Week of May 18th

What a great week we had here in the Library!  It's crazy to think we only have 5 (yes, that's FIVE) more weeks left of school.  (side note:  Mrs. Bethel is trying very hard to not panic!!!!!)  Kids were busy working hard, researching and checking out the many new books that are coming into our library every day!

First Grade:  

We did the DEWEY this week!  Students worked in pairs to locate a variety of topics by using our Dewey Decimal system.  I introduced the lesson by sharing a cute rap (found on youtube, performed by puppets) that walks us through the classification and organization of Dewey.  Kids then needed to match cards (with pictures and numbers:  100's, 300's, 400's etc) to the specific section in our Non-Fiction area.  I saw improvement during each class and hope that as Second Graders, they will feel confident in finding a few items in our Non-Fiction section!!

Third Grade:

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Myths, Legends, Fairy Tales...Oh My!!  This week my students dug a little deeper into our catalog to find books to support projects and work on Fairy Tales and Myths.  Thanks to Tim and Moby, our trusty Brain Pop! Kids were able to learn a little more about Greek Mythology and our growing collection here in the Library.  It's hard to resist these amazing books, check 'em out before they're gone:





Fourth Grade:

My students continued the second week of the Mighty Jackie lesson deciding if the text and story was Fact or Fiction!  Due to the ongoing testing (I can't tell who is more excited for it to finish, students OR teachers), we've rescheduled our Library times and our kiddos are just itching to move around.  Today, students accessed and analyzed primary source documents.  They needed to share knowledge and decide as partners whether or not the story was true.  Through research with the New York Times article (from April of 1931) to looking through an artifact copy, the overwhelming response proved the text to be FACT rather than fiction!

A Note From Mrs. Bethel:
Friendly Reminder!!  ALL books are due Monday, JUNE 1st!!!  For some classes we will have one more check out, remember you can always visit the library before or after school AND during recess!  Enjoy a lovely long weekend away, and I'll see you bright and early Tuesday morning!  Happy Memorial Weekend!

-Mrs. Bethel

Week of May 11th

Spring Fever has hit...

It's that time of year: when library books go missing and students begin to long for the Summer days filled with travel, playing outside and no school!!

As we gear up for the Summer, we librarians ask, plead and URGE kids to read read and READ!!  In just a few weeks, we will have our all important due date for Books - Monday, June 1st!  The week prior will be the last week to check out books, so parents and family members...here's where you step in!  Visit your local library to sign your kiddo up for the Summer Reading Program.  In our school, we are fortunate to have the ability to host a local librarian (stay tuned for this date in mid-June), in which he/she will share all the details of the Summer Reading Program with our students.  Make sure to check in with your student's teacher or us here at the library if you need book title suggestions!!

First Grade:

First Graders this week completed the second week of the Everybody Books challenge.  Students were asked to organize (just as a real Librarian would) the Everybody Cover Books they created as actual books. Students worked in small groups to complete the task and alphabetize the covers in the correct order.  What a hit!  Kids loved pretending to work in the Library and showed promise when starting to search for books independently in the Everybody section.


Third Grade:
Lego Man in Space by Mara Shaunessy was focus of this week's lesson.  Third Graders were introduced to the story of Mat and Asad, two high school students who were curious!!  Speaking of being curious, this tied in perfectly to our virtue focus for the month:  Curiosity!   The book, Lego Man in Space was written to depict the story of Mat and Asad and their journey through putting a Lego man into near space.  This is a great tie in to Science and Math and our line of inquiry!



Fourth Grade:
Today we began a two week series of focus on fact vs. fiction while reading the book, Mighty Jackie, The Strike Out Queen by Marissa Moss.  Students are asked to identify features from the text to support their opinion and predict whether or not it is fact or fiction.  Kids will work next week to unveil a primary source document that they will analyze to determine if their prediction was correct.



This week was full of learning and excitement as the 2015-2016 Sasquatch Award Chapter Book titles were announced!  Thanks to my teaching partner, Ms. Arika for sharing:

• Jinx by Sage Blackwood
• Star Wars: Jedi Academy by Jeffrey Brown
• Serafina’s Promise by Ann E. Burg
• Monster on the HIll by Rob Harrell
• The Great Trouble by Deborah Hopkinson
• One for the Murphy’s by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
• The Thing About Luck by Cynthia Kadohata
• The Adventures of a South Pole Pig by Chris Kurtz
• The 14 Fibs of Gregory K. by Greg Pincus
• Rump by Liesl Shurtliff
• The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud
• The Prairie Thief by Melissa Wiley

Take a look at these VERY cool covers!  I'm very excited to start reading these books - great for my Summer Reading List!

