Has it really been a month since I posted here? Wow.... That might be a sign that it's time to scale back the blogging. I have had a couple ideas of things to write about but nothing that felt blog-worthy.
I was all ready to explain my absence with "book fair." Lately, it's what I blame for anything that isn't getting done, from laundry and household chores to emails and blogging. Thankfully I read so much I can get ahead in my book blogging at times.
Book fair was a great experience again this year, but it really does consume about 3 weeks of my life. I start planning and reading some of the books that we'll sell about 6 -8 weeks before the fair. In the month right before, I am recruiting and scheduling and confirming volunteers. The fair itself, from set up to tear down covers 10 days. Those tend to be long days at school and then I bring books home in the evenings and over the weekend so I can talk intelligently with kids and parents about the books we are selling. Tearing down the fair is faster than setting it up, but then we have to put the library back together for school on Monday and we have to wrap up all the financials for the event.
By the end of the fair, I'm usually not sleeping well, so when we finally wrap things up, I try to just sleep and take it easy for the weekend. Otherwise I will be useless to my students and colleagues on Monday. And I have learned to schedule a day off some time during the week following the fair. In my head, this will offset the 10-12 hours days during the book fair, although in reality it probably doesn't do as much for me as the 11 or 12 hours sleep I get the first night after we close the fair.
So, the fall fair is complete. We'll do another in the spring, but I'm going to try not to think about that until January!
Showing posts with label Scholastic Book Fair. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scholastic Book Fair. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Thursday, April 4, 2013
I Survived
My survival kit was pretty successful - I survived the busy-ness of March and have made it to April and to Spring Break. I have tried to plan only a few tasks for break that have been needing attention for some time, but to allow plenty of free time, too. I'm just happy to have completed another successful book fair. And I am already planning a trip for next year's Spring Break so we can actually get away next year for the first time in awhile. I am ready to start a new count down for that!
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Book Fair
It's book fair week for me! That means it's in my best interests to take a blogging break so I can conserve my time and energy for the work that needs to be done this week. I'll be back next week to let you know how things worked out with my Countdown to Spring Break Survival Kit, because by the time I post again, I will be ON Spring Break.
I'll leave you with this picture - my bulletin board for Book Fair - each teacher's section is a pocket for their book fair wish list. I'm really pleased with how it turned out!
I'll leave you with this picture - my bulletin board for Book Fair - each teacher's section is a pocket for their book fair wish list. I'm really pleased with how it turned out!
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Book Fair Pros and Cons
PRO
*I get to talk about books with students and parents and teachers for a solid week and a half.
CON
*I never sleep well during the fair - I'm thinking of things I need to get done or things I should have done differently.
PRO
*I get to know students and parents in a different context. I had some amazing volunteers this year. I had students who pitched in with diligence even though the tasks I asked them to do weren't thrilling. I was thoroughly impressed by some students and parents I barely knew before the fair.
CON
*Book fair consumes me for the two weeks when it is in full swing, including set up and tear down. I don't check email, except at school, I can't deal with library issues, I don't see the people I usually see during the week, I can't spare the mental energy to make other decisions or deal with other life events until the fair is done.
PRO
*I get to enjoy watching students connect to books. Kids who buy a book we talked about want to come back and tell me what they think of it, and 95% of the time, they are happy.
CON
*I hear students say they "can't" read something if it doesn't have an AR quiz or if it isn't in their reading level range. This is wrong on so many levels, but until book fair is over, I can't devote the time I need to change this perception.
PRO
*I see teachers receiving new books for their classrooms. Kids can access books in their classrooms that I won't be able to get on the library shelves until January at the earliest.
CON
*I have more books to catalog for the library than I have time to catalog for the library.
PRO
*We raised a little money to go towards some new cushions for our reading spaces in the library. This was the goal for this fair and I'm looking forward to finding us some comfy pieces to make our space welcoming for readers.
CON
*As soon as I think I have addressed all the mistakes I made last time, I discover all the new ones I am making this time around. (grumble)
All that said, our fall book fair was a great success and a lot of fun. In fact, the library looks a little forlorn without all of the bright colors of the fair. I'm enjoying a break from all the work, but I will be ready to do it all over again this spring.
*I get to talk about books with students and parents and teachers for a solid week and a half.
CON
*I never sleep well during the fair - I'm thinking of things I need to get done or things I should have done differently.
PRO
*I get to know students and parents in a different context. I had some amazing volunteers this year. I had students who pitched in with diligence even though the tasks I asked them to do weren't thrilling. I was thoroughly impressed by some students and parents I barely knew before the fair.
CON
*Book fair consumes me for the two weeks when it is in full swing, including set up and tear down. I don't check email, except at school, I can't deal with library issues, I don't see the people I usually see during the week, I can't spare the mental energy to make other decisions or deal with other life events until the fair is done.
PRO
*I get to enjoy watching students connect to books. Kids who buy a book we talked about want to come back and tell me what they think of it, and 95% of the time, they are happy.
