8th Grade Book Discussion Group - Book 1 - Fault in Our Stars

The Fault in Our Stars
John Green

The 8th Grade Book Discussion Group will meet Friday, March 9, 2012 to discuss The Fault in Our Stars .  We will meet during 8th grade lunch. I will update this post after discussion.

We have four copies available in the School Library.

Friday Reads - Wonder by RJ Palacio

I just started Wonder by RJ Palacio today. I've heard "wonder" ful things about it on Twitter. It's about a boy named Auggie who has, among other physical ailments, a facial deformity and he starts middle school. His first foray into school.

Scan the QR Code for more information!

DMS School Library February Newsletter 2012

News from the Instructional Media Center

February 2012

Happy February! Due to Winter Break, School Delays, and a Snow Day - coupled with scheduled days off, it's been a little bit slower in the library than I would like.

We checked out over 500 items and had 49 Hold Requests!  Our top circulated items were:

1. The Death Cure by James Dashner  
2. The Maze Runner by James Dashner
3. Bigger Than A Breadbox by Laurel Snyder
4. Divergent by Veronica Roth
5. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
6. The Scorch Trials by James Dashner
7. Icefall by Matthew Kirby
8. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
9. The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan
10. The Luxe by Anna Godbersen
11. The Return of Meteor Boy by William Boniface
12. The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen
13. Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney
14. Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick
15. Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu
16. Delirium by Lauren Oliver
17. The Ugly Truth by Jeff Kinney
18. I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore
19. The Help by Katherine Stockett
20. Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan

Nice to see a solid mix of single titles along with the ever popular series!

Book Clubs

We finished our Mock Newbery book club with lunch time meetings on January 19, just a few days before the Newbery announcement. The students picked Divergent by Veronica Roth as their top title!


We will start Spring Book Clubs on March 1, 2012.  Each grade will meet during their lunch period every 3 weeks. At least 4 copies of each book will be available from the school library.  Please check with the local library for additional copies.

6th Graders

• Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier
• The Great Wall of Lucy Wu by Wendy Shan
• Warp Speed by Lisa Yee
• The Mighty Miss Malone by Christopher Paul Curtis
• The Serpent's Shadow by Rick Riordan
• Sidekicks by Dan Santat

7th Graders

• The Eleventh Plague
• Legend by Marie Lu
• Shatter Me by Taheri Mafi
• The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann
• Insurgent by Veronica Roth
• Partials by Dan Wells

8th Graders

• Enclave by Ann Aguirre
• Hourglass by Myra McEntire
• Gimme a Call by Sarah Mylnowski
• Fault in Our Stars by John Green
• Why We Broke Up by Handler and Kalman
• Heartbreakers by Pamela Wells

If you are interested in joining a Spring Book Club, please see Ms. Burnette in the library to grab a sign up sheet.

Website Spotlight
Each month I will highlight a website from AASL (The American Association of School Librarians) best websites for Teaching and Learning.  Note: Annotations are from AASL.


NOTA (notaland.com)
Annotation: Connect, collaborate, and co-create in real time! Nota, a dynamic whiteboard wiki, allows multiple users to write and integrate text, paste photos and maps, add video and audio to make brainstorms, presentations, and scrapbooks in a snap.


My Thoughts
Free sign up
Create a public or private scrapbook
Works better in Firefox (was using Google Chrome)
Could be used to make a fun scrapbook page for a character.

Just a reminder: Fines are 5 per day and you are not allowed to check out any new items until fines are paid.  The checkout period is 4 weeks.

Friday Reads - Anna Dressed in Blood

This week I'm reading Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake.  I'm about 1/3 of the way and plan to finish it up this weekend.  Snap a shot of the QR code to learn more about the book!

Books You've Stayed Up For

Have you ever stayed up all night reading? Even knowing you had to go to work/school/somewhere important the next day?  Here are some books that have kept students and staff up all night!

• The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan
• Hive by Mark Walden
• The Help by Kathryn Stockett
• The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan
• The Scorch Trials by James Dashner
• The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore
• Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
• Copper Sun by Sharon Draper
• The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
• Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
• Unwind by Neal Shusterman
• Gone by Michael Grant

Maybe one of these can be your next Friday Reads!

What book has kept YOU up all night?

Friday Reads - Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan

We've instituted a new Friday schedule here at Discovery Middle School. As part of our literacy initiative, we've set aside 30 minutes each Friday morning to read. That's everyone! Friday Reads helps us show the children that we are committed to building a culture of literacy here at DMS!

One cool idea, from Mr. Howard, is to post a cover image from Google Books.  I'm posting the QR code for my book!  Use a qr code app, like Red Laser, and scan the code.  It will take you to all of the information on Google Books!

Fall Scholastic Book Fair - October 11 - 31

Our Fall Scholastic Book Fair is fast approaching! 

The Discovery Middle School In-School Book Fair will run from Monday, October 17, 2011 - Wednesday, October 26, 2011. 

This year, we are adding an Online Book Fair too! If for some reason you can't get to the school, order here and the books will be delivered to your student at school!

The Discovery Middle School Online Scholastic Book Fair will run from October 11, 2011 - October 31, 2011. Just click HERE to get started shopping!

Check out our Book Fair homepage for more information!