February in the Learning Commons!
Exploration, Creation, and Collaboration
Anime is coming to SMS!
There's a Snow Ball Fight Happening at SMS!
Right now Mrs. Benway is in the lead and has pelted her colleagues with 87 snowballs- that took a whopping 2,088 box tops! Yay Mrs. Benway and all of you who have helped her so far!
Every single box top you send in helps our school and the library! Thank you so much for participating and supporting SMS!
Here's a reminder of how it works:
1. Students turn in Box Tops to the teacher of their choice
2. Teachers clip and check expiration dates
3. Box Tops get bundled into groups of 25
4. Teachers identify who the snowball should be
thrown at and turn in the bundle to the Library
5. Snowballs will start appearing on teacher's doors
RULES & WINNINGS
- "Snowballs" may be thrown at any teacher regardless of grade.
- All teachers are able to participate! You do not need to have a homeroom.
- The prizes for teachers this year are completely based on number of snowballs thrown. For every 10 snowballs that you submit you will receive $10 to spend through WB Mason.
10 snowballs = $10
20 snowballs = $20
30 snowballs = $30
40 snowballs = $40
and so on...
**Even if you don't have enough Box Tops to win any money, please submit them as every single one helps!!**
*OUR GOAL FOR THIS YEAR IS A $1000!*
Enjoying some free reading time!
Piggy and Elephant!
Maddie is sharing her blackout poetry!
Stress Free Activities in the SMS Library!
Students who chose free reading found a comfy spot in the library and immersed themselves in a good book. We also made sure that we had lots of good magazines available such as Sports Illustrated for Kids, Make Magazine, and National Geographic. And, we laid out a smorgasbord of classic picture books because there is nothing more stress-relieving than spending some time with Piggy and Elephant and Make Way for Ducklings!
Students who wanted to create poetry were able to try out the Blackout Poetry method.This is a style of poetry where students use pages from books, magazines, or newspapers and mark out or blackout all the words they don't want. The words that are left behind make the poem. It's actually a very creative process and students can make some pretty elaborate pieces. Before you panic at the thought of us ripping up books for this activity, we wanted to let you know that this is the perfect way to recycle books that have been damaged (ripped and torn, water logged, eaten by a dog, etc.) and have been withdrawn from the collection. We would never intentionally harm a book here in the Learning Commons!
More Blackout Poetry!
Make: Magazine
Creating Blackout Poetry
Spotlighting Resources
We have two super helpful database resources to highlight this month: Student Resources in Context and Opposing Viewpoints in Context.
Both databases have nonfiction materials in all digital formats—articles, videos, charts, images and infographics, and more—so students can read or watch to get the facts. There is also an option to have the articles read aloud- it's a strange mechanical voice but it is helpful for many students! Citations for the articles are already formatted and students can choose from MLA, APA, and Chicago styles for their Bibliography or Works Cited pages.
~Student Resources in Context~
Students, parents, and teachers can use Student Resources in Context to find research on anything from Steve Jobs to steampunk! Learners can access news content including full-text newspapers and periodicals like The Economist, The New York Times, National Geographic, Newsweek, Popular Science, Smithsonian, and more. There are hundreds of thousands of images, videos, and audio selections that include archival film clips, broadcast video, BBC News, New York Times video, and NPR available in this database!
~Opposing Viewpoints in Context~
Opposing Viewpoints In Context is an online resource covering today's hottest social issues, from capital punishment to immigration to marijuana. This research database supports science, social studies, current events, and language arts classes. Informed, differing views help learners develop critical-thinking skills and draw their own conclusions.
This is a rich resource for debaters and includes pro/con viewpoints, reference articles, interactive maps, infographics, and more. A category on the National Debate Topic provides quick and easy access to content on frequently studied and discussed issues. Periodical content covers current events, news and commentary, economics, environmental issues, political science, and more.
Opposing Viewpoints draws from sources such as The New York Times, Newsweek, Foreign Policy, American Scientist, and Education Week.
Visit our Learning Commons page and access our collection catalog, Maine Digital databases, and other digital resources!
The SMS Learning Commons
Miss Patti is reading Grenade
Email: kawirth@sacoschools.org
Website: https://www.galepages.com/maines_338
Location: 40 Buxton Road, Saco, ME, USA
Phone: (207)282-4181