One of my favorite weeks of the year is when I get to collaborate with our art teacher for DOT DAY. She brings the students into the library during their art time, and we co-teach the lessons. We like to start off the class with a discussion about where we can find art in the library. Then, especially with kinder students, we talk about what an illustrator does. Since Peter Reynolds is both the author and the illustrator, we don't get into collaboration between the two a lot this week, but later in the year we like to do lessons where we discuss how the author and illustrator collaborate on the story.
I read the book, THE DOT by Peter Reynolds, to the students. We talk about the lesson from the story, then go to dot stations.
Start with a dot, then see what you can make.
Her dot, turned into a strawberry seed.
Collaborative Dot -- students each received 1/4 of a dot, decorated it,
then got in teams and put the puzzle together to create a dot.
At this station, students used Buncee.com to create a dot masterpiece.
At another station, students were given a hand lense and sent on a mission.
They were dot-tectives.
ISH
Since I saw students during their art time, for some of the students I saw them twice this week. The second time I saw the students, I read the book ISH by Peter Reynolds. We weren't for sure, but the students and I decided that this was the boy at the end of THE DOT that Vashti helps out.
After reading the story, students made their own -ISH drawings.
Favorite Picture of the Week
This sweet girl was so excited to find all the PUPPY PLACE books.
My first love is BOOKS and READING, but my second is technology, coding, and computer science. I always have a blast teaching students the aspects of coding and watching them problem solve.
This year, I decided to focus on robots for Hour of Code week, so every grade level had a challenge using the Ozobots.
5th Grade
5th grade had my favorite challenge of the week! We use ozoblockly.com to program our Ozobots. If you have Ozobot robots and have never used Ozoblockly, you should really check it out! Each group was given an Ozobot, and logged into the website. Using the program, students were given the challenge to choreograph a dance for their Ozobot to dance to Feliz Navidad.
They had a blast, and there was a lot of collaboration and problem solving going on. The students learned that the Ozobot would not blink colors and move at the same time, so they had to create loops within their program. Lots of learning going on this day!
4th Grade
With the fourth graders, I integrated Geography into our coding lesson. Each student recieved a map of the world, then students labeled the continents. It was a great review of the 7 continents. They drew their code to have OzoClause 😊 to visit all the countries. We added some flying tricks in as well.
2nd and 3rd Grade
For the second and third grade class, we had a Grinch challenge. Students had to fill in the codes for Ozobot, or OzoClause to visit the houses and avoid the Grinch. We also had to be sure to code the robot to stop for milk and cookies.
Kinder and 1st Grades
This is the first time the kinders used the Ozobot, so we did simply line codes. They had so much fun making their Ozobot move from one end to the other. Then we made the Ozobot go slow, then fast. The giggles in the room were contagious!
Most of the first graders had used the Ozobots the previous year, so we had a more complex activity. First graders had to use turn left or turn right codes to get the robot to the dog. We had fun, made some mistakes, and learned together.
The Hour of Code is always one of my favorite weeks, even though the students on my campus code most the year. This week is a fun week where I get to see everyone in the library and learn coding.
One of my favorite projects every year is the biography project in 2nd grade. Students get to choose a famous person, an athlete, celebrity, president, author, etc... The final project is to write a report about their person and give a presentation. The presentation is my favorite part!! The students dress up as their person and present their report as if they were that person. It is so cute!!
I collaborate with the 2nd grade teachers on this project in various ways. I pull books appropriate for the reading levels of the students. This year, the teachers asked if I would help with note taking skills and citing sources.
I wanted to model note taking to the students, so we researched Barbara Park together. Junie B. Jones is a very popular series in 2nd grade right now, so they were all excited to learn more about the author. We started with Pebble Go. I had the students read the page, and as a table group, come up with an important fact we could write in our notes.
We talked about the importance of taking notes:
writing down the most important information
putting the information in our own words (don't copy from the page)
write down the information in a short way.
On the organizer, students have a space to take notes from each source, and a space to cite their sources. This gets them ready for upper elementary when they have to create a bibliography page with their sources.
