Number the Stars/ Where the Red Fern Grows

Samantha would like to recommend Number the Stars by Lois Lowry. Annemarie Johanson's family lives in Denmark during the time that it was occupied by Hitler and his German army. Her best friend, Ellen, is Jewish and faces great danger as the German forces work to relocated the Jewish families. With great courage, Annemarie and her family help Ellen's family evade the Nazi Army. Sami said, "I like this book because it's exciting, but mysterious. It really made me think about what it must have been like for Jewish families during this time period." This book can be located at Mrs. Baker's classroom library. 

This is one of my very most favorite books! If you have not read it, please do.- Mrs. Baker

Terance recommended Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. Billy Colman lives in the Ozark Mountains where he and his two dogs spend their time hunting for raccoon. Billy trained these two hunting dogs well and they have a lot of success. Amid the success, tragedy strikes. This is a classic novel that students have been reading for many years. Terance said, "This was a heart warming book that has a lot of action and adventure. This is a good book for someone who has a dog who they truly love." This book can be located at the River Springs library or at the Deltona and Orange City Public Libraries.

Mrs. Baker's Blurb: Teacher of the Year Nominee

I wanted to share with you an honor I recently received. This year, I was nominated for Volusia County Reading Teacher of the Year. It is a tremendous honor for me. I am so thankful for the teachers who I work with everyday and blessed that my colleagues would recommend me for this award. I am also blessed with great students who making going to work everyday fun for me!

Deep Blue/ Infinity Ring

Tiana recommends Deep Blue by Jennifer Donnelly. This is the first book in the Waterfire Saga. Serafina, a mermaid, lives in a magically world beneath our Earth's ocean surface. Her dark dreams come true when her mother is killed by an assassin's poisoned arrow. Now she must find the assassin's master before war breaks out among the Mer Nations. Tiana said, "I like the book because of the excitement, thrills, and betrayal. This is a story of the underwater world that could be right under our noses!" This book can be located in Mrs. Baker's classroom library. The second book in this series was recently released. It is titled Rogue Wave. Hopefully it will be coming to our classroom library soon!

Riley recommends Infinity Ring Book One: A Mutiny in Time by James Dashner. In this story, Dak and Sera stumble upon a key that will allow them to travel back into time. The key is known as the Infinity Ring. They are recruited by a historian-in-training, Riq, to travel back into time and fix the great breaks in our history. The first book is set in Spain in 1492 just as a young Christopher Columbus is about to be thrown overboard. This is a fantastic series where each book is written by a different author. Each book takes the reader back in time to mend our history. Riley said, "I liked it because it is about history and it has an amazing catch to the story that will keep you reading. I also liked it because it has some very thrilling scenes." The first three books of this series can be located in Mrs. Baker's classroom library. 

Mrs. Baker's Blurb: Happy Mother's Day!

Today is Mother's Day, so take some time to appreciate your mom, grandma, aunts, and any other mother figures in your life! 

Matched/ Treasure Hunters

Olivia recommends Matched by Allie Condie. Cassia lives in a society that tells its people what to do, what to believe, and even whom to marry. Cassia trust The Society to make good choices for her. At her matching ceremony, she is matched with Xander for a mate but a picture of Ky's face is shown before the screen shuts off. The Society tells her to enjoy the life she will have with Xander, but Cassia is beginning to fall in love with Ky. Olivia said, "Xander is her best friend, but she also gets paired with someone else. It is a romance novel, but it has action with rebellion and then there is a great twist that is so pulling that you will want to keep reading to find out what happens next." Matched is the first in a trilogy. The entire trilogy can be located in Mrs. Baker's classroom library. 

Anthony recommends Treasure Hunters by James Patterson and Chris Grabenstein. The Kidd siblings have grown up hunting treasures with their famous treasure hunting parents. When their parents disappear, the Kidd siblings continue to hunt for treasure while trying to learn what happened to their parents. Rival treasure hunters and pirates are on their trail while they go on the greatest treasure hunt of their lives. Anthony said, "It was very interesting and I like the plot. I also really like other books by James Patterson, too." Treasure Hunters can be located at Mrs. Baker's classroom library.  

