What to Read Wednesday

"Mrs. Bennett ... I don't know what to read! Do you know what I should read?"
Yes. I do.
Check out this site: Spaghetti Book Club. Book reviews for kids by kids. Fantastic!

Fun Link Friday

Ever wish you had a remote control for the web? Check out StumbleUpon. So fun. The New York Times says, "As you 'stumble' from site to site, you will feel as if you are channel surfing the Internet, or rather, a corner of the Internet that is most relevant to you."

Thoughts from a Librarian's Head Thursday

Lady Gaga in the library? Yes!

What to Read Wednesday

Read anything good lately? No? Well, stop on by because we just received an order of about 300 books!

Here's a smattering of the titles:

The babysitter's survival guide : fun games, cool crafts, and how to be the best babysitter in town by Jill D. Chassé

The Batboy by Mike Lupica

Compost stew : an A to Z recipe for the earth by Mary McKenna Siddals

The greatest football records by Terri Dougherty

The Knaveheart's curse : a Vampire Island story  Adele Griffin

The omnivore's dilemma : the secrets behind what you eat by Michael Pollan

and ...

Rivals by Tim Green

Which reminds me ... TIM GREEN IS COMING TO LVMS! He'll be here in February to hang with y'all and share his experiences playing in the NFL, writing novels for grown-ups and young adults and how to be ready for what life thows you, other than a football. Stay tuned here for more information.

let's try this

Discuss ancient egypt

Summer Reading

You may or may not be gettting a summer reading assignment depending on your grade, but if you want a list of Great Reads, click here: Mrs. Bennett's Great Reads

Mash-up Monday

It's been awhile. Between state testing and major eighth grade and sixth grade research fun, it's been a wee bit crazy in here. Not your stereotypical quiet library by any means. And that's OKAY! We (the royal we meaning me me me) like it that way!

And when are all y'all coming in here and recreating the U Can't Touch This scene from Glee for me?

Thoughts from a Librarian's Head

Here's how I see myself:



Did you know that Supergirl was a librarian?

What to Read Wendesday

Reading doesn't always have to be in a book, you know. Here's the two blogs I am digging right now:

Instructables

Planet Green

Techno Tuesday

Are you social on the Internet?

Please be careful.

Here's some tips taken from the Federal Trade Commission.

Think about how different sites work before deciding to join a site. Some sites will allow only a defined community of users to access posted content; others allow anyone and everyone to view postings.


Keep your information to yourself. Don’t post your full name, Social Security number, address or phone number -- and don’t post other people’s information, either.
Post only information that you are comfortable with others seeing — and knowing — about you. Many people can see your page, including your parents, your teachers, the police, the college you might want to apply to next year, or the job you might want to apply for in five years.

Remember that once you post information online, you can’t take it back. Even if you delete the information from a site, older versions exist on other people’s computers.

Consider not posting your photo. It can be altered and broadcast in ways you may not be happy about. If you do post one, ask yourself whether it’s one your mom would display in the living room.
Be wary if a new online friend wants to meet you in person. Before you decide to meet someone, do your research: Ask whether any of your friends know the person, and see what background you can dig up through online search engines. If you decide to meet them, be smart about it: Meet in a public place, during the day, with friends you trust. Tell an adult or a responsible sibling where you’re going, and when you expect to be back.

Trust your gut if you have suspicions. If you feel threatened by someone or uncomfortable because of something online, tell an adult you trust and report it to the police and the social networking site. You could end up preventing someone else from becoming a victim.

Mash-up Monday

This is NOT what your library is like:



Although I think I would look quite cool in that headdress!

Have any of you tried this yet?

It's called Knol and it's a part of Google. A knol, according to Google is a "unit of knowledge." What's different about Knol? You own the content that you post. It's searchable through popular search engines and you can control how interactive you would like your Knol to be.

Check it out!

Here's a few I found interesting:

How to write an effective essay

Organic Gardening

Interior Painting techniques

The Shelf Life

Wayne so generously allowed me to publish his poem here:

The Shelf Life
Who lives the Shelf Life?
Or knows a good book that does?
What's it like on the Shelf Life?
Are there poems?
Tell me, please, who is that book's neighbor?
What's his genre, author title
and is he fun?