After we took notes from PebbleGo, using bullet points for each fact we found, students filled out their sources. Then we used a book about Barbara Park and followed the same steps.
After modeling, students then used PebbleGo, their books, and other reliable sources that the teacher and I had looked up before hand, to begin taking their own notes.
They will continue their research over the next two weeks, then make their presentations in class. I always love to see the students dressed up as their famous person.
Our school district has a week every year where we discuss Cyber Safety with the students. I highly believe that this discussion should happen year round, not just during this designated week. This year, as every year in the past, I partnered up with the teachers to teach Cyber Safety to our amazing scholars. Yes, even with our kindergarten students! I am a firm believer that instead of blocking everything, schools should be teaching students to be responsible users of the internet. Some things do need to be blocked, but instead of banning all devices and all website outside of the programs purchased by the district, we should instruct our students to properly use social media.
Kinder and 1st grades
YES! Even kinder needs to learn how to be safe on the web. We talk about "stranger danger" all the time, but shouldn't we be talking about strangers on our computers, tablets, and iPhones. OK, so most 5 and 6 year olds don't have a phone, but how many play games on the computer? Many games now days have a way to connect with another player in order to complete missions. Even our youngest students need to know that the person on the other side may not be how they say they are.
With my younger students, we talked about Going Places Safely online, and I used a lesson from CommonSenseMedia. In this lesson students were able to:
discover that the Internet can be used to visit far-away places and learn new things.
compare how staying safe online is similar to staying safe in the real world.
explain rules for traveling safely on the Internet.
If you have not looked through the lessons on Common Sense Education, you need to browse and find a lesson that fits your students.
2nd Grade
Second graders learned what is safe and not safe to share on the internet when chatting with others online. Many of our second graders mentioned that they play games online, such as Minecraft, Rodeblox, and Wizard 101, where they can chat with other players and complete missions with other players.
Many children at this age don't really think about the dangers of the other player possibly not being another kid their age. So, we watched a fun video with Timon and Pumba about what information we can and cannot share with other players online.
After the video, each group completed a sort of what is safe and what is unsafe to share online.
3rd Grade
Third grade is the year that students really start using Google for Education and Google Classroom often. Students are able to communicate and collaborate, even from home, on assignments using Google. So, I felt it important to go over the power of words online and how it can affect us emotionally. Even as adults, I feel like we forget that an actual person with feelings is on the other side of the computer.
I adapted my lesson from Common Sense Education called "Power of Words", but I did tweak it a little to fit the time I had with the class and to fit what the teacher and I felt was best for the students.
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4th Grade
Fourth grade had a higher level version of the lesson that I did with second grade. We discussed what is safe and unsafe to share online. A few 4th grade students are learning about social media and are starting to post things online. So, I let Professor Garfield talk with them about our digital footprints.
5th Grade
I was blown away when talking with the 5th graders at how much they do not understand about being safe online, but how much they are sharing online! When the teacher and I talked with them about conversations being deleted, they truly believed that if they deleted it, it was gone. They have a lot to learn!
With 5th grade, we talked about the difference between Bullying and Cyberbullying. There were some great conversations going on in the groups. A few of them didn't take it seriously at first, but did at the end. This just confirms that these lessons need to go on all year long, not just during this designated week.
After we went over the lesson and watched the video, students got into groups and created a Venn Diagram comparing/contrasting Cyberbullying and Bullying.
Poster Contest
Next week the posters will be judged and a school winner will be named!! I'm hoping for the district winner this year!!
September 15th is International Dot Day, which all started with the book THE DOT by Peter Reynolds. Dot Day is a day that we celebrate our unique talents and how each individual makes his mark in the world. Our art teacher, Ms. Eggers, and I collaborated again this year and came up with Dot stations for Kinder - 2nd grades. This year went much smoother than last year. The stations were definitely the way to go!
Reynolds, Peter H. The Dot. Candlewick Press, 2003.
In our first station, students made a dot anywhere on the paper. Then, they had to think about what they could create from that single dot. We had insects, snowmen, flowers, dinosaurs, and pokeballs just to name a few creations. It was amazing to see all the different ideas the students came up with.
