BookNews from the Library
May 2008

Please share this newsletter with other teachers at your school.

Summer Library Program
            Our Summer Library Program begins June 2 and runs through July 26.  This year our theme is “Catch the Reading Bug.”  We have lots of programs planned for children this summer with performers every week and fun activities planned by staff.  Children of all ages, babies to school-age are invited to join.
            Of course, the most important part of the Summer Library Program is the reading!  Children who complete the Summer Library Program will have read 8 ¾ hours and visited the library 5 different weeks during the 8 week program. Those who complete the program will earn a free book. 
            A study by the Evaluation and Training Institute found that "students participating in a summer reading program are more likely to read at their grade level or above than their nonparticipating peers, and those reading above grade level are more likely to retain those skills into the next school year." (SLJ 2/02)
            Our teen SLP theme is “I’m Reading, Don’t Bug Me!”   Teens who complete the program by reading 1000 pages will earn gift cards from local stores.  They will also be entered into a drawing for an MP3 player, one to be awarded at each library location.  Adults are encouraged to join the Summer Library Program and take a chance on winning prizes too.
            Look for staff from the Mansfield/Richland County Public Library who will be visiting classrooms throughout the county in May to tell students about the Summer Library Program.  We’d like to thank all the elementary schools for helping us get information about our Summer Library Program out to parents by putting fliers in with end-of-school report cards.

Books and Brunch/ Illustrator Visit Contest
            Peter Catalanotto, children’s book illustrator, will be our featured speaker at Books and Brunch on Friday, October 3.  Save the Date! 
            One school will have the opportunity to have him visit their school library in the afternoon on October 3.  We will have a poster contest to determine which school will have a visit.  Students should create a poster announcing his visit on October 3, incorporating information about his books and illustrations.  Each school can choose only one poster to submit to the Library for the contest.              Posters should be sent to Deborah L. Dubois, Children’s Outreach Librarian, 43 W. Third Street, Mansfield, Ohio, 44902 by Monday, May 5. The deadline is approaching fast, so get those posters in!
            Peter Catalanotto will visit the winning school on October 3 and make a presentation for up to 60 students in the school library.  The school librarian will determine how the poster submitted will be chosen, and who will attend the presentation.  The winning school will be notified by June 2.

New Hours at Branches
            Most of the Library’s branches will have new hours beginning May 5.  The hours for Bellville, Lexington, Madison and Ontario will be 9:00 AM – 8:00 PM Monday – Thursday, and 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM Friday and Saturday.
            The hours for Butler, Lucas and Plymouth will be 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM Monday – Thursday, 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM on Friday, and 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM on Saturday.  Crestview’s hours will stay the same. 

Library Building Contest
            We are celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the Main Library building in downtown Mansfield!  In honor of this milestone, we invite anyone going into grades K-9 to enter our Build a Library Contest.  Children can make a model of the downtown Carnegie-style library, your local branch library, or even a library of the future.  The contest runs July 28-August 15.  Entry forms are available at any library location with all the rules of the contest. 

KnowItNow 24x7
            Anyone in Ohio can get in contact with a real librarian 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to get questions answered in real time.  KnowItNow is a reference service available for free to Ohio residents.  Go to www.knowitnow.org or click on the KnowItNow button on the Library’s web page to get your questions answered whether you are at school or at home. 

TeenZone
            The Library is redesigning the TeenZone on our web site with a whole new look and more teen generated content and interactive items.  There is a teen poll, a chance to create your own book lists and look at other teen’s booklists, links to the Teen Advisory Board’s Newsletter, Contests and a Teen del.icio.us page.  Tell your students to check out the new TeenZone, due to be completed this month. 

Sit, Stay, & Read for the Summer
            Our Crestview, Ontario and Plymouth branches are offering a chance for children in grades 1-6 to get reading practice by reading to a therapy dog this summer.  Therapy dogs love to be read to, it’s a great opportunity for children to improve their reading skills, and they can count their time for the Summer Library Program.  Call the branch to sign up for a 15-minute session.

Teen Upcoming Titles for 2008
            Teens can pick up a list of cool new books coming out this year at the Library, check off the ones they want to read and then turn the list in to any library location.  We will reserve the books for them and when the books come in they will be one of the first who get to read them.

Buckeye Book Award
            The nominations for the Buckeye Book Award for children and teens are now available on their web site at www.bcbookaward.info.  The procedures for the award have changed.  The Buckeye Book Award will now be chosen annually, with nominations taken December 1 – March 1.  The top five nominations in each category will be announced mid-March giving children and teens the summer to read the books before voting occurs in October and November.  Now is a great time to look at the lists and encourage your students to read these books. 

Children’s Book Week
            Children’s Book Week has been moved from November to May.    Children’s Book Week will be celebrated May 12-18 this year.  Celebrate children’s books with your students.

Snap and Write
            Leora Krygier gives suggestions for using digital photography to help teens engage in the creative writing process in VOYA, April 2008 pp. 16-18.
Digital photographs taken by the students can be used as a tool to help them get started with creative writing.  In this article, assignments are suggested for working on theme, structure, scene setting, conflict, dialogue, point of view, characters, internal monologue and metaphor and symbols.
http://pdfs.voya.com/VO/YA2/VOYA200804SnapandWrite.pdf

Book Return Incentives
            How do you get all your library books returned at the end of the year?  In Library Sparks, May/June 2008 pp. 6-9, several ideas are shared for getting all those books back.  First, “Get the Word Out”.  Let students, teachers and parents know the importance of returning library books.  “Create Incentives”, offering a treat, bookmark, coupon, or class prize for getting all library books in.  “Dynamic Displays” like bulletin boards and persuasive posters can help you generate excitement and commitment from teachers and students.  Creativity and fun can make the chore of getting all those books returned a little easier.  Good luck!

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