Who is your hero?

I started the class off by asking the intermediates, "Who is your hero?" I told them to think about it for a moment, and to not say a TV star or Blake Sheldon. Many of the students said their parent(s) were their heroes. You might be a hero in someone's life and not know it! After everyone gave me the name of their hero, I told them that my hero is my Mom, but that we also have many heroes throughout our lives.

I showed them the book cover that I was sharing with them that day. It was a biography called "Helen Keller : Courage in Darkness" written by Emma Carlson Berne. I read a couple of quotes from the book and shared with the students some of the special moments in Helen's life. One of the very inspiring moments was when she graduated from Radcliffe College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1904. Everyone in the audience gave her a huge applause and I'm hoping that Helen felt the vibrations on her glorious day.

This young lady named Helen had insurmountable hardships and with the help of Annie Sullivan (a teacher/angel) and her own strength, humour and faith, Helen lived a very successful life. She helped others, was a political activist and proved to the world that nothing was impossible.

Dream Snow

The Grade 1 class listened to one of my favourite books of all time. The books is called "Dream Snow" by Eric Carle. It is about a farmer that is a thoughtful, generous man who loves his animals and wants them to experience the surprises of Christmas morning.

Grateful to All

The Scholastic Book Fair has been packed up and the library is back to it's original form. It is my pleasure to announce that this year's book fair was the most successful one at St. Luke's yet!

Every year since I began working here at St. Luke's, the staff and students and families have supported this annual event. It is wonderful to be part of a small school that is so very generous. I have a large box of books that were 50% off and profit sharing that provides funds for future purchases within the school.

Scholastic Book Fair is here!

It is marvellous to see the excitement in the air when the library transforms into a book store for one week every November. All of the children are peering in the window, wide-eyed and smiling, with anticipation and excitement to see what's going on inside. 

Similar to an old-fashion circus rolling into town, the Scholastic Book Fair is set up for a few days every November at St. Luke's. Everyone gets to view, shop and enjoy, and then it is packed up and the library is back to normal again. The book fair ends when the last trolley is closed on Friday morning.  

Everything in our world is a lesson, even the book fair. Some children buy books; some children don't; some children need to budget and can't always buy what they had wanted to. It is my hope that with the success of the book fair, I can add many great new books to our shelves for all the students to enjoy! 

A big "Thank You!" to all of the St. Luke's families who continue to support their school library!

May We Never Forget

History was shared once again with my intermediate grades, when I played a YouTube video called "Poppies at the Tower of London - A Blood Swept Land and Seas of Red."

It is difficult for young people who have only experienced war from afar, and mostly through what is reported by the media, to wrap their heads around the large numbers of losses. When you see a creation of this magnitude, you visually experience the enormous loss of lives.

We Must NEVER FORGET! All of our history is important; we learn so much and must give thanks for the generations before us.

Little rabbit helps a bear see stars

This week, I read-aloud one of my all-time favourite books to the Grade 1 class. The book is called, "Gruff the Grump" written by Steve Smallman and illustrated by Cee Biscoe. It tells the story of a grumpy bear whose attitude is changed when he rescues a rabbit and receives a small thank you gift. Rabbit is desperately trying to catch all the "fallen stars." The story ends with Gruff the Bear smiling and covered in autumn leaves (the fallen stars) from his new little friend Rabbit.

Isn't it wonderful to be able to imagine a yellow leaf turning into a star? Books can transform our moods the same way that they can transform their characters lives!

Remembrance Day Service

It was wonderful to be part of an audience that celebrated our Veteran's today. All the children from JK-8 participated in individual presentations, either through music or sharing thoughts of how We Will Never Forget. It certainly touched my heart and a tear rolled down my face as a wreath was laid and a veteran sat solemnly in the audience watching.

It was a time for all of us to reflect on the sacrifices that all soldiers endured to give us freedom. I personally thought of the many people that I've lost in my life: my Mom and Dad, my Mother-in-Law & Father-in-Law, my Step-Father and many others. They all had stories that they kept hidden inside of the horrors of war. I pray that our world will see peace again.

