Balloons Over Broadway

Photo Credit: http://melissasweet.net/ 

Every year growing up at home my family had a tradition.  We would wake up, help mom get the food started for our meal, then we would curl up in front of the TV to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.  I think as soon as the parade started mom enjoyed the peace, quiet, and solitude she had when she was in the kitchen without us in her way!  My dad is a huge Broadway and marching band fanatic and his enthusiasm has oozed onto me!  I love being able to get a glimpse of "city life" and dreaming of traveling to the amazing NYC to see the parade in person some day.  So, you can imagine my excitement when I stumbled across the book Balloons Over Broadway by Melissa Sweet.  It is a beautifully written book written about Tony Sarg, the puppeteer of Macy's parade.  The week before Thanksgiving I got the idea to have the fourth graders create SES' own Macy's Thanksgiving Parade in our cafeteria.  I asked them to think of book characters that kids would recognize and create that for the parade. Next year, I will allow more time for them to study the history and to also have more creative time to create their masterpieces.  Here is how this year's turned out...the kids were stoked about it.  And they got a ton of compliments!

Rock Out with Dewey!

I'm working on a Dewey Decimal Classification System unit for my 4th graders.  One of my favorite things to help introduce the DDCS is this song that I found online.  Some people are SOOOOO creative, wouldn't you agree?  This is song is dedicated to all my librarian friends out there:

http://www.lemonswedge.com/dewey-decimal-rock-song

Storybook Pumpkin Patch

When I saw this idea on Pinterest I fell in LOVE!!  The Pumpkin Book Project was our library display for the month of October.  I invited all of our 2nd graders to participate.  They wrote a description of their book including character traits and decorated a pumpkin to leave on display in the library.  This year was exceptional!  We had some amazingly creative kiddos create AWESOME pumpkins! Fifty-six to be exact! How awesome is that?! I created a Certificate of Participation for each student, as well.  Our library is eerily empty now!  I can't wait for the next library display for November! Stay tuned!

What is a blog?!?

This is the second year I have taught technology at the Middle School.  I enjoy it!  A lot! It is fun to rebuild those relationships with the kiddos that I had when they were cute little third graders.  They haven't changed too much so it feels like we just pick up where we left off and enjoy each other.  At least I like to think so.

My seventh grade class is basically an introduction to technology tools while the eighth grade class is a multimedia class.  It is a fast paced time together.  We only get something like thirty days together!  Crazy, right?! Right now the eighth graders are creating some pretty amazing iMovies based on their life so far.  It is fun to watch their creations come to life.  We also have a lot of fun using Photoshop for picture editing.  Its been a fun learning experience for us all.  Of course the seventh graders come in after the eighth graders and drool over what they're working on and keep thinking about how the grass is greener on the other side.

Today the seventh graders came in and I start our conversation off by talking about the Blogger's Code of Ethics.  I asked them if they knew what a "code of ethics" was.  They didn't know.  I asked if they knew what "ethics" were. They didn't.  So we back tracked a little bit.  I brought up examples of code of ethics other professions use: nurses, psychologists, doctors, teachers, writers, etc.   Just as I was about to move on I was interrupted by our awesome school counselor to talk about a student.  I asked the kiddos to talk to each other about if there is a middle school code of ethics they follow without even realizing that they do, while I speak with our school counselor just aside of the class. While I'm talking with our school counselor I hear an uproar of voices talking.  Score! Conversation! On topic? Who knows!  When I opened the door back up they were all sitting quiet as mice, all with their hands raised and waiting for me.  So you can imagine my surprise when I walk in to see SEVENTH graders, sitting, and QUIET!  I just kind of slowly walked in, waiting for doom to hit, and just kind of weasel out, "Sooo? What's up?"  They all say at the same time, "What is a blog?!!?"  My head was spinning.  How could they not know what a blog was?!  We pulled up the definition of a blog and then I showed them some examples of a blog.  We talked about how a blog has a purpose and mine for example, has a purpose to communicate about teaching at the elementary and middle schools in library and technology.  So for me to add a post about eating some amazing tasting mac-n-cheese really wouldn't be appropriate.  Guess what they will be starting on Monday?!  BLOGS, you betcha! Why didn't I think to do this sooner with the other rotations?!  Live and learn!

Did You Know?

I've created a new board on our easel inspired from a pin on Pinterest! I need your help, SES Bluejays!  I will start posting a new fact per day.  If you decide you'd like to help this is what you can do:

• Bring Ms. Flemings a fact you found in a non-fiction book, in print, or a digital source.
• Then Ms. Flemings will let you write the interesting fact on the easel with the caption "Found by: Your First Name" 

I bet you can't wait to come to school on Tuesday to see what I've just posted!  I look forward to you helping me out with this.  It could get really fun, don't you think??

Mold. Yuck!

Moldy, nastiness, growing in a library book!

I love gross stuff!  I love weird stuff!  I will be the first person to touch and experiment with something when other people are squirming in their seats. But. I have to say I have my limits.  Especially when books come back damaged like this one did. Just LOOK at all that mold growing inside the book!  Yuck!  I love to use this book as an example to students at the beginning of the year on how to NOT take care of our books.  We talk about the four things to beware of when you are reading a book.
1.  Water! The way the pages wrinkle and smell mildewy afterward create books you do not want to cuddle up to!
2.  Food and drink!  I share this Junie B. First Grader book as my example.  Honestly, I have no clue if that's how it got moldy.  I like to think so.  It was especially fun to use a microscope camera to get that bottom right image.  Super cool!
3.  Little people!  There are times when little brothers and sisters just don't know how to take care of books like the big kids!
4.  Pets!  Not just dogs...cats too! And gerbils, and hamsters, and fish.  I like to remind the kids that all animals can chew, poop, and pee...so lets keep our books away from all animals.  (I'm a dog lover, what can I say?  I don't want to say specifically dogs!)  :)

Do you have any other suggestions on book care?  Do you have any fun tips and tricks that work?  I'd love to hear them!

Happy Reading Everyone!

Book Love: The Book Whisperer

Photo Credit: http://www.bookwhisperer.com/

Anyone else cringe when they finish reading a book that they wish could keep going?  Like you're saying goodbye to a friend?  That's how I felt when I finished reading The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller.  For a few days, she was my very close teacher friend and now I just want EVERYONE to be her friend too!  I loved, loved, LOVED her book!  It gave a realistic teacher's perspective of how important reading with your students truly is! And...how important it is to have conversations about books with our students.  And...how important it is for us as teachers to take the time to read daily! I can keep gushing about this book for hours! Seriously!  I am also elated that she is coming to Plum Creek Literacy Festival's Adult Conference this September!  I can not wait to sit in her session is soak up every word she has to say!  Yay for an inspiring book! I feel re-fueled!