Connect To Reading In Term 3

Excitement is building as book week comes closer. This is a wonderful time of year when we enthusiastically study the books that have been short listed in 2014 and prepare for the book parade.

Because of the action packed calendar at Cromer, we will be celebrating book week in week 8 of the school term.  The activities are as follows:

·         The book fair arrives at the school on Tuesday September 2^nd.

·         Illustrator Sarah Davis will present to the students on September 2^nd and 3^rd.

·         The book parade will take place on Thursday September 4^th.

·         All students have been encouraged to participate in the MS Readathon and the Premier’s Reading Challenge.

The Term Three Program

During term three the students study the books that have been shortlisted by The Children’s Book Council of Australia. The book week theme for this year is Connect to Reading.  The studies involve researching the authors and illustrators, studying the texts, participating in visual literacy activities and participating in online activities that enrich our understanding of themes and issues presented in the books.

The shortlisted books are:

Book of the Year for Early Childhood

These books will be studied by the students in Early Stage One and Stage One.

I’m A Dirty Dinosaur by Janeen Brian and Ann James
Banjo and Ruby Red by Libby Gleeson and Freya Blackwood
The Swap by Jan Ormerod and Andrew Joyner
Baby Bedtime by Mem Fox and Emma Quay
Kissed by the Moon by Alison Lester
Granny Grommet and Me by Diane Wolfer and Karen Blair

Crighton Awards

These Books will be studied by Early Stage One students

Big Red Kangaroo by Graham Byrne and Claire Saxby
I’ve and Uncle Ivan by Ben Sanders
The Nerdy Birdie by David Snowdon and Danielle Wheeldon

Picture Book Of the Year

These books will be studied by Stages One and Two

The Treasure Box by Margaret Wild and Freya Blackwood
Silver Buttons by Bob Graham
King Pig by Nick Bland
The Windy Farm by Doug McLeod and Craig Smith
Parachute by Mat Ottley and Danny Parker
Rules of Summer by Shaun Tan

Eve Pownall Award For Information Books

These books will be studied by Stages Two and Three

Jandamarra by Mark Greenwood and Terry Denton
Ice, Rock Wind by Peter Gouldthorpe
Meet Captain Cook by Rae Murdie and Chris Nixon
Jeremy by Christopher Faille and Danny Snell
Yoko's Diary: The Life of a Young Girl in Hiroshima during WWII By Paul Ham
Welcome To My Country by Burarrwanga, Laklak and Family

Book of the Year for Younger Readers

These books will be studied by the students in Stage Three

City of Orphans:A Very Unusual Pursuit By Catherine Jinks
Light Horse Boy by Dianne Wolfer and Brian Simmonds
Song for a Scarlet Runner by Julie Hunt
My Life as an Alphabet by Barry Jonsberg
Violet Mackerel's Possible Friend by Anna Branford and Sarah Davis

Start getting those costumes ready for the book parade and keep connecting to reading!

 

 

Term Two Begins!

In all classes, this term, the students will thoroughly study the work of one author. In all units of study the children will undertake the following tasks:

·         Read and discuss the themes and issues in the texts.

·         Research information related to the texts using both print and audio visual materials.

·         Undertake interactive tasks such as those available on ABC Splash.

·         Use visual literacy skills to analyse illustrations.

·         Read or view stories on similar themes.

·         Undertake craft or writing activities.

 

Kindergarten: A Study of the Work of Bruce Whatley

The students in Kindergarten will study the work of author illustrator Bruce Whatley. His work is highly regarded both in Australia and internationally. Whatley has created over 60 picture books and has won many awards. The students always enjoy his humorous stories and vibrant illustrations.

Year One: A Study of the Work of Bob Graham

The students in Year One will study the work of author/illustrator Bob Graham. His stories are well known for their simplicity and humour told through the perspective of a child. Many of his books have been short listed by the Children’s Book Council of Australia including his most recent effort Silver Buttons.

 Year Two: A Study of the work of JohnBurningham

John Burningham is an English author /illustrator. He has been writing children’s books since the 1960s and his work provides insights into many themes and issues confronting us in modern life. His work has appeal for both children and adults.

Year Three: a Study of the Work of Margaret Wild.

Margaret Wild is a highly acclaimed Australian author who has written over 70 books for children. She is considered to be a courageous author who is not afraid to tackle difficult subjects with sensitivity and openness. Her books are heart-warming and often very moving.

Year Four: A Study of the Work of Margaret Clark

Margaret Clark has written over a hundred books dealing with such issues as relationships, friendship and social issues under the guise of humour. Her work is very popular with young children. She writes for children aged four to sixteen and many of her books touch upon concerns that young people have today.

