February 2009

Blog Bits

I've adopted a Google Reader habit and a whole new world has opened to me! I know that blog reading is not for everyone, but I thought you might enjoy some of these interesting things that I have come across:

a. 21st Century Pedagogy - detailed blog post by Andrew Churches on current thoughts about pedagogy (with lots of diagrams).

b. New Fair Use Code of Practice - blog post by Joyce Valenza Ph.D on the new guidelines for "fair use" of copyrighted material in the classroom

c. Differentiation interview with Carol Tomlinson - differentiation in the classroom and the library

Stars and A Wish (and a Chocolate Kiss)

The library needs your thoughts. How can we improve our services to you, the students and other members of the community? What are we doing right? Please share your wishes and stars with us. Both are welcomed, but wishes would be particularly helpful. Please share your wish and help yourself to a chocolate kiss from the library. Happy Valentine's Day!


Materials for the Classroom from the Library
In the spirit of recycling and going green, as well as frugality, the library is working hard to find the right home for otherwise useful items that are not included in the library collection for various reasons. These items can be found on the gray cart marked "Items for Teachers" located outside the library processing room door. The contents of the cart changes daily. We have books and video in the languages of instruction. Several teachers have found wonderful materials in English, Spanish and German. Please stop by on a regular basis just to take a quick look - only takes a second to see if anything we have at that moment will be useful for you.


Recommending Books for Purchase by the Library

I'm repeating this post, because I have yet to receive one teacher recommendation via this link. Please, please take the time to try it out!

Recommending books for purchase by the library is now easier. All you need to do is go to the Primary School E-Bulletin Board on the Primary School Library webpage. At the E-Bulletin Board, you look for the link (on the right side of the screen) that says “Recommend Books for Library Purchase”. Open that screen, type in the information you have about the recommended book (title, author, publisher and so forth) and submit. To return to the E-Bulletin Board, simply hit the back arrow twice. Your request is automatically recorded on a purchasing list.


Summer Reading Lists

It is now time to complete summer reading lists. I must have lists by March 15 to provide them to the webmaster. If you would like me to help identify new books for your grade's list, please let me know. I would be more than happy to help you find books related to particular topics or new titles in popular series. I have kept a list of the students’ “favorite authors” as reflected in their votes for the Milner Award, so please let me know if you would like that information as you work on your lists.