Books Light Up OUr World In Term Three

Term Three is always our most exciting term as we study the books that have been short listed by the Children’s Book Council of Australia and vote for the texts that we think should be the winners. We also prepare for the major event of the year, the annual book parade. This is always a wonderful celebration of books and reading.

All children are encouraged to participate in the Premier’s Reading Challenge and the MS Readathon. We have been learning about Multiple Sclerosis in our library lessons and have heard the stories of some people who suffer from the disease and have been helped by the MS Society.

As we have a number of teachers and students who have relatives who suffer from MS, we encourage the Cromer community to support this worthy cause.

Our book fair will not take place during book week this year. We look forward to having a wonderful book fair in the hall from the 27^th of October during grandparents’ week.

The Short List

The students study books that have been short listed in a number of categories. 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 short listed books are:

Book of the Year for Early Childhood

These books will be studied by the students in  K/6B  and Kindergarten

Pig the Pug by Aaron Blabey

Scary Night by Lesley Gibbes and Stephen Michael King

Go to Sleep Jessie by Libby Gleeson and Freya Blackwood

A House of Her Own by Jenny Hughes and Jonathan Bentley

Snail and Turtle are Friends by Stephen Michael King

Noni the Pony by Alison Lester

Picture Book of the Year

These books will be studied by Year Four

Rivertime by Trace Bella

My Two Blankets by Irena Kobald and Freya Blackwood

One Minute’s Silence by David Metzenthen and Michael Camilleri

The Stone Lion by Margaret Wild and Ritva Voutila

Fire by Jackie French and Bruce Whatley

The Eve Pownall Award for Information Books

These books will be studied by Year Three

The A-Z of Convicts in Van Diemen’s Land by Simon Barnard

Mary’s Australia by Pamela Freeman

Emu by Claire Saxby and Graham Byrne

Tea and Sugar Christmas by Jane Jolly and Robert Ingpen

The Crighton Award for New Illustrators

A selection of these books will also be studied by Year Three

Rivertime by Trace Bella

Kick With My Left Foot by Paul Seden and Karen Briggs

One Minute’s Silence by David Metzenthen and Michael Camilleri

Little Dog and the Christmas Wish by Corinne Fenton  Robin Cowcher

Meet Douglas Mawson by Mike Dumbleton and Snip Green

The Lost Girl by Ambelin Kwaymullina and Leanne Tobin

Book of the Year for Younger Readers

These books will be studied by Years Five and Six

Two Wolves by Tristan Banks

The Simple Things by Bill Condon

Figgy in the World by Tamsin Janu

Bleak Boy and Hunter Stand Out in the Rain by Stephen Herrick

Withering-By-Sea: A Stella Montgomery Intrigue by Judith Rossell

Years One and Two and 3/4/5M will study a selection of texts from the above categories.

Start planning those costumes for the book parade and keep reading!

 

 

Fun In The Library In Term Two

The Term Two library program is well underway with many varied literary and research activities for all grades.

Kindergarten

 The library program has been designed to link  with the course of study on weather that is being undertaken in class. We will be looking at eBooks using World Book Online, researching information in factual texts and film clips and learning a range of songs and poems.

K/6B

Sunshine Books Online underpins the course of study designed for K/6B. The students will read texts together, engage in related digital activities and complete worksheets related to the texts studied.

Year One

The students in Year One will undertake a Colin McNaughton author study. They will use their visual literacy skills to analyse the story behind the text in his entertaining books.

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

Year Three will be journeying into the Dreaming to explore a number of traditional stories both online and in texts.

 

3/4/5 M

 The students in 3/4/5 M will be studying the conversion of story to film based on the work of Paul Jennings and the Round the Twist series. They will analyse such elements as:

• Plot structure and changes that are made due to production demands
• The use of montage
• Point of view
• Satire
• Fantasy and Realism
• Irony and Parody
• Stereotyping
• Conflict and Resoultion

Year Four

The work of Roald Dahl is the focus of the Year Four unit of study. Many of the students have enjoyed his work which is a popular choice for borrowing. Our unit of study will explore the influences on Dahl’s work, his childhood experiences and his journey as an author. We will focus on what we can learn as writers from our research into the life and work of this great author.

Year Five

The unit of study for Year Five is designed to link with their studies of electricity in the classroom. With the use of film clips, e-books and information facts will be gathered and presented in a Smart Notebook using multimedia tools.