Thanks Wayne!

Fun Link Friday

Link UP!

H.S.I. Historical Scene Investigation

Practice your forensic skills with this totally awesome history website.

Have a great weekend!

Thoughts from a librarian's head

One of the really cool things about my job is getting to buy books on all sorts of subjects. Any one of you who has spent any time with me knows that I have a ton of interests. Gardening, crocheting, cooking, space adventure, Internet searching, reseraching, Big Sixing, reading anything, watching movies, singing and dancing at inapproriate times. I frequently refer to myself as a fountain of useless information. But really, some of that knowledge has been useful. I am great entertainment at parties. I can talk to anyone. I win Jeopardy all the time in the comfort of my own living room. Really, I should be a gazillionaire with all the knowledge floating around in my grey matter.

Recently, there has been a trend in publishing to produce books that are like the inside of my head. I find them great fun. Want to check some out? I will put them on display in the library, but some of the titles include:

170.83 ZIM
100 things guys need to know.

796 STR
The adventurous book of outdoor games : classic fun for daring boys and girls.

031 IGG
The dangerous book for boys

031 BUC
The double-daring book for girls.

796 MIG
The mighty book of sports knowledge.

031 ONE
One million things : a visual encyclopedia.

550 WOO
Planet Earth.

031 IGG
The pocket dangerous book for boys : things to do.

031 IGG
The pocket dangerous book for boys : things to know.

031 BUC
The pocket daring book for girls : things to do.

031 BUC
The pocket daring book for girls : wisdom & wonder.

Check them out. Become a fountain of useles information. Sing and dance and read with me.

What to Read Wendesday

It's Thursday. I'm a day behind. Two posts. Here we go!

What to Read Wednesday!

It's Poetry Cafe week in the High School Library, so let's celebrate National Library Week and National Poetry month with a few cool poetry selections.

If you want to write your own, which some of you did at the Cafe today (thanks Wayne for poeming about this blog!) check this book out:

How to write poetry by Paul B. Janeczko.
Call # 808 JAN

It provides practical advice with checklists on the art of writing poetry.











If you would like to memorize a poem, like Mrs. Weiner or Clare, perhaps pick one form this book:

The 100 best poems of all time edited by Leslie Pockell.
Call # 808.81 100

It's a collection of one hundred poems by one hundred poets, arranged in roughly chronological order of the author's birth, from the ninth century B.C.E. to the late twentieth century .




 
 
 
  If I get my way, we'll have a visit from this poet next school year. We have almost all of his books in the library.
 
Comets, stars, the moon, and Mars : space poems and paintings by Douglas Florian
Call # 811 FLO
 

If you are feeling saucy, or perhaps you were a little sassy you need to check out:

This is just to say : poems of apology and forgiveness by Joyce Sidman.

A collection of poems written by a number of sixth-grade students who write poems of apology to someone, and a collection of responses in poetry form.

Techno Tuesday

Okay. I know it's Wednesday, but I have a good excuse! I was on the field trip to Hyde Park with the 8th grade yesterday. We had a great time and I learned something great for Techno Tuesday -- Presidential Libraries are cool and on the web!

The FDR library at Hyde Park will be closing its building for almost two years while rennovations are completed, but you can visit it anytime by going here. New features come online every month and more than 13,000 documents and more than 1,000 photographs can be accesssed.

Other Presidential libraries on the Internet are:

Herbert Hoover Library


Gerald R. Ford Library

Jimmy Carter Library

Harry S. Truman Library

Ronald Reagan Library

Dwight D. Eisenhower Library

George H. W. Bush Library

John F. Kennedy Library

Clinton Presidential Library

Lyndon B. Johnson Library

George W. Bush Library

Richard Nixon Library

Mash-up Monday

Libraries are great for lots of stuff, you already know that. You can do research for a project. You can find out interesting facts. You can get a book to read. You can get a magazine to read. You can ask for help with homework. You can do your homework.

