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Willard Intermediate South Media Center
I wanted to find a way to connect coding the Cue robot with story elements. I came up with this activity based on the 6th grade ELA standards. In advance, I created my own story element cards for setting, climax, theme, problem, solution, protagonist, antagonist, and the conflicts of person against person, person against society, person against nature, person against self. These cards were then laid out on the floor in a geometric pattern (circle, triangle, or square). Students wrote codes for the robot to visit each element to explain it and give examples.
For the past two weeks, I have been working with Mrs. Raby’s ELA classes - Teal Team. (Basically 3 one hour sessions.). I connected the activity to a story, The Hallo-Weiner by Dav Pilkey. While reading the story aloud, I had students pay attention to the story elements. We talked about them throughout the story. Later I created example cards from the story for the students to practice with. On our second session, students placed the example cards with the story element cards they belonged to. They then practiced coding the robots to the categories. Their challenge was to attempt to write one code to move the robot to the element, record their voice explaining and giving example of the element, and moving on to the next element. Our last session was focused primarily on presenting to the group. I gave students about 20 minutes to create one code for Cue focusing on two elements. They had to explain the element in their own words and give examples. We also worked in presentation skills. The teams had to introduce themselves and their elements before presenting their code to the group. It was a lot of fun! The Maroon team ELA classes are now in the process of doing the same activity. Media Leaders Begins Next Week
All of the applications were due Friday. The team is selected - but this was an extremely difficult process. There were many qualified applicants. I originally was going to limit it to 10 - but I accepted 13. I could not place everyone on the team; therefore, I based my decisions on quality of application, behavior references, and time/date the application was turned in. It becomes too difficult to manage a media team and keep the library open for other students. I have decided to divide the Media Leaders in to two separate teams. One team will meet in the morning to present the morning announcements. The second team will work on the news cast in the afternoon. This will switch the next week giving everyone opportunity to do both announcements and the news cast. Our first project will be to create a virtual tour video for the school.
Library Leaders
Library Leaders have been hard at work. This week, they have been working on instructional videos on how to use the card catalog. We created one long video and several short videos on the topics of accessing the card catalog from home, logging into the card catalog, putting a book on hold, searching by subject and author, and accessing the audio books. You can check them out here.
I wholeheartedly believe that library media specialist must adopt the growth mindset in order to be successful in the 21st century educational environment. There have been many changes in education in my years of experience. There is no way I would have survived this long if I hadn’t been willing to take risks and learn with my staff and my students. Working with the Intermediate South science teachers is a perfect example.
One of the best things about have a flexible schedule is that I get to work with a variety of teachers across the grade levels and contents. This year, I have the opportunity to work with the science teachers, Mrs. Walker and Ms Bartels. Working with them is not only an absolute joy, but a learning experience as well. I’m learning science content, instructional strategies, and different communication styles. They are helping me become a better teacher!
So far in science we have worked together on food chains and food webs. I am learning content along with the students. Have you ever head of Food Chain - Rock, Paper, Scissors? Well, I hadn’t either until my science teachers told me about. I am glad that they decided to have me help with this clever activity. Basically, students are given an animal or food to play in the food chain. They can only play Rock, Paper, Scissors with a like animal or food source. For example, only grass can play grass. As they win the game, they move up the food chain. It was so much fun, and it drives the point that food chains can be volatile and mercurial in nature. We were also able to work in the book - The Legend of Rock, Paper Scissors by Drew Daywalt.
The other activity that I was able to help with is the Food Web Hunger Games. Students are allowed to select an animal from a food web without knowing exactly as to why they are choosing this animal. They are then given a name tag with their animals name. Later it is announced that they are playing - The Hunger Games. Students are allowed to go to the cornucopia to select their supply of fruit loops. They can only take what they can carry in their two hands. Next, they are instructed to sort their fruit loops by color. After the sorting, it is revealed to students what each color represents - pollution, shelter, water, or food source. The teacher then gives students random scenarios such as a drought or forest fire, and students lose fruit loops based on the severity of the disaster. So much fun!
