ASD Reads Summer Challenge 2020

Click here for live links to ASD Reads Summer Challenge 2020!

ES Library Home Edition: June 8

Dear ASD Learners,

In this edition of your virtual library visit, we will feature summer reading and some fun read alouds. Find out how you can continue to contribute to the ASD reading community over our summer break!

Ms. Jones, Ms. Pollock, Ms. Mara, Ms. Parvis and Ms. Briar

Visit the link: ES Library Home Edition: June 8

Highlights include:

• Book returns for summer
• Grade 6: Welcome to the Middle School Library
• ASD Read Summer 2020
• Read alouds from your peers and librarians

ES Library Home Edition: June 1

Dear ASD Learners,

Welcome back to your virtual library visit! During challenging times, stories inspire understanding and community healing. Characters help teach us empathy and compassion. We look to how we can tackle issues through the many paths taken between pages. Pick up a book and continue to explore, learn, and grow within our reading. Please continue to share your photos and videos.
Your library team,

Ms. Jones, Ms. Pollock, Ms. Mara, Ms. Parvis and Ms. Briar

Visit the link: ES Library Home Edition: June 1

Highlights include:

• Sara Bose, Grade 5 student, completes Out of Time
• Family Play Breaks
• Read alouds from Ms. Jones and Ms. Pollock
• Award-winning books
• Digital jigsaw puzzles
• Harry Potter read aloud

ES Library Home Edition: May 18

Dear ASD Learners,

Welcome back to your virtual library visit! Stories are what connect us and help us navigate and celebrate life. This visit features stories as read by students, librarians, authors, and actors. Please continue to share your stories with us through photos and videos.

Your library team,

Ms. Jones, Ms. Pollock, Ms. Mara, Ms. Parvis and Ms. Briar


Visit the link: ES Library Home Edition: May 18

Highlights include:

• Sara Bose, Grade 5 student, continues to read Out of Time
• Story time with Grade 3 students Mia and Raya...and pets
• Let's Build Together Lego challenges
• Read alouds from Ms. Jones and Ms. Pollock
• Digital jigsaw puzzles
• Story Seeds podcast

ES Library Home Edition: May 11

Dear ASD Learners, 

Welcome back to your virtual library visit! Children’s Book Week offered many ideas for celebrating reading at home. Please keep sharing your reading photos and videos with us! This week we offer more read alouds, ebooks, and building activities.

Your library team,
Ms. Jones, Ms. Pollock, Ms. Mara, Ms. Parvis and Ms. Briar

Visit the link: ES Library Home Edition: May 11

Highlights include:

• Sara Bose, Grade 5 student, continues to read Out of Time
• Story time with Grade 3 students Mia and Raya
• Building and construction challenges: Lego, paper architecture and design
• Read alouds from Ms. Jones and Ms. Pollock
• Activities from Children's Book Week

ES Library Home Edition: May 4

Dear ASD Learners, 

Welcome back to your virtual library visit! Ramadan Kareem to our families who are observing this special time. This week we offer more ebooks, audiobooks, authors and activities. Please share any of your favorite books or activities.

Your library team,

Ms. Jones, Ms. Pollock, Ms. Mara, Ms. Parvis and Ms. Briar


Visit the link: ES Library Home Edition: May 4

Highlights include:

• Sara Bose, Grade 5 student, reads Out of Time
• Learn about Ramadan with eResources
• Read aloud stories from Ms. Jones and Ms. Pollock
• Suggested ebooks and audiobooks
• More Dr. Seuss raps

ES Library Home Edition: April 27

Dear ASD Learners,

Welcome back to your virtual library visit! This week, we’ll feature ebooks, audiobooks, authors and activities with an Earth Day theme. Please share any of your favorite books or activities. How did you celebrate Earth Day this week?

