Peace is Kind

Mr. Morrone read this poem to all of us this morning and I'd like to share it with you!

Peace is Kind

Since the day of your birth,
We have hoped for peace on earth.
You can help, by doing your part,
We know you can, because you're smart.

For peace to happen, we cannot fight,
Help each other, and be polite.
When there's a problem, let's just talk,
Sometimes peace just needs a walk.

All you need to spread the word,
Get some help from your dog or bird.
Peace is something you will find,
Start with yourself, and be very kind. 

by AnitaPoems.com

I hope you'll all enjoy a peaceful winter break with lots of time 

(and books) to share with the people you love.

Is there a School Library Media Specialist in the house?

Dressed as a "librarian" for Halloween -
first year teaching, 1996










"Is there a school library media specialist in the house?" 

Yes...that would be me!  When people ask me what I do, I will usually say that I'm an elementary school librarian.  I know that will have them picturing me in the right place, but I realize that the image it conjures doesn't really paint a full picture.  Officially the term is "school library media specialist".  That's a lot to say, but it encompasses the broad range of responsibilities we fulfill in this role.  This week I'd like to give you a glimpse of what it means to be an "elementary school librarian"!

On Friday afternoon I was chatting with a kindergarten student who just started attending Ashaway School this month.  I asked her if she remembered who I was, and she happily responded, "You're the library teacher!"  I like that phrase, because it acknowledges that I'm a teacher as well as a librarian! All of the school librarians have a teaching curriculum to follow.  (You can see the Chariho Library Media curriculum by clicking here.)  Much of our time is spent on encouraging our students to become effective and critical users of information.  Outside of our own class time, however, we support our school communities in a number of ways:

• We strive to support our teachers by collaborating on research and other projects.  This might include team teaching, gathering appropriate print materials, creating a "webliography" (a list of online resources), generating an appropriate note sheet or rubric, assisting students with accessing appropriate resources, etc.  

 

• We are responsible for the maintenance of a resource collection that is used by the entire school.  We communicate with our SLMS colleagues when selecting materials (what's good/popular/useful) in order to offer the most engaging and effective materials that we can.  This is especially critical as we look ahead to integrating more technology (digital sound recordings, e-books, white board interactives, etc.) and updating our collections to reflect the integration of Common Core. Beyond selection, we must also catalog and process new acquisitions, maintain/repair items in the collection, and weed out outdated/unused materials.

• We have a mission to assist teachers with their own teaching by providing curriculum resources beyond the limits of what is housed in our collections.  One way we do this is by sharing library resources between buildings, but we don't limit ourselves to what can be found within our own walls.  By attending various trainings/conferences, interacting with our staffs, and conducting our own research, the librarians are exposed to a myriad of online resources and teaching strategies that we share with each other.  (This week I'll be showing a fourth grade class how to use and access World Book Online, and next week I'm presenting a workshop for my teachers on how to access and download videos from Discovery Education!)

• We are reading advocates!  Whether it's running a program like the Rooster Games, encouraging summer reading, engaging in a special program, giving a book talk to a class, creating a display, or simply conferencing with a student on what to read next, we are always trying out ways to motivate our students to read.  There is a special kind of joy that comes from creating - or feeding - a reader.

• We are the go-to people in our buildings for assistance with technology, not only for lesson integration but even for daily trouble-shooting, training, and general support. You could fill a closet with all the different "hats" we wear in a day!

Thanks so much for allowing me to share this with you.  If you're a follower of my blog, I'm guessing that even before you read this you didn't picture the school librarian as someone who stamps books all day.  Still, I've enjoyed taking the time to give a "shout out" to my favorite profession!


  

Fun with Phonics!

Our kindergarten students have been using a fun web site to practice their letter sounds: www.ABCya.com!  Last week we played Letter Sound Bingo on the SmartBoard.  Every student got the chance to come up to the board and press the letter that matched the sound they heard.  

 



The students at their seats colored in the letters that they identified from the given sound while they waited for their turns to come up to the board.  The first time a letter was used they colored in that letter.  If a letter was used twice they colored in the background as well!


