Overdue Library Books

As the end of the year approaches, please be on the lookout for overdue notices from the Library.  Many will be sent home on April 25 in Friday folders.  If you have questions, please contact Mrs. Duffina at lduffina@chestnuthillacademy.com.
Don't forget to look for books in lockers, under beds, and in cars.  When I remind most of the children that they have an overdue book, they usually know where it is.  A gentle reminder from home to bring it back to school is appreciated.  Thank you!

Read Across America Week

Thanks to CHA's Student Council, the students have enjoyed many activities focusing around "Read Across America Week."  In Library, students had the opportunity to hear books written by Dr. Seuss and vote on their favorite out of 9 popular titles.  The Lorax was the clear winner, followed by How the Grinch Stole Christmas, then Yertle the Turtle.  Results are posted outside the Library door. 
We also discussed the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award given each year for the best children's book for beginning readers.  This year's winner was The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli.  The students enjoy hearing these books, regardless of their age.  They make wonderful read-aloud books too!

 

Library Inventory

First, I would like to thank all of you who helped remind your children to turn in their library books on time.  ALL library books are due Friday, May 31 so I may do inventory.   I have been sending reminders home.  If books are not returned, you will be billed to replace them.  Please contact me (lduffina@chestnuthillacademy.com) if you know your book is lost.
Thanks again for all your help!  The students will be continuing to learn library skills and enjoying books in library time during the next few weeks.

Reminder from the CHA Library

As the year winds down, I wanted to remind you that all CHA library books are due Friday, May 31.  Reminders have been going home all week.  If you have questions about a lost book, please contact me lduffina@chesnuthillacademy.com.  If books aren't returned, your account will be billed (or you may contact me to get a replacement.)  Thank you!

New Books!

A CHA parent generously donated money to the library for the purchase of new books.  The students were able to peruse and hear some of the new titles as well as check them out this week.  Many of the books flew off the shelves, and eager children shared them with one another.  The older students were challenged to read some of the Sasquatch nominees, while the younger students flocked to the poetry books.

April is National Poetry Month

To kick off National Poetry Month, students who had library this week heard a variety of children's poems.  This week, we focused on Jon Scieszka and Bruce Lansky.  After Spring Break, students will hear poems by Shel Silverstein and others.  The older students will be reciting poems for their classmates. 

The library recently received a generous donation.  I was able to purchase over 100 new books which I will be sharing with the students the next few weeks.

Sharing Our Writing

Each year in June, students receive a copy of CHAnticleer, the student-created anthology of their writing.   This week in library, we talked about good writing, types of writing, and shared examples of past student writing using circle maps.  Younger students also heard the book Rocket Writes a Story by Tad Hills.  In the next few weeks, students will be editing and revising their CHAnticleer stories for submission. 

Celebrating Award Winners

The American Library Association recently announced their Newbery and Caldecott Award-Winning books.  Primary students heard This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen as well as the Theodor Geisel winner, Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons.  Students in the third grade and older heard excerpts from Katherine Applegate's The One and Only Ivan, this year's Newbery winner.  This story is told from the perspective of Ivan, a gorilla for many years who lived in a shopping mall.  All these books prompted discussion about what makes a "good book."

Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

In celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, the students in library heard stories and discussed Dr. King's life and legacy.  The younger students heard I'm Like You, You're Like Me and All the Colors of the Earth.  They also viewed a Brain Pop in Technology about Dr. King.  Older students heard Singing for Dr. King, looked up facts about his life, and watched exerpts of his "I have a Dream" speech given in 1963.  We all discussed ways that we can help one another by doing good deeds and not judging others.

Professor Watermelon Visits

Professor Watermelon, former CHA librarian Chadwick Gillenwater, has published a new book called Herbert.  

Herbert is a fly who makes delicious honey. But flies aren’t supposed to make honey. They are supposed to forage the dump for all things spoiled and rotten. Instead of staying at the dump and disgracing his family, Herbert sets out to find the Honeycomb Palace. Will he make it without one of the ferocious and carnivorous dragonflies devouring him? And if he does make it, will Her Majesty the Queen Bee even let a fly inside her hive? Herbert’s journey is filled with triumphs and setbacks, and along the way, a cast of not-so-ordinary characters show Herbert that life isn’t so black and white beyond the dump.

 

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Professor Gillenwater graciously donated his time and shared chapters and writing hints with the Kindergarten through fourth grade classes.  Many students and families pre-ordered the book, but if you would like a copy, please let Mrs. Duffina know.

New Titles in the Library

Mrs. Duffina has been busy cataloging new books to add to our CHA library collection.  These books have been donated by individual students as birthday books and donations from the book fair.  A big thank you goes to CHAPTER for donating many new titles ranging from Kindergarten reading level all the way through Middle School.  Not only were fiction books donated, but we also acquired quite a few new non-fiction titles.  Mrs. Duffina shared many of them with the students, and they were quickly checked out!

