Day: July 12, 2018

My inspirations, pt. 1

| Yvonne

I’m inspired by many things and to start with, these are 2 people and 1 source of inspiration for me! To be continued.

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Grace Lin – She is an author, illustrator, and all around excellent book maker! She makes books and really creative and relatable stories for someone like me. I will read anything she writes and share them with my students as well.
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Rapunzel because she is super creative – she draws, paints, reads, bakes, cleans, stretches – basically she is my role model.
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Cookat – I love recipes and food and it is my dream one day to make all the things I want to eat.

Beachwalk @ Knott’s

| Yvonne

I finally went to Knott’s again! My favorite area is the Beachwalk area with HangTime, Wipeout, Surfside Glider and all of the surfing themed rides. The palm trees and yellow, blue, and coral color schemes are the best. I also finally went on Supreme Scream again, twice!!!!! I am on a mission to go on all of the rides.

(It is still super scary to me but I think the more I go on it, the less scary it will become. It is like drawing blood. It still hurts every time, but it becomes less scary. I actually have a deep personal reason for going on the ride, and to me, it relates to empathizing with students on the first day of school, and overcoming your fears and anxieties in a variety of ways. Thank you theme parks for offering safe and scary sensations for us!)

Summer is coming!

| Yvonne

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I loved all 5 of these books!!!!! I’m super behind on my book reviews, as I read these a month ago at the beginning of summer. (today = 7/12/18) Hello, Universe was an easy read that reminded me of The Wild Robot, it reads kind of fable-like. I loved the characters and how quirky the fortune teller was. I read a ton of middle grade novels and sometimes I think we are all just 6th graders in different bodies – still vulnerable, confused, and wanting to fit in and gain the approval of our peers. I will read all of your books, Erin Entrada Kelly!

The book that kicked off my days off would be Leila Howland’s The Forget-Me-Not Summer. A reviewer  described it has “beach read for kids” which is accurate and has me wanting to read all genre fics for tweens. (True crime for tweens! Mysteries for tweens! Chick lit for tweens!) I loved the three sisters and their summer adventures with Aunt Sunny. It is so cozy and summery and fun.

Two reliable authors whose whole middle grade bibliography I plan to read: Jason Reynolds and Carl Hiaasen. They are amazing writers who have really got the young teens world down. They do a great job of capturing how young adults in challenging situations think, what they go through, and why they take the actions they take. I can’t say that I relate to or even know any kids in real life who are like these characters , but I like to think that reading about their point of view helps me broaden my perspectives. I highly recommend Patina and Flush!

Lastly, Polly Horvath. I’ve read a lot of her books and I think her most recent ones, meaning the ones written after 2010, are better. Some of her previous books are just too bizarre, but I liked The Night Garden because it has her quirky nonsense but also some fantasy/historical elements. I enjoyed all of these books!