Week of April 20th, 2009

With Earth Day coming up this week, the Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten classes got to explore the rainforest via a wonderful storybook by Jan Brett entitled The Umbrella. In the story, Carlos takes his umbrella out on a walk. The umbrella becomes inhabited with a Spanish-speaking tree frog and other animals and birds native to the rainforest. The children were introduced to many new animals and some Spanish terms as well.

The Timberlake Science Club hosted a variety of activities and art project for all of the students Pre-K through 6th Grade to celebrate Earth Day! Lots of green books were on display in the library promoting environmental awareness. The junior high and high school Science Club members were on hand to encourage green practices and answer questions about recycling, global warming, and other environmental issues. It was a fun and educational day for all!

Week of April 13th, 2009

Ladybug Girl by David Soman was a favorite story for the Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten Classes this week. With the lovely springtime weather outside, this story encouraged outdoor play, creativity, and enjoying nature. Pairing this fiction title with a non-fiction book about ladybugs would be a great idea! Also, creating ladybug jars (from recycled baby food jars, green paint pens for grass, and red buttons for ladybugs) would be a cute craft idea!

Town Mouse, Country Mouse by Jan Brett was read to the first graders. We created a Venn Diagram comparing town/city life to country life. We also took a poll and graphed how many town and country children were in the class. The second grade participated in a Readers' Theatre version of this classic folktale. What wonderful, fluent readers these students have become!

Third and Fourth Grade students read more on their Sequoyah Nominee books, Into the Firestorm and Fairies of Nutfolk Wood.

While reading Into the Firestorm, the third graders can almost feel the heat from the fires that raged after the San Fransisco earthquake of 1906 and proceeding firestorms throughout the city. We are experiencing the bravery of the main character, Nicholas Dray, as he fights to survive and make the right choices for himself and others that he cares about.

Prompted by the quaint descriptions of the fairy folk in Fairies of Nutfolk Wood, the fourth graders have created dioramas of their visions of the fairy village. What a creative bunch!

The Fifth and Sixth Grades completed a review packet of essential genres, reference materials, and general library terminology to prepare for their state tests next week! Good luck!

Week of April 6th, 2009

The Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten students enjoyed reading about Miss Bindergarten's Wild Day in Kindergarten. Students are introduced alphabetically throughout the story with a wide variety of mishaps and interesting happenings typical to a kindergarten environment. The classes laughed a lot and enjoyed the story very much! It would be fun for a class to create their own "Wild Day" book with pictures, quotes, and funny happenings throughout the yearThis story was paired with Miss Bindergarten Takes a Field Trip with Kindergarten. In the book, the class visits a bakery, the post office, the fire station, and a park for a picnic lunch and playtime. This book could be used by teachers to prepare their classes for upcoming field trips by reviewing scheduled plans, safety procedures, things to bring, etc.

The First and Second Grade classes enjoyed reading about the Three Pigs as part of their unit on fairy tales and folk tales. We enjoyed a classic version by James Marshall, as well as a twist to the traditional tale: Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig by Eugene Trivizas.

The Third through Sixth Grades continued their reading of Sequoyah Nominee Books.

Week of March 25th, 2009

The Berenstain Bears Count Their Blessings

by Stan and Jan Berenstain

This delightful story takes us inside the Berenstain Bear's family treehouse during a thunderstorm. The cubs stay warm and cozy by the fire sipping hot cocoa as their parents discuss the elements of the storm as well as the importance of counting your blessings in life.

The Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten children enjoyed listening to this story in the library as an actual thunderstorm was taking place outside. Rain was actually pitter-pattering on the windows throughout the reading of this story. The children's favorite part of the story was when the family was sitting on the couch together in front of the fireplace sipping hot chocolate!

Possible extensions to this story: Create a class book of 'blessings' that the students have in their lives, ie. a home, family, pets, friends, etc. Lots of weather art possibilities: watercolors, creating rainbows, fingerpainting clouds and raindrops, etc. The story also discusses 'bearbie' dolls and 'gamebear' players. Have children bring an item from their collections to show and tell.

Fairy Tale Study: Grades 1st and 2nd

Goldilocks and the Three Bears

by Jim Aylesworth

This old-fashioned retelling of a classic story was a perfect addition to our study on fairy tales. While the first and second graders were listening to this story, they actively participated and predicted the text by talking in "papa bear", "mama bear", and "baby bear" voices as the action occurred.

Goldilocks and the Three Bears

by James Marshall

We compared and contrasted this story with other retellings of this fairytale.

Goldie Locks Has Chicken Pox

by Erin Dealey

We also extended the lesson with a reading of Goldie Locks Has Chicken Pox, a story with some of the same characters as the familiar tale, but a different plot. The children's favorite part to this story is when Goldie Locks younger brother pretends to be a superhero and pesters his sick sister...

and then ends up with chicken pox as well!

Sequoyah Nominee Book Study: Grades 3rd-6th

We continued our reading of Sequoyah Nominee Books in the third

through sixth grades this week.

The third grade is reading Into the Firestorm by Deborah Hopkinson. The famous 1906 San Fransisco earthquake has just occurred and fire is quickly spreading throughout the city. Will orphan, Nicholas, help friends and a dog escape the flames? Join us next week to learn more about the adventure!

The fourth grade is reading The Fairies of Nutfolk Wood by Barb Bentler Ullman. Willa is helping her neighbor with housework one Sunday morning. She meets the friendly handyman and helps to prepare breakfast for him, before taking a walk in nature on a Sunday afternoon.

The fifth grade girls chose to read Sheep by Valerie Hobbs. The dog in the story has just been introduced to the not-so-happy lifestyle of the circus. Trials and tribulations occur as this dog tries to adapt to his new lifestyle. Told from the dog's point of view, this story is unique and heartwarming.

The fifth grade boys are reading The Mailbox by Audrey Shafer. When Gabe goes to live with his Uncle Vernon, he thinks things in his life are about to get better. But when Uncle Vernon dies suddenly, Gabe struggles to live on his own, cope with the death, and continue with his schooling. Mysteriously, someone moves the dead body and begins leaving notes in the mailbox for Gabe. Who is the mystery writer? We will have to read more to find out...

The sixth grade travels back in time to meet Satchel Paige each week by reading Satch and Me by Dan Gutman. With themes of baseball and racial inequality, this book captures the interest of each student.