Helping Hands in the Library

The library at Steward School is a busy place.  Books are flying off the shelves!  Children are excitedly pulling books off of the shelves to see which one will be the lucky book traveling home for the week.  Nothing makes me happier than seeing our Steward students excited about books and reading!
A busy library can quickly become a messy library without helpers to keep things organized.  Since our beloved Mrs. Jones retired, I have been looking for some reliable, book-loving helpers and I didn't have to look very far.  Our Steward School third graders have taken on the job!  Each third grader has "adopted a book shelf". 
Each week, students are responsible for checking their shelves during library class. They make sure their books are in order, the shelf is neat, and pick a books to display on top of the shelf. Not only will it instill a sense of individual responsibility in them, but it will also increase their sense of ownership of the library. They take pride in their shelves and it has greatly enhanced the appearance of the library shelves already!


 



Shelf helpers hard at work



A proud third grader shows off "her shelf"!

Each shelf highlights who takes care of it.  Good job third graders!

Welcome back!

Welcome back to the library!

I have enjoyed seeing all of my old friends in the library and meeting new faces that have joined our schools. I had the chance to get caught up on some young adult reading over the summer and look forward to sharing book talks with the children as the month gets under way. 
I am excited to announce that the Steward library and the Proctor library have new automation systems.  The switch over to Atriuum (Book Systems) means:

• a new and faster way to check out books in the library thanks to the updated technology
• an interactive website that students and parents can access at home to see what's new in the library
• posted book reviews by students for our school community to enjoy

The children share in my excitement because less time at the checkout counter means more time talking and reading books together!

Saying a cheerful goodbye to my old tech gear and
hello to a world of possibilities with Atriuum!

The Massachusetts Children's Book Award winner is.....

About the award:
     After finding that many children lose interest in books after reaching the intermediate grades, Dr. Helen Constant founded the Massachusetts Children's Book Award program in 1975. Designed for Massachusetts schoolchildren in grades 4-6, the program briefly included grades 7-9 from 1978 through 1983.
    Today, fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-graders are given a "master list" of book titles. After reading five of the books, students may vote for their favorite. The list is compiled from nominations of participating teachers, librarians and interested publishers. A selection committee works with the nominations and chooses 25 titles to appear on the master list. http://www.salemstate.edu/academics/schools/3698.php

At Proctor, our students were encouraged to read at least five of  the nominated books so that they could participate and vote in mid-March.  We had quite a turnout at the "polls" and I am looking forward to sharing the results with my classes this week!

MCBA 2013 winner

 

 

Word Cloud of the week

Each week, I'll be creating a word cloud on Tagxedo for my students.  The word cloud will relate to something we are talking learning about, reading about, or book-talking about! 
Here is the first Word Cloud of the Week (hint: A special guest visit will make Wednesday anything but HORRIBLE at Steward School!)

And the winners are........

The 2013 Newbery Medal winner is...........The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate, published by HarperCollins Children's Books, a division of HarperCollins Publishers.  The winner was announced today by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.

 

 

 

The 2013 Caldecott Medal winner is....... This Is Not My Hat, written and illustrated by Jon Klassen, published by Candlewick Press.

 

 



 

The Caldecott Medal is an award which is given to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.