We will be learning about the Hindu holiday of Diwali this week. Students will learn about Diwali through the reading of "Binny's Diwali", an age-appropriate book about a young girl who shares her holiday with the students in her class. Sometimes it is difficult to find "just right" books to explain topics like this to our young students but this one is perfect. I loved that it talked about the universal themes of goodness and hope and enabled me to make connections between other holidays celebrated by our students. After checking out books, students colored "rangoli" designs and listened to Diwali music.
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I'm trying this blogging thing again and I'm told that I have to keep doing it even though it seems like no one is reading. My plan is to write a post on Friday that sums up our week in the library. This year I have found that the key to successful lessons in the library is flexibility. When students came in this week, they encountered a variety of surprises - animals, skulls, bones and a creepy arm that mysteriously moves around on its own. Book connections included an A-Z book about skulls, fiction and non-fiction books about boars, beavers, rabbits, and possums.
Most classes visited the Media Center the first week of school where Ms. Zeff read this book. The main character LOVES his life - sitting on the couch all day and watching his screens until something happens and he has to spend time outside. You can listen to the author and illustrator read the book here. Common Sense Media has reviews, as well as some discussion questions for the family. This is an especially timely topic following our year and a half of virtual learning!
11/16/2020 0 Comments Media Center Choice BoardVisit the Media Center Google Classroom for the latest Choice Board including a Thanksgiving read aloud, activities and more. You can check back throughout the week as I will continue to add resources.
10/7/2020 0 Comments Chapter Book Series
Welcome to the Year of School-ish, courtesy of this Peter Reynolds graphic and my personal theme for the new school year. It describes virtual learning so appropriately and is also a nod to this wonderful author who visited our school in March, 2020 just before we left school. We will always treasure the time we got to spend visiting with him as he autographed our books. The Media Center classroom will be available next week to all students. I will be posting asynchronous activities there, as well as collaborating with teachers to connect with students in their primary classrooms. In addition, I will be using this blog to post information and resources relevant to families and caregivers. The best news of all is our District-wide effort to create a "Flybrary" so that students can check out books during virtual learning. This was the ultimate example of collaboration across the District and we will make tweaks to the process as necessary. The information below is an overview of how the process will work at this time although we will not be starting until September 1st. Click here for an explanation of how our "Flybrary" will work. The biggest decision point that families need to make is to either pick books up at the school or have them delivered by bus. The delivery method cannot be changed from week to week so please give it some thought and see what might work best for your family. As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email me, Ilene Zeff, at - [email protected].
Another great resource from Common Sense Media. They don't overwhelm you with texts AND they make it easy to "opt out."
In doing professional learning with Common Sense Education, I came across this very timely list of resources.
5/31/2020 0 Comments Summer Reading IntroductionI've been thinking for the past few weeks about my "normal" summer reading letter to families. From Hangouts with students these past few months, talking to Winnona Park parents, as well as Clairemont parents and students in my neighborhood, I decided to continue using the virtual learning tools instead so that I can continue posting information and resources. The Media Center Classroom will remain open and I encourage you to check out some of the activities if you weren't able to so during the school year. Keyboarding is a great activity for practicing at home. For now, I will primarily be posting here on the blog. Please check the "Summer Reading" category for individual posts on resources related to reading. In addition, I also post to the Media Center's Facbook page @wpmediacenter. The Comment section is open so please feel free to leave comments for me or other visitors. Access information for website is posted under the "Online Resources" tab with headings at the top of each column. Please email me if you have any questions - [email protected].
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