The Marshmallow Challenge

When I asked middle school students how they wanted to spend their last few weeks of intervention in the library, they said the wanted to make things.  I love the idea of the library being a place of creation, so we went for it!

For the first few weeks, we worked on creating some poems for National Poetry Month.  Congratulations to Megan Sobba, Christian Kohls, & Jacob Viehman for winning our poetry contests.  They left with new MP3 players and headphones.

Now we're working on the Marshmallow Challenge!  The task is simple:  in eighteen minutes, teams must build the tallest free-standing structure out of 20 sticks of spaghetti, one yard of tape, one yard of string, and one marshmallow.  The marshmallow needs to be on top.  Learn more about the history of the Marshmallow Challenge here.

Here's what we've come up with so far!

So far, a 20 inch tower is the record to beat!  The fun will continue through next week.

How to Use Your Destiny Quest Account

Students can access so many wonderful features by logging into their account.  Learn more by watching this video!

National Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month.  We started with the kick-off event, Poems on Pavement!  It was so much fun to see students and teachers alike using chalk to fill the playground with poetry.

Quote of the day as a student checked out their first Shel Silverstein, "I'm going to read poetry all night!"
It doesn't get any better than that!

Cat in the Hat Portraits

The Cat in the Hat is everywhere!  Check out these great portraits our students did in art class this week!

The MASL Reader Awards

(MASL) Missouri Association of School Librarians' four Readers Awards represent the best current youth literature available to students of different grade levels.  Every year, MASL's Readers Award Committees work to create a preliminary list of titles that are read and voted upon by groups of Reader/Selectors to create the final list of nominees.  Titles on the final list are then read and voted upon by students across Missouri to determine the recipients of the MASL Readers Awards.

Today, we voted at Sunrise!  This amazing group of kids pictured below read the required amount of books in order to vote today.  They had a blast at their voting party, and I'm so grateful for their dedication to reading!

Our top picks are:

Show Me Award -- Charlie the Ranch Dog
Mark Twain Award -- 13 Gifts
Truman Award -- Legend

If you're looking for something new to read, these books come highly recommended!  
Check them out in our library. 

Getting Ready for Read Across America

In March, we celebrate the birthday of the great Dr. Seuss with Read Across America Day!  The library will have an entire month of fun filled events.

Learn more about Read Across America Day.

Sunrise R-IX Library Calendar of Events

Our March Madness--Seuss Book of Sunrise

Follow our bracket competition to learn who will be the final champion!

Learn more about our Book Swap!

Take a Virtual Tour of the Library!

Are you interested in knowing more about what is available in our library?  View this slideshow to see pictures of our library and hear an explanation of what is available.

or follow this link...https://voicethread.com/share/5398851/

Grades 4 & 5 Glogster Accounts

Grades 4 and 5 now have Glogster accounts!  Sunrise has paid for a subscription that will allow students to create a glog.  But what exactly is a glog?  The site explains it as an interactive poster loaded with text, graphics, music, videos, and more.  I think of it as a one page, simple to use blog for kids.  At school, we will assign glogs where students will gather relevant information about a topic.  It's a great platform for bringing together various types of information and media on a single topic. 

Students may also sign into these accounts during independent time or from home to create glogs about their personal interests.  Here's how to get there.

Go to www.glogster.com

You will see this:

Click the Log In button in the top right corner.
You will see this:

The student's log in name is their grade level number, their first name, and their last name with no spaces between any of the information.  For example, if I were a 5th grade student named Tom Jones, my log in would be 5tomjones.  Their password is their lunch pin twice with no space between.  For example, if my lunch pin was 1245, my password would be 12451245.

Once they are logged in, they will be able to access their assigned glogs and create new ones.  Utilizing this program will help students learn to gather information on a topic, decipher credible sources from non, get excited about inquiry & research, and enjoy the publishing process! 

Grades 1-3 & Tik-a-Tok

Grades 1st, 2nd, and 3rd now have Tik-a-Tok accounts!  Sunrise has paid for a subscription that will allow students to create digital storybooks.  These books can be downloaded on an e-reader or printed as a pdf file.  We will be assigning specific book formats for creation at school, but students may also utilize their account to create books of their own choosing during independent time or at home.  There are many formats available where students can fill in the blanks and add their own graphics, or students can choose the blank book template and create whatever they desire.

Here is how to access their account:

Go to www.tikatok.com

You will see this:

 Click the red Log In button in the right corner.  Your child's username is their first and last name with no spaces between them.  Their password is their lunch pin code.  When their account opens, you will see this:

If you click My Studio, you will see this:

This is where you will see books assigned by teachers, or you have the option to create new books.  Have fun with it!  Students are guaranteed to be proud of their own ready-to-publish books!

Check Out our Top Check-Outs!

Congratulations to the following students for checking out the most books in their classroom during 2nd quarter!  Between the 18 of them, they checked out more than 300 books!  They stopped by the library on Friday for a fun photo shoot and some special prizes.
Top Library Patrons include:  Jocelyn Sholes, Reese Brewer, Jaden Kozloski, Allie England, Alaina Sansoucie, Hailey Suess, Wyatt Boyster, Madison Adams, Derek Lane, Jacob Coleman, Morgan Fraser, Kate Hannah, Virginia Stevens, Kyle Voyitenko (not yet pictured), Kendall Boyer, Nathan White, Anna Williams, & Jacob Viehman.

You may or may not know, but this is my first year as a librarian.  I spent nearly all of my first semester
buried under book labels, but now I feel comfy enough in my position to explore some exciting new avenues for getting kids and books together.

In 2014, I'm making a resolution to fill my media specialist shoes.  Our library will now have a strong online presence and will become more hands on with the use of technology in the library.

I've started this blog along with a Facebook page to help keep our community updated and involved about the library's events and activities.

Our school purchased six iPads for the library.  We will be using this technology in some new and exciting ways to learn more about inquiry, research, forming opinions, and finding books and information that meet the needs of each child's interests.  The library and computer lab also have plans to collaborate during second semester to work on these goals.

The library will always remain a warm and inviting place where students can come find a great book to enjoy, but we also want the library and lab to become the place where students come to learn more about their own interests.

Stay tuned to this blog to learn more about what Sunrise students are achieving and enjoying.

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