The second station was Dazzling Dots! Students made between 3 and 5 dots on their paper, then making zigzagging around each dot with their crayons until the entire paper was covered. The students said it looked like firework on their paper.
The third station "Not a Dot", similar to what Vashti creates in the book. Students traced a circle template in the center of their paper, then made a design around the circle to create "not a dot".
The fourth station was the Morse code station. In this station students were able to look at Morse code and write their name and messages using Morse code. This was challenging for the students to decipher what their friends had written.
The fifth station, and probably the most popular, was the Quiver station. If you have never used the Quiver app in your classroom or library, you must check it out! In this station, students decorated the inside of the dot on the special Dot Day Quiver paper. Then, we made their drawing come to life! The kids LOVED it!!
During art time, the older students drew dots in Kandinsky style. This is now hanging in our hallway as a mural. It looks fabulous!
I am so thankful that I am at a school where the teachers realize that the librarian is a teacher, not just the person that checks out books. I love collaborating with all the teachers. Next up is Cyber Safety week.
April flew by, and it is going to be May next week! That means summer is sneaking up on us. Who else is ready??!!
April was a busy month in the library, as it should be since it's School Library Month. Second graders came in for research using our online encyclopedia for their Texas Performance Standards Project (TPSP). Since we are an academy with GT and Academically Advanced students, we use the TPSP to differentiate for our GT students. This gives them an opportunity to go through the inquiry process and create a professional quality project or task.
Second grade students are tasked with exploring daily activities and their impacts on physical fitness, and use what they have found to create a physical fitness plan, an original game or sport, an invention that creates a new piece of physical fitness equipment, or a new mode of personal transportation that increases the user’s physical activity on a daily basis.
So where does the library and online encyclopedia come in for that? The students had to come up with the questions they needed to know in order to complete their task. I taught them how to use search words to find the answers to their questions. Students also had books available to them, and we discussed using the table of contents, as well as the index, to help us find the information quickly.
These 2nd graders are designing new equipment to be used by gymnasts.
Students search for figurative language in poetry
while the timer ticks in the background.
The third grade teachers approached me and asked me to help them with figurative language. It was perfect timing, because I had just come across these super cute figurative language mini-posters I planned on using for National Poetry Month. The teachers and I decided we would make the activity stations where the students had to get up and move. They asked me to focus on 5 types of figurative language: metaphors, simile, personification, onomatopoeia, and hyperbole. The students were getting confused with metaphors and similes.
The great thing about collaborating with the librarian, is we have the books and supplies all ready when you bring the class in, which saves you time! I had the mini-posters set up at the tables, and since we were short on time, I had poems marked in the books that had the specific figurative language the students would be looking for. The most fun part was the timer I put on the screen. When the timer, or rocket, went off, the students had to move to the next station. At each station they read the type, definition, and example, then start searching and recording what they found. It was lots of fun.
Sometimes, the library turns into a volunteer tea room. :) We had a lovely breakfast and tea for our wonderful volunteers! These parents and grandparents are amazing, and bring so much to our school.
April was also School Librarian's Day, and I got so many hugs, treats, and sweet cards from the amazing students! I am so blessed to work here!
On another note, do you see those mismatched tables in the background? Well, soon I will have all matching chairs and tables!! I met with our furniture rep this past week, and together we picked out my furniture that should arrive within the month. This library is going to look amazing!!
This past week we celebrated International Dot Day, which was on September 15th. Dot Day is a day to celebrate creativity and our unique talents. The special day is inspired by the book by Peter H. Reynolds, one of my favorite picture books about perseverance and always doing our best.
Reynolds, Peter. H. 2003. THE DOT. Candlewick Press.
I collaborated with our art teacher to celebrate the entire week. Our art teacher brought Kinder, 1st, and 2nd grades into the library for art class. The kids were amazed that we were having art in the library! It brought up discussion about illustrations in books and the different medium that the illustrators use. I read the book to the students, and we discussed how we each have different talents. Then the art teacher reviewed types of lines that the students had learned the previous week. Each student then got 1/4 of a dot to fill up with the different lines. Groups worked together to put their pieces together to make dots, and we learned about collaboration.
