When I first started my teaching career (many, many years ago) I was lucky enough to have some veteran teachers who were always willing to collaborate with me. We didn’t have coaches or mentors then, so I relied on the generosity of my colleagues to share resources, bounce ideas, and work with me.  The World Wide Web wasn’t yet available to me to tap into for TpT, Twitter, Pinterest, or Facebook. My circle of collaboration was pretty small, but it was all I knew and it sustained me.

Today my circle is ever-increasing-far beyond the walls of our school or our district. Much of that has to do with the use of social media platforms on the internet to help me follow and connect with others whose thinking I admire. Through Twitter chats I build my PLN (professional/personal learning network) by following those authors, teachers, and researchers who challenge or lift my thinking. I have also joined Voxer this year and I can be a part of groups who discuss a variety of topics and interests. Many teachers do this. It’s a simple way to stay in touch with what is current.

You can be as active or as passive as you wish with these conversations. They are welcoming places for introverts and extroverts alike.  You can read through archived chats or try to join in live. Choose your level of comfort, your topic of interest,  and participate.

One of the best things that have come out of these connections has been the personal and professional relationships I have been able to forge with others all across the country. These relationships have led me on my journey as a writer for Stenhouse Publishers, as a presenter at NCTE and ILA, and other workshops and conferences. It is wild when you work with someone for months to create a presentation and you meet in person for the first time just before your session! That wasn’t a possibility when I first started teaching.

I would encourage anyone who wants to grow professionally to reach out to those in your PLN (and build up your PLN) and look for opportunities to collaborate. Maybe your classes can connect via Skype or a blog. Maybe you want to share resources and ideas. Maybe you want to work on a professional project together.

I’ve got projects/presentations/proposals coming up with educators from Pennsylvania, Georgia, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, Ohio, Michigan…it’s incredible. You might be surprised how open others are to these types of collaborations. You’ll never know if you don’t ask.  There’s nothing to lose and so much to gain.

What’s On My Book Radar

THE FIRST RULE OF PUNK by Celia C. Perez

The first rule of punk is … Be yourself. That’s what Maria Luisa (aka Malu) is trying to do. Her mom has moved her halfway across the country to take a job in Chicago, so she leaves behind her dad to start a new school and make new friends. Unfortunately she runs up against the school’s queen bee who considers her a misfit- a “coconut “. So Malu creates a literal band of misfits who fight for the right to express themselves. I love the expressive aspects of this book, infusing Hispanic music, food, and creative zines (do it yourself magazines) with Malu’s love of punk culture. Can’t wait to try making my own zines!

Tis the season for resolutions and goal setting.  I have noticed on Goodreads that my friends have set goals for the number of books they want to read in 2018. I myself take the Goodreads Reading Challenge each year as one of my New Year’s Resolutions.

But this year I want to do more to honor the creators of all the books I enjoy so dearly. We know they don’t mysteriously show up in our bookstores, libraries, and beside tables-someone took the stories in their heads and crafted them into words that publishers printed into books. Many of of us often post reviews on Goodreads, comments on social media, and occasionally an Amazon review. This helps these authors we love by expanding their potential audience and getting their books into the hands of our young readers.

It takes time and talent to be an author. It also takes courage.  Putting your ideas out into the world is not easy. Rejections, critiques, and judgements are not for the faint of heart. Knowing that my favorite books came to life because their writers persevered, creates some seriously good feels for those audacious authors.

So I encourage everyone who loves reading and loves books to resolve to show a little love for the authors who make it all possible.  (I know many of you already do, so consider yourself the chorus I am singing to) .

Finish a book you love?

• Tweet about it-post a picture and tag the author
• Instagram or Facebook it in the same way
• Add it to Goodreads with a quick review
• Go to Amazon (even if you don’t shop there) and post a review-this seriously helps generate buzz for books that independent booksellers notice, too.
• Message your local library or bookseller and encourage them to acquire it.
• Get it in the hands of every student (if it’s kidlit) or friend that you can.

Sharing your book love is the best way to thank those authors who enrich our lives. Any of these actions would take less than 5 minutes.  I already do many of these things, but not as consistently as I’d like.  I’m going to resolve to do one or two responses each time I read a book I love.

I’m also going to hashtag it #KidLitLove so that I can search back for books during the year. I’d love it if you used the tag, too.

Here’s to a great year of reading in 2018. Thank you to everyone who makes that happen!

What’s On My Book Radar?

Patina by Jason Reynolds

Patina is the 2nd book in Jason Reynold’s TRACK series and it is as fantastic as the first (Ghost). Patina and her sister Maddy are being raised by their uncle Tony and Aunt Emily (Momly) after their father dies and their mother has lost her legs to diabetes. She is enrolled in a fancy charter school where she is the token “raisin in the milk” but finds her place as one of the fastest runners on the Defenders track team. Running is the outlet “Patty” needs to show herself and others that she can be brave and strong. Reynolds has an incredible way of shining a light on the trauma and tragedy of so many lives without invoking pity or shame. This is a must-read series for middle grade/middle school readers who don’t need to wait for others to define what success is.