Thompson Middle School Media Center
Winter 2018
Research
Over the past few weeks students in grades seven and eight have started to prepare for a variety of research projects. Students were reminded to search for reliable and readable resources. EBSCO Host can be used to search for topics by reading level, publication date, genre and more. The World Book Encyclopedia is also offered to all Middletown students as both an elementary and a secondary level resource.
Readers!
Students have continued to borrow hundreds of books for both classwork and for personal interest. Sixth grade students have focused on free-choice fiction lately, while the seventh grade has been reading a great deal of informational text. Eighth grade students have recently cleared the shelves of dystopian novels.
A reminder - students can find library books anytime, right from home. Our online library catalog system is called "Destiny." It used by all Middletown Township schools. Students can use Destiny to locate both print and ebooks right from their Chromebooks. Students simply need to go to destiny.middletownk12.org to choose their school.
What Should I Read Next?
Click on the link below for suggestions of great books to read within a variety of genres! Book Suggestions
Scholastic Book Fair!
The Parent Faculty Association and Thompson Media Center will host a Scholastic Book Fair on March 6,7,8,9. The book fair will be held in the media center during the school day, and all language arts classes have been scheduled to visit. Please click here for further information about the book fair. You can click here to find the schedule of class visits.
Makerspace
MAKERSPACE
Thompson students continue to use our makerspace each day before school and during lunch. Throughout the month of January, students have spent time creating winter crafts, book scrolls and bookmarks.
Other activities have included:
- Lego Mindstorms - building and programming
- Lego free build
- littlebits free build - following instructional time in STEM class
- Plastic cup tower challenges
- Plastic cup and blocks design challenges
- Paper airplane design challenges
- Bookmark creations
- Book butterflies and flowers - art, magnets, pins
- LED Pictures
- Seasonal crafts
- Makey Makey kits
- Keva Plank design challenges
Volunteers
The Media Center is still looking for a few parent volunteers! Some of the tasks that need assistance include:
- Shelving Books
- "Adopting" a bookcase. You would keep it in order and create related displays.
- Repairing damaged books
- Organizing makerspace materials
- Creating a makerspace activity (a craft, a Mindstorms activity,a Little Bits activity or a coding activity) to share.
If you would be interested in volunteering some time, please complete the form below.