Fairy Tales And Nursery Rhymes In The Library

This Week...

Kindergarten classes worked on nursery rhymes. A letter went home explaining our assignment for the next 2 weeks. We will be learning 16 new rhymes. Mrs. Christner, our music teacher and I collaborated to bring together these rhymes. I introduce them to the students and Mrs. Christner includes some of them into their spring music program.

I often have parents ask me why I teach classic nursery rhymes? My simplest answer is that they are fun. Nursery rhymes introduce  young listeners to story structure in its most basic form. There's an orientation- Peter Pumpkin Eater has a wife. There's a problem- He's  having trouble keeping her - and, there's a resolution- He puts her in a pumpkin shell and there he keeps her very well.

Nursery rhymes also introduce children to a cast of characters who are likely to reappear throughout their school lives. Nursery rhymes also greatly enrich young children's developing vocabularies.

Please make sure to practice the rhyme your child selected to recite to the class.

1st grade classes continued to work on fairy tales. We read and discussed several fairy tales we read Rumplestiltskin by Jonathon Langley and Hansel and Gretal by Cynthia Rylant.  We also, continued to discuss, retell and compare Jack and the Beanstalk by Stephen Kellogg. We made a check list to confirm that it met with our fairy tale criteria (what makes a fairy tale a fairy tale). It's a great time to share your favorite fairy tale with your child.



Book It Forward

 We have been plugging along with our book it forward program. We have booked forward over 125 book thus far. We have another week to go, I am hoping to double it. If you are just tuning in you can see the video depicting The Kid President who has established this program and who we are trying to help reach his goal of 10,000 books forwarded.

 

It really has been exciting for the kiddos. I'm really impressed at how some of our kiddos are coming out of their comfort zone and walking up to another student/students and giving them a book. It really is something to see. I love it. Please continue to book it forward, we will continue until Friday, January30th.

 Creating a Book Club.... 

I am working on putting together an after school book club for K-1 kiddos (this may not come to pass till next year). I am struggling a bit in planning and designing. I am working with several other librarians who actively have afterschool book clubs but none of them are strictly primary level. Please message me if you have feed back about this project, I would love to hear from you. tshamhart@abileneschools.org

 

 Book Reviews and Book Club Party

 This past weekend we had our book club and shared and reviewed our first book choice.

 

I was excited to read this book because I really enjoyed Before I Fall which I read over a year ago.

 

 The Rooms by Lauren Oliver: This book lured me in slowly, weaving its spiderwebs around me until I realized I was completely caught up. There's this lovely balance of delicacy and subtlety and harshness and for all of its ghostly elegance a certain humanity in Oliver's writing style, which meant that even the least likable characters felt closely studied and authentic. The true mastery of her writing, though, is how the story's deeper implications slyly creep up on you and then consume you. I love that through the many narrative threads, there's also this layer of the book-within-the-book woven through out and insisting on its own place and power within the characters', and reader's, minds. I wouldn't call this book "tragic" or even "sad," and yet it does painstakingly examine loneliness of many different kinds, and had me in tears throughout parts of the second half. For a ghost story it was so much more. We as a group will highly recommend it.

 

 We also had our version of a new years book party, setting off our 1st meeting of 2015. Here are some photos of the awesome book club party.

 

 

 Our hostess Janet had our next selection which she won from  Reading Group Choices (check it out). We also had a book swap bag and book mark waiting for us. It was a wonderful time with good friends, good books and good food. What a wonderful way to celebrate 2015.

During our party/ meeting and introduction of our newest book... Landline by Rainbow Rowell we decided to have our February meeting be  All My Favorite Things Party. I can't wait to share all our favorite things right here. Each of us compiles a basket or bag of some of our favorite things. We made a $50 limit. Each item will get a number and each of us will pull a number and that is the basket/bag we receive. A great way to share and introduce some of our favorite things and to try some new items out. Looking forward to it.

 

Superbowl

 This weekend we will be enjoying the Super Bowl with all  the controversy (which thus far has overshadowed much of the anticipation), the commercials ( I love them), the snacks (which I will try to not over indulge) and wonderful company. Each year we have a super bowl party because my hubby is football crazy. None the less it is always a good time with lots of fun.  I am cheering on the Seahawks again this year.

Happy Reading!

Mrs. Shamhart

Another Sneak Peek At Our Week.

