On Monday, I told you I was a high school Social Studies teacher in Minneapolis and my night time passion is my book blog. In February at South High (where I teach), we happen to celebrate "I Love to Read" month and I am on the committee (of course). The last two years I have been able to use my author connections from Booksnob to entice authors to speak at South High in individual classrooms and in auditoriums.
In 2012, I was able to help bring 5 different author experiences to South High. The student book clubs Skyped with Caragh O'Brien, author of Birthmarked. Poet, Ms. Nique came in on African American parent involvement day and spoke to us about her biography and was funny and inspiring. Author, Jacob Wheeler spoke to the AP Geography classes about the issues of international adoption and Guatemala. Susan Niz, a former graduate of South, spoke about her book, Kara Lost and her experiences as a teenage runaway on the streets of Minneapolis. Last, I invited Robert Alexander, also known as R.D. Zimmerman to talk about his book The Kitchen Boy and the Russian Revolution to my World History students. This year The Southerner (our school newspaper) wrote a great article about the author events.
My committee is already working on asking authors to come and speak at South in February 2013. The Event is getting bigger and better every year. The school, author, blog connection is one of the best things to come from my book blog. I love it and it gives me a strong sense of purpose.
If you are interested in reading any of the blog posts, they're labeled "South High" and most are in the month of February.
Tell me about your blog and networking connections you've made.
