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Happy Fall!
As we enthusiastically await our library remodel to complete, we are hosting library visits in our beautiful nature lab! We are all adapting with a sense of humor as our free ranging chickens waddle through our space and our lively goats send over a bleating welcome to each new class upon arrival…we are flexible and grateful! A couple quick notes.
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 Happy Spring! We have been zipping along with our library curriculum and programs as well as planning and preparing for our amazing Library renovation this summer. A huge thank you to our parent body for supporting both the iLab and Library and helping us make each of our spaces more accessible, efficient and fun for all! So amazingly generous! Here's a recap for March and April: In March, our MUS Spelling Bee results were: Dylan - 1st, Scofield - 2 and Connor -3rd! Dylan and Scofield went on to the County Spelling Bee and did very well there as well: Dylan - 3rd; Scofield 6th! Students from TK-6th grade read from the different categories of the California Young Reader Medal Program and then voted for their favorite book. These votes were sent to the State program and we're eagerly awaiting the results! Additionally, students in grades 2 & 3 and 4-6th participated in March Book Madness! Modeled after the collegiate March Madness basketball program, brackets of the highest circulated books competed against each other until students had a winner. In 2&3rd grade it was Lulu and the Brontosaurus by Judith Viorst and in 4-6th grade it was The Wild Robot by Peter Brown. Students in 4-6 also practiced research skills while studying an African American person of influence during Black History Month. Students learned how to access our research databases, take purposeful notes, use text glossaries, indexes and table of contents, formulate a draft essay and finally synthesize research information into a final paragraph for a class book in 4th & 5th grades and a Black History tessellation quilt in 6th grade. In April students in 4-6th grades who read 10/28 books from the Battle of the Books list were invited to our MUS Battle of the Books event where they participated in a Jeopardy style game with mixed grade level teams. We had 10 students qualify (needed to read 15/28 books) for the County Battle of the Books and 7 who attended! They had a blast meeting and playing on teams with other students all across the county! Some had solos in the Spring Sing and therefore, needed to be present for the rehearsal, but I wanted to highlight their commitment as well. Here were the results:
What's next?! You know it! K-2nd Grade Spring Stuffie Sleepover May 17th! More to come!  Happy New Year!
First of all, I'd like to thank you, MUSF, for your support and fundraising efforts making it possible to update our Library and iLab! We are deeply grateful and so excited for our students to enjoy new flexible learning spaces, efficient access to materials and awe inspiring reading nooks! Our team has been meeting regularly and working diligently in order for a special reveal next school year. In the library, our students have been buzzing through an array of literary experiences! Here's a glimpse of the library programs provided to date. Also, please note that our Habits of Mind, Harvard's Project Zero Thinking Routines, school theme, "All Means All," and the California Model School Library Standards are through lines woven into library curriculum. October
Hello Library Friends! What an amazing start to the school year we've had in library! Your students are so enthusiastic and curious, as well as eager to share opinions and discuss the main, side and hidden messages of books read each week. It's absolutely my pleasure to share in their excitement as well as to help ignite their literary passion. Mark Your Calendars! Santa Barbara County Office of Education's "Breakfast with the Authors" set for Saturday, October 21st between 9:30am-12:30pm. Enjoy breakfast while listening to a panel of authors share their writing process and latest books! For more information and to register, click HERE. - 2nd Annual MUS Book Lab! Set for Saturday, December 9th from 1:00pm - 3:00pm in the Nature Lab. Book Lab is free family-friendly and fun community literacy event with amazing and inspiring author/speakers, book themed arts and crafts and a pop-up holiday book shop with curated titles from independent bookseller Timbre books with a portion of sales going back to the school. August/September Recap:
Classroom Visits: In September, students have been exploring Habits of Mind themes "Taking Responsible Risks" and "Listening with Empathy" via an array of picture books, practicing Harvard's Project Zero, "Thinking Routines", such as Main Message, Side and Hidden messages and celebrating Hispanic Heritage month. In addition, our 4-6 Library Book Club launched! Students are reading The First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Perez and are currently preparing to interview the author via zoom on Oct. 17th! Students in grades 4-6 are also actively tracking their Battle of the Books read preparing for our Spring MUS and County Battle of the Books event. And, Library/ILab renovation initial planning has begun! In October, students in grades 4-6, learned about "National Banned Books Week" and explored an array of challenged or banned books. Next Up:
Welcome back to school!
