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Thursday, September 16, 2010

EVERYBODY IS TALKING ABOUT THE HUNGER GAMES!

The request list keeps getting longer each day! More copies are on order for our library but you won't find them sitting on the shelves! This is the hottest new series this season, so if you want any of the books you will need to reserve your copies now!

Reviews for THE HUNGER GAMES:

"...brilliantly plotted and perfectly paced...a futuristic novel every bit as good and as allegorically rich as Scott Westerfeld's 'Uglies' books."
--The New York Times, John Green

“...enthralling, imaginative and creepy...”
--Los Angeles Times

"Collins's characters are completely realistic and sympathetic as they form alliances and friendships in the face of overwhelming odds; the plot is tense, dramatic, and engrossing. This book will definitely resonate with the generation raised on reality shows like "Survivor" and "American Gladiator."

--School Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW


Could YOU survive! Test your skills.

Warning- These books are NOT for your younger siblings.

Read A Parents' Guide to "The Hunger Games" Trilogy, by Martha Brockenbrough for MSN

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

SMARTBOARD

Our Smartboard has been installed in the library! Teachers are invited to come and test it anytime.

The board opens possibilities for adding interactivity to lessons and presentations and it only takes minutes to learn how to get started.  Here is a two minute SMART Technologies training video showing the very first steps:



Teachers can check our First Class staff mail conference, in the library file, for a link to my bookmarks for locating a wide variety of resources shared by teachers for teachers. By starting with pre-made resources we will all have opportunities to experiment and learn how to create our own lessons and activities. Students will now also be able to use SMART notebook software to create powerful presentations!

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Summer Reading Club




Canada's online Teen Reading Club is a great place to go if you like to read! On the website, you can introduce people to books you love, post reviews on books, share your writing, and discuss books with other people on the site. Reading during summer is a great way to spend your time, and the website can help you find books that you would like to read. Go ahead and check it out!


Photo credit: UnicornRetreat from morguefile.com

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

OKM Library Connections

 

CC Image Attribution:"TL09 View of School Libraries"
Flickr -  C. VanHook


Husky Teams Work Together
in our library . . . 


Teachers, library staff and students collaborate and support active learning, critical thinking and digital literacy. Collaborative planning and shared ideas lead to rich learning experiences. Everybody wins!


"None of us is as smart as all of us."  Ken Blanchard


 In our library, students learn to question the information they find on the internet. They develop competent searching skills, using information both creatively and ethically while becoming actively engaged in the learning process. 

"Copy and paste syndrome" is sometimes still a concern with digital projects, but our OKM students are moving beyond this. More and more of our teachers are preparing library lessons to encourage creativity and collaboration rather than just using computers for basic internet searches and presentations. Help is available in the library to set up project criteria in advance and to set the stage for thoughtful research. The teacher librarian partners with teachers and supports all students in the school. Exciting learning occurs as we all use, create and respectfully share information.

The focus in our library is to help all of our students and teachers meet their goals. This will continue as we work together in the final term of the 2009-2010 school year.  We have all heard about funding shortfalls for education in British Columbia this spring. Cuts are expected to have a major impact on libraries and  on the arts, but I am confident that we have strong leadership and community support at OKM that will help us to weather the storm. We value literacy. We value learning. We value our students.

In 2008 our own Minister of Education in British Columbia stated that:
"I am personally proud that British Columbia is the lead jurisdiction for literacy in our country."


"Goal 1" on the home page of our own school web site. is to "continue to improve literacy for all students..."


Our library facilitates the development of lifelong learning skills. Students don't just learn to read. They  share their love of stories. They don't just find and repeat facts using computers or books. They use a rich variety of resources and tools for creative problem solving and discovery learning. 


"The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot
learn, unlearn, and relearn." Alvin Toffler (Writer and Futurist)

"The library is an arena of possibility, opening both a window into the
soul and a door onto the world." -Rita Dove (Pulitzer Prize winning American poet)