Writeboard - Great Collaborative Tool

While volunteering at my neighborhood middle school, we have been using a great new tool to schedule timeslots and meetings. Well, it is new to me at least. Writeboard is an easy-to-use web-based text document that only requires a link and a password. I have used Google Docs in the past as a collaboration tool, but many people have complained of issues. I am not sure if this is a user-based problem, but so far, none of my volunteer team has had any problem with Writeboard. Simple, quick, and straightforward.

Here - check it out with a document I created:

http://123.writeboard.com/i3sxvemytx8o2n6y 

password: testing123

Take a look at the website and consider using for your next collaborative task!
http://writeboard.com/

The Thirteenth Tale (audio format)

Author: Diane Setterfield 
Narrators: Bianca Amato & Jill Tanner
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Audio, New York, 2006
ISBN: 978-0-7435-6417-5
Interest Level: Young Adult to Adult
Genre:  Fiction
Plot Summary: Aging, reclusive author Vida Winter, having given out multiple versions of her life story over the years, decides to finally set the record straight and engages Margaret Lea, a London bookseller's daughter, to write her biography, drawing the young woman into a tale of a governess, a ghost, a willful woman, feral twins, and a gothic mansion. 
Themes/Tags: authors, hermits, twins, mystery, betrayal, England, gothic
Awards and Reviews: book reviews only: Alex Award 2007, Wilson's Senior High School 10/01/07, Library Journal 08/01/06, Publishers Weekly 06/26/06, Kirkus Review starred 07/15/06, Booklist 09/01/06

Library Journal (August 1, 2006) A ruined mansion in the English countryside, secret illegitimate children, a madwoman hidden in the attic, ghostly twin sisters-yep, it's a gothic novel, and it doesn't pretend to be anything fancier. But this one grabs the reader with its damp, icy fingers and doesn't let go until the last shocking secret has been revealed. Margaret Lea, an antiquarian bookseller and sometime biographer of obscure writers, receives a letter from Vida Winter, "the world's most famous living author." Vida has always invented pasts for herself in interviews, but now, on her deathbed, she at last has decided to tell the truth and has chosen Margaret to write her story. Now living at Vida's (spooky) country estate, Margaret finds herself spellbound by the tale of Vida's childhood some 70 years earlier...but is it really the truth? And will Vida live to finish the story? Setterfield's first novel is equally suited to a rainy afternoon on the couch or a summer day on the beach. For all public libraries. 
Extensions: After reading the Thirteenth Tale, discuss the elements of gothic literature.  Prepare a Power Point presentation with the history of the Gothic including the characteristics of Gothic literature (dark settings, strong imagery, damsels in distress, deep villains, dark themes about human nature, hidden secrets, etc.) Student will enjoy learning where things like vampires, Dracula, Frankenstein, etc come from. Have students will identify Gothic elements in some of their favorite movies and stories, brainstorming in class and the teacher will write ideas on the board. Direct students to looking at specific elements that create the mood and tone. Assess on students' abilty to identify various images and elements of discussed topics and classroom participation. (adapted from a lesson plan found on http://www.associatedcontent.com)

GPS ELA11LSV1 The student participates in student-to-teacher, student-to-student, and group verbal interactions. The student
a. Initiates new topics in addition to responding to adult-initiated topics . b. Asks relevant questions. c. Responds to questions with appropriate information. d. Actively solicits another person’s comments or opinion. e. Offers own opinion forcefully without domineering. f. Volunteers contributions and responds when directly solicited by teacher or discussion leader. g. Gives reasons in support of opinions expressed. h. Clarifies, illustrates, or expands on a response when asked to do so; asks classmates for similar expansions. i. Employ group decision-making techniques such as brainstorming or a problem-solving sequence (i.e., recognizes problem, defines problem, identifies possible solutions, selects optimal solution, implements solution, evaluates solution).j. Divides labor so as to achieve the overall group goal efficiently.
Terri's Review: ►►►► 4 Bean and Cheese Nachos (out of 5)  A book for booklovers, especially those drawn to British mysteries, historical British literature, dark secrets, betrayals, lies, dysfunctional families, old rambling gothic mansions, and of course tea and cake.  The two narrators bring realistic, consistent and believable voices to the two main characters.  The book begins with mousy Margaret Lea, the classic spinster gal, who lives with her parents and helps run her father's rare bookstore.  She is recruited by England's best-selling, yet reclusive author, Miss Winter, who is dying.  The frail Mrs. Winter needs Margaret to write the story that has never been told (a.k.a The Thirteenth Tale). Mrs. Winter has been living under a false name for most of her life, and in a cathartic attempt to relieve her bitter soul, she must divulge her family secrets.  What ensues is a gothic tale including allusions to incest (mature YA readers only), betrayal, lies, and half-truths, which sends Margaret out on some detective work of her own, because Mrs. Winter, for all her intent, can be vague and misleading with the details.  This is a book that's hard to put down, especially if it's a cold rainy day, so fire up the teapot.