I am thrilled to return to such an inspiring, progressive and supportive team of professionals. And equally excited to share my passion for literacy and literature with our thoughtful, kind Mustangs! In the library space, we aim to provide a welcoming, inclusive place for students, staff and families to explore, discover, and develop a lifelong love of reading and learning. This site is a central place to review library news & updates, participate in monthly school & library themes, engage in optional library programs, access databases and additional resources. Be sure to check back often! August/September Library Education: Library orientation, book care, community, just right books, library programs, new databases, Habit of Mind: Listening with Empathy; Kindness, National Hispanic Heritage Month Weekly Library Class Schedule: Monday: K - Allison, Luna, Noble; 3rd - Monson and 2nd Judy & Craine Tuesday: 1st - Cloud & Soderborg; 6th -Berman; 4th - Gonzales & Gallup Wednesday: 4th - Bruski and Library PLC Thursday: 3rd - Hammer; 1st - Compton & Marsh and 6th - Weill Friday: 5th - Nimitarnun, Brown & Carrington and 3rd - Trent General Information & Policies: Library Hours: 8:00am-3:00pm for class visits. Additional open hours include before school 8:15am, and M-TH during morning recess and lunch. Library Class visits: In addition to browsing and checking books out each week, students will take part in monthly school and library theme discussions, learn how to get involved in optional library programs, practice database navigational and search skills and engage in a vast collection of high interest fiction and non-fiction titles. Checkout Policy: All students may check out at least 2 books for two weeks. If students need more than 2 that and have a responsible record, that is perfectly fine. Book Return: Books become overdue after 2 weeks. Students may return books earlier in order to check out 1-2 new library books. The expectation is that each student will check out at least 1 library book. If a student is in the middle of a book, they are welcome to bring it to read while others are browsing. Holds: 1 book may be held for 5 days before it is returned to the shelf. Donations: We appreciate relevant, hard back fiction/nonfiction book donations that are in good shape and in the following categories: picture books, early readers, middle grade (no YA please). Spring Stuffie Sleepover was a hoot!
Over 90 K-2nd grade stuffed animals spend the weekend in the library getting to know one another through an array of activities such as: games, tea party, visiting our new goats, enjoying spa treatments, zip-lining through the library and watching Toy Story each night! Here are two videos capturing the weekend: Day 1: http://get-puppet.com/v/Ffmd5GQHm2k?autoplay=true Day 2: http://get-puppet.com/v/PZ0pQElekmo?autoplay=true Our 1st MUS Battle of the Books drew 20 students who successfully read the number of books allotted per 3-6th grade level throughout the school year. Readers formed teams, and competed in a literary gameshow format for the title. Then three of our Mustangs qualified for the Santa Barbara County Battle of the Books. Students enjoyed a day of meeting new friends, competing on teams and meeting author Bruce Hale. We Battle buzz is on! We look forward to next year's events! May is Asian & Pacific Islander American month across the nation! We celebrated the many rich contributions and accomplishments through an array of picture and chapter books as well as showcased authors & illustrators in the library. Summer is right around the corner! Foster your child's imagination, creativity and literary development by encouraging your students to read every day. We will be sending home summer reading lists and activities. Stay tuned! Happy Spring!
"Check Out" What's Happening in the Library! New! Spelling Bee - Let's give a huge round of applause to all our top two homeroom spellers who then participated in our School Spelling Bee on March 6th! Our MUS top two spellers were Brandon Stein and Dylan McLean with Max Bunnin as alternate. Brandon and Dylan went on to successfully participate in the Santa Barbara County Spelling Bee on March 9th! Way to take responsible risks Mustangs! MUS 1st Annual Battle of the Books event takes place this Thursday, April 13th at lunch in the library! Throughout the school year, students were challenged to read their grade level’s quota from the County’s Battle of the Books booklist in order to participate in our school battle (3rd grade 5/28; 4th 10/28 and 5th & 6th 15/28). Students will participate in a gameshow like battle answering questions about the books on the list. This list minimally changes each year, so students can roll over their totals and build towards their grade level and county goals each year! We will take up to 5 students to the County Battle of the Books on Thursday, April 27th! 2nd Annual Poem in Your Pocket & Poetry Jam takes place on Wednesday, April 26th. Taking part in our national celebration of poetry during the month of April, students and staff are encouraged to place a poem in their pocket and share with others throughout the day. Additionally, during lunch, students may sign up for our Poetry Jam at lunch in the bell tower courtyard to share their poem over a microphone with a supportive audience. New! K-2nd Grade Mustang Families…Mark Your Calendars for our 1st Annual “Spring Stuffie Sleepover” set for Friday, May 5th. Students are invited to bring their favorite, backpack sized favorite stuffed animal to the library for a weekend sleepover where their stuffie will enjoy delicious meals, storytime, movies, popcorn and more! Stuffies may be delivered to the library before school, during recess or after school on Friday. We will return the stuffies to your student’s backpacks on Monday, May 8th! Stuffies are to be delivered with the following information attached. A reminder and stuffie tag will be sent home closer to the date: Stuffie ID Tag: Student Name: Stuffie Name: Interests: Special care information: Favorite bedtime books: Parent email for photos: Teacher name: Dear Mustang Family,
What an amazing cantor through the winter months we've had in 2023! Here's a recap:
Warmest Regards, Mrs. Allison MUS Teacher Librarian Hello MUS! Our Mustangs charged into the New Year by participating in the California Young Reader Medal Program. The California Young Reader Program, encourages California students to read recommended books by other California students, teachers and librarians. Mustangs read then vote on their grade specific categories. Votes are sent to CYRM and the author/illustrator who receives the most votes earns a special CYRM sticker award for their book. In addition, we have launched our first MUS Writer's Club focusing in on the graphic novel. Over 40 students meet each Tuesday during lunch to learn and explore their writing process. Graphic novelist, James Burks zoomed in with our writers this week and shared his creative process. We're super excited to see so many engaged young writers! Go Mustangs!
The Spelling Bee is back!
Students in grades 4-6 will participate in a homeroom spelling bee first. Then each homeroom will send their top two spellers to the library for a school wide spelling bee. The top 2 students plus an alternative will head to the Santa Barbara County Spelling Bee on March 9, 2023. The library is a happening place during morning and lunch recess! We have readers of course, but also students enjoying chess, banana, checkers, puzzles, coloring and knitting! |
