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Wednesday, January 9, 2013

First Semester Comes to an End

Is it just me or did the first semester of school just ZOOM by? The last few weeks leading up to Christmas  were busy bliss in the Shaw Library.

I did several read-alouds of two of my new favorite holiday books--Turkey Clause by Wendi Silvano and Pete the Cat Saves Christmas by Eric Litwin.


Lesson Frame:

I LOVE decorating for Christmas, so the halls of the library were decked in Decemeber! We did our read-alouds illuminated by twinkling lights.


This Santa was passed down to me from my Christmas-loving grandmother. 



Some of my fabulous 6th graders helped create our first book tree!




Santa left a special present for Shaw students to open. Of course, it was NEW BOOKS! Before the students got a chance to check them out for the holidays, the library hosted a book preview for the staff so that they could get a sneak peek of the books and enjoy a sweet treat with my famous Cup of Christmas Cheer.


Cup of Christmas Cheer: One bottle of apple juice and a box of Hot Tamale candies in the crock pot on high until the candies dissolve. I learned this recipe from my fellow MISD librarian peeps. Super easy and it will make you a hit on your campus and your library smell delicious!

New books!!







The highlight of the holiday season was Shaw's first annual Polar Express day. Several schools in Mesquite have a similar event, and this was my first year to jump on board. I could not have done it without the help of my librarian friends telling me how to make hot chocolate for 747 kids. ALL 38 classes visited the library on Friday, December 14. Students (and staff!) got to wear pajamas, and everyone got a ticket to board the Polar Express. Our fabulous speech therapist made the tickets for every student and channeled her inner-Tom Hanks to help punch them before the students "boarded." I moved all of the tables and chairs, and students sat on the floor in rows as if they were on a train. They came in groups of 3-4 classes, so there were 60-80 kids at a time in the library.  They watched a video of The Polar Express being read by Chris Van Allsburg, and it was truly priceless to see the looks on the faces of my students as they sat totally enthralled in the story. Most of them had read the book before, but there was something magical about listening to it read by the author in the twinkling glow of the Christmas lights while sitting in their pajamas. Even the 6th grade boys sat motionless. We then watched the "Hot Chocolate" clip from the movie, and I announced that we had hot chocolate WITH MARSHMALLOWS for everyone! The squeals of glee at this news made me feel like Oprah! Wonderful volunteers from our PTA worked hard to have cups of hot chocolate ready for the students to take as they exited the library. The drank it out in the hall (less mess for the carpet). It was wonderful to have our entire school particpate; it was a true community building event. In all of my fifteen years in education, it was my BEST. DAY. EVER. Joy, gratitude, and wonder in the eyes of 747 kids who I love...who can ask for anything more? You can see our pictures below:




Looking forward to a great 2013 in the Library!

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