 


This week the students each got to sit at a computer and play the game alone.  They were so excited when they won; the library was filled with their happy cries of "I got BINGO!"  



 

 

There are lots of free educational games on this site that students can use to practice their reading and math skills.  You can choose games for students in grades kindergarten through 5th grade, so older siblings can join in, too!  Have fun!

 www.ABCya.com

Thankful 4th Graders!

Did you ever watch the Macy's Day Parade and marvel at the gigantic helium balloons?  Recently I shared the book Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Parade with my fourth graders.  (This is one of the 20 books that have been nominated for the 2013 Rhode Island Children's Book Award.  Any fourth graders who reads at least 5 of these books gets to go to the Rooster Games in the spring!  Click here for more details about the games!)  The students enjoyed learning about puppeteer Tony Sarg and how his incredible balloons - and the tradition of a Thanksgiving Day parade - came to be.

Because Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on what we are thankful for, I asked my fourth graders to consider how fortunate we are to have books and libraries.  I gave them three different writing prompts and invited them to share their thoughts.  Here are just a few of their excellent ideas:

I’m thankful for books because they help us learn about things.  Also books give us knowledge about our ancestors.  

-Collin, 4C

I’m thankful for books because I love books

 and reading.  It’s so fun!  

-Jamie, 4O

I’m thankful for books because every time I read a book I get excited and I don’t want to put it down 

(even though I have to).  

-Maya, 4Y

I’m thankful for being able to read because it can help me 

find out things I’ve never known 

and it can help me throughout life.  

-Syler, 4C

I’m thankful for being able to read because if I didn’t know how to read I couldn’t learn.  

-Sean, 4Y

I am thankful for libraries because they have books that are filled with knowledge and adventure.  

-Trevor, 4C  

I am thankful for our library because if we didn’t have

a library it would be sad.  There would be no 

Mrs. Mann and no reading!  

-Jack, 4Y

I am thankful for our library because without it we wouldn’t be reading the Rooster Books and I love the Rooster Books.  

-Lynsie, 4O

I am thankful for libraries because I don’t have lots of books so I get them at the library.  

-Cameron, 4Y

I am thankful for libraries because we can get books to read and share and make our brains happy.  

 I love reading and I really enjoy books.  

-Natalie, 4C

I'm thankful for libraries because when I'm reading I get engaged.  There's no place like the library!  

-Gabe, 4C

(By the way, if you know one of our fourth graders, ask them about how Tony Sarg fed his chickens when he was six years old; I promise you'll be surprised!)

Investigating Informational Texts

Our third graders have been learning about how the library is organized so they can use the online catalog and find books independently.  In the beginning of the year we focused on the fiction sections of the library: Easies, Easy Readers, and Fiction.  These books are all shelved in alphabetical order by the author's last name.  Now we are exploring the Nonfiction section and the "informational texts" that can be found there.  This is what the students learned:

• Informational texts live in the Nonfiction section of the library.
• These books give us information, or facts, about a subject.
• The call number always starts with a number.
• The number comes from the book's subject.  (Thanks, Melville Dewey!)
• These books are shelved in numerical order.

We investigated many different features of informational texts.  Here are some of the ones our students found:

A caption explains what's happening in a picture.  (This is a caption!)

A Table of Contents lists the chapters of the book in order and tells what page each begins on.

A labeled diagram is a scientific illustration.

A glossary defines words that were used in the book.  The index is an alphabetical list of all the topics that can be found in the book.

While not every informational text features photographs, our students found that most of them do!

 

 

Each student wrote down an interesting fact from the book he or she was exploring.  Did you know...

 

"Pluto isn't a planet!"

"Some bugs have fake faces to scare away predators!"

"Some birds' feathers help the birds hide from other animals!"

"Bald eagles build onto their nests every year.  The heaviest bald eagle nest is heavier than your family car!"

This is our "Destiny"!

Just last year all four elementary schools upgraded to the web-based program Follett Destiny, and my fourth graders have been reviewing how to use this online catalog, or "OPAC", to look up library materials.  I've been bringing some of the school's laptops into the library for them to use during book look.  They start off working in pairs, and then each can have access to the system by using either a laptop or one of the library's ten desktop computers.  The students enjoy conducting searches and finding their materials independently! 

