Wow!!! I haven't blogged for a while!

I have been reading the Percy Jackson and The Olympians series. With the movie coming out today, anticipation in the classroom has been rising :)

(This is primarily male excitement... the females are excited about "Dear John", based on a Nicholas Sparks' novel. )

I am on book 4 of the 5 book series. A few of the boys and I are challenging each other to see how fast we can read the series. It's neat to have a series I can discuss with them ... generally, I am usually talking "girl books" with the females. :)

I really like how author Rick Riordan has incorporated the ancient Greek mythology into a modern setting. It's been a great tool to use in class to illustrate the concept of setting/time/place.

I hate putting them down when I'm reading! I've been reading at night and not getting enough sleep b/c I want to read the next chapter :)

My favorite character is Annabeth, a daughter of Athena. Annabeth is a great example of a character exemplifying loyalty. Her loyalty to Percy is constant, but it is her loyalty to Luke, even as they find further evidence of his evil plans, that is good for kids to read. It's a good reminder that sometimes your friends do stupid things, but they still need and value your friendship.

English 3 read "To Build A Fire" by Jack London. Their teacher chose to read that on two VERY cold days... my students didn't appreciate my lesson planning! As the main character was freezing to death in the Yukon, they were chilling in Room 308. Our heater wasn't working too well in those frigid temperatures, but it made for some great environment while reading/listening :)

English 1 is waging their way through Romeo and Juliet. I am always amazed at the lines they understand on their own and how they miss the more obvious stuff. (Of course, I am speaking of the "dirty" content in R and J. They seem amazed that Shakespeare just might have had a really dirty mind :) ) They are also appalled by the 13 and 15 year olds getting married after knowing each other less than 12 hours! :P Not that any of them would make an impulsive decision!!! :)

Until I finish another book / or / the Percy Jackson series...