The staff worked very hard with the students over the last couple of months to arrange this memorable service. Thank You!

Hoo, Hoo, Hoo

Grade 4/5 class listened intently to a book called "Northern Spotted Owl" by Patricia A Fink-Martin. This book is from the True Book Animals series that provides amazing photographs and interesting and unusual facts about animals.

I read these books to encourage the students to want to research other animals or birds. They were amazed to find out that the owl does not having external ears. It is unfortunate that clearing old forests are taking away the habitat of the Northern Spotted Owl. Did you know the wing span can be 4 feet wide? A student helped me measure out 4 feet with the measuring tape. All of the students were surprised.

Our world is full of nature's creatures that we can only be exposed to through books or occasionally see at a zoo or aquarium. After reading only a few pages, it sparked conversation of visual sightings and interest in this magnificent bird. A student mentioned that he thought this bird was lazy because they do not build their own nests; all of the students chuckled. I'm sure it will be the topic of conversation at the dinner table tonight.

WARNING! Do not open this book (5 star)

The Grade 2/3 class truly became totally captivated during the read-aloud of the book called, "WARNING! Do Not Open This Book!" by Adam Lehrhaupt. Lowering my voice to a whisper and pausing before turning the page built suspense that made this story very real. A few of the children actually moved from where they were sitting, feeling like the book was actually going to come alive. All of us laughed and chatted about each page and the anticipation of what was to follow. So many children wanted to borrow this book after I read it. Aah! Choosing the right book for the different classes makes it memorable and enjoyable and everyone left with a smile. All shivers were now gone.

Happy Halloween!

A Milestone Birthday for St. Luke

Wow! St. Luke Catholic Elementary School will celebrate 50 years this Sunday, October 19. The building has changed but it still has its country charm and wonderful families continue to support this amazing gem.

 Congratulations to St. Luke School students, staff and families!

Happy birthday!

Interesting inventions

I found an interesting non-fiction book on the shelf called, "Extreme Science : Science in the Danger Zone" by Larry Verstraete. My first choice article from the book was titled, "Cut the rope." This article was about an inventor named Elisha Otis who invented the safety elevator. He helped change the future of city skylines with skyscrapers and tall buildings being built.

The second article that I shared was about how space engineers sent 2 spiders, minnows, minnow eggs and 450 fruit flies into space. I'm sure you're asking yourself the big question, "Why?" Scientists and space engineers wanted to see what they would do if they were in a place with no gravity. The spiders first wove webs that were sloppy and the minnows swam in circles. I'm pleased to say they eventually figured it out. The spiders were able to fix their webs and the minnows stopped swimming in circles.

Space exploration and science engineers are continually working together to find innovative ways to explore and help our world with their inventions.

Memorable day in history.

I wanted to share something that the intermediate students would find really interesting, so I chose a memorable day in World History. I decided on a non-fiction book, "The Fall Of The Berlin Wall : 10 November, 1989" by Brian Williams. It is part of a series called Dates With History.

The 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall will soon be here and it is a part of history that shows the importance of freedom and the power of people. All of the students were very curious to find out the length of the wall, why the wall was built, how many lives were lost and many other incredible facts.

After sharing this book with the class, I answered all the questions they had about this time in history using the information contained in the book. I also gave the students the opportunity to watch a YouTube video called, "The Iconic Photo of the Berlin Wall." This video provided photographs and the personal testament of TIME photographer Anthony Suau's coverage of the Berlin Wall.

Everything in the world is important!

I shared a book with a class called, "The Important Book" by Margaret Wise Brown. It is not a story, but rather a book describing and detailing the importance of many objects. After reading the book aloud, we talked about how everything in our world is important and has a purpose.

I suggested to the class that we could create riddles and the students could guess the object. Two of the students shared their funny riddles, and had the whole group laughing. This is a great book to show how the author described each and every thing within the book. Purpose and importance go hand in hand in life; you can't have one without the other, if you take the time to recognize it.