This group has 1/2 of a dot completed, so they are drawing things with circles on the "dot" tables.
A group has their dot completed!
Our art teacher is going over the directions and reviewing the types of lines.
I love how the dots all turned out different and unique, just like our students.
Our fourth grade teachers wanted in on the Dot Day celebration as well, so they were able to come in for a lesson and short celebration as well. Thank goodness for my flexible schedule! We discussed our lesson mostly through email, and we decided to focus on text-to-self connections. With the fourth graders, we viewed the digital book through TumbleBooks. We had a great discussion on what it means to 'make your mark'.
After the discussion, students began to make their connections. Some of them needing a little prompting writing their sentences, so I gave them a sentence frame. Just like Vashti_____________, I _______________. This helped the ones that were having trouble connecting their memory to the story.
Now, the fun part! On the back of the page with the connection students were instructed to get just one color and make a mark on their paper. Then I said, "Now, see where that mark takes you." So the students had to make their mark into a picture. We had Pokemon, ponies, pizzas, patterns, and landscapes. It was amazing how many different ideas they had.
So, that was week 2 of flexible schedule, and I am loving it! The lessons have been so meaningful to the students. Next week there will be lessons on CyberSafety in the library. Also, don't forget to check out the campus website for information on the CyberSafety poster!
On another note: my new circulation desk arrived this week, and I am in love! It has so much storage room that I am still filling it up and making room in other places. One student came in the following morning and said "WOW! It looks just like a real library!" It is certainly an update from my previous circulation desk from 1970.
We just had a four day week, which usually seems to creep by when we have a short week. However, things are a little different in the library. I saw 5 days worth of classes in only 4 days, and the day before a holiday is always BUSY! Everyone seems to want a brand new book before the long weekend. That's fine though, it makes the days go by fast, and I love that my students love to read so much.
Willems, Mo. NAKED MOLE RAT GETS DRESSED. Disney-Hyperion, January 2009.
Lots of fun was had this past week, and lots of giggles in first grade and kindergarten! In my kinder classes, we have been doing an author study over Mo Willems. The students were very familiar with Piggy & Elephant, and the Pigeon. I decided I would introduce them to two other Mo Willems characters. Last week, I read KNUFFLE BUNNY FREE, and this week I introduced them to the hilarious NAKED MOLE RAT GETS DRESSED. We learned that there are three things you must know about naked mole rats:
They are a little bit rat.
They are a little bit mole.
They are all naked.
My sweet kindergarteners nearly fell over laughing so hard. Next week, they will vote on their favorite Mo Willems book that we have read this year.
First graders were introduced to the Texas 2x2 Reading List. We read MOTHER BRUCE by Ryan T. Higgins, which is about a grumpy bear that hates cute little animals, but loves eggs. Unfortunately some of his eggs hatch and he is mistaken for their mother. What is a bear to do? This is a silly, delightful story, with illustrations that complement the story. We laughed and laughed at the funny antics in this fun new book.
Second grade made text-to-text connections with a poem and a nonfiction book. I chose a poem from THE POETRY FRIDAY ANTHOLOGY FOR CELEBRATIONS compiled by Sylvia Vardell & Janet Wong. Just two years ago, I was a student in Sylvia Vardell's poetry class where I learned about pairing poetry with books in the classroom and the library. If you do not have this book in your library, I highly recommend it! It contains fabulous poems, along with activities and picture books to pair with the poems.
The poem I chose was titled BREAK AN EGG by Stephanie Hemphill. I paired the poem with the nonfiction book, CHICKENS AREN'T THE ONLY ONES by Ruth Heller. It teaches about animals, besides chickens that lay eggs. The students made connections between the poem and the book, then they made text-to-self connections and discussed ways that they use eggs for their Easter celebrations.
I cannot believe that we are already to the end of March! Where did this year go? Next week, I will be assisting in monitoring the STAAR test for our 4th and 5th graders. Before we know it, this school year will have ended and I will have survived my first year as a librarian!
