We talked again about animation ( computer, hand drawn and stop action) and watch this Academy Award winning short!
The video showed us how books can change people lives ….
Pale Male in NY
Bobby and Rosie, are the hawks of Washington Square in New York. Rosie laid 2 eggs on March 6th on a 12th-floor window ledge of New York University’s Bobst Library.
The eggs began to hatched on April 10thYo
You can now watch the nest live on the New York Times City Room Blog links below.
Livestream site:http://www.livestream.com/nytnestcam
Hawk Cam blog: http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/category/hawk-cam-live-from-the-nest/
Legend of the Pale Male documentary: http://thelegendofpalemale.com/HOME.html
We learned a
bout the Magic Tree House series and the author Mary Pope Osborne. We looked at the Magic Tree House books ( 1 st series and Merlin’s Missions) and learned about the wonderful Research Guides/ Fact Trackers non- fiction guides that have been written to accompany some of the books !
The 1st book in the series was written in 1992 -so happy 20th birthday MTH !
We watched this great video and visited the website: http://www.magictreehouse.com/
We also talked about safe places to go on the internet over the summer and learned how to navigate to MTH web page and the Akiba Library blog where we can find safe links and videos to all the books we have read in library class over the past 2 years. http://akibalibrary.wordpress.com/
We learned about the Titanic and it’s sinking 100 years ago. 
We learned about Morse Code by listening to audio messages sent by the Titanic that night and watch a wonderful video shot of the Titanic as it lay on the ocean floor by Scripps Oceanography Institute.
In the older classes, we also learned a little about doing historical research and using primary and secondary sources. We looked a display of historic newspapers from the days following the sinking in 1912.
What is Primary source ?
A primary source is a document or physical object which was written or created during the time under study. Original documents like : Diaries, speeches, manuscripts, letters, interviews, news film footage, autobiographies, official records
What is a Secondary source?
A secondary source interprets and analyzes primary sources. These sources are one or more steps removed from the event like books article written about the subject.
Handout Magic Tree House SOS Morse Code 17-save-our-ship
We celebrated the first day of Spring by enjoying ” And then its Spring ” by Julie Fogliano and selections from the marvelous books ” Outside your window: A First Book of Nature” by Davies.
I brought vegetable plants and seed soil /peet pellots that we planted with green bean seeds and watched grow over the next 2 weeks.
We also checked our Passover / Pesach books.
and then it’s Spring:
Following a snow-filled winter, a young boy and his dog decide that they’ve had en
ough of all that brown and resolve to plant a garden. They dig, they plant, they play, they wait . . . and wait . . . until at last, the brown becomes a more hopeful shade of brown, a sign that spring may finally be on its way.
Outside your window:
The buzz of bees in summertime. The tracks of a bird in the winter snow. This beautiful book captures all the sights and sounds of a child’s interactions with nature, from planting acorns or biting into crisp apples to studying tide pools or lying back and watching the birds overhead. No matter what’s outside their windows – city streets or country meadows – kids will be inspired to explore the world around them. Written by award-winning author Nicola Davies and illustrated by Mark Hearld, a breathtaking new talent in children’s books, Outside Your Window is a stunning reminder that the natural world is on our doorstep waiting to be discovered.
We enjoyed the book “Press Here” and learned a little about stop- action animation and we watched the “Joy of Books“ video.
Press the yellow dot on the cover of this book, follow the instructions within, and embark upon a magical journey! Each page of this surprising book instructs the reader to press the dots, shake the pages, tilt the book, and who knows what will happen next! Children and adults alike will giggle with delight as the dots multiply, change direction, and grow in size! Especially remarkable because the adventure occurs on the flat surface of the simple, printed page, this unique picture book about the power of imagination and interactivity will provide read-aloud fun for all ages!
We also enjoyed and checked out Passover Books
For 2 weeks
we studied this book and learned about Hans and Margret narrowly escaped from the Nazi’s and how Little Fifi ( later to be called Curious George ) accompanied them . We visited the online the archives of University of Southern Mississippi and saw Mr Rey’s his real notebooks where he sketched and created many of our favorite Curious George books.
In 1940, Hans and Margret Rey fled their Paris home as the German army advanced. They began their harrowing journey on bicycles, pedaling to Southern France with children’s book manuscripts among their few possessions.
Louise Borden combed primary resources, including Hans Rey’s pocket diaries, to tell this dramatic true story. Archival materials introduce readers to the world of Hans and Margret Rey while Allan Drummond dramatically and colorfully illustrates their wartime trek to a new home.
Follow the Rey’s amazing story in this unique large format book that resembles a travel journal and includes full-color illustrations, original photos, actual ticket stubs and more. A perfect book for Curious George fans of all ages.
Visit H.A Rey website here : http://curiousgeorge.com
Jewish Museum Rey site here: http://www.thejewishmuseum.org/curiousgeorgetimeline/
The University of Southern Mississippi Rey archive is here : http://digilib.usm.edu/cdm/search/collection/rey/
We read this book about President Lincoln and learned about the building of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC including doing a ” virtual ” 360 degree tour of the building.
http://www.360cities.net/image/lincoln-memorial-presidents-day
Abraham Lincoln is one of the first giants of history children are introduced to, and now Maira Kalman brings him to life with her trademark style and enthusiasm. Lincoln’s legacy is everywhere – there he is on your penny and five-dollar bill. And we are still the United States because Lincoln helped hold them together.
But who was he, really? The little girl in this book wants to find out. Among the many other things, she discovers our sixteenth president was a man who believed in freedom for all, had a dog named Fido, loved Mozart, apples, and his wife’s vanilla cake, and kept his notes in his hat. From his boyhood in a log cabin to his famous presidency and untimely death, Kalman shares Lincoln’s remarkable life with young readers in a fresh and exciting way.
We also checkout out and enjoyed Purim books.
We read this great book and watched the TX BlueBonnet Angleberger video!
When a bus driver takes a break from his route, a very unlikely volunteer springs up to take his place-a pigeon! But you’ve never met one like this before. As he pleads, wheedles, and begs his way through the book, children will love being able to answer back and decide his fate in his hilarious picture book debut.
We love books by authors who are famous for doing other things that like to write books for kids …
This year we read When I Grow up by Al Yankovic and Winners Never Quit by Mia Hamm
When I Grow up by Al Yankovic
‘Cause maybe I’ll be a gorilla masseuse
Or an artist who sculpts out of chocolate mousse
Or a rodeo clown or a movie director
Or maybe professional pickle inspector…
Billy’s classmates may have never considered careers in snail training or sumo wrestling before, but by the time the exuberant eight-year-old is done cataloging his dream jobs, they just might share his belief in unlimited potential!
Virtuoso wordplay, irresistible rhythm, and laugh-out-loud humor abound in the first picture book by the one and only “Weird Al” Yankovic. This unbridled celebration of creativity and possibility invites readers of all ages to consider afresh what they want to be when they grow up.
Winners Never Quit by Mia Hamm
Mia Hamm, American soccer champion and best–selling author of Go for the Goal, tells a true–life–inspired story of learning that winning and losing aren’t as important as being part of a team.
More than anyone, soccer superstar Mia Hamm knows the value of teamwork and perseverance. She shares this lesson, paired with energetic illustrations by Carol Thompson, in this motivational story perfect for soccer kids and their soccer moms!
