Poem in Your Pocket Day was SO FUN!

Today's Poem in Your Pocket Day activity was totally and completely awesome and fun. I LOVED to listen to students read me the poems they had in their pockets - some they got from other authors and some they wrote themselves. One student even wrote his own song and sang it. I also loved seeing all the staff members who were in on the act - listening to poems and giving out PAWS. It was a fantastic community building activity and I had an amazing day because of it.

Thanks to everyone who participated for making this such a fabulous place to be the librarian!

City of Ember - Jeanne DuPrau

I read this book a long, long time ago - when it first came out even, if you can believe that. And my husband actually went on to read the whole rest of the series! I really liked the premise of this book, so I was pleased that our mother-daughter book club took this on as our choice for April. We've done such a wide variety of genres in our book club. It's been really great. And this book provided a lot of really great discussion material which was awesome.

We talked about things like how the earth today has many environmental and social issues and what sort of problems could have led to the building of the City of Ember. We talked about who might have built Ember and when does the story happens. Clearly, the city of Ember was built when people were worried that the human race might not survive. We wondered if this was a good plan and what about it was good/not so good. What job would we have been wanted to be assigned? Did Lina and Doon get the right things assigned to them? How did everyone there get along so well we wondered? And that mayor! The mayor is the most corrupt character in the novel. He squelches the thirst for knowledge and limits freedom, yet the majority of the townspeople just accept his behavior. Why did they act this way? How could they? How could Lina take Poppy and put her in such danger? Would we have done the same thing if she were our sister? What if she were your daughter, I asked the moms. They'd ALL have taken her.

This is a very interesting furturistic sci-fi book - although now that I say that, they're totally lacking on the science, which is kind of where their problem stems from...so I wonder what genrre this is classified in. I'll have to look this up. Anyway, whatever genre it is, I really liked it and thought it was great for discussion. I'm eager to see the movie now!

Braless in Wonderland - Debbie Reed Fischer

The title of this book makes it sound WAY more racy than it is, and it has me wondering why the editor, publisher, author, whomever felt the need to name this book in this way. Not to mention the GIANT font for the word Braless on the cover. Clearly sexy sells, just watch television for fifteen minutes, but can authors and publishers of quality books not just sell them based on the fact that they are actually writing quality? And doesn't using this sort of gimmick cheapen the whole endeavor?

I actually thought this was a good story with a main character who tries to remain true to her values and admits that some of the ways she's approached life might not be as great as she thought they were. I also think that a story about a regular girl who suddenly becomes a supermodel is going to appeal to a lot of girls. But I probably also will not buy it for my library simply because of the title. I think that's too bad.

If you're a librarian or an author I'd like to hear what you think of this issue.

Something, Maybe - Elizabeth Scott

This was a sweet little romance that's endorsed by Sarah Dessen, so of course I had to read it. It was in some ways super predictable and then in other ways a complete surprise. A nice combo.

Hannah is the queen of invisibility. She's built a wall around herself to protect her. See, her family's a little bit, well, unusual, and kids have made fun of her in the past for this. There are only a handful of other kids she even talks to - one girl at school, but just a little, one girl from her neighborhood, and two boys at work - Josh and Finn. Josh is ultra handsome and Hannah's sure he's her soul mate, so she tries as hard as she can to be what she thinks he wants. Finn just seems like a regular guy to her, but everyone with half a brain can see that he's the much better choice. Thoughtful, funny, kind. And even Hannah notices he's kinda cute.

Seems like an awful lot of girls do choose boys for the wrong reasons and set them up to be things they're not. Why DO we do that, anyway? Will Hannah figure out she's going for the wrong guy? What would it take to make her see?

Add all her family issues to the mix and you have a great plot in addition to the romance.

Recommended. Available at the Multnomah County Library.

Poetry Friday - End of April

Can you believe it's already the end of April. It's our last Friday in April!

End of April
Phillis Levin


Under a cherry tree
I found a robin’s egg,
broken, but not shattered.

I had been thinking of you,
and was kneeling in the grass
among fallen blossoms

when I saw it: a blue scrap,
a delicate toy, as light
as confetti

It didn’t seem real,
but nature will do such things
from time to time.

I looked inside:
it was glistening, hollow,
a perfect shell

except for the missing crown,
which made it possible
to look inside.

What had been there
is gone now
and lives in my heart

where, periodically,
it opens up its wings,
tearing me apart.



from The Afterimage, 1996
Copper Beech Press, Providence, RI

Copyright 1996 by Phillis Levin.

