Visits from Two Authors!

FOR GRADES K-3
In conjunction with the upcoming Barnes and Noble fundraiser, author Dana Sullivan will visit with K-3 students on Monday, December 2. He will also be at Barnes and Noble the same evening for a book signing event.
More info about Dana and his books can be found HERE.

 

FOR ALL GRADES

Award-winning author, Candace Fleming will visit with Enatai students on
Monday, March 3. 

 

Our grant was approved! Bellevue Schools Foundation and the Enatai PTSA will fund this exciting opportunity.

 

This project was designed to bring understanding, interest, and enthusiasm to the process of writing for students, as well as provide useful take-aways for teachers to use when instructing in their classrooms. 

 

Candace Fleming is the author of over 20 picture books, chapter books, biographies and non-fiction, and she brings a range of experiences when presenting writing techniques to her audiences.  Her interactive, grade-specific presentations will inspire our youngest writers to think creatively and critically and older writers to research thoughtfully and passionately.  

 

For a complete list of her books, please visit http://www.candacefleming.com/

 

More info to come as we enter 2014…

Search for Books by Reading Level

Research shows… “If a book is too difficult, it will lead to frustration; too little of a challenge will lead to boredom (Routman, 2003). So the book needs to be ‘just right.’ A just right book is one that provides a little bit of a challenge for a student. It should be a book that the student finds interesting and can be read with a small amount of assistance with the text. Spending time reading just right books during independent reading time will help students become stronger.”  

                                                       –National Institute for Professional Practice, 2013

 

It is now possible to search for books in the library catalog BY READING LEVEL!

Notes regarding levels:

1)  Many different reading level systems exist.

2)  At Enatai, many teachers use the Fountas and Pinnell leveling system. Levels start at A (most basic) and go through Z (most advanced). 

3)  Not every book published has been leveled under this system.

4)  As new books are added to the library, their levels (if available) will be included in the library catalog.

5)   Kids are great at figuring out which books are “just-right” for them, both in interest and difficulty, even without knowing their exact level.

6)  I hope this added resource will help introduce you and your child to some unknown “just-right” books!

Birthday Book Club

 

Birthday Book Club is beginning here at Enatai! 

You are invited to donate a book to the Enatai Elementary School Library in honor of your child’s birthday.   

Each book you donate will go to the Library. 

 

A reminder will be sent out each month in the School Newsletter.  Students who celebrate their birthday in July and August can donate in June or October. 

 

The Birthday Book Club is a Library program

with four goals:

 

            1.  To recognize your child’s special day.

            2.  To encourage the philosophy of giving.

            3.  To develop a sense of ownership and pride in the
                 school.

            4.  To expand the Library’s collection with items
                 the children have chosen.

 

A bookplate with your child’s name and the date of the donation will be put into the donated book.  Please feel free to select a book from one of these wish lists:

  

K-2 Wish list

3-5 Wish list 

  

Check the box that indicates the book is a gift – you can then enter a gift message, so that Mrs. Figdore can be sure to add a note inside the book mentioning who donated it. (This is free – as long as you don’t choose gift-wrap!)


]All donations for the 2013-2014 school year must be in by June 6^th, 2014 to allow time to process the books by the end of the school year.

 

Thank you for your participation!

 

Leslie Howard

Library Advisory Committee Member 

 

AND

 

Karinn Figdore

Enatai Elementary School Librarian

Welcome back!

Over the summer, several changes took place in the library. Scroll down to see what's new! 

NEW LAYOUT
 

 

 

 

FRESH PAINT

 

20 NEW LAPTOPS
(in addition to our 10 desktops)

 

         

NEW COLORFUL RUGS

 

 

AND MANY NEW BOOKS!!!

You are welcome to come in and visit the library anytime!  The library is always open before school at 7:40, after school until 2:40, and on Wednesdays after early dismissal from 12-1 pm for students and families.**

Parents are welcome to check out additional books for their children. Just stop by the library, and the librarian will create an account just for you!

**NEW THIS YEAR- Students may use the library from 12-1 pm on Wednesdays to read quietly, study, do homework, and of course, borrow books. Students must be accompanied by an adult. Siblings are welcome. Hope to see you there!

Summer Reading 2013

Students at Enatai Elementary are encouraged to continue reading throughout the summer. Since the school library will not be open during the summer months, students are encouraged to visit the branches of                King County Library System to borrow books.

