JANUARY JOYS!!!

Students in grade 2 are studying Australia and they were introduced to the great selection of non-fiction books about that continent by reading Look What Came From Australia by Kevin Davis and Australia- Letters from Around the World series by Margot Richardson.

Do you remember the story of The Ugly Duckling by Hans Christian Andersen? Well, the students in K heard another version by Sebastien Braun and did a comparison of both books. This much loved tale is brought to life in a simple retelling expecially for the very young. They even voted for their favorite and stated reasons to support their vote. This is a wonderful bedtime story, and an invaluable addition to every child's first library.

Third graders played the game, "Guess who's Knocking at my Door" after reading biography books of famous people. They gave 3 clues to the audience and 3 guesses were made before the name of the person behind the door was revealed. This is a great way to get to know the individuals from the books as well as a fun way to learn the biography section of the library. Of course, prizes were rewarded to all correct answers as well as to the studens who wrote up the 3 mystery questions. We sure have fun in our library and learn lots, too!

Fiction and non-fiction books were discussed with the Alpha students. After listening to Dog's Colorful Day:a messy story about colors and counting by Emma Dodd, by Emily Gravett, and Little Mouse Gets Ready by Jeff Smith, students decided what kind of books they were and discussed why. At check out time, some choose the non-fiction (tall shelves) books to take home.

Do you know the author Amy Krouse Rosenthal? If not, just ask a student in Jr. K to tell you about what Little Pea likes to eat, or what Little Oink likes to play. They listened to these two books during their library lesson and one of their teachers checked out Little Hoot to read to them in their classroom. They loved this author's twist on behavior....you need to read one real soon.

5th grade students will be meeting Dan Gutman and seeing a display of his many books during their lessons this month. Do you remember Honus Wagner? Did you know that his baseball card is the most sought after and one in poor condition can be worth $150,000-$200,000? It was one of 522 cards in a set produced by American Tobacco Company in 1909-10. The cards in this set are sometimes referred to as "white borders". This card is so valuable-legend has it- because Wagner was opposed to cigarette smoking and insisted the card be discontinued shortly after presses had begun to run. In 1996, a card in good condition sold for over a half a million dollars. About 60 are known to exist. Well, Dan Gutman's book Honus & Me is just one of his numerous fiction and nonfiction books for children of all ages up to about grade 6. Whether you love sports or not, you should give this author a chance

HAPPY NEW YEAR IN THE MEDIA CENTER !

STUDENTS IN GRADES 1, 2 AND K are busy voting for their favorite FRA (Florida Reading Association) book for this year's contest. After their teachers read them 7 of the 8 selected books, Mrs. Smay read the last one. It was the true story by the #1 New York Times Bestselling author of Dewey entitled Dewey There's a Cat in the Library by Vicki Myron and Bret Witter. In this hilarious and heartwarming students learned the story when Dewey was found in the book drop of the public library on the coldest night of the year. He was just a tiny kitten-shivering and very very, dirty! Vicki the librarian takes him in, warms him up and decides then and there that he will be their library cat, naming him Dewey Readmore Books.
Some of the K classes also read the sequel entitled Dewey's Christmas at the Library.

Students in JK enjoyed hearing The Wild Christmas Reindeer by Jan Brett. After a few false starts, Teeka discovers the best way to get Santa's reindeer ready for Christmas Eve.

Third graders were learning about collective biographies and did a reader's theater on the book My Brothers' Flying Machine by Jane Yolen. This Parents' choice gold award book, provides a look at the lives of Orville and Wilbur Wright, as seen through the eyes of their younger sister, Katharine, who provided support and encouragement while they worked on their many inventions. Jane Yolen is the award-winning author of more than 200 books and her web site is www.janeyolen.com.

Alpha students enjoyed seeing and hearing the story entitled Gingerbread Friends by Jan Brett. Lonely Gingerbread Baby, having set out to find a friend, enters a bakery where he tries to talk to different cookies and other figures, but winds up leading a crowd back to his house on a chase similar to the one in the familiar tale.

DECEMBER DELIGHTS !

FIRST grade students experienced the thrill and history making of the first moon landing. After reading the book Man on the Moon by Anastasia Suen, they picked out their parts and performed a reader's theater of the book. Did you know that a word was lost from the transmission when Neil Armstrong first stepped onto the moon's surface? No one knows why. What we were supposed to hear was:"That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind."