#BookItForward

 

I  sent a note home with kiddos this week about booking it forward( see video).    I have had several papers returned and we have already booked forward over 75 books in just a few days. I can't imagine how many books we will book forward by the end of the month.

 I absolutely love that the kids are interacting and sharing their love of books with each other. It is AWESOME to watch.  Remember you too can book it forward!

 

One of my Kindergarten kiddos, that I booked forward a book to this week. He is on a roll reading the Biscuit books. I thought he might put this collection of Biscuit stories to good use.

Way To Go Cooper!

Longhorn Leaders

This week we had a Character Education Day with the help of our Longhorn Leaders from Abilene Middle School. What a great group of kids. We discussed character traits like caring, citizenship, respect, responsibility, trustworthiness and fairness. 

In the library we shared about caring. We used 2 books Horton Hatches the Egg By Dr. Seuss and A Sick Day For Amos Mcghee By Phillip Stead

 

 

 

 Kindergarten Library Lesson

This week in the library Kindergarten worked on letter writing. We shared the book Click Clack Moo by Doreen Cronin. We discussed the parts of the letter like the greeting, body and closing. We went around the room to hear what our letters might sound like. I can't wait to see how they all turn out. Very nice job Kindergarten.

1st Grade Library Lesson

This week in the library we started our Fairy Tale Unit. This is such a fun unit to share with my 1st grade friends. We started with Jack and the Beanstalk by Steven Kellogg. Shared our anchor chart on what is the criteria for a Fairy Tale.

It's Been Frozen Here in Abilene 

I have been playing around with the "Frozen" theme in our library this week.

It's been fun and our K-1 kiddos have been loving it, too.

 Books, Books and Books....

 I am involved in several book clubs one that I meet with each month here locally, in Salina, Ks. and 2 online book groups with blogging friends. I kind of love it.

In my local book group with 11 of my besties, I am currently reading the book Rooms by Lauren Oliver 

My other book group Peanut Blossom Book Club for Recovering Readers (love the title and how it opens the door to those that don't read or haven't read in a while.) we just finished a book, I had previously read called Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty. Look back I gave a review on this book.

Our next book is...The Storied Life Of A.J. Fikry I am loving this book! I will review both of these titles and keep you in the loop of our next novel with my other group as soon as I find out.

Influenster

 This is a group I am part of where I review products and share my opinions.

I just received the new Reese's Spreads: YUMMO!

My grandson, Carter and I made these yummy peanut butter cookies. He said "These are the best peanut butter cookies"! I love baking with him. Please you have to try this yummy spread. We also had it after preschool on apple slices he also loved that.

Happy Reading,

Mrs. Shamhart

Happy New Year 2015

I can't even begin to wrap my head around the fact that it is New Years! I have had so much on my plate these last 2 months. I haven't been able to share because I was throwing a surprise party for my husband and I didn't want to ruin the surprise. I have been slacking here on my blog and will commit to being more active this coming year. 

I am so excited for 2015! I feel like we all have so much to look forward to in the coming months. 

Love the thought of this.

 

I am not much into resolutions but I do like to make goals.

I am one of those people who work better with a list.

My goals:

#BookItForward

The Kid President

I absolutely love the Kid President. His message in this video, strikes a chord with me. I long to promote my students to be lifelong readers, as I am. I am so very excited to share this with you!

This is where you come in...I want us to all #BookItForward. That means I want you to take a book you love and pass it on. this will promote reading and your love of literature with someone else. It's not just an opportunity for kiddo's at my school but for everyone. Share the books with me that you are going to #BookItForward. Who knows, you could inspire someone to love reading by sharing your favorite book choice.

I am sharing my favorite book with both of my grandson's  (one for each of them). The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. To each of my children I will share The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. I absolutely cry when I think of the amazing and inspiring insights both of these books lend. Some books MUST be shared! Those books might be different choices depending on who you might give them to.

I will send home Book It Forward forms. These can be filled out and I will share on instagram, to help the Kid President to reach his goal.  I love that we can all be a part of this amazing opportunity.

My Book Goal:

Another one of my goals is to read more and for enjoyment. So many of you ask me or email/messages about what I am reading or what would be a good book club book. I thought I would share our choices for the year 2014.
 I have been in a book club for several years. I love the ladies in my book club. We have 2 Salina elementary school teachers and a retired  teacher, an attorney, 3 stay at home moms, a nurse, a pharmacist assistant and me, a primary librarian. We each bring something different to our group and I love the conversations and the way our group connects. It is always a lot of fun and I find myself laughing about our conversations weeks or sometimes months afterward. Over the last year we have read some amazing books. Here is our list for this past year, 2014. We meet once a month and it is always a feast for the mind and stomach. 

