This past week was busy but fun.
GTA Resource Fair
On Tuesday, May 10, 2022 I was able to participate in a wonderful annual event - the GTA Resource Fair. It's been ages since school library professionals were able to browse multiple vendors and touch physical copies of books prior to purchase, all in one convenient location with easy purchasing processes. I took students with me - fewer than usual, because I have a smaller car now - and they seemed to enjoy the trip. It took a while for them to get into the swing of buying but they adapted quickly. It took them 90 minutes at a single vendor to choose $300 worth of books. By the end of our day buying together, we spent a good portion of my yearly budget and selected some amazing resources for the school library.
The extra-special part of this year's trip, in addition to it being the first
since 2019, was that I was provided with coverage so that I could spend the entire day at the fair with the students. This gift of time meant that we were able to have the books barcoded while we were at the fair by the wonderful people from TDSB Library Technical Services. Everyone was just so appreciative of the opportunity to attend the Fair.
Media Cakes
The Grade 1-2 students finished up their clay cake designs for media class. We co-constructed the assessment rubric and I'll begin marking them next week. Some of them did a phenomenal job. I'm looking forward to our upcoming guest speakers - parents that run a cake decorating business, who will teach the students how to ice real cakes!
Build Challenges
I mentioned two weeks ago that the Grade 8s had a Keva Plank building challenge. Not only did I try the same activity with the Grade 6s (who loved it), we offered a second building challenge to the Grade 8s - build a structure using straws and connectors that would touch the ceiling of the library. I couldn't get them to leave the library when it was recess because they were so invested in the task!
The wonderful thing about the building challenges is that it was "just because". It was a completely optional activity and the students opted in. Many different strategies were used to accomplish the same goal. (For example, the last photo was of a structure that was built on the ground first and then tilted up to use the ceiling as a counter-brace.) Other students passing by marveled at the large towers in the library.
Big thanks to all the students who built together and bought together this week.
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