Friday, September 8, 2017

Book Fair


For the past several years, we have had a book fair at Welborn in the fall. This year, I have decided that because of the other activities that are going on, we will postpone the book fair until after Spring Break.

While we may not be having a book fair at the school for a few months, you are still welcome to order books online from the Scholastic Book Fairs website. Just click on the link below and it will take you to the website.

https://orders.scholastic.com/MMBRY

 All books ordered will be delivered to the school. Please place your child's name in the order form so that I can deliver the books to your child when they arrive at the school. 

 There is no deadline on this online book fair, so please feel free to order whenever you wish, or even come back more than once!

 

Happy Reading!

Mrs. Nowlin

Tuesday, August 15, 2017

The First Week of School

This is the first full week of school, but unfortunately, I have had to call in sick. On Sunday night, I found out that I had appendicitis, and had to have surgery. Everything went well, and I am now home recovering.

This experience has gotten me thinking about all of the interesting research questions that I would like to study:
  • What is appendicitis?
  • Why do humans have appendixes?
  • Why do some people get appendicitis while others do not?
  • How do you know that you have appendicitis?
Of these four questions, I know that one of the signs of appendicitis is that you get a pain the right side of your abdomen. When I got to the emergency room, they had to do a special test called a CT scan that verified that I really did have appendicitis.

I have always enjoyed science, and when I was a kid, I used to like to do experiments and study different subjects. My first research project was about the gila monster, a large lizard that lives in very hot, dry places, but not Kansas. My teacher taught me how to take notes on my topic, make an outline, and then use my notes and outline to write my paper. Years later, I learned that I enjoy studying other topics, as well, like history, and music, and current events. I also learned about writing research questions.

Today, when I teach my students how to do research, I usually help them find research questions that they are the most interested in studying. Life experiences, like the one that I have just had, often influence people's interests in research topics. Whatever you like to learn about, any topic that you want to study, feel free to let me know how I can help you as you pick out library books and do research in your classes.

See you in a few days.

Mrs. Nowlin

Friday, July 7, 2017

Summer Time!

This has been a quiet summer in Nowlinville. Mr. Nowlin and I have both been working a lot in our garden, as well as at a community garden in the Northeast. We both enjoy getting out in the dirt and watching our plants grow. In a few days, we are going to have a HUGE crop of tomatoes, and I am looking forward to canning them so that we have tomatoes during the winter.

Even though I am an adult, I know that I still need to keep up on my reading. Adults need to read too?!?! Well, yes, it helps me to keep my mind active, it builds my vocabulary, it gives me an opportunity to get books for the library that I think my students might like, and...well...it is FUN! I enjoy getting caught up in a great book! Before I know it, I am so involved in the story that I am reading, and imagining that I am one of the characters. It almost feels like going on vacation.

I just finished a really good book that I bought for the library last year. It is called The Secret of Goldenrod, by Jane O'Reilly.






I have been reading this for quite a while, actually. I started reading it on my Ipad in the Axis 360 app where you can read all of the library's ebooks. When school got out and all of the books got returned to the library, I decided to finish the story by reading the paper book.

This is kind of a long book, which is probably why it took me so long to read it. I am not a super fast reader, and I did not have time to sit down and read it all at one time, so it took me several weeks to finish it. The story is about an old house named Goldenrod and a girl named Trina that goes to live in Goldenrod. Everyone in the town thinks that Goldenrod is haunted, but Trina discovers that Goldenrod is just very lonely and wants a family to live in it again. Trina finds a beautiful doll that helps her to learn more about the house, as well as more about herself.

Some people would probably consider this a girl book because the main character is a girl, and their are dolls in it. I imagine that the girls would probably enjoy it the most, but if you like books that have mystery and intrigue, and suspicious haunted houses, even boys might like reading this book. It would probably be most interesting to 4th and 5th graders because it talks about growing up and learning about yourself as you grow up.

