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A School-Wide Book Nook

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Yes! Super excited that we have a school-wide Book Nook. It’s called the Principal’s Book Nook, however, the coach (I am the coach) sets it up. The Book Nook can be the Principal’s, Vice Principal’s, Coach’s, or a Teacher’s! The purpose of a school-wide is that it allows our principal to connect with students, build student’s at-home libraries and promote literacy in our school. Building a love of reading is one of our school-wide literacy goals and the Principal Book Nook (the PBK) promotes that goal. Kids love it and look forward to it!

Where do the books come from?

The books come from First Book (a discounted book site) , Scholastic $1 books, and gently used books given by churches, teachers, community members. I sort the books based on level and they stay in bins. All you need to do is to reach out to people in the community though social media or email to ask for donations. I assure you if you reach out, it will come. If we never ask, we never know if it can happen!

Which students get the books?

The teachers choose students who could use more books at home. They choose different students each time. The first time we did this we had the teachers choose 2 students per class. The next time it was three. It just depends on how many books we have accumulated in order to give. Our goal is to get books in the hands of children and be able to add to their home libraries. Building a love of literacy and choosing different students each time is important. Just this past December we were able to provide every student in our school a book. This was only done with the help of our teachers, community members, and local churches. It was awesome!

Where do you house the Book Nook and when is it?

I put the Book Nook by the Principal’s Office. It’s important that whoever has the Book Nook that it is located by their space. The actual books stay in my room, however, when it’s time for the Book Nook, I bring the books to the location. The location has the Book Nook posters and is decorated nicely. The kids love this area and are always asking when the next one is happening!

We make sure the Book Nook happens at least 3 times a year. Our is to have it at least once each nine weeks. We are almost there! We want to build a love of reading and books and we feel that the Book Nook is a great way to do it!

Sumo Joe Book Review

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Today is Multicultural Book Day!

𝚂𝚞𝚖𝚘 𝙹𝚘𝚎 𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠

This very creative, fun, and imaginative multicultural children’s book is a great read for any child or adult. This book ᔕᑌᗰO ᒍOE is about a young, gentle big brother named Sumo Joe. Sumo Joe is having a fun Saturday afternoon with his friends who are all practicing sumo wrestling.

However, during their fun of practicing the drills of sumo wrestling they find that Sumo Joe’s sister, Aikido Joe, wants in. There were raised eyebrows and some gasps when Aikido Joe wants to face off with Sumo Joe. It is not usual common place for a girl to want to take part in sumo wrestling. Especially after they had already made the sumo ring a sacred place. But they let the match happen.

Aikido Joe, using her swift aikido martial art skills, takes down Sumo Joe showing everyone that women have a place in sumo.

In the book, there are Japanese words immersed within which teaches the reader about the training, skills, martial art, and sacredness of the Japanese wrestling sport—Sumo. Don’t worry, @pragmaticmom has included a colorful glossary that gives more information about sumo, aikido, dohyo, Shinto and more! YThis book is a book for all that teaches not only about the traditions and history of sumo, but has a theme that woman and girls can do it all! I give this book ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️! Definitely a must have!

Vooks: Ways to implement “the Netflix of Storybooks” into your PreK to 5th grade classrooms!

This post is sponsored by Vooks. All opinions are my own.

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin was my 5-year-old’s first choice when I handed her my phone with the Vooks app installed. Her Kindergarten teacher had introduced her to the book, she read it to the class, they created an editable coconut tree and heard it on Vooks as well! So I wasn’t surprised when my little one choose this book first, it’s her favorite! She laughed, she danced and sang along. She did this all while the words were appearing on the iPhone screen!

What is Vooks?

Vooks is a streaming service that brings books to life with animation, read-a-long books and the story is being narrated for them. It is available on the web, on iOS and on Android apps as well. It has no ads and it’s safe for kids. Vooks is a great alternative to just playing games on devices. It’s Audio + Animation+ Books = Vooks!

As my youngest daughter was exploring Vooks, I began thinking about all of the amazing ways Vooks could be incorporated into the classroom environment. I guess it’s my Instructional Coach/”always a teacher” mind at work. I began to get excited about what a teacher in PreKindergarten-5th grade could do using Vooks in their classrooms with students.

Independent Reading/Tech Time

I saw from my own child that once Chicka Chicka Boom Boom was read to her by her teacher, it raised her excitement about choosing that particular book in Vooks. I began to ponder this while my little one was exploring. After she finished reading and listening to her favorite book she began searching for another book she recalled. She found it, How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight. This is a book we had read before at bedtime numerous times. She recognized this book and wanted to hear it on Vooks! She loved seeing the book we had read “come to life”. So what does this mean for teachers and independent reading time for students? It helps to peak interest in your students especially if books have already been read aloud to them or your students have already read the books independently. 

Vooks can also increase reading engagement in a child when they choose a book that sparks their interest for the first time as they are searching in the Vooks library. My 5-year-old also found other books that she loved to read on Vooks as well! She was amazed by Bear Has a Story to Tell (which she had to get her teddy bear to listen with her to that one) and Giraffes Can’t Dance which she loved as well. One thing she asked is, “Mommy, can we get these books?”

The excitement that she felt while reading on Vooks spread to her wanting the book she just read to add to her home library as well! It is also important to ensure that kids have books in their hands. There is value in both audio and books in children’s hands. By using both, the teacher or parent is reaching a child’s love of reading in a variety of ways.

Let Vooks Read Aloud on the BIG Screen

Do you have a Smartboard or something similar in your classroom? You could project Vooks as a read aloud on the big screen for your students. It could be a preview to an activity, a discussion, a lesson, or a read aloud time. Vooks has grouped the books in topics like kindness, friendship, be kind, be brave, be creative, dream big and bedtime. This makes it easier for teachers or parents to find the topic they are looking to teach or discuss with their kiddos. Try getting the book as well so students can see the book in the teacher’s hand. This shows them that yes, it is a real book! Kids love that!

Go Ahead and Sign Up–It’s FREE!

The awesome thing is that Vooks wants to say THANK YOU to teachers for inspiring and educating children everywhere! Vooks is offering a FREE FIRST YEAR exclusively to school teachers and homeschool educators. Sign up now at GET Vooks! Follow them on Instagram too @vooks to keep up with the latest news and updates!