2015-2016 Mark Twain Nominees

Fourth grade students spent the first several weeks of the school year being introduced to the the 2015 Mark Twain Nominees.  The 12 nominees were chosen by librarians and student selectors across the state of Missouri.  Students in fourth through sixth grade are encouraged to read these nominees and then vote on their favorite--the winning book being awarded the Mark Twain Award in April.  All fourth graders received a bookmark with a list of the Mark Twain Nominees on it to use while reading some of these good books!

Old Bonhomme students only need to read at least four of the nominees by March 1 in order to vote on their favorite.  Upon completing one of the nominees, students fill out a slip of paper that a parent must sign before turning it in to Mrs. Kelley (the form students must fill out is located on the Mark Twain Nominee book case).  If a student reads all 12 of the nominees, his/her picture will be displayed on a poster that can be taken home at the end of the school year.  This is a big deal and we want to celebrate this accomplishment!

Mark Twain Nominees

Al Capone Does My Homework
Counting By 7s
Dorko the Magnificent
Escape From Mr. Lemoncello's Library
Gaby, Lost and Found
The Great Trouble
Jinx
Navigating Early
Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin
The Water Castle
What We Found in the Sofa and How it Saved the World
Will in Scarlet

Genrefying our library

Old Bonhomme’s library went through a major transformation over the summer.  Our library ditched the Dewey Decimal System and became genrefied.  Now, the word genrefication might sound like an affliction, but fear not--it’s a good thing!  Genrefying the library simply means shelving books that are on the same topic together.  Now that the library is genrefied, our young readers can easily access books on topics that interest them.  Sports books are found in the sports section, art books are found in the art section, and books about animals are found in the animal section.  There’s even a “Make It/Do It” section where kids can find books that teach them how to make or do things ranging from origami to cooking to science experiments. 

All you have to do is Google “ditching Dewey” and you’ll find that this is a hot topic in the exciting world of libraries--most librarians agree with this new way of organizing an elementary library while others are dead-set in following the hard-fast rules created in the 1800s by Melvil Dewey.  This librarian decided to do what was best for our young readers and made the change!  

If you are curious about how a genrefied library looks, stop on by during fall parent/teacher conferences.  There is still a lot of work to be done before the transformation is complete but you’ll get a good idea of how our library is now organized.  And for all of you die-hard Dewey lovers out there, fear not!  All fourth graders will be taught how to use the Dewey decimal system before leaving OB so that they’ll be able to access books at the Fifth Grade Center.  

Genrefication is our friend and your kids already love it!  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard, “Oh, cool.  I didn’t know we had books about ____!”  It’s music to this librarian’s ears!