6th Grade Entry - The Bad Beginning

6th graders at WOMS were invited to write blog posts on books they've recently read. this is Jake's entry. Thanks, Jake.

A Series of Unfortunate Events
*The Bad Beginning*
Lemony Snicket
HarperCollins Publishers, 162 p.


The three Baudelaire children Violet, Klaus, and Sunny have the best life a child could imagine. The Baudelaire children have everything they could ever wish for: an enormous mansion and wonderful, caring parents. However their lives are changed forever, when Mr. Poe brings the children some terrible news. He tells the children that their mansion has burned down and their parents along with it. The children race back to the house only to find it ruins. Now they have no parents, nowhere to live and no close relatives to live with. The only choice they have is that they’ll have to go live at their busiest relative, Count Olaf. When the “orphans” arrive at Count Olaf’s, they think they’d be better off living at their burned down house. Count Olaf’s house is filthy with broken windows, chipped paint and eyes…everywhere from the door, to the walls, to the furniture. Count Olaf welcome’s them nicely but as soon as Mr. Poe leaves, Count Olaf treats them poorly and unfairly. He makes them do chores like fixing the windows and making him and his theater troupe dinner and only gives them one bed to sleep on so one of them sleeps on the bed while one of them sleeps on the floor. None of them get any sleep and they have to deal with Count Olaf 24/7. The real reason why Count Olaf treats the “orphans” with so little respect is that he is after their ENORMOUS fortune. The children must think fast if they want to stop Count Olaf from taking their fortune and worse. Their right to live.

Violet is the sort of person that likes to invent things. Klaus should know. Whenever she ties up her hair in a ribbon to keep it out of her eyes, you know she’s thinking hard. When she is older, she wants to invent things that can help people with their daily problems and make their lives easier.

Klaus, the middle child, loves to read books. Back when their parents were alive and their house was still up, the Baudelaires had an ENORMOUS library. Klaus would sit in the library almost every hour of the day, and whatever he read, he remembered.

Sunny, the youngest, had a completely different interest. She enjoys biting things with her four sharp teeth. She also had a whole other made-up vocabulary. Like when she says “Gook” she probably means “This tastes funny”

What I really liked about this book is that the author used strong vocabulary. I also admired the descriptions. Not only about the characters, but the multiple settings. I also liked how the author wasn’t afraid to write one sad thing after another. This book was extremely unpleasant, but it was well written.

This book was definitely sad and I definitely recommend this book to people who don’t mind reading so unfortunate and so sad. You might want to be a reader like that or else you would want to put the book down and find something happier to read if that’s your style.


Submitted by,

Jake N.

water cycle PPT for 7th graders

Water Cycle[1] Power Point

View more presentations from jwilliams25.

6th Grade entry - The Bad Beginning

6th graders at WOMS have been invited to post guest entries on my blog for YA books they’ve recently read. This is Brooke’s entry. Thanks, Brooke!

A Series Of Unfortunate Events
*The Bad Beginning* #1
By Lemony Snicket
Harper Collins Publishers Ink, 162pg

When the Baudelaire siblings, Violet, Sunny, and Klaus where at the beach they then received terrible news, that continues threw the story, disaster lurks at their heels. One might say their always misfortunate. Even though how talented and smart they were, they couldn’t do any thing to stop it. The three then encountered a greedy and repulsive villain. That caused a disastrous fire, and a plot to steal their family fortune. But all they could have was cold porridge for breakfast.

Violet was the oldest out of the Baudelaire family and was 14 years old. She always made inventions. She then pulled her hair back before inventing a new device. Klaus was the middle child and wore glasses, which made him look intelligent. He was the only child in the neighborhood that ever read almost every book of any species. Sunny was the youngest and was only an infant, and very small for her age, scarcely larger than a boot. She was known for biting, she only had four teeth, but could brake threw anything, and couldn’t talk.

The book was always a mystery; I couldn’t imagine what would happen next! I couldn’t think of great children having to suffer that much, especially for having their talents they have. That’s what made it a great book.

I recommend this book to people that love mystery but also loving kinds of books, especially one's that have your mind thinking and wanting to read more about what would happen next.


Submitted by Brooke A.

6th Grade entry - Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

6th graders at WOMS have been invited to post guest entries on my blog for YA books they’ve recently read. This is Hunter’s entry. Thanks, Hunter!

INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM
By Suzanne Weyn
Scholastic Inc., 186 p.