The Good Thief

Author: Hannah Tinti - great website...I want to be her friend!
Publisher: Dial Press, New York, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-385-33745-8
Interest Level: Young adult to Adult
Genre:  Fiction, although assigned Dewey 813.6 (American Fiction, 2001-) 
Plot Summary: Young Ren, an orphan in nineteenth-century New England, is rescued from the orphanage by Benjamin Nab, who claims to be Ren's brother; but as time goes on Ren begins to question who he can and cannot trust.
Themes/Tags: orphans, New England, historical fiction, trust
Awards and Reviews: Alex Award 01/26/09, Wilson's Fiction 03/01/09, Booklist starred 06/01/08, Publishers Weekly 05/05/08, Kirkus Review starred 06/01/08, New York Times 09/28/08 
Booklist starred (June 1, 2008 (Vol. 104, No. 19) Ren doesn’t know how he lost his hand, who his parents are, or how he arrived at St. Anthony’s, a prisonlike orphanage. Certain that no one will ever adopt him, he takes secret revenge on those who beat and torment him by stealing. Then Benjamin Nab appears, claiming Ren as his long-lost younger brother. Off they go, and Ren, a marvelously plucky narrator, is ecstatic. But his savior turns out to be a con man given to diabolical and grotesque endeavors. It’s a ghoulish and violent world right out of the most nihilistic fairy tales, with shades of Dickens and Deadwood. Set in a decimated nineteenth-century New England town ruled by the owner of a mousetrap factory, Tinti’s shivery tale features an otherworldly cast of characters. Each is caught in a snare of some sort and must figure out how to get free. Tinti revealed her macabre sensibility in her story collection, Animal Crackers (2004). In her highly original debut novel, she renders the horrors and wonders she concocts utterly believable and rich in implication as she creates a darkly comedic and bewitching, sinister yet life-affirming tale about the eternal battle between good and evil
Extensions: Include The Good Thief on the assigned reading list.  Students will compose a chart to identify elements of diction, imagery, figurative language, point of view, symbolism, plots and main ideas contained in the text.  Prompt class discussions on these elements in the book: Which characters has unique ways of speaking, and what tone did they convey?  Describe the imagery of some of the locations in North Umbrage and what tone do they convey?  In retrospect, think from the point of view of Mrs. Sands and Benjamin that drive their actions.  Do you see any symbolism in the mousetrap factory?  Think of some of the subplots and how they relate to the overall main idea of the story:  the "evil" twins, the ugly mousetrap girls, the doctor who studied corpses, Tom's former life as a teacher.  Assess on analyzation efforts, supporting information and classroom participation. 
GPS ELAALRL1 The student demonstrates comprehension by identifying evidence (i.e., examples of diction, imagery, point of view, figurative language, symbolism, plot events and main ideas) in a variety of texts representative of different genres (i.e., poetry, prose [short story, novel, essay, editorial, biography], and drama) and using this evidence as the basis for interpretation. The student identifies, analyzes, and applies knowledge of the structures and elements of American fiction and provides evidence from the text to support understanding; the student: a. Locates and analyzes such elements in fiction as language and style, character development, point of view, irony, and structures (i.e., chronological, in medias res, flashback, frame narrative, epistolary narrative) in works of American fiction from different time periods. b. Identifies and analyzes patterns of imagery or symbolism. c. Relates identified elements in fiction to theme or underlying meaning. d. Analyzes, evaluates, and applies knowledge of the ways authors use techniques and elements in fiction for rhetorical and aesthetic purposes. e. Analyzes the influence of mythic, traditional, or classical literature on American literature. f. Traces the history of the development of American fiction..
Terri's Review: ►►►►► 5 Bean and Cheese Nachos (out of 5)  This simple, yet magnificent tale is an instant classic that will be on required reading lists for years.  Tinti creates an almost Grimm-ish atmosphere, in this darkly moving story set in 19th century New England.  Our protagonist is, of course, the archetypal orphan boy - sensitive, worried, bright -- and missing his left hand.  Ren is soon rescued by a smooth-talking rogue, Benjamin Nab, who claims to be Ren's older brother.  This swaggering con-man takes Ren under his wing, and along with Tom, Benjamin's sidekick, they teach him the ropes in pickpocketing, medicine shows and graverobbing.  Before long, Ren realizes Benjamin cannot really be his brother, but now he's the only sort of family he has.  Once they settle into Mrs. Sands' boarding house, Ren gets a taste of a real home and a motherly figure, despite her eccentricities.  And the eccentric characters abound in this novel which takes plot turns and scenes you never see coming.  Exquisite and highly original, this first-time novel of Tinti's is at heart a simple display of fantastic storytelling, and reveals the true nature of love, friendship, and family despite physical and personality flaws.  An excellent choice for any library collection young adult and above.  The story does contain a few gruesome scenes of shootouts and corpse-stealing, but nothing young adults have not heard before.

Alex Awards

One of my main sources for leisure reading suggestions are books that have been nominated for an Alex Award. If you are not familiar, the award is given to 10 books each year that are written for adults, but hold appeal for young adult readers (12-18 yrs). These books are great choices for picks in a media center serving students in this age range. Check out their site to see the history of nominations:


http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/booklistsawards/alexawards/alexawards.cfm

My next posts will highlight a couple of Alex Award books I have enjoyed.