If you'd like to explore the system yourself, you can visit http://opac.chariho.k12.ri.us/.
After you click on "Ashaway" be sure to click on "Destiny Quest" over to the left.  This will bring you to the visual interface that the students have been using!

Familiar Faces at the RI Book Fair!

Once again I had a delightful time at the Rhode Island Festival of Children's Books and Authors at Lincoln School this past Saturday. This year it was made even more special because I saw some familiar faces from our Ashaway School community!



I found this second grader spending time at one of the free book craft tables.  She was in the middle of designing a beautiful book mark.

I spotted Mrs. and Mr. Caplette enjoying an author presentation!

I caught up to these fourth graders outside, where the gourmet food trucks were lined up to provide lunch. (It was so hard to choose!)

Another fourth grader waited in line to meet Chris Van Allsburg and get an autograph.

A third grade Origami Yoda fan poses after the presentation of author Tom Angleberger.  He, along with the rest of the audience, learned how to fold his own origami Yoda with the direction of the author and the help of his classmate, our very own Tess! 

Want to learn how to create your own origami Yoda?  Grab a sheet of paper and watch the video below!

Ashaway School is Hooked on Books!

 

Ahoy!  On Sunday our school participated in the Columbus Day parade in Westerly.  The idea for the float was inspired by first grader Isabella Macaruso, and it was constructed by our remarkable PTO.

The "ship" was filled with pirates, but our scallywags gave away their booty instead of taking it from others! As the hook-handed captain steered the vessel down the streets, a treasure chest filled with gently used books slowly emptied as the contents were given to parade spectators young and old.

 

The reactions of the crowd was heartfelt and enthusiastic.  I think the best comment I heard was, "Best give-way ever!"  And to top it all off, Ashaway School was awarded the prize of "Best Theme"!




 

"ARRRRRRRR!"

You can see lots more pictures by visiting our school's online photo album.  Click on the "Picture Gallery" link on our school home page at http://www.chariho.k12.ri.us/ash, or you can go directly to the page by clicking here.

Searching for Treasure at the Book Fair

Today classes began visiting our Scholastic Book Fair!  

Our eager readers enjoyed looking over all the wonderful books on display.  Some did some shopping while others created wish lists.  Parents are invited to "Cafe Ashaway" tomorrow, October 3rd, at 9am to enjoy some coffee and peruse the books.  Then, on Thursday the 4th, is the Book Fair Ice Cream Social from 5:30-7:30pm.  Families are invited to browse, shop, and enjoy a free ice cream sundae!  We hope to see you there!

A fun way to practice math skills!

"Look what I found!"

Our fourth graders found many of this year's "Rooster Books" available!

Special Event Coming Soon!!!

It's finally almost time for the...

 

Rhode Island Festival of

CHILDREN'S BOOKS

& AUTHORS! 

Saturday, October 13th ~ 9:00-5:30  
Lincoln School ~ Providence, RI

I went to the festival last year, and it was amazing.  I got to meet so many wonderful authors and illustrators while getting books signed for our library, and all of the presentations I went to were so interesting!  (You can read about some highlights of my day by clicking here.)

I asked some of my fourth graders to help me showcase a few of the people we're excited about seeing at this year's event:

Illustrator Harry Bliss!

Author Tom Angleberger!

Author Alan Katz!

Author/illustrator Chris Van Allsburg!

To see a complete list of all the presenters, 

click here to go to the author page of the Lincoln School website!

In addition to the author and illustrator presentations, the festival will feature a musical performance by Justin Roberts.  Children will also be able to make book crafts throughout the day!  For all the details, visit the Book Festival page of the Lincoln School website.

Admission to the event is $5 per person, but this year I will be able to get some of our students into the festival for free!  I am incredibly grateful to event organizer Meagan Lenihan; thanks to her support, I have TEN FREE FAMILY PASSES to give away!  If your child didn't bring home a form to sign up for the raffle, just send in a note addressed to me requesting one!  The deadline to turn them in is Friday, October 5th.

I hope you'll consider joining me at Lincoln School for a wonderful day devoted to celebrating books and the people who make them!

This "House" was Hopping!

Last night was our Open House, and the library was packed!!!  It was wonderful to see so many students excited about sharing their library with their families!




My apologies if I didn't get a chance to talk with you; the steady stream of visitors kept me engaged every minute of the evening!  Fortunately there is plenty to do and see here.  I saw lots of students introducing their parents and younger siblings to Bear (often before me, but that's okay...I'm used to it!).  The Aladdin lamp was rubbed (unfortunately the genie appears to still be on vacation), new books were poured over, shelf markers were borrowed to look at books, and magazines were enjoyed.  Many children explained very knowledgeably about who Skoob is and what his job is in the library.  I especially loved hearing some of my students instruct their families about how to properly turn a page in a library book!  :)

Two current students, a former student, and a future student!

I'm sad not to have more pictures, but I got caught up in the whirlwind!  By the time I remembered to use my camera, the evening was coming to a close.  Fortunately these two families were kind enough to stick around for a few minutes so I could capture some smiles to share!

The Popularity of Periodicals

This issue comes with 3-D glasses!

My second graders were very excited to be able to borrow magazines and comic books from the library this week.  This is a privilege that they've been waiting for!








Several years ago I read about a study that investigated whether or not a group of high schoolers would identify themselves as "readers".  A large number of them indicted that they didn't like to read.  However, further questioning revealed that many of them actually enjoyed reading a lot: online material, graphic novels, "how to" books and magazines.  The researchers realized that the students were imagining a "reader" to only be someone who enjoys novels.  These self-identified "non-readers" were actually demonstrating  characteristics of a life-long learner: curiosity, a diversity of interests, and the willingness to seek information. 

I'm a big believer in giving kids material that they want to read. Whereas a book might be intimidating, or have negative associations for some reluctant readers, magazines and comic books can be much more palatable.  The children are still practicing their reading, and they're developing an association between reading and pleasure.  Of course learning the strategies to appreciate quality literature is important, too, and the children are exposed to such material during the school day (both in their regular classrooms and in their specials).  I'm always excited to share the gems with my students as part of an author study, special unit or as recommended reading.  It's gratifying to have a student embrace one of my favorites, but it's also heartening to see any student leave the library excited about what was discovered that day.

I've tried to create a library collection that meets a wide variety of needs across all interests and abilities, and I sincerely wish that every child regards the library as a source of treasure! 

Oh How Our Garden Does Grow!

This week I spent some time in our wonderful Kids Grow Garden, which I can see from the library windows.  A group of third graders was busy working as well as enjoying some of the fruits (okay, vegetables) of their labors.  As some students were happily munching on newly harvested carrots, others were digging to create a new area for planting or trimming around the beds.  

Big, beautiful sunflowers are in bloom, and we all got to visit with a painted lady butterfly that was on one of them.  I was afraid of scaring her away, so I slowly inched closer and closer to take some pictures.  We soon realized that she was much more focused on the feeding than on any of us.  Soon the kids were leaning in and watching the butterfly use her long, slender proboscis to drink nectar from the flower!

There was also a tiny bee doing the same, and I pointed out the pollen that had gathered on the insect's hind legs.  One of the girls added that they're called pollen baskets, and when I asked her where she learned that she replied, "I read it in a book".  Hurray! 

As soon as I got back to the library I put together a book display with a garden theme.  Along with fiction books like Strega Nona's Harvest, Fluffy Plants a Garden, and The Gardener there are nonfiction books on topics like butterflies, bees, worms, sunflowers, and vegetables.  In fact, just today I received a shipment of NEW books which included the how-to titles A Backyard Vegetable Garden for Kids and Organic Gardening for Kids.  

This morning Mr. Morrone announced that the garden has produced over 90 pounds of produce so far this year!  What our own student gardeners haven't sampled has been donated to families in need.  You can read more about the program and see more pictures by visiting http://www.orgsites.com/ri/kidsgrow/index.html.