Mrs. Baker's Blurb: Bullying

In Intensive Reading, we have been talking about bullying. We are learning about what bullying is, the long term effects of bullying, and how we can work together to Bust Up Bullying. No one wants to be bullied at school and it is our goal that no one will be bullied at River Springs. I wanted to share one of my favorite books about bullying. The Hundred Dresses was written by Eleanor Estes and illustrated by Louis Slobodkin. This is a short story about a young girl, Wanda Petronski, who is teased by her classmates because she wears the same dress to school each day. Wanda tells her classmates that she has a hundred beautiful dresses at home which causes classmates to treat her even worse. This is a great story about treating others with kindness and respect. This book can be located at Mrs. Baker's classroom library. It is a quick read that will leave a lasting impression!

Video Game Special

Mrs. Baker's Game:

To start off our video game special edition, I wanted to share a game a my family and I created using Scratch. This is a fantastic site where you can write and develop games that you can share with others. If you think that you may be interested in creating video games, you should check it out! Our game is called Rats on the Run in NYC! The object of the game is to trap as many rats running around New York City as you can in 60 seconds. To catch a rat, you cover it with the red box and press the space button. You get a point for every rat you catch. This website is a great way to learn how to create and program games. Check out my game below.

Video Game Survey:

Earlier this week, I gave each of you a survey asking questions about video games. The top 3 most commonly played games that were recommended for your age group by your fellow classmates are listed below.

1. One of the most played games is Minecraft. It is rated E 10+ so it is recommended for everyone ages 10 and up. Many students stated that they prefer to play on the Xbox because there are more options available in that format as opposed to a portable device, but many of you spend a considerable amount of time playing Minecraft on your phone when you are not at home. In Minecraft, a player can play in survival mode or creative mode. While playing in survival, students must build shelter, find food, and protect themselves from enemy creatures. While playing in creative mode, everything needed for survival is provided, so the player can simply explore, build, and create. This game is great for learning about agriculture and architecture. More information about Minecraft can be located at https://minecraft.net/. 
2. Another popular game is SimCity. This game is recommended for everyone ages 10 and up and is available in a variety of formats including Xbox, PlayStation, PC and many students also play the game on their phone. In this game the player acts as the mayor and must develop a city while maintaining a budget. The player must consider zoning requirements while providing citizens with education, health care, parks, electricity, and water supply. This game has incredible educational benefits to the students in subjects such as civics, math, science, and economics. For more information about this game please visit http://www.simcity.com/.
3. Thinking about playing a sport? Playing a video game about sports is a great way to learn the rules of the sport. A popular game with my students is the NBA 2K series. Specifically, my students recommended the newest in the series, NBA 2K15, which is the 16th installment. It was released in October 2014 for Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. Later in the year, myNBA2K15 was released for apps on the Android and iPhone. In this game, players are able to play basketball games with and against their favorite professional basketball players. For more information about this game, visit https://www.2k.com/games/nba-2k15.   

Fun Friday with Minecraft:

In celebration of a successful FSA, we celebrated with a Minecraft extravaganza last Friday. I learned so much from each of you who spent time teaching me a game that many of you love! Below is a presentation about my experience playing and learning Minecraft. I am so thankful for each of you and your generous and helping hearts.
  

Shadow Children Series

Sylvia and Luke both recommend the Shadow Children Series by Margret Peterson Haddix. The first book in this series is Among the Hidden. In this story, the year is 2022 and a family is not allowed to have a 3rd child because the world is over populated. Luke is twelve years old, and he is a third child who has always been kept hidden in the attic to avoid the population police. One day, he decides to sneak out of the house where he meets Jen, another 3rd child, who is also forced to live hidden away. She develops a plan to help them come out of hiding, but is Luke brave enough to follow through with the plan? This is what students are saying about this series:

Sylvia said, "I liked it because it is a mystery story. It will keep you reading all the way to the end!"

