The Library Corner - May

The summer term is well under way and with it the new library sessions we launched after Easter! Here's a little taste of the activities we've done so far.

Years 1 and 2 - What Happens Next?

This session involves my famous dice rolling game, where we roll the dice to decide a character, setting and problem (as found on a chart made by me!). I then ask the class “What happens next?”...and let our imaginations run wild! The Iguanas and Elephants also had a go at filling their own charts with some very imaginative ideas.

Year 3 - Fact Frenzy!

Both Year 3 classes came in for a Tudor themed fact finding session, where they split into teams and worked to locate, learn, and teach one fact from one of the non-fiction books in the library. The teams practised their research skills by using the contents and index pages, and were very democratic about which fact to choose! As a follow up, they then swapped facts with another team and were challenged to find out more - again using the index, contents and key words to develop their knowledge.

Year 5 - Encyclopedia Bingo

By far the most chaotic so far, Encyclopedia Bingo embarked on its maiden voyage with the Pandas. Each child wrote down six subjects on a card, before each choosing a page number from the Brittanica Children’s Encyclopedia. If one of their subjects came up, it got ticked off, and if they got all six - BINGO! We all really enjoyed this session, despite (or maybe thanks to?) a LOT of interrogation of what exactly constitutes an animal, and whether or not you could tick ‘space’ off after a page about the Mars Rover.

Year 6 - Synonym Challenge

The Toucans came in for the very first Synonym Challenge and totally smashed it out of the park. In teams, they had a minute to write down as many synonyms as they could think of for a number of (increasingly difficult) words. The winning team earned themselves some dojo points!

Coronation Books

What would you do if you were king for a day? As we’re all aware, tomorrow sees the coronation of King Charles III, and we have a lovely selection of biographies, picture books and facts about the King, his life, and what it might be like if WE were king or queen!

 

 

Author of the Month

May’s author of the month is the incomparable Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara. The “Little People, Big Dreams” series began as a gift for her baby nieces and quickly grew into something that resonates and is hugely popular, with children and adults alike! We have a substantial collection in the library (and the Campling residence) yet I never have more than a handful on the shelf as they are always out on loan. The series showcases the lives of artists, activists, scientists, musicians and so many more, and how each of those world changing individuals began as a child with a dream. OWPS favourites are Greta Thunberg, Elton John, Neil Armstrong and Maya Angelou.

Recommended Reads

A is for Bee by Ellen Heck

This FANTASTIC book is an alphabet with a difference! It showcases different words for things in languages from all over the world - some familiar, like French or Polish, and some much more obscure. Combined with striking illustrations and pronunciation guides, this is a really really interesting and unusual book. The smallest Campling gave it a go over the Easter holiday and it has our seal of approval!

The Night Animals by Sarah Ann Juckes

Nora lives with her mum, who suffers from PTSD. One day she starts seeing mystical rainbow coloured ghost animals - a fox, a hare, a raven and an otter - each of whom lead her to a different realisation about herself and the fact that no person can carry everything on their own. This book gives a beautiful shape to some of the feelings that may come with grief, caring for a loved one, and mental health challenges, and shows that we don’t need to be afraid of reaching out - or even facing our fears ourselves.

Dave Pigeon by Swapna Haddow

This series follows a pigeon called Dave and his best friend Skipper, on a number of far fetched and ridiculous adventures such as: getting revenge on a cat, uncovering a fiendish pigeon-nugget plot, taking over a bookshop, and swapping places with a prince. Utterly daft and brilliant, this book comes highly recommended by me AND my 7 year old bookworm.

 

^{Photo by Jaredd Craig on Unsplash}