Swashbuckling archaeologist "Indiana Jones" is back with another "glowing" adventure! The time is 1935. After a narrow escape from death in Shanghi, Jones finds himself in a secluded village somewhere in India. A strange shaman tells Jones that he has been awaiting him. He tells Jones that he and his comrades are destine to liberate the villagers.

Indiana Jones is the most interesting character in the book. He is brave and strong and always wears his hat and black leather jacket in his adventures. His trademarks are his hat and his bullwhip! He is a hero who always does the right thing. All of his adventures take place in exciting parts of the world and that is why I think he is so interesting.

The action is what keeps drawing me back to reading these adventure books. I like the authors style of writing and sentence fluency.

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to read adventure stories. The exciting places Indiana Jones travels to in his books are like taking a vacation to a foreign land with him. The book is full of action packed thrills on every page.



Submitted by Hunter N.

Poetry Friday - The Toucan

No one says poetry to kids as much as Shel Silverstein does, so here's to National Poetry Month and Shel Silverstein!




The Toucan by Shel Silverstein

Tell me who can
Catch a toucan?
Lou can.

Just how few can
Ride the toucan?
Two can.

What kind of goo can
Stick you to the toucan?
Glue can.

Who can write some
More about the toucan?
You can!

WOMS totally ROCKED THE DROP!!!!

I was thrilled by the amazing response to our book exchange! Students brought in hundreds of books, got their tickets, and came into the library at lunch today in droves to choose new books! Many students got lots of tickets and shared them with friends so even more people could benefit. I have to tell you that I love coming to this job every day, but days like this remind me even more that I really do have one of the best jobs EVER. It's great to be able to plan an event where kids are SO excited about books. And it's so awesome to work with kids who get excited about books. Of course, what's not to get excited about, really?

I also want to give major props to Readergirlz for planning Operation Teen Book Drop. Without their leadership, I probably wouldn't have gotten going on this project here at WOMS, and there would be 8,000 less books in hospitals for seriously ill children. It's pretty amazing that these divas and their clan have put this project together two years in a row. You can see more about the whole operation in this video if you're interested.

Here are a bunch of fun pics from today's festivites! Enjoy, and thanks to everyone for participating!


Getting the books ready!

The fabulous set-up girl, Katie!


Choosing books, books and more books!!!!





Look at all the tickets we used!!!

6th Grade Entry - Twilight

6th graders were recently invited to post entries on my blog. This is Kortnie's entry. thanks, Kortnie!

Twilight
Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown And Company
480 p.

In Twilight, Isabella (Bella) Swan moves from Phoenix, Arizona to Forks, Washington. She moves to live with her dad in one of the wettest places in the continental U.S. But only to make her mom happy, which is traveling with Bella’s step dad. While in Forks, Bella has a lot of new things to adjust to, like hardly ever seeing the sun, living in a tiny town hidden by trees. Even living with her dad. Eventually Bella meets some new friends, almost gets crushed by a van, and then finally starts fitting in. But when she and Edward Cullen start going out, it seems like everything falls into place. That is until Edward tells Bella his families’ secret, they’re vampires!!! Then her whole life starts to change. It seems like Bella is always in danger, and Edward is constantly saving her.


One of the main characters is Bella Swan. Bella is originally from Phoenix, Arizona, where her mom and step dad live now. But she is currently living in Forks, Washington with her dad, the chief of police. She has long curly brown hair, and is mid height and slender. Since she’s new at her school, everyone’s interested in her and suddenly has like three boys asking her prom. Though most would, Bella doesn’t like all the attention. There is something very interesting about Bella; she has horrible balance and coordination. She can hardly go ten minutes without tripping, loosing her balance, or falling over. But the most unusual thing about Bella Swan is that she madly in love, and dating a vampire!!!!


My favorite parts in Twilight, were when Edward continuously tries to convince Bella to keep away from him. Because he’s a vampire, she could get hurt. But she keeps wanting and seeing them being together. She doesn’t care what he is, and knows he won’t hurt her. She also knows that he will always do everything in his power to keep her safe. For that reason they are together, and because he feels the same way towards her, they can’t stay away from each other. They love each other, and will always be there for each other.

My other favorite part is when you get to know the Cullen family. They are described as the most beautiful and graceful creatures on the planet. They are all Dr. and Mrs. Cullen’s adopted children. Even thought they live together, they’re all in couples (except Edward of course). Like Rosalie and Emmet are together, Alice and Jasper are together, and of course Dr. Carlisle and Esme. But they all have their own pasts of how Carlisle found them and changed them, because Carlisle would never bite anyone who didn’t have any other options and were going to die. But because Carlisle is as they call themselves “a vegetarian”, all of the Cullen family only drinks the blood of animals. They also each have a gift or power, Edward can read minds, Alice can see the future, and Jasper can calm people and make peace. Also Rosalie has the gift of tenacity, or being “pigheaded” as her family describes her, Emmet has his strength, Carlisle, his compassion, and Esme can love passionately. They are all immortal, and incredibly fast and strong.