January: Such A Pretty Fat by Jen Lancaster 

This is an awesome book to read in January when everyone is trying to shed a few pounds. It is at times, laugh out loud funny. We had a great time discussing it and throwing caution to the wind and sharing some amazing treats.

February: Three Wishes By Liane Moriarty 

This was actually my book choice for the month. I loved the Liane Moriarty book I had read just a few months before that's called What Alice Forgot and I wanted to read another. This was an easy lighthearted read and we enjoyed it. After the holidays, something easy and fun was just what we all needed.

March: The Art Of Racing In The Rain By Garth Stein

The Art of Racing In The Rain has it all love, redemption, danger and most especially the canine narrator, Enzo. This old soul of a dog has much to teach us about being human. I loved this book! Thanks for sharing this special story with us Karen, it is one I will always remember. The laughter of discussing this book and contemplating what our dogs/pets must think of us...Oh Boy!

April: Glitter and Glue By Kelly Corrigan

I love all the Kelly Corrigan books, they are a joy to read and so easy to relate to. I was swept away through this sweet and sincere memoir in just one sitting. It was a fast but interesting read. So many times I bounced from relating to the daughter and her relationship with her mother and then suddenly I knew exactly how the mother felt. Discussing this book we found that many of us could relate to the mother or the daughter and 2 of us were able to relate to both of these characters for one reason or another. This is a wonderful book about relationships between mothers and daughters and how that relationship changes over time.

May: Same Kind of Different As Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore

This book is absolutely AMAZING! It is well written with 2 narrating voices. It is a true spiritual story of faith in others and also our faith in ourselves to do the right thing. i needed a box of tissues by the end of this book. As we discussed our year of books at our last book club meeting I was told that this book is being made into a movie. It will be a must see for me. I will totally be bringing my tissues.

June: The Good House by Ann Leary

I think we all agreed, that every one of us enjoyed this book. Over the last
2 years I think it was one of our most enjoyed. Not the best by far for me             but the overall, most enjoyed by all. Our discussion went on for several hours.     This book had great characters, wonderful depiction of the community and it's history.   I couldn't wait to see, what trouble the main character would get into next. The workings of alcoholism and the denial that tends to be associated played out through this book.

July: This Is Where I Leave You by Jonathon Trooper

This by far was my favorite book of the year. I laughed, and actually found myself reading parts of this allowed to my husband. This was made into a movie and for the most part was pretty close to the book. I enjoyed our discussion of this book and the ins and outs of this diverse and typically dysfunctional family. I really loved that this book could have been any family in the USA. 

August: The Vacationers by Emma Staub                         This was my first time reading Emma Staub. I enjoyed her writing style and I found the story line amusing.  Another family dynamic you will find connections too. Even in our discussion of the book we drifted off to other things. Not one of my favorites but perfect for a lazy day at the beach.

September: Dark Places by Gillian Flynn

My first introduction to Gillian Flynn and I was hooked. I ended up reading all 3 of her books. I loved her writing style and as creepy and mysterious as they were I found longing to know more and to read more of her novels. I was drawn to this book initially because the crime that occurred, to main characters family actually takes place in Kansas. I love when I can make an  initial connection to a book as it tends to draw me in. In our discussion it was a fine line between those that appreciated this book and those that hated it. I, myself am not typically drawn to this type of creepy and brutally telling tale. But I went along for the ride and was happy I did. Most of us went on to read Gone Girl and Sharp Objects. I enjoyed all 3 but I felt this one was the most brutally graphic for me. VERY CREEPY!

October: The Prayer Box by Lisa Wingate

The Prayer Box was a beautifully written story! I loved it. I couldn't put it down. This story takes a lot of different twists and turns but I really enjoyed how Tandi, the main character begins to sort through the boxes and belongings of Lola Anne Poole, her deceased landlady. She begins to learn about herself as well. In our discussion we all had connections to this story. 

November: Mr. Miracle was a fun easy read it was aimed to  get us into the spirit of the season. It was a quick little read. I am a huge fan of all of Debbie Macomber books and I do believe I have read them all. This book did the trick and opened up our group discussion and set off our cookie exchange.

