Welcome to the library!

Welcome back to a new 2010-2011 school year!

A tiny bit about me for those of you who I am still waiting to meet:

I have a BFA in textiles from Kansas City Art Institute and a Master's degree in Education from Framingham State College in Massachusetts.

I was a Peace Corps volunteer in Ecuador in 1980, and ended up staying in Latin America for the next 14 years.

I was a pre-k bilingual teacher for 10 years in the Austin school district.

This will be my third year as librarian at WPS--I received my Librarian's Certificate from UT in 2007.

My goal is to make the library an inviting, friendly and warm place for children, parents and staff to come in and have a positive library experience.

My mission is to inspire children to become lifelong readers and to develop a love and appreciation of the written word.

Updated parent section:

This section is just for you--it is located in the back corner of the library. You will find Disney VHS movies (thanks to parents and staff), family self-help books and novels for your personal enjoyment. You may also check out up to 10 children's books for a 2 week period to read to your child at home. Just come on in and I will set you up with your very own barcode ID.

We will also gladly and gratefully accept used novels for the parent section or for a possible future used book sale to raise funds for our library.

Read to Succeed Reading Promotion ~~

Read 6 hours in 6 weeks and earn a ticket to Six Flags!

On September 14th, we will begin our Read to Succeed Reading Promotion to encourage students to get back into the practice of reading the required 20 minutes a night. You will receive a form where you may keep track of your child's reading time. The form will contain 6 strips so that each time your child reads for one hour ( 3 days of reading for 20 minutes a day), you may fill out a strip with your child's name and their teacher's name and send it to me in the library. I will put a recognition marker on your child's apple on their classe's apple tree which will be located in the hallway ---when they have achieved 6 hours of reading in a 6 week time period, they will receive a coupon for a ticket to Six Flags that will be valid for use in the summer months.

2x2 Reading Program

Throughout the year I will be reading from books that are contained in this list. Look on the inside cover of each book to find an activity related to the book that you and your child may do together at home.

The 2 X 2 Reading List is a project of the Children's Round Table, a unit of the Texas Library Association. The 2X2 Committee's charge is to produce a list of 20 recommended books for children age two to grade two. The 2 X 2 Reading List Committee selected the titles after receiving suggestions from librarians, teachers, parents, students, and others.

Children's Round Table -- 2x2 List 2009

Caldecott Books

We will embark upon a journey through our library's Caldecott collection to discover the books that have been awarded the gold or silver medal for their outstanding illustrations.

The Caldecott Medal was named in honor of nineteenth-century English illustrator Randolph Caldecott. It is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.

http://www.bgpl.org/booklists/Book%20lists/Caldecott_Medal_Winners-1

2009--2010 Scholastic Book Fair Schedule:

December 7-12

The theme for the December book fairs is always "winter", but this year it is winter as well as: "Destination Book Fair, Reading Around the World"

The 12th is also the date of the WPS Holiday Fest from 8:30-12:30

Please visit our Scholastic Book Fair web page for a schedule of events:

book fair

To learn more about our featured Family Night storyteller who will present "A Day in Africa" on Dec. 8th from 5:30-6:30, please click on the following link:

Elizabeth Kahura

April 19-23

Since the theme of this Book Fair will be: "Book Fair Diner, put a good book on your plate", and since it is also Art Week, we will be hosting an edible book contest.

Below is a link to other edible book contest entries:

edible books

Please support our book fair--we rely on the profits we make from the book fair to purchase much needed books and supplies.

Please support our PTO...

Every year the PTO is able to provide

grants for teachers with money collected through school fund raisers--

During the 2008-2009 school year the library was awarded over $600.00 to purchase a document camera which projects books onto a television screen enabling students to see the text of the book and to read along.

Here is a fun and old-timey way to help raise money for the PTO...please join me!

Every Tuesday starting October 6th, I would like to invite the WPS community to the library from 4-5 to learn to quilt.

Together we will create a quilt by hand to raffle off during the Spring Carnival in April.

This is the pattern we will make: it is called "Little Red Schoolhouse". I will provide needles, thread, fabric, plastic pattern templates and know-how. Please bring your own scissors. Your children are invited to come in and do homework, read, and play on the computers while we work on the quilt.

To get an idea of how a square comes together, click on the link:

little red schoolhouse

To obtain a list of all of the WPS AR quizzes, click on the following link:

AR Quiz List