SECOND grade students read Carolina's Gift, a story of Peru, which described the Sunday market in the colorful village of Pisac in the Andean highlands. The village does not have a supermarket, so the people in Pisac and the surrounding towns depend on the weekly market for all their needs. They found out the descendants of the Inca Indians still keep their ancestor's ancient traditions alive today, including the Sunday market. Quechua is the language spoken at the market. Some of the farmers and artisans also speak Spanish, and some English. In fact, Peru has three national languages: Spanish, Quechua, and Aymara. The students also practiced pronouncing 10 vocabulary words that might be spoken in Peru today.


Students in K were introduced to author Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Jen Corace who have written Little Pea, Little Oink, and Little Hoot books. If you do not know these books you need to treat yourself and read one...just ask any K student if Little Oink liked to have a messy room or a clean one...Students also heard the story entitled Chickens Aren't The Only Ones by Ruth Heller which showed all the animals that lay eggs. Did you know that there are two mammals that lay eggs? They both live in Australia, too. Just ask a K student if you do not know.

Biography books were introduced to the students in grade 3 by reading several chapters of Knucklehead, an autobiography by Jon Scieszka, the author of The Stinky Cheese Man. These pages were filled with tall tales and mostly true stories about growing up Scieszka...a very funny and interesting person to read about. This remains one of the most popular choices in the biography section, too.

Students in Alpha and Jr. K were discussing author/illustrator, Jan Brett, who celebrated a birthday on December 1st. We celebrated along with her by reading Gingerbread Baby and The Mitten. She is one of the few authors I know that actually travels to do research throughly before writing and drawing her own books.

In fifth grade, students saw a video about Henry Winkler's new series of books about Hank Zipzer, the world's greatest underachiever. Henry Winkler is well known as an actor, producer, director, coauthor, public speaker, husband, father, brother, uncle, and godfather. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Stacey. They have three children named Jed, Zoe, and Max, and three dogs named Monty, Charlotte, and Linus. He is so proud of the Hank Zipzer series that he could scream-which he does sometimes, in his backyard!

NOVEMBER NOTES

WOW! WOW! WOW!

Here's to our heroes....DIONNE FAJARDO,ERIN ROSS, ANNE DOWLING, and ALL THE PARENT VOLUNTEERS who helped make our annual bookfair so successful.

A BIG THANK YOU to all the teachers, staff, parents, and students who supported this wonderful event with their visits and purchases...look in the mirror and the heroes are YOU!

While the book fair was in progress, lots of activity was happening in the library...
FIRST GRADERS experienced the thrill and history making of the first moon landing. They read out loud the book Man on the Moon by Anastasia Suen and discussed thrust, craters on the moon, Mike Collins, Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong, the Columbia, and the Eagle. Next week they will do a reader's theater of this book and each will have a roll to act out. They also will see the actual footage of this great event on video streaming.

SECOND GRADERS were introduced to the Festivals of theWorld book series. This set of informational books introduces young readers to the festivals and cultures of some of the most fascinating countries in the world. Easy, step-by-step instructions for creating a craft and preparing a food item add to the fun and provide the basics for a do-it-yourself festival.
They also read a true story from Colombia, entitled Biblioburro by Jeanette Winter. This biography is based on the inspiring life of Luis Soriano and his devoted burro team who travel far and wide to bring treasured books to eager children in the remote villages of rural Colombia.
Since the students are studying South America, this fit right along with their current curriculum.
Luis started with a collection of 70 books in the year 2000 and it has grown to over 4,800, mostly from donations. Now the Biblioburro travels to the hills every weekend. Three hundred people, more or less, look forward to borrowing the books Luis brings. A small corner of the world is enriched.....all because of one person.

FIFTH GRADE STUDENTS discussed the Newbery Medal winner Betsy Byars, who is the author of many books dealing with the realistic problems of today's young people. All of her books deal with children placed in difficult situations. She won the Newbery Medal for The Summer of the Swans, the story of a girl named Sara and her retarded brother, Charlie. All of her books were on display for the students who also saw a video interview of her explaining how she uses characters in her works.
Congratulations to Sam. Kayelin. Michelle, Caya, Kim and Chayton for their book commercials and skits. All fifth graders are invited to present one during the entire year.

THIRD GRADE STUDENTS worked with their partners and searched the non-fiction shelves to find books located in all 10 categories of the Dewey Decimal System. They wrote down call numbers, authors names and discussed with their partners the subject of each book they selected. They did an awesome job with this lesson and were rewarded a million dollar reader scratch 'n sniff bookmark...Way to Go third graders!