CON
*I hear students say they "can't" read something if it doesn't have an AR quiz or if it isn't in their reading level range. This is wrong on so many levels, but until book fair is over, I can't devote the time I need to change this perception.
PRO
*I see teachers receiving new books for their classrooms. Kids can access books in their classrooms that I won't be able to get on the library shelves until January at the earliest.
CON
*I have more books to catalog for the library than I have time to catalog for the library.
PRO
*We raised a little money to go towards some new cushions for our reading spaces in the library. This was the goal for this fair and I'm looking forward to finding us some comfy pieces to make our space welcoming for readers.
CON
*As soon as I think I have addressed all the mistakes I made last time, I discover all the new ones I am making this time around. (grumble)
All that said, our fall book fair was a great success and a lot of fun. In fact, the library looks a little forlorn without all of the bright colors of the fair. I'm enjoying a break from all the work, but I will be ready to do it all over again this spring.
Saturday, November 3, 2012
She Did What She Could
At teacher convention a couple weeks ago a woman spoke on the passage in the Bible where Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus, anointed Jesus with expensive oil. She zeroed in on the verse that said, "She did what she could."
Last weekend, I worked at school on book fair things. I received an email from the company that runs the fair showing the two restock orders I had placed already and how many items were enroute.
One of the things I noticed is that I wasn't going to be receiving all of the copies of a book I needed. I was down to my last copy, so I had asked for the maximum, 8 copies, both times I had called in a re-order. In one case, the operator only recorded that I wanted 4, so I was just getting those 4. In the other case, I was getting 0 instead of the 8 I needed. I had already sold those 4, so I wasn't going to have anything to put on the shelves on Monday, even though I had been telling kids I had more copies coming.
I had personally told almost all of my 250 students about this book - it works for the youngest in 1st and 2nd grade as well as the older ones in 5th and 6th. And it was a well-written and fun story. I have a LOT of kids who want this book. I even sold the library's copy (it hadn't been cataloged yet) and marked it for replacement at the end of the fair so I would have an extra copy to work with. I hate the disappointed looks on their faces when I tell them I have to order more and they can't take the book with them. The more I thought about the lack of copies of this book, the more desperate I started to feel. It started to affect my sleep. I would lay in bed, wondering if I could order more copies from Amazon and sell them myself (FYI - No, I can't. They are in hard cover, and more expensive, from Amazon).
Then I remembered the words of this speaker: She Did What She Could.
All I can do is what I can do.
I can keep calling in reorders for the maximum number of books
I can call my rep and ask her what my other options are (and complain about the rep who didn't place the order as I originally requested it).
But I can't conjure more copies from thin air. I can't force the warehouse to have more copies than they have.
I can only do what I can do.
It will have to be enough.
Last weekend, I worked at school on book fair things. I received an email from the company that runs the fair showing the two restock orders I had placed already and how many items were enroute.
One of the things I noticed is that I wasn't going to be receiving all of the copies of a book I needed. I was down to my last copy, so I had asked for the maximum, 8 copies, both times I had called in a re-order. In one case, the operator only recorded that I wanted 4, so I was just getting those 4. In the other case, I was getting 0 instead of the 8 I needed. I had already sold those 4, so I wasn't going to have anything to put on the shelves on Monday, even though I had been telling kids I had more copies coming.
I had personally told almost all of my 250 students about this book - it works for the youngest in 1st and 2nd grade as well as the older ones in 5th and 6th. And it was a well-written and fun story. I have a LOT of kids who want this book. I even sold the library's copy (it hadn't been cataloged yet) and marked it for replacement at the end of the fair so I would have an extra copy to work with. I hate the disappointed looks on their faces when I tell them I have to order more and they can't take the book with them. The more I thought about the lack of copies of this book, the more desperate I started to feel. It started to affect my sleep. I would lay in bed, wondering if I could order more copies from Amazon and sell them myself (FYI - No, I can't. They are in hard cover, and more expensive, from Amazon).
Then I remembered the words of this speaker: She Did What She Could.
All I can do is what I can do.
I can keep calling in reorders for the maximum number of books
I can call my rep and ask her what my other options are (and complain about the rep who didn't place the order as I originally requested it).
But I can't conjure more copies from thin air. I can't force the warehouse to have more copies than they have.
I can only do what I can do.
It will have to be enough.
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Bad Book Seller
I learned at my recent school book fair that I am a bad book seller. Here are my reasons:
1) I told families not to buy a certain series if they did not care for books like Harry Potter.
2) I told families who weren't sure about a particular book - or its price - to try it from the public library instead.
3) When one father choked on the $30 price tag for Wonderstruck, especially when I explained that one of the two story lines is told completely in gorgeous illustrations (something I thought made the book kind of cool), I told him I was buying a copy for the library, so his daughter would be able to just check it out from there.
