Aloha!

ALOHA!

I had the wonderful opportunity to travel to Hawaii, for a week, over President's Day.  My entire extended family (22 of us) rented a beach house in Kailua, Hawaii.  It was our Christmas to each other this year and I have been looking forward to it for some time now.  

One of the things I have wanted to do is hike the Haiku Stairs - "Stairway to Heaven" near Kaneohe.  The Haiku Stairs are approximately 4,000 stairs that lead up to a radar tower used in World War II.

You have to sneak in to this hike before the guard arrives at 3:00am.  15 of our 22 people conquered the "Stairway to Heaven."   It was dangerous and scary and difficult, but there were breathtaking views from the top. 

I absolutely love that my family and especially my children commit to doing these crazy things that I come up with to do.  I can now mark this off my "bucket list."


Is there something you are aspiring to do or something you hope to mark off your "bucket list?" 

Winners!

The Grand Prize Winner for the period of February 5th to to February 26th is Marianne!  She has won a $50.00 iTunes gift card to purchase educational apps for her iPad!






Additional winners of smaller prizes are:

Pamela
Joseph
Jean B.
Stephanie
Mary A.

Thank you all for your comments to our library blog!

Jeanne K.'s Birthday

Today is Jeanne K.'s birthday!  Jeanne loves her school and is involved in many activities and committees in addition to her library duties.  This makes her invaluable to her school!  Happy birthday to Jeanne!

Glogster - Maybe a Beginning of the Year Presentation?

Check out this great Glog that Marianne made.  Don't miss the little video she embedded.  Her dog has admirable self-control!  


She also put a Wordle right into her Glog.  It's about her favorite books.  :-)

This would be a fun thing to show to students at the beginning of the year.

If you experiment with Glogster, don't forget to use Glogster.Edu---not regular Glogster.

Beehive Book Awards

In what ways do you highlight/display the Beehive  Book Award nominees in your library? 

Throughout the year, are you able to read the picture book nominees to your students?
  
Do you book talk the other nominees?
  
Do you have students vote for their favorites? If so, how do you handle that?

Inventory

Inventory can be a difficult part of the job of a Library Technology Teacher because it's hard to fit into busy library schedules.  But it's a good feeling when it's all finished because we know that the records for our holdings are now accurate.  

What are your tips and tricks for surviving inventory? Do you have suggestions to make it go more smoothly?

Chinese New Year

Happy Chinese New Year!  2013 is the Year of the Snake.

What Chinese sign were YOU born under?  I was born in 1965, and so I was born in the Year of the Snake!

How well do the characteristics of your Chinese sign really fit you? 

Mary A.'s Birthday

Today is Mary A.'s birthday!  Mary loves to do research and find just the perfect information for every situation that confronts her. She loves being a librarian and thinks it is the best job in the world!  Happy birthday to Mary!

John C.'s Birthday

Today is the birthday of John C.  John wears many hats at his school and cheerfully provides his expertise and skills to the many different high school departments.  Happy birthday to John!

Valentine's Day Books

What are some Valentine's Day books that you like to share with your students?

Our Latest Winners!

The latest winners are:

Grand Prize Winner:   Julie B.

Other Winners:
Amy
Mary H.
Phyllis
Carlynn
John C.
                            

Congratulations to all!

                       

Susette's Birthday

Today is Susette's birthday!  Susette is so organized in how she teaches her library lessons each week.  Her school is large, her schedule is full, and yet she always stays positive in the way she approaches her library duties.  Happy birthday to her!

Reading to Your Class

When I was in elementary school, I have happy memories of many of my teachers reading out loud to us.  I particularly remember  one of my teachers reading Where the Red Fern Grows.

And then I grew up!  And then I became a teacher, too!  And then I had a class of my own to read to!  I'm grateful to the example of my own grade school teachers and their dedication to reading out loud. I taught 3rd grade for many years, and I read to my students every day after lunch.  One of my favorite books to read aloud was The BFG. I read it to every class every year, and they loved it!