If you love forbidden romance, attention-grabbing action, and fantasy that seem so real, this book is for you. Also for readers who love vampires, a book that keep them on the edge of their seat, and keeps you wanting more until you can’t put the book down, I recommend Twilight.



Submitted by Kortnie M.

6th grade entry - The Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot

6th graders were recently invited to write blog entries on books they've read. this is Christopher's. Thanks, Christopher!

The Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot
Robert Arthur
Random House, 158 p.

In the book, The Three Investigators in The Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot, Mr. Fentriss is trying to steal seven parrots. He wants to see if they will say their line that the parrots trainer taught them. Each line is a riddle from an old movie and each riddle leads to a secret treasure. The three investigators are in this chase as well. The investigators are trying to get the parrots back.

Jupiter Jones is one of the three investigators. He has a stocky build and a round face. He is not known to be very smart, but is very friendly. This investigator is an adventurous boy and often finds himself getting caught, or in trouble. Jupiter Jones really likes solving each case and loves answering mysterious questions.

What I like the best about The Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot is that it never gets boring. The book always has something going on, and something mysterious or interesting is happening. I also love how the investigators are not adults, but teenagers. But the one thing I really liked about the book is that the book actually teaches you a lesson.

I would definitely recommend this book if you like mysteries, funny, or intense stories. Readers would like this book because it could take you on an adventure without leaving your seat.

Submitted by Christopher T.

Jenny Han Haiku Contest!

Author Jenny Han is running a fun contest over at her blog. Being national poetry month and all, this is the perfect time to try your hand at writing a haiku and maybe winning a music soundtrack and a free copy of her new book The Summer I Turned Pretty! Read all the details here!

Library challenge

Mrs. Yingling, a librarian friend of mine in Ohio, is hosting a challenge in which she's asking other librarians to answer some questions and post some pics of their libraries. Here's my info.

1. List the number of students in your school and volumes in your collection. 450 6th-8th grade students; 20,737 volumes

2. State the year your library was built and/or refurbished. The building was remodeled and this became the library in 1992 (this space used to be the GYM!)

3. List one BEST feature and one worst feature of your library. The feature I like best is our new inviting, comfy seating area.

4. Tell us one dream you have for your library. One dream I have for my library is for it to be used by classes ALL day EVERY day. Other dreams are expressed in the picture captions below. Oh, that money were limitless!

5. Include a picture(s) if possible. Here are some pics of my library


These are the stairs down into the library. There are lots of great posters on the walls, but I sure wish my library were more central to the school instead of being way down in the dungeon. You really have to want to come here - you don't just stop by.


This is the entryway to our library. I love and adore the old fashioned card catalog,even though we don't use it at all anymore. And I love my rain gutters that my dad helped me hang to display books as the kids walk in. Everyone who sees that loves it. I got the idea from Jim Trelease. Usually it's less messy, but we're gearing up for our big book exchange this week, so those boxes are full of donated books for that! You can see the corner of the student self-checkout station there as well.


Here's our fun new seating area. We got a little grant to buy furniture and got a donated coffee table and bookcase. It's a comfy space for kids to hang out which we never had before. I have the new book section, the Battle of the Books spinner rack, the magazine spinner an the graphic novels all in this area to help draw kids in even more.


This is our study section with enough tables for a full class of students to sit and work or listen to booktalks or whatever. It used to be more crowded, but some serious(ly needed) weeding helped free up a lot of space since I could remove whole shelves. I have Internet, a laptop (old but it works) and a digital projector in this area for teaching.


The fiction section and science textbook storage area. At least they're brightly colored...


These are our computers. I'm grateful to have something in here for kids to use for Internet research and games at lunch, but these computers are old and slow, and I would love to find a stash of money under a rock I could use to buy all new computers in here - enough for a whole class, not just half the kids at a time.


Our Playaway collection which the kids really like and our high lexile books. I separated them out because there are some teachers who require kids to read at their lexile level, and the students with high lexiles were struggling to find books.

Book Exchange Thursday! BRING BOOKS ASAP

Reminder that we're rocking the drop here at WOMS on Thursday - Support Teen Literature Day!

