Searchasaurus

Searchasaurus Retrieved from

http://web.ebscohost.com/sas/search?sid=3eb20f9b-384d-4621-959e-f89feb5c8525%40sessionmgr104&vid=1&hid=104

Seachasaurus is an online database linked to our school district electronic resources and created for elementary students. You need a username and password to use this database at home - ask Kathy. As with all online databases, although the linked articles are checked by Searchasaurus staff, parents should supervise their children's online research - links can lead to different pages and different articles are appropriate for different ages.  You can use the dinosaur icons to search general topics or type your specific topic into the "Find" box. One great thing about this site is that you can choose a reading level (called the lexile) appropriate for you. Lexile levels do not match grade levels so you might have to experiment to find the lexile level best for you. Make sure you choose the lexile BEFORE you type in your topic.  It does not work if you do it out of order. Searchasaurus also has a visual search feature which shows you all the articles organized by relevance (how close they are to your original topic) and by date (so you can get recent information).  The visual search option does not seem to work with the lexile choice, though, so you will need to look for your own reading level or get an adult to help you. Once you find an article you are interested in, you can choose to look at it as text only (loads faster on your computer) or as a PDF (shows you the original article with pictures, different fonts etc.).  Remember to use the "citation" button to get a reference for what you read.

Late Primary and Intermediate

World Book Kids

World Book Kids Retreived from  http://www.worldbookonline.com/kids/home

World Book Kids is an online encyclopedia linked to our school district's electronic resources .(You do need a username and password to access it from home. Ask Kathy.)  This encyclopedia provides great resources for school projects as well as general interest.  The information on the World Book Kids pages is written at an appropriate reading level for students in grade 3 and up and have a read aloud feature too (although I had trouble using it on my old laptop at home). All the links are checked and deemed appropriate for elementary school children.  Many of the linked articles are at higher reading levels and may require some help from parents. The site also includes videos and photos for most topics. One of the great features is the 'Compare' feature where you can choose two animals or two places and compare them.  The site creates bar graphs which compare common attributes. This feature is limited as not every animal is included. The science projects section contains projects with clear and simple explanations using everyday materials (usually).  There are not many experiements for simple machines, unfortunately. The Games and Activities section has some more experiments in the activities part  under the 'be it' category. Most of the games are not very interesting, but there is one about the provinces tcould be useful for memorization. The Maps section has printable outline maps. Each article or resource has a "cite this" area that provides references that can be copied and pasted into projects. Photographers have given permission for you to copy the pictures in the Pictures section - remember to give credit.  If you can't find the topic, animal, person or place you are interested in, ask Kathy or click on the words 'online research' on the library home page.  There are some other resources we can try.

Primary/ Intermediate

Otto the Book Bear

Clemenson, Katie. (2011). Otto the book bear. Uxbridge, London: Random House Children's Books.

Otto the Book Bear, written and illustrated by Katie Cleminson, is a variation on the theme of illustrations that come to life and walk out of their books. Otto is a bear who loves when his book is being read, but gets lonely when he is left on the shelf so he leaves his book at night and explores the house where he lives - he even writes about his own adventures sometimes.  One day, big trucks take everything away from his house - but Otto is not in his book!  Left alone and with no home, Otto leaves to look for a new home.  He feels small and lost in the big city but eventually finds friends and a new home at the public library. His adventures remind me a little of Cordouroy. Cleminson's black line illustrations washed with soft colours give a gentle feel to the book and the white space around the illustrations and text give the reader's (or listener's) eyes a rest, making it accessible for a very young audience. A great read-aloud or early reading book as the pictures give a lot of clues to the text and really help to tell the story.

Primary

Kenny and the Dragon

DiTerlizzi, Tony. (2008). Kenny and the dragon. New York: Simon and Schuster.