Sadly, with today's tight school schedules, it is often difficult for classroom teachers to be able to fit in some time to read aloud each day.

What books do you remember your own teachers reading aloud to you when you were young?

When you were a classroom teacher, what books did you read aloud to your students?

Maurice Sendak

Leslie Lewis said that as she was driving in to work today, she was listening to NPR in the car.  They were talking about the last book that Maurice Sendak wrote before he died last May at age 83.  The book, called My Brother's Book, will be available beginning tomorrow, February 5th, and it's a tribute to Mr. Sendak's older brother, Jack.

Do you have a favorite Maurice Sendak book?

UELMA and UCET Winners!

The names have been drawn from the hat, and here are the winners.

UELMA Registration Winners:

Pamela
Jill
Janice
Joseph
Susette

UCET Registration Winners:

Marianne
Tamara
Margo
Sarah
Jean B.

This only pays for the conference registrations.  All winners still need to get permission from their principals to attend the conference.  Principals will need to pay for substitutes.

Winners---if you will not be able to attend the conference, will you please let me know by Wednesday, February 6th.  At that time, we will draw a replacement name.

Congratulations to our winners!  

Destiny Interface

 When your students use the library catalog, which interface do they use the most-----Classic Destiny or Destiny Quest?

Joseph's Birthday

Joseph emailed me yesterday and said that he didn't think that I could be persuaded from posting birthday wishes to him today.  So he wanted to request that I use this image for his birthday.  So here it is!  Joseph chose this!

Joseph is very dedicated to teaching good research skills to his students.  He does a great job in helping students see how they will be doing research for their whole lives---in one form or another!  :-)  Happy birthday to Joseph!

Newbery and Caldecott Announced Today

 The Newbery and Caldecott awards were announced today at the ALA Conference in Seattle.

Newbery Winner:   The One and Only Ivan
                                 Written by Katherine Applegate

Newbery Honor:     Splendors and Glooms
                                 Written by Laura Schlitz


Newbery Honor:     Bomb: The Race to Build and Steal the World's Most Dangerous Weapon
                                 Written by Steve Sheinkin

Newbery Honor:     Three Times Lucky
                                 Written by Sheila Turnage

Caldecott Winner:   This Is Not My Hat
                                  Written and illustrated by J.P. Klassen

Caldecott Honor:    Creepy Carrots
                                 Written by Aaron Reynolds
                                 Illustrated by Peter Brown

Caldecott Honor:   Extra Yarn
                                Written by Mac Barnett
                                Illustrated by John Klassen

Caldecott Honor:   Green
                                Written and illustrated by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Caldecott Honor:   One Cool Friend
                                Written by Toni Buzzeo
                                Illustrated by David Small

Caldcott Honor:     Sleep Like a Tiger
                                Written by Mary Logue
                                Illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski

Pride and Prejudice

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife."

Today, January 28th, is the 200th anniversary of the publishing of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.  It was published in London on January 28, 1813 by Thomas Egerton Publishers.

“Originally titled First Impressions, Pride and Prejudice  was written between October 1796 and August 1797 when Jane Austen was not yet twenty-one, the same age, in fact, as her fictional heroine Elizabeth Bennet. After an early rejection by the publisher Cadell who had not even read it, Austen's novel was finally bought by Egerton in 1812 for £110. It was published in late January 1813 in a small edition of approximately 1500 copies and sold for 18 shillings in boards. In a letter to her sister Cassandra on 29 January 1813, Austen writes of receiving her copy of the newly publishing novel (her "own darling child"), and while acknowledging its few errors, she expresses her feelings toward its heroine as such: "I must confess that I think her as delightful a creature as ever appeared in print, & how I shall be able to tolerate those who do not like her at least, I do not know." (Source: http://www.theatlanticwire.com/entertainment/2013/01/pride-and-prejudice-200th-anniversary-covers/60978/)                                                                                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                                                                                 Are you a Jane Austen fan?  Is Pride and Prejudice a favorite?

