Welcome to the new Vtdigger.org design

Welcome to the new Vtdigger.org design

I've just discovered this new online journal resource for fresh voices
in Vermont news and opinion. Journalists wishing to preserve traditional
values in reporting have put together a site that offers a fresh look and
strong news content. Take a look!

season of shadows

First grade has been reading about the science of shadows and the imaginative offspring that literature provides. We shared in the fun of Robert Louis Stevenson's poem, and read two books by Paul Fleischman - one that reinterprets city shadows, and one that imitates a shadow puppet play. Having tried our hands at hand puppets, we use paper cutouts to tell shadow puppet stories with the overhead projector.

Second grade will move from biographies to an author study. Reading a variety of books by one author allows students to recognize the elements that are shared due that authors style of writing and approach to storytelling. They understand that it can be fun to look for more books by the author of a story that they love.

Third grade is done with their Native American celebration and are learning some basic tools for accessing information in non-fiction books: table of contents and index, then on to online catalog and database use.

Fourth grades will enjoy a short novel read-aloud that encourages some critical analysis. They will be learning to make their own interpretations rather than answering questions with the "right" response. It requires risk-taking to take a point of view and support it with evidence from the story.

beyond apples

So here we go, passing from apples and foliage to deer hunting and the flight of the Canada geese. The real blessing of November is in the sky - amazing sunsets and dramatic dark clouds on a late afternoon horizon.
So far this month, there's been nothing to hate about November as we experience day after day of mild Indian summer days.


We had another great book fair this week. Older students scooped up copies of the Hunger Games and The Leanin' Dog, while younger students
looked for Fancy Nancy and Skippy Jon Jones. Parents found some interesting cookbooks, and teachers bought new supplies of gloved pointer hands on dowels to make the Smartboard taps a bit more fun. It was a lot of fun working with parents who volunteered their time to make it all happen. We are fortunate to have such a supportive community of families who join in so many fun events at school - bravo to all!


Sixth grades are doing research for their survival fair after reading the book Hatchet. They are learning how one can be prepared for severe weather, lack of shelter, wild animals, finding wild edibles, and more. They will prepare displays that cover all the hazards of a northern boreal climate, and that demonstrate preparedness for wilderness survival. Look for the display boards at parent-teacher conferences!

spooktacular night and the outdoor classroom

Volunteers work on the outdoor classroom

Friday, October 30, will bring another spooktacular evening to Barstow. We will start at 6:30 in the library with some mildly scary stories for the K-4 crew, with parent and older student accompaniment. The fireplace will be lit, and the candles aglow, and we will have student, parent ,and staff storytellers on the roster to share a tale. At 6:55, young er students will proceed to the Hall, while students in fifth grade and up(along with parents) are invited down to the new trail off the right corner of the lower parking lot to walk to the newly finished outdoor classroom. There, we will be treated to another story from our annual guest and school board member, Jeff Spaulding. We always come away with new things to think about as we walk to halls and trails of Barstow. It will be a great way to "christen" the new trail and open-air classroom!

Online subscription databases

To supplement the Internet searching for students and public patrons, the school and the Chittenden Public Library jointly subscribe to the Vermont Online Library. This is a diverse collection of database (indexed) resources, focused largely on magazine articles, but including image collections, maps, newspapers and basic encyclopedia entries.

In order to access these, you should acquire passwords from the librarian that will allow their use from both school and home. To find the login page, you should go to the Barstow web page, click on Launch Pad, then enter the appropriate password in the box, varying according to your location - home or school. Once logged in, you can search across all database collections at once, or choose one database to search in. You will usually want to choose to search for "full text" articles, so that your results include only complete articles and not simply the title and location of an existing article.

This database is a great supplement to the initial look-up in an encyclopedia and search for Inernet sites. The magazine articles can be much more specific in their focus, and offer another authoritative source of information. Call the library (773-6926, x. 12) or e-mail agallivan@rnesu.org to receive the password for home and try it out! Practice at using it will make you a proficient researcher in no time.

science fiction meets reality television

My most heart-stopping read over the summer was the book Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. With an alarmingly violent premise, the story was at first difficult to stomach, but it was hard to disengage from the characters whose inner conflicts demand empathy from the reader. In this future time, the post-apocalyptic government, called the Panem, chooses two representatives from each of twelve territories to participate in the annual hunger games - a televised survival "game" where one individual comes out a winner. The event is constructed carefully for audience satisfaction, and while individual lives are secondary to the governing powers, they are primary motivation for some of the participants.