KCLS offers fun summer reading programs for kids and teens. For more details and prize info, please visit

http://www.kcls.org/kids/summer/

Below are several other special reading incentive programs and opportunities to keep students motivated and reading over the summer. Thank you to Kindergarten teacher, Lisa Long, for compiling this list!

(click each link to find out more info.)
      
Scholastic

Half-Price Books

Pizza Hut

Chuck E. Cheese

University Book Store

Barnes & Noble

Pottery Barn




Island Books

Elliott Bay Book Company




Recommended Summer Reading
Book Lists by Grade Level

entering Kindergarten


entering 1st Grade


entering 2nd Grade


entering 3rd Grade


entering 4th Grade


entering 5th Grade



Happy Summer! and Happy Reading!

Library Year in Review

Thanks to this year’s library budget increase, proceeds from the fall and spring book fairs, donations from Enatai families, and the PTSA Grandparents Fund-- the library was able to purchase several new books this school year. A new book display shelf and comfy cushions for kids to sit on when they read in the library were also purchased.

 

Students have been noticing the changes! One student was overheard saying, "Wow, I didn't know our library had this book!" Another child said, “There are so many super awesome books it is hard to decide which one to get!” It’s wonderful to have such a buzz about reading happening in our school.

 

Research shows that kids become readers, and read more, when they have access to books they WANT to read.

 

 

As of May 21, 2013…

# of books added to the library during the 2012-2013 school year

1,104

# of library books checked out this year

18,320

# of outdated and worn books removed from the library

912

Why do we weed our gardens?

* To help them flourish

* Weeds steal light, water, and nutrients from other plants.


 Why do we weed our library?

* To remove outdated, obsolete items and make room for newer more valuable items

* To make the library more user-friendly


Keeping our “garden” weeded is just as important as keeping it fed and watered.

None of this would have been possible without our dedicated library volunteers. I cannot thank them enough. They have spent hours every week stamping, labeling, covering, and shelving books. A special thanks goes to Maria Cheung, Cat Heed, Mary Ishizuka, Iris Guy Sofer, Kerry Hill, Phyllis Wong, Lillian Cheng, Jun Lai, Stacey Bennetsen, and Vijaya Gopal. You are the best!

 

Free E-Books for Kids

 International Children's Digital Library

 The ICDL collection includes 4,642 books in 61 languages!

  

----------

 

Read, Give and Share with We Give Books

Choose from 150 new books and classics.

You can sort the books by age level, genre, author, and seasonal selections in the “Featured” section, so everyone can find something they like.

We Give Books is a great way to get your children excited about reading and to teach them about the importance of helping others.


 

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Free Educational Apps for Kids

 

Check out Common Sense Media for the latest reviews of apps for children.

Each app is given a "Learning Rating" and can be sorted by age and platform.

  

----------

 

And my personal favorite....

 Reading Rainbow is Back!

 

Designed especially for the iPad and geared toward kids 3-9 years old.

 

 

 

Spring Book Fair 2013

The Spring Book Fair is underway at Enatai!

 

All week (April 22-26) students and families can shop at the book fair before school, after school, or during recess. The book fair will also be open Wednesday evening (April 24) from 6:00-7:30 p.m. in conjunction with the Science Fair and the Young Authors' Celebration.

 

Can't make it to the book fair? Or have grandparents wanting to purchase books? Shop online at the ENATAI ONLINE BOOK FAIR between now and May 7, 2013.

Your purchases (including online purchases!) support all Enatai classrooms and our school library! 50% of all sales go directly back to the school in the form of books and learning resources (Scholastic News subscriptions, books, listening centers, etc.).
 

Some families have also asked about donating books directly to the library-- you can either 1) look for the bin of library wishes at the book fair, or 2) click the link above for the online book fair, select Classroom Wish Lists, and click Media Specialist/Librarian for the online wish list.
 

A HUGE thank you to Marji Jochums and Leslie Howard for coordinating the book fair. And thank you to all the parent volunteers who are helping throughout the week. The book fair couldn't happen without YOU!

**2013 Book Award Winners**

Students across WA state, including our very own at Enatai, recently voted for their favorite nominees to win the Sasquatch Book Award (grades 3-5) and the Washington Children’s Choice Picture Book Award    (grades K-2).  The winners were recently announced!  

 

2013 Sasquatch Winner                2013 WCCPBA Winner

                                      

 

The top 3 Sasquatch nominees at Enatai were…

                  

 

The top 3 WCCPBA nominees at Enatai were…

           

Congratulations to these talented authors and illustrators!

Auction- Thank you!

