Pine Hill Media Center News

Happy 2008! Here I am, the official Library Teacher, and I am enjoying every minute. I have been busy creating a “reading nook” in honor of Carol DeFusco which has led to several other changes in the layout of the Media Center. The students are very excited about the new area rug and bench that were donated in Carol’s honor. It is amazing how a few changes can generate so much interest and excitement.

I am enjoying working with all of the classes at Pine Hill and the variety of ages is refreshing to me. Here is what we have been up to:

Kindergarten: I read the tale Seven Blind Mice by Ed Young to the students and gave them the chance to retell the story using props on the magnetic board. They also made mice book marks. Most recently we learned about the trickster, Anasi, as we read Anasi and the Talking Melon by Eric Kimmel. We will continue to read and discuss folktales.

First Grade: We had some fun reading The Little Red Hen by Jerry Pinkney. Some classes acted this traditional tale out and others broke down the parts of the story: characters, setting, problem and solution. We then enjoyed reading a parody of The Little Red Hen called Cook-a-Doodle-Doo! by Janet Stevens and Susan Stevens Crummel, and compared it to the traditional story. Later this month we will be reading the wonderful non-fiction story Owen and Mzee: the true story of a remarkable friendship told by Isabella Hatkoff, Craig Hatkoff and Dr. Paula Kahumbu.

Second Grade: Judith Viorst is the subject of our author study in second grade. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day was the first of her works that we’ve read along with another about Alexander. We will continue to read her books and also look at her web site to read about her life to see if we can find out where her ideas come from.

Third Grade: Over the next few months we will be reading literature set in different regions of the United States. We have been reading books set in the Southeast beginning with The Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant and Big Mama by Tony Crunk. As we read we are talking about different features that we notice in the story or illustrations that show us what life in this part of our country is like.

Fourth Grade: As part of our discussion on plagiarism we read the book When Marion Copied by Brook Berg. We also talked about what we need to do to give the author of information we use credit for that information. Most recently we looked at a couple of web sites and evaluated them based on who created them, when they were created and the type of information the sites contained. The idea is to get students thinking about what they are looking at as they use the internet for research.

Fifth Grade: In fifth grade we have been talking to them about the same topics as in fourth grade. The students seem very interested in learning how to do the right thing when it comes to citing sources and using the internet for research. Ms. Willis, the computer specialist, has also been working with them in computer class on these same topics.

As I am trying to take over the administration of the Media Center, I will be sending home notices to students with overdue books on a regular basis. Please take a minute, or two, to look for any overdue books and return them as soon as possible. Thanks so much for all of your cooperation and support as I embark on my new adventure as Pine Hill’s Library Teacher. Thanks especially to the wonderful team of volunteers that makes it all possible!

Mrs. Defusco and I want to let you know about a couple of exciting events that will be taking place in November. First, author Kate DiCamillo will be appearing on November 9th at 6 p.m. at the Wilson Middle School in Natick. She has written great books for all ages such as Because of Winn Dixie, The Tale of Despereaux, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane and the Mercy Watson series about the adventures of an amazing, toast-loving pig. Take a look at her web site to learn more!

Another event to mark on your calendar is Mike Lupica’s appearance on November 16th at 4 p.m. at the Wellesley Free Library at 530 Washington Street in Wellesley. Mike is a sports writer that has written several great books including the children’s books Heat, Travel Team, and Miracle on 49th Street are a few of his titles. We have many fans of Mr. Lupica’s work here at Pine Hill! His books fly off the shelf! He writes action-packed adventures that children can relate to.

If you’ve read books by either of these authors, take a minute to tell us the title of the book and write a bit about what you thought of it. You can click on the “comments” link to send your comments to me and I will add them to this blog for other students to read.

Mrs. Defusco and I hope to see you at the presentations!

As you’ve all read in Mrs. Defusco’s newsletter, I will be working with her in our Media Center “learning the ropes” until her retirement in December. After having been a classroom teacher for 13 years, the last seven teaching fifth grade at Pine Hill, I am feeling reenergized by this change. Those of you that know Carol can only imagine the exciting experience this is! There is so much to learn and I am thoroughly enjoying working with all of the students and teachers in our school.

I am currently wearing several hats as I work on transitioning into my new role. I am co-teaching math in Ms. Scobie’s second and third grade multiage classroom and spending some time with the fourth graders as they practice typing in the computer lab. I have also had the opportunity to begin to provide some enrichment activities. I recently worked with a small group from Ms. Sidman’s first and second grade multi-age class teaching them how to describe and identify leaves. The students presented what they learned to the rest of the class and their work is posted in the classroom for all of the students to use. I am looking forward to doing more of this type of curriculum work with students throughout the school.

Another aspect of this career change for me is that I am back in graduate school. As I work toward my Masters in Library Media Studies I will be using what I learned in “library school” in my job at Pine Hill. My first endeavor is this blog! I want to have a place where we, parents, students and teachers, can share our thoughts about books and great resources on the web. I’m not sure if this is the format I will be using for all of my newletters. There are so many options I’ve yet to explore – wikis are next on my list! I’ll appreciate your feedback and I’m looking forward to working with you as I begin this adventure!