Luke said, "The story is very good. It is a mystery and it is very suspenseful. Mystery books are my favorite genre. The author organizes it very well, and she uses a lot of details." 

Books from this series can be located at Mrs. Baker's classroom library. Read it!!!

Mrs. Baker's Blurb: Dragonwings

Many of you are currently engrossed in the reading of Dragonwings by Laurence Yep. I love this story about a young boy, Moon Shadow, who travels to San Francisco to meet his father. Moon Shadow is forced to grow up in a world surrounded by "White Demons" and the Tang people of Chinatown. His life is forever changed by his move to America. As you finish the book, you need to prepare to take the final test for Dragonwings. I created a Jeopardy style game to help serve as a study guide for you. 

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series

 

Destiny and James recommend the Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series by Rick Riordan. This series is about a young boy, named Percy Jackson, who discovers he is the son of the Greek God, Posidan. Percy goes to Camp Half-Blood where he learns that he is a demigod: half human and half god. Because he is the son of the such a powerful god, he is one of the most powerful demigods alive. This sets into motion mythical adventures that he and his friends must overcome. This book has been recommended by several boys and girls. The entire series can be found in Mrs. Baker's classroom library or the RSMS library. This is what some of my students are saying about Percy Jackson.

 

Destiny said, "I loved it because it throws a reality twist on gods and witches that I found to be very interesting."

 

James said, "This series had a lot of thrills. It was very exciting. It had fighting, creatures and gods. This whole series was really good!"

 

Mrs. Baker's Blurb: Testing is over!!

FSA is over! Let me say it again: FSA is over for sixth grade! I am so proud of each of you. You worked so hard. I know this test was exhausting for you. It was exhausting for me and I didn't even take it! I hope you have all had a fantastic weekend relaxing and enjoying your success! You deserve it. Class schedules will return to normal tomorrow, and I can't wait to see the faces that I didn't get to see last week! Great job everyone!

 



Can't Look Away/ I Funny

Abby recommends Can't Look Away by Donna Cooner. This has become a popular book especially in my fifth period class. This book is about Torrey Grey who has become a famous Internet sensation because of her popular YouTube videos on beauty and fashion. But when her sister is killed in a tragic accident, Torrey learns that dealing with her sister's death in the public eye is incredibly difficult. Abby said, "It was a really good mystery, and it did have very realistic events. The author is very descriptive when writing. I really liked this book!" Can't Look Away can be located at Mrs. Baker's classroom library. Don't miss out on this fantastic story!

   

Austin recommends the I Funny series by James Patterson. This series is about a middle school student, Jamie Grimm, who wants to become a stand up comedian. Unfortunately, Jamie does not have much to laugh about in his life right now. He is living in a new town with his aunt, uncle and their evil son who mistreats Jamie at every available chance. When Jamie learns of the Planet's Funniest Kid Comic contest, he knows he must enter, but is he funny enough to win? Austin said, "I like this book because it is really funny. I also like books written in first person point of view and James Patterson wrote this in first person. I would recommend this series to anyone who likes The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series." This book can be found in Mrs. Baker's classroom library.

Mrs. Baker's Blurb: Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

The first quarter of school, our core reading classes read Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor. This book is actually part of a series. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry is the fourth book in the Logan Family series. I know many of you really liked this book so I wanted to give you the names of the other books in this series. You should definitely check them out. They are available in our RSMS library.

Book 1: The Land

Book 2: The Well: David's Story

Book 3: Song of the Trees

Book 4: Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

Book 5: Let the Circle Be Unbroken

Book 6: The Road to Memphis

Anthony really liked Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry so he checked out Let the Circle Be Unbroken at the RSMS library. Anthony said, "This book continued where Roll of Thunder left off. It includes more stories about their family and also included more members of their family, too. Also, you learn what happens to T.J. in this story. I recommend this book to anyone who liked Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry!"