This Week in the Library...

This week we're reading about some of the history surrounding our Thanksgiving Day traditions.

Third and fourth grades are listening to Balloons Over Broadway by Melissa Sweet, which tells the story of Tony Sarg, the creator of the larger-than-life balloons that have come to represent the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.  Here's a glimpse into the book:

You can download a fun activity guide to accompany the book by clicking here.

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Fifth grade is reading Laurie Halse Anderson's Thank You, Sarah, which explains how Sarah Hale, in superhero fashion, made sure that Thanksgiving was a nationally celebrated holiday.  You can learn more about Sarah Hale by clicking here.

You can learn more about author Laurie Halse Anderson in the video below:

Enjoy next week's holiday!

Video of the Week

I love this video about one of my favorite picture books, Jon Klassen's I Want My Hat Back!

Book Talk Tuesday: Queen of the Falls

Today's book is a biography that I'm sharing with the 4th Grader classes who visit the library this week. Queen of the Falls, by Chris VanAllsburg, tells the story of Annie Edson Taylor, the first daredevil to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel! Here's a slideshow of some pictures of Annie and her famous barrel:

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If you'd like to know more about Niagara Falls, Annie Edson Taylor, or other famous Niagara daredevils, click on her picture below:

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Here's a video of one of the daredevils who followed Annie's lead and went over the falls in a barrel. Can you imagine what it must have felt like on the inside of this barrel?


And finally, here's a video of the author/illustrator, Chris Van Allsburg, talking about his book, Queen of the Falls:

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Grab Bag Thursday

If you're a fan of Captain Underpants, then you're probably also a fan of the Flip-o-rama sections of his books.

Here's a great video of author (and illustrator) Dav Pilkey explaining how to draw a Flip-o-rama so that you can draw one yourself!  Enjoy!

Video of the Week

Book publisher Candlewick Press has recently launched a "We Believe in Picture Books" campaign, during which they will post one video about the power of picture books each day for a year.  While browsing through these, I was thrilled to come across this one of David Ezra Stein.  He's talking about how he illustrated and wrote Interrupting Chicken, the book I'm sharing with 3rd graders this week!



Be sure to hop over to the We Believe in Picture Books page to take a look at even more great videos!

This Week in the Library...

This week, we'll be sharing stories about some great storytellers!

3rd grade will be listening to David Ezra Stein's Interrupting Chicken.  Watch the book trailer below to find out more about Little Red Chicken and her very patient Papa.


4th grade will be listening to Clever Jack Takes the Cake by Candace Fleming.  You can read more Jack tales by clicking here.  Here's a book trailer that tells a little bit about Jack.


5th grade will get to hear a book talk about Rodman Philbrick's The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg.  Here's the author himself reading aloud from Homer P. Figg.



I'm looking forward to sharing these great stories with you!

Thought of the Day...

Happy Friday!  Today's Thought of the Day comes from one of my all-time favorite authors, Roald Dahl!  Have a great weekend, everyone!

And the Bluebonnet Goes To...

Last week, this year's Texas Bluebonnet Winner was announced! About fifty students at Smithville Elementary voted in this year's contest, and chose The Strange Case of Origami Yoda as their favorite Bluebonnet Book. Kids all over Texas must have been in agreement, because Origami Yoda won the state vote as well!

Author Tom Angleberger was thrilled with the win. Here's a special video message from him to YOU! Check out what he had to say!

Happy Birthday, Tomie dePaola!

Today is author Tomie dePaola's birthday! dePaola has written LOTS of wonderful children's books, but he may be most well-known for his Strega Nona series of stories. Listen to Strega Nona in the video below:



Or, if you're short on time, watch this shorter version made by a fan!

Mrs. Bull's GT Class: Author Study

Bull's Author Study

A gift from Rose Kent!

A few weeks ago, Mrs. S. Vinklarek's class had the opportunity to Skype with author Rose Kent. Mrs. S.V.'s class had read Ms. Kent's novel, Kimchi & Calamari, and loved having the chance to talk with the author about her characters and story. After a 30 minute chat, we waved good-bye and went back to our usual routine. Little did we know that Ms. Kent had a surprise in store for us...

