Wordless Wednesday & Digital Galaxy Citizens

It WAS going to be a pic of my new nephew. Then I decided maybe I shouldn't cause my sis hasn't shared the pic yet and even though none (well ... not very many, anyway) of you know her that would be jumping the gun a bit. He's so cute! And a niece is on the way. Different sibling.

So you get this instead. You can order giant eyes from ThinkGeek. Check out the Eyebombing site.

I'd eyebomb the mascot on the dumb tile just to make myself laugh. But maybe that would be unprofessional and uncool. Maybe the tile will reduce dust SO MUCH my allergies will get better? And kids won't squeak their feet all the way down the long length of the library? #right #butmiraclesnevercease


And another SW plea ... ideas for better quotes? If you like as is (and yes, I know it's not for everyone and really only "works" if kids have seen the movies but it amused me and I just did it while vegging in front of the tv and still fuming about changes in the library space ... which doesn't help anyone, now does it. Except for maybe you, if you like them!) Click on the link to download from Google Drive!

 Not very wordless, am I?

B2S Shopping Bookish Office Supplies

This is the last one cause it's silly and I'm out of time to web surf. Fun, but silly. Click on all the pics to go to their respective stores.

This is a bookplate stamp I can get behind. Much as I love the other kinds ... it's just easier to use clip art there. But it's an owl! And it goes in books!

These little note pads were in a GroopDealz email last Friday as I started drafting this post. Got one of the book ones for me and a princess one for one of my nieces.

So I have to wear a badge and went to the clippy type when I got tired of losing so many earrings taking off the lanyard. Yes, I know. HOW DID I MANAGE TO BE SO RIDICULOUS? Can't answer that question. But a perusal of Etsy showed this seller ...

which could be fun. And she has a set that can pop in that look like this.

Now the two together would not be inexpensive. So it's still a maybe. But a fun maybe.

FYI I added a couple new HP quote posters (FREE) to the TPT shop. Stop by if you got the first set. Or want either.

#IMWAYR and Move Along No Library Reveal Photos Here but Hey Oliver!

It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journeys. It is a great way to recap what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and to plan out your reading and reviews for the upcoming week. It's also a great chance to see what others are reading right now… who knows, you might discover that next “must read” book!

Our Kid Lit to YA version is hosted by Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers.
GREAT IDEA! Check out all of the What Are You Reading? participants for title ideas.





Read Last Week (so #bookaday never really happened ... came close some weeks and over others ... but I think it's gone for good until next year)

I didn't love The Wig in the Window like some people. Liked it but didn't LOVE it. Too many unfunny throw away lines.
DID love Every Day After. If you like historical fic it's a must read.
Necromancing the Stone is just funny. The chapter headings from song lyrics are classics.
Tooth & Nail made me want Fire & Ash that much more. Of course it comes out the second day of school. #rottentiming
Lunch Lady #9 was not my favorite. It's still a must get if you have fans of the rest of the series. But it wasn't as funny.

With school this close I seriously need to finish Note & Notice. No excuse for how none of my professional reading happened this summer. FUN LIGHT reading happened. But not the professional books I'd planned on.


Still have these checked out from the library. And Eleanor & Park isn't there yet. Just got it today when I returned some books. And all the ARCs. Plus I'm in the middle of listening to Beautiful Darkness.

"nicely lit iPhone photo"

And I just have to say ... our library is still a mess. When you have to get your own retired dad in there to help because you can't quite deal with student parents when you yourself are not exactly sure how to FIX THE ROYAL MESS "RENOVATIONS" MADE ... well. Add that to the mess that is always there when we come back from summer because we're in such a central location the custodians and office leave all sorts of crud on top of the bookshelves until they freak out during the hours before meet the teacher and finally do something with the crud ... I'm just sayin'. No "library classroom reveal" photos here. Thanks for stopping by but you can now move along.

Does that sound passive aggressive? A little.

On a HAPPIER NOTE ... sometime tonight or early tomorrow morning my little nephew Oliver will come into the world. Good luck, Sis! You're amazing! Good luck Mom dealing with little sisters nervous about why THEIR mom & dad aren't around. And to my S-i-L who is also expecting any day now ... little Oakley's turn will come.

Listen with Whole Body

At first I thought this was funny just for the Karate Kid parody (seriously, they should have tried for the rights to a bit of the "You're the Best" song). But now I'm thinking it could also be fun for talking about how to listen. Is it too much of a stretch?



Eyes watch. Ears listen. Voice quiet. Body calm.
I like it.

I will be heading back into school tomorrow to face the ... renovations. I know it's a little silly to be so upset but they took a chaotic space (major traffic hallway with absolutely no walls) and made it even more frustrating and distracting for students and staff. All for a mascot on the floor. Must bloom where planted, right? :( :P


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

#pb10for10)

Would love to have had a fun theme going for my list like "10 Books with Lunch" or "10 Books with Sneezes" (can you tell pollens are already in the air and I want a snack? :/). But the brain wouldn't focus long enough to create that. So ... you're just getting "Ms. O's Favorites that NEVER EVER fail in a read aloud. ;) They're not in any particular order. Check the hashtag on Twitter for more posts!

Oldie but goodie. IT NEVER FAILS. Never. Ever. Ever. Easy tie-in? Make a paper pigeon. Get some shredded paper. Fill up a paper bowl with the shredded paper (gluing a bit on the outside helps with the effect). Attach the bird to the inside of the nest. Balance (or tie with an elastic string) on top of your head! Pinterest search it or look here. Really any Piggie and Elephant book. They are comedic genius.

It's more than a little silly. But come on. A hippo who salsas and discos? What fun!

