Newbery Challenge

I finally got around to signing up for Mr. Schu's Newbery Challenge. Although I am a Newbery Freak (I collect hardcover Newbery winners) I was at first reluctant to sign up.  What if I couldn't do it?  I have two small kids, I work full time, and yikes, I start up my grad classes again next month. And, what about that ever growing stack of books that I need to read so I am current on books to recommend to my students.

Then, the book geek in me took over.  Reading the Newberys has always been a lifetime goal of mine--this challenge, could get me there! Or, maybe it was the challenge itself.  I got that little heart palpatation I did back in elementary school where I worked my butt of to be the top reader.  Because, if there is anything I do well, it is read books.  As I watched Mr. Schu's video of Newbery winners,

I was counting the books that I had read.  Wow--I had already read 48 (only 41 to go if my math skills are correct.) Then, I learned more about the challenge--and found out I could take more than a year and the books I already read could count. whew!

Knowing that there were people out there reading, and reading without me, was absolutely killing me. So, I signed up. Knowing that I can take over a year, has eased the challenge--I was fearful that next December was going to feel like the 3rd grade all over again when I said I could read 26 books in one month (I did--but those last few days were painful, and taught me a valuable lesson). So--READ ON book lovers, READ ON!