Author Visit: Monica Wellington

It was a delight to have author/illustrator Monica Wellington as our guest yesterday.  Monica has written and illustrated Apple Farmer Annie, Pizza at Sally's, Mr. Cookie Baker, and other food-related picture books.  (Each of these has recipes at the end of the book and have, hence, become part of our cookery collection).  Laura's and Erica's class had very insightful questions to ask her.

We learned that the first sketch is done in pencil and is called a "dummy".

Next comes the color. Monica uses colored pencils and gouache paint. We spotted the differences between the original sketch and the final version.

"Squeaking of Art" includes references to many of Monica's favorite works of art.

New SmartBoard!

Our new SmartBoard* was delivered this week, replacing an "old" model that required a cart and projector that stood in the way of good viewing.  The new one has an integrated projector and is low to the ground, enabling our smallest learners to get involved with interactive whiteboard learning.  We use the SmartBoard to play fun literacy-centered games in the Library.  A favorite this week for grades 3-5 is "Order in the Library", an interactive sorting game that reinforces alphabetizing skills. The students are loving it!   *thanks to a grant from our City Councilwoman, Rosie Mendez