1. Book Talk… Brief Teasers! Fall 2012 of Literacy Education in the Middle Grades

2. Book Talk 10% You will read an award-winning text Appropriate for use in grades 3 through 8 The book should be new to you and published since 2004 You will sign up to present a short (approximately 5 minute) book talk in class. Post the title and other required information on our wiki site by the end of week 3, September 21. Presentations will begin week 5, October 5. Sign- ups will be conducted through the wikispace.

3. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman It takes a graveyard to raise a child. A children's fantasy novel. Nobody Owens, known as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a graveyard, being raised by ghosts, with a guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor the dead. It is set primarily in a graveyard, where the boy is adopted and raised by the occupants after his family is murdered. There are adventures in the graveyard for a boy…fantasy novel.

4. Crispin Cross of Lead By Avi In 1377 England, a 13-year- old boy, known only as Asta's Son, lives as a peasant in a small village. His village is part of the territory of the feudal Lord Furnival. As the lord has been away for years fighting in a war in France, the village has long been under the direct control of the steward, John Aycliffe. When his mother dies, Asta's Son is left alone…

5. The Giver By Lois Lowry The Giver is set in a society which is at first presented as a utopian society and gradually appears more and more dystopian. The novel follows a boy named Jonas through the twelfth year of his life. The society has eliminated pain and strife…..utopian society dystopian

6. Homeless Bird By Gloria Whelan Koly's parents have arranged a marriage for their only daughter and now, like many girls her age in India, she will leave her home forever. She longs to run away, but she knows that she cannot go against tradition. On her wedding day, Koly's fate is sealed….

7. Project Mulberry by Linda Sue Park While working on a project for an after-school club, Julia Song, a Korean- American girl, and her friend Patrick learn not just about silkworms, but also about tolerance, prejudice, friendship, patience, and more…

8. Author Study Gail Gibbons

9. Author Story of Patricia Pollacco