Kenny and the Dragon is another novel by Tony DiTerlizzi, one of the team that brought us the Spiderwick Chronicles.  Inspired by Kenneth Grahame's "The Reluctant Dragon" (which we also have in the library), Kenny and the Dragon is illustrated with beautifully detailed pen and ink drawings reminsicent of  The Wind in the Willows (also by Kenneth Grahame - hmmmm).  While the accents and vernacular of the 'country hick' father and the 'court noble' friend are sometimes strained, the characters are likeable and the reader is drawn into the action as Kenny struggles to find a way to save his new friend, Grahame (another tip of the hat to Kenneth Grahame) from the frightened villagers determined to exterminate the dragon. Even without knowing about the famous inspirations for this story, readers ready to graduate from early chapter books will find this adventure accessible and endearing. Kenny, who is not popular at school, finds a kindred spirit in Grahame the dragon and his intelligence and ingenuity save the day in the end.

Late Primary/ Intermediate

A Weird Case of Super-Goo

Oppel, Kenneth. (2010).  A weird case of super-goo. Toronto, Ont.: Harper Trophy Canada.

From Kenneth Oppel, author of some fabulous books for intermediate readers, comes the Barnes and the Brains series for younger readers. With cartoon-style black and white full page illustrations and accessible text divided into short chapters, this is a great chapter book to hook early readers on a new series. Giles, Kevin and Tina are the "brains" of their school who have created a 'genius business' to help other people with their problems.  Giles decides to quit the 'Genius business' after a failed experiment turns his hair red, but he needs to enlist the help of his old friends when his high maintenance aunt arrives and creates a youth potion which makes her a little too youthful - even for Giles.  The clever portrayal of adults who just don't 'get-it' and the recognition that childhood is not all its cracked up to be will appeal to young readers as will the fact that it is the kids who solve the problem in the end. A Weird Case of Super-Goo is a funny, fast-paced book about friendship, co-operation and responsibility that is not at all 'preachy'. I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series. Check out the Barnes and the Brains website, too.

Late Primary

The Hunger Games

 

Collins, Suzanne. (2008). The hunger games. New York, Toronto: Scholastic Inc.

Reminiscent of "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson and Logan's Run (for those of us old enough to remember it), this fast-paced dystopian fantasy follows the adventures of Katniss and Peeta, two teenagers chosen as 'tributes' who must fight to the death. Each character is seen through the eyes of the narrator, Katniss, and the readers' understanding of the actions and motivations of the characters grows with Katniss' insights. Where Katniss has holes in her knowledge, so does the reader. The two children question and test their own morals, and their relationship, in the face of ever increasing dangers. Collins has combined gripping suspense, clever plots, unexpected alliances, unrequited love, devastating losses, and a heart-stopping climax to successfully engage pre-teen, teen and even adult readers.  The ending sets the stage beautifully for a sequel - I can't wait to read the next one!

Young Adult

Mo Willems Biography

Llanas, S. (2012). Mo Willems. Minneapolis, Minn.: ABDO Publishing Co.

I couldn't resist the chance to purchase this biography of one of my favourite children's authors and illustrators. When I introduced it to each class (from grade 1 to 4) they were thrilled to see the little girl Knuffle Bunny's Trixie is based on and the pidgeon mascot outside a bookstore. This bearutifully laid out book with large colour photos and short, information packed chapters follows Mo from childhood doodles to a love of cartooning (he wrote Charles Schulz to ask "Can I have your job when you're dead?"), a career in stand-up comedy, an Emmy Award winning writing gig with Seasame Street and becoming a multiple award winning author.  The book ends saying that Willems hopes children will be inspired to "draw the characters, write new scenes and act out skits".  As each page turned I grew more and more impressed with this clever, funny artist. 

Check out Mo Willems blog at http://mowillemsdoodles.blogspot.ca/  - especially the 'dinner doodles'.