Your library team,
Ms. Jones, Ms. Pollock, Ms. Mara, Ms. Parvis and Ms. Briar

Visit the link: ES Library Home Edition: April 27

Highlights include:

• Ms. Jones reads Creepy Carrots and Ms. Pollock reads Alfie
• Earth Day celebrations with Todd Parr
• Visit National Geographic
• Curious Garden reading, song and book making

ES Library Home Edition: April 20

Dear ASD Learners,

Welcome back to your virtual library visit. Explore the ebooks, audiobooks, authors and activities. We loved hearing from some of you last week. Please share any of your favorite books or activities in your SeeSaw journal or send Ms. Jones and Ms. Pollock an email! We can add your photos to the K-12 Library Instagram. @ASDlibraries

Your library team,

Ms. Jones, Ms. Pollock, Ms. Mara, Ms. Parvis and Ms. Briar

Visit the link: ES Library Home Edition: April 20

Highlights include:

• They All Saw the Cat read aloud, song and drawing activity
• Reading and cooking with author Aisha Saeed
• Research with PebbleGo
• Nonfiction books with TrueFlix

ES Library Home Edition: April 13

Dear ASD Learners, 

Welcome back to your virtual library visit. Explore the ebooks, audiobooks, authors and activities. We loved hearing from some of you last week. Please share your favorite books or activities in SeeSaw or send us an email! We can add your photos to the K-12 Library Instagram! @ASDlibraries

Your library team,

Ms. Jones, Ms. Pollock, Ms. Mara, Ms. Parvis and Ms. Briar

Visit the link: ES Library Home Edition: April 13

Highlights include:

• Be A Friend read aloud, song and drawing activity
• Suggested ebooks and audiobooks
• Dr. Seuss Raps with Wes Tank
• Ms. Mara reads a story

ES Library Home Edition: April 5

Dear ASD Learners,

Your ES Library Team will offer you a virtual library visit each week. We will offer suggestions for reading, exploring, creating, playing and learning from home. You and your family will see new books, databases and ideas to explore. If you find something you enjoy, why not post on your SeeSaw journal and tell your classmates about what you read or discovered? Together, we can stay connected and keep learning from each other.


Your library team,
Ms. Jones, Ms. Pollock, Ms. Mara, Ms. Parvis and Ms. Briar

Visit the link: ES Library Home Edition: April 5

Highlights include:

• Louise Loves Art read aloud, song and drawing activity
• Suggested ebooks and audiobooks
• Link to visit Harry Potter World
• Craft books available online

Bilal Cooks Daal...and so do we!

In celebration of reading Bilal Cooks Daal by Aisha Saeed, we cooked daal ourselves! Students chopped tomatoes, coriander, pressed garlic, grated ginger, squeezed lemons, measured spices and mixed it all together!

We had so much fun! And, the daal was absolutely delicious! 

Students also reflected on their own favorite food to eat at home with family - just like Bilal. 

Here is our recipe that we modified slightly, based on the recipe in the book:

ASD Daal Recipe

Ingredients:

2 cans lentils

1 cup water

6 tablespoons olive oil

½ teaspoon turmeric

2 teaspoon sea salt

2 teaspoons cumin

2 teaspoons coriander powder

1 tablespoon garam masala

2 onions diced

1 teaspoon fresh ginger

4 cloves of garlic

2 tomatoes diced

Squeeze of ¼ lemon

Fresh cilantro

Directions:

1. Heat tinned lentils in a slow cooker for 30 minutes with 1 cup of water.

2. Fry onions in olive oil until soft. Stir in spices.

3. Add tomatoes, ginger, garlic, lemon, cilantro and bring to a boil.

4. Combine all with lentils and bring back to a boil.

5. Serve with rice and yogurt.

Personal Inquiry in K1

After a visit from the Petting Zoo, many of our K1 students were curious to learn about different animals. Some small groups from Ms. Charlotte and Ms. Dibbert's class came to the library to investigate some of their wonderings. 

Many students wondered about snakes! Their questions included: What do snakes eat? What kind of teeth do snakes have? How do snakes make sounds? How do snakes shed their skin? What types of snakes are there?

