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dlberglund's review against another edition
3.0
Cute book. I'm going to try to be this teacher for a minute or 2.
sean67's review against another edition
3.0
A month in the life of students who are given a blank book to write in and we read as the feuds and then the reconciliations occur - some interesting observations on group culture are shown.
Addendum - read this one again - for differing reasons - it does hold up as per the previous comments, although some more exploration of the motives behind what the people did could have been helpful.
Addendum - read this one again - for differing reasons - it does hold up as per the previous comments, although some more exploration of the motives behind what the people did could have been helpful.
emdoux's review against another edition
3.0
LPLD 3rd grade book talk
At the beginning of the school year, Ms. Wurtz hides a blank notebook in the Writing Corner, with the following note in the front:
“Hello Boys and Girls,
You have found this book! I hid it in the Writer’s Corner, hoping you would. During center Time, you can choose to come to the Writer’s Corner and write in this journal. Write about anything you want. Leave it for other students to find and write in, too. I want you to “talk” to one another in these pages. I will read the book at the end of each month. But don’t worry – I won’t grade you on what you write. There are only two rules: 1. Have fun. 2. Sign your name, so everyone knows who you are. Your teacher, Ms. Wurtz. PS: Don’t tell anybody else about this book. It will be more fun if each student finds it on his or her own.”
Sounds pretty fun, right?
It is. Ms. Wurtz doesn’t mind if people write things in the book to try and gross each other out, or jokes to make people laugh. But when one joke goes too far, the journal takes on a completely different tone.
Find out how Ms. Wurtz’ class fixes their journal in Please Write in This Book.
At the beginning of the school year, Ms. Wurtz hides a blank notebook in the Writing Corner, with the following note in the front:
“Hello Boys and Girls,
You have found this book! I hid it in the Writer’s Corner, hoping you would. During center Time, you can choose to come to the Writer’s Corner and write in this journal. Write about anything you want. Leave it for other students to find and write in, too. I want you to “talk” to one another in these pages. I will read the book at the end of each month. But don’t worry – I won’t grade you on what you write. There are only two rules: 1. Have fun. 2. Sign your name, so everyone knows who you are. Your teacher, Ms. Wurtz. PS: Don’t tell anybody else about this book. It will be more fun if each student finds it on his or her own.”
Sounds pretty fun, right?
It is. Ms. Wurtz doesn’t mind if people write things in the book to try and gross each other out, or jokes to make people laugh. But when one joke goes too far, the journal takes on a completely different tone.
Find out how Ms. Wurtz’ class fixes their journal in Please Write in This Book.
realpageturner's review against another edition
4.0
Ms. Wurtz decides to encourage creative expression and dialouge between her second graders by leaving a blank notebook in her classroom's "Writer's Corner" so that students will. She does in hope that students "talk to each other." The only stipulations are to "have fun" and "sign your name," and she promises not to read it until the end of the month. The children waste no time to begin to fearless express themselves as only 8 year olds can. As the boys' bathroom humor escalates against the girls' pleas to write only "nice things," alliances and rivalries develop. Personalities are revealed: rule-maker Lizzy; her peacemaker sidekick, Yoshiko; class clown Luke; and organizer/self-proclaimed editor Milton contribute to the journal and illustrate their handwritten entries.
Although the children's adversarial issues and appropriately lame rhyming verse take up their focus at first, the classmates come together with their fictional rescue story in a well-meaning, satisfactory end to the story. Fans of Geronimo Stilton and Marissa Moss's "Amelia" notebooks
NOTES: Because the show shows the students conflicting with her other (particularly boys VS girls) I believe that this book would be most beneficial in reading aloud to a class and allowing the students to discuss the story. There is no doubt that boy's bathroom humor and method of joking can get on a girls nerves. Just as the girl’s tendency to make rules for the sake of order can rub the boys the wrong way as it throws off their groove.
Also try: Dork Diaries; Amelia, Geronimo Stilton, Baby Mouse, Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Although the children's adversarial issues and appropriately lame rhyming verse take up their focus at first, the classmates come together with their fictional rescue story in a well-meaning, satisfactory end to the story. Fans of Geronimo Stilton and Marissa Moss's "Amelia" notebooks
NOTES: Because the show shows the students conflicting with her other (particularly boys VS girls) I believe that this book would be most beneficial in reading aloud to a class and allowing the students to discuss the story. There is no doubt that boy's bathroom humor and method of joking can get on a girls nerves. Just as the girl’s tendency to make rules for the sake of order can rub the boys the wrong way as it throws off their groove.
Also try: Dork Diaries; Amelia, Geronimo Stilton, Baby Mouse, Diary of a Wimpy Kid
amengelking's review against another edition
4.0
This was the first selection in our summer family book club! A joy to read, cute, funny and sweet.
violets_mom's review against another edition
2.0
I hoped this book was similar to Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Dork Diaries, and the like. As a librarian, reader's advisory is a large part of my job; I'm always looked for read-alikes.
I like that the book had different characters, and each of them had a unique writing style, both in diction and handwriting. On the whole, I found it to be repetitive. Ms. Wurtz leaves behind a blank journal for her class to use in their Writing Corner. One by one, students find the book and begin writing messages back and forth. Unfortunately, it becomes and easy place for students to bully one another based on the content of the notebook.
I may recommend this to patrons desperate for diary fiction, but I'd rather read Amelia by Marissa Moss. Personally, this was "meh" for me.
I like that the book had different characters, and each of them had a unique writing style, both in diction and handwriting. On the whole, I found it to be repetitive. Ms. Wurtz leaves behind a blank journal for her class to use in their Writing Corner. One by one, students find the book and begin writing messages back and forth. Unfortunately, it becomes and easy place for students to bully one another based on the content of the notebook.
I may recommend this to patrons desperate for diary fiction, but I'd rather read Amelia by Marissa Moss. Personally, this was "meh" for me.
debz57a52's review
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
This is a quick early chapter book, in the same family tree as Wimpy Kid and iFunny. It tells the story of a handful of students in a classroom, who share a journal in the Writing Corner. There are 6-7 students, by my lazy count, who write or draw in the journal, although I assume the teacher's class is bigger, but they all have very easy-to-discern personality traits, which come across in their writing and drawings. There is also a straightforward story arc: the kids are excited, the boys and girls make fun of each other, and then they decide to work together. The kids share typical elementary humor, with lots of talk about snot and farts and smelly feet, but there is also solid elementary level writing, with none of that silly intentional misspelling that other kids book series employ. Altogether, I'm not the intended audience, but I recognize the value of such a book, especially if teacher ls want to recreate the idea of a whole-class journal in their classroom.
thelibrarianmom's review against another edition
4.0
It feels like a different lifetime ago that I was a 2nd grade teacher. And in certain (good) ways this book brought me to that time that was one of the hardest times in my life. What I was hoping for in a teaching career versus the reality was something hard to deal with and then when my brother died during my 2 and a half year of teaching, it was all out the window. This book, set in an elementary school classroom, with a teacher who loves writing and has a communal class notebook sounds exactly like something I would've done in my classroom. And for that I enjoyed this book even though it was quite silly. It made me reflect on how far I've come since I was a teacher and am grateful I found the career for me now as a librarian.
beckysbookshelf's review
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This was a book I took out from the library as a kid and loved. I’ve been looking for it for years but couldn’t find it because I forgot the author and the title- but at last I’ve found it again. This is a really fun children’s book about an elementary school class trying and failing to keep a collaborative journal- it’s really sweet and funny and brought back so many memories of reading this book- great fun!
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