The old adage that in the formative years you learn to read, and in all the years that follow you read to learn, still holds true.  If you cannot read, and you have no support network at home, how can you ever  compete?   For children in these circumstances, engaging educational programming on public television is a dire need.  For young children whose brains are developing at the most amazing rates of their entire lives, depriving them of anything to enhance that development is unfair.  It is also unfair to the rest of our society, as these children could grow to be our future leaders and thinkers.  Can we afford to thwart their potential by depriving them of a solid foundation?  Should only the children of those parents wealthy enough to afford cable t.v., have the benefit of  new episodes of Sesame Street?  In this time of income inequality, do we really need anything that furthers the gap between the haves and the have nots?

Happy reading,
Christine

The Husband's Secret

Just finished reading The Husband's Secret, by Liane Moriarty, author of What Alice Forgot.  A friend of mine preferred What Alice Forgot, and even quipped that "We could all use a little amnesia in our lives."  I loved both books, though.  What I loved most, is the connecting theme between the two of them that "falling in love" is an adolescent concept.  New love is cheap and easy, but loving somebody after you've raised a family together, hurt each other, pleased each other, bored each other, surprised each other, shared secrets, bills, and a bathroom, that is real love.

Happy reading,
Christine

Go Set a Watchman

Years ago, I bought my husband a special edition of  To Kill a Mockingbird, which I inscribed, "To my own Atticus Finch."  If you, like I, have spent most of your life believing that Atticus Finch was the greatest father, lawyer and most honest and decent man ever written, do not read Go Set a Watchman.  There are some things you can't "un-know" once you know them, and you will never be able to look at Atticus Finch the same way again.
Maybe it was naive to believe that even a fictional character could live up to the ideals of Atticus Finch, and maybe this flawed version is still worthy of love, but I wish I never read this book.  I wish I didn't know what I now know.  I hate cliches, but this is one case where ignorance truly is bliss.

Happy reading,
Christine

What Alice Forgot

Ever ask yourself, "How did my life come to this?"  That is exactly what Alice must ask herself in What Alice Forgot, by Liane Moriarty.  Alice is 29 years-old, madly in love with her husband, and expecting her first child, or so she thinks when she comes to after a head injury at the gym one Friday morning.  In reality, she is a 39 year-old mother of three going through a bitter divorce.  Her fall has caused her to forget the last decade of her life.  The book will cause you to question, is it the big, life-changing events that shape us, or the everyday little choices and actions that make us who we are?

Happy reading,
Christine

Delightful Dolphins

If you are lucky enough to see or swim with dolphins this summer, you may want to read this National Geographic article on dolphin communication.  Amazing!

Happy reading,
Christine

Happy 4th!

Happy 4th!

So far, my summer reading looks like this:

• Finished In the Unlikely Event, by Judy Blume;  - Love her!
• Read an easy, cheesy, beach read, and all I can say is, " Eh, if you read the first three books in this series, you can skip this latest installment."
• To redeem my intellect after the beach read above, I went with a classic, The Catcher in the Rye - Obviously a lot to think about.

Happy reading,

Christine

What I'm Reading Now

Judy Blume released a new book this week!  I've just started In the Unlikely Event.   I'm thrilled to be reading another one of her books, just like I'm always thrilled when my students choose one of her books as their independent reading book.   Mostly, I'm thrilled that this literary giant is well enough to continue writing for her fans.  What a survivor and role model!

Happy reading,
Christine

June Is Bustin' Out All Over

It is finally June!  Time to start thinking about your summer reading.  The ALA has compiled summer reading lists for  grades k-2,   grades 3-5,   grades 6-8.    Enjoy!

Happy reading,
Christine

National Library Week Continued

Hopefully you voted for your local public library budget.  To further illustrate the importance of public libraries in all of our lives, but especially in the lives of the economically disadvantaged, here is a link to a great article that appeared in American Educator.  Enjoy.

Happy reading,
Christine

National Library Week

Celebrate National Library Week by visiting your local public library, and while you are there, don't forget to vote for your library budget.  Thank your librarians for their tireless work to promote literacy and lifelong learning, not to mention all the free community events they offer each week.

Happy reading,
Christine

The Girl on the Train

I just finished reading The Girl on the Train, by Paula Hawkins.  Wow!
If you loved Gone Girl, by Gillian Flynn, run out and buy this book or download it to your e-reader now!  The voice is so well-crafted and it is so suspense-filled that you'll be reading into the wee hours.

