News From The Library--November 5, 2007

Web Drill!!!

We are fortunate to have wonderful web filtering software at our school but what happens when our students are elsewhere? And what if they accessed inappropriate material by accident? This week sixth graders practiced again our WebDrill! and they could choose one of four options to get out of a website that contained material that wasn't good for them. After we discussed the four options--closing the laptop, using control+Q, using control+W, or the back arrow---they had fun using the Halloween websites I had posted on our Skills Blog. (It was Halloween day, by the way.....) Once they were engrossed in the sites (which were all appropriate for them) I shout out "Web Drill!" and they have to quickly get out of the site they are using. Although our "drill" is a little humorous, they understand the seriousness of the matter and the reason we practice this in the same way we practice for a fire or an earthquake.
This drill is also a chance to discuss being digital citizens and using the internet in an ethical manner. And yes, having a little bit of Halloween fun at the same time....

Also in the Library this week....

Kindergarten--Mariko Shinju's charming book A Pumpkin Story was heard by the Kindergarten this week. Starting with a little pumpkin seed a man uses pumpkins for cooking pans, furniture, houses, and finally a hotel complete with a pumpkin swimming pool! This book never fails to delight young children with its clever message about using common things for extraordinary purposes.

First Grade--An 800 year-old-man wants a pumpkin pie but when he goes to get this pumpkin he finds it gone. In Tomie de Paola's The Vanishing Pumpkin the old man and his 700 year-old-wife enlist the help of many critters to finally find that elusive pumpkin. Repetition in the story make this a favorite of first graders.

Second Grade--By the time second graders came to the Library this week, Halloween was over, and so as much as we liked all those Halloween stories, it was kind of nice to go back to something (somewhat) normal. Tired from trick-or-treating the night before, they happily settled in for Mary Pope Osborne's Kate and the Beanstalk. A variation on the traditional story, the giant is still there doing his "fee, fie, fo, fum...." but the protagantist is plucky Kate out of avenge her father's death at the hand of the giant. Giselle Potter's interesting and quirky illustrations are a wonderful enhancement to the story.

Third Grade--Mrs. Villa's class heard One Halloween Night by Mark Teague and they loved how Wendall, Floyd, and Mona outsmarted those teasing witches who were chasing them. Miss Fargas' class came after Halloween and heard Berkeley Breathed's Edward Fudwupper Fibbed Big. With its rhyming story and almost surrealistic illustrations this book is lots of fun for me to read aloud and for the students to hear.

Fourth Grade--Fourth graders brought their laptops to the library this week and as it was Halloween, we had a short lesson on how to get to the Library Skills blog, and how to bookmark in the toolbar, and then they had a chance to explore the fun Halloween websites that were posted on the blog. Working in an elementary school on Halloween Day is always an interesting experience......

Fifth Grade--Fifth graders graciously hosted some guests this week who were here to observe how we work with our laptops in the library. They did research using World Book Online and took notes that we will use in a couple of weeks to write a short essay on their topic. Again, my thanks to them for being able to focus so well on Halloween!

Sixth Grade--see opening post

See you next week!

News From The Library--October 1, 2007

Dictionary Balderdash!

In the library this week, the fifth graders brought their laptops for the first time. After talking a little bit about how we are going to use them and putting the online dictionary/thesaurus on their dashboards, we launched into a lively game of Dictionary Balderdash. For this game I created a Keynote with several words I was fairly sure the children didn't know. Each slide gave three choices of definition by using the word in a sentence. Students had to use the context to try to figure out which definition was the correct one and then vote for their choice. After voting they used their online dictionary to find out who was correct. The words ranged from quahog, to abject, to the final one--ethical. This led to our first discussion of what it means to be an ethical user of technology. We talked about downloading music, plagiarism, filtering and the idea that just because you don't get caught doing something unethical it is still the wrong thing to do. There is a great website coordinated by the National Cable Telecommunications Associates and Cable in the Classroom to help families and children make appropriate choices and stay safe while using the Internet. PointSmartClickSafe offers simple instructions, tips, and scenarios that can help parents and caregivers teach children to make good choices about Internet use. It's well worth checking out.


Also in the Library this week......

Kindergarten--This was our first time in the Library! After reading a short storybook called Manners in the Library by Carrie Finn, we spent some time touring the library, learning how to choose books, and checking out that first book! I had lots of fun trying to learn all those new names.

First Grade--Oh that coyote! Usually he's the trickster but in story Borreguita and the Coyote by Verna Aardema and Petra Mathers , the little sheep tricks the coyote time after time. This Mexican folktale is a great introduction for first graders into multicultural folklore and also gives them plenty of practice honing their prediction skills.

