A “Playaway” is a digital audiobook. The audiobook comes in its own case that looks much like a video case. Inside is an audio story that can played over and over again. The audiobook come with its own ear phones and hanger so it can be worn around a students neck. Right now we have over 40 in the library and we can’t keep them on the shelves. Some of the titles include The Penderwicks, The Tale of Despereaux, The Charlie Bone series, Charlotte’s Web and many more.
The Secret Order of the Gumm Street Girls by Elise Primevera is one of the new Playaways that we just received. It is about four girls with very little in common who get entangles with some people and events to try and save the town of Sherbet.
Check out some of the new books in the ES Library. To check out the books that have come in the most recent order go to the library catalog and click on FIS Elementary School. On the left you will see a link entitled Resource Lists, click here, then change your tab on the right side to “Public Lists” and scroll to the bottom to “New Books February 2009″. The list includes 171 new books including Graphic novels, poetry books, joke books, Playaways and much more. Check out the list today and stop by to pick up a new exciting read aloud.
One of the new “hot’ titles is below:
The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan – This book is a part of a new series called the 39 clues. Amy and Dan, members of the powerful Cahill family, try to uncover the thirty-nine clues which will reveal the secrets of their lineage and find out what really happened to their parents. The kids are loving this.
Subscriptions to both The Mailbox 2nd and 3rd Grade and The Mailbox Intermediate have just been purchased. The hardcopy versions will be here in 4-6 weeks but you can begin using this great teaching resource right now by clicking here. The logon email is johanna_schooley@fis.edu and the password is frankfurt. On the left you will be able to select the grade level you wish to view, either 2nd and 3rd or Intermediate.
If you forget the logon email and password go to the Elementary ICT Home Page and look under the SMART Resources for all the information to access.
Go to the ES Portal and link directly to the Library Catalog,
Grolier for Kids – an online student database for 3 – 5 grade students,
EBSCO Research Center – another online student database, and
BookFLIX – a Scholastic reading tool great for beginning ESL and 2nd and 3rd grade students.
Want to learn how to incorporate these tools into your classroom? Email me to arrange a time for a one on one tutorial.
Want to expand your classroom learning environment? Add the ES Library to your teaching space. Come in with your students to research, work on projects, explore the weekly kids newspaper, see the current Inquiry Center or just have them spend time reading in a different place. Talk to me today about bringing in your students.
Use the Macbooks Look for books
Work on projects
Make sure to take a look at the ES Library Portal as the Unit of Inquiry studies change. Currently there are links to the 5th Grade Money Unit, 4th Grade Body Unit, 3rd Grade Inventions Unit, and 2nd Grade Forces and Motion Unit.
Click on ES Library Portal to check it out the today.
Check out the students exploring the Magnets at the Inquiry Center in the library.
Tell your students to have a look during library. See what they have learned when they return.
I am going to subscribe to BookFLIX, which is a relatively new online literacy tool. It pairs both non-fiction and fiction titles together with activities, web-links, and bits about the author. It really is geared to K-3 students but it seems like it would be great for both Learning Support and ESL students as well. At the ECIS conference I received a trial for a few days so if you have a few minutes try out BookFLIX with your students and let me know what you think. Thanks!
Go to their website and click on the red Login button in the corner.
Username: bookflix
Password: class.
I started News@Your ES Library to be able to update, excite and inform you, the teachers and staff, about what is happening @ Your ES Library. Stopping by the blog will allow you to view new print and online resources that are being added to the collection, see what students are up to in the library and find out new ways that you can interact with the library both inside its walls and out.
If you read the first version of News@Your ES Library that came via email then you will remember that the library now carries both a weekly comic, “DFC” and a weekly kids newspaper, “First News”. As you can see both of these new resources have been a big hit with the students.