December: Winter Street by Elin Hilenbrand                            This was my book selection and I was so happy to be able to include it this month. I really enjoy Elin Hilenbrand but have always read her beach reads. I was excited to read this story since it was different from her typical writing style. I wasn't disappointed.

It takes place in a B&B in Nantucket where a family comes together. The ending felt abrupt it left me wondering if there will be a sequel next year...?   Due to the holidays we haven't met to discuss this one yet but aim to meet this week.   

Our book club is much like any book club, friends getting together sharing stories and time together. I have learned a long time ago some of my most favorite reads are the ones I never thought I would read.                    

Library Reading Challenge

I have a blogging friend who has started this library reading challenge I have accepted. I will be creating one for my students and adults that I will share as we get back to school. Good luck and I hope you will accept my challenge.

Happy New Year and Happy Reading!

Mrs. Shamhart

The Christmas Countdown ...

                    Can you believe it is already December?                    

The count down has begun, we have only 15 days of school 

  before we go on break, December 19, that just doesn't seem possible.  

                   We return to school Monday, January 5, 2015.                                          

 

 Listening-   I absolutely love National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. I was wrapping gifts and listening. It just isn't Christmas time without a viewing of this movie sometime throughout the month.

Loving-  For Thanksgiving my family and I went to Illinois to visit family and it was so very nice to see everyone. I just wish it could have been a longer visit. It seems the time passes so quickly.

Thinking- How I am going to decorate the library, my house and get lesson plans done and prep for the next few weeks done. I am on a mission I will post some photos as I complete some of the decorating here in the library.

Wanting- To be organized. I am one of those people who likes all my ducks in a row. It helps me to more efficient and this is exactly what I want (And a nice Mocha Latte).

Needing- A small miracle to get all the party planning done, upcoming entertaining, holiday planning and family visiting not to mention all the holiday invites I have been included in. YIKES! SERIOUSLY, I need help.

Giving- Funnies!

 

This is from Christmas Vacation! 

This is exactly how I felt as we drove home from Illinois last weekend. 

 And so is this one.

   

Buddy The Elf from "Elf"

 

For all of my teacher friends.

 

Library

In the library this week we are reading, comparing and contrasting several "snow books" Snow Day! by Barbara Josse, Snow Day! by Lester Laminak and The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats

 

Whenever I read these books it instantly makes me think of this song!

 

My latest craft...

Last year our art teacher Mrs. Holaday, showed some of the staff how to create these beautiful wooden signs. I made one last year and this is the one I made this week. I love it! I tell the kiddo's, all the time, how lucky we are to have such an amazing art teacher. 

  Last years sign

  Christmas Books:

My favorite time of the year is just around the corner.  I love decorating, baking, and hanging out with my family at home.  At school, I love watching the excitement with the kids, crafting, and of course reading holiday books.  Here are some of my favorites, the links to them are below.

These are a few books everyone in the family will enjoy, regardless of their age.

Pete the Cat Saves Christmas

Bear Stays Up For Christmas

Snowmen at Christmas

Sweet Smell of Christmas

The Biggest Christmas Tree Ever

The Polar Express

How the Grinch Stole Christmas

It's Christmas, David!

Welcome Comfort

Christmas Trolls

 

 

 Swap Updates:  

I have sent out 2 of my 5 swaps. I received my Cozy Box Swap which was ran by Brandi Lang at Lipstick and Tractors This was a wonderful swap. My partner Beth Wade was amazing and spoiled me.

My next swap was the scarf swap which was by Bethani Gregg over at the The Texan Pantry I just sent my scarf and hat out this past week and made contact with my swap buddy. I will post my wonderful goodies as soon as they arrive. 

I am currently working on 2 swaps that need to be sent out on the 6th. My 12 days of Christmas Swap which is ran by the wonderful ladies  at Chaotic Goddess Swaps and my Christmas Book Swap which is by Carpe Librum on Instagram. I am almost done wrapping these up and need to get them off to the post. My final swap is my Happy Parcel Package which I am really excited about. I will share posts as they all arrive.

Book Challenge Update:

Thus far I have had 47 students turn in completed challenges. How exciting to see so many kiddo's reading!!! We still have a couple weeks to complete the challenge so please keep on reading. I have 2 books left to complete my challenge. I will post all books I read next week. I hope you will share your list in the comments. 

Happy Reading!

Mrs. Shamhart