3rd Quarter Library Report

March is the month where GD comes together as a community to celebrate books and reading. Our PARP 2021 program kicked off on March 1st with a fabulous slideshow virtual assembly hosted by Kaelyn Madelone. All students Prek-5 were invited to log their reading on a PARP calendar for a chance to win great prizes. A HUGE thank you to Patty Rowe for getting us Hi-Way Bowling certificates and Brenda Alderman for getting us Stewart's ice cream cone gift cards! Students from the top two participating classes won free books from the Scholastic Book Fair courtesy of our amazing PTA!

The finale of our PARP program was the annual Literacy Fair organized by Katie Sheehan where over 40 students grades Prek-7 (and a parent, too!) submitted projects showcasing their favorite books! Three winners were drawn from those participants, and they, too, will receive free books from the Book Fair courtesy of the PTA.

Despite the recent turmoil over the appropriateness of several of Dr. Seuss' books, Kindergarten still celebrated this iconic children's author in the month of March! We read Green Eggs & Ham, Oh, the Places You'll Go! and Oh, the Thinks You Can Think!. Students participated in story sequencing and creative extension activities to go along with each book.

March is not only the month of Dr. Seuss' birthday, it is also Women's History Month! First graders explored the lives of 4 amazing women, past & present, starting with author Barbara Park, then Martha Washington, followed by Jane Goodall, and finally, Kamala Harris. Students independently used the database PebbleGo to research information about each woman, and then they recorded what they learned on custom activity sheets. We also explored texts related to each woman, including the Jane Goodall biography, The Watcher, and Kamala Harris' book, Superheroes Are Everywhere.

Our second graders worked on letter writing skills both in ELA and in Library this quarter. We focused on formal letters, persuasive letters, and friendly letters. I think Mrs. Cornell enjoyed the formal letters the student wrote to her, and they were definitely thrilled when she wrote back! They also enjoyed connecting with their friends in the other sections of 2nd grade by writing friendly letters to students not in their class.

After wrapping up folk tales last quarter, third grade continued their analytical exploration of folklore from around the globe by reading three versions of the iconic Cinderella story, taking notes on a graphic organizer to record information including who was in the family, what the wish was, any magical creatures, and what was the proof of identity. Students then completed a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast the stories, followed by a short informative writing piece summarizing what they discovered.

This quarter 4th graders worked in teams to research a NYS topic of their choice. Groups met in individual Google Meets, and it was great to invite remote students to partner up with in person students! First groups planned out their research, dividing up the work evenly. Then each group member found a source and made a citation for it. They then spent 2 classes reading their sources and taking notes. After that, they worked together to write a report about their topic complete with images and a bibliography. Finally, groups presented their reports to the class where they received feedback from peers and myself. It was an awesome learning experience!

Fifth grade spent the 3rd quarter learning how to use the online research organizing tool, NoodleTools. They made citations and notecards for articles from Britannica Online, Gale Middle School in Context, and the internet. A big focus of the unit was the importance of paraphrasing information to demonstrate understanding. We are now ready for our first major Library research project: The American Melting Pot!

Sixth grade completed another library research project in the 3rd quarter where they explored structures from around the world and chose one they believe should be considered a "Modern Marvel" in the tradition of "The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World". They had to create their own unique definition of a modern marvel and then they researched Who, What, Where, When, & Impact. Finally, they created presentations of their research which included their works cited that they then shared with the class.

Caden & Preston are really warming up to the Library Lunch days! Both boys are increasing their positive physical contact with me and engagement with the texts I bring each week to reinforce the Weekly ASPIRE Goals. My heart melted when Preston actually sat on my lap the other week!

All of my book clubs are keeping me busy with their student created reading assignments! 7B just finished Animal Farm, and loved watching the 1954 CIA created animated piece that went with it - especially the unexpected twist at the end that was SO different (but so much better than) the book! They are now reading Maze Runner. 7A and 8B are both still working on The Hate U Give, and are amazed at how this book is so similar to what is happening in the news these days.

I continue to love collaborating with the teachers in both big and small ways! My favorite collaboration of the quarter was the Biography Project I team taught with Rebecca Delaney in all 4 sections of 7th & 8th grade ELA. Students used NoodleTools to record their research for Black History Month, and then wrote reports and created posters to display. Here's a link to my collaboration log if you'd like to check out more!

This was a very busy quarter in terms of PD! I was excited to be asked for the 3rd time this year to mentor a SUNYA Library grad student. I enjoyed being interviewed by GD alumni, Deanna Wetmore, who also came in and shadowed me on one of my extremely busy "A" days! She definitely got to see the ESIFC in action that day!

I've also been participating in the Spring Edition of "Book Buzz" where area Librarians come together to discuss newly published books. So far we've met twice, and there's one more meeting to go next week!

In March, Mary signed me up for a virtual evening with James Bruchac who discussed how to teach history through fiction. Jim is always a great presenter!

I also attended an OverDrive Advantage training with Questar's Amanda Karian in March, as well as the March joint communication coordinators and Library council meeting, where many important topics were discussed including the roll out of the new library program evaluation rubric.

Email: lfecura@wynantskillufsd.org
Website: https://sites.google.com/wynantskillufsd.org/lfecura/home
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Phone: (518)283-4600