Violet

There is a book that is catalogued as a non-fiction but if you were to just look at the cover, you'd think it was a picture book. This book sends out such an important message in a simplified way. The title of this book is called, "Violet" by Tania Duprey Stehlik and illustrated by Vanja Vuleta Jovanovic.

The main character is a young girl who moves to another house and is nervous to go to a new school. There are many students of many colours at her new school: red, yellow, blue. Violet is surprised to find that there is nobody else that is the colour of violet.

When her father comes to pick her up from school, her classmates see that he is blue in colour, and make remarks about it. Another day, Violet's mother picks her up for school and again, a classmate comments about her Mom's red skin. Of course, the question is asked by some of her curious classmates why she is Violet is the colour that she is.

When she arrives home with her Mom, they talk about the different colours of skin and why Violet's colour is a mix of colour from her parents. This is book to embrace and share with intermediate students. It certainly provides a lesson that does not need any explanation after you read this book aloud.

Exciting Announcement!

It is always memorable and certainly interesting to meet a children's author, and I have some exciting news for St. Luke's!

Michael Wade, the co-author of the book series "And Then It Happened," will be coming to the school in October. He will spend time talking to the students about the importance of reading. The students can expect to laugh out loud while also being motivated to pick up a new or favourite book to read.

A Changing World

 "And Still the Turtle Watched" by Sheila MacGill-Callhan and illustrated by Fanny is an absolute favorite read-aloud. The book tells about a Delaware tribe that lived when the rivers were clean, the air was fresh and you could see the stars in the night sky. They carved a beautiful turtle from stone to overlook their community on top of a cliff.

Years later, when the tribe was gone, young teen boys used spray paint and put graffiti all over the rocks and most importantly the turtle. Generations passed until it was finally discovered and taken to a place where it could be enjoyed for centuries to come, exactly as the Delaware tribe intended.

The class was very surprised when I told them that the turtle can be seen in New York City at the Watson Building Botanical Gardens.

Ocean Adventure

With a new school year underway, I'm happy to share new books that I've added to the library collection, like "Miss Smith Under the Ocean" by Michael Garland.

Wouldn't it be a spectacular, jaw-dropping experience to have characters and the settings of their books come alive? This is exactly what happens when Miss Smith reads books to her students. Talk about hand's-on learning at it's finest! The students have the chance to meet the characters of Treasure Island, Robinson Crosue, Moby Dick, and others. They even help save a mermaid caught in a fishing net during their ocean antics!

Miss Smith always returns safely with her students, even though they sometimes get into frightening situations while experiencing the story she is reading. As a librarian who challenges the students to stretch their minds and use their imaginations, I mentioned how much I wish I could provide the incredible story-telling experience that Miss Smith does!

Fun Flora Facts

What better way to start a new year with the students than to share book about the interesting wonders of our world!

With book in hand and a measuring tape, I read to the students about all kinds of plants in "Strange and Amazing Plants" from the Reading Discovery Nature Series. They learned that the largest flower in the world measures 3 feet wide, and the tallest plant grows 9 feet high! We used a measuring tape so everyone could gain perspective of how big these plants really are. The students also heard about the Redwood Forests in California, carnivorous plants like the Venus flytrap, and learned that not all plants need soil or water to survive.

I find it fun to have interactive activities that go along with the books I read, and always enjoy sharing fun and interesting facts with the students. Who knows, maybe there is a future botanist in the class! 

If you're happy and you know it!!

If you're happy and you know it...!! I don't know if you are, but I sure am! The past few weeks, I've been counting down the days to return to the library, and I'm looking forward to another year at St. Luke's. I hope everyone had a wonderful summer. Mine was filled with star-gazing, family dinners, campfires and reading books. It was a pleasure to do a little shopping and I have a few new books that I'm excited to share with the students.

I have lots of new ideas to share with the different classes this coming year, and am always looking for new ways for the kids to learn and interact. One idea is to incorporate a visual picture with a trivia question and then have the students research the topic. Hopefully, this will be both fun and rewarding for the intermediate/middle grades.

