Whew — coming back to school after being away on sabbatical is exhausting! I did expect it to be given the more leisurely lifestyle I had so it wasn’t a surprise, but still…. I hope I can keep my resolution to continue my writing even as the school takes over more and more every bit of my thinking.
The good news is that getting my room in order (and I am so so grateful to our building staff who helped me unpack and shelve my many books), reconnecting with colleagues, and learning about my new students has me excited for tomorrow, our first day.
As always, I’ve put a lot of thought into the first books I will read. There are the ice-breaker picture books I read right away to get the kids to relax and chuckle. They will be the same as last year: Adam Rex and Christian Robinson’s School’s First Day of School, Jared Chapman’s Steve, Raised by Wolves, and Edda: A Little Valkyrie’s First Day of School.
And then there is the first read-aloud for the year. I’ve decided it will be Frank Cottrell Boyce’s Sputnik’s Guide to Life on Earth. I’m a huge fan of this author (who needs to be more embraced in the US) and have been reading his Cosmic aloud yearly for a long time. This new one is a total charmer (here’s a Q & A I did with Frank about it) and I can’t wait to begin.
educating alice 