DEAR Drop Everything and Read

Monday October 26th is National School Library Day and Drop Everything and READ. Take 20 minutes today to stop all that you are doing and READ. Read for fun, enjoy a comic, read the newspaper or dive into a great novel. DEAR is a BC Teacher-Librarian Association event that celebrates the power of free reading, the joy of dropping everything around you and reading and the joy of literacy. #bctla_DEAR

World Book Online Kids - A Great Resource

What are databases? Databases are organized collections of sourced information. Databases help students find relevant reliable information that is age appropriate in reading level and content. SD#68 subscribes to two main databases World Book Online and EBSCO.

Gr. 3 students in Mrs. Kawaguchi’s class are studying planets and the Gr. 3’s in Mrs. MacDonald’s class are researching provinces.
Both classes are using World Book Online Kids for their research. This wonderful resource is colourful, interactive and full of great information at a Gr. 3 level. http://worldbookonline.com Students can access it at home using the password given in class.

Gr. 4 students in Ms. Burnham’s class are using World Book Online Kids for their explorers trading card project. Be sure to check out worldbookonline.

Week One With District Technology

Students working with Destiny

Each year our school district has technology (3 carts of 15 ipads, 2 carts of 18 laptops and more ipods) to share among the schools. To qualify for the technology each school interested has to submit a proposal on what they plan to do with the technology to enhance student learning.  As part of our commitment we also agree to share how we are doing in efforts to help others learn from us.

I thought the best way to share would be to write a weekly post.  Here is week 1.

April 14-20^th Week 1 with District Laptops

Week #1 - Introduction

Student working on Novellist k-8 part of our district database

The district technology, in our case, laptops, arrived Tuesday, April 7th . Students and staff were eager to get busy using these portable devices.  We spent the first week introducing or re-introducing students to the safety, protocol and expectations of using the laptops. We used library class time for this activity so our Gr. 4-6’s each used them for 40 min. /week. In addition our Gr. 6’s in the 6/7 split used them daily for a second block (40 min) throughout the week for their inquiry project.

General overview (instructions) of laptops with students:

·  hold upright (when using a laptop the more you jiggle it the more likely it is to become damaged or have a shorter shelf life)

·        place on a flat, safe surface when using it (table, floor)

·       be gentle with the lid/cover and keys (be patient when trying to access a site, it might take a while, don’t pound on the keys thinking it will work more quickly)

Enjoying learning with laptops

·       connect to SD68 wireless – PS
·       check power

·       share with your partner (no grabbing, pulling or jockeying for use)

·       Eyes up, lids down (when this is said, students pull laptops cover down ½ way if you go much beyond ½ way they will automatically shut off, eyes on speaker)

Students were assigned laptop partners and laptop #.  They will work with that partner and use that # laptop throughout. 

Day one lessons with our 4-7’s

Destiny:  http://destiny.sd68.bc.ca  (looked at destiny, students used it to find books, compile lists for projects and see if books were in the library)

Databases:  We reviewed our district databases and why we use them.

EBSCO – http://search.ebscohost.com (we looked at various databases within Ebsco such as novelist K-8 and Canadian Point of View)

World Book Online – http://worldbookonline.com (we looked at World Book online and students were given a scavenger hunt to find different features)

April 20, 2015 – PLC

We used the district laptops to work on databases and destiny.  Val reviewed the protocol for students so that teachers could be consistent with protocol in their classrooms. Val went over the sign out sheet and encouraged classes to sign laptops out for their classrooms.  Val offered to collaborate and co-teach units with the laptops.

Teachers worked in grade groupings to discover articles, databases, searchers that would best meet their needs. We discussed and worked on Destiny in depth, looking at book lists by theme, how to search books and the advantages of Destiny over Webcat.

Summary of week one

·       Students worked very well on laptops
·       The flexibility of the laptops allowed a small group of Gr. 6 students (10) to borrow the laptops and work on them independently both in the library and their classroom
·       Many students are familiar and comfortable using laptops 
·       Eyes up, lids down was very successful, students quickly got into a pattern that allowed them to explore then look up then go back to exploring
·       Students are really enjoying destiny and it is allowing them to be more independent in the library. Our library computer is so old that it was difficult to log on to anything during the time allotted.  The laptops allow quicker and more accessible access to destiny.
·       Most classes were comfortable putting laptops back in cart * be sure to assign a few students from each class to monitor and help with return of laptops to the cart (proper plugging in etc.)

