Accelerated Reading at the Middle School

  My Assistant Principal at the middle school ia former ELA Teacher . He is a proponent of The Accelerated Reading program and has gotten a plan for each student!  So now we are working on a program on how we will carry out and promote  it to the students and teachers.

   I surveyed the ELA teachers  to see  how they would like it used. I was surprised by the answers. The seventh  grade team wanted to use it as a reading motivation and did  not want it tied to grades.  ( like a reading reward program similar to my fall into reading challenge that I am currently doing)  The  8th grade team thought they might like it tied to the grades  but then changed their mind.

 So I think we are going to go with the reading motivation theme and it will be run though then library which  is logical and also helpful because then I will not have to do anymore challenges , just help keep track of the students who are doing the most AR!

  What do you do at your school ( especially Middle School) for accelerated Reading? Leave your ideas and comments below please!

Weekly Reading

    Every week , I pick at least one book to read from my middle school collection.Sometimes it's a brand new book, other times it's just one that catches my eye and I think looks good. I want to be able to recommend books to the students and also know whats in my collection.

   I am reading Phillipa Gregory's Changeling. Actually I had read it before , but now I am reading to determine if we should get the then next one in this series- I am thinking I already read the next one because I have read all of her books as they are interesting and a great read.

 Short summary: Luca ( age 17)  is recruited to record the end of times across
Europe. Isolde ( also 17)is trapped in a nunnery, following her dead fathers wishes.  Luca is sent to the nunnery to investigate some strange occurrence.

  

November Bulletin Board Ideas

           November  Bulletin Board Ideas:

   Elect to read!
   Children's Book Week,
   Don't be a turkey, Read!
   Be Thankful for great books.
   What are you Thankful for?
   Gobble up these  great books - turkey with book covers of book chosen by you or students
   Pick a winner- football theme

Photos of my desk

On the right- my daily planner book, my librarian notebook and manuals for my library circ programs. My basket is used to put important files and papers.That is my "To Do File"

Right hand side- my weekly files with projects I am working on, also meeting files, budget files, and  files used daily or weekly!

The whole thing - How I leave it almost every night!

For Librarians- my office desk

    On my desk there is are two file sorters because I do not have a file cabinet on my desk. These are  items use on a daily and weekly basis. Every thing else is in my file cabinet or will be in my file cabinet when I get my filing supplies.

    In the front of one file sorter I have my to do file.In that there are items that I need to work on . I also have a to file folder, and also a to read file which is full of items to read.
   Then I have several folders of  things I am working on . I really like to focus on one project at a time- I feel that is the best way to get tasks accomplished.  But there are a few things ( like my monthly report and my monthly newsletter that I work on a little at a time , staring in the middle of the month).

 So for right now  I have a book club folder- my first meeting was last week and I have two more this week. After that I will move that folder until I need it.  It  have a folder  with my budget work in it - because that is something that I will use until my money is spent.

 In another stack sorter, I have my plan book, my " important papers" note book and also printed manuals about my circ system and other items that I refer to on a daily basis.

  This keeps my desk clean and organized.  I know where everything is and I can pullout what I need when need itl

Teaching with Primary Sources: Historical Photographs

 Teaching with photographs( primary sources) motivates and encourages students to ask good questions and will eventually lead to higher order thinking.  Primary Source photographs inspire students to think about the past an relate it to their life today.

  As educators we need to determine questions about each photograph.  Students will need to study and investigate the photograph to locate information and  think of an answer to a question.
 This  will bring an emphasis on inquiry learning with encourages  learns to observe, analyze,  and form their own ideas on the primary source, This also helps them build knowledge.

More information will follow  about the Library Of Congress website - check this out for Primary Sources useful for American History.

https://memory.loc.gov/ammem/index.html

Reading Posters from the library!

   I will be working with my art teacher to produce reading posters. The poster will be a montage of students reading in different locations ( maybe even at their homes with their pets or siblings??) I would like to make a couple for each floor and perhaps even doubles of some of the photos.

  The art teacher is going to mount them on poster board. We will come up with a catchy slogan- perhaps more than one. 

  I am hoping to show how many students like reading and do read.  I am open to students reading newspapers, comics,  or magazines. I will also catch students reading text books, signs, and posters.  This will be a great way to showcase reading at the middle School or on any level/.

Library Calendar of classes and activiites.

 I just finished this posting my library calendar on the school library's website.   It was there before  but not up to date or very visible to the staff. What I did was place the link to the calendar in the middle of the main page. 

