Book Smart
Morningside Elementary School Library News & Notes
Reading Bowl
We had such a fun time at the Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl on Saturday, January 25, at Therrell High School. This was a record year with 61 schools participating. We had a team of 10 fantastic fourth- and fifth-grade students who represented Morningside Elementary. Thanks to our coaches, Amy Mather and Laurie Guerino, for their dedication to after school practice. For those of you who are not familiar with the bowl, students have to read the 10 Georgia Book Award nominees leading up to the bowl, and then battle it out against other teams in 6 rounds of competition. The best part? When parents tell you how reading the ten books opened so many doors for their kids as readers. That's the real win. Congrats to our friends over at E. Rivers who won first place in the elementary school division!
MLK: Find His Story in the Library
We displayed books about Martin Luther King, Jr. this month to encourage students to find out more about this civil rights leader from Atlanta. Need some ideas to add to your collection? Check out these titles available in our library. Have a favorite not included here? Share it with me so we can grow our collection.
Dollas for Koalas
After reading about koalas and discussing the devastation to wildlife caused by the fires in Australia, students wanted to take action. They drew koalas for a hallway and door display to draw attention to our fundraiser. The library is sponsoring Dollas for Koalas. Students are encouraged to bring in one dollar or spare change. All funds will be donated to RSPCA Australia which is helping to rescue animals in danger. Some students in first and fifth even held bake sales and hot cocoa sales at home on their own time to raise funds!
Illustrators in the Library
Students completed directed drawings of koalas to strengthen their confidence as illustrators.
Taking Action
Some of our students even went home and raised additional funds by selling hot chocolate or having neighborhood bake sales. Students taking action in a global community.
Dollas for Koalas
All of our funds will be donated to RSPCA Australia.
Hundredth Day of School
The library celebrated the 100th Day of School on Thursday, January 23. Mr. Rawls and Ms. Brittin were replaced by centenarians, Mr. Murray and Ms. Alice. Check out what was happening 100 years ago with this look at photos from 1920 brought to you by The Atlantic.
Follett Book Fair Success
Our first Follett Book Fair took place January 27 - January 31. Marcus Tullius Cicero said, "If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need." So, we made an enchanted garden to welcome students to our fair. A separate fair was held at the K campus on Tuesday and Wednesday. Purchases from the fair help bring funds to our library to buy new books. Thanks to all the volunteers who gave their time and energy to assisting shoppers, and especially Carisa Quinn, Amy Amato, and Elizabeth Fox for organizing everything to make the fair run so smoothly.
A Reading Rainbow
Welcoming students to a diverse collection of titles. Follett fair included graphic novels, nonfiction, fiction chapter books, beginning readers, books in Spanish, picture books, and even bargain deals priced at $2 and $3.
A Waterfall of Books
Thanks to the parents and PTA for flooding our classrooms with books. Each teacher got to select 15 books. Those that were not purchased directly by parents, were purchased by the PTA. Building strong classroom libraries is essential.
Follett Book Fair
Easy set up and take down and an amazing selection of titles made this one of our most successful book fairs.
And the Winner Is...
History was made when The New Kid by Jerry Craft became the first graphic novel to take home the Newbery Medal last Monday (January 27). Illustrator, Kadir Nelson took home the Caldecott Award for his stunning work in Kwame Alexander's, The Undefeated. Both books were available for purchase at our Follett Book Fair, and both are available for checkout in our library.
Black History Month
Colleagues, you may want to use these book inserts I created to display with books for Black History Month. They were inspired by Google's recent commercial titled, Most Searched: A Celebration of Black History. Download them by clicking here and watch the video below.
The Most Searched: A Celebration of Black History Makers
Food for Thought
This quote from Dr. Mary Howard really helps keep things in perspective. Sometimes we tend to get too caught up in taking apart a text, that we forget that it was built by the author to do its job of making kids think and feel. Sometimes we need to do less so the book can do more.
Contact Us
Michael Rawls
School Library Media Specialist
Michael.Rawls@atlanta.k12.ga.us
Learn more about the library by visiting our website or following Mr. Rawls on Twitter. Email Mr. Rawls with any questions, comments, or concerns.
Email: Michael.Rawls@atlanta.k12.ga.us
Website: https://onlyguyintheclass.wixsite.com/morningsidelmc
Location: 1053 East Rock Springs Road Northeast, Atlanta, GA, USA
Phone: 404.802.8979
Twitter: @thebookwrangler