Madlenka and Google Earth

In the universe, on a planet, on a block...

Madlenka has a loose tooth and wants to share the news with her neighborhood.  She takes readers on a trip "around the world," visiting people from various geographies, all within the small confines of her neighborhood.  The trajectory of social studies curricula generally spirals outward from the self to the world at large,  starting with "my body" (kindergarten) and then continuing to my neighborhood; my city; my country; the world.  

After a reading of Madlenka in the Library, 1st and 2nd graders took a journey via Google Earth, projected on our Whiteboard, zooming in from the Earth down to 121 East 3rd Street, first in an aerial view, and then landing on the street right in front of our school.  "Let's do it again!" they shouted!  

Tomato Soup at Ellis Island

When Sonya Anna Thornblom Gillick was offered her first meal at Ellis Island, she reported to her sister that they were serving hunks of bread with "red stuff" that looked like blood.  We offered a taste of the red stuff to a bunch of mostly rejecting third graders, before they listened to recording of an interview with Sonya where she reminisces about this food memory.  

Paper Finger Puppets

For All School Work Time we made finger puppets using cardstock paper, colored pencils, scissors, and tape.

TNS Curriculum Night

Unfortunately, I had to miss this year's Curriculum Night due to the fact that my own personal child's curriculum night (our very last...sniff, sniff...) was held at the same time.  So I prepared this virtual presentation to be played in my absence:

Kids' Wearable Endorsements

I remarked to my 3rd-grade friend M__ about the shirt he was wearing. "Do you know what the design on your shirt means,?" I asked.  "It's a polo player on a horse," I informed him .. "Do you know what polo is?  I will show you some pictures of a polo game on the computer so you can see..."  Shortly after I saw another kid wearing a mini Harvard University t-shirt.  "Did your parents or a friend go to college at Harvard?"  "I don't think so," he shrugged.

Kids unconsciously endorse stuff on their clothing.  To be fair, it is the adults in their lives who are outfitting them with these endorsements. Wouldn't it be interesting for kids to research their clothing so that they can understand the meaning of the messages they're displaying?

Family Reading Night

Danesha and her mom leave with a bag of books after Family Reading Night

On Thursday, April 19th, we held our first Family Reading Night in the Library, sponsored by Target.  It was an adults-only workshop, for families of emerging readers.  We discussed our memories of being read to and the books we loved.  When we are reading to our children we are creating memories for them.  Children are experts at reading pictures, a skill that we lose as we grow older.  Paying close attention to the illustrations and discussing them with your child(ren) helps them to become better readers.  Most important, the time spent together sharing a book, will create joy around reading.

Our next Family Reading Night will be on Thursday, May 17th.

New Yorkers Read -- Round Two!

Yay! We received another grant from Macy's to expand our nonfiction collection and develop programs to encourage students to explore informational reading.  Along with a shipment of fabulous books, there is a "resource kit" that contains Reading Passports, which will enable students to become "Reading Ambassadors" for our school.  In the passports, children will "journey through the world of books," earning an official stamps for each region of the library that they visit (e.g., poetry, animals, history, etc.). 

Image:  Francis Luis Mora, Subway Riders, 1914, Courtesy New York Public Library Picture Collection

Wordless Picture Books

There are many lists of wordless picture books out there on the Web.  Here are some lists posted on the Bibliocommons site:

Wordless Books for Creative Writers
Wordless Books-- by EPL_Literacy Librarian
Wordless Books - by Northbrook_Youth Genres

Student Book Reviews

We are beginning to launch a book review-writing effort in the library.  The purpose of the reviews will be for children to be able to recommend books to each other.  Today professional book reviewer (and TNS parent) Marjorie Ingall spoke to 1st and 2nd graders about what makes a good book review.  These are some of her tips:

• It's ok to not like a book, but you have to say why.  Always give a book a chance.  Read two pages before you decide.
• Look at the title of the book.  What does it tell you about the book?
• Tell whether it is a fiction or nonfiction book.
• If it is a picture book, do I like the pictures?
• Does the author have a message or lesson?
• Who would like this book?

Every book review should mention:

PLOT (or what the book is about)
CHARACTERS (for fiction)  Who are the characters?  Who is your favorite?  Why?
STYLE: Is it fantasy, funny, graphic novel, etc.
FEELINGS:  How did it make you feel?