Did you know the library is good for some other things too? Try this:

The Library Workout



Or this:



Oh, and if you are wondering why ... here's a list of why I love being a librarian. Stop by a see me ... I've got stuff for you!
Librarians change lives!
Access to practically all the information & knowledge in the world
Protectors of free speech and open information
Every day is totally different
Constantly learn something new
Use virtually everything you already know
Constant instant gratification and satisfaction
Use cutting edge technology
Be the ultimate search engine
Get to surf the Internet as part of the job
Teach people how to find answers to important questions
Beat your friends at Trivial Pursuit
People automatically think you’re smart
It’s not a boring desk job!
Know when the best new books come out
Arm young adults with knowledge and power!!!!!!

Getting Started...again!

Hello Locust Valley Students and visitors from Earth and beyond:

I am back on the blog kick and this time I have a plan.

Every day will have a theme. Read every day or just the days you find interesting. I don't mind as long as you are READING something!

Mash-up Mondays -- a rant, a rave, an interesting article...Mondays are like a box of chocolate -- you never know what you're going to get.

Techno Tuesdays -- stuff you may or may not even have heard of living on the Internet

What to Read Wednesdays -- a review or reviews of cool new stuff or old stuff that MUST get into your hands

Thoughts from a Librarian's Head Thursdays -- tips for reserach, tips for homework, cool sites

Fun Link Fridays -- www dot something cool

See you Monday!

Colonial Jobs Afoot

The recession isn't bothering the seventh grade students here! Everyone in Mr. Rogin and Mrs. Ring's classes are learning about their colonial trade, using what, in my humble opinion is the best library collection of colonial life materials in Nassau County. We have peddlers and bakers, fur trappers, doctors and more! The fair will take place in the mini-theater and the middle school on Friday, February 24, periods 1-3. All are welcome!

Not Just for Kids

So, middle schoolers, do you think you are just too cool or too mature to read picture books? Did you even know that we have a great collection of picture books here in the middle school? No, you didn't? Well let's give a little taste of some of the cooler cool picture books you might want to borrow...or sneak off to read in the stacks.

Location: Picture Books E Kru

The Fartiste, doesn't sing or dance or act, but his art -- the fart -- makes him wildly popular in Paris at the Moulin Rouge. Based on the real life of Joseph Pujol and told in rhyme.

Location: Picture Books E Hug

When a mother instructs her children to behave according to Emily Post's rules of etiquette, they respond by insisting that Mother follow the rules, as well. Includes information about Post and selected items from her 1922 book.

Location: Picture Books E LOW

Nine-year-old Liz accompanies the stranger who is her father, just returned from the war, when he goes hunting for crows in Pennsylvania farmland.

Location 973.3 KOE

Tells the story of the first cross-country automobile trip in 1903 by Dr. Horatio Jackson and mechanic Sewall J. Crocker.

Wrapping up the Readathon

Our students did it! They collectively read more than 1000 books, 1049 books to be exact, from June through the first week of January in our third annual Readathon.

Congratulations to our top readers in each grade:

6th grade

Emily Friedman -- 37 books

Melanie Heney -- 35 books

Gabriela Sanchez -- 30 books

7th grade
Mary Kate Guma -- 121 books
Clarissa Seiz -- 33 books
Thomas Ruhl -- 14 books
8th grade
Greg Caso -- 167 books
Justin Wei -- 52 books
Amanda Caso -- 42 books

Our overall top three readers were Greg Caso, Mary Kate Guma and Justin Wei. They will have the honor of having their names engraved on the "Super Readers" plaque in the library. I will also do my best to not totally embarrass them at a town meeting, but give them the credit they deserve.

The eighth grade will be treated to an ice cream party at the end of the yer, courtesy of our fearless leader, Dr. John Christie. Thanks to all who participated and helped us achieve our goal.

For those of you who are inspired to read by the tale of this amazing feat, check out some great book reviews at Curled Up with a Good Kid's Book.

Welcome to The Shelf Life

Hello fine students of Locust Valley Middle School, and hello, too, to those visiting from Planet Earth and beyond. Here you will find the latest happenings at Locust Valley Middle School Library including student and teacher book reviews, research tips and tricks and even some general sense and nonsense. Check back often!