Library News 

YEAR 7 LIBRARY SESSIONS

During the past fortnight, our Year 7 students have been introduced to the Library’s Reading program. We discussed the benefits and importance of reading books and how books can help us improve our vocabulary, spelling and general literacy skills.

Students also thought of various other reasons including how books:

• help us learn new facts about the world around us
• -offer relaxation and escape
• help us with our own writing when we closely study how authors craft their work
• teach us about the features related to different fiction genres
• allow us to travel to other places when books are set in other countries
• make us more creative as we can imagine other worlds
• help us to learn more about people and human behaviour when we study characters in fiction
• are a more reliable source of information as they are peer reviewed and released by publishers whilst anyone can publish on the Internet

We also spoke about the importance of choosing books carefully by reading the blurb on the back cover and the first page, finding a book that is ‘just right’ (not too hard or too easy), asking library staff and teachers for recommendations and choosing books about subjects that we are interested in.

Students engaged in some silent reading and reflected on their learning at the end of the period. Students  will be finding out about the Premiers’ Reading Challenge during their next library session.

Georgia Flaskas – Library Resource Centre Manager

NEW BOOKS

Here is a small selection of new books in the Library. More titles can be found on the Library’s Instagram account at lalorsc_library

Showboat : the life of Kobe Bryant by Roland Lazenby

Bryant was one of basketball’s greatest-ever players, a fascinating and complicated character who says he knew when he was a boy that he would be better than Michael Jordan.       

Aloof and uncompromising, Bryant was the grand enigma of American professional basketball, easily the most driven player in the history of the sport, the absolute master of study and preparation. But his career had also been one of almost constant conflict: with his teammate Shaquille O'Neal; with Phil Jackson, coach of the championship-winning Lakers team that Kobe led; with the law; with his wife Vanessa; and with so many of his contemporaries, opponents and teammates.    

Slam Your Poetry : write a revolution by Miles Merrill

Miles Merrill, spoken word artist and founder of Australian Poetry Slam, and award-winning teacher Narcisa Nozica will take you from novice to spoken word superstar in no time. Twenty years after Merrill introduced poetry slams to Australia, there’s a national competition with a live audience of 20 000 people, and it’s taught in schools across the country. It’s been nothing short of a revolution!

Unlocking the Universe by Stephen and Lucy Hawking

Have you ever wondered how the universe began? Or what it takes to put humans on the moon - or even on Mars? What would you do if you could travel through space and time?   

Embark on the adventure of a lifetime in this beautiful collection of up-to-the-minute essays by the world’s leading scientists including Professor Stephen Hawking himself, plus mind-blowing facts and out-of-this-world colour photographs.

Go With The Flow by Lily Williams

Abby: the activist. Sasha: the new girl. Brit: the smart one. Christine: the goofball.

When these four best friends notice that the boys have brand-new football uniforms and equipment while the girls bathrooms are still shamefully bereft of feminine hygiene products, they decide to take matters into their own hands. They petition, they write letters, they make NOISE, and eventually maybe even go a little too far.

This hilarious, poignant, and fresh coming-of-age story chronicles a year in the life of these four young women, from friends, to fights, to first crushes as they navigate the treacherous landscape of high school and learn that some fights are worth all the trouble.    

Ada Lovelace Cracks The Code

In Ada Lovelace Cracks the Code, Ada uses her incredible imagination to dream up technology that could have jump-started the digital age nearly two hundred years ago. In fact, she writes what will become the world’s first programming language. 

This is the story of a pioneer in the computer sciences, which is now a multibillion-dollar industry, but it’s also proof that women have the intellectual capacity to make invaluable contributions to the Science Technology Engineering & Math world.  Also included is further information on Ada’s legacy today and activities based on simple coding and mathematical concepts.

Wrecking Ball (Diary of A Wimpy Kid)  by Jeff Kinney

An unexpected inheritance gives the Heffley family a chance to make major improvements to their home. But they soon find that construction isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. When things get rough, will the Heffleys be able to stay … or will they be forced to move?

Born To Rock (Miiddle School) by James Patterson

It’s not easy being Rafe Khatchadorian’s sister. He’s got quite a reputation around school, and Georgia’s got it hard enough as is! With a super secret crush on her classmate Sam Marks, a Rube Goldberg machine challenge to dominate, and constant confrontations with vicious Missy Trillin and her evil Princess Patrol to look forward to, Georgia can’t help but throw all her energy into the one thing that makes her happy- her kick-butt, all-girl rock band, We Stink! When Georgia’s favourite rock band, Lulu and the Handbags, advertise a major music competition where the winner gets to jam with Lulu herself, Georgia will pull all the stops to make sure We Stink wins - even if it means asking her annoying older brother, Rafe, for help! Will his crazy ideas work, or land her in serious trouble?

Ali Cross by James Patterson

The son of Alex Cross follows in his father’s footsteps in this exciting new YA thriller from globally bestselling author James Patterson LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON Alex Cross The brilliant DC detective who never gives up on a case. Ali Cross The tenacious kid who’s determined to follow in his father’s footsteps. The case that finally gives him a chance Ali knows Gabe Qualls better than anyone, so when his friend goes missing, Ali jumps right into action. Being Alex Cross’s son has taught him the skills he needs to solve the mystery- intelligence, persistence, and logic. One thing he didn’t inherit? Patience. Because Ali knows that with every day that passes without the police finding Gabe, the less likely it is that he’ll ever be found. And being Alex Cross’s son, he refuses to accept those odds.

Follow Me Like Me by Charlotte Seager

When sixteen-year-old Chloe replies to a DM from a gorgeous stranger, she has no idea what she's inviting into her life. As her online fan becomes increasingly obsessive, her real life starts to come apart at the seams and Chloe realizes she needs to find a way to stop him before things spiral out of control.