Happy reading,
Christine

Saturday Songs: Allusions in Literature

A few weeks ago, two colleagues and I were discussing how to help our students recognize and understand allusions in literature.  I was lamenting the fact that students don't truly understand what an allusion is, as evidenced by the fact that many of them continually misuse the term allude.  For example, students will write, "William Shakespeare and Madeleine L'Engle allude to each other."  No.No.No.

One of the ladies said she used the song, "Someday We'll Know," by the New Radicals to teach this concept.  Right away, I thought of how many allusions Taylor Swift incorporates into her songs.  (If you've ever read my blog before, you know that I like to cite Taylor swift as an example of clear, concise writing.  In one line of her song, "Mine," we can make inferences about several different relationships.  "You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter."  We can make inferences about the father/daughter relationship, her relationship with herself, and her new relationship.)

Here are three videos of songs  that contain allusions.  I hope they will help students recognize allusions.  Now, getting students to dig deeper and understand why an author chose to allude to a particular work or event in history to make their point, is a different story. 

Happy reading,

Christine

March Madness Mystery

Someone left the mystery book, Last Shot in my classroom, which is in itself a mystery, as no one is claiming it.  Someone must be missing this timely title, though.  It is the story of an eighth grader who wins an essay contest for aspiring sports writers.  The prize - a press pass to the Final Four in New Orleans.  While at the Superdome, the protagonist uncovers a plot to throw the championship game.
Suspense and  basketball, what a great combination for young sports fans.  I'm thinking of ordering a copy for my own family.

Happy reading,
Christine

Happy Pi Day!

This is a Pi sweatshirt that I bought for my daughter when we visited a science museum.

Every year, teachers celebrate March 14th with their students as Pi (3.14) Day.  This year it is particularly special, because 3/14/15 contains the first five digits of Pi (3.1415)

To incorporate literacy into this math day you could read some of the following titles with your students, or challenge them to write a story about Pi that contains exactly 314 words.

And in honor of one of my favorite math whizzes, who always won the math-go-round in third grade, here is a Pi recipe:

Happy reading and eating,
Christine

My Article Out Now

I was thrilled and honored when Scholastic Parent and Child contacted me about reprinting my piece on Bedtime Stories for Big Kids.  This meant so much to me, because it is a piece that I truly believe in.  I cherish the moments reading aloud to my own "big kids," as well as my "big kid" students.
If you are at a Scholastic book fair, I hope you will pick up a free copy of this special edition, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Happy reading,
Christine

Personal Vocabulary

I have long clung to the belief that children need to be reading books at their own individual reading level and at their interest level.  For this reason, I have never given up on independent reading and one-on-one reading conferences.  And during these one-on-one reading conferences, I often assign "personal" vocabulary.  Personal vocabulary is a word that a child struggles with when reading and conferring with me.  If the child miscues, or even if they decode it perfectly, but can't explain it to me, I assign it.  The child becomes accountable for that word, for learning its meaning and being able to use it with me in future book talks.  Obviously, some children end up with more personal vocabulary words than their peers, but so what?  Isn't that our job, to meet the individual needs of our students, instead of forcing them to fit into some kind of  mold?

Happy reading,
Christine

Meatless Once A Week?

A few years ago, I was researching Lent for my Sunday School lesson plans.  While I found many ways to make this abstract concept relatable for the five and six year-olds I had volunteered to teach every Sunday morning, I also found this site of meatless meals.  If you are considering going meatless one day a week for religious or health/science reasons, (maybe you'd like to limit the number of antibiotics you ingest from traditionally-raised livestock), check it out.


Happy reading and eating,
Christine

Need Yet Another Cookbook?

My smart, beautiful and talented friend, Nicole taught me how to make chocolate-covered saltines.  Salty and sweet!  Yum!  This fast, easy recipe can be tweaked to add shredded coconut or sprinkles, (as one of her other friends did) or to make it allergy/vegan friendly (as I did).

The closest written recipe that I could find for this treat came from Trisha Yearwood, (As if we needed another reason to love her!)  And, as if I needed yet another cookbook on my kitchen shelf, I think I might order one of hers!

Happy reading and eating,

Christine

March Forth!

This is a re-run of a post I wrote for the Literacy Connections blog.  Enjoy!