Year Six

In Year Six 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:

·         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 Vernehe Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

National Simultaneous Storytime

The students of Cromer School will again participate in National Simultaneous Storytime on Wednesday May 27^th.  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.

Premier’s Reading Challenge

All students are encouraged to participate in the Premier’s Reading Challenge. There are many books on

 

Welcome To 2015

Life in the library is very busy and the students are enjoying the many activities that are available on Monday, Tuesday and Friday mornings before school and at lunch time on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. The term one program is well underway. All units of study have a strong focus on quality literature.

Kindergarten

The students in Kindergarten will study ten picture books that have been shortlisted or won the title of notable books in previous years. One book will be studied each week and many varied activities both digital and creative have been designed to enhance the enjoyment and understanding of these texts.

Year One

Ten notable and shortlisted books have also been chosen for the course of study for Year One.

Year Two

The Year Two students will be introduced to a number of the junior chapter books that are in the library collection. By focusing on quality examples each week it is hoped that the students will be inspired to read more challenging texts. Of course some quality picture books have also been included in the course.

Year Three

The students in Year Three will study the book Nim’s Island by Wendy Orr. We will read chapters from the text  and undertake written tasks related to themes and issues encountered in our reading.

Year Four

A number of texts have been chosen for the development of visual literacy and research skills in the Year Four. All of the books studied are linked to online activities.

Year Three, Four, Five M

The Year Three and Four students will study the Wacky Families series by Jackie French. The Year Five students will choose a Jackie French book to read and will be required to research themes and issues in the text. They will present an advertisement for the book to the class.

Stage Three

Over the years many quality novels have been shortlisted and studied by previous Stage Three students.  I have purchased multiple copies of many of the very popular texts. It is my aim, in this unit of study, to introduce the current generation of Stage Three students to the wonderful novels that are available for loan. Ten books will be presented during the course of the term.

The Premier’s Reading Challenge

The challenge opens on March 2^nd.

The Challenge aims to encourage a love of reading for leisure and pleasure in students, and to enable them to experience quality literature. It is not a competition but a challenge to each student to read, to read more and to read more widely.

The Premier's Reading Challenge (PRC) is available for all NSW students in Kindergarten-Year 9, in government, independent, Catholic and home schools.

 

Happy reading in Term One.

 

 

Term Four

Term three ended with a wonderful celebration of reading. The students thoroughly enjoyed the presentation made by illustrator Sarah Davis. She is an extremely talented artist with a teaching background. She shared many of her artistic techniques with the students and gave them the opportunity to practise being artists themselves. We will all view her books with new eyes in the future.

Our book fair was a wonderful success and we have again received a generous commission in the form of new books for the library.  The library monitors accompanied me to the annual Lunch with the Stars in the great hall of the International School Management in Manly.  It was very exciting to meet so many of our favourite authors.

Finally our annual book parade concluded a very exciting book week. As usual, the students and teachers went to a great deal of trouble to represent their favourite book characters. This is an event that everyone at Cromer looks forward to with great anticipation. It did not disappoint.

The Term Four Program

Kindergarten

This term the kindergarten students will participate in a study of the work of Julia Donaldson. Her most famous book is the very much loved classic The Gruffalo. In our series of lessons we will study The Gruffalo and a number of Donaldson’s other works. The students will participate in a variety of interactive activities using the Panaboard.

Year One

The students will study the work of illustrator Freya Blackwood. They will read books written by various authors that have been illustrated by  Blackwood and will use their visual literacy skills to analyse her inspiring work.

Year Two

The students will work together to study the components of digital stories. They will use a variety of digital tools to collaboratively create stories.

 

Stage Two

The students will undertake a study which has been designed to expand their research skills.  Each class will undertake a research project. They will read the information in the chosen article, locate the key ideas and use these ideas to design question and answer activities for other classes.  These activities will be designed using tools in the interactive multimedia section of the Smart Notebook program.

Stage Three

The students will participate in a visual literacy program which explores the techniques used in the development of multimodal texts. Using the television program The Text Files, the students will examine the techniques used in the production of plays, television advertisements, billboards, computer adventure games and comics.

Stocktake

This year the stocktake will begin in week 8 of the school term. Borrowing will cease in week 6 after which time I will be requesting that all items be returned to the library.

 

 

 

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