Reflection and Responsibility

Are you settled in and ready for a long post? Get comfortable and read on!

Reflection and Thank You

We can look back at another great week. Like I said in my last post, the flow and rhythm of our library time feels calm and focused. It seems to be what students want and expect. With each class, we finished the sentence, “Our library is a place to…” and here a few answers:

We can see that the students appreciate less circle/transition time and more reading time. One of the students asked me the other day when their library time would be over, and he responded to my answer with, “Oh yes! That means I’ve got loads of time to read!”

Students make themselves comfortable and read… And not even always on the couch!

Last week, we read “Library Lion” by Michelle Knudsen to the Wednesday – Friday classes (so we can start the library week on Monday, instead of Wednesday, with Library Introduction Lesson 2 – more about that later in this post). The students, whether in grade 1 or grade 5, loved it! Listen to the read aloud here.

We have noticed lots of students using the 14.30 – 15.00 library opening hours to switch out their books. They come up on their own, or with their parents. It is the perfect time for both parents and students to get extra help finding that particular book (“I can’t remember the title, but it has a red cover and it’s about a dragon…”) or place a reservation for a book – or pick up a reserved book. We are excited to see so many enthusiastic readers at our school!

Thank you to our library volunteers; Gaëlle, Patty and Daphnie! We appreciate all your help! We now have volunteers every day of the week, apart from Wednesday. So if you wish to help out then, email us! There’s always something to do in the library: helping students, covering/labeling books, tidying shelves, etc.

To Check Out

Our goal is to put together new displays every fortnight. The displays are organized around a theme or a concept. This week’s theme is, “Book Covers Through the Years” and “Get Outside!”. We also have a “Svenska Zonen”, focusing on our collection in Swedish. On the notice board outside, Sophie keeps us updated on the new books she has cataloged and are ready to be checked out. We hope to encourage students to check out books that they wouldn’t think of reading otherwise.

Library Introduction Lesson 2

This week, we will focus on the question, “How do we take care of the library?”. We will use active, positive language – stating what we are doing, rather than what we are not. For example, “We put the books back where they belong”, instead of “We don’t leave the books around the library.” You can read and learn more about the power of our words on the Responsive Classroom website here. Responsive Classroom practices are an approach to building community and social-emotional skills, we use both in PYP and LGRP.

Our word of the week is, “Responsibility”. This is one of the seven IB Key Concepts. It ties in with our exploration of how we take care of our library. The poem of Shel Silverstein (Quote of the Week) highlights in a funny way the importance of using positive statements to express what we want or need.

Library Club

Library Club is every Monday, starting at 14.30. Depending on what we are doing, it ends at 15.00 or 15.30. We will do different things, on a rotating schedule. On September 9th, we will have Board Games and on the 16th we will have SDG Book Club. Have a look at our posters to find out more! Students (and parents) are invited to join in when they can. Once in a while, or every Monday. No need to sign up, just show up!

Last Things

Next Sunday, September 8th, is International Literacy Day! Celebrate with reading, writing and sharing stories with friends and family! Or visit the City Library and attend one of their fun events. Note that they run story times in many different languages.

Maybe you have heard of our library cuddly friends Lexie (the elephant), Timo (the turtle) and our latest stray, Zipzip (he doesn’t like to read… yet). Students love to read with or to them. The students make sure their cuddly friends have something to do when they’re gone. This is how I found Zipzip and Lexie last week after the students had left…

Last but not least: thank you for following this blog! So many signed up to follow, after the last week’s post. This way you’ll never miss out on library news. Thank you!

Happy Reading,

Fleur