Hour of Code

Hello! This week all students got a chance to practice coding. Stated simply, coding is writing directions to make something do something such as a computer, a robot, etc.. In the future, this will be a much needed skill and it is important to introduce it to our children early so they can become the "coders" of tomorrow. Students loved the chance to make the Angry Bird get the pig. Some even worked on having R2D2 help the Stormtroopers or worked on making Anna and Elsa spin. If your child wants to continue working with coding, here is a list of websites that they can practice on:

www.code.org/learn

http://www.tynker.com/hour-of-code/

http://scratch.mit.edu/

https://www.khanacademy.org/hourofcode

First Grade Fluency with Elephant and Piggie!

All the first graders have started practicing their fluency while reading Elephant and Piggie books by Mo Willems. They are doing fantastic and will be performing their story soon. They are so cute!!

Global Read Aloud 2015

Over the course of the next few weeks, all Second and Third Graders will be making connections while hearing the story "The Year of Billy Miller" by Kevin Henkes. Students will be blogging about the book, connecting with classrooms across the United States using Skype/Google Hangouts and doing activities related to the book.

Also, all Kindergarteners and First Graders will be doing an Author Study of Amy Krouse Rosenthal during the next few weeks. They will be doing special activities and also connecting with other classes through Skype/Google Hangouts. They will also do a small research project relating to the author.

A fun time should be had by all!

The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes Book Trailer

Psst... Guess what? The library is getting to be busy, busy, busy!

Wow, the first month of school went so quickly! The library has been busy checking out almost 3,000 books to eager readers. All students have been taught or reminded about being good library citizens which means returning their books on time and taking care of them while they have them at home. So far, only one accident. Keep your fingers crossed! : - )

Preschoolers have been introduced to the library and have heard some great stories (I think their favorite so far has been "Bark, George", a story about a dog who oinks, quacks and moos!)

Kinders have enjoyed stories by David Shannon and Keiko Kaszo. The students are such good listeners!

First graders are learning the areas of the library and have delighted in hearing some classic books by Audrey Wood. Next up, author Tedd Arnold and his great Fly Guy books!

Second Graders have been learning their way around the library and working on the skill of choosing "just right" books for their reading level. Up next for them is Book Bingo, where they can show off their newly acquired library location skills.

Third Graders have been practicing their library location skills and soon will be diving into the resources of the reference section.

Fourth Graders have also been reviewing library location skills and will soon start practicing their storytelling skills in preparation for a special performance.

All in all, a fantastic month of library! The students at Westby Elementary are amazing learners!

Finally! Here are our selfies from the first few days of school. One smiling one, one silly one!

Great First Day

What a fantastic first day of school! Some second, third and fourth graders visited the library and learned the expectations for library time. Rule #1 - You can't enter the library unless you are SMILING! : - ) They all did a great job. We took class library selfies to commemorate the first day and they will be posted soon. Looking forward to meeting the rest of the students tomorrow.