Library News
NAIDOC Week Celebration Lessons and Display
Year 7, 8, 9 and 11 year groups visited the library in week 9 to celebrate and learn more about NAIDOC Week . Students learnt that NAIDOC Week is a special week to celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People, their contributions and achievements to our nation and that NAIDOC stands for: ‘National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee’. Students tested their knowledge by answering Indigenous quiz questions. Students watched and discussed a video on ClickView about NAIDOC Week. Students also brainstormed ideas about the Dreamtime Stories which are one of the most important aspects of Indigenous culture and their significance to the Indigenous People. These stories tell of events from the time of creation, have been passed on orally from one generation to the next and every story can teach us a moral. The students also enjoyed watching the following short Dreamtime Stories: “The Bungalounga Man” and the "Man in a Log” and drew the story by using the Aboriginal symbols.
Year 10 and 11 Study Skills Lessons
Year 10 and 11 Year groups attended the library to learn about how to study effectively before their exams. Students discussed the challenges they face before sitting for exams and they self–assessed their study skills. The Teacher Librarian gave the students tips firstly to revise effectively; by being attentive in class, using their notes, asking questions to clarify aspects they don’t understand, checking past exams, setting up a study group and by joining 'Studiosity' which is an online free tutoring service at Blacktown City library. Secondly, they also learnt how to be well prepared before exams; by creating a quiet and comfortable study space, knowing their peak time (when they work most effectively) and avoiding cramming. Thirdly, the Teacher Librarian addressed basic exam preparation skills and techniques.
Year 8 Library Program
World Environment Day Lessons and Display
Year 8 students learnt about World Environment Day (WED) which is held on Wednesday June 5th every year. It is an environmental awareness day, run by the United Nations. The aim of the day is to raise awareness of the environment and specific environmental issues.
Each World Environment Day is organized around a theme that draws attention to a particularly pressing environmental concern. The theme for 2019 is “Air Pollution”.
Students learnt about air pollution which is identified as the most important health issue of our time, causing 1 in 9 deaths globally. They also came up with solutions to reduce air pollution; walk or ride a bike to school, work and other places, use public transport instead of cars, plant more trees, avoid burning leaves and trash, recycling and turning off lights so no electricity is wasted.
Students searched for information online by using a search engine other than Google. They were introduced to Dog pile which is a search engine that fetches results from several major search engines such as Google and Yahoo. Students were also introduced to the pexels website where they can choose images and videos not requiring contributions.
Boolean Operators Search Lessons
Year 8 students have been learning about 'Boolean Search' which is based on a method of logic developed by George Boole, a 19th century English mathematician. It allows students to do effective searches online by cutting out many unrelated documents.
The basic Boolean operators (AND/ OR/ NOT) are used in search. Using 'AND' narrows the search.
It retrieves documents that contain both of the search terms or keywords that we specify. Using 'OR' broadens the search. It retrieves documents that contain either of the search terms or keywords that we specify, but not necessarily both. Using 'NOT' narrows the search. It retrieves documents that do not contain a search term in the search.
Students were also introduced to Canva which is a simplified graphic-design tool website. They worked on creating a poster to promote Boolean Search.
Please check out the video below to learn more about Boolean Search.
New Books Display
Here are few of the amazing new books on display this month at our library. Please visit your library and check out some of our newest titles as we are sure you will be able to find an amazing read, as Lillian and Jessica did!
Happy Reading always!
Recess and Lunchtime Activities
The library gets very busy at recess and lunch breaks where students visit to borrow books and read quietly, finish school work, study for exams, do research, play various and engaging activities such as chess, board and cards games and jigsaw puzzles. They are also allowed to use their electronic devices and do fun relaxing activities such as Soduko, word search and colour in.
ClickView
We renewed our ClickView subscription for another year. ClickView is a video learning platform aligned with the Australian Curriculum and is accessible by teachers and students. ClickView provides thousands of quality educational videos designed for Secondary schools by curating the best educational videos from renowned content providers and creating the curriculum-relevant content that the school needs. Teachers can embed recent TV clips into their lesson plans in order to engage students with their learning.