Great for writing lessons. And, on a personal level ... I am an aunt. And I love reading stories with my nieces and nephews.

I will admit I'm a little tired of this one ... but the kids aren't. So I read it anyway and then they get so excited and I don't hate it anymore. Cause really. He does wear shoes that look a lot like Converse. And after recent events at school I'm having to repeat "Does Ms. O cry? Goodness, no. She just walks along singin' her song because it's ALL GOOD." So he can't be all bad.

The only "accent" I can even pretend to do is stereotypical drawl or twang or what have you. And I do it pretty well, thank you very much. So this one's fun to read. Always interesting when the kids catch on as to which fairy tale this is based on.

Really I could add most of these but I'll just use one of my picks and choose this one. Usually tend to pick it to read aloud when I have a cold. Cause that's a lot, funny little germ carriers.

I like to read this one ... but the recording of the author doing it is so good sometimes I just play that.

If I could read this one in a British accent it would be even funnier. But the former (and I'll admit ... sometimes still) picky eater in me relates! And so do the kids.

A favorite from my own childhood that still translates today (plus the app is really fun).

All of Jan Thomas' books are pretty funny. Minus all the germs the kids blow on me when we read this one ... it's so funny to see them making the scary faces. They love it.

Finally Friday August 9

I want very much to eat this. Right now. Without having to then work off the calories. Can you make that happen? ;) Thanks, Pixelated Crumb. Thanks a lot. :P

The Guardian reports it's been proven! Teachers who read are happier and less stressed. YAY!

Simple but fun. I can think of several kiddos who would like these. Momitforward shows us how!

How fun is this? Thanks, First Grade in Foxwell Forest!

Aren't these fab?

Scheduling this to post tomorrow as I take my Mac into the Apple store to finally see what is making it SOOOOOOOOO SLOOOOOOOOOOW with the spinning pinwheel of death and frequent force quits. I'm nervous. Enough dumbness this week.

SW Reads Day Planning

It CANNOT fall apart like it did last year. So I need to start planning now because it's right after book fair, right when my assistant will be out, and right when I'll either be packing up to move or unpacking because I moved to the new place. Also while advertising the book pumpkin patch. The first plan when October didn't work last year was in April after "testing." No one felt like it then, either. But the KIDS WOULD LIKE IT. Actually had a parent disappointed last year. He'd seen we were listed on the website.

We have done something called Read Around the School (lovingly known as RAtS) before. So I thought I'd sort of base it on that just because even though we never did one last year most of the staff and a good portion of the kids will be familiar with it. Doing a big "thing" ... it's easier for everyone when it's semi-familiar.

Are you tired of the rambling yet? This is really a thinking it all out post. And PLEASE ... if you have any ideas at all please comment!


There are not enough SW stories by a long shot. At least not for kids (cause RAtS actually lends itself best to picture books ... not readers or chapter books) or that we actually OWN in the library. So I sort of thought I'd make some of it fairy tales and then activities that relate back to Star Wars? Will that work? Plus the princesses will grab the female students and staff who (gasp!) might not be fangirls like their teacher librarian. The 5th grade boys who might be reading buddy paired with a 2nd grade girl would BOTH understand they'd need to share choices.

Example Stories & Activities (I would need about 25-30 activities total! 700 or so kids participating.)

• Origami Yoda excerpt and folding Origami Yodas (sort of a given, right? The thing will be getting a teacher who feels comfortable enough to lead this one ... I'm running around making the announcements)
• I'd say a drawing lesson from ART2D2's Guide ... but then where would be the "reading"? Especially if it was a guided activity and not them reading the directions on their own. Also ... finding a teacher who feels comfortable with this!
• by then Jeff Brown's Jedi Academy will be out ... I need to finish the E-ARC to see if there is an excerpt we could use. Not all of them have to have an activity so it would just be an 8-10 minute read aloud.
• Star Wars Mad Libs ... hmm. Making up my own entirely? Will have to start now. Could I reproduce a page or two from the book (credited, of course) since it would be for a school setting reading activity? Maybe. It's a reproducible, so that's a count against. It wouldn't be much of it, so that's a count for.
• What is a Wookiee?, Feel the Force, Luke Skywalker's Amazing Story, Journey through Space, The Adventures of Han Solo, or A Queen's Diary. All are DK readers so they would need an accompanying literacy activity because the actual READING part would be short. They aren't the most compelling stories.
• The Bravest Knight (Mercer Mayer) or The Knight and the Dragon (Tomie dePaola)
• excerpt from The Knights of the Kitchen Table (Jon Sciezcka) ... that's stretching the SW tie-in but hey! It would introduce them to a new series!
• one of Carmela LaVigna Coyle's Princess books (Do Princesses Wear Hiking Boots? comes to mind) ... and maybe a Princess Leia bookmark they could color?
• or a version of the Princess and the Pea
• or Julie Andrews' The Fairy Princess
• an excerpt from Shannon Hale's The Princess Academy or Gail Carson Levine's Ella Enchanted? Both have a Newbery behind it. It's been a while so I don't remember.
• an except from a Princess Posey book? We got them last spring and they were surprisingly (to me, anyway) well received. Wasn't expecting that.

I already have a bunch of printable posters and bookmarks. Some free, some on TPT (even though I go through phases where I take them down because I'm like "I don't own SW rights and I'm not sure I should have even bought the clip art cause THEY didn't have the right, either" and then "But I love them so much I want other people to like them, too." #justification
Check out the Printable Stuff page for links to both. Unless I've taken them down by the time you look.




PS I did try contacting the 501st Legion (especially when we changed the day). Never heard back. Don't blame 'em ... they'd be so popular there's no way they could say yes to everyone!