Year Five: A Study of the Work of Libby Gleeson

Libby Gleeson is one of Australia’s most eminent and loved authors who has written over thirty books for children and teenagers. Her books have been short listed over eleven times and she has received the Minister for Education's Award for Meritorious Service for Public Education. She won the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Children’s Fiction in 2013.

Year Six: A Study of the Work of Jackie French

Jackie French is one of our most loved and prolific Australian authors. She has written well over a hundred books for children. She has also written for adults on the subject of gardening. She has been awarded the title of Australian Children's Laureate for 2014 – 2015.

National Simultaneous Storytime

The students of Cromer School will again participate in National Simultaneous Storytime on Wednesday May 21^st. This event aims to encourage more young Australians to read and enjoy books. The Australian Library and Information Association tells us that:

Every year a picture book, written and illustrated by an Australian author and illustrator is read simultaneously in libraries, schools, pre-schools, childcare centres, family homes, bookshops and many other places around the country.

By facilitating National Simultaneous Storytime we aim to;

 •promote the value of reading and literacy;

 •promote the value and fun of books;

 •promote an Australian writer and publisher;

 •promote storytime activities in public libraries and communities around the country;

 •provide opportunities to involve parents, grandparents, the media and others to participate in and enjoy the occasion

The Premier’s Reading Challenge

Many students have registered for The Premier’s Reading Challenge. We encourage all students to participate in this activity which encourages children to read quality literature for leisure and pleasure.

Happy reading in term two!

 

 

 

Term One 2014

This year the students will be attending weekly lessons in the library. Each lesson will be of forty minutes duration. All students are required to have library bags in order to protect the books that they borrow.

Premier’s Reading Challenge

The Premier’s Reading Challenge will begin on March 3^rd. All students are encouraged to participate. We have an extensive range of books available for loan from the Premier’s Reading Challenge shelf in the library.

Visual Literacy

Visual Literacy involves the skill of interpreting still and moving images, graphs, tables, maps and other graphic representations. It incorporates the understanding and evaluation of the manner in which images and language work together to present ideas.

The library program, this term, will focus on the development of the skills of visual literacy in each grade.  The texts to be studied are listed below.

Kindergarten

My First Day At School by Meredith Constain

Starting School by Jane Goodwin

Wombat Goes to School by Jackie French

Waiting for Hugo by Amanda Niland

Special Kev by Chris McKimmie

Year One

Davy and the Duckling by Margaret Wild and Julie Vivas

Noah Dreary by Aaron Blabey

The Flight of the Bumble Bee by Raymond Huber and Brian Lovelock

A Swim in the Sea by Sue Whiting and Meredith Thomas

Parachute by Danny Parker

Year Two

The Vegetable Ark by Kim Kane

The Littlest Bushranger by Alison Reynolds

The Fearsome, Frightening, Ferocious Box by Frances Watts and David Legge.

I Love Footy by Matt Zurbo

This Way Up  by Kylie Dunstan

Year Three

Bilby Secrets by Edel Wignell and Mark Jackson

Owl by Anna Pignataro

The Dark by Lemony Snicket

The Promise by Nicola Davies

Cowzat! By Bruce Atherton

Year Four

The Great Expedition by Peter Carnavas

Shake A Leg by Boori  Monty Prior and Jan Ormerod

The Extraordinary Mr Qwerty by Karla Strambini

Zoo by Anthony Browne

Seeing the Future: AGuide to Visual Communication

Year Five

The Water Tower by Gary Crew and Steven Woolman

The Rules of Summer by Shaun Tan’

Rose Blanche by Roberto Innocenti

Weirdo by Ahn Do

Seeing the Future: AGuide to Visual Communication

Year Six

Shimmer by Jennifer McBride

Weirdo by Ahn Do

The Three Pigs by David Wiesner

Way Home by Libby Hathorn and Gregory Rogers

Rose Blanche by Roberto Innocenti

 

 

 

 

 

Term Four News

Our Book Week Celebrations

It is always heart -warming to see the students at Cromer school celebrating a love of reading at the book parade. As usual, all of the students and staff went to a great deal of trouble to represent their favourite characters in a colourful and exciting parade.

The finale of the parade was the appearance of our new mascot Skippin the Library Dog. We look forward to many more appearances from him encouraging us to find new friends in books.

Our book fair was very successful and we received $1600 worth of new books for our library as commission. The students in grades Kindergarten to Year Two were enthralled with the story telling skills of Andy Wright. Oliver Phommavanh entertained the primary school students as he described his journey as an author.

