5th grade presentation: March

The theme for March is books published before or shortly after 1900 (up to about 1910). There are several ways to find these classic books!

- We have a selection of about 15 titles in the school library for students to borrow

- The database ProQuest Learning: Literature has full-text access to tens of thousands of literary works including many full-length novels which may be read on your e-reader or home computer (login information is available on my Sharepoint page under Shared Documents)

- The public library has a selected list of classics for teens and elementary students (check date of original publication - some are modern classics!)

Of course, you can always ask a friend or relative for a recommendation! One of my personal favorites from this time period is The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald.

One Author Vista: Ken Mochizuki!

On February 3rd we were excited to welcome local author Ken Mochizuki to Vista as part of our annual One Author Vista program. For several months I displayed books by selected local authors and invited Vista students to read them and vote for the author they would most like to invite to our campus. Fortunately our winner, Ken, was eager to take us up on our invitation!

He talked eloquently about growing up in Seattle during the '70s as the grandson of Japanese immigrants, stereotyping of others by race, the historical background to his books about the Japanese American internment camps and the Holocaust, and much more!

Following his talk, he answered more questions from individual students and signed books! Parents: we have a few more signed books available for students who did not submit their pre-orders in time. There are titles for elementary, middle and high school students. Please contact me if you would like to purchase one!

Read your way through Black History Month!

February is Black History Month and it's a wonderful reason to pick up some amazing literature. Spend a lot of time in the car? Consider these audiobooks!

Do not forget the Coretta Scott King Award winners honored by the American Library Association (the same organization behind the Newbery and Caldecott).

Our local library system has great lists for elementary/middle school readers as well as teens.

Here are a few of my personal favorites:

Picture books - Goin' Someplace Special by Patricia C. McKissack, Ruth and the Green Book by Calvin Alexander Ramsey, and Show Way by Jacqueline Woodson

Chapter books - Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis, Heaven by Angela Johnson and One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

Poetry - ellington was not a street by Ntozake Shange and Visiting Langston by Willie Perdomo

For adult and high school readers, I highly recommend The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.

5th grade book presentation: February

February's theme is biography and memoir! The only requirement is that the book be a minimum of 40pp long.

We have a great selection of both in the general and middle school sections of the school library, but if you would like to borrow from the public library, you can:

1) browse the B (biography) section of your local public library, or

2) check out these online biography resources (databases and websites) provided by KCLS to get ideas - but please remember that while this is a good place to start, there will not be biographies about all of these people written for a younger audience!

When you are looking at library books online, remember that the call number JB means it is was written for elementary and middle school readers, while YB means it was written for teens. If you need more information, click on "Reviews & More" beside the title or click on the title to see the number of pages.

Just a few of the books I would recommend from the school library are:

- Chasing Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson (about John Wilkes Booth)
- Margaret Bourke-White: Adventurous Photographer by Christopher C. L. Anderson
- She Touched the World: Laura Bridgman, Deaf-Blind Pioneer by Sally Hobart Alexander
- Claudette Colvin: Twice toward Justice by Phillip Hoose
- The Forbidden Schoolhouse: The True and Dramatic Story of Prudence Crandall and Her Students by Suzanne Jurmain (about a courageous teacher who tried to integrate her school in the 1830s)
- Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman
- Fireflies in the Dark: The Story of Friedl Dicker-Brandeis and the Children of Terezin by Susan Goldman Rubin (about the Holocaust)
- This Land Was Made for You and Me: The Life and Songs of Woody Guthrie by Elizabeth Partridge
- Onward: A Photobiography of African-American Polar Explorer Matthew Henson by Dolores Johnson

Award winners announced!

A few days ago the announcement readers and writers everywhere awaited with anticipation: this year's Association for Library Service to Children award winners were named! These include the very well-known Newbery and Caldecott books, as well as the very special, but not as widely appreciated Batchelder Award for books in translation, Sibert Medal for nonfiction, and Geisel Award for beginning readers.

Looking for a great new book to read? These new winners aren't a bad place to start!

One Author Vista: Ken Mochizuki!

I am excited to announce that as part of our third annual One Author Vista program, Ken Mochizuki will be coming to Vista on February 3rd! He will make a presentation to students, answer their questions and sign their books.

The book order form is available on my Sharepoint page and was also sent in an email by Ms. Klein. University Book Store will be on campus on the day of his visit to sell books. You may:

a) submit the order form and check by 1/30 to the library, the book return bin behind Ms. Klein's desk or my mailbox in the office;
b) call in your credit card order to the secure number on the order form; or
c) bring cash or a check on the day of his visit.

A Seattle native, Ken has written books for a wide range of ages, from picture books about the Japanese American internment camps and their aftermath (Baseball Saved Us, Heroes) to realistic fiction for middle and high school students (Beacon Hill Boys) to a work of local history (Meet Me at Higo: An Enduring Story of a Japanese American Family).

He has also written two biographies for all ages, Be Water, My Friend: The Early Years of Bruce Lee, about the martial arts legend, and my personal favorite, Passage to Freedom: The Sugihara Story. Chiune Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat in Lithuania during World War II who saved the lives of thousands of Jews.

For those unfamiliar with One Author Vista, it was inspired by Seattle librarian Nancy Pearl's "If All of Seattle Read the Same Book" project. Each year, Vista students are encouraged to read books by an assortment of local authors. They then have the opportunity to vote for the one they would like to invite to campus.

Update on Margaret Read MacDonald's visit

I am sorry to announce that we have to reschedule Margaret Read MacDonald's visit, originally planned for this Monday. Dr. MacDonald is currently traveling out of town and concerned about getting home safely and on time. Also, with the school cancellations, I did not have a chance this week to prepare students properly for her visit. Instead, she will come to campus later this spring, following her Middle East tour.

If you already submitted a book order, we will hang onto it unless you prefer to have it returned (please let me know if that is the case).

If you had an order ready to hand in this week, you may also go ahead and give it to me whenever school starts up again. I'm happy to keep it in a safe place and pass it on to the bookstore later on.

Stay tuned for the new date!