:Mrs. Kozaka’s Library Blog

  While we are still on the topic of voting, let me introduce the Maine Student Book Award!  Each year Maine students in 4th – 8th grade have the opportunity to participate in a state-wide vote for their favorite book published in the previous year.  A list of 41 popular titles is compiled by the MSBA committee in the spring, and participants are encouraged to read and review as many as possible until the ballots are collected the following year.  Dyer, Kaler and Small schools each own about 15 of the titles, but the books are rarely on the shelves!  So in order to properly introduce them, I have created PowerPoint slideshows of the books at each school.  The slides include summaries that have been copied from the MSBA 2008-2009 Reading List, as well as cover art images from the Follett Library Resources website.

Click on the appropriate file below to see the Maine Student Book Award titles available at your school.

Dyer-MSBA-Titles   

Kaler-MSBA-Titles                                              

Small-MSBA-Titles

 If you would like to know more about any of the titles on the 2008-2009 MSBA Reading List, including genres, summaries, and student reviews, visit the Maine Student Book Award website.  Happy reading!

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Thank you to everyone who participated in our Vote for Books election. The votes are in, and to all of our amazement, The Giant of Seville by Dan Andreasen won in all three schools!  At Dyer 82 of the 231 votes collected were for The Giant of Seville; at Kaler, 84 of the 222 votes; and at Small 93 of the 284 votes.

According to some of the students, this biography was popular because “the guy was so tall” and the townspeople were so kind to him.  Students who enjoy learning fun facts were fascinated by the photograph of the real-life giant, Martin Van Buren Bates, and his wife, both standing at nearly 8 feet tall.  Other students thought the exaggerated descriptions were funny, and the events were exciting.  While we enjoyed each book candidate, this book was definitely our favorite!

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Which of the four book candidates are you likely to vote for on election day?
( surveys)

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For the month of October the elementary school students in South Portland are learning about elections.  Many schools are holding student council elections and many classrooms are discussing the process of campaigning and voting.  In the library we are voting for books!  Each week the students listen to a “book candidate” being read aloud.  The texts are discussed, the illustrations studied, and the students are encouraged to make thoughtful comments about the stories.  At Dyer, Kaler and Small schools our book candidates are: Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak, Gentle Giant Octopus by Karen Wallace, The Giant of Seville by Dan Andreasen, and Toad by the Road by Joanne Ryder.  These books represent several different genres, namely fiction, nonfiction, biography and poetry.  While we are participating in the important processes of thinking critically, sharing opinions, and making personal choices, we are also learning our way around the library.  What an exciting learning adventure!

Next week many  of the students will have an opportunity to take part in an online poll about which of the candidates they favor.  Stay tuned for the results!

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