This Week in the Library...

(and a little bit about what we did last week, too!)

Last week in the library, we learned more about how our library books are organized.  Third graders learned about alphabetizing fiction books by their authors' last names.  After the lesson, the students figured out what the call number for a book they had written would be and found where it would belong on the shelf.  Maybe some day I'll be able to put an actual book by one of these authors on our shelves!

I've also enjoyed catchings several of our kiddos reading throughout the day.  Here's Angelo reading at lunch:

And Mitchell reading during class:

I love that they are finding time to "read in the spaces," as Donalyn Miller would say!

This week, all of our grade levels will be introduced to this year's Bluebonnet Books.  Any student who reads at least five of these books can vote for their favorite in January.  You can read more about the Bluebonnet Books here.

This week, our fifth graders will hear from Zane and the Hurricane.

Our fourth graders will listen to The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus.

And our third graders will read Emily's Blue Period.

Have a great week!

Tumble Books are Here!

Thanks to a grant from the Smithville Education Foundation, our school now has a subscription to Tumble Books!  You can read and listen to these ebooks by clicking the button below.  Please see Mrs. G. in the library for the username and password!

Children's Book Week!

Last week, Smithville Elementary celebrated National Children's Book Week!  Students participated in week-long activities like locating mystery books in the library, matching teachers to their favorite books, and writing the titles of their favorite books on the chalk wall.

Some of our students volunteered to write a book recommendation for their peers.  They were featured in mini posters around the school, along with a QR code that links to a recording of their review!

In addition, we had some special visitors from Junior High who partnered with some of our third graders for a special reading time.

Grace and Evan share a story.

Jaxon and Cole read together.

We were also lucky enough to have two classes of seventh graders put together some readers theater skits for us.  Each small group adapted a favorite children's picture book for a live re-enactment.  Our students loved watching the "big kids" perform!

Tanner and Ethan bring The Gold Miner's Daughter to life.

Brody plays the boy from The Giving Tree, rowing away from home.

King Arthur's Very Great Grandson (Eliana) encounters a Cyclops (Emily).

Third graders were literally on the edge of their seats!

Mrs. Prihoda's art classes from Junior High also created some amazing larger-than-life character cut-outs for Children's Book Week!  Our students had a great time posing with some of their favorite characters!

Annie as Little Red Riding Hood

Logan makes a fantastic Willy Wonka!

Kelly with the Head of Ranch Security (Hank the Cowdog)

Frog and Toad (and Bodie) are friends.

Looks like Lydia and Margherita are headed down a sunny dirt road, deep in Bear Country!

Louise shares a snack with Piglet.

And, finally, we ended our week of book-related fun with our third annual Read-In at Red Brick.  The Read-In featured a live reading of The Day the Crayons Quit, with some of our administration and staff playing the parts of the crayons.

What a COLORFUL cast of characters!

We wrapped up the Read-In with a live reading of Carnivores by some awesome fifth graders.

Margherita (Timber Wolf), Brooklyn (Lion), Bodie (narrator), and Vivian (Great White Shark) turned out to be ferocious meat-eaters!

Thanks to everyone who helped us celebrate how meaningful and special children's books are in our school and in our students lives!  It was a fantastic week!

It's Awards Season in the Library!

As you can see from the library chalk wall, it's awards season in the library!  We're anxiously awaiting the announcement of this year's Newbery Award winner, Caldecott Award winner, and Bluebonnet Award winner!  In the mean time, we've been making taking a good look at some past Caldecott winners.

To start off our Cladecott exploration, we've been looking very closely at the artwork in Saint George and the Dragon.  After looking at an image closely and listing all of the details we can see, we then share what we think is happening in the picture based on the details we notice.  After practicing this See and Think exercise as a class, students have then been looking at images from other past Caldecott winners and writing down what they notice and think about each image.

Paul, counting animals in Noah's Ark

Jason is thinking about what the man on the high wire might be up to in The Man Who Walked Between the Towers.

Jade notices lots of cars and buildings in The Little House.

Samantha is making inferences about why an explorer is sitting atop a dollhouse in Jumanji.

Annie peruses Rapunzel.

Mason wonders what it would be like to have Rabbit (from My Friend Rabbit) as a friend!

