READING WITH ENTHUSIASM IN TERM FOUR

The book parade last term was a wonderful celebration of reading. The students had great fun and I am pleased to report that many of the shortlisted books have been steadily borrowed since they hit the shelves.
The Whisperer by Fiona McIntosh has been immensely popular and students are reporting to me that their parents have enjoyed reading this great adventure as well. A number of the teachers have borrowed this book and all have really enjoyed it. Although it did not win in its category it has been a winner at Cromer.
The other popular title in our library is Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney. I purchased ten copies of the first four titles in this series and many little eyes were lighting up as I unpacked them from their boxes. Now the shelf where the forty books were housed is empty!
LIBRARY PROGRAMS IN TERM FOUR
In each grade we are continuing with our author studies. I am still the travelling librarian visiting classes on a fortnightly rotating basis. Smart Notebooks have been created for each author study. My wonderful new toy, a Lumens visual presenter enables me to project the book that we are reading onto the interactive whiteboard so that all children can clearly see the text. This has been very advantageous in delivering quality lessons.
Kindergarten
The Kindergarten students are studying the work of Pat Hutchins. She is a talented author and illustrator who has written many books for children the most famous of which is Rosie’s Walk. Many of the students have Pat Hutchins books in their home libraries.
Year One
In Year One we are studying the work of Stephen Michael King who is also a talented author and illustrator. Last year his book Leaf was an honour book in the Children’s Book Council awards and was most popular with all grades. We have enjoyed revisiting this text and exploring some of his other works.
Year Two
The students in Year Two are studying the work of John Burningham. He is a multi-award winning author whose work entertains and provides a basis for detailed discussion of many issues.
Year Three
The amazing work of Jeannie Baker is the focus of study for Year Three. She is a talented artist who creates richly textured collages to create the pages of her books which are extremely thought provoking. We have begun our study with Baker’s newest book Mirror which illustrates and compares a day in the life of two families in Morocco and Sydney and highlights the basic similarities. This is an astounding piece of work.
Year Four
In the wake of the immense popularity of Captain Congo and the Crocodile King by Ruth Starke which was shortlisted by the Children’s Book Council in 2009, the students in Year 4 have begun a study of other works by this popular Australian author. We began with the book Thorpey followed with a shared reading of Captain Congo and the Maharaja’s Monkey. Our study will continue with an examination of the book Noodle Pie which takes us to Vietnam.
Years Five and Six
Four very different novels will be studied this term. The first is Escape by Sea by L. S Lawrence and is a work of historical fiction which takes us to ancient Rome and Carthage and the Punic Wars. The Burrumbi Kids by Leonie Norrington gives us an insight into community life in the Northern Territory. The Flea Thing by Brian Falkener (a popular presenter at this year’s Sydney Writer’s Festival) is the story of a thirteen year old boy who has a special talent which gains him a place in the Auckland Warriors NRL team. Finally Grimsdon by Deborah Abela is the story of children who survive the flooding of their town due to global warming. I have greatly enjoyed studying these novels and look forward to presenting them and receiving the feedback of the students.
Look out for lots of new books that will be displayed in the library when the new building is completed and the library is fully functional again!