Last week, Mrs. Gutierrez received a bulging envelope in the mail. Curious about what was inside, Mrs. G. checked out the return address on the envelope and was surprised to find that it had traveled all the way to Smithville from New York! Mrs. G. ripped open the package, and inside, she found an autographed copy of Ms. Kent's newest book, Rocky Road! Wow! What a wonderful gift for our library!

Here are Joey and Cameron, from Mrs. S.V.'s class, posing with Mrs. G. and our autographed book:

And here's the autograph itself:

Thank you so much to Ms. Kent for sending this wonderful gift to our library! I know a LOT of kiddos who will be eager to get their hands on it when school starts back up in August!

You can find out more about Rose Kent and her books at her website!

Book Talk Tuesday: Young Fredle

Click here for more great Book Talks!

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Fredle is a kitchen mouse. He sleeps snugly in a warm and comfortable nest behind the kitchen walls, surrounded by brothers and sisters. At night, he ventures into the kitchen to forage for scraps of food. He avoids the house cat, and he always follows the rules. That is, until he and his cousin, Axle, discover a new food. After the two mice gorge themselves on the sweet treat they find, Fredle becomes ill. The other mice have no choice but to push Fredle out into "went," from which no mouse has ever returned.

Fredle expects "went" to be his end, but instead he manages to find his way outside of the house and in a new world he never imagined existed. How will a fat, happy kitchen mouse, who has to look no further than the kitchen pantry for his dinner, survive outside, where he'll encounter so many new things, like rain, stars, grass, snakes, and raccoons?

Fredle is a book about new adventures, unexpected friends, the beauty of everything that surrounds us, and finding a way home, even after life-changing experiences. Adventurous, humorous, and touching, Fredle is a tale for those who are curious and brave, and for those who have ever wondered what else is out there!

Book Talk Tuesday: The Duchess of Whimsy

Click here for more great Book Talks!

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Why do things the ordinary way when it's so much more fun to be different?

The Duchess of Whimsy prides herself on being an individual. Fond of throwing elaborate soirees to which she invites the most eccentric of guests, the Duchess, under strict orders from her father, also reluctantly includes the Earl of Norm in her list of courtiers. Because he deeply admires the Duchess, the Earl makes several attempts to impress her in the most elaborate of ways, but, alas, the Duchess can't help but find the Earl excruciatingly ordinary.

When one of the Duchess's grand get-togethers risks ruination because of a missing cook, her friends gallantly try to prepare a meal worthy of her extravagant standards. While the rest of the court chases after pigs or embarks on other culinary escapades, the Earl does what he does best--the ordinary. Although the Duchess initially turns up her nose at the Earl's dull grilled cheese sandwich and milk, after a reluctant tasting, she discovers that what she thought was ordinary is actually quite spectacular!

Peter de Seve's fantastical and intricate illustrations capture the effortless individuality of Randall de Seve's characters. A book about liking others for their differences, The Duchess of Whimsy is a fun and, well, whimsical look at what makes each of us extraordinary. If you're the type to break away from the crowd, this book is for you! If you're the type to blend in to the background, well, this book is for you, too!

More about the Duchess...

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This book's illustrator, Peter de Seve, has lots of experience dreaming up whimsical characters! He created characters for movies like Finding Nemo and Ice Age!

Listen to the book being read in this video:

And click here to read a New York Times article about how food plays an important role in this book!

Book Talk Tuesday: Marty McGuire

Click here for more great Book Talks!

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Recess just isn't the same for Marty McGuire anymore. Bossy-pants classmate, Veronica Grace, has taken over the playground and makes all of the girls in Marty's class wear floofy dresses and tiaras while learning to dance the waltz. Marty would much rather catch frogs in the school pond or pretend to be Jane Goodall, rescuing chimpanzees, but when she learns that she's been cast as the princess in the class play, it seems that Marty will be forced to wear a tiara after all!

