Pittsfield Reading Motivation

Nov 2007 6th-8th graders 1:30-2:15, 3rd-5th 2:35-3:20 Sherry Richards

Lincoln…Pittsfield… worms.. A few years later..Doctor wrote about it.. Both armies in Civil War.. Conf: didn’t do any good. Union: saved many men’s lives.

Why? They could read.

Me: I was in the slow reading group in 3rd grade the bluebirds…My buddy Gary was a redbird and that made me mad. So I practiced. I got into my mom’s cookbooks but that just made me hungry and they used the same words over and over. I thought that big books were boring. Went to the library and found the skinniest book I could find. My three favorite books… The Juggler of Our Lady… it was cool! Then I started reading books that started to mess with my head…they changed me. Travels with Charley.. John Steinbeck..took his old pickup truck with camper on the back and his pet poodle and started driving across the United States. It made me want to travel. I got hooked. I’ve taken my students to 22 foreign countries for the last 30 years. The Hobbit…I used to make lists of how I’d like to make it into a movie and I’d make up the cast lists..then somebody beat me to it.. The Lord of the Rings. But that got me hooked on fantasy.. The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, Edgar Allen Poe.

I became a reading teacher… Me! A bluebird! What made the difference? I found books that I liked to read. My school library… 12 short shelves…Yours…wow!

The story of Phillip.. 7th grader. Very tall. Always wore cowboy boots to school, cowboy, and when we didn’t catch him, his spurs. Every morning before school, book in hallway. Never ate lunch.. always sat out under a tree reading cowboy books. The kids used to kid him a little. No more: this year…a finalist in the Illinois High School rodeo… riding bucking horses.

I called around Pike County last week and asked some people about their favorite books when they were in elementary and middle school.

Anita Andress Administrator Pike Co. Health Dept. I loved Pippi Longstocking books (by Lingstom?)and Beverly Cleary's Ramona books. I also enjoyed Judy Bloom books and the Little House on the Prairie books. Dr. Seuss books. The Giant Jam Sandwich, Corduroy, and Curious George  Danielle Steele, Becky McCartney, Vice President of the Cornbelt bank. My favorite book was Three Little Kittens - it is one of the only ones I still have from my childhood and as I got older in Grade School I absolutely LOVED The Little House on the Prairie books and the Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys series....I have more than 100 of these books that I have passed to my kids!!!  Going to play a game today.. I’m going to tell you about some people who you know or you’ve heard of…most of them.. and you’re going to guess who they are.

Grew up in a town smaller than Pittsfield..a town named after a queen, called Virginia. … had a fifth-grade teacher, Mr. Millant, who picked out books for him. Wanted to read stories about boys and dogs. Started with Where the Red Fern Grows. Then Big Mutt, White Fang, The Call of the Wild. .. then adventure stories.. Treasure Island, Kidnapped. Then The Old Man and the Sea, Grapes of Wrath, Of Mice and Men (I was in that play in Pittsfield..South School.. hauled in nine truckloads of dirt) . The Caine Mutiny. ..Mutiny on the Bounty.. (Really into mutiny…now he has a job where he doesn’t like mutiny) Said he wasn’t a good reader until he found the first book he really liked..Where the Red Fern Grows. In fourth grade…biographies.. Babe Ruth. Lou Gehrig. Did a book report dressed as Babe Ruth. (HINT: His name rhymes with Blue) Your Principal, Mr. Brue

This little girl really liked the Bobbsey Twin books. She said, “The first book I remember loving was called "The Seagulls Woke Me" Had a teacher named Mrs. Riley who read the Boxcar Children books. One of her  favorite books was "The Cat in the Hat" by Dr. Seuss. Loved "Little Women". (Hint: Her last name is the same as a man’s first name) Your librarian, Mrs. Richards.