Challenges:

·       Two of the 18 laptops do not have internet connection
·       Students must save their work to a USB as the work is automatically erased when the laptop is shut down (this we knew from last year but a good reminder)

Our first week with laptops has been a success.  Students and staff are comfortable using them, we have a unified protocol that will be consistent among the school and databases will be used to help with future inquiry assignments.

 

A Long Walk To Water - Great book club!

Book Club: 

 

This week in book club we discussed A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park.  The story follows 11 year-old Salva as he and his classmates run from gunfire during the rebel’s war against the government in Southern Sudan in 1985.  A parallel story is told through the eyes of Nya, an 11 year-old girl in Southern Sudan in 2008.  Nya walks 8 hours each day to fetch water for her family. 

 

 

 

 

The stories follow Nya and Salva through unimaginable conditions and we see through the eyes of these young people the determination, perseverance and hope that allows them to move forward. A Long Walk to Water is based on a true story.  Our book club highly recommends this book.

 

The Lost Boys of Sudan 12 years later. 

60 minutes caught up with the boys.

 

A Long Walk to Water - interview with author Linda Sue Park

 

Salva's story

Water for Sudan - Salva Dut's non-profit organization building wells across Africa

Spring Break is a Great Time to READ!!!

Bookfest May 2^nd, Downtown Naniamo 

Bookfest 2015 will be held Saturday May 2^nd at the Diana Krall Plaza in downtown Nanaimo from 10 am – 3 pm.  Nine Canadian authors and illustrators will be giving workshops, signing books and sharing stories of how they became professional authors.  Presentations are for students in elementary school with authors specializing in different age ranges.  E.g. Mike Deas for 8 year olds and older.  Younger children can take part in preschool story time and a preschool puppet show.  You can sit and enjoy your lunch at the plaza while being entertained by the Stratford Hall School Taiko Drummers from Vancouver.  Check out more about Bookfest at http://www.bookfest.ca/

One of the books in The Seven Series

Spring Break – Read, Read, Read!!!

I can’t wait to spend some time reading this spring break. I hope you enjoy a great book over the holidays. I would love to hear what you are reading.

 

Chapters spring break activities – I was visiting Chapters this week, stocking up on books for our library J and heard about their spring break workshops. 

All workshops start at 11AM and are free! 

Monday Dr. Seuss

 
Tuesday Wimpy Kid

Wednesday Lego (be sure to phone ahead and book this one as they have limited numbers)

Thursday Disney

Friday Klutz

 

For more information stop in at Chapters or visit http://indigo.ca/marchbreak   

 

Have a safe and happy spring break.

Mrs. Martineau

Love Your School Library question for Thursday February 12, 2015

Question for Thursday 

Name two books written by author Emily Gravett? 

Hint: You may want to visit the library and check out the E section.

 

Bonus points:  Can you name all the Emily Gravett books we have in our library catalogue? 

You will want to check our  Destiny catalogue.

Good luck and have fun.  Drop your answers off in the library basket before the end of the day.

Daily prizes will be given for correct answers.  This will be through a draw.

A grand prize will also be awarded.

   Happy Reading.

 

Mrs. Martineau

Love Your School Library

February 14th is Love Your School Library Day in BC. How can you show your love?  All week, Mrs. Martineau is having library skill contests to show your love and celebrate literacy.
Tuesday's questions was ....
What is the name of the cataloguing system for non-fiction?  Answer The Dewey Decimal System
Nathan, Shiloh, Ben,  and    were our daily prize winners. 

Wednesday's question

 

Put the following books in library order

 

Harry Potter by JK Rowling

 

Starclimber by Kenneth Oppel

 

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

 

 

Complete your answer and drop it off, with your name, into the prize basket in the library.  Watch out for Thursday's question.  Students who get all three questions correct have a chance to win the Grand Prize a $20.00 Gift Certificate at Chapters.  

Fire Fighters Visit Randerson to Talk About Burn Prevention

Fire Fighters Greg and Elisa

Fire fighters Greg and Elisa visited Randerson this week as part of Burn Prevention week.


Did you know? 

Hot liquid is the #1 cause of burns.

Kitchen and bathrooms are the places most burn accidents happen.

Children between 1 & 2 are the highest percentage of burn victims. 

What can you do if you get burned?

Apply cool water.  The cool water will take the burn out of the skin. 

Do not put creams or eggs (yuck!) on a burn as it will act as a blanket and seal the burn.




Science lesson #1
Have you held a hot cup then dumped the liquid out and the cup is still piping hot? 

We learned that happens because the heat is still in/on the cup.  It is still burning when touching the skin.  You need to apply cool water to stop the burn from going deeper. 

