June Wrap-up

Wow! It’s almost July. Here’s a wrap-up of previously posted contests and fun stuff that haven’t expired yet.

You can still:

Win a trip to the National Baseball Hall of Fame
Enter the Reading Rockets Daily Fun Quiz for an Amazon gift card
Win a Disney World Dream vacation at Disney’s Read and Dream
Enter The Big Write for a chance at cash prizes
Win a Spiderwick Chronicles 2-disc special edition DVD from Tony Diterlizzi
Hunt and win with the Reading Warriors Summer Reading Challenge

Be sure to click on each link for contest guidelines. Good luck winning!

As Seen by Me: WALL-E

A bunch of us just got back from seeing the new Disney movie, WALL-E. Most loved it, but some… well… not so much.

The point of controversy seems to be the lack of dialogue. As a writer, I appreciate how much was shown rather than told. Through movement, action, touch, murmurs and mumbles, we see loneliness, longing, and love.

We feel WALL-E’s need for friendship, his concern and caring, his desire to love and be loved—all without words.

There is something to be said for showing how we feel.

It’s not like WALL-E is a silent movie or anything though. My favorite line was spoken by The Captain: "I don't want to survive; I want to live."

That’s what writing does for me; it brings life. I notice more of the world around me. I pay attention to it. Ponder it. Play with it. Process it. I feel more fully. I live more deeply.

Just Jokin'

What book needed a haircut?









The Diction-HAIRY.

Hee hee hee!

Hey, guess what! You can build your own dictionary @ Merriam-Webster’s Word Central.

Yep, you’re the author and you can share your new words with the world!

Bah-ha-ha-ha.

Word Central has fun games, too.

Kinda reminds me of Frindle by Andrew Clements! You should definitely read that one.

Oh, the power of words!

Become a Reading Warrior!

Are you ready for a summer reading adventure?!?

Learn to identify your prey and where to hunt for it…

The Reading Warriors Summer Reading Challenge is rooted in the legends and adventures of the Cats and Clans in Erin Hunter’s best-selling series—Warriors.

Kids eight (96 moons) and over earn reward codes which can be used to earn exclusive Warriors rewards.

Explore new lands… Establish and defend territory… take the reading challenge today!

The Spiderwick Chronicles

I’m off to snap up a copy of The Spiderwick Chronicles DVD. It’s based on the best-selling fantasy-adventure series by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi, and it comes out today. I’m kinda worried though, it looks scarier than the books. Does anyone know if it is?

Check out Tony’s is website (which is very cool btw). He’s having a contest. Draw a picture about one of his books… he’s giving away six copies of The Spiderwick Chronicles 2-disc special edition DVD.

I’ve already ordered a copy of Tony’s new book Kenny and the Dragon. It’s not due out until August, but because I think you’re awesome, you can read an excerpt here.

Meet Kit: An American Girl

For the first time ever, an American Girl movie is about to hit the big screen. On July 2nd, you can see Kit Kittredge: An American Girl at a theatre near you.



Set during the Great Depression, 10-year-old Kit Kittredge is a writer—sweet! She’s dying to be a newspaper reporter, and puts her skills to the test. Abigail Breslin (hey… Spencer Breslin is her big brother!) plays Kit, a brave, caring, determined young girl with a mystery to solve.

You still have time to read Kit’s books before the movie comes out. I almost always like the book better, so I’m going to start Meet Kit today!

Jonas Brothers Joy

F-I-N-A-L-L-Y.

The long wait for Camp Rock is over!!! At last, the much-anticipated 2008 Disney Original Movie will air—TONIGHT!

The musical, which stars the Jonas Brothers and introduces Demi Lovato, promises to be a hit.



Of course, you already know all that.

But—do you know…

Brenda Song, the hilarious London Tipton from The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, makes a brief appearance in a lake scene.

Yep, I heard it’s true.

There are some great Camp Rock books and Jonas Brothers books available now. AND the first book about the Jonas Brothers, actually written by the Joe, Nick, and Kevin Jonas, is due out this fall.

And… are you ready for this?!?

There's another Jonas Brother!!!

For reals!

Little brother Frankie Jonas, the family’s seven-year-old rock star, will appear in Camp Rock 2.

That’s right, you heard it here first.

A fourth Jonas Brother and a second Camp Rock.

Just thought you’d want to know.

Reading Online Can Make Reading Books Fun

Scholastic just published an interesting report on kids and reading.

They discovered that lots of kids go online as part of their reading experience.

Mm hmm.

Kids do things like:
Look for books by authors they like.
Find other books in a series.
Visit fan sites.
Check out sites that are about books they like.
Connect with classmates and friends online about books.
Search for and sample books online.
Write their own book review.

Hey! That’s what we do here!

It turns out, kids who go online are more likely to read a book for fun everyday. And, they value and enjoy reading more than kids who don’t.

Also, even though kids like to go online to read… they still love books printed on paper best!

I’m thinking this means you should visit cheriwilliams.com daily ;0)

From Reading Fun… To Disney Vacation

Woo hoo! Scholastic is giving away four trips to Walt Disney World!

Kids in grades PreK–8 who read and log 4 or more books can enter.

September 1st is the deadline. Winners will be randomly selected. It’s easy to enter!

Oooh, check out the bookshelf games while you’re there.

