Happy Memorial Day!

As we get closer to the end of the school year, I have lots of library-related updates.

Library Renaming: 

First of all, some of you may have noticed the plaque outside the library door. Our library's official name is now "The Iris Feldman Library" named after a librarian who spent her whole career (1969-2002) at Lawrence School! Ms. Feldman passed away last March and several staff members and I petitioned the School Committee to rename the library in her honor.

Author visit: 

On June 3 students in grades 2 - 5 will visit with author Jacqueline Davies! This visit is thanks to the generous support of the PTO. Ms. Davies has written The Lemonade War series along with several picture books (Panda Pants, The House Takes a Vacation, Tricking the Tallyman, and The Boy Who Drew Birds). We have been reading her books and preparing for a fun and informative visit with a professional author!

End of the Year Book Return Schedule:

All students must return their library books by Friday, June 14. Younger students will get a colorful reminder bookmark in the last book they borrow the week of June 3. 

Please gather up those books and return them so that I can prepare the library for the summer and ultimately for the 2019-20 school year. If a book is lost, please contact me at kathleen_moriarty@psbma.org for the cost to replace the book. 

We can only maintain our terrific collection if students return their books and pay to replace those that have been lost. At the moment more than 1000 books are borrowed. We circulate 30,000 books each school year!

Thanks for your help with this! 

Summer reading:

Summer reading recommendations from the PSB school librarians are now posted here:  http://brooklinesummerreading.weebly.com/

All books are readily available at our terrific public libraries, the Boston Public Library branches and at our local bookstores. More to come about summer reading. There are some titles specific to Lawrence School which will also soon be posted (especially for grades 5 - 8). 

Photos from storyteller visit!

Thanks to the generosity of the PTO, students in grades K & 1 were treated to a visit from Len Cabral yesterday, April 29. He engaged students in three stories and a song. A good time was had by all!

Lots of updates

MCBA Winners:

Lawrence students chose Jennifer Nielsen's A Night Divided as their favorite of the MCBA choices. Students across the state voted and chose the same book!

State runners up included: Ghost by Jason Reynolds; A Handful of Stars by Cynthia Lord; Framed by James Ponti; and Reign Rain by Ann M. Martin

Check out the complete list here:  https://elearning.salemstate.edu/courses/1219529/pages/information-about-2019-winner-and-booklist

Storyteller visiting Lawrence on Monday April 29!

Students in grades K & 1 will be treated to a visit from Len Cabral, experienced storyteller on Monday April 29. Performances will be in the library at 10 and 11 am. 

http://www.lencabral.com/

Recent library lessons

Kindergarten: We have been listening to alphabet stories like Z is for Moose and The Elephant's Story as well as some humorous books like Muncha Muncha Muncha by Candace Fleming, We Don't Eat Our Classmates by Brian Higgins and Old Hat by Emily Gravett. 

First Grade: Students have heard some nonfiction titles by Bob Barnett and Lois Ehlert. I've also introduced the Mr. Putter and Tabby stories by Cynthia Rylant. 

Second Grade: We've been reading picture book biographies like Girl Running (about Bobbi Gibb the first woman to run the Boston Marathon),  Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors, and The Watcher, a picture book biography about Jane Goodall. I've also done some book talks for several of the 2nd grade classes to introduce some new chapter book series to the students. 

Third Grade: In March all third graders learned how to use the library catalog! This is a moment many of them have been waiting for. We talked about call numbers and how they help you to locate the books you want in the library. We've moved on to reading biographies (like Wangari's Trees of Peace: a True Story from Africa) but students continue to independently practice using the catalog. 

Fourth and Fifth graders: All are encouraged to sign up for the Lawrence Reads event on the evening of May 14. Check the PTO update for registration information. We will be discussing a great book: How Tia Lola Came to Stay by Julia Alvarez. Many copies are available in the library for borrowing. 

MA Children's Book Award Voting

MCBA Awards 2019:

Lawrence 5th and 6th graders (and a few fourth graders!) will be voting next week on their favorite of the MA Children's Book Award Nominees. We will know around the first week in April which book was chosen by students across the state. Here's the link to the list of nominees: http://massachusettschildrensbookaward.blogspot.com/2018/05/massachusetts-childrens-book-award.html

Here's the list of past winners going all the way back to 1976! http://massachusettschildrensbookaward.blogspot.com/p/the-massachusetts-childrens-book-award.html

How many have you read? Students need to read at least five of the titles to vote.

DICE- Lawrence Reads Event coming soon:

Lawrence third, fourth and fifth graders will have the opportunity to read and discuss How Tia Lola Came to Stay in the next few months. The culminating event will be an evening discussion on Tuesday, May 14 at Lawrence School. Stay tuned for more details and registration in April.

Ms. Moriarty has been reading (a lot!): 

Small Spaces by Katherine Arden (horror; grades 4 - 8)

Song for a Whale by Lynne Kelly (realistic; grades 4-6)

Strongheart by Candace Fleming (historical; grades 3 -5)

Nowhere Boy by Katherine Marsh (realistic; grades 5 -8)

The Lost Girl by Anne Ursu (fantasy; grades 4 - 6)

To Night Owl from Dogfish by Holly Goldberg Sloan (realistic; grades 4 - 6)

Sweep: The Story of a Girl and Her Monster by Jonathan Auxier (historical/ fantasy; grades 4 -6)

Two Dogs in a Trench Coat Go to School by Julie Falatko (Humor; grades 2 - 5)

2019 Caldecott/ Newbery / Coretta Scott King Award winners!

On January 28 the American Library Association handed out the awards for the best books in several categories. Third graders were anxiously awaiting this announcement!

The Caldecott Award for best illustrated book was given to Hello Lighthouse illustrated by Sophie Blackall. 

The Caldecott Honor books are:

Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal
The Rough Patch by Brian Lies
Thank You, Omu! by Oge Mora
A Big Mooncake for Little Star by Grace Lin

I am proud to say that through the generosity of our PTO we have hosted both Grace Lin and Brian Lies in recent years! Both are so deserving of this award!

The Newbery Award was given to the best chapter book of the year:

Merci Suarez Changes Gears by Meg Medina

The Newbery Honor books include:

The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani
The Book of Boy by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

The Coretta Scott King book awards were given to the following books by African American authors and illustrators that reflect the African American experience:

A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919 by Claire Hartfield

The CSK Honor books include:
Finding Langston by Lesa Cline-Ransome
The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson
The Season of Styx Malone by Kekla Magoon

I have read Finding Langston and The Season of Styx Malone and would highly recommend both books. Excellent writing, engaging characters. I have A Few Red Drops and The Parker Inheritance also on my To Be Read list!