March Forth!

posted Mar 4, 2012, 10:38 AM by Christine Brower-Cohen   [ updated Mar 4, 2012, 10:38 AM by Ryan Case ]

March 4, 2012 I normally don't blog on Sundays, but today is March 4th, a special day in our  family, and the only day of the year which is also an action.  And what an action it is!  I love the implied optimism of the date, "March Forth!"  March forth into the great unknown.  March forth in  the direction of your dreams, and if you've had a recent set-back or failure,  by all means march forth! Happy reading, Christine

Read Across America - Dr. Seuss's Birthday

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!  Celebrate today,  Read Across America Day, with your family or students.

For your own listening pleasure, here is a clip of the Plain White T's "Giving Tree," a take on Dr. Seuss's classic book.  Enjoy!



Happy reading,
Christine

March Madness

Think the plot of Inherit the Wind is a thing of the past?  Think again.  This month's National Geographic features the science deniers of our time.

Happy reading,
Christine

Friday Film Clip: House of Cards

So thrilled that season 3 of House of Cards is now streaming!  Enjoy!

Happy viewing,
Christine

The Rosie Effect

After reading The Rosie Project, I couldn't wait for the sequel, The Rosie Effect, to be released in December.  I expected to dive right in and consume that book as quickly as I had the first one.  However, the past few months have been very busy, (hence the relative blog silence) so I just got around to reading it now.   Like the first book, it was hysterical in some parts and poignant in others.  The first book however, had the element of surprise going for it.  It was so unexpected that a protagonist would try to use data analysis to find a wife, that the plot just flew by.
Here is what I wrote about The Rosie Project when I first read it:

Wednesday, July 30, 2014

The Rosie Project

I just finished reading The Rosie Project, by  Graeme Simsion.  This romantic comedy follows the misadventures of a brilliant geneticist in his quest for the perfect wife.  Since social encounters are awkward for this man who, at first,  does not realize that he suffers from Asperger's, he develops a questionnaire to find a suitable life-mate.  Enlisting the assistance of a fellow professor and his wife, he commences "The Wife Project" with the precision of a university study.
Enjoy this funny look at dating rituals and social conventions as your next beach read.

Happy reading,
Christine

Mardis Gras Reading and Recipe

This beautiful trivet was a gift that my wonderful friend, Janet gave me after her trip to New Orleans.

Last night, while I was cooking my family's Fat Tuesday dinner and dessert, I thought of this previous post on Mardis Gras food and books.  Enjoy.

February 21, 2012

While planning my New Orleans-themed Fat Tuesday dinner -  pulled-pork Po' Boys, jambalaya, and bananas foster for dessert – I was trying to think of New Orleans-themed books.  I remembered Zeitoun, the true story of a Muslim-American family’s experience after Hurricane Katrina. 

Confession:  I didn’t finish reading this book, as I started reading something juicier.  However, it must be controversial, because my friend, a very quiet, reserved young woman, called me on the way home from book discussion to tell me she almost came to blows with a

70 year-old man over part of the book.  Obviously, now I have to reread the book. 

                                                                                                                                    

For your own Mardi Gras celebration, I’ve included a video recipe for king cake:

Happy reading,

Christine

Nook vs. Book - Round 12

The Hubs gave me the new Nook Samsung tablet for Valentine's Day.  Did this wonderful gift set my heart aflutter?  I'm still exploring all of the capabilities of this new device.  Below are some of my previous posts on my relationship with e-readers:

 November 30, 2011

On Monday I posted this on e-readers for children.  Now let me clarify, I have a Nook and I love it.  However, before I got it, I wasn’t sure if the Nook and I would hit it off.  The Nook is cool, sleek and modern.  I am old-fashioned.  I like homemade comfort foods like soup, sauce and gravy.  I like opening my gifts on Christmas morning, not Christmas Eve, and I like reading real books.  I like the feel of a book in my hands, the smell of a book, (especially the smell of a library book which can bring me back to childhood) and I like the tactile sensation of turning pages.  How then, could the Nook and I make it work?

And, if I were going over to the dark side of digital reading, what should I wear?  Would I have to give up my sweaters and pearls and wear something edgier, perhaps head to toe black like Darth Vader, cat burglars and intellectuals from SoHo?