My blogs seem to be doing very well at both of my schools, and I hope you appreciate keeping up-to-date with the happenings in the library. Blogging may be time consuming but I feel it's important to share some of my ideas and special library moments with parents/colleagues.

Wishing everyone a fun-filled, rewarding school year!

Happy reading,

Mrs. Lummiss
 

Nature's treasures

Since sharing a book about rocks and fossils, many of the children have become interested in the topic of geology. Each week, one or two students tell me about the fossils or rocks they have found. Next week the Grade 3 class students are going to share their found treasures. They will be showing us the rocks, fossils and shells that they have found and the stories that go with them.

Have you ever saw a moose?

I began my class with the Grade 2's with a question: "Have you ever saw a moose?" The reason I wanted to know is because I was sharing my own story with the students. The previous Friday evening, while travelling up north, my husband and I had an opportunity to see a young moose at the side of the highway. The moose was frightened and many people pull off the road to enjoy this special moment.

My book choice for the class was called "Moose" by Nick Winnick. This non-fiction book gave the children many up-close photos and lots of information about the moose. To see a magnificent animal from the forest is truly a gift. Our world is filled with such beauty; books and sharing our own stories provides us the opportunity to see it.

Spelling-bees are flying into the library AGAIN!

 Classes have voted the tally is in, the Spelling-bees are flying back into the library the first two weeks in June! Grade 3-8 seem to be missing them. (Ha-ha). Next year I plan on having the students use the I-pads for a few spelling-games and sentence structure. I will enjoy watching their faces as they race against the game to win.

Kindergarten's enjoyed this book and author is visiting our school this Wednesday!

I read-aloud the book called "Chicken, Pig, and Cow On The Move" by Ruth Ohi. The children enjoyed the illustrations of miniature farm animals and found it interesting that even when they found a home that was spacious, they still wanted to be close to each other. The barn was built with popsicle sticks and their new home was a doll house. The kindergarten class certainly had connections with the doll house since some of the children had one at home. The children did not seem surprised when all of the animals squished together in the bathtub of the doll house. These miniature animals did not like the change in their accommodation.

Ruth Ohi, Canadian children's author will be visiting our school and presenting to JK-4. I hope everyone enjoys her presentation. Students will have an opportunity to do some drawings with the help of Ruth and they can ask questions at the end of her presentation.

Whale's song

My read-aloud today is a favorite of mine that I shared with the Grade 3 class. The title of the book  "The Whale's Song" by Dyan Sheldon and illustrated by Gary Blythe. I think we all wish we were fortunate enough to hear our grandmother tell us a story. The little girl in the story is named Lilly and she is at her grandmother's house near the sea. She shares a special moment with her grandmother when she suggests that Lilly leaves a special present for the whales like she did when she was young. Lilly leaves a beautiful flower in the water and waits for the whales. Her grandmother says that if the whales like the present they will give her something special in return, the whales will call her name! Lilly listens in the night to try to hear the whales sing. She hears sounds from the sea and runs down to the pier and to enjoy a special moment in time. She hears the whales call her name, "Lilly, Lilly, Lilly." Quietly, she stood and listened to the beauty of these words and felt blessed to have shared the same experience as her grandmother.

Fossils

The Grade 2/3 classes visited the library today and I shared a non-fiction book with them. The book is called "Rocks & Fossils" by Margaret Hynes. This book provides a thorough look at earth science with photographs of many rocks, fossils, erosion and weather. We talked about caves, and ancient drawings and fossils. I shared a very special treasure of mine that was found in Costa Rica - a fossilized shell! I gave the students an opportunity to hold a fossil and hoped that this would help encourage them to build their interests in natural science. Some of the students thought that they might want to be geologists when they grown up so that they can be experts on rocks. It was no surprise that all of the rocks, mineral and fossils books flew off the shelves by interested students wanting to learn more about them at home.

To be thanked!

