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| Clear Lake, Oregon. Photo by Anne Parr, used with permission. |
Weather: Clear night (Saturday); Rainy (Sunday)
Mock Printz Workshop: Thirty Five students joined me Monday afternoon for an exhilarating time debating the merits of twenty YA books. The team of reading teenagers attempted to get into the mind of the Real Printz committee to select the best YA novels of the year. It was a wild event with lots of opinions shared and several voting sessions before the slate was selected. They selected Challenger Deep as their favorite book of the year, and four honor books: Nimona, All the Bright Places, The Truth Commission, and The Game of Love and Death. None of these titles actually won an honor when the real awards were announced but the kids had fun selecting them.
Poetry Out Loud: The National Endowment for the Arts sponsors a recitation competition which has levels of winners which start in the classrooms, move through the school, to regional, state, and finally National finals. I am the coordinator for our school. Our school Poetry Out Loud contest was held on Thursday after school. Ten class winners came together to recite two poems each. Our winner, Katie T. will represent us at Regionals in February. Check out the POL website to understand more about the program. If you are a high school teacher you, too, can bring this poetry contest to your school.
Busy week: With two big after-school events in one week I was ready for bed at 8 PM Thursday night. How do coaches and drama teachers do it night after night? I was pooped after two late afternoon events! Ha!
Nine down, one to go. My daughter has been a busy girl applying to graduate schools. She has completed nine applications so far and we are so proud of her diligence and determination. Send your positive thoughts and prayers her way that she will find a slot in Grad School this coming Fall.
Puzzlemania: Between Grad School Apps and work, Carly and I have been busy putting together jigsaw puzzles. Normally each holiday season we will put together one puzzle. We just finished our 4th, a puzzle purchased after Obama was just elected the first time, YES WE CAN.
Reading this week:
- The Yearling by Marjorie Rawling---I just finished this classic novel which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1939. It was my Classics Club Spin book. Check out my review here.
- The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junet Diaz---as part of my Pulitzer Challenge I decided to finish this novel but couldn't remember much so ended up starting over. I am listening to the audiobook. Progress: 40%.
- Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez---this was one of two Printz Honor books announced this past week, the only one on the list I haven't read, yet. Progress: 10%.
- Nice Recovery by Susan Juby---a memoir about Juby, a newly discovered author about being a teenage alcoholic.
12th Minuteman: We are all a little Seahawks crazy around here, considering ourselves to be the 12th man on the football team. Even the Minuteman statue on Camp Murray is a fan.
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| Don and the 12th Minuteman, both fans of the Seahawks! |
Rest in Peace Alan Rickman. My favorite movie where Rickman played a role was Galaxy Quest (other than Harry Potter movies, of course.). In it he plays an actor who had been part of a TV show like Star Trek and he had the Spock-like role. We enter the scene when the actors, now has-beens, are living on their former glory. The Rickman character is sick of it. Enjoy the 2 minute clip.