We used books and PebbleGo to search for answers. We drew pictures and recorded our new learning as a small group. Then we took our new knowledge back to the larger learning community to share.

When students form their own questions, they are highly motivated to find answers and excited to teach others about what they have discovered. We can't wait for the next batch of questions our budding researchers come up with!

ASD, Get Ready for Visiting Authors 2020

Aisha Saeed

Aisha Saeed is a New York Times bestselling author. She wrote Written in the Stars, which was listed as a best book of 2015 by Bank Street Books and a 2016 YALSA Quick Pick For Reluctant Readers. She is also the author of the middle grade novel Amal Unbound, a Summer 2018 Indie Next Pick and Amazon Best Book of the Month. Aisha also has a picture book Bilal Cooks Daal. Aisha is also a founding member of the nonprofit We Need Diverse Books™. She has been featured on MTV, the Huffington Post, NBC, and the BBC, and her writings have appeared in publications including the journal ALAN and the Orlando Sentinel.

Tracey Baptiste

Author/editor/teacher. New York Times bestselling author of Minecraft: The Crash, as well as the creepy Caribbean series The Jumbies, which includes The Jumbies (2015), Rise of the Jumbies (2017), and The Jumbie God’s Revenge (2019). Baptiste has also written the contemporary YA novel Angel’s Grace and nine non-fiction books for kids in elementary through high school. Tracey is a former elementary school teacher, frequent author visitor to schools and libraries, and is on the faculty at Lesley University’s Creative Writing MFA program.

Loren Long

Loren Long is the author and illustrator of the New York Times bestselling picture books Otis, Otis and the Tornado, Otis and the Puppy, An Otis Christmas and Otis and the Scarecrow. Long is the #1 New York Times bestselling illustrator of President Barack Obama’s picture book Of Thee I Sing, the re-illustrated edition of The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper, and Mr. Peabody’s Apples by Madonna. Loren's Little Tree, is a picture book for all ages. He has most recently illustrated Good Day, Good Night by Margaret Wise Brown and Love by Newbery Medalist, Matt de la Peña.

Reading Dogs Bhalu, Wasabi and Ramadi

We made some new reading dog friends over the last few weeks. We were lucky enough to welcome Bhalu, Ramadi and Wasabi to our library. All students in Grades 1 through 5 have now had the opportunity to read and interact with a dog buddy. And, students in K1 and K2 are having their experiences this week.

We asked students to reflect on their experiences with the Reading Dogs. We asked them questions such as, "How did the experience make you feel? What did you think about? What do you want to know next?" We gathered responses and feedback in a variety of ways - some with sticky notes, some drawings, and some through a survey.

Here's what some of our students had to say:

And, straight from our Grade 4 and 5 survey were some comments that show what the reading dogs experience has meant for many of our students:

What did you like about the Reading Dogs program?

• I loved how Ginger was all calm and quiet while we were reading to her.
• I loved the dog reading session because Millie was very calm and friendly.
• I like that we get to touch the dog while we get to read.
• I liked how you could pet and feed the dog
• The dog was very calm.
• What I like is we got a long time with the dogs!
• I liked how at the end you could do tricks with them and they would listen to you when you read.
• What I liked about the time was that we got to pet the dog and read witch is an awesome combo.
• I liked how the dog listened carefully to us and that the dog was calm. I really enjoyed it.
• I really like reading dog session because its fun!
• Bhalu is very huggable and relieved all my bad thoughts.
• How they didn't judge us😁 GO WASABI🐶🍣

How did the program help you?

• I felt comfortable reading in front of other people.
  
• They actually made me more confident in my reading.
• In reading calmly.
• It made me read more fluently.
  
• It helped me because when i was reading it payed attention . Another reason is Ginger did not judge me if i got something wrong.
  
• Ginger made me more comfortable to read because he was very calm.
  
• Bhalu helped me calm down☼
  
• Because now I feel like I could read to my dog.
  
