book tasting Archives - Teacher's Brain

Host A Book Tasting With A Fun Twist

February 18, 2022 teachersbrain Reading

Have you ever done a book tasting with your students?

Book tastings are a unique way to learn about different books, genres, and authors. It introduces students to a variety of books so that they can sample them and discover new interests.

What Is A Book Tasting?

Generally, you’ll set up “tables” or centers with a menu and you’ll “serve” your students different stacks of books to choose from. After they get some time exploring the books they were served, you rotate them out for a second stack of books.

You can organize your books by genres, topics, authors, styles, etc. It is so fun to see the students branch out and check out books they wouldn’t normally look twice at. I have found this to be a great way to encourage a love of reading in my students. Even the students who claim not to enjoy reading get engaged in book tastings!

This reading activity would be a great addition to your Read Across America Day celebrations! I love that it can be done with students no matter their age. So literally any teacher can host a book tasting.

Take Your Book Tasting To The Next Level

Don’t get me wrong, I love a good book tasting. But sometimes, you just want to add a little extra something to get students really excited about reading.

Cue escape rooms!

Escape rooms are all the rage because they are so engaging for students. They make such a big impact on students that they often remember doing these activities long after they leave your classroom. How cool is that?

Given my love of book tastings and escape rooms, I had to create a resource that is the best of both worlds.

I created this Book Tasting Escape Room activity so that you can add it into your lessons too!

This resource includes step-by-step instructions that guarantee student engagement while they learn how to work as a team and help the store owner discover new book genres and escape the room with a book tasting!

Sounds fun, right?

With just a little prep, this activity will have your students teaming up to break into the box to escape the room. The best part? You can use any books you want to with this activity!

You’ll get everything you need including directions, menus, place settings, paper keys, signs, help cards, homework passes and bookmarks, banner pennants, and more!

Check it out here!

Have you ever hosting a book tasting for your students? Let me know in the comments!

Read Across America, Book Tastings and MARCH Lesson Plans

February 25, 2020 teachersbrain Dr. Seuss, Reading, St. Patrick's Day Ideas

Hello Teacher Brains!

I hope you all have ready for some March fun with your students! My dad would say, “Work hard and play hard.” So, before you hit Spring Break, let’s talk about a lot of work that has gone into helping to ease your workload, but still makes you look like you have been laboring 24/7!

No More Seuss?

Next week is Read Across America Week. Did you know that they are rebranding? The week is no longer limited to Dr. Seuss for the celebration. They even have a new logo that appeals to students of all ages, backgrounds and will celebrate a nation of diverse readers. Of course, who doesn’t enjoy dressing up like Dr. Seuss characters and serving green eggs and ham, but now the new theme is opening ideas for more activities and resources to encourage reading!

This brings me to my NEW baby! Okay, it’s not a human baby, but I birthed it! Lol

I loved the idea of doing a Book Tasting for the celebration, but I also love doing Escape Rooms. So, I made a resource to include both! Check it out! You just add books, plates and tablecloths to the celebration while students discover a challenge and work to beat the clock by “tasting” different book genres. The genres include non-fiction, fiction, biographies and poetry. There is a fun video to use at the beginning to HOOK your students. You can decorate your room simple with adding plates and table clothes or go all out making it a Harry Potter theme or Pizza restaurant. The sky’s the limit!

St. Patrick’s Day is coming up soon too! This is one of my favorite weeks with leprechaun footprints, glitter and messy rooms. Here are some of my favorite resources:

St. Patrick’s Day Escape the Room K-3

Leprechaun Headband (hilarious! The kids love this one!)

Rainbow Craft

How to Catch a Leprechaun Writing

The Paper Leprechaun Activity

Lucky Charms Sorting and Graphing

Leprechaun Unit with Writing and Crafts

Color by Sight Word St. Patrick’s Day Edition

NEW *****NEW****** NEW ******NEW ********NEW

If you Give a STEM Challenge! This is my new series of STEM activities that relate to Laura Numberoff books. She is one of my favorite authors. I was even LUCKY enough to meet her one time when I first began teaching. She inspired me to be a writer. I have two completed.

I f you Give a Mouse a Cookie has students reading the story and building a mouse house! This one is good for primary and intermediate students with different activities to differentiate in a SNAP.

If You Give a Pig A Pancake has student reading the story and building a treehouse for the pig’s brother. So much fun!

Do you need editable word wall templates? Well, I have you covered with this download. Just type your words in the text boxes provided, pick your favorite fonts and colors to match your room!

FIRST GRADE TEACHERS,

Check out the 120^th Day of School Mystery Escape Room!

I hope you all have a fantastic month! Make sure you are subscribe to my website newsletter so you can keep up with new releases, teacher-author courses and giveaways.

Sprinkling Lucky Fairy Dust on YOU so you can have a great month!

-Cindy

Read Across America Week Activities with a BOOK TASTING

February 20, 2020 teachersbrain Teacher's Pay Teachers, Teaching Tips

Dr. Seuss Week

Have you all heard that Read Across America has rebranded? There will always be a special place in my heart for Dr. Seuss books. I grew up with his books and used them to teach rhyming words to students for 20 years. The staff would dress up like Thing 1 and Thing 2, The Cat in the Hat and we even had the Lorax one year. His books make it easy to have fun while learning like eating green eggs and ham and growing truffula trees. I even created lots of resources for teachers to use during the Dr. Seuss week. (Resources to use with Seuss HERE) But, “things” change. So when I heard they are changing to celebrate by encouraging a nation of diverse readers with resources that represent lots of experiences and cultures for students, I thought how can I have fun with this new direction?

THIS IS THE MOMENT I HAD BIRTHED AN IDEA!

Have you ever heard of a “Book Tasting?” A book tasting is where students choose from books they might not normally read and skim or just read the first few pages of a book. Then they write a review in a “Book Tasting” menu. Teachers and librarians decorate the room to look like a restaurant by using table cloths, paper plates (or real, if you dare), books on silver platters and really get the kids to feel excited about the books they are about to get a “taste” of during the activity. You could have a medieval theme, Harry Potter, pizza themed, StarBOOKS Cafe… the possibilities are endless!

I also thought about how much I love creating escape rooms, so I decided to combine the two! Students watch a video (2 min.) to hook them by seeing a restaurant owner who needs their help with book tastings to earn money (Federal Funding) to open his doors. They do 4 book tastings to beat the clock. Completing the tastings will grant them keys or codes to a box that the owner left something special in for those who accept the challenge. Opening the box lets them escape the room to recess or to the library. This would be a great activity for Read Across America because you can use any books. What student doesn’t love to help someone and receive a reward? Check out he Book Tasting Escape Room to see what all the buzz is about this year!