From time to time, I want to point you in the direction of other great blogs that I come across that are related to books. This weekend, I was reading the Athens Banner Herald and I came across a book review for Captain Underpants. I know how much many of our Barrow students love that book, so I clicked on the link and read it. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the review was written by a kid, Grace Polaneczky. I taught Grace this summer at Camp Red Clay Writing Camp, which is held at Barrow each summer. She has started a blog for kids by a kid. She already has several great book reviews posted. It is so wonderful to see students reaching out to students to share great books. I wish Grace the best on her writing endeavors, and I hope that many of you will check out her blog.
Monthly Archives: September 2008
Regions of Georgia
Second grade has been coming all week to learn about the regions of Georgia. There were six centers that students rotated through. We had lots of help from the second grade teachers, student teachers, and substitute teachers. On Friday, we did a Senteo quiz on the Smart Board. I hope that the students had a great time and learned a lot. Here are some photos. Take a look.
It’s Fall! Come check out a Fall Story!
We have lots of Fall books in our media center. Some are scary or funny Halloween stories, but others just celebrate this great, colorful season. Here’s a book talk about one of our newest books in the media center. It’s waiting to get in the hands of someone who loves to read with a partner.
Book Builder Deadline
I will be submitting the September Book Builder order on Monday September 29. All September dedications should be turned in by Friday. Don’t forget that forms are available in the media center and on our website. The wish list is also available on the site for you to select a book yourself. I’m happy to work with your child to select a book or to select a book for you.
Thank you to everyone who has made this program a success. We’ve put 44 new books into our media center with this program already.
Don’t forget that the book fair is coming. You’ll be getting more info soon about the book fair and the storybook parade. My monthly newsletter will come home in Monday’s purple folder.
Don’t forget your public library
The Athens Regional Library is such a wonderful resource in our community. I wanted to point out some incredible services that they provide that you might not even be aware of.
Audio books are a great way to enjoy a book on the go. Athens Regional Library provides access to downloadable audio books. By visiting Georgia Download Destination, you can use your library card to download books to your computer, mp3 player, iPod, etc. You can listen to books on the go or follow along in your own copy of the book. Listening to audio books is a great way to build fluency because it provides a model reader for students to listen to. This site has books for kids, but it also has lots of great books for adults. The selection is limited, but there are some great titles available.
Another resource Athens Regional Library provides is Bookflix. This link takes you to the Athens Regional Library homepage. In the top center of the page, there is an orange box that lists several resources. Bookflix is listed in this box. Again, you need a library card to access this site. This site is specific to children. It pairs popular children’s books with a nonfiction book on the same topic. For example, Bark, George by Jules Feiffer is paired with Pets at the Vet. Students will see the book come to life with moving illustrations. They will also see the text and have the option of hearing the text while following along or reading the text on their own. I’m so excited to see this offered because it is an expensive resource to have at a school. Thank you Athens Regional Library for being such a great resource to our community!
Book Fair
Well….our first book fair is about a month away. We have a book fair homepage. This page will show you what will be at the book fair and lets you make a wish list before you even come to the fair.
Right now, an important part of the book fair homepage is the volunteer section. We need volunteers for many things: setting up from 9:30-12:00 on October 15th, sales October 20-24, and packing up on October 24 12:00-3:00. We also need some creative people who would like to design decorations to put up at the entrance to the media center to go with our safari theme. Please either email me or visit the book fair homepage and fill out the volunteer form if you are willing to help. We hope to get lots of books in the hands of kids while raising funds for or media center collections.
Panda Cam
Zoo Atlanta’s panda cam is now focusing on the new baby panda and his mother, Lun Lun. The cub has been sick, but he is now doing much better. The camera can be seen from 10 AM to 5PM weekdays, although the zoo seems to be extending the hours while the cub is being watched. We have a panda central station setup in the media center. Students can come see the panda cam and write notes about what they observe. Of course, teachers can also access the panda cam in their classrooms and you can see it at home as well. Take advantage of this rare opportunity to see a baby panda grow up.
September 11
Yesterday, some 4th and 5th grade classes came to the media center to hear stories that were connected with September 11th. We read Fireboat by Maira Kalman and The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein. We had some very powerful conversations about ways that we respond when tragedy strikes in our world. Many students had questions, comments, and connections to the September 11th tragedy. This could be a great opportunity to talk as a family about any stories you might have about responding to tragedy or memories of September 11th.
Mr. Plemmons reads Fireboat by Maira Calman. The story tells about a retired fireboat that sprang into action on September 11, 2001 to help firefighters pump water to the fires in NYC.
First Book Builder Order Arrives
The first book builder order arrived today in the media center. We had 30 books in this shipment and 2 more books are still on their way. I continue to say “thank you, thank you, thank you” for supporting our media center this year. I already have 12 books on the September book order that I will send off at the end of the month. The books that just arrived are currently being checked in to the media center. They will be presented on BTV next week and each student who dedicated a book will be the first to check out the books. Here are some pics of the books that arrived.
Book Talk: The Willoughbys
Here is a book talk about a new book in our media center that is still waiting to be checked out. I just finished reading it and thoroughly enjoyed it. Listen to the book talk here.
Expect the Miraculous 