The Term Four Program

Kindergarten

The students in Kindergarten will be learning all about visual literacy both in the library and in class as the teachers and I work together to develop this very important skill. Five books have been chosen for the library lessons. They are:

The Tomorrow Book by Jackie French and Sue DeGennaro

Through the Magic Mirror by Anthony Browne

Piggybook  by Anthony Browne

Cat by Mike Dumbleton and Craig Smith

The Terrible Plop by Ursula Dubosarsky and Andrew Joyner

Additional books have been supplied to the Kindergarten teachers to support the learning that has taken place in the library.

Year One

The students in Year One will also be developing their skills of visual literacy with an author study of the work of Colin McNaughton. The books to be studied are:

Suddenly

Oops!

S.W.A.L.K

Football Crazy

Captain Abdul’s Little Treasure

Year Two

The students in Year Two will be undertaking a study of fractured fairy tales. In each lesson we will read the original tale and then a fractured version written through the eyes of one of the characters in the story. We will watch film clips of the fairy tales analysing similarities and differences and the elements that make them humorous. The students will plan their own fractured fairy tales to share with the class.

Year Three

The students in Year Three will study the book Nim’s Island by Wendy Orr. Each week a chapter will be read and activities such as character analysis, mapping exercises, environmental poster making, research and diary writing will be undertaken.

Year Four

In Year 4 we have begun a study of the work of Roald Dahl. We will explore various aspects of his work and embark on some writing activities inspired by themes and issues in his novels. Roald Dahl books are extremely popular in our library and his work is most entertaining for us all.

Years Five and Six

In Year five we will be studying classics in graphic novel form. We will use our skills of visual literacy to analyse the graphic presentations and film clips. Books to be studied are:

Year Five:

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift

Jason and the Golden Fleece

The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling

The Adventure of the Speckled Band  by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Year Six:

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

War of the Worlds by H G Wells

20 000 Leagues Under the Sea  by Jules Verne

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Stocktake

Our annual stocktake will begin in week 9 of this term. All library books must be returned by the end of week 8. Any student who has no outstanding books will receive a ticket in our library raffle.

 

 

 

 

There Is So Much To Do In Term Three

Book Week 2013

Term three is always a celebration of reading as we look forward to the book parade and enjoy studying the books that have been shortlisted by the Children’s Book Council of Australia. The Book Week theme for this year is Read Across the Universe. We will celebrate Book week in the following exciting ways:

·         On August 20^th the storyteller AndyWright will visit the students in Kinder to Year 2.

·         Our book fair will begin on August 27^th.

·         Author Oliver Phommavanh will speak to Years 3-6 on August 27^th.

·         Our book parade will take place on Thursday August 29^th at 9:15

·         Students will participate in the MS Readathon.

The Term Three Program

In Term Three the library program focuses on the shortlisted books in the categories of Book of the Year for Early Childhood, Picture Book of the Year, Book of the Year for Younger Readers and the Chrichton Award.  All studies involve researching the authors and illustrators, studying and responding to the texts, visual literacy activities, literature appreciation and participating in interactive and online activities that further the students’ understanding of concepts, themes and issues presented in the books studied.

Kindergarten

The students in Kindergarten will study the books that have been shortlisted for the Crichton Award.  The titles are:

·         Apollo the Powerful Owl by Gordon Winch

·         A Forest by Marc Martin

·         One Very Tired Wombat by Renee Treml

·         The Whale Shark Song by Sadie James

·         Yellow Dress Day by Sophie Norsa and Michelle Worthington.

·         Ruby Red Shoes by Kate Knapp

Stage One

The students in Stage One will study the books in the Book of the Year for Early Childhood category.
The titles are:

·         The Terrible Suitcase by Emma Allen and Freya Blackwood

·         With Nan by Tania Cox and Karen Blair.

·         The Pros and Cons of Being a Frog by Sue deGennaro.

·         Too Many Elephants In This House  by Ursula Dubosarsky and Andrew Joyner.

·         It’s A Miracool!  by Christine Harris and Ann James.

·         Peggy by Anna Walker.

Stage Two

The students in Stage Two will study the books shortlisted for the award of Picture Book of the Year. The titles are:

·         The Coat by Ron Brooks and Julie Hunt.

·         Tanglewood by Vivienne Goodman and Margaret Wild.

·         Herman and Rosie by Gus Gordon.

·         Sophie Scott Goes South by Alison Lester.

·         Lighting Jack by Patricia Mullins and Glenda Millard.

·         A Day to Remember by Marc Wilson and Jackie French.

Stage Three

The area of study for stage three is an analysis of the books shortlisted for the award Book of the Year for Younger Readers. The titles are:

·         Pennies for Hitler by Jackie French.