Science lesson #2
Our skin regulates our temperature (that's why we sweat when we get hot).  A burn can damage the skin.  If damaged, the skin can't regulate our temperature.  If you put a burn victim in an ice bath to cool them off, they might get hypothermia because their body reacts separately to the ice.  Firefighters Greg and Elisa said cool water, not ice, is best for treating a burn.

What happens if you find matches or lighters on the playground?  Be sure to tell and adult and have them pick it up.  We don't want young children playing with matches. 

Do you have a smoke detector in your house?  Be sure to check it and make sure it is working.  Make sure it beeps.  Its best to have a smoke detector on each floor and close to bedrooms, such as the hallway. When we are sleeping our sense of smell relaxes so a smoke detector will help us be alerted to a problem.

Thanks firefighters Greg and Elisa for visiting Randerson.  We learned a lot!

Mrs. MacDonald's Gr. 3 Class Share Their Writing Reflections

Writing Reflections

I learned that you use quotation marks after a person is talking. I felt confident in my writing. I also learned how to use capitals.             Payton

I like my writing because it is neat.  I learned mind up and the word prefrontal cortex, amygdala and hippocampus. I enjoy reading at lunch time.          Brooklyn.

I like my writing because its good.  I like school because it's fun.  Samuel

I learned how to use quotation marks when a character is talking. I also learned how to use capitals.  Celina

I learnt that you use quotation marks when a person is talking. I learnt how to use capitals at the beginning of a sentence.  I liked how we could retell the story.   Patricia

I learnt how to use quotation marks. I learnt that you use capitals at the start of a sentence.  I am happy that I doubled space.                                       Keanu

I learned that you use quotation marks when a person is talking.  I learnt how to use capitals. I love grade 3 because it is fun.                            Brooke

I like my printing. I liked getting help. In grade 3, I like math.          Carter

I like my art.             Tasha

I learned how to do punctuation like quotation marks and question marks. I also learnt how to write really neatly.  I learnt how to write in English.                   Sean

I learnt how to use quotation marks when a character is talking.

I learnt that important words need capital letters and other ones like to and for don't need capital letters.    Ivanna

I'm in grade 3. I like writing our retell of The Sandcastle Contest. I learnt how to use quotation marks, comas and exclamation marks. I love grade 3. It is awesome and so much fun!!  :).            Mia

I like my writing because it's good! I like school because it's fun.                 Samuel

I learned how to write quotation marks in sentences.  I liked how we got to take notes. I like how Mrs. MacDonald corrects me.                                           Alysha

I learnt how to use uppercase letters.  In grade three I like writing.                    Faith

In grade 3 I like retelling a story but we did not write the same thing as the author.          Aana

I learnt that writing is very fun. I liked the quiet.  I enjoyed the writing.  It made me feel good!
Cole

I learnt how to use quotation marks.
 

I liked writing because I learned to use quotation marks at the right time.

It was fun learning to write better and to fix my mistakes.        

I like be in grade 3. It is just fun. I can learn from my mistakes.   Peyten

I learned how to use quotation marks correctly. I learned to use columns for my draft.  I learnt how to use capitals properly.  I felt really happy with my writing. I love writing. I love it so much.
Hirsh

in grade 3 I liked writing our retell of  Sandcastle Contest.  I learnt how to use quotation marks, comas and exclamation marks. I love grade 3 it is awesome and so much fun !!  Mia

I learned how to use pictures to tell a story.  I liked how we wrote our own stories and not the author's.  I learned how to write bigger words.  In grade 3 i like how we retell stories in class.  Shirinaa

I like my printing.  I liked getting help  In grade 3 I like math   Carter

I learnt I put a ? mark if  you are asking a question marks.  and use quotation mark when some one is talking.  In grade 3 I Like we get to sit in the window.  Anureet

I Learnt that writing is very fun  I liked the quiet  I Enjoyed the writing it Made

Me feel good!                       Cole 







Gr. 3's work on inquiry

Fieldtrip to Rathtrevor Beach

Inquiry Question

Student Responses

Thank You Randerson Parents - You are the Best!

 

The staff appreciation lunch was truly appreciated! Randerson parents you spoil us. 

Thanks for all your hard work and support in making Randerson the great school it is.

Gr3's Reflect on Their Writing

Students in Mrs. MacDonald's class share their retell story;

Blogging Reflections
 

1. Mrs. MacDonald read the book The Sandcastle Contest by Robert Munsch.

2. We wrote our ideas for beginning, middle and end to help us with our writing.

3. We wrote our draft.

4. Mrs. MacDonald read our drafts and helped us become stronger writers.

5. We then wrote our good copies of the retell. 

 Rylan's writing reflection:

I learnt how to use quotations when a person is talking.