(Teachers can help with this one) He was a teacher. Went to the Marines and served in the Gulf War. Has three kids. He’s a politician.. lives in Jacksonville. Go Dog Go, Are You My Mother?, Red Badge of Courage (HINT: He’s your state representative in Springfield) State Representative Jim Watson

Ray LaHood ..My side of the Mountain, Old Yeller, Charlotte’s Web

… “My mom always took me to the library and I ran right to the section on dinosaurs. And when I was in grade school I loved “Where the Wild Things Are. And they had these mystery books where you could choose your own ending..I thought that was pretty cool. And you may laugh, but one of my favorites was Grimm’s Fairy Tales, and for some reason in Jr. High I fell in love with reading the phone book. And Curious George.. and Pickles the Fire Cat.You may not know him, but you can guess his job. He works mainly on Sunday morning, he has no hair, and his wife teaches in your school. Mike TenEyck..Minister in Pittsfield

This lady went to Milton grade school. Her 1st and 2nd grades were combined. When I "graduated" to third grade, my teacher, Mrs. Chandler, gave me a copy of  a book which she had often read to us during milk break, "April's Kittens." She found her best friends by noticing that they were reading the same books as she did.  “When my brother and I had the measles and weren't supposed to read or watch television,  my mother read "Tom Sawyer" to us. She still has that copy because she used to eat baloney and mustard when she read it in the tree in front of her house.  In fifth grade, she read "Huckleberry Finn" and got in trouble because she suddenly started laughing out loud in the middle of class.  My house growing up was filled with books…. From my  brother, I picked up on Hardy Boys books which were ten times more interesting than  Nancy Drew. Two books that I read over and over were "The Mark of Zorro" and  "Copper's Chance," a girl-and-horse book in which, in the end, she decided she like her  boyfriend at least as much as her horse. (HINT: All three of her kids went to Pikeland and she’s the editor of a newspaper in Pike County. Name the paper?) Julie Boren..editor of the Pike Press

I have some very fond memories of books read when in school and of books that were read to me. The one that left the biggest impression for whatever reason was Follow My Leader by James B. Garfield. My fourth grade teacher read this book to the entire class that year. I remember vividly coming in from recess hot and sweaty (as only fourth graders can!), putting my head down on my desk and waiting anxiously as Mrs. Willard read the next chapter in the book. I read that book many times after she introduced it to me that year. The Mrs. Piggle Wiggle books because they were just silly. In middle school I read the entire Laura Ingalls Wilder Little House on the Prairie series over and over and over. Their way of life just fascinated me.That set was one of the first things I purchased for my daughter when she learned to read. She is now in eighth grade and reads everything. I grew up in the 70’s in rural Illinois and reading was the one way for me to experience how other people lived. Mentally I could go new places every day in my books. (HINT: She’s the “big cheese,” the big boss in Pikeland) Your Superintendent, Mrs. Hawley:

To Kill a Mockingbird had a big impression on him.. Wishes he could be going to school today with so many more reading opportunities.  (p.s…he said the best time he’s had recently was when he heard some of you do your speeches last week) (HINT: He first and last name have the same initials…and he wears a badge every day.) Your Pike County Sheriff, Paul Petty

He grew up in another state, he owned a professional baseball team, he became governor, then a bigger office. Favorite book…….The Very Hungry Caterpillar Called the White House… President Bush didn’t answer, but I talked to a lady who said she’d send me an email. President Bush’s favorite book when he was in grade school.

I’ll give you the famous person’s name…you tell me the movie he wrote. John Lasseter…favorite book: Treasure Island. Lines from what he wrote. HYPERLINK "http://imdb.com/name/nm0000228/" Hopper: It's a bug-eat-bug world out there, princess. One of those Circle of Life kind of things. This is the way things are supposed to work: The sun grows the food, the ants pick the food, the grasshoppers eat the food... Can you name the movie? A Bug’s Life..

An actor..… Green Eggs and Ham & Robinson Crusoe (HINT: He was The Grinch) Jim Carey

An actor….Charlotte’s Web & Huckleberry Finn (HINT: “Life is like a box of chocolates”) Tom Hanks…

Born in Chicago, wasn’t good enough to make his Jr. High basketball team…The Boxcar Children (HINT: He had a basketball shoe named after him) … Michael Jordan

…(HINT: “I’m King of the World!) The Goosebumps Books Leonardo DiCaprio

He currently drives the #20 HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Monte_Carlo_SS" \o "Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS" Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS and HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Impala_SS" \o "Chevrolet Impala SS" Chevrolet Impala SS in the HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NASCAR" \o "NASCAR" NASCAR Nextel Cup Series and the #33 Old Spice Chevrolet Monte Carlo Tales of a Fourth-grade Nothing, The Outsiders, Durango Street Tony Stewart

Won the NASCAR Winston Cup four times, the Daytona 500 three times…… One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, The Mysterious Tadpole, The Jungle Book Jeff Gordon