This is a sophisticated story that is both rivetting and thought-provoking. I highly recommend it for 7th and 8th graders who will surely want to move on to the newly realeased sequel, Catching Fire.

goodby to netTrekker - come back again?

Students and parents:

If you became a fan of netTrekker for safe Internet searching at school and at home, I am sorry to tell you that the school did not renew for this school year. Because our district made a commitment to move to a unified catalog and circulation for all of its school libraries, the money that was to support netTrekker was redirected to the software upgrade. If it appears that netTrekker is sorely missed, we will look for a way to fund its return next year.

We would love some feedback. If you are among those who were satisfied with the option of researching a safe indexed site from your home, post a comment here (it can be public or private - just spell that out).

farewell to the idle pace

Students have returned (YEA!) and the tempo of life has picked up. I think these are good things, as it means that lots of positive social energy presides over each and every day. It must be quite different to be an office worker, or a writer, or any number of other workers who are not blessed with the energies of children in their days. Though this large family of students can bring its own set of challenges, the reality of growth and learning preside.


Back to the library world:

New titles arrived over the summer and I have placed another large order for books that will come in by mid-September. I find that I buy a bit more fiction than non-fiction now due to the increased role of Internet and database research. I cannot keep current with information about a rapidly changing world the way the worldwide web can, and there seems to be so much good fiction that will appeal to students across the board. The collection will still provide plenty of informational access to younger students looking for colorful books about animals, insects, space, geography, and more, but the delivery of information is rapidly changing.

Soon you will see many lessons being taught with the aid of Smartboards or Mimios or other interactive whiteboards. Their ability to use the Internet, as well as incorporating manipulative highlighting and other interactivity, is exciting. New lessons will be more suited to the media savvy minds of our students, and will inevitably increase their engagement.

Here's to a great new year!

my mind is in "the pocket"

Well, I know It's time for school to start, and that it has been three weeks since we left Ireland, but my mind still drifts back to our time at the cottage in "the pocket" of Blackwater in County Kerry. Now when I go back to the library and pick up Miss Bridie Chose a Shovel, the pictures and story will mean so much more to me, as will A Symphony of Sheep.

Our visit to the rural countryside of Ireland was truly magical, and we can't seem to retire its many memories.

I think that I will enjoy getting back to the routines of schooldays, even if I feel that the next 24 hours is not enough time to prepare. We attend meeting after meeting, making lists of "to-dos" and find there is not time to "do!" Somehow, it will all pull together, and we will be ready!

Reading the story of the the giant Fin McCoul will be that much sweeter after our trip. My imitation brogue will take on new life, and the story will take on new life for us all. Oonagh's clever baking will now include a taste as well as an intelligence, and the defeat of Cucullin will be appreciated for letting Fin McCoul live strong for many more years.

into the dark

This is the second Echo Falls Mystery, and it is just as much fun as the first, which was a best-seller for middle school readers. I particularly like the comfortable blend of realistic family dynamics and a classic young detective character. I hope that there are more mysteries to follow.

Peter Abrahams' website lets me know that I missed the second book in the series. Behind the Curtain preceded this third title, so I must look to adding that one to the library collection.

The website also tells me that the author will be a the Brattleboro book festival on October 2-4.

Vermont is fortunate to have that book festival as well as a Burlington weekend. There is nothing quite like listening to authors talk about their writing, revealing the crossroads of their diverse lives and the literary reflections of them. If you can't make it to a festival, keep an eye on the local bookstores' calendars for interesting author events.

summer reading

I'm starting to think about my Maine get together with old friends and time for enjoying the quiet mornings with fresh coffee and a great book. I've started reading some of the DCF reading list books, and I will alternate those with some of my own choices, including Ireland which will immerse me in Irish history and storytelling tradition.













First we have to finish school - graduation dance tonight, awards assembly tomorrow, boat launch and graduation Wednesday, field day Thursday, and more awards and step-up on Friday. It's such a frenetic pace, but that's what makes the thought of those book-filled mornings so appealing.

I will head upstairs now to finish Into the Dark, by Peter Abrahams, and hope that this author has many more mysteries to invent. The Echo Falls Mystery series is a refreshing addition for middle school readers who previously found little to pursue after mastering the Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew.

shift

I'm starting to read some of the new DCF list titles that students will vote from next year, and my first choice was the book Shift by Jennifer Bradbury. The story is about two high school boys who have been lifetime friends and decide upon their graduation to ride bicycles from Atlanta to Seattle, a feat few believe they can accomplish.

