NHS Library: What's Happening?
February 2013
Fiction Books to Know About
Divergent by Veronica Roth
In a future Chicago, sixteen-year-old Beatrice Prior must choose among five predetermined factions to define her identity for the rest of her life, a decision made more difficult when she discovers that she is an anomoly who does not fit into any one group, and that the society she lives in is not perfect after all. Fans of the Hunger Games series will really enjoy this book.
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
Sixteen-year-old Jacob, having traveled to a remote island after a family tragedy, discovers an abandoned orphanage, and, after some investigating, he learns the children who lived there may have been dangerous and quarantined and may also still be alive.
The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan
Book #1 of the Ranger's Apprentice series: When fifteen-year-old Will is rejected by battleschool, he becomes the reluctant apprentice to the mysterious Ranger Halt, and winds up protecting the kingdom from danger.
Non-Fiction Books to Know About
I Am A Soldier Too: The Jessica Lynch Story by Rick Bragg
Private First Class Jessica Lynch chronicles the events surrounding her capture by Iraqi soldiers in March 2003, and her rescue by American troops.
The Sacred Acre: The Ed Thomas Story by Mark A. Tabb
This book chronicles the life of Ed Thomas, focusing on his years as a high school football coach whose faith and dedication to his students inspired those who knew him, and recounting how he helped his town of Parkersburg, Iowa, rebuild after an EF5 tornado ripped through it in 2008, just one year before being gunned down by a mentally ill former student.
Tweak by Nic Sheff
This author describes his childhood in California, his addiction to crystal meth and heroin at a young age, his relapse after eighteen months of sobriety, and his path to recovery.
Websites to Know About
PhET Interactive Simulations
Sponsored by the University of Colorado, PhET Interactive Simulations (http://phet.colorado.edu/) provides free, interactive, research-based simulations in the areas of physics, chemistry, earth science, or mathematics for students and teachers. This site works by allowing teachers to manipulate the tools so that students can immediately visualize concepts.
Visuwords
Visuwords is an online graphic dictionary that allows users to look up words and find their meanings and associations with other words and concepts. It produces an interactive web diagram. Visit http://www.visuwords.com/ to get started!
Other Information to Know About
Real-life plagiarism - and consequnces
The Director of Education for the Toronto District School Board resigned in January 2013 after he was caught plagiarizing. Chris Spence admitted to taking paragraphs directly from a New York Times article and placing them in an article he wrote for the Toronto Star. When reporters did some more digging, they found examples of plagiarism in other newspaper articles he had written, and now his PhD thesis is being gone over with a fine-tooth comb for instances of plagiarism. Plagiarism is a big deal! Providing real-life examples and their consequences really hit home for our students. Please share this example with them. For more information on this story, click here.
February is Black History Month
Norwalk High School Library
Email: joconnor@norwalk.k12.ia.us
Website: https://sites.google.com/a/norwalk.k12.ia.us/norwalkhighschoollibrary/
Location: 1201 North Avenue, Norwalk, IA
Phone: (515) 981-4201
Twitter: @JenAOConnor