I learnt how to create notes in columns to help my writing.

I felt confident with my writing.

Brynn's writing reflection:

I learnt how to use punctuation properly like quotation marks, question marks and exclamation marks!

I learnt how important it is to make the important letters uppercase like in the title the word Sandcastle and Contest but not words like and or it.

I learnt how to print my letters really neatly.

I felt  happy. I love writing. I felt comfortable and thought I knew the book really well.

Mrs. MacDonald's Gr. 3 class is our Feature Class of the Week

Mrs. MacDonald's Gr. 3 class is currently learning through the MindUp program.  The following poems came out of their experiences of mindful seeing.

My Simile Poem

 

My shell is pinky white and ruffled like a ballerina’s tutu.

 It is as beautiful as a blossom.

When I look at my shell, it reminds me of a sunset.

 I like my shell because the inside is smooth and it reminds me of a fan.

 

By:  Celina

My Simile Poem

 

My shell is smooth and purple like an eggplant.

 It is as pretty as a snowflake.

When I look at my shell, it reminds me of a beetle.

 I like my shell because it is gorgeous and special.

 

By: Brooke

 

 

My Simile Poem

 

My shell is green and shiny like a new leaf.

 It is as lovely as a daisy.

When I look at my shell, it reminds me of an island.

 I like my shell because it is so smooth and perfect. It is so colourful.

 

By:  Payton

My Simile Poem

 

My shell is hard and bumpy like a road.

 It is as cool as a crystal.

When I look at my shell, it reminds me of Hawaii.

 I like my shell because it is unique and rare.

 

By: Peyten

 

My Simile Poem

 

My shell is cone-shaped and chocolate striped like an ice-cream cone.

 It is as striped as a zebra.

When I look at my shell, it reminds me of a small tornado.

 I like my shell because it has colour like caramel, chocolate and vanilla ice-cream.

 

By:  Carter

 

 

 

My Simile Poem

 

My shell is smooth and shiny like a golden apple.

 It is as pretty as a flower.

When I look at my shell, it reminds me of pearls.

 I like my shell because it is shiny, smooth and delicate as a star.

 

By:  Brooklyn

My Simile Poem

 

My shell is stripy and colourful like a rainbow.

 It is as hard as a stone.

When I look at my shell, it reminds me of pearls.

 I like my shell because it is really shiny and inspiring.

 

By:  Mia

My Simile Poem

 

My shell is spotted and brown like a cheetah.

 It is as smooth as a pearl.

When I look at my shell, it reminds me of shark’s teeth.

 I like my shell because it looks cool and is awesome.

 

By: Anureet 

My Simile Poem

 

My shell is striped and rough like a tiger.

 It is as twirly as a top.

When I look at my shell, it reminds me of my vacation in Mexico.

 I like my shell because I see at the bottom there is a hole and I see a trail of an insect.  That is really special for me

 

By:  Keanu

My Simile Poem

 

My shell is smooth and spirally like a traffic cone.

 It is as striped as a zebra.

When I look at my shell, it reminds me of a tornado.

I like my shell because it fits my hand very well and it is smooth.

 

By:  Samuel

Book Club @ Randerson



Students gathered, food was eaten, great books were discussed, laughter occurred...what more could one ask for in a book club?  Today's book club, discussing Carl Hiaasen's book Hoot, was a great success. The discussion flowed from characters, to events, to setting.  It was non-stop!  The detail and POV from students was tremendous, including Courtney empathising with Roy for moving so often.


Book Club enjoying snacks before discussion

It took no time at all to dive into the story and discuss what we really liked about the book and what might have been a bit of a stretch. 

Stephanie loved how empowering the story was for young people. If three teenagers can save the owls against a conglomerate than we could do something like that too.  Mercedes liked the book but felt Roy's ability to 'take off' for hours at a time without his parents knowing where he was ....was a bit unrealistic. Austin really liked the character development, especially Roy, Mullet Fingers and the teacher who cared enough to bring his whole class to the opening to help. Cassidy enjoyed the book but felt Roy's parents weren't realistic in that they didn't seem as upset as she thought they should have been when he went missing.  Max was intrigued by Mullet Fingers and his ability to live in the Everglades and

catch the very fast mullet fish. Grace has read the book 3x and seen the movie.  She loved the book! 