At the end of the day, a parent came into the library and introduced herself to me. She thanked me for providing a knitting club for the children at the school. She was happy to report that her own children were knitting at home in the evening now instead of playing video games. She also thanked me for having spelling-bee's in the library. As a matter of fact, her daughter had won the spelling-bee and she said that in the morning, they were practicing words together!

Nests & Eggs

I shared a book with the Grade 1 class called " Bird" by David Burnie and it is from the Eyewitness Books series. Today, I did not use this non-fiction book as a read-aloud, instead I showed the students all the interesting photographs. First, I showed them pictures of bird nests. It was fun to see all the shapes, sizes and materials that different birds use to make their homes.  Next, I showed them the eggs, which are just as diverse as the nests! They are different sizes, shapes, colours and patterns. The children were interested in this topic and were very engaged in the discussion. I shared a story about a robin that built a nest at my home, and gave them advice on what to do (or not do) if they saw a nest with eggs inside. Once you unlock a child's interest they have many questions and are excited to share their own stories.

Proud Moment!

It was a proud moment for me in the library this afternoon. As mentioned in a previous blog posting, I had planned to have spelling-bees for two weeks in the library. The Grade 8 class came for their library time, and promptly sat down, excited to begin. Unfortunately, I had forgotten to bring the prizes for the spelling-bee, so I was going to postpone until the next week. Their teacher mentioned that they were looking forward to having the spelling-bee game, so I gave them the option to play without prizes. To my surprise, they wanted to go ahead and play the game, and even their teacher joined in! In fact, we had two games and they are all looking forward to the games next week. I'm blessed to have such a wonderful group of kids. Wow! I couldn't ask for students to be more engaged than this.

Bentley & Egg

My read aloud with the Grade 2 class was a favorite of mine during this time of year. The book is called "Bentley & Egg" by William Joyce. I will finish reading the book next week, and I left the students wondering what will happen next. The story is about a boy, a musical frog and duck that lays a single egg. The duck needs to leave her egg to go and see her sister's ducklings. She asks her good friend Bentley the frog to care for her egg. He is not enthusiastic about the job, but as time passes he paints the egg and begins to sing to it and truly care for it. Surprisingly, a boy finds the decorated egg, thinking it is an Easter Egg, and takes it home. Bentley is fearful for the egg and goes searching for where the boy and the egg that he loves has gone. To be continued next week....

Sand sculpture comes alive

My read-aloud with the Kindergartens today was called "Foghorn" by Mary Elizabeth Hanson and beautifully illustrated by Paul Orlando. The possibility of having a sand sculpture come alive unlocks the imagination of the children. Foghorn is a sand sculpture of a cat that a little girl named Elizabeth created one day at the beach. She had taken such loving care in creating the sculpture that once she was done and left, the cat missed her. He came to life to follow her home. Elizabeth has a very difficult time trying to convince her parents that this sand sculpture cat is at their home and in their yard. When the rain comes, her sand cat wants to return to the beach. She is reluctant to let him go but she understands. Once she lets him go, to her surprise she finds a real cat that looks very familiar with the same colour fur and telltale scarf that was on Foghorn.

Imagination grows with book reading and writing. The children were thrilled about the possibility of their own sand sculptures coming to life.

Under the sea

I spoke to the Grade 8 students about life in the Arctic by sharing both a book and a video-clip with them.  The book was called "Very Last Very First Time" by Jan Andrews and is about a little girl who goes under the sea ice to collect mussels. I'm fortunate to have a smart-board in the library so I was able to share a remarkable video-clip to show the students how brave Inuits do this in real life. WOW!

"The Inuit of Arctic Canada take huge risks to gather mussels in winter. During extreme low tides, they climb beneath the shifting sea ice, but have less than an hour before the water returns." BBC News-- Inuit's risky mussel harvest under the sea 

Sometimes we find that a book is not a folktale but rather a historical harvest that has been passed down from generation to generation. The students had many queries and thoughts to share after learning about this and seeing the how the event unfolds.

