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The quarter is quickly passing.  Look for the Book Fair on October 28th.  The theme is Reading Saves the Day!  Every book you purchase helps the Elementary Library get new books on our shelves.  If you want to volunteer, please check in with the secretary.  Every volunteer can take home something from the book fair up to $5.  Thank you for supporting READING!

South Dakota State Library Lesson 10

I enjoyed reading the Cornerstone E-letter. It provides so much in-sight and resources. I am sure to rely on it monthly. I added the dates from "check your calendars" to this blog for September. I plan on updating monthly to show what is happening in the "library world." I also looked at what was available for handouts. I plan on sharing the handouts to the teachers when I tell them about the wonderful resources available through SDSL website! I know they will want to use them as much as I enjoyed learning about them. I plan on keeping an eye out for up-coming training that will fit into my schedule. Right now, my weekday is pretty well booked with library lessons and reading enrichment, so hopefully some evening and weekend training will be available. I haven't had any extra time to play around with the website (or as much as I like to) but I did come across a puppetry site that I thought would be a excellent resource for me. I always wanted to incorporate puppets into the lessons since I work with young children. Plus, I think puppets would make great reading buddies for the children. I read somewhere you can use old stuffed animals and convert them into puppets. I better get looking at rummages and 2nd hand stores! I plan on promoting the resources to the 3rd grade students who will be doing a research project for me. Worldbook-kids, will work great for this assignment. I plan to use the fun and engaging activities I read about in Corner Stone and on the SDSL web page and integrate them into library skills lessons.

Thanks for all the wonderful resources. I would not have known they were available if I did not hear about this challenge! I look forward to many more great ideas and resources!

What's Happening This Month

• September is Library Card Sign Up Month


• Sept. 22-24 SDLA Annual Conference-Sioux Falls


• Sept. 24-26 Festival of Books-Sioux Falls


• Sept. 25-Oct.10 Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read

South Dakota State Library Lesson 9

Wow! It's kinda scary knowing that information is out there for people to look at. When I searched my name it showed all the addresses I lived at in South Dakota. Other things listed were my old phone number and my maiden name. I know with the technology these days, you can retrieve almost anything about someone. In Ancestry Library, I did a search for my grandma. It pulled up her parents. So, I took the next step and looked up my great grandfather. I was able to pull up 1900 and 1920 census on him. I tried to find out more information but did not have any additional information in which to narrow down the search. This resource can be addicting! It would be interesting to track back your heritage to the arrival to America and beyond. The information on my great grandfather shows his parents were from England. It would be great to find out their names and trace history further, but I will have to gather more information if possible.



Photos and Maps on South Dakota brought up the following things;

U.S. yearbooks--I pulled up USD and saw Alpha Zi Delta 1936 Sorority pictures

Library of congress Photo collection--Pictures of the Corn Palace

General Photos of the bureau of ships 1914-1946--Pictures of the battleship U.S.S. South Dakota

U.S. Family photo collection--1st family to move to SD; Edmund Wehling.



All interesting trivia about SD.



Heritage Quest was a little confusing at first. I pulled up periodicals on South Dakota and found under South Dakota History an article called "Politics of Frank Baum's Oz". I think that would be a good read because I read a while back that Frank Baum based his book on a small town in South Dakota. Since South Dakota was not well known, he changed the location in the book to Kansas. Clicking on the article, it said I needed to fill out a form to be able to see the article. I wish I could see it without sending a request, so I could tell if it was something I would actually enjoy reading.



Sanborn Map: I selected Sioux Falls, SD. I choose two building that I knew were old to look up. The first building was the State Penitentiary. I pulled up the map for 1924-1950 and it showed a smaller version of the Pen than what we have today. The next landmark I chose was John Morrell Packing Co. The map tells me that the building existed in 1911--the map I choose. It took a little time to go through the different pages of the maps. Therefore, a good task to keep someone busy. I might use this resource for comparing the past with the present. The students would be familiar with the buildings presently. You can show the surroundings from the past and ask: What is next to the building today? What is gone?

SD State Library Lesson 8

I set up an account in Learning Express Library. I took a 4th grade reading pre-test. I got a perfect score.Yah!! Although some of the questioning is a little tricky, I feel a 4th grader could easily misinterpret the question. Overall, I felt the pre-test is a good assessment for content knowledge. I searched the job and resume courses and previewed an interviewing course. The tips they provided were basic and easily to understand. What I enjoyed the most is the ebook. I choose "Think You Know Your Vocabulary". I found it captivating. Who would think that every day you hear words that you do not fully comprehend? Do you owe a settee? Don't give me a nebulous answer. Vocabulary is so important in this day and age. Computers have taken away a lot of our grammar and dialog as we know it. Although, Verbal language will always show how well educated you are. I plan on passing on the pre-test "how much do you know now" to my colleagues. Let's see how well they know their vocabulary.

