This year I did the sixth grade in several groups, instead of two groups of 100. Our sixth grade is divided into two teams, purple team and gold team. I did 35 kids from gold team, 100 kids from purple team, 35 kids from gold team, and then 40 kids from gold team. I gotta say, gold team won hands down! Of course, it's easier to be enthusiastic in a smaller group...maybe purple team got up too early this morning.
I made sure everyone knew where the library was, talked up our reading off your fines program, and then gave a rundown on the summer reading program and other summer programs. I try to emphasize that you can read ANYTHING (and of course got some smart alecks this year who wanted to know if you could "read the labels off mattresses") and sign up anytime during the program, which runs June 11 to August 13.
I've seen some other librarians who actually sign kids up in school during the last week, rather than the day after school ends and I find this idea quite interesting...hmm...
Anyhow, and now to the list! I allow kids to choose what they want to hear about and throw in a few of my own selections. Remember, this is a large group and they might see something they really like, but be too shy or worried about what the other kids will say to speak up. Or they just can't see the covers very well. No matter the size of the group, I generally only have 5-10 kids pointing out books. Asterisks stand for how many times a book was asked for, to the best of my recollection.
Fiction
- *True (...sort of) by Katherine Hannigan (Only one request for this and I talked it more as an example of the free books you can get coming to book club and that I do listen to suggestions, since I wasn't going to buy this until the girl who got the galley asked for it)
- ***Battle of the red hot pepper weenies and other warped and creepy tales by David Lubar (always a popular choice - I ask the kids "are you a weenie? because these tales are seriously warped and creepy and you have to be pretty tough to read them!")
- *Mother Daughter Book Club by Heather Frederick (only one request for this - I think a lot of girls have already read it, it's quite popular)
- Tale of two castles by Gail Levine (I was surprised no one asked for this, but it was in the back)
- ***No more dead dogs by Gordon Korman (Very popular - I really should get more Korman)
- **Groosham Grange by Anthony Horowitz (Another popular selection, although the pronunciations of the title were kind of funny!)
- **Toads and diamonds by Heather Tomlinson (Several requests for this - from boys! I had it in the back and all they saw of the title was "toads" Heh heh heh)
- **Dreamdark: Silksinger by Laini Taylor (A couple requests for this - really need a better booktalk. This one I need to read)
- **Dragonbreath: Curse of the were-weiner by Ursula Vernon (I LOVE booktalking this! A little young for this group, but several kids need something easier to read)
- Elsewhere Chronicles 1 by Bannister/Nykko [GN]
- My boyfriend is a monster by Evonne Tsang [GN]
- Chasing Alliecat by Rebecca Davis
- G-Man: Learning to fly [GN]
- Chi's sweet home by Kanata [GN]
- Cat burglar black by Richard Sala [GN]
- **Crunch by Leslie Connor (This is one of our book club selections for the summer, so it was nice to have my choice validated!)
- Zita the spacegirl by Ben Hatke [GN]
- ***Swim the fly by Don Calame (Three boys. One dare. Every summer, three best friends pick a dare and do it before the end of summer. This year, they're going into high school. It's the biggest, best dare yet. This summer, they're going to see a naked girl. (loud groans and yelps))
- **How to grow up and rule the world by Vordak the Incomprehensible (this is a little young for 6th grade, but I did have two requests for it and I had such a good booktalk I had to take it! I ask the kids "what do you want to be when you grow up?" after they all tell me, and I get responses ranging from 'author' and 'lawyer' to 'Spiderman', I tell them "You don't really mean that. Secretly, you really want to GROW UP AND RULE THE WORLD and this book tells you exactly how to do it! Then I usually read off the list of important items on the utility belt, b/c it's FUN)
- *Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett
- **Outlaw: the legend of Robin Hood by Tony Lee [GN]
- Any which wall by Laurel Snyder
- *Boom! by Mark Haddon
- **My cousin the alien by Pamela Service (again, this is a little young, but I like to have some easier books for the poor readers and this is such a fun series! The kids ask for it frequently too)
- **How to survive middle school by Donna Gephart
- **True meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex
- ***Tinker Bell and the wings of Rani [GN] (had a bunch of boys ask for this, being silly. It's really a bit young, but I know several girls really love these books although they don't like to admit it, so this way they know we have them and they can check them out later, when nobody's looking!)
- *Twisted Journeys: Captured by Pirates by Ron Fontes [GN]
- **Boys are dogs by Leslie Margolis (always popular!)
- Young Fredle by Cynthia Voigt
- Penderwicks at Point Mouette by Jeanne Birdsall
- *Extreme Adventures: Shark bait and Scorpion Sting by Justin D'Ath (only had one kid, a girl, ask for these. The covers aren't really grabby. BUT I booktalked them at the end to EVERY GROUP. Because they are so extreme! And I totally love them!)
- Thinking Girl's Treasury of Real Princesses by Shirin Bridges
- Qutlugh Cerkan Khatun of Kirman
- Sorghaghtani of Mongolia
- Artemisia of Caria (briefly talked this to some kids that came early)
- ****Poop Happened by Sarah Albee (always popular, every group picked it! I generally do a talk based off the questions on the back cover)
- Mathemagic by Lynda Colgan
- ***Mummies by Christopher Sloan (another very popular selection - I just read the subtitle and show one of the more gruesome pictures)
- Baghdad Pups by Meish Goldish
- *Here there be monsters by HP Newquist (only one request for this - I think they couldn't see it clearly)
- 13 Planets by David Aguilar
- Manatee Scientists by Peter Lourie (interest from one kid after the talks)
- Bat Scientists by Mary Carson
- **Bug zoo by Nick Baker (a couple kids asked for this - I talk it asking "do any of you want a pet and your parents won't let you have one because it sheds? here are pets that never shed!)
- **Bake and make amazing cakes by Elizabeth Macleod (two requests for this - I showed the rainbow cake and the hamburger cake)
- *How to draw big cats by Carolyn Franklin (Only one asked for this - I think how to draw books are more popular in the 4th grades from what I remember from last year)
- *Math doesn't suck by Danica Mckellar
- Start it up by Kenrya Rankin (This and several other graphic novels couldn't be seen b/c they were pbs and lying flat - there was interest in them as the kids walked by or came up afterwards)
- ***Dreadful fates by Tracey Turner (everyone wanted this one!)
- ****Guess again by Mac Barnett (be warned - reading even part of this book will result in loud howls of shock!)
- **Oh No! by Mac Barnett (Barnett's picture books are great for older kids and always get a lot of laughs)
- **More Bears by Kenn Nesbitt (6th graders like picture books if they're funny!)
- Same difference by Siobhan Vivian (talked this one as part of my spiel on summer programs, since Siobhan will be here this summer!
- Science Fair by Dave Barry on Playaway (this is my audiobook sample to tell the kids they can listen to audiobooks and it "counts")
2 comments:
Off to add more books to my list. I'm all for signing up students for summer reading at school. I've been talking up the program all week; I'd have the public librarians in, but they'd need to spend three entire days to hit everyone. That's just torture.
Yeah, we're a fairly small town so I can just manage it (although I only see 6th grade - no 7th through high school) We have three elementary schools and they get one morning each so I have to talk FAST. We are growing though, so I need to think about different options for the future.
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