Folktales in LIbrary

In preparation for the Cultural Fair, the students have been hearing and discussing folktales from the countries they are studying in their homerooms.  Kindergarten students heard the short story, "Will You Marry Me, Mouse?" and tales from Goha the Wise Fool both based from Turkey.  First grade students enjoyed hearing The Girl Who Wore Too Much and the beginning of The Tale of Two Rice Birds, traditional folktales from Thailand.  The second grade students heard one version of Baba Yaga and Bearhead which are folktales from Russia.  In preparation for their study of Spain, third grade students heard Medio Pollito and The Beautiful Butterfly.  Fourth grade students completed some research on the Internet as a group and heard The Frog King from Kenya.  After looking up information on various atlases about Egypt, the students heard and discussed two myths.
Students will continue to hear folktales and complete work from an atlas for the next week or two.

Library Skills

For the past few weeks, Kindergarten, First, and Second Grade students have been practicing their alphabetizing skills to help them better understand how the library is organized.  In Kindergarten, we've played games and read stories about nocturnal animals.  Third and Fourth Grade students have been working on alphabetizing skills focusing on dictionaries.  The Fourth Grade students have also been learning about the various literary genres.   

National Bullying Prevention Month

Did you know that October is National Bullying Prevention Month?  In library this week, students heard age-appropriate literature and discussed elements of bullying.  It has been wonderful hearing all of the different solutions the students come up with as they talk about what was going on in the books.  The younger students heard The Tale of Sir Dragon by Jean Pendziwol.  Second and third graders heard Bully by Judith Caseley, and the fourth and Middle School students heard Bully by Patiricia Polacco.

Scholastic Book Fair is Coming

In library this week, students viewed an authors' video on the Scholastic Book Fair.  Students and teachers will be filling out their wish lists early next week.

The Book Fair will be open Wednesday, October 17 from 3:00 - 5:30, Thursday, October 18 from 3:00 - 5:30, and Friday, October 19 from 3:00 - 7:30.

If you're interested in previewing some of the titles that may be available, please click on the link of the book fair link at the bottom of the Chestnut Hill homepage.

Thank you for supporting CHA!

This was our first week of checking out books in the library.  Most students were able to find a book that interested them.  Please note that the policy is that students may check out one book a week. If your child needs more than a week to check out the book, they can return it for renewal or just let me know. At this point, Kindergarteners are only choosing picture books.  I will have them start selecting non-fiction later in the year. 

Below are the check-out days for your child’s homeroom class:

Mondays:  Mrs. Kim’s class

Tuesdays:  Mrs. Brown’s class

Wednesdays:  Mr. McCullough’s class, Mrs. Taylor’s class,  Ms. Conrad’s class, Mrs. Douglas’s class, Mrs. Setting’s class

Thursdays:  Mrs. Anderson’s class, Mrs. Box’s class, Ms. Lundberg’s class, Mrs. Newell’s class

Fridays:  Mrs. Daffara’s class, Mrs. Lodwick’s class, Middle School, Mrs. Johansen’s class, Mrs. Prichard’s class

If students want to turn in their library books early, there is a slot to the right of my computer in the library. 

Library/Journalism/Newspaper

Hello.  I am Lisa Duffina, and I am the Library Media Specialist at Chestnut Hill Academy.  This is my tenth year at CHA, and I'm excited to start my new "post" as librarian.  This week in library, we went over procedures and expectations of the library.  I also shared how we will have "birthday books" this year.  If there is a book that our library doesn't have, and your child has a birthday, why not think about donating a book to us?  We will share it with the class and then have it available for checkout!  I read Double Trouble in Walla Walla by Andrew Clements to the second - MS students.  My son "donated" this book to the library -- and it's one I always enjoy reading at the beginning of the year.  We will start checking out books next week.  The students are allowed to check out one book a week.   More information on check out days will be posted in next week's blog.

Fourth Grade Advertising Campaigns

Fourth Graders have spent the last two weeks preparing for their advertising campaigns. This week, we watched some pretty silly commercials, listened to some catchy jingles, and looked at some very creative logos.

The CHA Soul Train

Fourth Graders learned how the popular television show "Soul Train" bridged the races back in the 70's and 80's. Everyone watched the dance and clothing styles as well as listened to what was hot in R&B. Fourth Graders performed their own rendition of the popular Soul Train dance line. Stay tuned for more African American History this month!

4th Grade Radio Shows

Fourth Graders practice their radio shows in Journalism class. Students have learned what it was like when radio was the main source of entertainment  in the USA (Golden Age of Radio).