And of course there was the bigger dilemma, if I were going leave my tried and true traditional books, what should be the first title I read on the Nook? Should I go with a classic like Pride and Prejudice?  Would a beloved favorite like The Great Gatsby be a digital disappointment?  Finally, since I felt like I was doing something seedy anyway, I settled on an easy beach read called Trouble in Mudbug, in which the protagonist’s manipulative, materialistic mother-in-law finally dies only to come back and haunt her.  And you know what, I kind of liked it.

The Nook and I didn’t really bond though, until a trip to Montauk.  There we spent time on the beach, on the balcony, and curled up on the couch together.  I discovered that the Nook is more than just cool; it is also the perfect travel accessory.  It provides a world of reading in one compact case that easily fits into an overnight bag.  So now I’m asking, why would anyone leave their tried and true traditional Nook for Nook Color?

Happy e-reading or book reading,

Christine

Nook vs. Book - Round 3

posted Dec 6, 2011, 4:15 AM by Christine Brower-Cohen   [ updated Mar 31, 2012, 5:23 AM by Ryan Case ]

December 6, 2011 Now your students can check e-readers out of their local library!  The West Babylon Public Library has acquired several Nook Color and Kindle e-readers.   West Babylon cardholders can  borrow the e-readers for up to 14 days.  Books are pre-loaded, and cardholders can download up to 5 additional titles.  Of course, any Suffolk County library patrons can download titles to their own e-readers for free using Suffolk Wave  Live-brary. Happy reading, Christine Nook vs. Book - Round 4 posted Jan 6, 2012, 10:06 AM by Christine Brower-Cohen   [ updated Mar 31, 2012, 5:22 AM by Ryan Case ] January 6, 2012 Yesterday, the New York Times parenting blog posted an article called, Why Books Are Better than e-Books for Children.   It was very interesting, and makes the current count in this Nook vs. Book series: Nook -  1    Book  - 3.  To be continuued... To see the earlier rounds, click on round 1, round 2, round 3. Happy book reading or e-reading, Christine Nook vs. Book - Round 5 posted Jan 9, 2012, 10:01 AM by Christine Brower-Cohen   [ updated Mar 31, 2012, 5:22 AM by Ryan Case ] January 9, 2012 Yesterday,  Newsday  published this piece on social reading.   Not being on Facebook or Twitter, I'd never heard of this phenomon, but apparently it's big.  Social reading allows book lovers to intereact with each other instantly.  In it's earliest stage of development, social reading consisted of a feature on Amazon's Kindle which allowed the reader to post comments on Facebook or Twitter.  Now, many reader's tablets have evolved to the point where a reader can highlight text, email it to a friend and share comments.  It is like a book club with instant gratification.  I wondered, will social reading take the place of the face to face communication of a traditional book club?  Curious, I set out to research.  It seems there are online communities such as shelfari.com and openbook.org dedicated solely to this.  Who knew?    From a teacher's perspective however, the best aspect of the new apps available on reader's tablets is that theorectically, a teacher could highlight a certain part of a text, add margin notes or other comments, and email it to all of her students!  How is that for text-based learning? So, reluctantly, this round has to go to the Nook  with a haymaker, making the current count:  Nook - 2   Book - 3 Happy book reading or e-reading, Christine Welcome‎ > ‎Posts‎ > ‎ Nook vs. Book - Round 6 posted Mar 26, 2012, 2:54 AM by Christine Brower-Cohen   [ updated Mar 31, 2012, 5:13 AM by Ryan Case ] Three Generations of Nook Readers! March 26, 2012 My house is being overrun by books.  Books are stacked neatly on shelves.  Books are placed sloppily over the neatly stacked books on shelves.  Books are on end tables and night-stands.  Books are piled on the floor of the alcove in front of my children's  bookshelf.  I am seriously thinking of asking my contractor to build more shelves.  Naturally, then, I laughed when I read this piece in Newsday, about a former book-lover who is now a book-hater.  Of course, I could never be a book-hater.  As I've written on this blog before, I love books.  I love the look and feel and smell of them.  I just don't love the clutter.  So, since neatness counts,  ... this round goes to the Nook, making the current count: Nook - 3; Book - 3!  Stay tuned!  