As you know from my earlier blog post about the state of the library, the library is in need of some major updating. Many of you reached out and generously donated funds to the library at our recent school auctions. THANK YOU to parents and grandparents for your support! We raised a total of $1940 for the library.

If you didn’t make it to the auctions and are still interested in supporting the library-- there are other ways parents and families can help.

Option 1)    Browse the Enatai Library Wish List on Amazon and purchase a book in honor of a student or a teacher, for a birthday, as a thank-you, or just because! Be sure to check the box that indicates the book is a gift – you can then enter a gift message, so that I can be sure to add a note inside the book mentioning who donated it. (This is free – as long as you don’t choose gift-wrap!)  Books from Amazon can be shipped directly to the school, and it’s a great way to get your order up to the $25 minimum for free shipping on Amazon.  

Option 2)    Spring cleaning! Anytime you decide your child has outgrown a book at home and you don’t want to hang on to it, think of donating it to the library. We are accepting books in good condition (preferably hardbacks). The librarian will decide if it’s a good fit for the collection. Best of both worlds— a clean house and a “new” book in the hands of a child!

Look for the book donation area outside the library!



Thank you to the following GRANDPARENTS who donated money to help us buy books!

Leo and Desa Gese

Phelps and Christel Fisher

John and Margaret Luccio

Betty Kulp

Jean Ann Hodges

Steve and Susan Day

Madeline Hamilton

Hisashi Iwakuma

Kate Casey

Magic Tree House Live Reading Tour!

Meet Jack and Annie from the beloved Magic Tree House series!
 

* Live performance and songs

* Book stamping

* Photos with Jack and Annie... and more!

 

Saturday, April 6, 2013 at 2:00 pm

University Bookstore

4326 University Way NE, Seattle, WA 98105

 

For event information, call 206-634-3400



The Beckoning Cat – Exhibit at the Bellevue Art Museum

MANEKI NEKO: JAPAN'S BECKONING CATS – FROM TALISMAN TO POP ICON
Long-considered to be an object of good fortune, this exhibition features over 150 cats, made between the 19th - 20th centuries, depicted with an upright paw in the Japanese gesture of beckoning. These enigmatically artful felines express aspects of both historic Japanese lore and contemporary pop culture. Through August 4, 2013.

Book that was a Washington Children’s Choice nominee a couple of years ago.

 

 

Current State of Our Library

If you didn't make it to the PTSA General Meeting in January, you can still view the presentation I gave about the current state of our library.

After getting to know the library collection during my first few months at Enatai, I wanted to share my findings with the school community.

At the end of the slideshow, you'll find ways you can help. As always, thank you for your support!

 

 

Accessing Databases from Home

Students at Enatai are learning to be responsible digital citizens. They are also learning that information can be viewed in a variety of formats-- audio, video, print, and online.

Our school district subscribes to a number of online databases to support student learning. Students use many of these databases in their classrooms and in the library.  These databases are also accessible from home through the library catalog, or directly through the library blog. If you did not a receive a bookmark with the password information that was handed out on Back to School Night, feel free to contact the librarian. (Due to license agreements, password information cannot be shared on our blog.)

Just what are these databases all about?

• Choose from 4 databases:  Animals, Earth and Science, Social Studies, or Biographies
• Includes a read-aloud feature, photographs, videos, and games
• Designed for beginning researchers, especially in grades K-3

 

 

• Includes 25,000 encyclopedia articles & numerous reference articles
• Other features include: Today in History, online dictionary, videos, audio, and science projects
• Students looking for more detailed information at a higher reading level should try World Book Student (accessible by clicking on "Switch to another World Book Site" on the bottom of the World Book Kids page)

• Read e-books on your computer or iPad
• Includes a growing collection of Sasquatch Award nominees, non-fiction, picture books, chapter books, and books that enhance the curriculum
• (Note: If there is a title you would like to have available in e-book format, please send a request to the librarian.)

• Animated talking picture books in English, Spanish, Chinese, Russian, and French
• Includes some non-fiction titles
• Bonus: puzzles, quizzes, games, and book report forms
• Narrate and record your own books

CultureGrams

• Includes 187 reports on cultures of countries at a simple reading level
• Also includes facts about all 50 states
• Includes timelines, photos, recipes, interviews, fun facts and more

 

• Designed for students in grades 1-9
• Includes full-text articles and images from more than 1,900 domestic and international newspapers, magazines, and government documents
• Provides access to vetted weblinks, current events, maps of the world, biographies, and encyclopedia articles