KINDERGARTEN STUDENTS discussed characters, setting, photographer, several different ways to eat eggs, fiction, and non-fiction books as they heard two farm stories this week. One was entitled Tillie Lays An Egg by Terry Golson, an adventure of a hen who does not want to wait her turn to lay her eggs and does not want to stay cooped up all day. The students had fun locating some of the unlikeliest of places at the Little Pond Farm where Tillie lays her eggs.
The second story entitled The Fox and the Hen by Eric Battut took them on an adventure with Henrietta Hen who lays her first egg and trades it to the crafty Red Fox who offers her a tasty, juicy worm. When Henrietta finds out that her egg is destined for Fox's table, Henrietta and her friends must find a way to get the precious egg back. The students compared both books and discussed the terms fiction and non-fiction. Just ask any K student to explain the difference to you.

In Jr. K students discussed imagination as they heard the story entitled Little Library Mouse by Stephanie Lisa Tara. At closing time a key locks the library, and unlocks the dreams of a little mouse who waits in the shadows. Skipping, sliding, down the pages of books-he steps inside magical stories, inviting readers to come along for the ride. Witty verse and fantastical illustrations celebrate the joys of reading in this tale with innovative charm.

The Alpha students discussed the seasons of the year and to celebrate the author's November 9th birthday enjoyed Lois Ehlert's book Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf. They also went on an adventure with the famous turtle character, Franklin in Franklin's Library Book by Sharon Jennings.

"A BOUNTY OF BOOKS"

HAPPY NOVEMBER!

Have you ever gone food shopping with your child? In first grade students discovered a new grocery store in The Witches' Supermarket by Susan Meddaugh. If you want to know some of the things they sell, just ask your child...or stop by and check out the book yourself.

Everyone has heard of Cinderella...but have you ever heard of Cinderella Skeleton by Robert D. San Souci? The students in second grade listened to this version and made comparisons. They also played a "matching bone" contest and earned a scratch and sniff bookmark.

Students in K discussed trick-or-treating before hearing the story entitled Ghost and Pete by Dayle Ann Dodds. In this book, Pete and his new friend Ghost go out on Halloween, but Ghost can't remember what to say. After the lesson they discussed the lessons learned which involved manners and sharing. They also left the library with a bouncy ghost decoration to color and remind them of this story.

In celebration of Steven Kellogg's birthday, October 26, the students in Jr. K saw a display of his wonderful books and heard The Mystery of the Flying Orange Pumpkin. They used their prediction skills to solve this mystery, too.

Third graders worked with partners to locate books in all 10 categories of the Dewey Decimal System. They saw an i-movie about the different sections and then set off to work. Other information they needed was the call number, author's name, and a description of the subject matter of the books. By working together cooperative learning took place and they had fun, especially when the reward was a mystery scratch & sniff book mark...Who knows how dirt smells??

Alpha students enjoyed the story of Anancy and the Haunted House by Richardo Keens-Douglas. Anancy, in this "haunted house" tale, is at times generous and greedy, foolish but wise, and both timid and brave. He teaches us that there is strength in numbers.

The annual SHORECREST BOOK FAIR will be held in the Student Activity Center & Theater Lobby on Nov.8- Nov.11. See you there!

Another great big thank you to all of our library volunteers. They have helped the children find books, return them, check them out and shelf them. We could not do these jobs without them. Jodi Gayoso has been working hard at keeping the busy times filled with parents. We do appreciate all of your help. WE LOVE YOU!!

HAPPY OCTOBER!!!

Students in Grade 1 shared books by Shel Silverstein (BD Sept. 25) and reviewed the life of Johnny Appleseed (BD-Sept 26). They also enjoyed the book entitled The Apple Doll by Elisa Kleven. In this story Lizzy is scared to start school, so she makes a doll out of an apple from her favorite tree to take with her on the first day and keep her company. Students were given instructions for making their own apple doll, if they would like to do so in the future.

In 2nd Grade students discussed folk tales, fairy tales, and tall tales. To honor Shel Silverstein's September birthday they read Runny Babbit, a billy sook. This book was completed before the author's death in 1999 and was a work in progress for over twenty years.

In Jr. K students heard the story entitled Library Mouse by Daniel Kirk who is both the author and the illustrator of this warmhearted tale about a library mouse who shares the joy of reading, and writing. In honor of Stan Berenstain's birthday on September 29 they also laughed as Mrs. Smay read them The Bike Lesson by Stan & Jan Berenstain.

