GCS School Library Media News
April 2017
Happy School Library Month!!
National Library Week
April 9 - 15, 2017
Libraries Transform
First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country each April. It is a time to celebrate the contributions of our nation's libraries and librarians and to promote library use and support.
ala.org/conferencesevents/celebrationweeks/natlibraryweekSubmitted by Katherine Plecnik, GCS Professional Learning Specialist
2016-2017 SLMC of the Year
A BIG "Congratulations!" to Laura Long, GCS's 2016-2017 SLMC of the Year. Laura B. Long is the Media Coordinator at Highland School of Technology. She earned her MLS from East Carolina University, where she received the department’s Diane Kester Innovator Award. In addition to her responsibilities at Highland, she is a Gaston County Schools Pinnacle Technology Leader. Mrs. Long has worked for Gaston County Schools for thirteen years, nine years teaching middle school language arts and four years serving as a school library media coordinator. She is a National Board certified teacher and licensed to teach K-6, ELA 6-9, English 9-12, and AIG K-12.
Submitted by Katherine Plecnik, GCS Professional Learning Specialist
Congratulations Belmont Middle!
Belmont Middle School represented Gaston County School's on March 27, 2017 for the Regional Battle of the Books competition. The students competed against the top teams from Anson, Cabarrus, Charlotte Mecklenberg, Cleveland, Iredell, LincBelmont Middle School represented Gaston County School's on March 27, 2017 for the Regional Battle of the Books competition. The students competed against the top teams from Anson, Cabarrus, Charlotte Mecklenberg, Cleveland, Iredell, Lincoln, Stanly, and Union Counties. Belmont Middle will represent Region 6 at the State Battle of the Books competition held in Raleigh on May 5, 2017. This is the third year that BMS has held the GCS and Regional title!
Team members: Catherine Armstrong - Riley Bradley - Simran Chahil - Lydia Crawford - Matthew Dalton - Will Durham - Meghan Kimbirl - Abigail Miss - Grace Nehring - Asher Neumann - Joseph Norris - Emily Rollins
Coaches: Linda Cathcart and Angie AlexanderSubmitted by Linda Cathcart, SLMC Belmont Middle
Students Get Creative
Submitted by Cheryl Fox, SLMC Stanley Middle
Seuss Comes Alive at Ida Rankin
The fifth grade students at Ida Rankin promoted literacy through their recent production of Seussical Kids, under the direction of Jeff Ingle.
Submitted by Holly Williams, SLMC Ida Rankin Elementary
Connecting Readers with Their Next Favorite Book
Submitted by Cheryl Fox, SLMC Stanley Middle
Pinterest-inspired idea! Unique book quotes were picked from various novels. The book quote is displayed on the outside flap of a file folder, and students lift the flap to see the cover photo of the novel the quote is from. Some of the quotes are inspirational, some mysterious, and others are funny. My favorite catchy quote is "I am a normal person. No one can ever call me a toilet" from The Icarus Show by Sally Christie. The goal is to get the students hooked so they'll want to read more! These are displayed on the main hall and includes a sign that reads "Please Touch!...but with gentle hands :)"
Submitted by Nicole Pollard, SLMC Sadler Elementary
Southwest book display promoting reading poetry . Our 8th grade Language Arts classes , lead by Mrs. Berdetta Clark, will be having our 5th Annual Poetry Cafe on Thursday night, April 27.
Submitted by Dianne Barber, SLMC Southwest MIddle
Submitted by Laura Long, SLMC Highland School of Technology
Submitted by Ann Davis, SLMC Bessemer City Central
Headed to the Great Outdoors
During Springfield's family night on April 4th, Pinnacle leader Melissa Chapple, collaborated with Mrs. Pekarek to promote our green screen technology.