Can Marty play the lead role and still be true to herself? Find out if the show will go on--Marty style--in Kate Messner's Marty McGuire!

Click here to visit Kate Messner's site and to learn more about Marty McGuire!

Update from TLA...

Mrs. G. was lucky enough to spend last week in Austin at a Librarian's conference. That means she spent a whole week meeting with other librarians to learn about how to make the SES library even better! One of the other great things about the Texas Library Association (TLA) Conference is that librarians get the chance to meet lots of great children's authors! Below are pics of Mrs. G. with some of the amazing authors who autographed copies of their books for OUR library! Click on the pictures to view each author's website!

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Help SES win a Skype visit!

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Help Smithville Elementary Library win a Skype visit from a children's author!

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Skype is an online video conferencing tool that can allow our students to talk directly to someone in another town, state, or even country! It's like a virtual author visit to our school!

From the Mixed-Up Files...Of Middle Grade Authors is currently holding a contest to win a free Skype visit from one of the authors listed on their site.

How can you help? Each time a comment mentioning our school is posted to the Mixed-Up Files blog, as well as each time the contest is tweeted or posted to Facebook, our school is entered in the drawing to win. So, to help us out, please...

• Go to the Mixed-Up Files blog post, scroll to the bottom of the page, and add a comment with your name and email address, stating that you want Smithville Elementary Library to win a free Skype visit.


• Re-tweet this tweet mentioning the contest.


• Re-post this Facebook post mentioning the contest.

The kids would love the chance to meet some of these great authors, so help us make that happen!

This week in the library...

5th Grade will be hearing a book talk on Christopher Paul Curtis's Bud, Not Buddy.

If you're interested in Christopher Paul Curtis or in his books, check out these videos:



A student-created book trailer for Bud, Not Buddy:




An interview with Christopher Paul Curtis:




Chapter 1 of Bud, Not Buddy:

Third & Fourth Grade Author of the Month: Judy Blume

As Thanksgiving approaches, third and fourth graders have been discussing what it means to be a part of a family, and no one is better at telling stories about family than our November author of the month, Judy Blume. Whether it's Peter's struggle as the oldest child in Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, Freddy's attempts to stand out as the middle child in The One in the Middle is the Green Kangaroo, or the "Pain's" difficulty with measuring up to his older sibling in The Pain and the Great One, Judy Blume's portrayals of kids from all types of families are funny and truthful.

Over the past week in the library, third and fourth graders have been exploring some of Judy Blume's books and how they deal with the topic of siblings. In addition, students have been exploring the idea of birth order and how it can shape our personalities.

To find out more about birth order, click here.

To find out more about Judy Blume, click here.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday, and enjoy the time you spend with your family!

September Author Spotlights

This week each grade will be introduced to the September authors of the month! Check out the links below for more information on each!

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3rd Grade: Tomie dePaola

Author of more than 200 children's books, Tomie dePaola is perhaps best known for his Strega Nona books. This week, the third grade will be reading some biographical information about dePaola and will be reading and discussing Strega Nona.


Find out more about Tomie dePaola here.
Read about how Strega Nona came to be here.
Click here for some arts and crafts and coloring pages from Tomie.

Watch this animated version of Strega Nona:

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4th Grade: Jon Scieszka



Jon Scieszka was once an elementary school teacher, so he definitely knows what makes kids laugh! The fourth grade will be reading some of Scieszka's hilarious fairy tales and poems this week.


Read about Jon Scieszka here.
Here are pictures of Jon as a kid and some pictures that show early drafts of his books.
Here's Jon's Guys Read site, with lots of good suggestions for books for guys!



Check out this video interview of Jon:

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5th Grade: Neil Gaiman


Neil Gaiman won the 2009 Newbery award with his Graveyard Book, a collection of stories about a boy named Bod, who is raised by ghosts. The fifth grade will be hearing the beginning of Bod's story this week.


Read about Neil Gaiman here.
Find FREE online recordings of each chapter of The Graveyard Book here.
Read some Frequently Asked Questions of Neil and submit your own here.



Here's a book trailer for The Graveyard Book: