Weeks 7 and 8

These last two weeks of school have been fun but so busy! We had a day off and then a late start day to start off the week. On the late start day the library was paired up with the Primer class to do an activity. We decided it would be fun to have the kids decorate pumpkins to look like their favorite story book character. Here was our set up.      

We had the kids choose what character they wanted to create so we could get all of the materials together ahead of time.  

Kids working hard at painting and creating their pumpkins. 

The final products! Can you guess who these fun characters are? 

I'll give you some hints: 

Elephant and Piggie.    

Pete the Cat. I loved the red guitar the kids made.

Olivia the pig. She is just missing her crown in this picture. 

During regular class time, we spent the past two weeks learning all about the Caldecott Award. I  taught this lesson to our Kinder through 4th grade students because in a few weeks those students have the opportunity to meet this year's Caldecott winning illustrator, Brian Floca! It is a pretty big deal so I wanted to be sure the kids knew all about the award itself and books that have won this award. Next week we will of course focus on Brian Floca and get to know more about him.       

A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead, Illustrated by Erin E. Stead

Read to: Pre-K

Skills: Caldecott and Jobs People Do

Recently Pre-K has been discussing jobs people do in their class, so I wanted to bring that theme into our story time, but I also wanted to teach them about the Caldecott Award (even though they will not get a chance to meet Brian Floca). I decided to share, A Sick Day for Amos McGee because not only was it a Caldecott winning book, but the main character works at the zoo. After reading we discussed what we thought people who work at the zoo do, and other jobs they have been learning about. I think the kids enjoyed it.   

This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen

Read to: Kinder and Primer 

Skills: Read a Caldecott Winning Book and making predicitions

With our Kinder and Primer students I discussed the Caldecott Award, but I also wanted to share a recent Caldecott winning book with them. This year's Caldecott winning book, Locomotive by Brian Floca, is obviously beautiful and wonderful, but it is too long to share with our younger students and in our short time frame that we have in the library. So I decided to share last year's winner, This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen.  This book is a great book to really use the pictures to help practice the skill of making predictions. So I decided to squeeze that skill into our lesson as well. Many of the kids had already read this book before, but they still loved it, especially at the end when it is left up to the reader to decide how the story really ends. A great book to make predictions with and a super book overall.    

   

Finally, this week with all of our First Grade classes we began their Nocturnal Animal research.     

This is the second year the first grade teachers and I have collaborated on this project and it is so much fun. Everyone, and especially the kids, really enjoy it.  

The students came in and utilized our books, new iPads, and first grade friendly databases to begin their research. They took notes on what their animal ate, what it looked like, its habitat, and other cool facts.  Later the students will use the information they gathered to write a report and to create a model of their animal. I can't wait to see their final products and go and hear some of their presentations soon.         

Week 6

Here is what we were up to in the Lower School Library this week!

The Cotton Candy Catastrophe at the Texas State Fair by Dotti Enderle

Read to: Pre-K, Kinder, and Primer

Skills: The Texas State Fair

This week I read, The Cotton Candy Catastrophe at the Texas State Fair by Dotti Enderle with our younger students. The Texas State Fair began two weekends ago here in Dallas and I always love sharing fun facts about the fair and then sharing this book. It is quite a silly book as the main character's cotton candy goes way out of control and ends up wrapping the park up in a big cotton candy cacoon, but it is a great example of a fiction book which was last week's lesson with Kinder and Primer. I also love the illustrations and the mentions of Big Tex, the 52 ft. tall talking cowboy, and the famous Texas Star Ferris Wheel. The kids love it too, especially if they have had a chance to actually go to the fair. A fun read aloud and lesson for sure!

How to pick a "Good Fit" book

Taught to 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Grades

With our older kiddos we focused on what it means to choose a "Good Fit" Book, and I modeled what that might look like using library books and a pretend scenario. We want our students to use the I PICK strategy and choose books that are right for them. They can do this by following the acronym of I PICK.  Often times kids are tempted to want to choose books that are really long or books that their friends are reading, but they sometimes forget to check and see if they are really interested in that topic or book, or if it is going to be a book that they will be able to read independently. However, I am also a big advocate for letting kids choose what they want to read even if sometimes that might mean that they choose a book that is too easy or a little challenging for them. My belief is if they are interested in the book or topic then that is what will keep them reading, and in my opinion that is the most important thing.