Graduation/teachers’ last day was Friday and I have to say this was a pretty strange year end for me.  Usually, I’m sad to see the kids go and all keyed up, but instead I was very calm and other than worrying over technical issues, I was just happy to have the whole thing over with. I guess it was because only one of “my” students was graduating, whereas, in the past I’ve had a handful or more graduating.  I did, however, enjoy the get together with some of our faculty at Hartley’s Pond to celebrate the closing of another successful year.   BTW, the image I’ve inserted was the one I wanted to use on the senior tribute video, but while it fit my personality, I didn’t think it would please everyone in the audience – not as dignified as the event should be I guess.  Instead, I used a photo of baby shoes.

This year was a busy one: ERT, HSTW, Five Year Renewal Plan, new administration, new policies and procedures, new faculty members, freshman academy, etc.  I think this year was a successful one – as with past years, it had it’s ups and downs, but overall, I think there were more positives than negatives.  We’ve got a handful of teacher turnover: 2 retireing, 2 moving on, 1 left in 3rd quarter due to her husbands job transfer, shuffling of positions, new teachers coming in, … things should be just as exciting and hectic next year.

But, I still have two more workdays left for me this year – both will be spent in meetings: Aiken County Media Educators on Monday and a TAV (Technical Assistance Visit) Workshop on Wednesday.  Then the summer vacation officially begins.  Hopefully, it will be a good one – time for me to recharge and prepare for next year.  Here is a short list of my plans for the summer:

√ Graduation Video – I have to work on the graduation video this week.  My deadline is June 16th and I don’t want to put it off – I want it to be a great souvenir.  This is only the 2nd year we’ve been selling them since I came to Wagener.  I don’t want anyone to be disappointed with it.  Completed!

√ Upstate Technology Conference, Greenville, SC (June 23-25) – Very much enjoyed my time there last year and looking forward to learning even more this time around.  I’m also looking forward to seeing some old and new friends.  Completed! Notes to follow soon!

2 Read or Not 2 Read Blog (not up and running YET) – I created a blog for my teens and the students from Midland Valley to correspond over the books they are reading for our book club(s) next year.  Unfortunately, I have to submit a proposal to the powers that be for approval before I can open it up.  Wish me luck.

√ Process new books – Our school received a Palmetto Silver Award that came with a monetary award that my principal graciously allowed me part of in order to place my one and only book order for the year.  I received the books ON GRADUATION DAY! *sigh* but at least I’ll have new books for the kids in August. Completed!

Reading!!! - I have a LOT of books to read over the summer.  My goal is to read most, if not all, of the SC Young Adult Book Award Nominees for this year.  I also need to re-read My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult as I’m going to use it as one of our book club selections next year.  There are a bunch of new YA titles I want to get to as well – see my LibraryThing widget/catalog.  I’ll be updating it with the books we just received.  I have a huge backlog of book review magazines (Voya, School Library Journal, Library Media Connection, etc.) that I have to go through and update my “wish list” in case we actually have money next year.  Of course, there are some adult titles/authors I want to finally get to this summer as well.

“Scrapbooking” – I put that in quotation marks as I’m not actually going to do any scrapbooking, but its the only term that comes to mind.  I’ve got 4 years of drama club photos and memorabilia that I need to organize and put in some kind of display.  The photos I want to turn into picture books to keep in the library.  The memorabilia I’m going to try to put in some kind of memory/shadow boxes or something.  Just not sure what since it consists of t-shirts, photos, awards/metals, programs, etc.

Moodle/PowerSchool – Our state is changing over its student records program/system.  I need to learn how to use it before the teachers get back.  I have to train them on how to use the PowerTeacher features (attendance, gradebook) and see what other perks it contains.  I was told it was “moodle-like” but from what I’ve “seen” I’m not so sure.  I have to figure it all out before our Moodle subscription runs out so decisions can be made.  I hope we keep Moodle, but if PowerSchool will do the same thing and is paid by the district, there is no point in paying extra for Moodle.  Anyone out there use PowerSchool who could answer some questions for me?