Bring in books you're no longer reading (ask your parents first, please) and exchange them for others!

Bring all donations to the library to get your exchange tickets. We'll do the exchange at lunch!

6th grade Entry - Elephant Run

6th graders at WOMS have been invited to post guest entries on my blog for YA books they’ve recently read. This is Alex’s entry. Thanks, Alex!

Elephant Run
Roland Smith
Scholatic Inc.

In 1941 during World War II, the main character of the story, Nick Freestone, is in London. He is living in his mom's apartment while bombs are being dropped by the Japanese. Later he gets shipped off to his dad's plantation in Burma. After Nick's dad leaves the plantation, the Japanese take over, and Nick is forced to be their prisoner. Nick is not just a prisoner, he also has to tend to the plantation and work on the garden. Nick lives in fear of getting hit by a mean guard if he doesn't do the work by the guard's standards.
Nick Freestone is a fourteen year old boy. Before he moves to the plantation, he is a city boy but after he moves to the plantation he learns to work in the outdoors. Nick is forced to grow up quicker so he can survive the hard life on the plantation.
I like this book because it takes place during World War II. I learned about World War II and was able to understand what Roland Smith was talking about. This is a book with lots of action and I love action.
Someone who like history and enjoys reading about war time would be thrilled about this book. This book is also for people who like action and suspense. You also have to make sure to pay attention to details so you don't get lost.


Alex D

WOW! What a lot of great 6th grade entries

6th graders - I'd like to thank you for all the great entries! Sometimes the formatting was lost when I attached the pictures, but I didn't realize that until I'd done several of them. If you had paragraphs in your original posting, and they've disappeared, I apologize. I won't be marking down for lack of paragraphing this time since sometimes it was the computer glitch, not you, and I can't tell the difference.

It was great fun to read about all the different books you read. There was a nice variety of titles. If you're looking for your posting, you may need to scroll down and hit the older posts button because there were so many. Or you can use the archives section on the right hand side of the page. Take a look at some other entries, too. Give your friend a pat on the back (in the comments section) for a job well done. You might even find a new book you're interested in!

Enjoy, and thanks again for participating!

6th Grade Entry - Danial X

6th graders at WOMS have been invited to post guest entries on my blog for YA books they’ve recently read. This is Blake’s entry. Thanks, Blake!

DANIAL X
By: James Patterson

This book is about a bow named Danial. Danial is an alien hunter. In this book his parents where killed by the most deadly alien outlaw. His name is the PRAYER! He is a giant pray mantis with yellow broken glass bottle like teeth. Since then he has been on a hunt for this beast.

Danial is a blonde haired boy who is about 14-16 years and lives on his own. He has this power that can make any one appear with his mind. If he tried he could levitate other people.

My favorite part in the book is the part when Danial uses his level 3 strength and rips apart this big, giant ameba with his BARE HANDS.

He had to travel into the underground sewers of Portland to do it. When he got home there where cops outside his door waiting for him. They where waiting for him because he never went to school! (how awesome would that be!!)

I think that people who love action packed books would love it! Also people who love violence.

submitted by Blake J.

6th Grade Entry Marvin Redpost Alone In His Teachers House

6th graders at WOMS have been invited to post guest entries on my blog for YA books they’ve recently read. This is Keegan’s entry. Thanks, Keegan!

Marvin Repost Alone In His Teachers House
By: Louse Sachar
Publisher in the New York: Random House, 1994 83 Pages

1.) Marvin Redpost gets a job taking care of his teacher’s dog while she’s away on vacation. He’s going to earn three dollars a day, plus a four- dollars bonus if nothing goes wrong. He gets to be alone in Mrs. North’s house “his teacher”. Pretty soon it starts to look like Marvin won’t be getting that bonus after all. In fact, Mrs. North may never talk to Marvin again! Will she or not?

2.) Marvin redpost because, he’s nice, responsible, and loving. Also because he loves to take care of dogs and likes sports. He also a very smart and has red hair like me. Marvin is stupid at times and thinks he is the class clown, (witch he is).

3.) I love this book because it has humor in it and is out going. My favorite part is when Marvin’s best friends Stuart Albright and Nick Tuffle are jealous of Marvin, taking care of their teacher’s dog, “Waldo”. Also because I enjoy the author’s excitement however he does write mystery stories and those are good too.

4.) The person that I would be recommending for this book is someone that the reading level is at about 4th grade. Also someone how likes humor and non fiction books. I think people how like books that deal with school, training a dog, ect. P.S. IT’S A GREAT BOOK

Submitted By: Keegan.O