SD State Library Lesson 7

I looked up Sitting Bull Autograph Card. I learned a few new things. I did not realize his real name was Tatanka Iyotake and that there were many other names he went by. I knew he was in the Wild West show, but did not know he was killed due to his beliefs on the ghost dance. I always thought he died in a showdown regarding Indian territory. My own search was on Ben Franklin. There is a wide assortment of articles ranging from the man, to his inventions, to organization that use that name. The search also pulled up biographies, letters written by Ben Franklin. There was correspondence with people who have the name Ben Franklin or a similar variation of the name. ArchiveGrid reminds me of other searches where you put in a keyword and everything that has that keyword pulls up. So you have to be careful on what you pick and choose--it may not have to do with "Ben Franklin" . Yet, most of the results come from Universities; some from the Smithsonian Institution and others from businesses. The resources you can get from ArchiveGrid can enrich research projects or can supplement topics you are teaching.

Camio is an interesting source. I typed in Paul Revere and pulled up several pictures of silver tableware. The items on the site were spoons, teapots, sugar bowls, creamers, goblets, tankards and sauceboats. This would be great trivia to share with students. Most only know him riding his horse shouting, "The British are coming! The British are coming!" Now, you can share that his occupation was a silversmith.

When I searched for "Sioux", items associated with the Sioux Indians were present. The items included a scalp shirt (not sure if I want to know what it's made of), gauntlets, pipes, war clubs, beaded dress and painting of battle scenes. This would be a great visual for a unit on the Sioux. Students could choose a picture and explain how it was used and/or how it was made.

My favorite artist is Leonardo DaVinci so I typed this into Camio. I was a little disappointed on how little there was. Also, only a few pieces were done by DaVinci, the rest was done by close associates or followers of DaVinci. There was a piece that showed his painting techniques which I found interesting. I decided to type in another artist. This time I typed in Andy Warhol. This search pulled up several pages of his work: paintings and photographs. I think Camio would be a good comparison/contrast tool in the different types of art that exist. You could pick artists from two different eras and look at form, imagery, etc. Lastly, I played around with the slide show and webpage feature. This is a great resource to present to the classroom. I liked the compare feature. I would use it for the artist comparison I mentioned above. Pictures of art tell about history in a different way and I feel this would benefit learning immensely.

South Dakota State Library Lesson 6

I noticed Worldcat pulls up a lot of information using the search button. I might have to play around with it more to retrieve more specific information. I typed in "Witches" in hopes to pull up the Roald Dahl novel, but instead it pulled up other titles. The first title was "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets". I decided to stay with that and see what it entailed. There are 4178 libraries that have this book on hand. It is categorized as Fiction with a class description as LC PZ7.R 79835. Which is basically telling me it is fiction. I looked in the subject section and choose "orphan" and saw a list of other books that are related to the subject chosen. I feel this would be a good tool to make connections and references to the topics in the book.

I entered South Dakota into Oister and choose the title " A School of the Prairie" I choose the subject: rural children and pulled up photos of rural children in front of schools, churches, etc. When I clicked on the author, it pulled up a list of titles that she wrote. It seems she likes to take photos of rural folks in common activities. This would work nicely when studying life in the past. The pictures show clothing and surroundings that are representative of the past rural Americans. It for nothing else the photos speak for themselves--rural life back in the day.

South Dakota State Library Lesson 5

I browsed the NetLibrary, first with the keyword cooking. Many children enjoy looking and learning about cooking and I wanted to see what they had to offer. All the books I saw were aimed at adults or high school aged children. There were quite a selection to choice from and it may be interesting to share some ethic food or reasons about their food from the books on NetLibrary.

I looked up U.S. constitution and found a few titles I felt would be easier to read and are informative to older students. The titles are as follows: "Representing Popular Sovereignty: the Constitution in American Political Culture", "The Bill of Rights: A Bicentennial Assessment", "The Illustrated Dictionary of Constitutional Concepts". The last title help define terms and concepts and is written in alphabetical format. Looking over the text of the three titles; the vocabulary is geared toward higher grades and may need to be looked up to understand the concept.

I chose to search for Nebraska history. I found some interesting titles and information that could work in reports. One book that was written in simple-to-the-point words was called "The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Old West" In this book students can learn about cowtowns and what being a cowboy was all about. It put things in a humorous light and made for easy reading. Another book I came across was "America View Thier Dust Bowl Experience" This book had insight to what was happening at that time and what the emotions were. A book about Lewis and Clark caught my eye. The 3rd grade teachers have a unit on Lewis and Clark. Although the book is advanced, I feel some of the maps could be used to show the trail taken. Also, some facts about what type of animals they saw and fish they caught in the Midwest is a great connection for kids. The last book I read is called "The Changing Image of the City: Planning Downtown Omaha 1945-1973." This was an interesting read because I've been to Omaha and it gave me perspective to then and now. How population and business change over the years is interesting to say the least. All good books to retrieve data from.