I was April Fooled

During my morning knitting club on Tuesday, April 1, I was fooled by a Grade 2 student. When I looked behind my chair I was surprised to see a snake. EEK! I was thankful that this little snake looked like a toy and was bright blue. We all laughed and I explained to the students that if the surprise was a real snake sitting behind me on the chair, I'd be out the door and running down the hall. It was all in good fun and the little girls were happy they shocked Mrs. L. I will rest easy now for this year, but I'll be watching very closely next year.

Let the Spelling-bees Begin

The Grade 7 class had their first spelling-bee in the library last week. I chose many words from a list of words appropriate for their grade level. The students were anxious but they enjoyed the change of atmosphere that the library provided.

Before beginning, I always explain a couple of simple rules and tips:

• Say the word out loud
• Pretend you are writing on a piece of paper if it will help you
• The game is for fun!

My last rule is most important. I have this game to build the vocabulary of the students and help them become more confident with their spelling. I ask the students to all be considerate of everyone spelling, and to make sure there are no negative comments or assistance.

The students have a lot of fun taking part, and two lucky students get to go home with a prize, if they are the last ones standing.

Look-and-Find

Today, I played a game with the Grade 7 class called Look-and-Find. This games helps children increase their vocabulary and is a fun way to incorporate a writing exercise. Each student was asked to choose a book they found interesting from a table stacked with a variety of fiction and non-fiction books. They had to skim through the book, looking for unfamiliar words or descriptive words that they don't use often, and write seven words down. When the students had finished, they shared their words with class.

Increasing vocabulary has many advantages besides just being able to read and write effectively. It helps improve communications, increases self-confidence and can even contribute to building better relationships with people!

The Look-and-Find game can be adapted to different grade levels to help them with the skimming technique and adding to their own vocabulary.

A picture book about friendship

Today I read the book called "Everyone Needs a Friend" by Dubravka Kolanovic to the Kindergarten class. It teaches us about friendship and acceptance of others, which is important to instill at a very young age. This is a feel-good book with beautiful illustrations of Jack the wolf and Walter the doormouse navigating the struggles that we can sometimes face in friendships.

Look out! Spelling-Bees are coming to the Library.

A few years ago I started having spelling-bees in the library with my library classes. Grades 3-8 had a few weeks of spelling-bees where the last two students standing won chocolate bars. It is a good-natured game in a supportive environment where the kids are encouraged to participate without feeling anxious or judged. My goal is to help the children learn new words, how to spell them correctly, and also challenge them with some friendly competition.

BuzzzzZZZZzzz! And the first word is ......!

Knitting Club is filling the Library!

I am so very happy to see so many students wanting to learn to knit. The classes have begun and they are wanting to even stay in at lunchtime. So many colours of wool, the enthusiasm fills the air and they are so proud when they have completed a row of knitting. It is heart warming to see some of my last year students attending this year with their projects. Gender doesn't matter, some of my students are boys and they are interested in creating and completing a project on their own.

  Let the needles begin....

  Happy Knitting!

  Mrs. Lummiss & Karly Mitchell (student volunteer)

Would it be a snail?

The Grade 1 class was full of smiles on their little faces, ready for library class to begin today!
I shared an outstanding science book with them called "The Snail's Spell" by Joanne Ryder and pictures by Lynne Cherry. I asked the children to listen carefully to all of the words of the book because it was going to answer an important question: what is it that is in the garden? The children listen intently to the words and half way through the story most of the children had the answer. They did ask to see the front cover of the book before I began reading, but of course, I declined and told them I would tell them why at the end of the book.

Playing the riddle game and learning about this very interesting creature was informative and FUN. Did you know that small black eyes rest at the tips of the feelers of the snail? He can tuck his eyes inside his feelers and hide them from danger. Impressive!

After we talked about this creature, I shared another book with the class called "Snails" by Jen Green. This book is from a favourite series called "Nature's Children." I shared a photograph and information about the sea slug. The colourful creature is pink, white and yellow. They also had an opportunity to see a Giant African land snail, which is the biggest snail in the world.

