Celebrating Seuss: What Pet Should I Get?

This year we celebrated Dr. Seuss's birthday with a school-wide "What Pet Should I Get?" activity!  All of the students enjoyed listening to the story read aloud in their classrooms, and then each student created their own pet poster.  I really loved their artwork and writing.  Here is just a small sample!

If I could get a pet, I would get a lizard.  I would choose a lizard because it changes color.  Also it can blend in with different objects.  A lizard is the best bet yet!  -Brady, Grade 1

 

If I could get a pet, I would get a puppy.  One reason is they are so cute.  Another reason is it could be fun because they like to play.  Puppies are the best pets ever!  -Kapri, Grade 1

If I could get a pet, I would get a cardinal with nice red feathers that can fly so high they can touch the sky.  The cardinal's name should be Rodney.  Rodney should land on my finger and not my thumb or shoulder.  That's why I want a cardinal for a pet.  -Everett, Grade 3

If I could get a pet, I would get a hydra baby because it has four heads and that means four times the fun!  It has four snake heads.  I'd love that.  -Gabe, Grade 3

If I could get a pet, I would get a taco cat!  I would get this because it will produce a taco whenever I wanted one.  -Landon, Grade 3

If I could get a pet, I would get a turtle.  I would get a turtle because they are slow, easy to feed, and very cute.  -Maddy B., Grade 4

If I could get a pet, I would get a lemur.  I would get this because I love fuzzy things and small things.  -Riley, Grade 4

If I could get a pet, I would get a giraffe because he will trim the tree.  -Lily, Grade K

If I could get a pet, I would get a fish, a cat, and a dog because I love pets!  -Weston, Grade K

If I could get a pet, I would get a macaw.  I would get this pet because you can teach it to talk.  -Emma I., Grade 4

Moving Ahead (and Left and Right!) With Beebots

In January I wrote a blog post about helping the kindergarten students learn how to code their Beebots.  Since then they've gotten more time to explore and to try out some other strategies!

The first thing we did was set up the mat with different colored paths for the Beebots to follow.  All of the students start on red (the simplest) and work their way up through orange, yellow, and then green (the most complex).  For students in need of an additional challenge I added pink "bridges" that connected paths into a much longer track!

The first strategy we practiced was physically moving the Beebot after pressing each button.  This helped the students more easily anticipate which direction the Beebot needed to go along the path, step by step.

After all of the students had an opportunity to employ that technique we introduced another strategy: "Driver and Navigator".  (These are terms used in the Code.org curriculum!)  This method pairs students with a partner and ensures that students are working together and taking turns.

The Driver is the student who is allowed to touch the Beebot.  She places the Beebot at the correct spot on the mat and she is the only one who is allowed to press the buttons.  The Navigator gives the Driver directions to follow.  He uses a picture of the Beebot to move along the path (I call the picture "Babybot") to help him determine each step.  When I introduced this concept to the children I asked them to imagine the driver and the person in the passenger seat giving the driver directions.  Of course, the "navigator" is never allowed to reach over and grab the steering wheel!

Since Beebot and Babybot aren't always facing the same way, we added stickers to them both to indicate the left and right turn buttons.  Not only are the students getting extra practice using these words, but their joint programming is going much more smoothly!

Mrs. Geremia, our Tech Fellow, has been an amazing coach for both the students and the teachers!  Thank you SO much for all of your support, encouragement, and amazing ideas, Mrs. G!!!

Beebot Fun Has Just Begun!

This year I've had the pleasure of working with our kindergarten students as they explore the new robots in their classrooms!  

As part of the Chariho "school specialty" initiative, each grade level at Ashaway School received some sort of robot to use in their classrooms.  (Ashaway's specialty is robotics and engineering!  First grade got Botleys, second grade got Ozobots, third grade got Spheros, and fourth grade got Cubelets!)

The kindergarten classrooms got Beebots, an adorable little bot that is programmable using directional buttons on its back.  Once a week I go into each kindergarten classroom to provide small-group direct instruction on strategies that the students can use to program their Beebot to reach a goal.  We have been having so much fun!

click picture to enlarge

To start we created Beebot mats by drawing a grid on a large piece of cardboard.  (We used triboards that are commonly used for science fair projects because they fold up nicely for storage!)  For the students' first challenge, I added a picture of Gritch the Witch and one of the pigs from Piggie Pie by Margie Palatini to the board.  I had read this story to them in library class and they loved guiding the Beebot from Gritch's square to wherever I had placed the pig!  Of course I reassured them that, just like in the story, the pigs were much too clever to be caught by the witch and would manage to get away every time!  :)

The first strategy we practiced was using arrow stickers to plan out the algorithm (aka the list of steps the Beebot would need to reach its goal).

Once the students had gotten the hang of planning out their algorithms, I added more pigs to the board.  As they continued to practice they had the option of using or not using the stickers.

I never tired of seeing the expressions of joy on the kids' faces when the Beebot successfully reached its goal:

Collaborating on a program

Anticipation...will it work??

YES! Success!!!

Click on the video below to see another group and their moment of joy!

Of course, the Beebot didn't always reach its goal.  We talked about what a "bug in the program" is and I encouraged the students to keep trying.  With some teamwork and persistence they worked on fixing their errors to achieve success! 

We are looking forward to more Beebot fun to come!  Stay tuned! 
 

Code Dance Party!

"peer programming" -- These second graders are working together to solve the puzzles

The first week in December was Computer Science Education Week.  It was the perfect week to kick off our units on Coding in the library!  Kindergarten and first grade enjoyed exploring Kodable while the second, third, and fourth graders tried out the all new Code Dance Party!

To get the students engaged and excited, I invited them into the library with the music turned up!  I told them to dance to their seats and keep going until the music stopped!  Not only did I have everyone's undivided attention, but it was also a fantastic movement break for all of us!

Singing and snapping along!

After an introduction, we broke out the Chromebooks and the students jumped right in.  (We were all extremely impressed by the variety of music available to choose from within the program; there was literally something to please everyone!  The team over at Code.org did a truly incredible job!)  The class was over in a blink, but I assured them that we'd continue the project for the rest of the month.  I also gave the students a copy of their Code.org passwords so they could work on their own if they wanted.

During our last class before break, I posted a form in Google Classroom so the students could share their final projects with me.  I'll be sharing these with each class when we come back from break.  We'll be having a Dance Party Book Look in grades 2-4!

Click on the links below to get a look at some the students' projects.  We had an absolute blast and there was a lot of learning going on!

Click here to watch Mackenzie's video (2nd grade)

Click here to watch Luke's video (3rd grade)

Click here to watch Santino's video (4th grade)

Click here to watch Kyleigh's video (4th grade)

How to Make a Librarian Smile!

These students did an awesome job showing what they know!

Of course, there are *lots* of ways to make a librarian smile!  But during a first grade lesson on book care I got the students smiling -- and cheering! -- right along with me!

First the students got a copy of my "I Know How to Take Care of Books" activity.  It features ten statements, each of which I read out loud.  The students colored in the smiley face at the end of each line if the statement was true or the frowny face if it was false.  Or, as I put it to the students, "Color in the smiley face if you think that sentence would make Mrs. Mann happy!" 

The real fun began when we were done going through the whole paper.  I went back and re-read each statement, and this year I tried a new way of revealing the correct answers.  I started off by making a big show of pointing to my face.  I began with a very neutral expression before breaking into either a huge grin or a dramatic frown.  It was a hit!  Luckily my student intern, Miss Kingsbury, was available that day and she caught one of the reveals on video:

Of course after each statement the students took turns explaining why each answer was correct.  The energy in the room was delightful, and the students were really proud to show off how much they knew about taking care of books.  That is certainly one way to make a librarian smile!!!  :D

Rhode Island Children's Book Festival 2018!

It was a chilly, rainy Saturday, but there was lots of warmth and love inside Lincoln School yesterday!  This annual gathering of authors and illustrators is an event that I look forward to all year long, and the deary weather in no way put a damper on the fun and excitement of the day's events!

I met Rosemary Wells!

My morning began with a presentation by the remarkably talented Rosemary Wells.  The deep love that she holds for her work was readily apparent, and she offered a glimpse into her studio and habits.  She begins each day with some painting "practice" by coloring in a line drawing of her characters.  This steadies her hand and gets her into the right frame of mind.  She played a sample of the Navajo flute music that she listens to and emphasized that all screens should be off!  No TV, no iPad.  She encouraged everyone to be "paying attention in a quiet environment and focusing on your work".  (She repeated this idea multiple times, and it was clear that she was speaking to the adults just as much as to the children!) 

She also focused on the importance of taking good care of your supplies and materials.  She is meticulous, and I'll admit I was a bit jealous of how organized and neat her studio is.  Hers is not a work space filled with jumbles of supplies!  She retold a story of being in Japan and learning that, when given their first brush (actually, their only brush), the children spend the week painting with just water.  This allows the focus to be on how to properly handle and care for this prized possession.  A comparison was made between this attitude toward objects versus the more American view of items being disposable.  Rosemary, it was clear, is a firm believer in assuring the longevity of her own brushes, and she explained that she treats them with Pantene hair conditioner once a week! 