Ten Minute Tech – I want to offer short introductions to different technology at our faculty meetings next year.  I need to identify, learn to use (if I don’t already know!), and create handouts for the things I want to cover.  Basically, a mini 23 Things kind of overview where teachers can either explore the tools on their own or sign up with me for more indepth workshops.  There will be some software items in there, too, like: Windows Movie Maker, PhotoStory, Inspiration, Library Card Catalog, using/accessing the student drive, etc.

Okay, that’s a start on my “to do list” even though I have a LOT more to do over the summer.  I do plan to spend some time relaxing.  The pool is finally fixed and up and running – and as soon as it’s not green anymore I’ll be spending part of my days out there floating and reading.  Maybe I’ll actually get a tan this summer!

Each year in April, originally just out of curiosity, I run a report to determine which books are the most circulated.  I usually can guess, but sometimes there are surprises – this year, not so much.  The report also provides me with a great bulletin board and display option for the end of the year.  This year the top 10 titles are:

Number 10.  The First Part Last by Angela Johnson

“Bobby’s carefree teenage life changes forever when he becomes a father and must care for his adored baby daughter.” This is the third year the book has been on the list.

Number 9.  Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause

“Having fallen for a human boy, a beautiful teenage werewolf must battle both her packmates and the fear of the townspeople to decide where she belongs and with whom.” This is the first time Blood and Chocolate book has been on the list.  I attribute the revised interest in this older title to be due to the Twilight phenomenon.  The Silver Kiss by Klause is also on the top 25 list.

Number 8.  Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

“A traumatic event near the end of the summer has a devastating effect on Melinda’s freshman year in high school.” Speak has been on the list off and on over the last seven years.

Number 7.  Shattering Glass by Gail Giles

“Rob, the charismatic leader of the senior class, provokes unexpected violence when he turns the school nerd into Prince Charming.” I have to plead guilty to “pushing” this title every year.  It is one of the two that I can usually entice the fellas into reading.  Ms. Giles made it so easy for me by writing such a grabbing opening paragraph.  I simply have the unsuspecting male read it and they’re hooked.   In case you haven’t picked this one up, the opening lines are:

“Simon Glass was easy to hate.  I never knew exactly why, there was too much to pick from.  I guess, really, we each hated him for a different reason, but we didn’t realize it until the day we killed him.”

Number 6.  Payback by Paul Langan

“Originally published as The gun.  Bluford freshman Tyray Hobbs, the class bully and tormentor of Darrell Mercer, is determined to get revenge on Darrell, the only boy who ever stood up to Tyray.” The Bluford High series is a relatively new series for WS.  I was lucky enough to receive a small monetary donation from our local public library’s “Friends of the Library” association to purchase two sets of the series.  Townsend Press is a godsend by selling them for only $1 each.  All of the titles in the series are constantly checked out!

Number 5.  Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz

“After the death of the uncle who had been his guardian, fourteen-year-old Alex Rider is coerced to continue his uncle’s dangerous work for Britain’s intelligence agency, MI6.” This is another title I “push” with my male/reluctant readers.  I tell them it’s like reading an action-adventure television show – constant action.  Usually, they’ll come back for the rest of the books in the Alex Rider series.  Very few have ever brought it back unread.

Number 4.  Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

“Bella must choose between her friendship with Jacob, a werewolf, and her relationship with Edward, a vampire, but when Seattle is ravaged by a mysterious string of killings, the three of them need to decide whether their personal lives are more important than the well-being of an entire city.”

Number 3.  New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

“When the Cullens, including her beloved Edward, leave Forks rather than risk revealing that they are vampires, it is almost too much for eighteen-year-old Bella to bear, but she finds solace in her friend Jacob until he is drawn into a “cult” and changes in terrible ways.”

Number 2.  Breaking Dawn Stephenie Meyer

“Continues the story of the human Bella and the vampire Edward whose love is threatened by their difference, a werewolf named Jacob, and other outside influences.”

— drum roll please —-

And the number one circulated book at Wagener-Salley is…..

…. as if you haven’t guessed ….

Number 1.  Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

“When seventeen-year-old Bella leaves Phoenix to live with her father in Forks, Washington, she meets an exquisitely handsome boy at school for whom she feels an overwhelming attraction and who she comes to realize is not wholly human.”

