After a few too many late nights working on report cards this week, I was rewarded with the most perfect Saturday morning. Earl Haig Public School (the one near Coxwell and Danforth, not the arts school in North York) had a book sale which I viewed as the unofficial kick-off to yard sale/church rummage sale season. While Duncan busied himself colouring at the craft area, I hit the book tables. One table had a lot of new books donated by a publisher and the prices were in the $2.00-$3.00 range - way more than I would normally spend, but I was pleased with the quality and justified the cost as a donation to the school. I scooped up so many books, that a box was quickly filled and I had to drag Duncan back up to the Danforth to get more money. When we came back, we checked out the children's section and loaded up. By that point, we were ready for a rest. We sat down on the gym floor and watched a performance of Scottish dancing while Duncan ate his first popcorn ball. We schlepped our stash several blocks back home, realizing at the mid-way mark that the box was falling apart. Luckily we made it home before the box collapsed and before the hard rain came. I read Duncan some of the books for his bedtime stories tonight and the car is now loaded with books for our classroom. There's no excuse for teachers not to have a room full of books. You just have to hunt around. What fun. See my booty of books below.
My son Duncan's stash. Each book was .25, less than the price of anything I can think of.
I may have our class sketch the snail and then try to sketch the ear, including the snail-like cochlea. Cross-curricular education. Love it.
Art books and some cute books for the craft clubs I'm involved in.
The ever-surreal Anthony Browne.
Detail from a book on the sad childhood of Paul Gauguin. The illustrations are by Isabelle Arsenault and they are stunning. Visit her website at http://www.isabellearsenault.com
Detail from a vintage book on water. The illustrations are charming.
I have a hardcore group of kids in my class who devour these "how things work" books. Note the publisher highlighting "Why do we fart?" A big selling point for the 8-14 demographic. 
These are just some of the books I bought for my class. Most of these were either new or in excellent used condition. Prices ranged from .25 to $3.00. 
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