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Thank You to all of our library volunteers!

Today I want to thank all of the library volunteers for the 2010-2011 school year. The library really can't flourish without you. You do everything from checking books in and out, shelving using the Dewey Decimal System (not a bad lifelong skill to know), and many smaller tasks that free me up to focus on teaching and learning with the students. It really is an invaluable contribution to the Williams community.

I want to give a special shout out to Carole McElduff and Anne Stephens, who coordinate the volunteers and insure that all classes have a parent to assist in the library.  They also do a fabulous job with the gift book program, which has grown so much since I began my tenure at Williams.  I think we may have set a record for books sold this year.  This is so important as our budget shrinks!  Families are so generous and our library collection is solid and continues to grow in all areas. I can't thank you all enough for this contribution to our school.

Literacy is the key to learning for all of us, no matter what stage of life we are in.  It is crucial for our children to establish a foundation for literacy that promotes a love of reading, a yearning for knowledge, and the ability to use all the media formats that they will encounter as they grow as learners in the 21st century.

Have a great summer and keep reading!!

 

NPS Elementary Summer Reading List now available online

The annual summer reading list is now available at the following link:

http://www3.newton.k12.ma.us/librarymedia

Just click on the link for Summer 2011 Reading List.  You will find selections from all genres for grades K-6.  There is also a section on Websites to keep you reading, learning, and having fun.  There is a reading log to help you keep track of what you read and record what you liked about the book.  This list is compiled every year by the Newton Public Schools elementary librarians.

You should also check out the booklists posted on the Newton Free Library Children's room Website. You can access it at:

http://www.newtonfreelibrary.net/childrens/booklists/?sec=childrens&sub=booklists

Let's keep the kids reading all summer long. It is fun and helps sustain good reading habits while school is out.

Mass Children's book award winners

The winners for the Mass Children Book Award have been announced.  The winner is 11 Birthdays, by Wendy Mass. Here is a summary of the book from our catalog:

After celebrating their first nine same-day birthdays together, Amanda and Leo, having fallen out on their tenth and not speaking to each other for the last year, prepare to celebrate their eleventh birthday separately but peculiar things begin to happen as the day of their birthday begins to repeat itself over and over again.

 You can view the honor books by going to the MCBA site:

http://www.salemstate.edu/ACA_sohs/2011_MCBA_Winners.pdf

You can also view the whole list of nominated books for this year on the site. The books are appropriate for grades 4-6, so this is a good place to go when you are thinking about looking for some good reads this summer.

Thanks to fifth graders for fabulous book suggestions for the library!

Our fifth graders have been blogging about books on my library blog. We use Kidblog.org, where all of our information can only be accessed if you have a user name and password.   All fifth graders are eligible to participate in the blog.   They have had three posts to respond to thus far. We have discussed the Mass Children's book award nominees in one post. Students have been suggesting titles for the library and making reading recommendations for each other on the other two posts. I have been responding to their suggestions and so has the PTO. Thanks to the fifth graders and the generosity of the PTO we are purchasing many of the titles that they have requested. I have been very impressed with their comments and their ability to communicate with each other and with me via this media.

Opening Day at Fenway!!

Our library has many good baseball books. If you do a keyword search, you will see a total of 233 books that have the word baseball somewhere in the record. One of my favorites is 86 years: The legend of the Boston Red Sox, because it has wonderful realistic illustrations and recounts the story of the 2004 world championship team. We have a good selection of fiction, nonfiction, picture books, and even poetry to choose from, including a couple of versions of the most famous baseball poem of all: Casey at the Bat. You can read about women in baseball, and the struggles of African Americans to be accepted in Major League Baseball. Since I love baseball I could go on about this forever, but I would rather you come on in and check them out!!

Our Catalog Online

Did you know that you can look up books in the Williams School Library from home?  You can go to the Williams Library Web Site and then click on Williams School Library Catalog. It will take you directly to the catalog. Find out if the title you are looking for is available.  Take a look at the top ten books in circulation at our library, and more!

Here is the direct link:

http://npsdestiny.newton.k12.ma.us/cataloging/servlet/presentadvancedsearchredirectorform.do;jsessionid=7FA602B10711DC0D679E6474A13E1387?l2m=Library%20Search&tm=Catalog&l2m=Library+Search