We had SEVEN new kids in our Reader's Studio meeting this past Monday, September 19! YOO-HOO! For those of you not in the know, Reader's Studio is a genre-based book club for 2nd-5th graders. We started this school year with the theme Pets on Parade, and we had quite an array of pets represented in the books we chose.

Aleisa = nonfiction book about Corgis (the same kind of dog she has as a pet)

Alonda = Cooking with the Cat by Bonnie Worth (featuring the Cat in the Hat)

Ana = Frog and Toad Together by Arnold Lobel

Emily = Katie the Kitten Fairy by Daisy Meadows

Ethan = Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

Jenny = Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry

Miss Katie Jane = When Life Gives You O.J. by Erica S. Perl

Kerri = Good Morning, Gorillas by Mary Pope Osborne (Magic Tree House #26)

Marcanthony = Bunnicula by James Howe

Mary Bailey = Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard & Florence Atwater

Miss Polly = We Can't All Be Rattlesnakes by Patrick Jennings

Raileigh = My Little Kitten by Susan Nicholson

After we talked and laughed about our books, we decided to make "practice pets", much like the one featured in Miss Katie Jane's book. But instead of old orange juice jugs, we used toilet paper rolls.

Next month, the Reader's Studio theme is a bit unusual. On Monday, October 17, we will meet at 6:30 pm to discuss books that are Black, White and Orange All Over. This means we're inviting our elementary readers to judge a book by its cover when making their selections. Please read a book that features one of the three colors in either its title or in its cover design. Call 444-7833 to register today.