Learning and Teaching Library

Our Library is an amazing space that is used for Library lessons as well as when class teachers take their grades in there for other lessons to utilise the wonderful space. Especially at this time of the year, when the sun is shining through all the windows, it makes for a cozy place to snuggle down and complete work or read!

We began the term exploring ANZAC Day, learning about different traditions, symbols and the importance of this day for us as Australians.  Students in 3 - 6 enjoyed listening to the story of Midnight by Mark Greenwood.  The use and role of horses in war and the connections made with their soldiers, in particular 'the lighthorse brigade'.  Using charcoal pencils, students created a portrait of the main character Midnight, who was the horse.

Last week we participated in National Simultaneous Storytime.  The book "The Truck Cat' by Deborah Frenkell & Danny Snell was read.  We joined in the reading of this book with 2,204,658 participants from around 16,632 different locations in Australia.

Preps are enjoying the many fun stories that Aaron Blabey has written.  They have been looking closely at the text and how the illustrations match up to help tell the stories.  The characters of Pig, Trevor and Brian the Piranha have certainly entertained us with their antics.  

1\2 have been introduced to Jess McGeachin and Deborah Frenkel as new authors and illustrators.  We are excited to see more of Deborah's published books when they come out after September.  Making connections from the events in the books to our life experiences has given us lots to discuss and share.  We explored our courtyard to find our own little 'forests in the city' after reading Naturopolis!

3\4 are being introduced to many different authors and illustrators in the Storytools episodes within Storybox Library.  They are sharing their tips, suggestions and inspirations to assist us in our story writing.  A good beginning sentence will hook a reader in and want them to keep reading!  We are also looking at the whole story make up of characters, setting, problem, plot and resolution and the role they play to create an interesting story.

5\6 have been viewing different episodes in Storytools from Storybox Library.  Our focus has been on overcoming obstacles when writing.  What do we do if we don't know what to write or how to take the characters further?  This happens to some authors as well and they have given us tips of what we can try to keep our story writing going.  A book just doesn't happen, their are many drafts and redrafts that authors do and the editing process they undertake to polish their work is thorough.  We have learnt to edit small parts of our story writing to start with.

Cyber Safety was revisited in each level.  In Library, we read a book highlighting the importance of staying safe online which then initiates rich discussions of what kind of online users are we.

As the term goes on, each level will explore some First Nations stories to further develop their understanings of the culture and traditions of the Indigenous and Torres Strait Islanders.  This will be a good lead into Naidoc Week and Wurrundjeri Week in Term 3.