Late primary, Intermediate, Teacher resource

Island Santa

Mcfarlane, Sheryl. (2012). Island Santa. Victoria, BC: Children's Health Foundation of Vancouver Island.
(Illustrated by Sheena Lott)

Today I had the exciting job of helping with a book launch in our library.  Author Sheryl McFarlane, illustrator Sheena Lott and philanthropist Jeneece Edroff all arrived at South Park with film crews from CTV and Chek News and support staff from The Children's Health Foundation of Vancouver Island.   Louisa's class were treated to the first reading of the brand new book by the author and got to see the original illustrations presented by the illustrator herself.  After the story, Louisa's class got to ask Sheryl and Sheena a few questions.  They had spent a lot of time learning about good questions and thinking about the first two pages of the story that I had read them as an introduction. The questions were thoughtful and topical - Sheryl and Sheena were pleased and impressed.  Then the students got to meet Jeneece, one of the people who inspired the book, and ask her questions too. It was wonderful to see how inspired the students were by Jeneece's thoughtfulness and determination to raise money to 'give back' to those who have helped her.  Jeneece raised money to build a house where families with children who need medical care can stay while their child is in hospital. Here is a link about the house they built, Jeneece Place.

The book, Island Santa, is based on the true story of Kaare Norgard, a man who travelled to the islands and lighthouses around Vancouver Island at Christmas time to deliver presents to isolated families. He dressed as Santa and decorated his boat with lights.  Children could hear the boat approaching because Kaare played Christmas carols over the loud speakers. Louisa remembers seeing the "Santa boat" when she was little. Kaare Norgard's family donated a large amount of money to Jeneece place and the book is a thank-you to his family.  Sheena Lott's detailed water colour illustrations bring the west coast to life and echo the emotions of the story which follows Sam as he helps on the Santa boat through long days and a brutal storm on his way to visit his sister who is in the hospital over Christmas and his parents who are staying at Jeneece Place. This touching story of people helping each other and finding ways to give when it really matters inspired the children at South Park Family School and I am sure will inspire many others.

Primary

Sheryl McFarlane wrote about the launch at South Park in her blog.
Here is a link to the CTV newscast of the launch.
Here is a link to the Chek News segment:

http://www.cheknews.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=frontpage&Itemid=136

When you click on this page there will be 8 boxes under the playing window. The last box has Jeneece’s face in it and says coin drive.

Maxed Out

Greer, D. (2012). Maxed out. Victoria, BC: Orca Book Publishers.

The fact that  Daphne Greer worked with people with special needs for sixteen years shines through in this touching and true to life story of Max, a young teen who is trying to hold his family together after his fathers' death.  Max's mother has fallen into depression and spends her time either at work or in bed, crying, leaving Max to look after his older brother, Duncan, who has autism.  Max loves his brother but becomes more and more frustrated as Duncan's behaviours make everything more difficult from routine chores to playing hockey with his friends. Hockey is Duncan's passion - and his last connection with his Dad.  Finally, Max works out a plan so that he can play in the big game - with disasterous consequences.  When life seems totally out of control, Max calls the Kids Help Line in the middle of the night.  From hurtful statements made in anger to the supportive acts of a true friend, the characters in this high interest, low reading level story really ring true. Many teens will be able to relate to Max's feelings of being 'Maxed out' and not knowing where to turn.

Young Adult (Hi-Lo)

Libraries Connect - in many different ways

Cardboard

TenNapel, Doug. (2012). Cardboard. Scholastic Inc., New York.

 This graphic novel has all the elements of a good adventure story: likable hero, despicable villain, romantic interest, a bit of unexplained magic, a true friendship, an exciting climax and a nice, neatly tied up finish -very satisfying. Having purchased a lot of graphic novels for the collection lately, but only read a few of them cover to cover, I was not sure what to expect from this one.  Its shadowy, angular illustrations vary from full page spreads to multi- frame pages with story advancing details and lots of dialog. Cam's out of work father buys Cam a cardboard box for his birthday from a strange road-side vendor who warns him to return every scrap that he doesn't use. The two stay up late into the night working together cutting, gluing and painting to create a life-size boxer. When the boxer comes to life in the middle of the night, Cam's adventures begin.  A jealous neighbourhood bully steals some of the cardboard and begins creating creatures of his own who soon turn on their evil master. Cam's honesty and kindness shine through throughout the story helping to bring the adventure to its proper conclusion (after many close calls).

Late Primary/Intermediate