The Grade 1 students and myself will look at the snails now knowing how unique they truly are.

Voices of the Wild

Yesterday, I shared a book with the Grade 4/5 class called "Voices of the Wild" by Jonathan London and illustrated by Wayne McLoughlin. When I read this book aloud I never tell the students what the animal is. I incorporate reading the descriptive words with the important mystery question: what am I? Students need to listen intently to the words of the book to answer the question. It is fun to hear all the different answers and to hear the excitement in the room when it is time to answer the question.

"This marvellously imagined look at man - through the eyes and vices of wild creatures - combines bold narrative with breathtaking wildlife art to create extraordinary portrayal of the North American wilderness" (inside cover of the book)

It is a fun game to play and the person reading will have as much fun as the students guessing the animal.

Knitting Club begins in March

 The Knitting Club begins the first week of March. All Grade 3-8 are welcome to attend if they bring knitting needles and some wool to make a scarf. I'll be showing the students how to cast on their stitches and how to knit. Last year, I offered this club and many students came and were proud of their creations. Students that already know how to knit are also welcome to attend. Some students will make scarfs while others might make dish clothes. Monday & Tuesday morning recess is the only time I have available. It is my hope to continue this club until the first or second week of April.

  The Knitting Club will meet in the Library.



 

Pinduli

Janell Cannon is one of my favorite children's book authors. I shared her book called "Pinduli with the Grade 5/6.

Pinduli is a young hyena who is always complimented by her mother. When Pinduli goes out into the African land she is met by many animals on the savannah who make hurtful comments about her ears, her hair, and her stripes. She transforms her appearance with mud and she keeps her ears down so no one would recognize her. On her way home she meets the animals that insulted her appearance. Luckily, they did not know who she was and thought she was a ghost spirit. This gave her an opportunity to ask them to meet with one another to talk about how bad their name calling is. So, when she went home and bathed, her ears stood up and she was once again her mother's pride and joy.

I chose this book to share with the middle grades so they would have empathy for the situation that Pinduli was in. A few words can be very painful when someone's appearance is insulted. This chain of events had a happy ending on the African savannah lands.

When wishes have wings

This week I shared a book with the Grade 1 class called "The Sheep fairy : when wishes have wings" by Ruth Louise Symes and illustrated by David Sim. This is a wonderfully imaginative book about a sheep named Wendy Woolcoat. Her favorite pastime is to eat grass, eat grass, eat grass, eat grass, eat grass, eat grass, sleep, eat grass, eat grass, eat grass. Now you know what she likes to do!

Wendy helps a fairy in distress and she is granted a wish, and her wish is to fly. Her sheep wings helps her to fly in the sky among the stars, and also to save her friends from a wolf. The illustrations are colorful and the children laughed when I read what Wendy Woolcoat liked to do most of all. Heroes come in all shapes and sizes and Wendy Woolcoat is one of them.

The Very Cranky Bear

On Monday, I shared the picture book called, "The Very Cranky Bear" by Nick Bland with the Kindergarten class. I asked the children if anyone could read the title of the book. With pride and amazement one student read the entire title out loud and many knew some of the words.

This book is about a bear who wants quiet while he sleeps in his cave. The other animals want to play inside his cave to stay warm and dry, though. It has funny illustrations to show the children in words as well as pictures of the different solutions the animals came up with to share Bear's cave. I'm always pleased to share a book where the "smallest animal" finds the solution and changed Bear's mood from Cranky to Content by the end of the story.

Cozy up with a good book!

A Bantu Tale

I was very pleased that all of my classes came to  the library this week. With all the Snow Days last week, many of the students didn't have a chance to begin the New Year with a library book.

It was my pleasure to share a book called "The Name of The Tree : a Bantu Tale" by Celia Lottridge and Ian Wallace. The Grade 4 class is a wonderful group of children who listen intently and always see humor or have their own opinion to share. If you ask one of the Grade 4 students this week, "What is the name of the tree?" I am confident they will remember!

Happy New Year St. Luke's community!