Check It Out!
MTRSD Elementary Libraries- February 2023
News from the BSE Library!
January in Review
To kick off the new year, all classes enjoyed exploring books with a growth mindset theme: Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall, After the Fall by Dan Santat, and a Caldecott honor book, Mel Fell, by Corey R. Tabor. We shared strategies for staying motivated even when things feel ‘hard’.
All classes continued lessons in digital citizenship, focusing this month on the theme of ‘Privacy & Security’. Third grade classes, for example, learned about the importance of creating strong passwords, and 5th graders practiced recognizing and avoiding clickbait online.
Finally, all classes spent two weeks learning about the Caldecott Award, an award given each year to an illustrator of a children’s book with outstanding artwork. They read some contenders, then held their own BSE ‘Mock’ Caldecott vote - look at the orange bursts with each grave level’s choice in the photo! (Zoom in to see details.) On January 30, the actual winners were announced by the American Library Association, with Hot Dog, by Doug Salati receiving the highest honor. Many classes have already been able to read this winning book, and most agree that it is, indeed, totally deserving of the award. Ms. Fuller’s 4th grade class was so enthusiastic that they immediately wanted to write notes to Doug Salati congratulating him and sharing their enthusiasm for his book!
Looking Ahead
Mark your calendars now - the book fair will be returning to the BSE Library the week of March 20-24th! This is the week of parent-teacher conferences, so the fair will be open to the community for extended hours on Thursday March, 23rd and Friday, March 24th. Stay tuned for more information coming home in March.
Reminder and Thanks!
Many thanks to BSE families for helping our students be responsible library patrons! Many books are being returned in a timely manner, and kids are always eager to borrow new books each week. Please help your child keep library books away from food and drink, especially those leaky water bottles in backpacks! Thank you!
Colrain Central Library Update
Over the school year it’s been great getting to know all the students as readers. A few things have emerged that I wanted to share with families. Read on for reminders about checking out and caring for books and some exciting additions to our library collection.
First of all, students who check out books have a better time remembering to return them if they have a consistent place to keep their library books. Maybe students said they read and then return library books immediately to their school bags. Another idea some students shared is that they have a special place where they keep their books and then they put them in their bag the day before Library class. We’ve only had a few books get damaged by liquids, but it’s important that students try not to put drinks in their bags with books.
I’ve been more flexible with students to see how many books they want to check out. I’ve been asking them, “How many books do you need? How many books can you and your family keep track of?” You can talk to your child about this, too. When given more options, students are still usually good at setting reasonable limits for themselves. It’s great to see a lot of books circulating!
Recently we’ve added a few exciting books that can play audio stories. We have Playways, which are devices that you plug headphones into and play one pre-recorded audio chapter book. We also have Wonderbooks, which are picture books that have a small speaker and can read to you as you follow along. Both of these options have been popular and we will be getting more in the future. If you see one of these special books come home, check it out with your child and help them take care of it and bring it back on time!
There is now a link to Sora on the Colrain Central School Library website (you can also get there from the CCS page, then click Programs-Library-Library Catalog). Sora is a service that allows students to check out audiobooks and e-books. It’s a great option if there is a book we don’t have in our library or if your child prefers to read books in one of those formats.
Our book fair will be during the week of March 20th, 2023. We’ll be looking for volunteers and you’ll see more information soon!
News from the Sanderson Library
At Sanderson, first and second grade students have been learning about the Caldecott Award. Each year, a committee from the American Library Association gives the award to a picture book with the most outstanding illustrations, and they use a special criteria to consider each contending book. During class, we read several of the Caldecott “contenders” and pretended that we were the Caldecott Committee. Our criteria: Do the illustrations stand out in a special way? Do the illustrations say something that the words do not? Do you like the story? Does it deserve the medal? The students’ overall favorite was Hot Dog, by Doug Salati. To their delight, Hot Dog was actually chosen as the 2023 Caldecott winner!
Older Sanderson students are practicing research skills. Third graders are using Destiny Discover (our district’s online catalog) to research Massachusetts animals. Fourth through sixth graders will learn to navigate online databases as they research Massachusetts authors (4th grade), topics of their choice (5th grade), and possible future careers (6th grade). I’m excited to see what students find out as they learn to navigate library resources.
Last, 3rd and 5th grade students took part in a live webinar with authors Grace Lin and Kate Messner, who recently collaborated to create a picture book called Once Upon a Book. The authors gave a sneak preview of the book, talked about their writing process, and even taught students how to draw a rabbit, a character from the book that appeared on each page. The webinar ended with Q & A from the audience, where we learned how the authors became writers, what their favorite books are, and the best/hardest part about being an author. It was wonderful to watch students engage with such prominent authors/illustrators, and to give students an idea of how a book comes to be.
MTRSD District Events
Local Public Library Events
Events at Ashfield's Belding Library
LGBTQ+ Stories: Book group & hangout
Monday February 27 from 4P.M. to 4:45P.M.
Book discussion & hangout for kids ages 8-13. This month we’re doing something a little different! Bring the best book you’ve read recently and we’ll swap recommendations and talk about the stories we love. Note the new time: after school on Monday afternoon.
We’re a book club that centers stories about LGBTQ+ identities and experiences, and we love graphic novels.
Upcoming Events at Buckland Public Library!
LEGOS in the Community Room
Every Friday from 4 - 6 pm our new LEGO collection is ready for builders with creative minds! Come and enjoy the newest addition to our assortment of toys and games.
"Crafternoons" Continue Every Tuesday
Crafternoons with Ms. Amy will be every Tuesday from 4:30-6:00 pm. Bring your 3-11 year old for crafts, friendship, and stories. Come for all or part of the time. Age bracket is flexible.Poetry Open Mic Friday, February 24th 5:30-7:00 pm
Join us for the second poetry open mic in our seasonal Speak Easy series. Shortly after Valentine's Day our theme will be 'Love Lost and Found." Come early to sign up to read your own work or the work of an author you love. Slots will be 5 minutes long.
Fiber Group Every Saturday
All fiber folks of any level are welcome. We have yarn to share donated by Webs and some of our generous neighbors and some needles you may borrow. New knitters will have the opportunity to learn to knit a scarf. Established makers can work on any projects they please. Every Saturday from 10 - 11 am
Events at the ARMS Library!
Craft Corner - Every Saturday
Saturdays1 - 2:30 p.m.
We will be offering a set time and place for anyone who wants to craft. Any age is welcome. The way it will work is that multiple crafts materials will be on hand, as well as someone to help or show how to do the crafts.
Events at Colrain's Griswold Public Library
See Ms. Betty's Take and Make February Craft: https://youtu.be/npjK6MDJw9E