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Circulation Policies in our Library

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Developing relationships with students and families is my priority. I want them to have what they need from our library, but I also want (and need) them to respect our library and other students and return books so others can borrow them. Lost books are a reality. We lose MANY of them (too many of them) because it isn't something I spend much time or energy dwelling on. My hope is that the "lost" book has found its way into a home and is being loved there. However, this is something that has been increasingly on my mind. This past summer I read Rebeka Barringer's Knowledge Quest article  “How Inclusive and Human-First Circulation Policies & Practices Can Impact a Child’s Relationship with Elementary Library Spaces” (Nov/Dec 2022) and it spoke to me. It made me think about the language used to communicate with families student buy-in (or lack thereof) in the circulation of books I decided on action items for this year to address lost books: Help students underst

Rating Rear Ends!

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When I found this book, I KNEW it would get students' attention.  Any and all things "gross," "weird" or potentially "inappropriate" scream out READ ME! I took this opportunity to purchase it, read it aloud and create a fun activity that would (hopefully) get students' attention (grades 2-5). I chose four animals to feature. Each animal's "behind" had a moment to shine (or block, stink, paralyze, etc). We read and "ewww-ed." Four rear ends that paralyze, communicate, frighten, and block. Then we rated the rump. The book had a 5 emoji rating system, but I modified it so we could have a "four corner" system. I created signs and put them at the corners of our rug. Emojis used to "rate the rumps" Students walked to the emoji rating that best fit their opinion of this rear. Once we took in how the voting landed, we returned to our reading spots and repeated this process for the next rump. Read, rate, repeat!

Emoji Book Titles

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Solving and creating our own emoji book titles was a creative challenge I first started exploring four years ago. It has evolved over time, and this latest version is the one that makes the most sense to me. Try it out  here ! Student-created emoji book titles (From top left corner clockwise: Magic Ramen, Catstronauts, Tiger Rising, Wings of Fire) I love this activity because It requires creative thinking (to both solve and create more) Students choose how they interact - do they want to solve or create? All the activities are student-generated I was able to use Google tools for all aspects of the project Solving emoji book titles I created an interactive activity which allows them to check the answer.  In this google slide activity, students use the emoji clues to guess the title of the book.  By moving the magnifying glass over the box, the answer is revealed. Creating emoji book titles While this activity engages many of our learners, I wanted to offer an option for students to cre

2022 Animal Sibert Smackdown

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 While I have done many Mock Caldecotts over the years, I had never done a Sibert Smackdown. This seemed to be the perfect year to introduce this as I focus my time and energy on nonfiction.  As I write this 4 months into the school year, over 50% of read alouds are nonfiction (I am auditing this), and I am about 85% of the way through reorganizing the nonfiction section for easier browsing.  Melissa Stewart's article about nonfiction's image problem resonated with me and inspired me to focus my school year on nonfiction and how I put it in the hands of my students. A group examines their book in preparation to assess it  Reading and thinking about the contenders I chose the theme of “animals” to tie things together (although the “ducks” aren’t exactly alive…)  I wanted to look at different kinds of nonfiction books (without getting too into the weeds) and chose these books for our Smackdown: 2023 Sibert Smackdown contestants I created a series of four questions for students t

Puzzles as Clues in our Call Number Scavenger Hunt

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 4th and 5th graders are beginning a new series of lessons where they learn to better use our library catalog. The essential question is  How can I find what I want in the library?  I used a series of puzzles as clues in a call number scavenger hunt to launch the unit. It served as a fun and engaging entry point, and students were able to successfully apply the learning the next week. 4th grade students work through their clue. Ultimately, I want students to be able to  Identify their need or interest  Use their skills to find a book using the catalog  Locate what they want/need In the past, I have found students to be moderately successful using the catalog, but not nearly as successful locating the books they want. I found students frustrated.  I decided to start with the ultimate goal and practice these skills first. After a brief conversation about the different library "neighborhoods" and what we could find there, students broke into teams and began the scavenger hunt. S

Delicious! Building Community With the Common Language of Story & Food Part 3

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This is the final installment of the activities we did in conjunction with our town read,  A Book Feast: Bridging Cultures and Building Community with the Common Language of Food.  Read about the introductory lesson here . Celebrating My Family's Culture With Food: Day 1 When I read this page from Soul Food Sunday by Winsome Bingham, I just knew this was the book I was looking for to use with my 4th and 5th grade students. We were continuing our lesson "Celebrating My Family's Culture With Food."   Granny's words echoed the feeling of the whole unit. Thanks, Granny! Soul Food Sunday became choice #1 I like to give students choice in what they read (even during the lesson portion of our class), so this delicious read became choice #2. Students chose a book to listen to and then moved on to the activity. The Activity The question presented to students was, "What is a food that your family makes or enjoys at a special celebration?" Students could show me i