If you would like to check it out before school starts, stop by one of the local public libraries for a copy. Don't forget to keep reading what YOU like to read. Even though it is summer, you can still keep learning just by picking up a book.

See you in a few weeks!

Mrs. Nowlin





Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Family Advocacy This Week

This Wednesday and Thursday, we will be having Family Advocacy Days at Welborn.

I will be available in the Library on Wednesday from 2:00-4:30, and in the Gym from 5:00-6:00. On Thursday, I am planning to be in the Gym all day.

Please stop by and say hello. If you child has not yet brought in a permission card to check out books from the library, I will have some of those available, and you can get your child set up to use the library.


Sunday, October 2, 2016

Welborn Book Fair

Thank you to everyone who came out to the Welborn Book Fair last week. If you would still like to make a purchase, you can go to the online store at

http://www.scholastic.com/bf/welbornelementaryschool 

 until October 4th. All proceeds will go to help with various projects around the school, including buying new books for the library.



Wednesday, September 7, 2016

The Wind and the Willows Book Review

When I was in the fifth or sixth grade, my reading teacher had me read The Wind and the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame. Back then, if you asked me what the book was about, I probably would have told you it was about a group of animals that acted like humans...not a very good description. My poor teacher would be rolling her eyes right now if she heard me say that, especially after all of the time we spent studying the book. Believe it or not though, I actually have always thought of this book as one of my favorites, even though I never read it again. I could not tell you why I thought it was a favorite, except for the fact that the animals were very funny.

Tonight while I was checking out one of the library's databases, the Tumblebook Library, I found a copy of this book! I clicked on a button, and found that it is actually an audiobook, which means that you can let someone else read it to you! It wasn't too long before I was mesmerized by the reader's voice, enjoying the different tones that she used for the various characters. I soon realized why I liked this book so much. I began to remember the true enjoyment that I experienced as a child, how the author's writing style drew me into the story, and how it came alive for me. Pretty soon, I was hooked, and now I am sitting here writing to you about my experience, while still reading...I mean listening to one of my favorite books.



Thoughts about The Wind and the Willows:
  • This book may be old, but Mr. Grahame's writing style still shows me how life should be enjoyed.
  • My favorite character is Mr. Toad.  I think he represents the common man who loves life a lot, makes many mistakes, but is a precious treasure to his friends.  
  • This would be a great book to read if teachers are teaching personification or descriptive writing.  
  • Parents and teachers, remember that some of the language may be kind of old, so you may have to explain what some words mean (especially words that had a different meaning today than they did back when the book was written).
  • If I come to school tomorrow, talking in a British accent, you will know why.

Unfortunately, we do not have a paper copy of this book at Welborn right now, but I am going to see if I can order one. If you want to read it right now, you can go to the same place where I was reading... I mean listening to it. Go to http://usd500libraries.kckpl.org/elementarydb.html and click on the Tumblebooks Library link at the bottom of the page. Ask your child for the username and password for the databases, and click on the orange "Read Along" tab (that turns red when you hover over it) at the top of the screen. Scroll down to find the book. When you open it, you will see the words of the book. In the bottom left-hand corner of the screen, there is an arrow button. Click on in it and you can hear this fabulous book read out loud.

ENJOY READING!

Saturday, September 3, 2016

Last Stop on Market Street

Last Stop on Market Street, by Matt De La Peña is a beautiful book about a young boy who begins to see the beauty of the world through the eyes of his grandmother. This book won the 2016 Newbery Medal award, a very prestigious award for children's books. It was also a Caldecott Honor Book and a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Book.


 Kansas City Kansas Public Libraries is hosting an event, Library in the Park on September 17, 2016, where Mr. De La Peña will be available to visit with people who are interested in his book. The first 1000 people to attend will get an autographed copy of the book. This event is being held at Big Eleven Lake from 10:00 AM-2:00 PM. 

If you would like to learn more about the Library in the Park, please visit http://library.booksite.com/5366/nl/?list=CNL1&group=EB87. There is a video of the author on the public library's website, as well as information about the other activities taking place that day.