At this point, I’m more of a support for the teachers. I’m hoping next year that I will be able to help more with collaboration now that I know what is going on. I love these interactive games and watching how engagement of our students.
Library Leaders - Using Call Numbers
This week, Library Leaders created another instructional video about using call numbers. We hope to show this to the Monday library classes in a couple of weeks. Next, we are working on one for the card catalog.
Reading Club
We are getting ready for our parent night. I’m hoping that we will have a few green screen recordings of our choral reading, echo readings, and repeated readings. Check out this photo of the Reading Club teachers. I love working with this group!
Author’s Purpose
We tried two different approaches with teaching author’s purpose. With the Navy team we used a non tech approach. After learning about author’s purpose in the ELA classroom, students were given a chart for categorizing books into one of the three categories - Persuade, Inform, or Entertain. In the library eight different stations were set up with a variety of books representing the different purposes. Students then examined the books and wrote the titles under the appropriate category.
With the green team, we tried a different approach. Instead of using a chart, we used the Cue Robots. Students were given sample passages representing the different purposes. The Cue robots can be programmed by using block or JAVA coding. After reading the sample passages, students determined the purpose. Then they programmed the robot to move toward the correct purpose on the floor Matt.
Reading Club and Breakout Boxes
Reading Club participated in a Fairy Tale Breakout Box activity this week. Students were given several clues to remove the locks from the boxes. They did this very quickly. Afterwords, our sixth grade students taught all of us to play problem solving or reading games that they had learned last year in Reading Club.
Library Leaders - Instructional Videos
This year, I’m using my Library Leaders to help all of the students to learn how to use the library. We have made several videos on checking out, checking in, and renewing our books. The newest one is about respecting our library.
Media Leaders
At this time, we do not have a Media Leader team. Library Leaders are currently running the morning announcements. This will change once we have created the Media Leader team. Media Leaders will be responsible for the morning announcements and a weekly news show. They will also create promos about habits, commercials for special events, and other school related videos. These applications will be made available Tuesday, October 1 and will be due Friday, October 11. I can only have 10 members on this team. Acceptable applications and references will be time stamped.
Book Tastings
If you have never held a book tasting or had an opportunity to participate in one - you should! Book tastings are a great way to expose students to a variety of books that they may not pick up and read on their own. We had 4 book tastings this year. Basically, all students at Intermediate South participated in a book tasting during the first quarter.
Our book tastings were focused on genre. For our purposes we created about 12 different stations with books from the LMC collection (Fairy Tales, Mysteries, Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Biography, Auto-Biography, Poetry, Information Books, Horror, Realistic Fiction, Graphic Novels, and Science Fiction.) Students were given about 4 minutes at each station to browse and sample the genres. In addition, they filled out a menu to keep track of books that interested them. Afterwards, students checked out several books. So much fun! Library Leaders
Recently, library leaders were selected to assist in the library. Unfortunately, I do not have any photos of them to share at this time. This is one of my goals for next week. To become a Library Leader students were required to apply and get references from their teachers. To maintain their employment, students must keep up with their class work, and be good role models. . The main focus of Library Leaders is to give students leadership opportunities and ownership in the library media center. Currently, we have 21 Library Leaders from all teams and grade levels. Last week, students were trained to shelve, make bookmarks using the Cricket, and assist in the green room. We are also working on two library respect videos to show on check out day. In addition, they are running the morning announcements. This may change when we add the Media Leaders later next month. Library Leaders are also learning to write, film, and produce their own book commercials. I’m opening this opportunity to entire student population. Library Leaders will be assisting me in the process.
New Library - New School YearWelcome to the new Willard Intermediate South Library blog! I’ve incorporated this blog with the Willard South Elementary blog. All of the past posts are included. This particular blog will be dedicated to the new Intermediate school library. Join us on our journey in establishing a new library media center. I have never opened a new media center before, and it is indeed a journey! The library is up and running, and the students and staff at Willard Intermediate South are using it. Since August, we have checked out 3,027 books. The format of the library is different from the format Willard South Elementary. At the elementary level classes were 55 minutes in length. About 6-7 classes were scheduled every day. Integration and collaboration with the classroom was extremely difficult to accomplished. At the intermediate school, the schedule is extremely flexible, and collaboration is strongly encouraged. Every aspect of the library supports collaboration and flexibility. Doors do not exist. Students and classes are free to come and go as they please. Classrooms open into the library. Most of the shelving and furniture are mobile. There is room for a Makerspace, green screen studio, and there are various areas for instruction. Goals for the Library Media CenterIntegration and Collaboration:
One of my main goals for the library is collaboration and integration. There have been some great experiences so far, and there will be more opportunities in the future. We have held book tastings, literacy activities, and book talks. Currently, I am exploring ways of integrating STEM with language arts. Building the Collection: We used Follett to help us start the collection. It hasn’t been perfect. There have been problems with cataloging and processing. It was a slight set back. I spent a day this summer correcting some of the issues. About 1/2 of the collection was acquired by pulling resources from the other libraries. My original goal was to have all of these books cataloged this summer. There were a few set backs that I had not anticipated. We were able to add 1,000 books over the summer from the other libraries. I’ve added another 1,000 since school began. There are probably another 800 books sitting in the office that need to be added. Currently, there are 5,955 books in the collection. My goal is to have the collection grow to the size of 8,000 by January. Maintaining Flexible Check Out: This is currently happening. I want it to continue. There is a scheduled day for students to check out every other week, but the library is open for check out. Student can check out whenever they want or need to do so as long as they have permission from their teachers. Self Check Out: Currently we are using self-check out. We have two stations for students to check books out to themselves. Soon, we will have look up stations for students to look up books and place holds. I’m wanting to empower them to be independent library users. Students have been making videos for checking out, checking in, renewing, and using the library. Green Screen Studio: The green screen studio is almost completely operational. We are in the process of getting applications for the iPads for video production and editing. The goal is to have this ready to use by all of the students for classes and for the media team. We are needing a television with AppleTV so that students can see themselves. This will help them with interacting with the green screen. Soon, we will begin using the studio for a book commercial project. Makerspace: I have quite a bit of STEM tech for makerspace, but I do not have it completely set up and organized. I’m having difficulty get everything set up the way that I want. The goal is to make the makerspace a place for students to come create without an adult agenda. What they make and create should come from them and not as part of an assignment. I’m hoping to have the completely operational by February. Library Leaders: We have completed the application process for Library Leaders. I will begin meeting with them this week to begin training them. I’m hoping to have them into the routine by the first of October. Media Leaders: Students have already taken over the morning announcements. The goal is to have students create a weekly news show. We need to finish setting up the green screen studio. I’m hoping to have media leaders chosen by the end of October. Future Ready: I think we are on our way to becoming Future Ready. We are planning a trip to Neosho to observe how they are meeting the future ready standards. I’m hoping to come away with many good ideas and practices. Opening a new library is definitely a challenge! We are a work in progress. My plan is to blog at least once a week about all that we are doing. Join us on our journey! We loved poetry month! Second, third, and fourth grade students finished the poetry celebration with a poetry tasting. Various anthologies of poetry were laid out on six of the library tables. Every five minutes students rotated to a new table. They were also given an evaluation tool to evaluate 4 poems. After reading Green Eggs and Ham, first grade students were given a writing model to complete with matching words, “I will read.” Students who wanted to share their poem were recorded on video. Kindergarten students used the Code-And-Go Mice to program the mice to find matching words that rhyme. Call Number GameStudents in grades 2-4 have also been reviewing how to find a book by using a call number. This is an important skill for them to practice. My goal is to empower them to become independent library users. They cannot do this without learning how to find books. Students played the call number game. They were divided into 6 teams. Each team was given a fiction call number to locate on the shelves. One person from each team raced each other to locate a book with a matching call number. Students were given additional points for bein quiet and respectful of their teammates. I required every student to participate. Media LeadersMedia Leaders enjoy creating videos to recognize teachers and staff. Last Wednesday we celebrated Secretaries’ Day. Carrie and Stan are an important part of the Willard South community of learners. We interviewed and taped various staff members and students. We asked them to explain why Ms. Carrie and Mr. Stan deserved a special day. We played this video for them during Community Time on Wednesday morning. Check out our video.
We are celebrating poetry most of the month of April. Last week, students were introduced to poetry. We discussed rhythm, theme, lines, rhyme scheme, and symbolism. The focus this week was to read great poets and poems aloud for students to enjoy. Mostly, we focused on the works of Dr. Seuss and Shel Silverstein. I was suprised at how many students were not aware of Shel Silverstein. Students loved his humorous poems as well as his more serious ones. They really liked the poems, “The Bridge.” This coming week, we will work more with rhyme scheme while playing the poetry game. PreSchool - Horrible Bear and Where Is BearThis week Preschool read Horrible Bear by Ame Dykeman and Where Is Bear by Jonathan Bentley. After reading these two books about bears - students created bear caves for the characters repensented in the story. Students were allowed to use all of the building materials that we have in the media center - LEGOS, Picasso Tiles, wood blocks, and cups. The main requirement for building a successful structure was to use the habits of thinking win-win and synergizing. They also needed to make sure that their structure would fit our stuffed bear. Wakelet AppI have found a new app that works great for sharing google docs, pictures, and articles from social media sites & websites - Wakelet. The Willard librarians used this app during our MASL conference. We created a group collection of notes, presentations, and pictures from our conference that we can share with the librarians that were unable to attend the conference. I also like using it when I’m on social media, and I want to save the ideas. It is great for keeping everything in one place. Media LeadersThis week Media Leaders created a new video about Habit 5 - Seeking First to Understand, Then to be Understood. We are going to make sure that we have one video for every habit. Look for more to come.
I’m a little behind on my posting. I have been out for a surgery and for the state MASL conference. This week, I should be back full time with all of my classes. Diana’s White House Garden activities.After reading Diana’s White House Garden by Elisa Carbone and illustrated by Jen Hill, students were challenged to create replicas of the White House and Diana’s garden. Students were allowed to use LEGOs, Picasso Tiles, Brainflakes, wood blocks (small and large), and dominoes. It was a lot of fun! Kids loved the story of how a young girl, Diana, played an important part in helping with the war effort of creating victory gardens through the nation during WWII. Digital CitizenshipLast week, students learned about digital citizenship. After watching the NetSmartz video, students engaged in a Kagan structure - Stand Up, Hands Up, Pair Up. Students relayed what they learned about staying safe online to each other. The younger grades read three short books about digital citizenship - Once Upon a Time Online, Chicken Clicking, and Troll Stinks. They paired with shoulder partners to discuss what they learned. Here are some issues that we discussed. 1. Be careful what you post. Posting online is forever. 2. Do not share personal information online. 3. Only chat with people online that you know offline. 4. Never meet someone offline that you met online. 5. Change your password every 6 months. 6. Do not click on pop ups. 7. Never open an email or text message from some one that you do not know. MASL ConferenceEvery time I come back from a MASL conference, I am excited about all of the new ideas that have been shared by other library media specialists. I’m ready and eager to implement these new ideas into my program and into my instruction. The MASL conference is so important to the professional development of library media specialists. It is one of the few opportunities for us to engage in PD that is specifically geared toward our profession. I was also able to meet Mary Downing Hahn. She is one of my favorite author’s and a great presenter. I actually listened to her twice. Each time, I learned something new. In addition, Mrs. Bryant and I contributed to the conference by presenting again this year on incorporating STEAM into your library media programs. I really enjoy doing this!
This past week , we celebrated Dr. Seuss birthday just a litttle ahead of the actual day and Read Accross America events held next week at South. We did this because book fair will be held next week, and it will change the entire library media program. Grades 1-4 celebrated by competing in a Kahoot! game based on his works and his life. Students were given points from Kahoot based on accuracy and speed. I gave teams extra points for sportsmanship, following directions, and exhibiting the habits. Kindergarten was not a part of this because they were practing for their music program. Thursday classses also missed out because of a snow day. Media LeadersMedia leaders worked on a special assignment this week. We created a video on sharpening the saw by reading books. This video will be shown during Community Time. We were able to work in a representation of all of the grade levels. LEGO LeagueLEGO Leagued ended this week. It is a little bittersweet. Mrs. Farmer and I have enjoyed working with these students, and we will miss our time with them. There has been so much learning involved in this after school club. Not only were students required to build with LEGO and the We.Do kit, but they were required to connect this with learning about the moon and the feasibility of how to live on the moon. Watch the following video. It is a culmination of what our LEGO Leagues students have learned. Book Fair Next Week - March 4-8Our spring book fair will be here next week. I am so thankful for my specials team. I literally cannot do it without them. Running a book fair is not an easy task, especially when you do it alone. Fortunately, I have my South specials team to help me! Thank you Mrs. Christianson and Mrs. Ingram for helping me get the entire fair set up. We were able to do it in about 2 hours. When I do this by myself, it usually takes about 4 hours. I also need to thank Mrs. Anderson the former South Librarian. She helped as well. All of the specials team will also help during Literacy Night, Thursday - March 7. Book CharmsSo proud of him. He loves to read, and he loves earning book charms. It has been the motivator for him. I love that he continues to make progress!
Leadership Day - Friday, February 22South held our first Leadersip Day on Friday. We had several guests visit from other districts and from our school family. The goal was to share our progress and our approach to the Leader In Me initiative. This is part of our mission, “Serve, Learn, and Lead.” Overall, I would say that it was a success. Yes, there were a few bumps here and there, but that is to be expected. We have only been a Leader In Me school for three years, and we are stilll learning. Our Leadership Day is a learning experience, an opportunity to improve. I absolutely loved how well our students behaved during Community Time, conducted themselves when greeting visitors and giving tours, demonstrated their goals in their leadership notebooks, and how they represented their leadership positions during the job fair. Breakout Box Activity based on Money - Grades 2-4We had so much fun breaking in to the Breakout box! We loosely based this activity on the book, A Bike Like Sergio’s by Maribeth Boelts. Students were required to use the habits and the money clues on the tables to remove the five locks on the box. Students were sorting money, adding money, and reading prices via playing a game. All classes were able to break out of the box with time to spare! First Grade - Finding Rhyming Pairs with The Code and Go MiceAfter reading the books, Frog on a Log and Dog on a Frog by Kes Gray and Jim Field - students used the Code and Go Mice to find matching pairs on the grid of words that rhyme. Students worked in groups to create a code to find the identified pairs. Many “soft skills” (I prefer to call them essential skills) went into successfully completing this activity. Students had to negeotiate, take turns, communicate, and assist each other. Basically, they had to incorporate all of the habits that we have been learning through the Leader In Me program. Kindergarten participated in a similar activity - only we focused on letter sounds. After reading Cats ABC, students drew a letter card from a pile and created a code for the mouse to locate a picture of an animal that matched their letter sound. Reading Is The GoalWe participate in so many activities in the library media center at south. Students are involved in STEAM challenges, Breakout activities, coding, robots, and various technologies. Whatever the activitiy - I strive to connect it to reading and the habits. It makes me proud to watch our kids grow in both areas! I see it happening all of the time - but I forget to take a photo. This week I was able to capture two moments that exhibit the love of reading and a demonstration of the habits. After reading Frog on a Log and participating in the Code and Go Mouse activity, I observed a couch full of students enjoy rereading the book. They all wanted to hear it again. I also observed two students who demonstrated the habits in action. I stood back and listened to them speak kindly, assist each other, and work together to complete the task. They were so focused and truly in the moment. So proud! Media LeadersMedia Leaders have been busy! They have created a new broadcast for the next week of school. Included in the show are their book fair commercials!
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Mr. David Stockton
Library Media Specialist Willard Intermediate South |