May Activities: All About Grace Lin! Grace Lin is coming to visit our school. Last summer the entire school read her book; Where the Mountain Meets the Moon.  All month the students have been researching information and taking notes on Grace Lin using two websites, www.gracelin.com and http://www.readingrockets.org/books/interviews/lin/.   After their research each grade created the following projects. 5th graders created a QR code sensation that is displayed all around the library.  Using MS-Word to create the final product and the website, http://www.qrstuff.com, they wrote a question about Grace Lin and the answer in the QR code. They then downloaded the QR code into the document, wrote the bibliography and their name to finish.  All the grades have used the Scan app on the iPads to find out the answers to these fun questions!  Here are some examples:

Here are some of the younger students enjoying the activity:

 

The 5th graders have also been busy creating a Science Website on their new Google Accounts.  Using my Google Website "How to create a Website", they are creating their first website on their accounts.   (Click on the link if you want the instructions they are following).  It is exciting and they have been adding information on Electricity, Proton, Neutrons and Electrons.  Here is an example:

 Electricity Website 

The 5th graders have also been participating in the production of CSS, otherwise known as Center School Sightings!  They are using reporting skills, video skills, and green screen and iMovie knowledge to create a superb TV production on exciting things happening at Center School. Thanks to the creators of this project, Sue Dufraine and Laura Giuggio, it has been a success and a lot of hard work and fun.  Click on the link to enjoy:
 

 

 CSS #4

CSS #2  
CSS 

4th graders were busy making Wordles, Tagxedos or Diamante Poems using their information from Grace Lin.  They are on the window of the lab! Please enjoy.  Here are some examples:

3rd graders created crossword puzzles or wordsearch puzzle using their Grace Lin research information.  Already many students have tried their hand at solving them.  They are located at the circulation desk, right where the basket of shelfmarkers and dragons are!  Please come and try some of them.  Here are some examples:

Also from their project at the beginning of the year, I created a PowerPoint about Grace Lin from each student:

3rd grade 

2nd graders used their research to practice their MS-Word letter writing skills.  After watching a video, listening to a short biography, and listening to Ling and Ting, they crafted a letter to Grace Lin.  Their instruction was to pretend they were talking with her and to ask questions and tell her about themselves.  They could then add a piece of clipart.  The students did a great job.  The letters are on the windows of the lab. Here are some examples:

1st graders also watched a video, listened to a short biography, and listened to Ling and Ting, but they used their new MS-Word skills to write one sentence about Grace Lin.  It needed a capital letter to start the letter, be a complete sentence with correct punctuation at the end.  When they were done, they illustrated their page and it became part of the "biography" of Grace Lin for their class. These "chapters" are located on the library windows by the teachers work room.  Please read and enjoy.  Here are some examples:

April Activities

The Kindergarteners have been doing an author study.  The author is Mo Willems.  They learned where his books are located in the library and we read Pigeon books, Elephant and Piggie books, and of course Leonardo the Terrible Monster.  To become illustrators takes practice, so they tried their hands at drawing Leonardo or one of his "scary" friends!  They used the  DrawingPad app on the iPads.

First the 2nd graders listened to  Click, Clack, Moo Cows that Type, by Doreen Cronin.  Then they chose a farm animal to pretend to be and wrote their own letters to Farmer Brown.  They are upgrading their word processing skills to correctly write a letter, capitalize words, add clip art and print.

March Activities

4th graders have been busy learning how to use iMovie iTrailers on the iPad using the library/computer lab ideas.

 

First graders talked about and read many Dr. Seuss books.  They used their skill in MS-Word to create a list of nonsense rhyming words from an actual word.  They had fun and practiced their word processing skills too.  After creating their document, they printed and drew a fun picture to go along with the Dr. Seusslike sentence using Dr. Seusslike words.

The Grade 2 students worked in groups and continued on their Google Earth quest and explored space, mars and other countries.  Group work is important and they did a great job solving problems and learning to work together.  Also in groups the students used the app "Bluster" on the iPads to practice rhyming words, prefixes, and synonyms. 

Grade 3 researched on the Internet and in the library for information on their habitat project.  They also learned more about how to use the catalog to search for a book.  If you would like to search for a book, please click on the following link, click on Center School and click on the tab that says CATALOG.  The catalog is always available.  Have fun, and have your student show you how to get to the Destiny Quest (hint: click on Destiny Quest on the left hand side of the screen once you see the catalog search line).
http://library.longmeadow.k12.ma.us

Grade 5 tried a new program, MS-Excel and created a quick graph with animal lifespan data.  They had fun learning how to manipulate data in the cells, creating the graph and then changing the graph with clipart and color.

And of course, students are still enjoying the library and the books!