 On the calendar, I have posted the classes that will be in the library for that week. This way  teacher can look at the calendar and see if the library is open for students to  come and  check out books or be sent to do computer work or research.   Also teachers can look at it and plan  when to bring students or have students work on projects.

  Many times during the course of the week, I am into classrooms and or in the lab helping students do research  so this is also helpful to know if I am there or not. My assistant is not always there , so I may find a way to indicate that information.

   I then sent a mass email to staff and told them about where the link was to the calendar. I am hoping this will also serve as a reminder  that they can reserve the library and it resources for their classwork.

Reading & Writing Partnership- Librarians and teachers

     School Librarians  make good partners with ELA and reading teachers. Librarians provide oral and silent reading  depending on the grade  level. We  as Librarians provide quality books to help improve reading scores.

   In the context of reading , students often are asked to describe , synthesize, analyze, and critique their  understanding of what they have read. So when librarians provide books, model and share our love of reading, we can motivate and encourage  more student reading.

   Discussions, book clubs, reviews, casual conversation,   and book challenges are all part of the job. We need to read and know the quality books in our collection in order to motivate our students. So big surprise we need to read!

Bulletin Boards for October

  These are just a few ideas for October:

 Fall in love with reading!  leaves falling down to the ground from a bare tree- could put titles of books on the leaves

Scare up some good books- ghosts with titles on it

Pick of the patch- lots of pumpkins!

Reading is a Scream - put up covers of
scary or horror  books all around the letters!

One Goal for the school year

One of the goals of the school library media specialist  is to promote  reading and also work with staff  to help improve reading scores.  This is one of my goals this year. When students become better readers they do better in school.

  So here is a few ideas that I will use to work on this goal.  Student made reading posters, books displays, author posters,   book discussion groups,  library recess groups, use of the AR program, and reading motivation programs.  I am also hoping to work more closely with reading and ELA teachers,

  A few more ideas  to get students more involved in good books are: shelf talkers, student book reviews on our website and reading workshops.

Library or Classroom Project- Did you Know?

      An interesting and little different author/ reading project is an Author Poster, which could be do as a small group or individual  project  .  Students choose a favorite author to research . They will find interesting biographical information  about the author. "Did you know?" can be the heading and the information can be listed in bullets or around  appropriate images or clip art or the authors photo. This poster will also have a list of titles  written by the author. 
       This will provide students with good suggestions for excellent  reads. The posters can be displayed in the library, in the hallways and in classrooms. After having several done, the posters can be swapped out for different ones  to provide variety, interest and surprise.

Library Databases & Passwords

   Last week got away from me and I did not post- guess it was the first week of school thing.  Anyway I am planning a type of book mark or "cheat sheet"  for use by my staff and students.  This will provide  the log in and passwords  to our school databases. ( could also be adapted for the public library  if they have passwords)

   Students will be shown the  log in and passwords when I instruct them on the databases. I will have the 'bookmarks' available  for anyone who wants them during a research project for their use and to keep. We will also have copies at the circ desk in the library, by the computer bank in the library, and also in the computer lab.   Another larger copy can be taped to the laptop carts that are used by the students in their classrooms.
  I am also planning to give the teachers laminated  one for their personal use. This will help keep students and staff   to have easy access ( and a reminder) to the effectiveness of the databases.

Series list for students!

   The students in my middle school love to read series books. We always are stopping to check what order the titles  should be read. So I am hoping this year to a make " Series" books which will be kept at the  circulation desk.

  In it  will  be Authors name, series name, title of books and the order in which they should be read.
In the future as we purchase new titles and series , we will put numbers on the spine and also try to shelves them in number order.

 Then student can check the  lists and the shelves easily to get the book in the series they want.

New School Year Coming Up!

   I'm very excited about this new school year- I will actually be able to be a real librarian at the Middle school.  I will be collaborating with teachers to instruct  and assist students in their  need for informational resources. I want also to encourage  reading for pleasure and recreation.

    I am working on a newsletter to promote the library media centers services to both small and large groups. Also in the newsletter there will be a resource  link column  that will highlight an few interesting  and useful websites  for teachers to use for  subject resources and to use with students to  provide more engaging lessons.

  In the newsletter I will have a listing of some of the newest   titles added to the library's collection. The newsletters will hopefully be  issued monthly to advertises the library and my willingness to collaborate!

Comic creator- on readwritethink

  Comic creator is  on the www.readwritethink site. This is a very easy generator which would work for early elementary students  and those beginning to create comic strips in the classroom. The student type in title of cartoon and subtitle and the authors names.