Layton and Seth take a closer look at some Caldecott winners.

Gabriella and Louise share the details they notice in their Caldecott winners.

Thought of the Day: Reader's Oath

Today, Smithville Elementary students will be taking the NEA Read Across America Reader's Oath. We pledge to be life-long readers and to read every day!

Reader's Oath

Debra Angstead, Missouri--NEA

I promise to read

Each day and each night.

I know it's the key

To growing up right.

I'll read to myself,

I'll read to a crowd.

It makes no difference

If silent or loud.

I'll read at my desk,

At home and at school,

On my bean bag or bed,

By the fire or pool.

Each book that I read

Puts smarts in my head,

'Cause brains grow more thoughts

The more they are fed.

So I take this oath

To make reading my way

Of feeding my brain

What it needs every day.

Video of the Week: Read it Maybe!

Eeeeek!  I LOVE this!  (Feel free to dance along as you watch!)

Thought of the Day...

I came across this on Pinterest, and I know I'm not the only one who occasionally comes to school a little bleary-eyed because "just one more chapter" turned into "oh, I'll go ahead and finish it..."

Source: cafepress.com via Krystel on Pinterest

Thought of the Day...

I came across this sign on Pinterest last week, and I couldn't agree more!  The best way to become a better reader?  Read!


10 Ways to Become a Better Reader

Grab Bag Thursday: My Life...In Books

A couple of weeks ago,I read Andrea Cheng's excellent book, The Year of the Book, which, among other things, is about a girl who loves to read.  When Anna is asked by her teacher to create a timeline of her life, she includes her favorite books and when she read them.

That got me thinking.  What would my own timeline of books look like?  Which books have made a big enough impact in my life that I can remember when and were I read them?  Well, here's the answer to those questions!

This is an interactive timeline of my life...in books!  Here are the books that have made a big difference in my life, placed on the timeline on the year in which I read them.  I've also included a little explanation of each and why it was such an important book for me!  I'm still working on adding books, but this is definitely a start! Click on each book to learn more about why it's special to me.

My Reading Life on Dipity.

Grab Bag Thursday: I PICK a "just right" book!

Happy Thursday, everyone!  This six weeks in the library, we've been learning about how to choose a "just right" book by singing the IPICK rap!  Check out these second graders from Cumberland Elementary singing IPICK, and see if it gets stuck in your head for the rest of the day!


Remember to IPICK your books before you check them out!

Thought of the Day...

September's Character Trait: Honesty

The character trait of the month from Building Good Citizens For Texas is honesty.

Here are some great questions about honesty to think about:

What does it mean to be honest?

Why is honesty important?

What are the consequences of dishonesty?

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If you'd like to learn more about honesty, try one of these books from our library:

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Teachers, for resources and lesson plans about this month's character trait, click on the binder below:

Honesty

Bluebonnet Rewards

(Click to enlarge)

Welcome Back!

It was great to see so many shining faces this morning! I love the first day of school, and I am so excited to start another great year of reading! I know that all of my students will be reading rockstars this year!

May Reading Update!

In January of this year, I set a goal to read one picture book a day and 111 chapter books by the end of the year! To read about my original goals, click here!

So...here's my update for the month of May! If you scroll down the page, you'll see that I wasn't able to do as much reading in April or May as I had in the previous months, but I'm hoping that summer will allow me to add a lot of books to my "read" list!

Have a great summer, read lots, and email the blog to let me know what you're up to!

Keep Calm

One of my favorite library blogs, the Lemme Library recently posted this awesome graphic, reminding us to "Keep calm and rock on!"

I loved it so much, that I was inspired to make my own:

It's a hectic time of year, so hopefully these will remind us to take a few deep breaths and have fun!

Mrs. G.'s 2011 Reading Goals: April Update

It's a little late, but here's my monthly update on my 2011 reading goals!

To read about the goal I've set for this year, click here!

I'm looking forward to summer so that I have lots of time to read! What will you be reading this summer?

Mrs. G.'s 2011 Reading Goals: March Update

Here's my monthly update on my reading goals for the year! To read about the goals I set back in January, click here.

Click here to find out how I did in March!

I'm looking forward to all the great books April has to bring! What will you be reading this month?