Rosemary included some fascinating information about her techniques when creating her illustrations.  I've admired her work for years but never specifically noticed the interesting textures that exist in select areas.  She revealed that she has custom rubber stamps created from images that she makes herself using a copy machine.  She showed a handful of lentils that are spread across the glass and made into a black and white photocopy, and the resulting design was really unique!  She's done this with a wide variety of objects including pine needles, brown rice, bird gravel, tapioca beads, and Cheerios!

Can you tell what type of cereal she used to create this stamp??

Just as fascinating, I learned how she applies the stamp to her painted piece in only the specific area she wants it to go.  After the illustration is colored in, she covers it with a clear plastic called "frisket".  It's sticky on one side so it doesn't slide around.  Rosemary cuts away the frisket with an Exacto knife to exposed the area she wants to stamp, and the remaining frisket remains to mask the rest of the work.  After stamping she peels away the plastic.  She showed video of the process and it was really fun to watch! 

Removing the frisket.  The stamp that adds texture to the yellow dress was created using Cheerios!

She also uses frisket to create interesting backgrounds!

You can bet that I'll be looking at my Rosemary Wells collection with a much more attuned eye from now on! I wonder what other objects I'll be able to recognize in her textures?

I met Kazu Kibuishi!

I also had the pleasure of sitting in on a presentation by Kazu Kibuishi!  He started off by showing a book trailer for the just-released eighth book in the Amulet series, Supernova.  (It looks amazing!)  He talked about his childhood, how he got into making graphic novels, and shared the process he follows for creating his books.  He even did a live demonstration of how he "paints" his illustrations using a computer!  

First he "sketches" an outline of the story

Next he creates "thumbnails" which he also calls "rehearsals"

Then he does "penciling" to make the final outlines.  It looks like ink when it's done because he darkens the lines on a photocopier!

These were just a few highlights of my day.  I enjoyed meeting other authors, too, and got some of our library's books signed as well!  

It was an amazing day, and as always I send out enormous thanks to the remarkable Meagan Lenihan and all the folks who worked so hard to make the day happen!!!

Signed by Rosemary Wells!

Our copy of  "The Talking Eggs" -- now signed by illustrator Jerry Pinkney!

I had to borrow this book back from a teacher to get it signed by Kevin Henkes!

Kazu Kibuishi signed *and* drew an illustration in our copy of Amulet, Book 1: The Stonekeeper!

Summer Sun, Books & Fun!

This summer marked the ninth consecutive year of the Hopkinton Recreation Summer Read Aloud Program!  The program invites Chariho staff members to volunteer an hour of their time to read aloud to the camp's participants.  (The reading program also took place in Charlestown and Richmond!)  The students get so excited when they know one of the people who has shown up to read to them!

In my group we read "The Trail" which was one of my RICBA favs!

Mrs. Allen, teacher at CMS

Mrs. Medina, teacher at CMS

Mrs. Potter, teacher at CMS

The two chapter books selected by the students going into grades 5 and younger, The Trail and The Wizard's Dog, came from a list of books nominated for the Rhode Island Children’s Book Award (RICBA).  During the school year, students are encouraged to read at least three of the books from the list in order to vote for the winner.  In addition, several of the schools (including Ashaway) hold competitions called the Rooster Games based these nominees.  By selecting books from this list, the children participating in HopRec will already have one of these books completed by the end of the summer or, at least, will have gotten an extended preview!  We also had Scar Island available to the older students; this book is from the Rhode Island Middle School Book Award list for grades 6-8.  These students got a start on qualifying for the middle school Book Battle!

This summer's featured book nominees!

In addition to our "chapter book" groups, there is also a bin of picture books for the younger kids. Miss Chloe, one of the HopRec counselors, enthusiastically jumped into presenting these and I'm grateful to her for extending the fun to them!

picture book time!

A fun game of Duck, Duck, Goose went with that week's theme of "geese"!

Guest reader Mrs. Bliven from Ashaway School brought along her daughters.  They are playing with a moose hat.  Can you guess what that week's theme was?!

No matter which group a child joined, every one of them spent an hour each week interacting with some excellent books.  It truly is a wonderful program, and I'm very proud to be a part of it.  My sincerest thanks go out to the fabulous staff at the camp who were so accommodating in order to make it all possible and to the staff members who volunteered to participate!