Happy Reading!!

Mrs. Bethel

Week of May 4th

May the Forth Be With You...

Every year around this time, I just giggle when I hear that on May 4th!  "May the force be with you!"  I'm such a huge Star Wars fan (as are most adults born in the 70's)!  However, since the newer movies were released, the re-branding and now with the next film being filmed...I'm reminded how much my students and the younger audience are also huge fans!  If you search for "star wars" in our library catalog, we have over 18 titles just in our library!  How cool is that?  And, half of them, if not MORE are always checked out!

Fourth Grade:  
This week our Fourth Graders were testing in the morning, so I wanted to make sure we had a fun learning activity to help them experience movement throughout Library.  Thanks to my teaching partner, Ms. Arika, I taught my first lesson on Spine Poetry!  Wasn't sure if it would be chaotic (state testing + fourth grader = spicy), but what a pleasant surprise!  This lesson fit the bill perfectly, kids were engaged, on task and came up with some fantastic poetry.  Over the next few days, check out my library twitter account to view a quick snapshot of student work on Vine!

Mrs. Bethel's Library on Twitter

Third Graders focused on completing one more part of their digital citizenship lessons - Plagiarism!  It was fascinating to hear about personal experiences from these young voices and watch them realize that giving credit for others' work is vital when publishing.  We discussed different scenarios in which plagiarizing occurs, what to look for and how to avoid it!  Great conversations about which situations are acceptable, one that surprised many students was this:

Third Grade:

Many of my Third Graders could sympathize with these students.  Most were able to understand that sharing homework in such a way was some form of cheating.  I look forward to continuing the conversation about giving credit for work found and how to turn someone else's words into your own.  

First Grade:

First Graders were a delight this week in the Library.  We focused on one of the many lessons from the curriculum that is vital in helping kiddos locate books in each section.  Together we reviewed what an Everybody book is and where it's found in our Library.  I modeled how each book has the title and call number on the spine of the book, this is how Librarians know where to put the books away and students know how to find the books.  Kinds then worked independently to create their own "book covers and spines".  Next week, they will meet in small groups and organize their covers/spines as a librarian would.  We'll then trounce back to the Everybody section and they'll need to locate the exact spot their books would live.   

A Note From Mrs. Bethel:

Lastly, I wanted to thank all the students and families who were thoughtful and kind to think of me (and my fellow teaching peers) over the last few days.  It's always a joy to experience Teacher Appreciation Week, and I wanted to share my thanks and appreciation for all that parents do for our school and for their children!  

Thank you!!

Erin 

Week of April 27th, 2015

 This week we worked on many different levels of digital citizenship, poetry reading and keyword searching. My First Graders are excited to finish their "ouch" poems, look forward to next week when we'll be posting fun pictures of their work.  Third Graders were busy practicing search skills, utilizing key word searching by synonyms or multiple key words to narrow down their research.  Fourth Graders took a nice walk on the more artistic side this week and learned about the different styles of poetry and poems, how to locate a poetry book in the Non-Fiction section of the library.  Many of my students were interested in participating in the Poem In Your Pocket Day on Thursday, April 30th.  Nationally recognized as a day to read poetry with your school, community and friends, don't forget to share your experiences using #pocketpoem!

Yet another week has flown by here in the Library.  I'm desperately trying NOT to panic as we enter into the last few weeks of school.  It seems this happens every year...a mad rush to the finish.  Informal assessments, tools, measurement and lessons all come together as we gear up for the minimal weeks we have left together. For some classes, I will only see them six more times (eek!) and I'm not quite ready for that.  I've created a short list of goals/objectives (perhaps more like hopes/dreams) for the end of school and what I'd love my students to begin their summers with:

I want to ensure that every child has 

• Access to a library or some sort of program to check out books
• An idea of books they want to read over the summer
• A cozy or special place to hunker down with a good book
• The skills to find new books (where to look online, how to locate a non-fiction book or search by title, author or genre)
• A love for reading

Yes, some of these are lofty and perhaps unattainable for each and every kiddo, but a Librarian can dream, right?  What are some of your summer goals for your child?  For your students?  

Have a great week!  

-Mrs. Bethel 

Week of April 20th, 2015

Spring has sprung...or has it?  The weather here in our state has it's ups and downs for sure during the Spring season!!  Torrential downpour one day, the next 70 degrees and all the kids (and parents) are wearing shorts and grabbing fro-yo after dinner!  It's been a week or so since my last update and there's been a flurry of activity here in the Library!

