Dog Days

The new Diary of a Wimpy Kid movie opens on Friday! Have you seen other Wimpy Kid movies? Are you going to see this one?

What do you think? Did the movies leave out parts of the books that you thought should have been included? Did they change stuff? Do the characters look the way you imagined them?

You can imagine yourself as a Wimpy Kid at the Wimp Yourself site.

Here is Ms. Moore:

What Are You Reading This Summer?

I (Ms. Moore) want to know what you're reading! List your summer books in the comments section below (you may need a Google account) or sign in to the library catalog and write a review! Here are a few books I've read this summer that I think would be good additions to the Halliwell library collection:*

Fangbone! Third-Grade Barbarian by Michael Rex: Eastwood Elementary has a new student, and he's nothing like the other kids in 3G. Fangbone is a barbarian warrior from another world! And he's been charged with the task of keeping a deadly weapon from Skullbania's vilest villain, Venomous Drool. Can Fangbone's new classmates team up to help him triumph over hound-snakes, lava-ferrets, and his first pop quiz?

Remarkable by Lizzie K. Foley: In the mountain town of Remarkable, everyone is extraordinarily talented, extraordinarily gifted, or just plain extraordinary. Everyone, that is, except Jane Doe, the most average ten-year-old who ever lived. But everything changes when the mischievous, downright criminal Grimlet twins enroll in Jane's school and a strange pirate captain appears in town. Thus begins a series of adventures that put some of Remarkable's most infamous inhabitants and their long-held secrets in danger. It's up to Jane, in her own modest style, to come to the rescue and prove that she is capable of some rather exceptional things.

The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma by Trenton Lee Stewart: Join the Mysterious Benedict Society as Reynie, Kate, Sticky, and Constance embark on a daring new adventure that threatens to force them apart from their families, friends, and even each other. When an unexplained blackout engulfs Stonetown, the foursome must unravel clues relating to a nefarious new plot, while their search for answers brings them closer to danger than ever before. Filled with page-turning action and mind-bending brain teasers, this wildly inventive journey is sure to delight.

* summaries courtesy of Goodreads

Summer Reading Events at the Public Library

Have you all signed up for the summer reading program at the public library? This year’s theme is “Dream Big. Read.” Related activities explore dreams and nightmares, what kids want to be when they grow up, and how to make North Smithfield a better place to live. Each week, kids who read 80 minutes or more will be entered into a raffle. Did you know that the library hosts weekly events for different age groups?

Sign up for stories, booktalks, and crafts:

7-8 yrs - Tuesdays @ 1:00 or Thursdays @ 1:00 
9-10 yrs - Wednesdays @ 1:00
11-12yrs - Wednesdays @ 3:30

And you can sign up for special events, too:

July 23 – Moira Richardson - Find your inner artist and create a painting of a nighttime scene using Van Gogh’s Starry Night as inspiration.
July 30 – Mat Franco - Throughout the show, some of the magical effects exemplify how reading has played a role in Mat’s success in following his dream to be a professional magician
August 2 – Ric Morin - Let your imagination run free to create rhythms using buckets, cans, voices, hands, recyclable materials, real percussion instruments, and more
August 17 – Greg Cooney - Join the musical fun with as you learn about people who had BIG DREAMS that changed the world.

Free Rice!

Did you know that you can help feed people in need, while having fun AND learning stuff? Check out Freerice.com. You can quiz yourself on a variety of topics, from vocabulary to math to French to geography.

Dewey Decimal GAMES

Want to test your Dewey knowledge? Have fun playing these games.

http://www.purposegames.com/game/1410

Review Quiz

Bingo

Matching Books to 100s - Easy
Matching Books to 100s - Medium
MatchingBooks to 100s - Hard

Name the numbers

Multiple Choice

Doing Dewey

After Grade 4 students investigated several Dewey Decimal 100s categories, we practiced assigning topics to those categories.

Each table received a stack of cards with information like "You want to find crafts to make at your birthday party" and "You want to find a map of Japan." Students worked together to figure out where they'd go to find the information and paste them into the correct column of their "gameboard."

There were some heated discussions. Where would cats go versus tigers and lions? What about the history of dinosaurs?

Even if students didn't put a card in the right column, they got credit for having a good reason for choosing the one they selected. We don't all think the same way as Melvil Dewey!

Being able to categorize information is a skill that students will use in the future, from structuring writing assignments to organizing computer files.

Do YOU know which 100s to look in for the following topics?

• You need to do a report on hurricanes.

• You need to show your classmates how to do origami.

• You need to find a recipe for pancakes.

• You need to learn about what life is like in Brazil.

Beware These Dangerous Animals!

To finish up our animal research unit, the third graders read "Never Smile at a Monkey" by Steven Jenkins (which won the 2011 RICBA). We learned why we should never pet a platypus, clutch a cane toad, or go near a variety of animals who could hurt or even kill us. Did you know that the HIPPO is the deadliest land animal? Or that a spitting cobra can shoot its venom 8 feet?

Then we found the animals' ranges on a world map. Luckily, we only need to worry about black bears and beaded lizards here in North America. Africa, Australia, and the oceans have some of the deadliest animals. Make sure you never corner a cassowary!