Today, almost all of the 3/4 classes gathered in the library to meet Ann Hood, author of The Treasure Chest series.
Ms. Hood was a very engaging speaker who got the students excited about the historical fiction genre. Best of all, she was able to share how she got the idea for her series when she was a kid herself! She showed pictures of the books that inspired her, and even asked Lyman students for more ideas!
To read more about Ms. Hood and The Treasure Chest series, visit her publisher's website.

This week, the 3rd/4th grade classes learned about challenged and banned books during Banned Book Week. They were very surprised to learn that several books with which they are very familiar have been banned or challenged in some places.

We talked about each title and students guessed why it was banned. In several instances, students objected to the reason for banning; for example, students didn't think William Steig meant any disrespect when he drew police officers as pigs in the anthropomorphic Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. The reasons for banning some books, like The Lorax by Dr. Seuss and Wings by Jane Yolen, were difficult to figure out. Others, like In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak, were very easy to understand almost immediately!

Every year, students around the world participate in International Dot Day on (or around) September 15th in order to celebrate creativity, courage, and collaboration.

This year, classes gathered in the Lyman Library to celebrate. We read "The Dot" by Peter Reynolds,  talked about the different ways we can "make our mark" on the world, and discussed ways that we feel encouraged and ways we can encourage others.
Afterwards, students collaborated with each other in making dot art (both 2D and 3D), used a virtual dot-making application on iPads, and designed Core Ethical Value dots.

The following week, library classes got to experience a Skype conversation with another class in order to talk about how International Dot Day was celebrated elsewhere. We Skyped with other local schools as well as schools in other states. In Minnesota, for example, we learned that one class celebrated by having a dot scavenger hunt, and in another school, everyone made dots to hang on a dot wall - even the school's principal and superintendent!