A Week in Review

What an incredible week it has been in the library!
First, the library gained a very special new patron … WELCOME BABY EDWIN!
Second, while baby Edwin’s mama (the fabulous SPA librarian) is on maternity leave,  I, the substitute librarian, am stepping in to fill her shoes.  My name is Mrs. Jones and I cannot tell you what an honor and a privilege it is to be working with the incredible students, staff, and families at Saint Philip the Apostle School.
Third, do you know how fantastic the SPA library is? It is amazing! To give you an idea of how amazing I thought I would paint the picture of my first week in the library…
The Kindergarten listened to a read aloud of a book from the non-fiction section of the library: Chinese New Year by Alice K. Flanagan.  During the reading they participated whole heartedly in a discussion about the traditions and customs involved in Chinese New Year.  They also checked out books and many even utilized “Destiny Quest” (the library’s online book catalog) to do so! Only 6 years old and they are already library wizards!
The 1st grade learned all about the job of an author and illustrator and then became authors of an already illustrated story and illustrators of an already written story.  Some of their original titles include: “The Big Cheeze,” “The Mowsis Pordi” (The Mouse’s Party), and “The Meracle of the Mous” (The Miracle of the Mous).  I think there are some budding authors among us!   They also checked books out. The most popular   books were on sharks,  werewolves, and mermaids.
2nd grade has been working feverishly the past few weeks on an informational packet all about how the library is organized.  They are true experts now on call numbers. The class also checked out books. They each had their own unique interests and had little trouble finding the titles they were interested in.
3rd grade began a library scavenger hunt called “Research Hound” in which they work in teams to find the answers to questions using all of the library’s resources.  Some questions include: “Where does the Mississippi River begin?” and “How many bones does a spider have?” I predict that by the end of their scavenger hunt they and I both will be awfully impressed with the abundance of resources available to them in this wonderful library.
4th grade continued their journey into the Dewey Decimal System with the 300’s: Social Sciences.  After discussing the many subcategories this section entails, the students pulled books from the 300 shelves and took turns guessing which subcategory the book belonged in (without peeking at the call numbers). Did you know books about holidays fit into this section? Yep! The 390’s are all about customs, etiquette, and folklore.
5th grade worked feverishly on their big library research project.  Many of them also came in everyday at lunch, along with the 4th grade and junior high, to spend time reading and browsing the shelves.