We've started to put our heat on. They are predicting significant snow on Friday. We "fall back" on Saturday night. Covid numbers are rising. I could really use a pick me up. And I got one.
Thank you Global Read Aloud 2020 and the uber amazing Pernille Ripp for showcasing my friend and talented, Caldecott Honor winning illustrator, Juana Martinez-Neal. By doing so, this week I get to visit the sea twice a day by sharing Beth Ferry's Swashby and the Sea with the gorgeous illustrations by Juana. Ahhh...short of actually having the waves fiddle with my toes and hearing them crash, this is really the next best thing.
I love the story of Swashby, el recluso. As much as he wants to resist the energetic, fun, oatmeal cookie giving neighbor, with a little help from the sea, he just can't.
Today, day one for this book, felt like the old days when I did a "Book of the Week" with the entire third grade. One story. One crazy activity for 75 kids ( ie, author Skype, oreo moons, literally potato pants...) Except this time around, I planned it all on my own (well, not without running it by Mrs. Pryde to get the ok that it wasn't too wild an idea) and lead it on my own. I miss the collaboration but forgot about it for a second when I heard all the oohs and ahhhs. I was pleasantly surprised that it all worked. "This is really fun," exclaimed several kids. Yay!
Rather than mimicking the sea altogether, we just "painted" kind words in the sand with glue and whole wheat flour. Not too messy. Fortunately, with my second class we actually went outside so clean up was a breeze. Ahhhh....all puns intended of course.
In a few weeks we hope to connect with friends in Manitoba as part of the GRA. So far we have seen their names written out creatively, read about their favorite family foods and shared our "La Princesa and the Pea" mattresses piled high on a pea (lentil) through our joint padlet. We can't wait to meet them IRL, sort of.
I love the idea of the Global Read Aloud so much and even though this is its final year, I hope we can continue to connect with folks all over the world in our own ways next year and beyond.
Pre-quel
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