There is a temperate zone in the mind, between luxurious indolence and exacting work; and it is to this region, just between laziness and labor, that summer reading belongs.

So what's in your next read stack? If you've been too swamped to replenish your summer reading stack, we've got a terrific article by Shari Frost with some book suggestions for teachers and literacy coaches.

The Big Fresh is off the next two weeks for our scheduled summer break. We'll be back to our weekly updates in mid-July. Happy Summer!

Brenda Power

Editor, Choice Literacy

www.choiceliteracy.com

***Free for All***

Shari Frost, inspired by Franki Sibberson's article on planning for summer reading, puts a little effort into coming up with a collection of books in different categories to read over the next few months. Her picks range from children's books to professional text, with lots of novels and memoir sprinkled throughout:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/384.cfm

If you missed Franki Sibberson's original article on helping students plan for summer reading, you can find it here. The tips are also useful for summer enrichment programs with children: http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/345.cfm

Both Shari and Franki recommend browsing recent award-winners to find worthwhile new reading. If you rarely venture beyond the Calecott or Newbery winners, you might enjoy this web listing with links to recent awardwinning books from throughout the world, and in more specialized categories:

http://childrensbooks.about.com/od/awardwinners/
We've opened a new one-day workshop for literacy coaches featuring Jennifer Allen in late September.These popular workshops featuring strategies for leading study groups, coaching in classrooms, and mentoring new teachers all sold out quickly this summer. If you are thinking of joining us in the fall, registration information is available here:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/383.cfm

***For Members Only***

Jan Miller Burkins and her colleagues continue with the next installment in their "So You Want to Be a Literacy Coach?" series. "I Think, I Wonder, I Know" is a variation on the K-W-L chart for coaches, and is a good tool for planning and getting at basic beliefs about collaborating with colleagues:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/386.cfm

Aimee Buckner describes a simple summer planning and goal-setting process she uses to get ready for launching writer's workshop in the fall:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/385.cfm

From the Choice Literacy archives, Rina Moog writes about how we can bring ourselves as readers into our classrooms:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/259.cfm

That's all for this week!