Thursday, December 15, 2016

Winter Break

There will be no school from December 19 through January 2. School will resume on January 3.  I hope everyone will keep reading during the break. 
When we come back we will enjoy one more week of coding followed by some time to enjoy literature. 
Have a great break!


FYI Time is running out for our Donors Choose Project. Please consider donating to this project: Show what You Know, Read What You Need

Friday, October 28, 2016

We Are Typing

Students in Grades 1 through 5 have been working on building accuracy with typing. They are learning where to place their hands and how to type without looking at the screen. There are many sites that are perfect for young typists to practice with:

Dance Mat Typing is a British website. The accents may throw students off. But the content is particularly entertaining and friendly for our younger students.

Typing.com requires a sign in. Our third through fifth graders know how to sign into this site. This doesn't have the graphics seen in other websites, but it focuses in on the typing skills.

Typing club is another website that our fifth grades are familiar with. It requires log in for keeping track of your progress.

Keyboarding Zoo I  and II are perfect for our youngest keyboarders. The kindergarten can learn valuable letter skills and connections to the keyboard here.

Keyboarding Challenge is great for learning the order of our letters and numbers on the keyboard.

Have fun typing!

Friday, September 16, 2016

Donors Choose Project for iPads

We are trying to get iPads for the library. Children would love to be able to create stop motion animation projects, blog about books they have read, make fun trailers, read online stories, and so many more things. Please consider donating to our project. See the link below. Thank you!

Show What You Know, Read What You Need Donors Choose

Tuesday, September 6, 2016

Welcome Back to School

Hello and welcome back!  It is so nice to see everyone ready for school and anxious to check out books in the Media Center.
Many students have asked, "When can I come by and check out after school?"  Well, that day is coming soon. Beginning September 20th after school library will be open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:05 until 2:30. Take advantage of this opportunity to check out a new book or reread and old favorite. Remember, this is a family check out time and an adult family member or guardian must be present. Have fun finding your favorite books!

Thursday, May 19, 2016

End of Year Roundup

It always seems like the end of the year comes upon us so quickly. I find it hard to believe that we are more than halfway through May and summer is approaching rapidly.  In order to have our library ready for the end of the year, all books need to be returned as soon as possible. Check out has ended for the school year. Please don't wait until next week. Bring your books in as soon as possible!

Don't forget to check out these Summer Reading Programs:

 Half Price Books: Read 300 minutes and earn Bookworm Bucks toward purchasing books at HPB.      Website: http://b.hpb.com/fyb/

Alameda County Library: Summer Reading Game coming soon. Read books and spin to win prizes.     All ages including adults participate. (I won a great book last year!) This is also a great place to go for free books to borrow (including ebooks!!). All you need is a library card.
              Website: http://www.aclibrary.org/

Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge: Enter your minutes and win prizes.
             Website: http://www.scholastic.com/ups/campaigns/src-2016

Barnes and Nobel Summer Reading Triathlon: Read and win a book.
            Website: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/b/summer-reading/_/N-rs9

Hope everyone has an amazing summer! Stay safe and keep reading!

Tuesday, May 3, 2016

End of Year Library Information

Hello My Library Friends,

It is getting close to the end of the school year and some due dates are upon us. The last week for checking out books is next week 5/9 through 5/13.  All library books will be due the week of 5/16 through 5/20. Unfortunately after school library hours have already ended for this year.

Students enjoy checking out books and it is always difficult to disappoint them at the end of the year. But, it is necessary to close out the library, settle accounts, and prepare our library for end of the year shelf checking. This way, we begin the next school year ready to check out instead of waiting for a few weeks. 

The students will continue to work on library/media skills until the end of the year. I look forward to having more time in class to participate in some fun activities.

Happy Reading!

Thursday, April 14, 2016

April News

I can't believe that it is already April! This month has been full.  All students are working on amazing things.
Kindergarten: We are checking out books!  Kindergartners began to check out this week.  They borrow a book to keep in their classroom.  They know that next year they may get to bring books home. This year, we are practicing procedures and enjoying our books.
First Grade: We are learning about biographies and checking out books for animal reports.  Some of the students have begun All About books in their classrooms. They have checked out a book on the animal that they want to teach about.  Many others are learning about Biographies. They have been able to find them in the library and are appreciating the new section that has opened to them.
Second Grade: How amazing the second grade students are!  They are reviewing their knowledge of continents and oceans as they prepare for a continent report that they will be creating in the media center.
Third and Fourth Grade: Testing is upon us.  Third and Fourth graders are Hunting the Fact Monster. They are finding key words in questions and searching on the Fact Monster website for answers. This is great practice for when they have to read short articles and answer questions.
Fifth Grade: They have begun to create their state reports. Fifth graders are researching their states and beginning to create a Google Slide Show about the state. This year, they will learn how to embed a video presentation into their slide show.  They are anxious to learn this new add on!

Recently we participated in March Reading Madness. We discovered that we don't have some of the books that are considered to be amazing and were voted on into the next round. I have recently created a DonorsChoose project to purchase these books. It should be loaded soon.  Please consider making a small donation so that our library will have some of these books. The books will be used by all grade levels!!

Tuesday, March 15, 2016

March Madness

It is crazy in March, yet students are working happily in the Media Center! 
We began March Madness by voting for our favorite book.  March Book Madness has brackets in both picture book and chapter book categories.  Are students have been previewing books, trailers about books, and just sharing what we know to get out the vote for our favorites.  Winning books move forward in the brackets for the next round.
Fourth and Fifth Grades have been voting in the Middle Grade Book bracket.  First through Third grades have been choosing their favorite picture books. It is all really exciting!
Kindergarten students through second grade students are working on creating their own nonfiction books as well.  In Kindergarten and first grade they are writing about themselves.  In Second grade, they are choosing a topic that interests them.  They are learning about nonfiction text features and how useful they can be!
We are looking forward to some fun events!  The Science/Maker Fair is tonight (3/15/16). The world record breaking square dance is next week (3/25/16) and we have a week off too! (4/4-4/8).  Have fun and keep reading!

Tuesday, January 12, 2016

Excitement in the Air

We are gearing up to beat the Guinness World Record for largest group of square dancers. Coaches Northcote and Crittendon have worked diligently along with Mr. DeSouza to create a strong square dancing program as they combine PE and Music. Here in the Media Center, we are learning about the Guinness Record and viewing the current record holders online. The kids are so thrilled to have this opportunity of a lifetime!

This has also been voting week for us. All students have had the opportunity to select their favorite children's picture book that is nominated for the California Young Reader Medal.  See selection to the left. The students have been very happy to be part of a democratic process.  What fun to be able to choose a book that may win an award!

Grade levels are also getting ready to start the report season. We are beginning to focus on Reference Resources such as Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, Thesauri, etc. It's not the most entertaining topic, but it sure is fun to see children using Thesauri to find more exciting words... or should I say thrilling, amazing, breathtaking,,,.

As always keep reading and have fun!