Everyone had read the book and seen the movie and felt the movie was a close actualization of the book. Hannah felt the movie accurately portrayed the characters and the story and though the teacher role played by Jimmy Buffett, was a little more developed I the movie.  Annika enjoyed both the book and the movie, especially Beatrice the Bear, a strong female character.  Austin thought is was very cool that Beatrice took on and beat, the school bully Dana. 

We had so much fun discussing Hoot that we jumped into talking about other books we are currently reading or have read and loved.  Titles include; Mango Shaped Space by Wendy Mass, Sisters 8 by Lauren Baratz-Logsted,  Dear Jo by Christina Kilbourne (all the kids that had read this one...loved it!), Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Long Haul, Fault in our Stars (some loved it, while others thought it was way too sad) and Spirit Animals. 

Our next book club book is A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park.  You have 7 weeks to read up.  All students in Gr. 5-7 are welcome.  Your only ticket in the door is that you have read the book.  See you in March. 

Mrs. Noesgaard's K's know what they like!

Today we looked at two books Me Hungry by Jeremy Tankard and Art's Supplies by Chris Tougas. 
After reading each book, the students shared their favourite parts of the story.  We wrote everyone's ideas down on our chart. 

Our kindergarten students were excellent detectives, picking out great details in each book.

 

 

 

After a lively discussion on what they liked about each book...and boy did they like each book... we took an opinion poll. 

 

Our first poll/survey asked :Did you like Me Hungry?  14 students voted yes

                                             Did you like Art's Supplies? 16 students voted yes

 

From our first poll we were able to determine that the majority of the class liked both books :)

 

Our second poll/survey asked:  Did you like Me Hungry best?  8 students said yes

                                                   Did you like Art's Supplies best?  12 students said yes

 

Students learned about liking a book vs choosing the best book of the two



 

We talked about how strong and powerful it is to have an opinion and that there are no wrong answers in an opinion poll.  We talked about how an opinion is even stronger when supported by evidence, in this case their reasons for liking the book.  Students were excited to vote and offer their opinion.  As expected many students rushed to take out both books.  They also were keen to offer their opinion on many other books in our library.  

 

Thank you Mrs. Noesgaard's kindergarten class for your wonderful opinions and enthusiastic discussion.  You made my day!

 

P.S.

Mrs. Martineau was introduced to Pinterest this past weekend. My 13 and 15 year-old daughters love this site and thought I might like it too.  Although I had signed up for it more than a year ago, I had never taken the time to learn how to optimize its usage. Actually, I had never taken the time to use it in any way.  Thankfully my girls can teach me a lot about cool tools. 

We began by setting up boards and adding pins.  It was fun and a great way to spend time with my daughters.  I started with looking up ideas for snacks for our upcoming book club and this led to looking up fun, curriculum based ideas to do with books and young students.  The above lesson is one I found on pinterest courtesy of
 teachingace.com.  Thank you teachingace it was a great lesson!
Thank you Paige and Delaney for showing me this cool tool. I love to learn new things. <3

 

 



 

Randerson Staff Learn more about Lexia

PLC (professional learning community) this week:


Randerson staff took part in a Lexia webcast.  Lexia Core 5 reading is a student driven, independent reading program that is being introduced to numerous schools in our district.

Week at a Glance

Randerson was busy this week with guests, concerts and workshops. 

Parents of our grade 1 students took part in a workshop on helping their child with their home reading program.  More than a dozen parents attended as we focused on Strong Reader Tools (copyright Terri Mack - Strong Nations), IPICK strategies used in our Daily 5 and the power of prediction, connections and questioning when learning to read. 

A highlight of the week was a concert by Dover's Senior concert band.  Band teacher Mr. Iriving and his students performed many of the latest pop hits and showcased instruments within the band. A fun time was had by all.  Thanks Dover!



Several school trustees visited Randerson as part of their tour of schools in our district. Mr. Mazzei led the group, highlighting Randerson's students, parents, staff and strong sense of community.  Thank you for visiting our school.



School Trustees visit Randerson Picture by Dale Burgos



       

Happy New Year 2015!

What a great week we have had at Randerson library.  Books, books and more books came back from students after a heavy dose of holiday reading :)   We shared book talks, shelfies and great books 'we' got for Christmas.  From K-7 there were non-stop discussions on books, connections, enjoyment and recommendations. There were students sharing books with friends, others recommending series, others speaking of their trips to the public library over the break.  Remember if you want to see a book in our library that we don't have, stop by and write it on the "recommended books" list.  I will be putting an order in next week. :)  Yeah to the power of FREE READING!!!

Some of the top reviewed books included;
Diary of a Wimpy Kid - The Long Haul
Smile & Sisters
Cherub (the series is hugely popular with our Gr. 7 boys)