We Have New Friends in the Library!

So our library recently became the home of approximately 40 new friends. These friends are better known as Beanie Babies or as we refer to them...our Reading Buddies! Students are allowed to select a Reading Buddy once their book is checked out and read to him! These have been a fun addition to our library! Students look forward to choosing a buddy for the day and sharing some reading time and a change of scenery. We always have room for more buddies, so if you would like to donate any Beanie Babies taking up space, feel free to send them our way where they will not only be taken care of, but read to daily!

12 Weeks to Better Readers!

For the next twelve weeks I'll be posting excerpts from Judy Freeman's 12 Tried-And-True Ways to Get Your Kiddos Reading (from ReadKIDDORead). This is an EXCELLENT article in teaching methods to get children not only READING, but EXCITED about reading! In the world of technology...IPads, Nooks, Kindles, Playstations, Wiis, Kinects, IPods, Smart Phones...we must find a way to compete...To make READING as enjoyable and rewarding as all of these "gadgets". We have our work cut out for us. The answer? Incorporate reading into technology...find reading apps, iBooks, etc...but...never underestimate the power of a good old-fashioned book. To get started with a good reading routine with your child, try this baker's dozen of easy, tried-and-true ways to ease reluctant readers into good books.

Remember...One method a week will be posted here at The Need 2 Read. Try it for a week...and see what works for YOUR sweetie!

1. Read Aloud Something EVERY Day

If you have time to watch TV or surf the Internet, you can make time to read with your kids. You only have a limited window of read-aloud years, so rearrange your schedule to carve out reading time every day. There's always time for a story, a chapter, or at least a poem, a joke or a tongue twister. And start early - in utero isn't too soon. What new parents soon discover is that reading aloud is just plain fun.


"Always read with expression," my mother told me when I was a child, learning to read with those good-time kids, Dick and Jane. (And I did, even becoming a librarian when I grew up, where I read aloud with expression on a daily basis.) Lucky for kids today, children's books are far more attractive and engaging these days. Kids pattern themselves on you, their reading role models. Listen for the voices in the stories you read aloud. Do you need to read aloud like actors Meryl streep or Lawrence Olivier? Yes, of course you do. Ham it up and have fun. If you read in a monotone, so will your kids. They need to hear the characters; voices in their heads to have true comprehension of the books they read. And there's nothing they love more than to snuggle in close and listen to you read aloud to them.


As your children start to read independently, share the joy and have them read to you, too. Make your own recordings of stories so your child can follow each book and listen to you over and over. Read aloud on car trips, at the doctor's office, and before bed, of course. What's my favorite read-aloud picture book, a tour de force of great voices? "The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales" by the great Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith.

Author: Judy Freeman
Written For: www.readkiddoread.com

Nosey is Good!

I am a nosey teacher.

I consider being a nosey teacher to be "a good thing". Why you might ask? I learn more. I know more. And the more I learn about my students...the better I can help them at being nosey students. You see, if I know their favorite methods of technology, if I know their favorite things to read, if I know their most admired celebrities...I can create a love of learning that will enable my students to be nosey about reading and in turn nosey about life-long learning. How do I get more of these books? How do I find more books written by this author? How do I get an app for this Kindle? How do I practice my vocabulary words on the Ipad? The more I know, the more I can teach and the more I can teach, the more they will know...

I have asked my students who their favorite celebrities might be...and now we have personalized autographed pictures to display of these exact celebrities encouraging students to read.

I have asked my students what their favorite subjects are...and now I have more books on those subjects.

I have asked my students what they enjoy doing when they get home...and now I have that same technology here so they can read not only books, but information in magazines, on Kindles, on Ipads, on websites and in newspapers.

I have asked my students who their favorite authors and illustrators are...and we have brought many of them to the school to encourage students to continue to read and write and draw...they may be a famous writer or illustrator one day.

I have asked my students when their birthday is...and they are celebrated in the Birthday Book Club with the honor of checking out a new book and donating it to the library.

I have asked my students what they want to learn in technology...and we have downloaded many of these programs and found websites where they can learn more.

I have asked my students how they think other students would be best helped...and we have created school-wide contests and group efforts to make a difference and donate books around the world through Scholastic's One for Books and various other programs.

I have asked my students who their favorite characters are...and we have transformed students into these characters.


I have asked my students how they are involved in the community...and we have invited their local heroes to be a part of our reading program.

My motto is "Reading Rocks". When a student asks, "Why does reading rock?"...I tell them...come inside and let me show you.

I am proud to be a nosey teacher.
I am proud to teach nosey students.
They're always wanting to know what's going on in the library.
They checked out over 16,000 books last year alone in a school of less than 400. They kept a close eye on the library's blog.
They logged into My Capstone Virtual Library online...thousands of times.

Students at Odenville Intermediate School are nosey. They are knowledgeable. They are learning. How nosey are you?

If you are interested in learning how classroom management software can help you become a nosey teacher and manage students on computers more effectively, check out http://www.netop.com/products/education.htm

Get Free Books from Kellogg's!

Kellogg's has partnered with Scholastic to offer free books! Be sure to look on ALL Kellogg's products for a $5 book code! You need two codes to earn a $5 book certificate and there is NO LIMIT to the number of books you can earn! You're even able to pick out the book you want - awesome! And remember...if you're not interested...then bring the codes to your teachers and help your classroom earn free books!!

You can go here to see more information and to enter your codes and start earning books. Yay! Thank you, Kellogg's and Scholastic!

Welcome Back to School OIS!

Welcome back! I am convinced this is going to be the BEST school year ever! I am so excited to announce our first library event, a back-to-school Reading Pep Rally by author, illustrator, musician...Chris Rumble! We are so excited to have Chris visit our school this Friday, August 19th.

Students, teachers, parents...you may purchase books from Chris for $6 each. This includes an autograph and personal note of encouragement. Be sure to send your money Thursday or Friday of this week.

Here's a special note from Mr. Chris Rumble:

Dear Parents,

My name is Chris Rumble. I am so looking forward to my Author Visit with the great kids at Odenville Intermediate on August 19, 2011.

I believe I was put on this planet to encourage the next generation to realize their greatness. Reading is a big part of that equation.

During our event, I will give all that is in me to get the kids fired up about diving into great books in order to feed their minds and broaden their horizons!

You can help by getting your child excited about our event. Letting them know what a GREAT DAY it is going to be and that we are going to have a lot of fun with music and illustrating and audience participation!

Also, let me encourage you to use this event as a reason to experience great books together with your child. Please see my “Seven Great Reasons to Read to Your Child” included in the post-script.

The day of our event, they will be especially motivated to explore the books that I have written and illustrated: The Adventures of Uncle Stinky! (Random House) Kids love these books highly illustrated chapter books.

At $6, my books are relatively inexpensive. If the school is doing a book sale, the books can be purchased there. I autograph every book and include a personal note of encouragement to each child. If the school is not having a book sale, you can obtain the books at my web site at chrisrumble.com.

Thanks for investing in your child by getting them excited about our event!

I can’t wait to see the great kids at your school face-to-face!

We are going to have a BLAST…and inspire your child at the same time!

For the kids,

Chris Rumble