   Then the student chooses number of panels- this one goes up to 6  with lower options.( 1 to 6) After that creation is just a few clicks away.  the Student can add a caption under each panel,  and characters.  There are speaking balloons in which they can add dialogue.  Props and background can also be added. When the student is finished , they can also be edited or printed.  The only drawback is that the comic can not be saved. But this would still be a good site if you are trying to  begin creating comic strips in your classroom.

What students can do on blogs

 What is the right age to begin blogging? For starters we could ask older  students( 4th and 5th graders) to do some critical thinking and writing  by asking students to find interesting and relevant   to our subjects  websites . We can show them how to write about what is useful about the sites.  They could also write their reactions to what they are reading or doing in the classroom.

  The other thing we can do is to bring primary sources( authors, scientists, politicians) into he blog and have students  ask questions and then reflect on the answers given.

  Middle school students can be asked to become experts about topics they care about. They can  research, share this on class  blogs and take questions from classmates. High school student s can use blogs for extend study or reflection on a topic. They can reflect  and build on previous ideas and knowledge. They can give feedback into class mates, advance new ideas and analyze the topic or subject at hand.

 These are broad ideas on beginning blogging with students  , I would love any ideas about what you do with your students.

Online Newsletters?? Who does them?

   I am hoping to do an online newsletter this year for my staff.  What I want to do is to advertise my services to the teachers , promote the library resources - both new and old, and also include  important links and websites that  would help the staff in their educational goals.

So the question is  : Do you do an online newsletter? What program do you use?  Do you use a program or just  put the information in an email. How do you know if the newsletter is being read? How long do you make it( Pages?)How often do you do one?  What do you include  ?   I am hoping someone can give me some clues where to start!  Thanks in advance for any comments  or replies!

Using Comic Strip Makers in your classroom

  We know how so many students, especially struggling and reluctant readers like graphic novels.  That is why  many students like creating comic strips on the computer . So it is a good  idea to look for a way to incorporate building comic strips  in your classroom using your subject area as the basis. 

  In building  comic strips , students need to  plan a story line or list events in order. Students can express themselves  and gain and build knowledge.   There are many free comic strip makers which I will explore for another post.

  The words and pictures in a comic strip work together  to have the student obtain information about the context of the comic strip.  Comics are very motivating . Most students will like to read their own and others . This will lead to more reading and learning. 

Mobymax.com

   Mobymax.com was designed by K-8 educators  who are from all over the world. The site can be used by teachers in schools, parents / guardians to help  their children, and homeschooling households to assist in their children's education.

  There is a free version and a paid version. According to the site it is very affordable  and in place in over half of the K- 8 schools in America.

  When you look at the icons  on the home page, you will see a variety of subjects- Math, science, Social Studies , writing workshop, test prep- to name a few.  There are worksheets to print out. They also offer student  incentives/ motivators  .

  To get started , register your students. The program keeps track of what has been accomplished / lessons finished. This looks like it would be very helpful to the classroom and subject area teachers.

  

Photos on the web

   Why should we consider posting  student images/ photos to the web? This fits in nicely with my current obsession for blogging with students!
    We can capture daily events or highlights of the day  and then easily share these with parents, the school at large, and even the community.   Many special events could also easily be highlighted. This provides good PR for our schools! Let the parents and community know the good about the school . So think about field trips, special speakers, visitors, special projects  and so much more  that is part of our daily classroom routines and activities.

   This would also provide a good way of sharing the teaching and learning experience. It is a good way to showcase students work . Students could post also post comments or annotations on the photos or images which would contribute to increased thinking and writing skills.

  I am going to do some more reading on  posting students photos/ images on blogs and wiki's. Does anyone already do this? Can you  please leave your comments,  and suggestions below ?  I am also looking for a photo program where by I can do this with the student blog I am hoping to start!

Student Blogging !

  Posting to a blog can take many forms. Students can write personal reactions to the subject/ topic covered in class. They can post links that are applicable to the topic/ assignment covered.

  Depending on the topic or subject area, they can also  write reflectively on the what is being read. A blog  could also  be used as a journal or a place to publish creative writing.

  As teachers we  would be looking for the readers response . It will be a way for us and the students to test ideas and thoughts . Writers ( students) can response and give feedback. Teachers and staff can also do the same.

   The vision for blogging us having students read,  and respond to what interests them . They can ask questions of peers and teachers. While doing this reading , writing, and questioning they build their reading , writing and analyzing skills.