Finished Book 2!

Late last night around 1am, I finished the second book in the "Game of Thrones" series, which is called A Clash of Kings. Overall I'd say it was pretty good - makes me want to read the next one. It's quite different (in my opinion) from the second season of the TV show. The show basically follows the same plot-lines, but it leaves out a lot of things that were in the book.

Book Two in the Series

Now on to two different books before I return to the series. I'm reading a young adult novel called The Book Thief. I'm just starting it today. I'm hoping that it will be appropriate as a read-aloud book for my fifth graders. To improve both the vocabulary and reading comprehension of students it's always helpful to read books out loud to them that are just above their own reading level. This book states that its age range starts at 12 years old. My students coming in are anywhere from 9-11 at this point. The book itself is about a young girl living through WWII who steals books. Books from Nazi book burning's or any book she can find, she steals it. The story itself is narrated by death. Yes death is personified. I know it sounds grim, but reviewers say that the book has potential to be life changing. Here is the Barnes and Noble overview found on their website: Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.

This book is about power that books have to feed the soul. It was also named a Common Core State Standards Text Exemplar for grades 9-10. The Common Core State Standards dictate that we challenge our students with rigorous texts, push writing skills on them for every subject, and push them to higher level thinking skills as well. In fifth grade I'm all about pushing my students to be prepared for upcoming years and give them an edge up on their peers. Last year my students and I read through Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. This year I want them to have access to books that challenge their thinking and understanding of the world they live in.



In a potential novel study, my partner teacher and I were hoping to have kids read Number the Stars by Lois Lowry. This book is about the war and the Holocaust from a Jewish girl's perspective. So me reading out loud The Book Thief could potentially be a good introduction to a novel that the kids will read on their own or in reading groups. Number the Stars has an age range of 10-14 years.

I'll let you know how The Book Thief is as well as rather or not I think it appropriate to be read aloud to fifth graders or kids around the age of 12. Likewise, I'll give you some potential ideas of how to discuss these issues with your kids.

After I finish reading this novel (I'm hoping it goes quickly so I can see if I can introduce it to my kids), I'm planning on reading another novel that I recently purchased. It's more of a brain candy novel that will give me time to relax and read rather than be thinking critically throughout the book like I've had to do with some recent others.

Keep reading!
~Britt