Kindergarteners started the school year learning about gratitude, what it means to be a member of a community, and how to share and care for our library books. They began to learn about what kinds of books are available in the Conant library. They learned to distinguish between fiction and nonfiction and began to explore favorite authors and illustrators.

Kindergarteners recently learned about author/illustrator Peter H. Reynolds, who reached out for help with ideas for his next book. They shared many ideas including making new friends at the beach, dogs playing with birds (making friends with animals that are different), and favorite toys that come to life.

First graders started the school year learning about gratitude, what it means to be a member of a community, and how to share and care for our library books. They began to learn about what kinds of books are available in the Conant library. They learned to distinguish between fiction and nonfiction and began to explore different nonfiction topics.

First graders are excited to be part of an experiment with our nonfiction collection this year. The lower elementary nonfiction collection currently uses the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) system of organization. This can be difficult for students to browse and locate nonfiction books they’re interested in reading—and younger students love to read nonfiction books! First and second graders will learn the DDC system and then together we’ll brainstorm ideas for how it can be improved. We’ll research how other elementary schools organize their lower elementary nonfiction collection, then implement a new system here at Conant. First and second graders will then test out the new system and offer suggestions for how it can be improved further.

Fifth graders began the year focusing on the care of chromebooks and expectations for use. Before starting our cyber safety unit, fifth graders were set up on Sora—a website and app that provides access to hundreds of thousands of juvenile literature in ebook, audiobook, and read-along formats. This wonderful resource is  provided free of cost to Massachusetts school library teachers as members of the Massachusetts Library System.

Following a review of the Massachusetts Children’s Book Awards (MCBA), fifth graders began their digital citizenship unit. As good digital citizens, fifth graders learned about cyberbullying, identifying strategies for dealing with cyberbullying, and how they can be upstanders for those being bullied. Fifth graders will soon begin their digital citizenship summative project—they will create memes that are meant to teach the public about good digital citizenship for the health and safety of all.