We had a great time preparing and even more fun on March 8th when our team along with almost 3500 other students descended on Berkmar High School to compete.
Gwin Oaks students did a FANTASTIC job and placed 2nd in their division.
Gwin Oaks Media Center |
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March has been a busy month. One of the items that has contributed to the bustle has been the Cover 2 Cover Book Club. We met weekly from September to December to discuss the books on our list. Once all the books were read we started to prepare for the competition by meeting 2-3 times a week from January to March. We had a great time preparing and even more fun on March 8th when our team along with almost 3500 other students descended on Berkmar High School to compete. Gwin Oaks students did a FANTASTIC job and placed 2nd in their division. A few days later (just before book fair started) we celebrated with a party to honor all of their hard work. One of the best things was when a couple of my 4th grade students asked if they could be part of the book club again next year.
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Gwin Oaks students had a wonderful time on World Read Aloud Day connecting with students across the country and an author, Joanne Levy, in Canada. During World Read Aloud Day students were able to learn about the other schools they were connecting with and share stories at the same time. This day was filled with laughter, wonderful connections, and lots of good stories. I frequently heard students say how much they enjoyed it and can't wait to do it again next year. Here are just a few of the comments I heard. I liked it since it is a great day to celebrate reading.- Devin It was fun and we got to meet other people at different schools.- Arya I liked that we got to read together and join classes.-Mya The teachers also had a great time, as indicated by this post by one of them on Facebook. We had the best celebration today! Our awesome media specialist, Sharon Amolo, set up a Skype book share with a first grade class in Massachusetts. What a great experience! I have to agree with my teachers and students World Read Aloud Day was a such a magical experience. This was our first time participating, but it has already become a Gwin Oaks tradition. Loved connecting with everyone. Thanks Shannon Miller at Van Meter Elementary and Andy Plemmons at Barrow Elementary for setting up the Google Doc. It made finding others so easy. Afterwards I was easily able to make my schedule. Each student who participated in World Read Aloud Day received a sticker I made from their logo. Our first connection was with Ms. Garland's students in Massachusetts. Togehter we read two of Mo Willems Elephant and Piggie books; I'm Going and I Broke My Trunk. As always these were a crowd pleaser and a great way to start our day. Next on the schedule was Ms. Lussier's class in Connecticut. Two of her students did a fabulous job reading Hey Little Ant by Phillip M. Hoose and then Ms. Lussier and I read I'm Going and There's a Bird on Your Head by Mo Willems. Then it was time to connect with our next school in Florida. This was a special connection because Ms. Burken recently joined the Gwin Oaks Elementary family a couple of months ago and this was her former school. She was able to see her students at her old school and celebrate World Read Aloud Day with them. Next it was time to connect with Ms. Sikes's students. These students were in the county next to us in Forsyth, Georgia. It was nice to make a connection with a class close to home. Ms. Sikes read Are You a Horse by Andy Rash. My students loved this book and I promised them I would get a copy for the media center. Author Joanne Levy connected with Ms. Toldt's 5th grade class. Joanne is the author of Small, Medium, and at Large. Joanne read a funny part from the story that the students enjoyed. We spent the rest of the time asking Joanne questions about her life as author. Soon after the visit ended the copies we have in the media center were checked out. Our day continued with a connection with Ms. Lewis's students in Cherokee County, Georgia. Just like with our connection to Ms. Sikes we found a new group of friends close to home. Ms. Lewis read One Cool Friend by Toni Buzzeo and my 2nd graders and I read I'm Going by Mo Willems together. I was Elephant and they had a great time being Piggie. As our day was wrapping up we connected with a school we've been Skyping with for two years, Ms. Broderick's class at Zervas Elementary in Massachusetts. Since she had 5th graders and I had kindergartens her students read The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt aloud to my class. Her students did a wonderful job taking turns reading the different crayon parts. Our day ended with Ms. Ford's class in Texas. We each took turns reading different parts in The Day the Crayons Quit. Both of our students couldn't help but laugh as each crayon pleaded their case. We LOVE this story.