4) I could not generate enough enthusiasm about a couple of my preview books to sell any of them. Of the 8 or so that I read and shared with my students, two of them did not click for me. I told my kids about them, but I know my heart wasn't in it. I did sell a couple copies of the picture book anyway, but NOT ONE copy of the chapter book. The sad thing is, the story is fine - just not a great fit personally. Hopefully some kids will discover it on our library shelves and read it anyway.
5) When we had a book in paperback and hardcover, I assumed the buyer wanted the cheaper paperback.
I'm really not sad about my lack of sales skill. I felt like the store manager in the new Miracle on 34th Street when Allison Janney pokes her finger in his chest because Santa is telling parents where to get toys for the best deal. She says the store putting parents ahead of the "almighty-dollar at Christmas time" has made her a Cole's shopper for life. I figure if parents know my goal is more to get kids reading rather than making as much off them as possible, everyone wins.
1) I told families not to buy a certain series if they did not care for books like Harry Potter.
2) I told families who weren't sure about a particular book - or its price - to try it from the public library instead.
3) When one father choked on the $30 price tag for Wonderstruck, especially when I explained that one of the two story lines is told completely in gorgeous illustrations (something I thought made the book kind of cool), I told him I was buying a copy for the library, so his daughter would be able to just check it out from there.
4) I could not generate enough enthusiasm about a couple of my preview books to sell any of them. Of the 8 or so that I read and shared with my students, two of them did not click for me. I told my kids about them, but I know my heart wasn't in it. I did sell a couple copies of the picture book anyway, but NOT ONE copy of the chapter book. The sad thing is, the story is fine - just not a great fit personally. Hopefully some kids will discover it on our library shelves and read it anyway.
5) When we had a book in paperback and hardcover, I assumed the buyer wanted the cheaper paperback.
I'm really not sad about my lack of sales skill. I felt like the store manager in the new Miracle on 34th Street when Allison Janney pokes her finger in his chest because Santa is telling parents where to get toys for the best deal. She says the store putting parents ahead of the "almighty-dollar at Christmas time" has made her a Cole's shopper for life. I figure if parents know my goal is more to get kids reading rather than making as much off them as possible, everyone wins.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Book Fair Update
Book Fair is complete - and it was a BLAST!
This is my first year serving as an elementary school librarian. I have been a parent helper with the Fair before, and last year I was the volunteer chairperson, working with two librarians. This year, I was on my own. Thankfully, I had an amazing group of parents step up and volunteer. This was especially important as my husband's grandmother passed away right before the Fair started, so I had to turn things over to a substitute just a couple days into this major event. My volunteers really came through in a spectacular way.
My students seemed to have a great time. Scholastic sent us a TON of books, so we had plenty of things for families to choose from. The three classes I have had so far have all given the fair a thumbs up, although my 6th graders wanted a few more titles for older students. While Scholastic sent us a fair number of chapter books targeted at 4th through 8th grade students, I have several strong readers who wanted things geared to teens in the 6th grade+ range. We'll have to see what we can do for them in the future.
I've already been making lists of things to do again next year (tag books for AR, post my "Five Favorites from the Fair") and things NOT to do (like tape the hall display so that the topmost layer is bearing its own weight as well as that of the layer below it).
Here are a few pictures from one of the best weeks of this school year!
This is my first year serving as an elementary school librarian. I have been a parent helper with the Fair before, and last year I was the volunteer chairperson, working with two librarians. This year, I was on my own. Thankfully, I had an amazing group of parents step up and volunteer. This was especially important as my husband's grandmother passed away right before the Fair started, so I had to turn things over to a substitute just a couple days into this major event. My volunteers really came through in a spectacular way.
My students seemed to have a great time. Scholastic sent us a TON of books, so we had plenty of things for families to choose from. The three classes I have had so far have all given the fair a thumbs up, although my 6th graders wanted a few more titles for older students. While Scholastic sent us a fair number of chapter books targeted at 4th through 8th grade students, I have several strong readers who wanted things geared to teens in the 6th grade+ range. We'll have to see what we can do for them in the future.
I've already been making lists of things to do again next year (tag books for AR, post my "Five Favorites from the Fair") and things NOT to do (like tape the hall display so that the topmost layer is bearing its own weight as well as that of the layer below it).
Here are a few pictures from one of the best weeks of this school year!
The theme was space.
We did the teacher wish lists next to a rocket with the teacher's picture in the window.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Book Fair Break
Well, that is the end of my book fair break. See you next week for some regular blogging again.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Book Fair Break
Made these chocolate treats for our volunteers - who doesn't need a chocolate pick-me-up after chasing young children around the book fair?
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Book Fair Break
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Book Fair Break
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Book Fair Break
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Book Fair Break
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Book Fair Break
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Book Fair Break
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Inspired by... the finish line
I am up to my eyeballs in Book Fair preparation these days (I am the coordinator for my son's school) and will be taking a break from posting until we hit the finish line. Hopefully along the way I will find more to inspire me. In the mean time, I'll post a few pictures of what we are up to for the Fair. See you in a couple weeks!
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