See who takes the next round! To  the earlier rounds, click Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, Round 4, Round 5. Happy reading, Christine Welcome‎ > ‎Posts‎ > ‎ Nook vs. Book - Round 7 posted Apr 3, 2012, 4:11 AM by Christine Brower-Cohen   [ updated Apr 3, 2012, 4:11 AM by Ryan Case ] Three Generations of Nook Readers! April 3, 2012 Yesterday I posted this about a book signing.  Now, I have one question for you, "Have you ever tried to get your Nook signed by an author?" Obviously, this round goes to Book with a haymaker, making the current count:  Nook -3; Book - 4.  Keep reading to see who wins the next round! Click here to see earlier rounds:  Round 1,  Round 2,  Round 3,  Round 4,  Round 5,  Round 6 Happy reading, Christine Nook vs. Book - Round 8 posted Apr 18, 2012, 9:30 AM by Christine Brower-Cohen   [ updated Apr 18, 2012, 9:30 AM by Ryan Case ] Three Generations of Nook Readers! April 18, 2012 Last week, USA Today  reported that Barnes and Noble will be adding GlowLight technology to the Nook Simple Touch.  This way, a person can read in bed without an external light and hopefully, without disturbing their partner.  (Nook Tablet seems to be readable at night already.)Pretty impressive.  Therefore, this round goes to...Nook, making the current count Nook -4  Book -4.  Who will the victor be?  Keep reading to find out!  To see earlier rounds clickRound 1, Round 2, Round 3, Round 4, Round 5, Round 6, Round 7. Happy nighttime reading, Christine Nook vs. Book - Round 9 posted Jun 26, 2012, 6:14 AM by Christine Brower-Cohen   [ updated Jun 28, 2012, 6:42 PM by Ryan Case ] Three Generations of Nook Readers! June 26, 2012 Sales of e-books have surpassed sales of hardcovers in some areas!  Read the data tables and full article here.  This round goes to..... Nook, making the current count Nook:  5,  Book:  4 .  To see previous rounds click Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, Round 4, Round 5, Round 6, Round 7., Round 8. Happy e-reading or book reading, Christine Nook vs. Book - Round 10 posted Oct 15, 2012, 2:30 AM by Christine Brower-Cohen Three Generations of Nook Readers! October 15, 2012 Confession:  I love Nelson DeMille's John Corey books!  Yes, I recognize that they are testosterone-packed, thrill-rides, filled with Mr. Corey's wry, and sometimes sexist observations, but I love them anyway.  I can't wait until the new book comes out tomorrow, and thanks to my Nook, I don't have to!  I have pre-ordered The Panther, which will magically appear on my Nook at midnight.  So, for convenience, suspense, impatience and excitement, this round goes to... Nook, making the current count, Nook - 6,  Book  - 4.  Who will win the heavyweight championship?  Tune in to find out.  To see previous rounds, click  Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, Round 4, Round 5, Round 6, Round 7,Round 8, Round 9. Happy e-reading or book reading, Christine Welcome‎ > ‎Posts‎ > ‎ Nook vs. Book - Round 11 posted Oct 28, 2012, 8:36 AM by Christine Brower-Cohen Three Generations of Nook Readers! October 28, 2012 As Hurricane Sandy makes her way up the east coast, I am busy with emergency preparations.  Part of these preparations, is making sure all of our electrical devices, cell phones, computer, etc. are fully charged so that we have a way of staying informed when the power  does go out.   Just as I was unplugging a charger, it hit me.  My Nook is going to lose its charge before the power comes back on, probably at a really juicy part of the novel.  Since a book does not have to be charged, this round goes to Book, making the current count Nook - 6,  Book - 5.  Who will the champ be?  Check back to find out.  To see earlier rounds click Round 1,  Round 2,  Round 3,  Round 4,  Round 5,  Round 6,  Round 7,  Round 8,   Round 9,  Round 10. Happy hurricane reading, Christine

Second-Sight Saturday: Snowy Day Valentine Craft

Happy Valentine's Day!

I originally posted this last February during a snow storm.

Kids stuck indoors?  Try this Valentine's Day activity that my daughter learned.  Make Rice Krispie  Treats using the traditional recipe found here.  Then shape them like Hershey's Kisses, wrap them in foil, and write your own  version of the trademark Hershey flags, with customized Valentine's Day messages.

Happy Valentine's Day,
Christine

Literature for Lincoln's Birthday

If you are looking to change-up your lessons for Lincoln's birthday, why not consider Vinnie and Abraham, by Dawn Fitzgerald?  This charming picture book tells the true story of a young girl who was commissioned to create a statue of President Lincoln.



You can even go see the statue in Washington D.C.  My husband planned a wonderful family trip to the Capitol building, where we got to see the sculpture for ourselves.

Happy presidential reading,
Christine