NetLibrary has some good resources. The students I work with would not be able to use them due to the advance writing, but teachers can pull some data and facts out to share with students. I will have to spend some more time searching for topics of interest. :)

South Dakota State Library Lesson 4

I selected Endangered Species. I looked up the Aye-Aye. Did you know that there are only 2 thousand left in existence? They live in Madagascar. They are an interesting and unusual primate that young readers love to read about. They also have big eyes. I have a book that only offers a little bit of information on this critter. This site gives quite a bit of details. The read aloud feature is wonderful for those that struggle with reading and for young readers too. It has facts, pictures (like the one shown) and easy text. I certainly can find a use for this.

I searched for the "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" on the basic search. I chose this topic because I am familiar with the book and my oldest son read this book five years ago, when he was in the 4th grade. Before he read it I explained that the context, language and "way of thinking" is from a different time period and at that time, the language and way of thinking was acceptable. He enjoyed the book. He learned a lot about that time period and was able to enjoy a timeless Classic Novel. I am still surprised that so many schools and libraries have it banned. I was always one to make sure I read any book that the schools banned--out of curiosity. Regarding "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn", I chose to read several critical essays and read both opposing and conflicting sides. I can see both parties opinions, yet I still feel books should not be banned, just because of how a few people interpret them--otherwise all Grimm's fairy tales would be banned! ( Anyways...Great resources for a "persuasive speech or written report on opposing views")

I also signed up for a e-bulletin from Gale Virtual to keep up-to-date on what is out there.

South Dakota State Library Lesson 3

Proquest is a useful tool for finding articles that give an opinion. I think it is too complicated for elementary students, but Middle and High school might find it helpful in getting a wide variety of points of view. I looked up heart health and most of the periodicals were very technical. I narrowed my search to medical robotics and found some interesting articles on surgery using robotics. Technology of robotics has lessen hospital stays and doesn't require big incisions like typical surgeries. The tool for making the selection more specific is great. It allowed me to narrow down the topics and I easily found what I was looking for.

I played around with publications and located some magazines on libraries. I created RSS feed on one magazine called Teacher Librarian. All in all, I like Proquest and will use it to scan articles of interest.

South Dakota State Library Lesson 2

I enjoyed searching through the topics found in SIRS Discover and Researcher. I would use the Discover site more due to the age level I work with. I typed in armadillos and found several interesting magazine articles. I even found one explaining how you can get leprosy from these hard-shelled critters. ( YUCK) The articles were geared toward young children with fun facts, descriptions, and pictures. I would definely show this site to children to get magazine references on topics they are researching. This is an interesting and cool site for learning and reading about non-fiction. Kids love to read and see things that are real. Definitely a keeper!

In SIRS Researcher I looked up topics and people that were in the past and present. The information is very detailed and aimed for higher readers. I think this site would be a good site for teachers to get more information about a certain topic or individual and then share it with their students. I looked at how you can match them up with the curriculum and what resources where available. Although the printouts were geared for higher grades, I feel you can pick and choose facts and topics to work into the lower grade levels.

SD State Library Challenge Lesson1

I really like the World Book kids. The font and web page is very easy to navigate. I believe kids will be able to use it without problems. The information is short and to the point and is at the level early elementary can comprehend. Looking for mammals is easy with a point and click. I will use this site for students who will be doing research for a non-fiction report.

The student world book has more information and would give upper elementary a good start on researching non-fiction materials. I might even introduce this to the younger, higher readers.

The World book Advanced and Discover is geared toward older students and and would give them a good resource to get indepth information to their topic of choice. I would use it to retrieve information to incorporate into a lesson plan. If students want to learn about a specific area, the computer allows a "read aloud" and helps struggling readers or students who want to hear and read along. Teachers would benefit with these sites to pull data into lessons they do for Social studies.

Celebrate National Library Week

April 12-16 is National Library Week. Come celebrate the week by checking out the great books offered for free reading at the library!

http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/pio/natlibraryweek/nlw.cfm

The Leprechaun Watch

On March 17th, the leprechauns are active.

Is it fairy tale or Real? Students took part in the Leprechaun watch to see if they could spot a leprechaun or fairy. The web page has a live webcam. See if you can spot one. Good Luck to all of you! http://www.irelandseye.com

Congratulations to the Great Readers!

We had 74 students participate in the Prairie Bud Book Awards. That was wonderful! Each participant received a poster of their choosing. Keep up the great reading!

THIS WEEK WINNERS OF LIBRARY CITIZENSHIP

The Class who earned library citizenship is : K Phelps, 2Allison, KDunker

They will be celebrating on during their regular library times. Congratulations on good library manners!

Prairie Bud Award Month

Students are encouraged to read the 15 books selected for nomination for the Prairie Bud Award.

Students that read 5 or more of these 15 books will receive a certificate, vote for the best book, and a chance to win a poster off the library wall.

Good Luck and Happy Reading!

Pick Your Favorite Prairie Bud Book