The yearly happenings in the life of a school library dedicated to empowering students to share their voice with the world in creative and innovative ways.
We made our creative mark once again at Northside for International Dot Day! Each year, this global celebration takes place on or around September 15. Established by a teacher after introducing his class to Peter Reynolds book The Dot in 2009, this event has turned into a global celebration of creativity, courage and collaboration. The Dot tells the story of a caring teacher who encourages a student to trust in her own abilities by being brave enough to "make her mark". What begins with a simple small dot on a white piece of paper turns into a journey of self-discovery and sharing. Now each, year people use this story to ignite creativity in their own students and share that creativity with others in a myriad of ways both inside and outside the walls of their schools. To learn more about International Dot Day click here.
This year's Dot Day at Northside was filled with students bringing creatively designed dots to life using the 3-D augmented reality app Quiver, creating thumb print dot characters they later built stories around and adding their distinctive mark on our library Makerspace tables. In the past we have had fun getting creative using the 3D app, but this year we brought in a new element. Students experimented using their faces as dots and bringing them into 3D view. Students also looked for other objects around the library to frame in their dot and bring it to life. It was a hit with students and a great way to see how they approached the use of this digital tool. As we made thumbprint dot characters, we modeled our creations after the thumbprint art of Ed Emberly. We explored various examples and visited his website to learn more.
Ms. Ronetta's PreK Students explore 3D Dots
Liam's Dot - Ms. Dixon's Class
Zarielle's Dot Exploration
Tyshaun's Dot
In art class Ms. Keene shared the story The Dot with each class before having them explore their own creative marks. K-2 students designed coffee filter dots while 3-5 students explored symmetry while collaboratively designing large dot art. These creations now hang on display in our school library.
What I love about Dot Day is it gives students a chance to explore their creativity and share it with those around them. In an educational arena filled with standards, mandates, and deadlines, it's nice to take one day to simply explore, create, discover and share with others. Our library is now littered with the remnants of this special day as dots line the walls and hang from our windows. A colorful and daily reminder that we can all make a mark on this world even if it starts with one small dot.
Wow - what an incredible day we recently had at Northside learning from the award winning author/illustrator Don Tate!
Each year as we welcome students back to Northside we build community around a common school-wide book that unites us in story in a campaign we call NES READS. This year's book selection was POET: The Remarkable Story of George Moses Horton, written and illustrated by Don Tate (click here to view book trailer). As part of this year's campaign we brought in this award-winning author/illustrator to connect with our kids thanks to a grant our library received from the Chapel Hill Public School Foundation. Each classroom teacher received a copy of this book to share with students the first week of school in preparation of this visit.
I chose this story for many reasons. The ties to local history, the theme of perseverance that winds through the story, and the lasting message for readers in that words are powerful. It's the story of George Moses Horton, the first published African-American in the south. But it tells of his experience teaching himself how to read, learning to write on his own, and then going on to become a published poet, all the while being enslaved on a local farm in Chatham County. The beauty of this story is the message readers are left with on the last page of text in which the story reads, "George's love of words had taken him on a great journey. Words made him strong. Words allowed him to dream. Words loosened his chains of bondage long before his last day as a slave."
We incorporated this story into many aspects of this year's opening for both students and staff. Teachers shared the remarkable story of themselves as part of a hallway display and Ms. Sharpless got staff excited about starting and sharing our remarkable teaching and learning journey this year. All students created mini posters sharing their remarkable selves as part of the library orientations wherein we also talked about the importance of sharing their own story as they grow as readers and writers and the power their words can have when they share with others. Ms. Keane was also been busy in the Art Studio having students create remarkable self-portraits in their first art classes of the year. The buzz around school about what kids are going to be doing to share their remarkable selves this year is exciting and I can't wait to see what creative things are yet to come.
Staff display in the hallway mirrored after the book cover of Poet
Principal Sharpless and Don Tate
First Graders share Remarkable Self Rainbows
2nd Graders continue to "extend the pen" They all wanted to draw with Mr. Tate.
3rd Graders describe the remarkable shades of their skin through self-portraits.
4th Graders describe their Remarkable selves through poetry.
I Am From poems decorated the hallways at Northside.
We were his first school visit as he toured to promote he newest book, and what a visit indeed! He had such wonderful things to say about our school, our kids and our community. He led three sessions with Northside students and in each began by reciting a humorous poem written by Jack Prelutsky.
He provided background on his life and how he came to be an author and illustrator describing how he wasn't always strong at reading and writing, but he had a knack for drawing. He shared pictures he drew throughout this childhood and then lent the pen to our own students to share in a drawing experience.
I believe it's a necessity for our students to be able to see themselves in the books they read, but I also think it's important that they see themselves in the person behind the words and pictures of the books they read. Don Tate was able to provide that reflection for many of our students and he has new fans across our school. So thank you Don Tate for reaching our readers in a way that only you could have done. You created an experience for our students they are sure to remember. And as they echo requests for books "by Don Tate" I have to smile and reply, "Would you like to be on the hold list?"
