selfie | Expect the Miraculous

When Ms. Foretich (art teacher) and I finished sharing Love by Matt de la Pena & Loren Long with our 3rd graders, we flipped back to one image in the book.

This image always surprised students when I read the book aloud. It’s the only image in the book that is zoomed in so close. There was always a collective gasp or audible reaction, and we often had to stop and talk about what this image was all about. I was so glad that Ms. Foretich chose to focus on this image with a whole grade level.

We paired this image with another book called The Best Part of Me.

This book features voices of children as they talk about the favorite parts of their body and why. Each poem/prose is accompanied by a black & white image.

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In response to Love and The Best Part of Me, students brainstormed about their own bodies and what they love. We encouraged students to think about body parts, favorite activities, and personality as they brainstormed. By the end of class, we wanted students to focus in on a particular aspect of themselves that they could photograph and write about.

Ms. Foretich continued this project in class by having students use iPads to take selfies of the favorite parts of themselves. Students also finished the writing and typed up their words. Ms. Foretich printed all of these to mount on black paper.

They are now displayed in the rotunda of our school. I love standing in the center of the rotunda and looking around at all of the student images and voices staring back at me. To see what each student loves about himself/herself is reassuring in a world that can sometimes seem mean and chaotic.

If you find yourself in our school, I hope you’ll take time to see (and be inspired by) their work too.

It’s time once again for the World Read Aloud Day blogging challenge as we count down the days to this special week-long event of sharing stories with one another across the miles. My friend and super librarian, Matthew Winner, has outlined the challenge on his blog.

The World Read Aloud Day “Speak Your Story” Blogging Challenge begins February 9 and runs through March 8. If you choose to take the challenge, each week you will be asked to write a post in response to a prompt or question (outlined below), for a total of 4 posts counting down to World Read Aloud Day.

Each of the prompts addresses the WRAD theme “Speak Your Story.” Speak Your Story encapsulates that simple yet effective way that we connect with others by sharing our stories aloud. Your voice is powerful and when a story is shared a bond is made.

Week 3: February 23 – March 1
Profile Partner

Find a puppet, stuffed animal, or image of your favorite kid lit character. Next, take a selfie with the character. You now have a picture with your WRAD companion. He or she can travel with you wherever you go and whenever you speak up about World Read Aloud Day. Post the image as your profile picture on all of your most-used social media venues (Skype, Facebook, Google+, and Twitter).

I wanted to involve my students in this experience, and I’m so glad I did. This has been a very popular activity in the 3 short days we spent at school last week due to ice. I really wished that we could have done this longer before I posted. I pulled all of the plush book characters from around the library and put them on cushions at the front of the library. I put an iPad with them and invited students to start taking their own selfies. Some of them got very creative with how they did this!

Every student who came in was smiling and laughing as they picked out a character to hug and pose with. Here’s a look at our selfie gallery.

I chose to do a selfie with characters from Kate DiCamillo books. I specifically chose Despereaux and Winn Dixie. I love what these two characters represent. Despereaux is an unlikely hero. He’s small, looks a little different than a “normal” mouse, but has a huge heart filled with bravery. I love how he proves that heroes can come from unlikely places and that we all need to believe in ourselves no matter what. Winn Dixie represents so much about the importance of community. I love how Winn Dixie was a change agent for Opal’s life in the story. Because of him, Opal explored her community, met unique people, and gathered the stories of her whole community. She found friends, made connections, and exemplified the power of sharing our stories aloud with one another.

Join me and countless others as we celebrate LitWorld’s World Read Aloud Day on March 4th, 2015 and throughout that entire week. Check out the shared Google Doc to find a connecting class or post your own schedule.