Trimester Two Curriculum Summary

Trimester two was filled with rich learning experiences here in the library! At the start of the trimester each grade spent a few weeks focusing on fiction books and their story elements. Students learned that fiction books have to be read from the beginning to end because the story won’t make sense if it is read out of order. The story elements we studied include: characters, setting, problem, solution and events. Kinders worked together to orally identify the story events and answer comprehension questions about the story. First grade worked hard on retelling the story events, both orally and written, focusing on what happened in the beginning, middle and end, including the problem and solution. Second graders practiced retelling stories both orally and written, and including story details and transitional words such as first, next, then, after that, last. Following our study on fictional story events, students noticed and made comparisons between fiction and nonfiction books. Students understand that fiction books are read for entertainment, while nonfiction books are to inform or teach us. Another big noticing is that non fiction books can be read out of order, using the table of contents to move ahead to different sections of the book. We also spent time this trimester studying biographies and autobiographies and using these types of texts to enrich our understanding of Civil Rights Day and Presidents Day. Students in all grades also learned there are different reasons (PURPOSES) for a book. We used the acronym PIE… p=persuade, i=inform, e=entertain. Students understand that there could even be more than one purpose for a book. We also had a very fun week studying and learning all about the Winter Olympics…watching an informative video and reading a fictional story. During trimester three, students will become experts on identifying the various text features in nonfiction books and how we can use these features to better understand what the author is trying to teach us through this book. 

Our same library “routine” has continued through trimester two, allowing the students to be very familiar with our procedures and my expectations. Each week, after students listen to a story and participate in a whole group lesson, students complete a follow up activity that relates to our whole group lesson and comprehension/story skills we are targeting, aligning with our library standards. Next, students have time to pursue the library and choose a book to borrow. Kindergarteners and first graders select one book each week and second graders can borrow two books each week. If students have an overdue book, they are still allowed to borrow a book, but it remains in their classroom until their overdue book is returned. Please be on the lookout for the overdue slips that may come home in your child’s Eagle Folder as a reminder of what they need to return. 

March is a VERY BIG reading month at Centre School. We kicked the month off with a school-wide reading challenge. If students were able to read 1000+ books by the end of the month, at our All School Meeting on March 30th, we would get to choose the goofiest and silliest outfits for our principals to wear for the remainder of the day. Students were asked to send in a reading slip upon reading a book, with their name and the title of the book they read. Every time 10 slips were sent in, we added a “book” to our hallway display. Each “book” equals 10 reading slips. Each row of “books” equals 100 books read. Students have been watching this display grow on their way to/from the lunch room each day. Bonus…they have to count by 10s each time to determine our running total!! We either have some very devoted readers or kiddos that really want to see their principals dressed funny because we will surely surpass our goal of 1000+ books by the end of the month! Other fun reading themed events that occurred during the month of March was our Guest Reader Day and Character Day…both on March 16th and our Author Visit with David Biedrzycki on March 20th. 

Be sure to visit our school’s facebook page to enjoy many photos 

from these FUN March reading events. 

Inside the library this trimester, students have noticed the nonfiction section becoming reorganized in a way that is much easier for our young readers to find books they love. I have broken down our nonfiction sections into smaller subcategories, each with bins or dividers and signs labeled with the corresponding Dewey number, as well as name and picture label. Now, for example, instead of having one extremely large mammal section, students can locate the name or picture of the specific mammal they are looking for in the smaller sections. Organizing by smaller subjects and labels/images instead of only by large Dewey sections, makes it much easier for our young students to navigate the library shelves and independently locate books on a nonfiction topic that is of interest to them. Students are noticing these new changes and understanding how it is helping them to become more independent in the library. It's wonderful to see them so engaged and excited about the library and reading!

Looking forward to continuing to work with students during trimester three, 

nurturing their love of reading and expanding their knowledge of books.