Submitted by Laura Pekarek, SLMC Springfield Elementary
13 Reasons Why
Suicide. One of those words like cancer that tends to be said in a whisper or shielded by a hand in front the speaker's lips as though it were a secret, as if saying the word is what makes it real. According to Ami Parker, GCS Director of Counseling Services, the reality is that just this school year alone, 262 suicide assessments have already been completed and as of the end of February, 945 students have been referred for school based mental health services. Suicide and the issues surrounding it, the stigma associated with mental illness, mental illness itself, and stressors that can lead to a suicide attempt, need to be discussed aloud, often and soon.
The Gaston County Public Library, in collaboration with local businesses, organizations and Gaston County Schools, has initiated a project in hopes of getting this conversation started. The library is calling this venture “1,000 Reasons Why”, a spin on the title of Jay Asher’s novel , 13 Reasons Why. Asher’s novel tells the story of a student who receives a package in the mail from a friend following her suicide.
Copies of Asher’s book were provided to Gaston County Schools middle school and high school students through the school’s media centers and counselors and all county public libraries. Distribution of the books began the last week of March, giving students the opportunity to read it before three discussion sessions led by local counselors and other health professionals take place. The book as well as bullying and suicide prevention will be among the topics discussed. The dates and locations for the three programs are:
April 6th at 7pm @ the Main Library, April 10th at 4 pm @ the Mt. Holly Library, and April 24th at 4 pm @ the Union Road Library.
Throughout the month of May, the libraries will give teens the ongoing opportunity to express themselves creatively through art and written word. The project will culminate with a visit from Jay Asher on June 15 at 4 p.m. at the main branch of the public library located at 1555 E Garrison Boulevard in Gastonia. Mr. Asher will be discussing his book, answering questions and autographing books.
These events provide an engaging way to learn and to open the door for discussion on this sensitive topic. It acts as an impetus for media coordinators to display books from our collections to encourage GCS students and their parents and school staff to continue the conversation. Perhaps the most important thing about the “1,000 Reasons Why” project is the hope that by showing teens they are not alone and by making this something that is okay to talk about out loud, it might make the difference of a lifetime.
( Youth Mental Health First Aid Training will be offered at the Teaching and Learning Conference in August. More information is available by searching True North Logic, course # 11807.)
Submitted by Alyssa Dodd, SLMC Hunter Huss High
Author Visits the Cramerton Creative Writing Club
The Cramerton Media Center sponsors a Creative Writing Club every Friday. Several students meet to read and discuss samples of writing based on a prompt from the previous week. The club uses pictures, words, or familiar subjects from current events to compose an original text. Previous prompts have included belly button life, gold twisty ties, and monkey tail rings.
Recently, the Club was able to host a professional author, Mrs. Kelly Dyksterhouse, who has published several short stories. She told the group she started writing because she always loved to read, but, in 5th grade, she won a county-wide writing competition that made her fall in love with writing. Mrs. Dyksterhouse explained how very difficult it is to get a story published and can take up to 8 years, so, unless you truly love to write, it can be a very challenging profession.
On the day of her visit, Mrs. Dyksterhouse chose to discuss just one part of writing: character. She explained that no matter what the role, the writer should think of the character in terms of their desires and what is at stake if the desires are met or not met. Also, think of how the desires and stakes change for the character as the story line moves. In this way, the characters become more genuine, likeable, or detested. She went on to discuss The Outsiders and The Wednesday Wars, which many of the students had read, in terms of what the main characters’ desired and what was at stake in gaining or losing their desires.
Although the visit was short, the students were very appreciative of the opportunity to have a professional discussion with a working author.
Submitted by Carmen Wallace, SLMC Cramerton Middle
NCSLMA Elections
https://ncslma.memberclicks.net/index.php?option=com_mc&view=mc&mcid=form_236977
2017 Teaching & Learning Conference
Theme: Innovate, Integrate, and Inspire
Join us in promoting the upcoming Teaching & Learning Conference.
Here's how you can get involved:
We've created a #TLC17GCS toolkit (Click Here) that includes social media content and graphics that you can share on your channels. Feel free to forward these along to anyone who would be interested in sharing good news about our district’s conference. Be sure to contact the Office of Professional Learning if you have questions or need additional information.
Submitted by 2017 Teaching & Learning Conference Planning Committee