Third graders and fifth graders enjoyed seeing the book trailers for this year's Sunshine State Young Reader's award program. If you'd like to view them just log onto www.booktrailersforreaders.com. Students need to read at least 3 titles by April 2011 to be eligible to vote. Order forms have been sent home for anyone who wishes to purchase any of the titles. All forms are due by October 6, 2010.

Another great big thank you to all of our library volunteers. They have helped the children find books, return them, check them out and shelf them. We could not do these jobs without them. Jodi Gayoso has been working hard at keeping the busy times filled with parents. We do appreciate all of your help. WE LOVE YOU!!

"FALL FOR OUR BOOKS"

Come visit the media center to see all the new displays of some of our October birthday authors.

In first grade the students read books by child authors. They learned where the books from Raintree Publish a Book contest are located in the media center and also enjoyed hearing some. Hopefully these stories will assist them when they are writing their own adventures.

Second graders were traveling around the world when they were reading the story A Small Dog's Big Life: Around the World with Owney by Irene Kelly.
They were surprised to find out this epistolary story-a story told entirely in letters-was based on the true life of a stray dog named Owney, who actually lived with postal workers more than one hundred years ago. During his adventures he received tags from clerks all over the United States to commemorate his visit to their towns. The tags are now in an exhibit at the National Postal Museum, which is part of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.

Do you know Amber Brown? Well, if not, you can learn all about her and her many adventures by reading one of the many books on display about her in our media center. On Thursday, October 28, there will be a performance of "Amber Brown is not a Crayon" in the Janet Root Theater for grades 1-4. Why not read about her before you see the show?

Students in grades 3-6 are busy reading titles from this year's Sunshine Young Reader's Award books, but we have another contest for grades Alpha-2. It is also from the DOE (Department of Education). It is called the FRA (Florida Reading Association) Children's contest it began Friday, October 1 here at Shorecrest. A box with 7 books is being passed around to all the classes along with a schedule. After the students have heard all the stories in the box, their teachers will inform Mrs. Smay. She will then read the last book (#8) to them and give out the voting ballots. Students will color in or circle their favorite title from the eight. They will receive prizes for voting and in May 2011 the winning title and author will be announced. This is a state wide program so it will be fun to participate and see who the winner will be.

In K the students discussed fiction and non-fiction books after reading Woof:a Love Story by Sarah Weeks. Despite a language barrier, a dog and cat fall in love with the help of a buried trombone. They also saw a display of books by author James Marshall whose birthday was October 10.

Third graders reviewed how to use the computer to do library searches from their homes, classrooms or the library and then played a game call "WHO HAS THE ANSWER?" They each were given a library term or phrase that needed to be identified. They not only learned the terms, they had fun and each earned a scratch and sniff bookmark.

Fifth grade students had a lesson devoted Gary Paulsen, an author of more than 100 titles including picture books, mystery, historical fiction, science fiction, memoirs and semi-autobio-graphical novels, adventure tales, animal tale, nonfiction, and even humorous middle-grade fiction. Students saw this author in several interviews and examined many of his works. Many of Paulsen's books feature young teen boys, and even as he explores various genres, there are common themes that he returns to-survival, coming-of-age, war, the natural world and our relationship to it and more. His favorite book is Hatchet, a Newbery winner, which is about the author's own experiences as a boy. This is one author who should not be missed.

Alpha students laughed out loud while hearing A Mouse Told His Mother by Bethany Roberts. In this beautifully illustrated book a little mouse's imagination makes his bedtime an exciting adventure, as he takes a fantasy trip to catch crocodiles, ride bucking broncos, and sail where the
wind blows. It would also be a great bedtime story, especially for the child who just hates to go to bed.

Jr. K students discussed fiction and non-fiction books and the topic of the lesson was lions. They enjoyed listening to the Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen which is about a lion who starts visiting the local library but runs into trouble as he tries to both obey the rules and help his librarian friend. This book is illustrated by Kevin Hawkes and willl be a favorite for anyone who loves libraries and knows that they are special, magical places, where everyone is welcome and anything seems possible.

Another great big thank you to all of our library volunteers. They have helped the children find books, return them, check them out and shelf them. We could not do these jobs without them. Jodi Gayoso has been working hard at keeping the busy times filled with parents. We do appreciate all of your help. WE LOVE YOU!!

Coming soon...BOOK FAIR...the week of November 8 in the Janet Root Theatre Lobby and the Student Center. More details will be posted.