I gotta go find my kids…

Finding Fun Books – The End

There are so many ways to find fun books to read. I could go on forever, but there's lots of big news brewing (check back soon!), so I’m going to finish up today—for now anyway.

The local library is a great way to find fun books. The librarian knows so much! They always have great ideas. Make sure you say “hi” to yours.

My favorite thing though is ordering my books online. When I go to the library my books are already waiting for me right behind the counter. I feel so special ;0)

Start by doing a search for your library’s website. Just use Google or Yahoo or whatever you normally use. Enter the name of your county and the word library. That should do it.

Once you’re there look for “Find Books” or “Find Materials” or something like that. You’ll probably need to enter your library card info and set up a password, but it should be easy-peasy.

Lots of libraries even have a section just for kids!

That’s the Library of Congress in the picture. I took it myself. Mm hm. They have a great kids section!

Remember, everything on this site that’s underlined is clickable and sure to be fun… check ‘em out!

Harry Potter Prequel?

Have you heard? J.K. Rowling wrote a “prequel” to the infamous Harry Potter series. It’s just one scene and it takes place long before Harry hits Hogwarts.

I haven’t decided how I feel about it—except that because it’s handwritten, it’s kinda hard to read. The 800-word story card was sold at a charity auction. You can read it here.

Just thought you should know!

Tomorrow, I’ll get back to finding fun books.

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father’s Day to all you dads out there!

To my dad and my hubby…

Happy Father’s Day—I love you!

Check out these fun Father’s Day facts.

Finding Fun Books – Part 4

One thing I really like to do is go to a real live book store—like Borders or Barnes and Noble (click on the store name to find a store near you).

I walk up and down the aisles picking up anything that grabs my interest. Then, I find a comfy seat, a stool, or even sit right on the floor (sometimes, I hang out in the coffee shop!) and dig in.

It’s totally okay to look through the books and read them for awhile. This is the absolute best way to decide if you’re going to like a book!!!

I have to ask, does anyone else out there LOVE the way books smell? I’m not saying I do or anything.

Really.

I’m just wondering ;0)

Finding Fun Books – Part 3

Oh, yeah—I forgot to tell you something. Even though I’m numbering these posts, they’re really not in any kind of order. Like, number one isn’t necessarily my favorite. I totally love all of them!

Okay. Another way I find fun books is listening to kids. Lots of places have book lists, but my very favorite ones are the ones where kids pick the best books.

Here are just a couple:

The Children’s Book Council and the International Reading Association ask 10,000 schoolchildren to select their favorite books. It’s called the Children’s Choice Book Awards. The kids actually vote—sweet!

And...

Bearemy, of Build-A-Bear fame, has a book club. It’s called Bearemy’s Book Club, imagine that! He lists his favorite books and kids can review and rate books. It’s beary cool! (There’s a Games and Stories area too!).

If you have time, let me know your favorite books and I'll make a list of them too!

Finding Fun Books – Part 2

Another way I find fun books is to visit Amazon.com.

First, find the Search box and click the down arrow. Then, choose Children’s Books and click on Go.

You can search by Title, Author, Category, Age, or Price. If you click on Advanced Search, there are even more choices.

I always find something that looks great!

The thing I like about Amazon is that they have a thing called Search Inside. It’s so cool! I can see the book’s front and back covers, the front and back flaps, and the table of contents.

The best part is that I can actually read part of the book to make sure that it really is fun. It’s like a sneak preview!!!

You can thank me later ;0) Happy searching!

Finding Fun Books – Part 1

Okay, this is my little secret, but… I’m going to share it with you.

I’m whispering with my most whispery voice… so listen close.

To find a fun book I go to the Renaissance Learning website. It lets me search by topic, book level, AR points, fiction, nonfiction, even by publisher.

Like, I can search for humor, 5th grade, 1 point (which is pretty short) and get a whole list of suggestions.

Or, fantasy 3rd grade, 5 points and get a completely different list.

No more reading boring books!!!

It’s awesome.

Click on Renaissance Learning or click here! You can also check it out at cheriwilliams.com.

Kung Fu Panda

Kung Fu Panda—it’s in theatres everywhere—NOW!

Check out the Official Website (which has totally fun games!) here.

Check out cool Kung Fu Panda books here.

Gotta go…

I gotta get me to the movies!!!

After you check this stuff out, post a review below.

I’ll see ya at the movies…

Just Jokin'

Why did Tigger look inside the toilet?

He was looking for Pooh.

Ouch. I’ve resorted to potty humor (Hee hee).

Come on, it’s pretty funny.

If you’ve got a joke that will fit in at cheriwilliams.com, I’d love to see it… I might even post it next week! Click here to send me an email.

Make sure you click on Tigger’s name. You’ll find some Tiggerific Fun Activities!

If you click here, you’ll meet some of Tigger’s friends.

T-T-F-N! (ta-ta-for-now).

The Big Write!

Calling all fourth to eighth graders!

Join the St. Louis Writers Guild and Build-A-Bear Workshop Foundation for a cool contest.

Write your own story that begins with the sentence, “It all began when someone left the window open.”

Six entries will win. Check out the Official Contest Guidelines and the Official Contest Entry Form.

All entries must be postmarked on or before September 12, 2008.

www.cheriwilliams.com

I'd like to rename cheriwilliams.com. Something that says reading and writing are fun—books rock—kids rule! Get the idea?

I’d love to hear your suggestions. You can leave them in the comments section below.