Second Grade--We all know the story of the Three Little Pigs. But have you ever considered the wolf's side of the story? This week we read The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka and at the end we weren't so sure the pigs had been telling the truth all this time! This is a fun way to introduce the literary device, point of view, to children. Next week we're really going to mix it up....and read the Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig!

Third Grade--What happens when a motorcycle gang meets the town librarian? In Library Lil by Suzanne Williams and wonderfully illustrated by Steven Kellogg, Lil has "saved" the town from too much TV when along comes Bust-em-up Bill and his gang. Infuriated by the lack of television, the storm the library. When they refuse to move their motorcyles so Lil can park the bookmobile, Lil surprises them by lifting those bikes and tossing them aside. (You see, as well as being an great librarian, she's incredibly strong, too.) By betting she couldn't do it and losing the bet, the gang has to read books and lo and behold, they become readers, too!

Fourth Grade--We went on an encyclopedia hunt this week using the print edition of our World Book Encyclopedia. After drawing a topic card from a hat, students had to find the encyclopedia, find the article, and write down four facts about their topic (complete sentences, of course). Next week we're going to do the same assignment using the online version of the encyclopedia and then compare the two methods.

Fifth Grade--see opening post

Sixth Grade--Sixth graders were at AstroCamp this week and from the looks of the photos they posted to their website, they had a great time!


Until next week.....

A Teachable Moment

A Teachable Moment

This week fifth graders played our popular game "Library Jeopardy" and one of our "daily doubles" afforded us with one of those moments teachers love. The boys team bet all their points (and sadly lost) when they tried to come up for a question for the answer, plagiarism.
What followed was a lively discussion of what plagiarism means. I presented a simple definition of plagiarism as the false presentation of someone else's writing as one's own. In the case of copyrighted work, plagiarism is illegal. Example were given, especially one where you could copy and paste into your own work something you got from a website. We discussed the ramifications of plagiarism--failing grades, expulsion from a school, legal problems, and what could be done to avoid plagiarism such as using quotation marks and attributions. But the best part was when the discussion turned nicely into a final statement that the problem with plagiarism is that it is unethical. Whether or not you might get caught plagiarizing is not the issue. Doing something inherently wrong is.

As the first group left the Library and the second group was coming in I heard several the students from the first group saying loudly, "Ask her what plagiarism is! Ask what plagiarism is!" As a teacher, it doesn't get much better than that.....

Also in the Library this week:

Kindergarten--How many cats do you have? One, two, maybe three? In the delightful rhyming story Cats, Cats, Cats by Lesléa Newman and Erika Oller, Mrs Brown has sixty cats! They sleep all day but when Mrs. Brown starts snoring, the cats party all night. Kindergartners liked participating in the story and coming up with the rhymes. Their favorite? Cats in the hallway throwing confetti and cats in the dining room eating spaghetti (or biscetti, depending on your pronunciation).

First Grade--Henri Mouse moves from New York to Paris to become a famous artist. But with his mixtures of magical magnetic paints whatever he paints ends up on his canvas...for good! First graders loved comparing the before and after illustrations. This story by George Mendoza and J. Boucher provides a fun way for students to practice their skills of observation and comparison. In the end Henri decides he must do what all great artists do and paint a self-portrait and the results are almost disastrous!

Second Grade--A round fuzzy object rolls down the tunnels of prairie dogs in the hilarious book The Great Fuzz Frenzy by Janet Stevens and Susan Stevens Crummel . With alliterations aplenty and fantastic illustrations this book is a great hit. The gentle reminders that selfishness can cause trouble and that working as a group is best in the long run add to the quality of the story.

Third Grade--Saving Sweetness by Diane Stanley and Tom Bodett tells the story of an orphan and her rescue from an orphanage and the notoriously mean Mrs. Sump. Told in the voice of the sheriff, it is so much fun to read aloud and is filled with wonderful similes and metaphors. The collage like illustrations add the the overall effect. While the story tells one point of view, the pictures tell another and the humor of the contrast was enjoyed by the students. We can't wait until next week to read the sequel, Raising Sweetness.

Fourth Grade--In preparation for writing our own tall tales, we read one more this week. Mike Fink re-told by Steven Kellogg is not one of the most well-known tall tales. Students enjoyed the story of the mighty river boatman and could easily find in it all the elements of a tall tale. Next week they will try their hand and writing one of their own!

Fifth Grade--see opening post

Sixth Grade--Most students finished their posts on the Research Blog this week and students made comments on each other's posts. Next week when all posts are finished and commented upon we'll provide a link so you can view them yourselves.

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