I’ve missed the book store!  I know that might sound like a strange thing to say but we all know…these are strange times!  Let me explain…As a teacher I used to spend every other weekend in the children’s book section searching for the perfect book to teach my lessons.  I loved using books to introduce new concepts, review old concepts, or just surprise the kids with an amazing story that could lead us to wonderful conversations.  It was a place of happiness for me…a place where I would create awesome lessons with the simple choice of a book.

As a librarian, I continued my tradition of visiting the book store looking for great read-alouds, only my target was a little larger.  Now I was looking for books that would support not only myself, but also all my teachers at multiple grade levels.  I would go in with the “big ideas” each grade level was targeting, and have that in the back of my mind as I was reading. Usually, my time searching for the perfect book would find its way onto my Book Talk page where I could share my finds with everyone.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic started, my visits to the book store, or anywhere really, have been minimal.  The last few months have been a blur, and in talking with other librarians and teachers, I know we’ve all been dealing with the crazy stress of this school year. (I’ll be blogging about that tomorrow so stay tuned!) 

But now that I’m on a week-long break for Thanksgiving, and have time to catch my breath,  I decided to go to the book store and catch up on the stories I had missed!  And boy did I find some fun ones! Be watching for those to appear on my upcoming Book Talks!

So if you see someone standing at the corner of a table of books, typing on an iPad with a stack of books on the side, that very well could be me!   You might actually see the ideas filling my brain… “Oh this would be fun to use with….Oh this would be great to introduce….!”  This is why I love books!  The feeling of peace that comes over me as I enter the bookstore, well it honestly makes me smile and feel whole again.  I guess it’s a good thing that I’m a librarian! LOL!

So, in honor of my return to the bookstore and once again searching for the perfect book, I’d like to offer my readers a heartfelt THANK YOU freebie!  In past years, I’ve always put up a holiday tree in the library, and allowed students to each pick an ornament or decoration to add to it.  This year, I wanted to do a Book Tree to highlight some of our favorite books that we’ve read!  So I created these book ornaments for students to fill out and hang on our tree.

Click here to download this THANK YOU freebie!

I am ever so grateful that you visit my website, and support me on this adventure (even when I’ve been away for a while!)

Stay safe!