Wanamaker Library Newsletter

The Wanamaker 6th graders had the privilege of connecting with 9/11 Twin Towers survivor, Robert Matos, on Friday, September 9. Mr. Matos, who lives in New Jersey, graciously shared his story of that fateful day in 2001. His sharing contributed to the students' knowledge of that chapter in US history that took place before they were born.

While it was a tragic, very sad day, with the loss of many lives (including many of his co-workers and friends), Mr. Matos stressed that many good things also came out of his experience like gratitude for family, friends, and for life itself. It taught him that it was the nonmaterial things of his life that mattered the most.

He ended by emphasizing that our students are the future leaders and citizens of our country, and they have the power to be instruments of change.

The students were completely engaged in the presentation and asked thoughtful, mature questions.

Social studies teacher, Mrs. Francis, said, "Our sixth graders are so fortunate to be able to learn about such a significant historical event such as 9/11 from Mr. Matos. Mr. Matos's willingness to share his experience being in the south tower on that fateful day gives students an understanding of history they would not get anywhere else. This is a learning experience that students will never forget."

Thank you, Mr. Matos, for making a difference in our students' lives!

The students wrote heartfelt Thank You letters to Mr. Matos to show their appreciation of him sharing this experience with them.

In addition to connecting with Mr. Matos, we read aloud I Survived the 9/11 Attacks by Lauren Tarshis in our library classes. With both of these experiences, the students now have a clearer picture of the tragedy of 9/11 and its effects on our country and its people.

The 5th graders were treated to an illustrator visit with John Hare on Friday, September 23. He was in Topeka as a presenter at the Kansas Book Festival held the next day on the Washburn University campus.

Mr. Hare shared details about his life as an illustrator/author with the students. His presentation depicted how he creates a book, from start to finish. He demonstrated how he starts with "sketches" on sticky notes to adding more details and colors as he progresses through the process. He emphasized the last stage of the process and the many revisions that are needed to complete the book.

Mr. Hare also showed the students a "video" that he put together using the sketches from his book Field Trip to the Ocean Deep, a wordless picture book. His other two wordless books in the Field Trip series includes Field Trip to the Moon and Field Trip to Volcano Island. He is also the author/illustrator of A Mouthful of Minnows and the illustrator for This is Kansas City.

He ended his presentation with a Q & A session. The students were very engaged and connected with Mr. Hare by asking some great questions.

Mrs. Fewell, 5th grade teacher, said, "Mr. Hare did a great job sharing with the students about all the practice he had as a child, writing and illustrating homemade books for his friends. Students also learned a lot of what goes into creating professional picture books and the importance of being open to positive criticism throughout the process."

The students wrote Thank You notes to Mr. Hare using the digital bulletin board platform Padlet. We appreciated him taking time out of his busy schedule to visit with us!

The Wanamaker library and art department collaborated on their 6th annual bookmark contest. The theme for this year was to design a bookmark that promoted Reading Can Take You Places! Students created their bookmarks during art class, then the voting began! The winning bookmarks were chosen by students, faculty, and staff members. Each student's original bookmark was laminated and returned to them. Additionally, each student received a copy of their grade level's winning bookmark.

The winners were as follows: Wrylenn (Kindergarten); Ellie (1st Grade); Melody (2nd Grade); Makenzie (3rd Grade); Lucy (4th Grade); Ella (5th Grade); and Quinn (6th Grade).

The winning bookmarks are on display in the hallway; if you get a chance to check them out during P-T conferences, I encourage you to do so! The students did a great job with their creations.

The 2nd grade classes will be participating in the Global Read Aloud Picture Book Study during the month of October. The premise of the GRA is that students around the world are reading the same book at the same time and making connections with each other in various ways. We will be learning about the illustrator Christian Robinson and his picture books while making connections with our three buddy classes located in California, Texas, and New Jersey.

We kicked the GRA off with three Mystery Skypes, an engaging way for classrooms to introduce themselves to each other. Working from a large map of the United States, students used their map/geography/communication skills to guess the mystery location of the other classrooms by using yes/no questions. After discovering where our buddy classes are located, we spent some time sharing details about our schools, cities, and states with each other.

Ms. Beck, 2nd grade teacher, had this to say about meeting our new friends, "The Mystery Skype was such a fun and engaging activity for our 2nd graders. They were able to use real life problem solving skills. They were good listeners and thinkers when given an answer to see if they were close to figuring it out or needed to think of another question. They also did a great job of answering the buddy class's questions to give them hints of where we are in the United States: Kansas! There were lots of oohs and ahs and giggles! Everyone cheered when it was figured out and then had some more fun sharing specific things they did in 2nd grade. We can't wait for the next Skype with our new friends!"

W e are excited to learn more about Christian Robinson and use his books to connect with our new friends!

Thank you to the Foundation for their generous contribution and for helping us to update our library resources!

Month of October-- 2nd grade participates in the Global Read Aloud Picture Book Study

Oct. 14 & 21-- No school

Oct. 19 & 20-- Boo Gram forms given to interested parents during P-T conferences

Week of Oct. 24-28-- Student Council sells Boo Grams in the library at the end of the day. Proceeds from Boo Gram sales will be used for Student Council's holiday project.

Oct. 28-- PTA sponsored Fall Festival at WE. Student Council will have a concession stand at the festival.

Nov. 4, 11, 18-- 2nd graders skype with their buddy classes as part of the Global Read Aloud

Month of November-- Picture Book Month. All students will be invited to be part of our Picture Book Challenge. Please take the time to enjoy some awesome picture books with your student!