Busy Times, Busy Times.....

April and May seem to pass in a blur for the media center staff. We host one of our two largest events in April, work hard to finish all research projects, and begin our yearly inventory. During it all, we find extremely cherishable moments as we see students having fun, families fellowshipping, and, in it all, God showing up. Our Spring Literacy Week came to a successful end with the raising of over $3,000.00 for the Henryville School Library Reconstruction fund, a book fair that brought in over $7,500.00 in sales, and a highly attended Family Literacy Reading Luau that had families doing everything from a fun photo booth to competitive A.R. testing. In the midst of these activities, we completed the fourth grades' second cooperative project where they wrote puppet scripts, learned the basic of puppeteering, and performed shows for Kindergarten and Pre-K students. Well, 2011-2012 has been quite a ride; and, hey, I wouldn't change a thing! Thanks for all your support of the media center.

Thoughts on The Hunger Games

Recently, the series The Hunger Games has been a hot item both in the theater and in our library. A few parents have asked our opinion and recently, Miss Foltz, an ECS teacher, read the first book and wrote the following review:

The Wages of Lying

I just finished reading "The Hunger Games," by Suzanne Collins. A student asked me, "What did you think of it?" I told her that I would need to think about it for a while. Any book that is thought provoking has value in deliberation, so I present this spoiler-free opinion below for discussion.
When someone asks me about a book, one of the first thoughts I have is how the book made me feel? I definitely felt adrenaline. The characters were emotionally gripping. Some scenes were strikingly horrific. At the end, I felt hopelessness for the future of the characters. Suddenly, I realized why.
Everyone lies and no one repents. Each of the named characters lies to others. The first eight characters that are named in the book lie to at least two others. (Well, we have no record of Prim or Madge lying, but they don't have much time to talk.)
Lies always lead to destruction. The fall of Panem is well foreshadowed. No society built on lies can survive. History has demonstrated this. The conscience craves truth. Governments should be designed for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. So, what will happen to those who believe the lies of the government. What will happen to those who don't believe, but have nowhere else to turn for truth. In one of history's most ancient epic poems, Iyyov said that those who plow iniquity and sow trouble reap the same. The second thing I think about is how I like the book. "Hunger Games" is a fantasy book because the few explanations given for the grand technologies are dubious. Several of the technologies have macabre implications. The gene puddle of the closed society has other disturbing potentialities.
Thirdly, I thought about a student reading the book. The book poses but does not answer questions about obedience to authorities, honoring parents, expectations of leaders, emotional responses, personal modesty, purposeless existence, rationale for killing, conformity to public opinion, and the consequences of lying. Students who have the discernment to strive to answer these questions could benefit from reading this book.
My final conclusion is that I will finish the series so that I can use it as a discussion starter. I will probably not reread it due to the lack of profound articulation of applicable truth. I think "Hunger Games" is a thought provoking, gruesome fantasy about the wages of lying on a personal and national level.

It's a Reading Luau

Spring is here and with that comes our annual spring book fair. The fair will be held April 17-19 with special family night activities on April 19. It will be a fun evening with competition A.R. testing, the book fair in the front foyer, tropical snacks, and crafts. The event runs from 6:30-8:00 p.m. and is drop in. The book fair itself will run from 8:15 a.m. through 3:30 p.m. daily. Check out information about the fair at: http://bookfairs.scholastic.com/homepage/ecslibrary10

New Library T-Shirts

Teachers: Spring library t-shirt orders have now begun. Please sign up on the form in the teacher mailroom. Money is due to the school office no later than March 21. These are great for spirit wear on Fridays.

Sharing Stories

2nd grade authors came to Kindergarten and Pre-K library classes today to share their fantasy story books. It was a great way to learn the importance of writing, reading, and sharing.

Role Models

What can a 1st grader learn from a 4th grader, a lot! After much preparation and anticipation, 4th graders have begun their volcano teaching units with younger students. Today, Mrs. McCarty's 4th grade students presented their lessons to the 1st grade classes. I appreciate the immense preparation and the way in which the 4th graders shared both their knowledge and the importance of learning to the little ones. Way to go, guys!

What's Ahead

The library/media center is excited to share plans for two upcoming spring literacy events. First, we will celebrate the 107th birthday of Dr. Seuss Feb. 29-March 2. There will be fun dress days aligned with his books, daily contests, library book talks dedicated to his books and (hopefully) record breaking A.R. testing. Look for more info in upcoming weeks on this celebration.

In addition, in April, we will celebrate our semi-annual book fair and literacy night. This year's theme is: Surf on In to the Reading Luau. For family night, we are planning fun events like a photo booth, "surfing" the Internet, read alouds, and tropical games and snacks. This event will be April 19th. Hope to see you at both.