Ten Things You May Not Know About Mrs. Starkey :

*Years teaching: Sixteen, fourteen of them at McAuliffe.  I've taught in Kindergarten, First Grade, Second Grade, Fourth Grade, and Fifth Grade (for the last 11 years).

*Degree:  University of Northern Colorado, BA Elementary Education as well as Middle School and Secondary Level Social Studies Education; minors in Psychology and Sociology

*Favorite Subjects: Math and Reading

*Greatest Accomplishment:  Raising three extraordinary children; Kenzie (Serves her country in the CO. Army National Guard and is Momma to my two precious grandsons), Jackson (Junior at UC Berkeley), and Megan (Freshman at CU Boulder)

*Best Friend: My husband, Derek  He is a Master Sergeant in the Colorado Army National Guard, so we live the Army life together (and sometimes apart).

*Hobbies: See "Greatest Accomplishment" above; Army wife and mom, playing with my grandsons Lucas and Caleb, reading, and cooking.  I also love to work in my garden, and recently completed my Open Water SCUBA Diver certification

*Neighbor:  I've lived in the neighborhood for 19 years, and love seeing McAuliffe students and families at the park, at the pool, and on my walks.

*Family Business: I am the daughter of two exceptional teachers (now retired), and my sister and I both teach fifth grade!

*Frequently Seen:  Laughing, reading, drinking coffee, and/or eating.

*Hates:  Brussel sprouts and traffic jams.

Fun Book Picks 

 If you love spending time with a great book, try one of these fantastic reads.  These are some titles you might want to scoop up on your next trip to the library.  

Fiction 

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

The Genius Files: Mission Unstoppable by Dan Gutman  -  We went to Nebraska and visited the two-headed cow... I have a picture!

The Fourth Stall by Chris Rylander

Absolutely Normal Chaos by Sharon Creech

Non-fiction

Bloody Times: The Funeral of Abraham Lincoln and the Manhunt for Jefferson Davis by James L. Swanson

Fantasy/Science Fiction

The City of Ember (series of 4 books) by Jeanne DuPrau

Gregor the Overlander (series of 5 books) by Suzanne Collins 

The Fire Within by Chris D'Lacey

Fairy Tales 

Half Upon a Time by James Riley

The Isle of the Lost by Melissa De La Cruz

A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz

Cloaked in Red by Vivian Vande Velde

Historical Fiction

Chains  and Forge(sequel) by Laurie Halse Anderson (Loved her Fever, 1793, as well!)

Riot by Walter Dean Myers 

The Storm Before Atlanta by Karen Schwabach

Fire From the Rock by Sharon M. Draper

Comedy

Letters from a Nut by Ted L. Nancy