There has been a lot of magic happening around our school these days when it comes to reading. From library transformations to book characters popping up around every turn it feels as though the worlds we read about and the characters we love have become our reality. And this got me thinking long and hard (you've been forewarned) about the message we sometimes unknowingly send to our students about books and reading. All too often we tend to focus our energy on reading levels, assessments, and ensuring that our students are reaching their designated benchmarks when it comes to reading. And while these are certainly important factors in literacy education we must not lose sight of the most important element of all -- the love of story. We must keep at the core of our literacy efforts instilling the love of story and the magic reading can bring to our lives. When we spread this magic and share the excitement we will begin to build capacity with readers in our buildings. We will not only be building competent readers, but lifelong readers that look to books to fuel their imagination and learn about the world around them.
There is something special to be said about those books that you get lost in while reading. You know the ones....you can't put them down and feel as though you are walking in the shoes of the character. Or perhaps when the story ends you are left with a bit of sadness because of this insatiable need you have for the story to continue.
In children, I know the moment reading becomes magical. There is a certain glimmer in the eye or twist of a smile that children convey that lets you know you got them - they're hooked! And even with struggling readers if we instill in them this love of reading and magic of story it will help make their struggle more worthwhile and their growth more meaningful. Kate DiCamillo, National Ambassador for Young People's Literature and celebrated author discusses the importance of reading aloud to children in a recent Public Service Announcement. What I love about this clip is she discusses how important reading aloud is to children from all walks of life even those who have homes filled with books and parents that read to them nightly. For many students, teacher read aloud is the most exciting part of the day and it's those books that leave a lasting imprint on their hearts. Down in the library we always know when a teacher is using a particular book as a read aloud because the students come down all seeking the same book or others by a particular author. Even when they are hearing it read aloud, they have a need to read it too or read it again once the story ends. Teachers help create that joy of story every time they choose a special book to read aloud to their students.
So how have we been creating joy around reading at Northside? How are we working to create a literacy rich environment that not only encourages kids to grow as readers, but makes them excited about reading?
In January with the help from our PTA we transformed our library into a magical world to coincide with this year's ReadAThon. As students entered the library they were transported into a fantasy world filled with dragons, fairies, and magic castles. But it wasn't simply having students walk into this space, but creating an environment in which they wanted to read and let themselves be whisked away with their imagination and a good book. We shared stories with students (and had them play along) and also provided time for them to escape into their own story worlds. We helped get our students so excited about reading that we reached our school-wide goal of reading 700,000 minutes! That's incredible and it doesn't hurt that our principal has agreed to get slimed and dye her hair multiple colors as a kudos to our efforts-- an added bonus!
We also spent time becoming the characters we love and adore. We brought some of our favorites to life and let them walk the halls of Northside. Some students knew the characters well and for others it inspired them to pick up and read the book in which the character was featured. We also encouraged our students to do the same -- dress as a character they love -- and we certainly saw some great picks - from Amelia Bedelia to Harry Potter!
As February approached we got busy spreading library love. We encouraged our students to share books they love (it being the month of cupid and all.) It was really wonderful to see how many students both young and old yearned to have their picture taken with a book they love and to spread that to others across Northside. Their pictures are now on display in the hallway leading to the library and on the video monitors across the building.
Our students also began to fill in response after response of why they love our library as part of a February library promotion. The resounding reply was often "because they have the books I love to read". As I began to read over and over so many of the same responses from our students it only solidified what I already know to be true. When students are given opportunities to read what they want to read and have the freedom to choose books they love, they want to read more! Yes, sometimes they will choose books that are too difficult or perhaps aren't "just right".....but they are excited about the book and isn't that a big component to out literacy efforts? We want our kids to be excited about books and want to read. This is what will drive them to become stronger readers. If you don't want to read you will never get better....but if you love something you are willing to work harder for it. That book that is "too difficult" will make it's way back to the library perhaps not even being read, but when it does so too does the child with a desire to pick another book or to have one recommended by their school librarian or peer! And perhaps that book will be the one that makes him a reader for life.
Another way we enjoy spreading the joy and magic of reading is by hosting special reader/writer celebrations in the library. Our most recent celebration was a special Pigeon Party to honor our first grade writers as part of their Mo Willems author study. And yes, I couldn't resist I had to dress as the Pigeon (I mean, let's be real...no Pigeon Party would be complete without the Pigeon himself making an appearance.) Our first grade team of teachers immersed their students in the works of Mo Willems and their students in turn began to adore these characters that brought them joy and made them laugh out loud. As they studied this popular author they learned how to emulate his style of writing and went on to write and illustrate their own class books featuring the pigeon. We digitized their books and have hosted them on our website so that others beyond the walls of our building can share in their reading joy. But that wasn't enough -- we also made their class books available for checkout and that afternoon one of our first grade friends proudly walked down to the library to check out her class book that had just been celebrated. This unit brought joy and magic to students in ways that not only made them want to read more books by Mo Willems but also encouraged them to write like him too! That is something those students will remember for years to come.
As we continue to make our way through February and the rest of this school year, I will continue to try my best to bring magic to reading and instill in our students a desire to want to read every day. I'm looking forward to celebrating Book March Madness, Read Across America, National Library Week, World Read Aloud Day and more with our students and staff! With so many occasions to highlight the joy and magic of reading why not use it as an opportunity to reach our students in ways that encourage reading in new ways. As we all go about our instructional days or evenings at home, I challenge us all to bring a bit of joy and magic as we read with our children. And if we are really lucky, those children we read to each day will grow to find joy in reading and the magic in books that they will one day pass on to their children -- and that is a gift that is certainly worth giving.