• It helped me boost up my confidence with reading in front of a lot of people.✦❤︎
  
• I think it helped me because I was not good at reading aloud but it made me feel better.
  
• He warmed my heart and relieved my stress.
  
• Helped us encourge reading, GO TEAM WASABI🐶🍣
  
• I have never read to a dog before. I have had a dog but I didn't think my dog would understand. But When I read to ginger, It was really fun!
  
• It helped me keep calm and focus.

Welcome, Hershey!

Grade 1 and 2 welcomed a new reading friend this week, sweet Hershey the Basset Hound! In addition to being a wonderful, affectionate reading buddy, Hershey also knows many clever tricks. Grade 1 was amazed to watch Hershey balance a treat on her nose as we quietly counted to 14. Very impressive! And, all her reading buddies got to give her a treat when she sat and shook our hands.

The students have selected a variety of interesting and fun books for our dogs - a mix of fiction and nonfiction, many about dogs or including dog characters. We continue to learn that when we are calm with our bodies and voices, our dog friends are also calm and relaxed.

Students are asking smart questions and observing the dogs closely. We are learning so much from our special visitors. We look forward to Grade 3 and 4 sessions next week with some new reading dogs!

Welcome Reading Dogs Tess, Ginger and Millie!

We had our first Reading Dogs sessions this week! Thank you to our Grade 1 and 2 classes for being our first groups and helping us learn all about how Reading Dogs work. The students had a wonderful time and did a super job reading and interacting with the dogs. We were very proud of our students reading skills, compassion and model behavior.

Each class visited the library and divided into three groups. The students selected two or three just-right books to read and came ready with their books in hand. Each small group was made up of six or seven students. We sat in a small circle on the floor and our reading dog and the handler joined us. The first five minutes were spent getting to know our new reading buddies. Students asked questions about the dogs' likes and dislikes, age, diet, experiences and travel. For example, “Is Ginger a boy or a girl? How old is Tess? What does Millie like to do for fun? How long has Ginger been a reading dog?”

Then began our reading. Working in partnerships, students read to the doggie companions. Students instinctively turned their books toward the dogs inside the circle. While their friends read, the other students in the group gently pet and enjoyed the dogs. We asked each other some questions about our reading and then moved to the next partner group - all students got a chance to read. Students were relaxed and attentive, happy and focused.

The last 5 minutes of our session were for asking more questions, petting, snuggling and saying thank you and good-bye! A couple of the dog handlers also gave treats for the students to give the dogs as a reward for their good behavior.

We can't wait for our next visit with our adorable reading friends. All grade levels will have an opportunity to participate in January and February. Stay tuned for more information on the detailed schedule of classes.

Learn more about the benefits of the Reading Dogs program from Dubai-based company, The Animal Agency. An article from the Washington Post shares some experiences of students in a reading dog program in the United States: Baltimore children practice reading with dogs, learn compassion for animals

Reading Dogs to Visit ES Library

ASD’s Elementary Library is excited to share our first Reading Dogs sessions in partnership with The Animal Agency. Grades 1 and 2 will participate from January 21-28, 2020.

Research supports that reading to a dog helps children relax into reading, open up, try harder and have fun reading.  Specially chosen, child-friendly, extremely calm dogs are the perfect reading companions.  

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Reading sessions will take place in our ES Library. During the 30 min session, each child will have the chance to read to a dog.  Classroom teachers will divide the class into three groups of 6-7 students and select a just-right book for each group.

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The Animal Agency supplies the canine companions.  Each dog has completed an assessment with a qualified dog trainer and behaviourist and awarded a certificate of suitability based on temperament, obedience and patient nature.  Each dog also has a clean bill of health by their vet, an up to date vaccination book and pet passport. 

ASD’s reading dogs will be Tess, Millie and Ginger. Please find out more about our reading dogs! We can't wait to read with our new friends.

Read more about the benefits and research on reading with dogs.