·         Other Brother by Simon French.

·         After by Morris Gleitzman.

·         The Children of the King by Sonya Hartnett.

·         Pookie  Aleera is Not My Boyfriend by Steven Herrick.

·         The Tender Moments of Saffron Silk by Glenda Millard and Stephen Michael King.

We are in for a very busy term. Get ready for the book parade and keep reading.

On May 23^rd Cromer School joined in with the celebration of National Simultaneous Storytime. This is an important national campaign which aims to encourage more young Australians to read and enjoy books. At 11am thousands of children throughout Australia stopped to read The Wrong Book by Nick Bland. The library was decorated with balloons to celebrate the occasion. It was so heart-warming to see groups of students gathered in the library the next day to enjoy and discuss the book for a second time.

The Term Two Program

This term the library program has been designed to support studies that are taking place in class. Inquiry units have been devised which require research using books, on line activities, film clips and interactive games. Click on the links to access the hotlists for each unit.

Kindergarten

In class, the students are studying the Science unit Weather In My World. To support this unit our library studies are focusing on the following topics:

·         What Is Weather?

·         Rain

·         Wind and Storms

·         Snow, Ice, Frost and Fog

·         The Seasons

Year One

In support of the unit Schoolyard Safari, which is a study of mini beasts, the topics for library research are:

·         In The Garden

·         Wiggly Worms

·         Scary Spiders

·         Ants

·         Classification and Habitats

Year Two

Year Two students are studying Wet and Dry Environments. The library research program will cover the topics:

·         Ponds and Lakes

·         Deserts

·         Rainforests

·         Rivers and Streams

·         The Poles

Year Three

To support the class unit Light Fantastic, the library research program will focus on the following topics:

·         What Is Light?

·         What Makes A Shadow?

·         Reflection

·         Refraction

·         Lasers and Optics

Year Four

In class Year Four will be completing their studies of National Parks before beginning a new unit People and their Beliefs. The Library research topics will be:

·         Bunya Mountains National Park

·         Norfolk Island

·         What Is Christianity

·         The Sikh Religion

·         Islam

Year Five

The class unit is Marvellous Microorganisms and our library research unit will focus on:

·         Exploring Microorganisms

·         Bacteria and Disease

·         Edward Jenner

·         Louis Pasteur

·         Microscopic Detective Mysteries

Year Six

The students in Year Six are studying Antarctica and, to support this unit, our library research will cover the following:

·         Macquarie Island

·         Sir Douglas Mawson

·         South with Scott

·         Sir Earnest Shackleton

·         Modern Exploration

The Premier’s Reading Challenge

All students are encouraged to participate in the Premier’s Reading Challenge and there is a wide range of books to choose from on our specially designated shelves.

The MS Readathon

This year we will be supporting the MS Readathon which is due to begin in August.

Happy reading!

Welcome To 2013

ABC Splash provides hundreds of video clips and activities which are designed for students in Kindergarten to 10. The broad subject areas of English, Maths, Science and History are covered and all activities are aligned with the National Curriculum.

http://splash.abc.net.au/

Many of the activities in ABC Splash have formed the basis of our library investigations this term.

Kindergarten

We have been discussing fiction and non-fiction texts. Covering such topics as Dragons, Pets, Dinosaurs and Performances, we have read a variety of fiction and non-fiction books and participated in online activities. One favourite was Design A Talking Dinosaur.

 
Year 1

In Year One our learning experiences have been varied. The students have practised their skills of visual literacy, story mapping, writing creatively and research using a variety of sources.  All of these experiences have been supported with various fiction and non-fiction texts and online activities. One favourite was the Story Map Tool.

Year 2

The Year Two program has included report writing, writing creatively, recount writing, using visual literacy skills and research using a variety of sources. Both fiction and non-fiction texts have been read and skill development has been supported with online activities. One favourite has been Wonderful Words, Creative Stories: Beach.

Stage 2

In Stage Two we have used our visual literacy skills to design a virtual website, practised digital storytelling and researched using the SAFE principle:

Source: Does the evidence come from a reliable source?

Attitude: Is there a strong bias?

Facts:  Are we seeing facts or assertions?

Emotions: Does the evidence express strong emotions?

The tasks were supported by studying fiction and non-fiction texts and participating in online activities. One favourite activity was The Riddle of the Black Panther.

Stage 3

In Stage Three, the students have practised the following skills:

·         Research using a variety of sources of information.

·         Finding evidence and compiling information.

·         Writing information reports on a virtual website.

·         Evaluating information using the SAFE principle.

One favourite activity was Visit Us: Tourist Information Website

As usual, the library is a busy, happy place to read, discover and learn.