First Graders

We "Shel-abrated" this week with our amazing poets in First Grade.  In honor of Poetry Month, our primary students shared what they had learned so far about poems and dug a little deeper into the different style of writing.  We reviewed haiku, acrostic and free verse just to share a few.  Shel Silverstein
was a focus this Monday and my First Graders loved reading his "Bandaid" and "Ouch" poem.  To give credit where credit is due, I found this idea online (www.firstgradewow.blogspot.com) and my kiddos began drafting their own version of and "Ouch" poem.  Check out the VINE video to see our humorous and creative poets!
First Grade Poetry

Third & Fourth Graders
This is our second week in our Online Digital Citizenship series.  Third Graders learned about the different levels of responsibility we have when we are online.  Students looked into the three categories: self, friends
and family, and larger community and how the responsibility changed for each level.  Fourth Graders discussed the importance of strong passwords and safeguarding your personal information.

Fifth Graders:
Stay tuned for Summer Reading lists, apps and websites to help keep your soon-to-be "Middle Schooler" engaged and avoid the Summer "Slide"!

Staff Members and Teachers
I was very excited (and nervous) to present to our staff last week, sharing how to integrate technology into the classroom.  I attended a seminar back in Febrary with the Institute for Educational Development and was

struck by all the different tools, apps and interactive technology that's available.  My goal was to give teachers at least one "take-away" to feel comfortable implementing in their classroom.  Overall, I received positive feedback and hope that teachers and staff felt it worthwhile!  I'm looking forward to helping support students using these new apps and tools!

Have a great week everyone!  Hard to believe that we're starting the countdown to the last few weeks of school!  -Mrs. Bethel

Week of March 30th

Time flies when you're having fun READING!  This week marks the big VOTE for Sasquatch, WCCPBA and the Tournament of Books Championship Round!  All students were encouraged to vote, some grades were even able to vote for all THREE categories of books.  Interesting trends we saw, "Wonder" by RJ

Palacio was nominated in the Sasquatch and made it through the Sweet Sixteen, Elite Eight,

Final Four ... all the way down to the Championship match against Lemonade War by Jacqueline Davies.  Serious snaps and props go to Ms. Arika for organizing the Tournament and creating the surveys.  Also, thanks to all the students in 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th grade AND Teachers that participated in the Tournament of Books!  

Make sure you check out all the titles that have been nominated for the WCCPBA for 2015.

Book Summaries for WCCPBA

We will announce the winner from our school as soon as we have tallied all the votes.  Also, don't miss the link for the VINE video of all our favorite WCCPBA books:

First group of WCCPBA Titles       Second group of WCCPBA Titles

5th Graders and Families, don't think I've forgotten about you!!  I have some amazing suggestions and great
new additions to the Library that you're going to gobble up!  Take a look at these new (and some not so new) titles suggested for you!

The Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy (cannot put this down)!

Dial-A-Ghost by Eva Ibbotson 

Unwanteds Series by Lisa McMann

Week of March 23rd

Hello Fearless Readers!

We've enjoyed a lovely two days here in the Library, devouring the last morsel of WCCPBA (Washington Children's Choice Picture Book Awards) as possible!  As we near closer to voting next week, students have been reflecting on their favorite text from this year's nominees.  After reading this week's selection, I'm down to my top THREE choices.  What will your student vote for to win this year's highly coveted award?  This week, we enjoyed "Toys In Space" written and illustrated by the talented Mini Grey. During our Read Aloud, I wanted to dig deeper with questioning, so I asked students to consider perspective.  I also asked students to reflect on how they perceived one of the characters before and after the story and to give evidence to prove their reasoning.  Students also willingly jumped in and shared why this text was a worthy nomination for the WCCPBA:

"I liked it because it was a story within a story" - third grader
"It was funny, had mysteries and new things to look at on each page." first grader
"Both boys and girls will enjoy this story that keeps you on your toes and asking questions." -Mrs. Bethel

And don't forget, the Sasquatch Awards are right around the corner as well.  Fourth Graders will vote (the requirement is that at least TWO books have been read) next week.  Seems apropos that our voting occurs during this crazy month of March!

While we have been busy in the Library with many classes, several of my Fourth Grade students have been toiling with their Social Studies Classroom Based Assessment on the Westward Movement.  Check out this fun video from Brain POP:

Brain POP Oregon Trail Video

I wanted to leave with a little shout out for my teaching partner - Ms. Arika!  She's always so innovative AND she motivates me to try new things, like VINE.  I've seen her use this on her blog and her teaching social media websites, but I was a little afraid to try it.  I decided, now or never!!  Here are a few of the first Vine Video's taken as practice.  (And yes, I was actually able to add the app, watch a video on how to use AND actually use it)!!

#iheartlibrary


Have a wonderful rest of your week, and I'll see you next Monday for VOTING week!