SLIME KIDS!

Yesterday, I received an email from a colleague suggesting an educational website to share with students and families. So...here it is! Slime Kids! Have fun exploring the wonders of the school library media center! This website contains fun games and excellent online resources for students and families to enjoy! http://www.slimekids.com/

Let's look it up in the ENCYCLOPEDIA!

As part of the ongoing Reference Books unit, Timberlake middle school students explored the wonders of the encyclopedia in library this week! Working within a set of encyclopedias, each student was assigned a topic. They were to locate the volume that their topic would appear in, find the page number(s), and take notes on their topic after reading the article. The students also learned to cite their source correctly by listing the name of the encylcopedia set, the volume number, page number, and title of the article. We discussed that when you are curious to find out more about a topic or are assigned a research paper and need a good starting point...the encyclopedia is an excellent place to go!

What's another word for...

During our unit on Reference Books, Timberlake 5th and 6th graders worked in pairs to explore the Thesaurus! Guided by worksheets, the students looked up a given word and then found two synonyms and listed them. The students also practiced replacing ordinary words like walk and run within a story with more creative alternatives like stroll or jog. Students mastered their Thesaurus skills and learned a few new vocabulary words along the way!

Jan Brett Author Study

We have all come to adore the artistic style and writings of our favorite author/illustrator, Jan Brett! The 2nd graders and I have thoroughly enjoyed reading through a couple of winter-time favorites...The Mitten and The Hat by Jan Brett! The children have enjoyed coloring pictures from the author's website after the readings of the books. We especially love the peek-a-boo feature in Jan Brett's books that foreshadow events and characters to come!

The Cinderella story...Korean style

Timberlake First Graders listened to the story of the Korean Cinderella this week in library class. The illustrations in the book portrayed Asian landscapes and lifestyles. Many animals help the heroine of this story and ultimately she does end up with the prince! We enjoyed looking at the pictures and comparing and contrasting this story with the more traditional Cinderella version.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Timberlake Kindergarteners learned the importance of this special day by reading Martin's Big Words: the Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr in the Library. I have included a synopsis of the book, according to Barnes and Noble, so that parents and teachers will realize what a fabulous book this is...

Synopsis
This picture-book biography is an excellent and accessible introduction for young readers to learn about one of the world’s most influential leaders, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Doreen Rappaport weaves the immortal words of Dr. King into a captivating narrative to tell the story of his life. With stunning art by acclaimed illustrator Bryan Collier, Martin’s Big Words is an unforgettable portrait of a man whose dream changed America—and the world—forever.

Take note also, that the Kindergarten class immediately recognized Dr. King's face on the cover of the book and were eager to learn more about him!

Biography Study

Timberlake 3rd and 4th grade students continued their study of biographies by selecting a biography to read and taking notes. Information that they gathered included: name of famous person, birthdate, birthplace, date, place, and cause of death if applicable, important contributions to society, and details of the person's life. The students will complete their notes next week, and then create and present a project based on the person that they read about.

Jan Brett Author Study

Meet Aloo-ki and her dog team! When they get separated by an ice floe, Aloo-ki looks for somewhere warm and someone to help her. At the same time, a family of snow bears is eating breakfast. When Baby Bear's soup is too hot to eat, the bear family decides to take a walk. In the meantime, Aloo-ki discovers their igloo, goes inside, and samples their soup, tries on their snow boots, and takes a nap in baby bear's bed. On their walk, the snow bears find Aloo-ki's dog team adrift in the ocean on an ice floe and safely gets them back to shore. When they return to their igloo, they discover that someone has been in their home and they find her asleep. Aloo-ki escapes between Papa Bear's huge furry legs, which the children found quite funny, and runs outside to find her rescued dog team! The three snow bears wave good-bye as Aloo-ki disappears across the snow drifts. A charming twist to an old favorite...and a perfect read for a winter day!

Cinderella around the world...

After reading the traditional Perrault fairy tale version of Cinderella last week, this week Timberlake First Graders enjoyed this tale from Egypt. In this story, Rhodiopus, is a Greek slave who lives among the Egyptians. Different from the rest, she has pale skin that burns in the sun and golden hair. There is still a fancy party to attend, a slipper that comes up missing, and a king who sweeps the country looking for his bride. The vivid illustrations capture the interest of children. We enjoyed comparing and contrasting the Egyptian Cinderella with the traditional fairy tale. The students shared many similarities and differences of the stories in great detail.

Fun with Polar Animals!

What a perfect day to read about polar animals with the snowy weather outside! Inside the Timberlake Elementary Library, it was warm and toasty as pre-k and Kindergarten students enjoyed stories about Tacky the Penguin and Lars, the little polar bear!

Look it up in the Dictionary!

As part of a unit on Reference Books, Timberlake 5th and 6th graders worked in pairs today utilizing their dictionary skills. We studied the importance of guide words, when you would use a dictionary, and checking the correct spellings of words. The students worked beautifully together and gained confidence using this basic reference tool. Next week, the thesaurus...

Biography Study

Timberlake 3rd and 4th grade students are learning more about Biographies this month in the Library. This week, we learned that a Biography is a story written about a person's life by another person. An autobiography is a story written about a person's life by that person. A collective biography is a book which contains biographies of many people. Students read sample titles of books and determined whether or not they were biographies, autobiographies, collective biographies, or neither. Later this month, students will read a biographical sketch about a famous person, take notes, and then present their findings to the class. We may even write our own autobiographies!

Jan Brett Author Study

Timberlake 2nd graders love Jan Brett and her wide variety of books! This week, we read Hedgie Blasts Off! and then colored pages of Hedgie as an astronaut and floating in space. We even learned how to draw a hedgehog! What a creative group of students!

Cinderella

You know the story...with the beautiful girl who is stuck at home cleaning while her step sisters go to the ball at the palace. Then her fairy godmother arrives and saves the day! She loses her glass slipper after she dances all night with the handsome prince. Well, the First Grade class heard a couple of versions of the Cinderella story as part of their unit on Fairy Tales this week during Library class. We discussed prediction, and compared the books with the Disney movie that many of the students had seen. For the rest of the month, we will be enjoying Cinderella stories from around the world...

Penguins 'n' Polar Bears!

January will be a fun month for pre-kindergarten and kindergarten Timberlake students as they enjoy penguin and polar bear story time in the library! The Pre-Kindergarten class met Tacky the Penguin on Monday and learned that every friend has a place in the group, even if they are a little odd like Tacky was in the story. Kindergarteners were introduced to Lars, a polar bear cub in Hans deBeer's Little Polar Bear! We will be enjoying more arctic themed stories throughout the winter months ahead!