…changing the world, one reader at a time.
What goes on in my library? Check out the Teaching category to get all the details on library lessons, computer science collaborations, library interns, middle school electives, social emotional exercises, book clubs, resource lists, and more.
How can fourth graders help brand new kindergarteners learn to use the library? By channeling their empathy into writing and illustration skills! We used our Perspective Tool to think like kindergarteners this week. From there, we created a brand new book inspired by Mo Willems’ Pigeon series: Don’t Let the Pigeon Wreck the Library! Just wait […]
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Let’s talk music. 🎶 Are you a fan of completely silent reading time, or do you play background noise in your space? As a reader and a teacher, complete silence stresses me out. If one shoe squeaks like a fart in the back of the room, all is lost. In my experience, playing some soft music […]
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Welcome to the brand new Computer Science department! For FABLAB and Quest this semester, Ms. Wilkens and I are asking: Whose Computer Science Department is it, anyway? To answer, we’re handing the reins to students in grades 5-8 to plan two of our biggest events of the year: The Haunted Library and the 12 […]
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Spot any familiar faces? 👀 When a parent sent me this awesome inspiration photo for a reading display with giant googly eyes, I knew I had to have something like it in the library. One internet search of “giant googly eyes” later, we have ourselves a Look Who’s Reading wall, and I’m looking forward to […]
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The Pigeon HAS to go to School… and he has a lot of feelings about it! This week, we stepped into the Pigeon’s shoes (Shoes? Feet? Wings?) to investigate all his feelings about the first day of school. After our first reading, we took some time to name the Pigeon’s feelings, and explore them. The […]
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I have something miraculous to tell you about. Our 7th and 8th graders have designated library time in their schedule every week. This time comes with one rule: you can’t read anything assigned to you. Whatever you’re reading has to be something that’s exclusively for enjoyment. From e-readers to magazines to Narwhal and Jelly for […]
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I’ve been reading Unselfie: Why Empathetic Kids Succeed in our All-About-Me World, and it has me feeling so inspired and engaged. In one chapter, author Dr. Michele Borna discusses how making caring a part of a child’s identity (“You are a child who cares!”) and creating a family motto (“The FitzHenrys are kind and generous.”) […]
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This week, a 7th grade reader leant me a book. “This is the best book I’ve ever read,” she said, all shining eyes and earnestness. “You can borrow it, but please don’t touch any of the pages I marked. I need them. Will you read it, so I can talk to you about it?” What […]
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“I’ve come to a frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element in the classroom. It’s my personal approach that creates the climate. It’s my daily mood that makes the weather. As a teacher, I possess a tremendous power to make a child’s life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or […]
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Transitions are tough, ya’ll. Especially when you’re five. This year, I’m trying something new with the transition into library class. We’ll meet in the doorway, count down together, and make time for a one-one-one greeting before we make our way inside. Because all the wonder, love, and magic in the world can’t reach you if […]
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