No shock to me that the most circulated book would be Twilight.  I guess to be fair, I should have grouped all of the Twilight saga together in order to give at least 3 other books a chance to be in the top 10, but I wanted to be absolutely correct in the top 10 list.   We also have a copy of The Host by Meyer and it is in the top 25 list.

For the first time since I’ve been running the report, there isn’t a Sarah Dessen title on the top ten list.  Sara Dessen and Melody Carlson books are EXTREMELY popular with the girls; however, no single title from these authors made the top 25 this year.

I recently created an account on LibraryThing to “catalog” what I am reading and/or what is on my TBR (too be read) shelf.  There are other virtual bookshelf programs out there, such as Shelfari, but I chose to use LibraryThing (probably because it has library in it’s name) for my blog.  I loved that I could add a widget from my LibraryThing catalog onto my blog (it’s over there on the left column!)

I’m planning on making book reviews a regular segment on the blog – depending upon if I actually can get any reading done, so don’t be surprised if the book reviews are few and far between – amazingly, over the last two months, I’ve actually been able to read a few YA novels so here goes the first one:

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

Eighteen year old Lia’s ex-best friend Cassie was found dead in a motel room of an apparent suicide.  The night she died, Cassie left 33 messages on Lia’s cell phone – calls Lia refused to take.  You see, Lia and Cassie haven’t been friends since Lia passed out behind the wheel and crashed into a guardrail.  The two girls had made a pact to be the skinniest girls in school – Cassie turned to binging and purging, while Lia starves herself, causing the blackout. Cassie was ordered to stay away from Lia and Cassie also doesn’t want her own eating problem to be discovered so she severs all ties to Lia. At least she did until Cassie’s death and the 33 voicemails.  Now Lia is back under the microscope, making it harder to hide that her two stints in rehab at New Season’s didn’t take.  Wintergirls is a powerful look into the mind of a teenager struggling with body/self-image and the damage anorexia takes not only on the body but on the spirit and on ones family and friends.  This is definitely a must read that I’ll be highly recommending.

Rating: 5 Stars

Category: contemporary fiction

Tags: anorexia, contemporary, fiction, self-image, rehab, YAlit, suicide, eating-disorders

Additional Resources:

Wintergirls website – read an exerpt, download the teacher’s guide, additional resources on eating disorders

Laurie Halse Anderson – the official web site for Laurie Halse Anderson

Penguin.com – watch a booktrailer and an interview with Laurie Halse Anderson

Amazon.com – read reviews and watch an interview with Laurie Halse Anderson

National Eating Disorders Association – a place to find information and support about eating disorders

This is just a quick post to announce the winners for the 2009 SC Book Award Winners.

Picture Book Award – Hero Cat by Eileen Spinelli.  There were 243 schools participating with 54,971 students who voted.  Hero Cat won by 8,291 votes.

Children’s Book Award – How to Steal a Dog by Barbara O’Connor.  There were 184 participating schools with 10,495 students who voted.  How to Steal a Dog won by 1,330 votes.

Junior Book Award – Cracker!: the Best Dog in Vietnam by Cynthia Kadohata.  There were 98 schools participating with 6,210 students who voted.  Cracker! won by 850 votes.

Young Adult Book Award – New Moon by Stephenie Meyer.  There were 73 participating schools with 2,024 students who voted.  New Moon won by 487 votes.

Today is Read Across America Day

“The National Education Association annually sponsors Read Across America. Now in its twelfth year, the program focuses on motivating children to read, in addition to helping them master basic skills.  The nationwide reading celebration takes place each year on or near March 2, the birthday of Dr. Seuss. Across the country, thousands of schools, libraries, community centers, and more participate by bringing together kids and books, and you can too!”

While this notice is a little late, you can still participate and find activities on the NEA website and also on the Reading Rockets website.  If nothing else, you can send your friends, family, and co-workers a Read Across America e-card!

Our school is closed today for a snow day (even if we didn’t get any snow or ice!) so I’m thinking of going to the closet to pull out my old box of children’s books to see if there are still any Dr. Seuss in there.   A couple of my favorites were On Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish and “If I Ran the Zoo.”