And what about the movies?  There have been many movie versions of Pride and Prejudice over the years.  Which is your favorite?  

Jane Austen

Groundhog Facts

As librarians, we are Information Specialists.  

What's a fun fact about groundhogs?

Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania

Have any of you ever actually been to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania where Punxsutawney Phil lives?

Have any of you ever seen a real groundhog?

Where the heck is Punxsutawney?  I wonder where the unusual name comes from.

Is there a real and proper town of Punxsutawney---as in, is there a Punxsutawney High School and a Punxsutawney Public Library and a Punxsutawney WalMart? :-)  Or is it a few buildings out in the middle of nowhere that only exists for the benefit of groundhogs and weather forecasters?

Groundhog's Day

Sometimes I forget the details of how Groundhog's Day works when the groundhog is rudely awakened and forced to come out in the cold.

When the groundhog comes out, if the weather is bright and the sun is shining, then the groundhog will see his shadow---and that will alarm him---and so he'll go back into his burrow---and it means that winter will continue for 6 more weeks.

If the weather is overcast and the sky is cloudy, then the groundhog won't see his shadow---and that means that spring will arrive early.

This just kind of doesn't make sense to me!

But, nevertheless,  what is your prediction?  Shadow YES or Shadow NO?

Aren't iPads Just Great?

What was one fun or useful thing that you used your iPad for over the long weekend?

Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Presidents' Day

 
Are there any kind of special activities or books that you share with students for Martin Luther King Jr. Day or for Presidents' Day?

Woot Woot for our Winners!

The winner of the $50.00 iTunes app card is Tamara!  This prize covers the period of December 19th to January 15th.  She can purchase lots of educational apps for her iPad!

Additional winners of smaller prizes are:

Susette
Pamela
Jean B.
Joseph
Sarah


Thank you all for your comments to our library blog. You are all a bright spot on these cold, wintry days!

Snow Again!

These are pictures from Leslie Lewis's home in Centerville.  She figures that she got about 31 inches of snow!  In my front yard in Farmington, we think we got about 3 feet of snow!  

How much snow fell where you live?

What are your shoveling stories?  

Snow!

We cancelled the afterschool iPad class today because of the mega snow storm that is on its way.  That got me thinking about what it's like when there is lots and lots of snow on the playground, what it's like when students come in from outside recess all cold and wet, what it's like when you're trying to teach and the kids are looking out the window at the snow, what it's like to drive in to school early in the morning with white knuckles because of the road conditions.......

What have been some of your experiences, either when you used to be in a classroom, or while in the library, with big snow storms?  

When I taught 3rd grade, I can remember how antsy and unfocused my students would get when it was snowing really hard outside.  We live in snowy Utah, for goodness sake, and you'd think that snow would not be such a distraction to kids---but my students were just about always distracted when it was storming.

Newbery Award

The Newbery Award will be announced on January 28, 2013.  What are your feelings about this award?

* Do your students regularly read award winners?

* Do some teachers assign students to read award books?

* The Newbery is traditionally intended for excellence in writing
   for middle readers.  Do you think that the Newbery winners
   and Honor books really reflect the interests of middle 
   readers?

* Have there been years where you just loved the winner?

* Have there been years when you didn't think the winner was a good choice?

* Have you seen trends in Newbery winners?

* What is your favorite Newbery winner of all time?

* What is your least favorite Newbery?

Rose's Birthday

Today is Rose's birthday!  Rose is such an integral part of everything that goes on at Jackson.  She is a true curriculum specialist!  Happy birthday to her!

Amy's Birthday

Today is Amy's birthday!  Amy does such a great job in embracing technology and integrating it seamlessly into her library curriculum.  Happy happy birthday to her!