On Monday, December 9th, 3rd graders at Gwin Oaks Elementary were able to Skype with author Augusta Scattergood. Augusta is the author of Glory Be. The Skype visit was a culminating activity for the grade. Glory Be was a read aloud for all 3rd graders. It was part of their extended text to tie in with their social studies units for this year. This was the perfect story to extend their learning and thinking about civil rights and equality. During the visit students asked Augusta questions about what she enjoys doing, which character she connects most with, what research she did in preparation for writing the book, what she would change about the book if she could, what inspired her to write the book, and so many more. It was a wonderful 45 minutes that ended way too quickly. At the end of the visit as students lined up they were buzzing with excitement and so were their teachers. One student summed it perfectly when they said, "I love when we get a chance to talk to the authors. It helps me connect with the books we read." The students at Gwin Oaks were so fortunate to have 2 fantastic visits with Kate Messner in one day. Kate Messner is the author of several books including Capture the Flag, Eye of the Storm, and the Marty McGuire series. Our morning with Kate started off with the 4th and 5th graders. They read Eye of the Storm and Capture the Flag in their classroom book clubs. To prepare for Kate's visit they discussed and wrote questions about her life as an author, characters, and plot choices. During the visit Kate shared her writing process. Students were shown one of her manuscripts as well as how she develops her stories. She even shared the cover for her new book Manhunt. She also put a lot of minds at ease when she explained the purpose of the green duffle bag in Capture the Flag. Her answer to this was surprising, but also funny. The students who read Capture the Flag loved it so much that I bought copies of Hide and Seek, the next book in the series, so they could read it for the next book in their book club. After the 4th and 5th grade Skype visit ended 2nd graders came down for their time with Kate. They all read the 1st Marty McGuire book in their book club. They were thrilled when Kate showed them the title for the newest Marty McGuire book, Marty McGuire Has Too Many Pets and also when she was able to answer the questions they wrote in their book clubs. The highlight of the visit for all of the students though was definitely when Kate admitted she actually kissed a frog, now that's dedication to research. Thank you Kate for taking the time to talk and share your writing and stories with my students.
Fall means it is time to read some of my favorite stories to kindergarten. We started with the Little Old Lady Who Wasn’t Afraid of Anything and finished with The Teeny Tiny Woman. Both stories have items associated with fall that need to be put back together. Teeny Tiny woman, skeleton and Little Old Lady Who Wasn’t Afraid of Anything (scarecrow). After students moved to the table the real fun began. Each student was given a paper with a chart and a bag of bone candy that had different bone parts. Students sorted, counted, and began graphing their candy. We ran over so students were given a baggie to put their candy in to finish in the classroom and to eat later. This was a deliciously good time.
On October 17th Ingrid Law, author of Savvy and Scumble, took the time to talk to the 4th and 5th grade Cover 2 Cover Book Club students. Students finished reading the book a few weeks ago. They also prepared questions ahead of time to make the most of the time they had with Ingrid. During the visit Ingrid talked about why she became an author and what inspired her to write Savvy. She also encouraged the students to not give up on their writing and to take their ideas and turn them into their own stories. She also answered all of their questions including what she would choose as a Savvy, how it feels to be a famous author, what she would change about the story if she could, which characters she connected the most with, and so many more. With each question the students learned more about her and the books. They also learned that there will be a 3rd book, Switch. As our time was winding down students gathered around the SmartBoard to take a picture with Ingrid. We ran into a little technical difficulty, but Ingrid was very gracious and hung in there until we worked everything out.
Thank You Ingrid for a wonderful visit. On Monday my students had the pleasure of Skyping with Deborah Wiles. Deborah is the author of many books including Each Little Bird that Sings, Love Ruby Lavender, Aurora County All-Stars, Countdown, One Wide Sky, and Freedom Summer. Students who Skyped with Deborah read at least one of her books. During the visit students asked Deborah a prepared question. Deborah graciously answered all of them. Many students commented afterwards that one of the funniest and most insightful parts of the visit was when Deborah shared a story from her childhood about one of her close friends. While the story had an unhappy ending it allowed students to see why Deborah writes about friendship struggles so often in her books. Deborah was the last of nine Skype visits we hosted this year and it was a perfect way to conclude our way of inviting authors into Gwin Oaks Elementary. After the visit students gathered around the board for what has become a Gwin Oaks Skype tradition of taking a picture with the author.
The Winners of the Newbery and Caldecott Awards were announced today. Some of my favorite books from 2012 won, including The One and Only Ivan, Creepy Carrots, and Green. Check out any of the award winners at our library or the public library. Newbery winner: The One and Only Ivan Newbery Honors: Splendors and Glooms, Three Times Lucky, and Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon Caldecott Winner: This is Not My Hat Caldecott Honors: Green, One Cool Friend, Sleep Like a Tiger, Extra Yarn, and Creepy Carrots The Gwin Oaks Media Center is very fortunate to have lots of wonderful volunteers. They help with so much and help to make the Media Center a warm and inviting place. On Monday we had our annual Volunteer Holiday Party as a way to say thank you. Everyone laughed and had a great time. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU Gwin Oaks Media Center volunteers.
Skype visit with Rob Buyea
Today my 5th grade book club and Ms. Pritchard's 4th grade class had the pleasure of Skyping with Rob Buyea, author of Because of Mr. Terupt. The students prepared by writing questions ahead of time and to ask Mr. Buyea. Mr. Buyea was engaging and funny and we learned a lot about the characters and why Mr. Buyea became an author. |
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