Another actor…… The Chronicles of Narnia, The Lord of the Rings, (HINT: Is that savvy for you?' HYPERLINK "http://www.rateitall.com/i-70660--come-on-doggy-its-just-you-and-me-now-its-you-and-ol-jack-come-on-come-on-good-boy-thats-a-good-boy-come-on-bit-closer-bit-closer-thats-it-thats-it-doggy-come-on-you-filthy-slimy-mangy-curno-no-no-no-i-didnt-mean-it-i-didnt.aspx" " Come on doggy. It's just you and me now. It's you and ol' Jack. Come on. Come on good boy. That's a good boy, come on. Bit closer, bit closer. That's it, that's it doggy. Come on you filthy slimy mangy cur...no no no no I didn't mean it, I didn't. Johnny Depp

Favorite Book: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, The Call of the Wild …….. Name the movie he wrote… Andrew Stanton (you won’t know his name, but I’ll bet you know something he wrote. Here’s some dialogue: HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004056/" Crush: Dude? Dude? Focus dude... Dude?  [Marlin wakes up]  HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004056/" Crush: Oh, he lives. Hey, dude!  HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000983/" Marlin: Oh... What happened?  HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004056/" Crush: Saw the whole thing, dude. First you were all like "whoa", and we were like "whoa", and you were like "whoa...”  HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000983/" Marlin: What are you talking about?  HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004056/" Crush: You, Mini-Man, takin' on the jellies. You've got serious thrill issues, dude. Awesome.  HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000983/" Marlin: Oh, my stomach. Ohh.  HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004056/" Crush: Oh, man. Hey, no hurling on the shell, dude, ok? Just waxed it.  HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000983/" Marlin: So, Mr. Turtle?  HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004056/" Crush: Whoa, Dude. Mister Turtle is my father. The name's Crush.  HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000983/" Marlin: Crush, really? OK, Crush. I need to get to the East Australian Current. EAC?  HYPERLINK "http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004056/" Crush: [Laughing] Oh, dude. You're ridin' it, dude! Check it out! .. Wrote Finding Nemo…

Her favorite book… Anne Frank, the Diary of a young girl… (Irene Mecci) Her are some lines she wrote: HYPERLINK "http://imdb.com/name/nm0000100/" Zazu: Checking in with the morning report.  HYPERLINK "http://imdb.com/name/nm0000469/" Mufasa: Fire away.  HYPERLINK "http://imdb.com/name/nm0000100/" Zazu: Well the buzz from the bees is that the leopards are in a bit of a spot. And the baboons are going ape over this. Of course, the giraffes are acting like they're above it all... The tick birds are pecking on the elephants. I told the elephants to forget it, but they can't. The cheetahs are hard up, but I always say, cheetahs never prosper... (HINT: Akunya-matada!) ..the Lion King

What’s your favorite book? … Ask students…then teachers….

Let’s get back to Mr. Lincoln. When he came to Pittsfield…the amount of stuff we know…doubled every 35 years. Now it doubles every two years! How are we going to keep up? A computer! I brought with me today the most powerful computer in the world. It’s right here between your two ears. It’s called your brain. Most people think they read with eyes…nope. The eyes are just a camera. You read with your brain! If you focus when you read..if you concentrate…you’ll read faster. Don’t let your mind wander. Remember Phil the cowboy? I’d have to go outside and tell him when lunch time was over. He’d never hear the bell. That’s a reader!

But reading is just the beginning…Do things with it!

Sound Circle… Tell me about a book that happens in a certain place.. Word Tennis… (Need two people who’ve read a lot of books.) Names of books. Characters names from books. Types of books. Statue! Statue! (from books) Genre Jump… Cliché.. using book titles

President Bush went to Yale. That costs $34,000 a year. .. Anybody bring that much money today? Most expensive computer in the world is in Japan..costs $400 million dollars. Anybody got that much on them? Will cost about $75 million to run for President…anybody got that? But what if I showed you something that would be better than going to Yale, more powerful than a 400-million dollar computer…and will let you have more excitement in life than becoming President? It’s right down the hallway…or it’s in your locker..or it’s in your house. It’s a book! It’s the love of reading. I promise you..once you start, you’ll get hooked for the rest of your life.

I’m going to come back in one month…And I’m going to bring a group of actors with me… I’m going to stop at the doors of your school and ask Mr. Brue if he’s seen people reading more and more and more than they’ve ever read before. If he says Yes, I’m going to unload my actors and we’ll do a show just for you. If not..we’ll head on down the road to Quincy.

Song….

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