SUMMER READING PLAN - OLDIES BUT GOODIES

I never have as much free reading time as I do books I want to read. This summer I hope to get to many of the titles that have been gathering dust on my shelves or taking up space on my Nook. Here are some of the things I have been hoping to read for awhile.


The Testing


Hero's Guide to Being an Outlaw


The Fault in our Stars


Rump


The Water Castle


The Selection


Going Rogue


Baker Street Letters


Disney After Dark


Fangirl


Flora and Ulysses


A Wrinkle in Time (graphic novel)


Knightly and Son


Spy School


If you've read any of these, I'd love to hear what you thought of them!

Happy Summer Reading!

SUMMER READING PLAN - NEW RELEASES

Here are some of the books I am hoping to read this summer that release this year between May and August. My full list is much longer, but these are the titles I am most excited about.


The Great Greene Heist - released in May


My New Friend Is So Fun - released June 3, 2014


Paw Enforcement - released June 3, 2014


The Nerdy Dozen - releases June 10, 2014


Minion - releases June 24, 2014


Loot - releases June 24, 2014


Ninja Red Riding Hood - releases July 10, 2014


Return of the Padawan - releases July 29, 2014


Murder in the Mystery Suite - releases August 5, 2014


Miss Brooks' Story Nook - releases August 5, 2104


Percy Jackson's Greek Gods - releases August 19, 2014


Frank Einstein and the Antimatter Motor - releases August 19, 2014


Sisters - releases August 26, 2014


Leroy Ninker Saddles Up - releases August 26, 2014

SUMMER READING PLAN - PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Well, school is out - at least, the kids are done. I still have plenty to do this week before I can truly be free for the summer, so this week I'm posting a few more lists. Next week I'll be back to reviewing.

These are some of the titles I am hoping to read for professional development this summer:

               

Teach Like a Pirate
Thrive
Notice and Note
The Writing Thief

READING RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SUMMER - KIDS

While I am wrapping up the school year, here are some of my favorite books for kids that you might enjoy this summer!

PICTURE BOOKS

Silly Doggy - This hilarious picture book was a hit when I first read it, and it has been a hit every time I have read it to students. It even gets a sequel later this year! You can read my review here.


The Princess and the Pig - Another hilarious picture book. Kids and parents alike will enjoy this one. You can read my review here.


The Really, Really, Really Big Dinosaur - a fun take on a bullying storyline. I'm not sure who enjoys this one more, me or my students. You can read more about it here.

MIDDLE GRADE

The False Prince - This is the first book in a great series. When the third book came out this year, I had students and staff fighting over the opportunity to check it out first. You can read more about the first book here.


Because of Mr. Terupt - This is a great school story and the sequel was just as good. You can read about both books here.


The Candymakers - One of my favorite books to recommend to students. Check out my review here.


Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library - This is one of my go-to books for kids. When someone asks for a recommendation, this is one of the books I suggest over and over. You can read my review here.


Almost Super - I fell in love with this book and immediately bought a copy for the school library. Every student who has tried this has finished it in a matter of days and enjoyed it. Check out my review here.

TEENS

Also Known As - I don't do a lot of reading for teens, but I was intrigued by this one and loved it when I read it. You can read my review here.


Steelheart - The other memorable book for teens/young adults that I have read recently is this one. It is a great super powers story, though darker than most of the books I usually read. You can see my review here.

READING RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SUMMER - ADULTS

I am up to my eyebrows in school things in order to wrap up the school year, so I'm going to do some list-posting for the next couple weeks to get me through the transition from school to summer. I hope you'll find some great titles that you might want to enjoy this summer. I'll see you in a couple weeks with new reviews!

FAVORITES YOU MIGHT ENJOY THIS SUMMER

Here are some books I have really enjoyed that you might want to check out this summer.

Guidebook to Murder - a great mystery! I haven't rated a mystery 5-stars for a long time, but this one qualified. You can read my review here.


18 Minutes - a surprisingly good book about time management. If you are looking to make some improvements in your time management, you should check this one out. You can read my review here.


Touched by an Alien - This is my go to adult series. I will re-read this one at least twice a year (before a new book release) and sometimes just for "comfort reading." There is some language and adult situations, so if that will bother you, you might want to try one of my other suggestions. But if you love funny science-fiction/romance, you need to run out and pick up the first book in this great series. You can read my review here.


These next two are books I am hoping to read this summer. A friend recommended them and I am looking forward to reading both of them!

Bridge to Haven 


Orphan Train

BONUS BLOG: Summer Reading

My son has finished our local library's summer reading program. Two weeks into the program, and he is done! For every 5 books read, he got a prize - a kazoo, a book, a Crocs button, some other small toy and then a t-shirt with the year's theme on it. While I am proud of the volume of reading we have been doing, it does leave a lot of summer left. So we decided to start our own summer reading program.

I created a chart that lists the incentives and has lines for recording the date, the book title and whether it was something he read himself or something we read together. This is a good fit for my early-reader. Older readers might need something different - chapter books vs. comic books or hours of reading instead of finished books, etc.

Our incentives also reflect his interests. For every 25 books finished, he gets a kids meal at a restaurant of his choosing. For reading 100 books total, he will get a $10 gift card for Target. And for every 25 books he reads himself (out loud, so we can verify it and help with the reading) he gets a $10 gift card to Barnes and Noble (to buy more books to read!).

He is very excited about this program and the incentives. We found a Transformers folder to keep our sheets in and he likes to look at how many he has done already. If it works, we will keep it around for summers to come... and maybe even fall and winter and spring!