The trip is full of awakenings, and the unlikely friendship between this hard-working Eagle scout and his entitled but unmotivated sidekick, is changing daily. Near the end of their ride, the two square off and say good-bye to their seasoned partnership to finish the trip independently. One goes on with the original plan, and one parts with it, and sets up the mystery that drives this taught story.

This book is a real page-turner. I quickly got involved with the characters and their conflicts, and the back-and-forth chapters that travelled between the past and the present worked well in telling this story. There is palpable tension throughout and you won't be disappointed in this tale of a friendship transformed. Read this one to start your summer with a vicarious adventure.

the way we work

Spring has brought the usual whirlwind of activity to my schedule. After vacation, we dove into the DCF Challenge (battle of the books at Otter Valley), the DCF Conference, a visiting illustrator, and then the Vermont Library Conference. In between were late meetings and other tasks that made for late evenings. So when this last weekend allowed for some simple "putzing", I welcomed the opportunity.

As I stained some replacement windows in our home, I tuned into VPT and heard an interview with David Macaulay. This was my second round with him, as he keynoted the DCF conference this year. This is the man who wrote Cathedral and other titles which explained the building process from ground up, as well as writing The Way Things Work, Black and White, and other award-winning titles. His newest book takes a look at the internal workings of the human body with dramatic illustration. His investigation of the human body is not unlike his deconstruction of the pyramids or other mammoth structures, as he entertains some wonderful juxtapositions with gentle humor for his serious topic. Macaulay has receive the MacArthur Genius Award for good reason. His fresh approach to familiar material is a real eye-opening experience for readers.
Visit his website for an introduction to the vastness of his work:

http://www.davidmacaulay.com/

you have a right

I couldn't resist using this photo I took at the Newseum in Washington, D.C.
I felt like school was following me around the museum as I took in information
about the media and the stories that are covered for our enlightenment. There
is so much to see that our two hours was barely enough time to do it justice.

I especially enjoyed the room that had pull-out drawers layered one atop another,
protectively sharing some of the top headlines through U.S. history's newspapers.
The evolution of the the front page was an interesting walk through America's past,
and I was really surprised at the early newspaper that sported a two-inch headline
that became an item atop a list of commercial line ads. There was no transition from news to advertising, and it appeared to have died as a format shortly thereafter.

The Newseum had some great opportunities for folks to try out the role of newscaster
by reading the prompter while being filmed for posterity. I didn't try it out, but it looked
like a great way to taste the feel of the broadcaster's on-air job.

My youngest son is a copy editor for a newspaper, and he is feeling a bit uncertain
about his future in that field. If newspapers are going to fade from the media landscape, he
will be one of many people hoping to find an adaptive role in another delivery of the news.
If that doesn't play out, then perhaps his avocation as a photographer will earn him
a slot in a new career. It will be interesting to see if newspapers can adapt or if they will be
totally replaced by a combination of other media.

story writing pre101

What's this?

It's a basic story map we use for writing stories. Granted, it's a bit formulaic, but it helps young writers to get out of that wide open space of imaginative ideas and tame them into a story that moves from one place to another. After identifying a star (main character) with a heart's desire, they can have the character do something about getting what they want (go on some sort of journey, take action). The character will run into difficulties (with all the drama of lightning strikes), as this what makes a story interesting, and eventually come upon a solution (the great light bulb or magical moment or new way of seeing) that brings them to a safe and secure ending.

As I am not a writer, it is hard to expect students to find quick success in writing fiction, but with a simple 8-frame storyboard to plan it out, students seem to make pretty good use of the pattern above. The writing is not meant to be elaborate or detailed, but it is meant to work as a satisfying story. Later, the skills of detailing can be added to their efforts, and voila - a tale is told!

restart

Since my old blog site is somewhere in free fall, I thought this was an appropriate image to restart my blogging with. Since I have abandoned my old e-mail address, I can't figure out how to sign into my blog with a changed address. I am, therefore, starting anew!

I just finished reading an interview with Neil Gaiman - the winner of this year's Newbery Award - and it seems to mark a shift in honoring books with stronger appeal to young readers, as well as excellent writing. Recent years have highlighted stories that are unique, but perhaps too quirky for broader appeal. The Graveyard Book has the potential to draw many readers back to the Newbery distinction as recommendation.


Neil Gaiman, who responded to his nomination with a colorful tweet message, also brings some ties to technology's latest communication style. Whether you understand the function of brief twitter messaging or not, this currency is meaningful to younger readers, or at least younger librarians. It's all part of a changing landscape that we are all trying to adapt to, and the more connected things get, the better.