Life in the Library
January
Warm up with a good book... or project!
We are kicking off 2014 anxiously awaiting the announcements of the Caldecott and Newberry awards. (Stay tuned!) First graders are reading books to choose a best PA Young Readers' Award to get a taste of the award process. All grades have been learning a bit about the medals and how they are chosen. We will be sure to book talk the winners at the end of the month!
Kindergarteners are putting their knowledge of letters to work as they listen to silly alphabet stories, such as Z is for Moose and Q is for Duck. Since they know the sounds, they are always "correcting" the mixed up characters.
Our second graders are learning about fables, which ties in to work in their classrooms with Journeys. We have read some of Aesop's classics in various forms (poetry, stories and even "fractured" versions). Students worked in groups to read and describe the parts of the story - including the moral, of course!
Using Destiny Quest, our kid-friendly online library catalog, is the focus for third graders. DQ enables them to see popular titles in our library, check if books are available, read reviews and search for topics. Naturally, this led to an introduction of where to find books in the library which brings us to the topic of genres. Students are learning to describe the types of books they enjoy (mystery, nonfiction, etc) and to find others.
In fourth grade, students have been starting preparations for their state fair projects. Before winter break, they learned how to write business letters to send away for travel brochures from their state. Now we are working on gathering information in conjunction with their class research. Students are using Grolier America the Beautiful series, both online and in print form, to get information on state flowers, birds, trees, and places of interest. We will also be looking at the state flags and seals. Our journey has begun across the U.S.
Fifth graders are "glogging!" (No, that's not a typo...) We are using the web-based program, Glogster, to create online posters. This will be used later this winter for a science project on elements. Glogs are easy to make - simply drop in text, pictures and video clips, with ready-made graphics and backgrounds. Thanks to Mrs. Fox for helping us get funding for this great opportunity! Your child can log on to www.glogster.com/edu at home using the name and password created at school to show you the pages.
As the EPA (sixth grade elementary performance assessment) looms closer, students are learning more to prepare for the assignment. We wrapped up evaluating websites by using criteria to determine if certain sites were real or hoaxes. (Ask your child to tell you which one he or she reviewed.) They are working on reviewing elements of Power Point and creating a single slide mini presentation. This will serve as a warm up for the practice EPA which will follow the format more closely. Please see the link on my webpage for additional information.
During CR Ed Week, I will be doing a presentation for parents about using our online resources. Join me Friday, January 24th at 2:15 in the library for a half hour of hands-on exploration. Please bring your child's computer log on information (username and password) so you can try out some of the ideas! Hope to see you then.
Questions? Comments?
Email: Lweiss@crsd.org
Website: http://www.crsd.org/domain/2020
Location: Wrightstown Elementary School, Penns Park Road, Newtown, PA, United States
Phone: 215-944-2310