Ellen Frank, Librarian

Gerri Calandro, Librarian

 

Happenings @ the Library

   2008-09

· BANNED BOOKS WEEK 
· From September 27th-October 4th, 2008, Jamaica H. S. celebrated Banned Books Week. A bulletin board display was created with titles of the latest banned books, and banned books were on display throughout the month. Read ALA's List of the Top 100 Novels Challenged in the 20th Century.

· HIROSHIMA NEVER FORGOTTEN 
· On October 28, 2008 a group of JHS students and teachers were privileged to meet four Hiroshima survivors, who came to us through Kathleen Sullivan, a consultant to the United Nations on disarmament. The visit was arranged by Mr. Robert Croonquist, a retired English teacher from Jamaica High School. The survivors told their stories through sound demonstrations and small group discussions of first hand accounts of the bombings. This special event was a real life example of a primary source! It made a lasting impact on all.

· SPOOKY READ ALOUD 
· Over 6,000 libraries nationwide celebrated TEEN READ WEEK from October 12th-18th, 2008. The theme for this year’s program was Books With Bite and the books were chosen by teens across the country. Check out the TEEN's TOP TEN.

Jamaica High School Library celebrated by having a Spooky Read Aloud on Thursday, October 30th, 2008. Over 280 students and many teachers participated in this annual popular event. A highlight of this year was the excerpts from Dracula, performed by students of Ms. Reghay. We look forward to the 2009 Teen Read Week, to be celebrated from October 18th-24th. The theme will be Read Beyond Reality @ Your Library.
 
· FRESHMEN ORIENTATIONS 
· During the fall term, all freshmen English students were required to spend two days in the library completing a library scavenger hunt. The students were taught how to navigate our library as well as our online catalog and they were introduced to databases and reference materials. 

· TEACHER’S TEA 
· On Tuesday, November 25th, the entire JHS staff was invited to the library reference room to view our new book collection, set up appointments for class visits and learn about how teacher-librarian collaboration leads to increased literacy. Over fifty people visited the library where they were treated to both food for thought and treats for their palate!

· INAUGURATION OF OUR 44TH PRESIDENT, BARACK OBAMA
· History was made this year on January 20th, when Barack Obama, became the first African American to become President. The principal, students and teachers gathered in our library to watch this historic event live on our large screen. The library also added many of Barack Obama’s books to our collection. Students were encouraged to read these books and learn how they can make a difference in our world! 

· RENAISSANCE FAIRE DISPLAY  
· On Thursday, January 22, 2009 members of Ms. Lyzinski’s English classes presented excerpts from Shakespeare’s play Othello, danced to Renaissance music and modeled Renaissance fashions. There was a corresponding display of student projects relating to Renaissance literature.

· BLACK HISTORY MONTH CELEBRATION 
· Black History Month was commemorated with Ms. Kaalund’s students researching famous African Americans and writing reports about the famous people they researched. On March 31, 2009 we were fortunate to have an encore presentation by “Cops and Teens.” The program was developed and presented by Investigators Darnley O. Scoon and Kenneth W. Taylor of the NY State Department of Police. The mission of the program is to educate teens about how the decisions they make now can affect them for the rest of their lives. Topics included how to correctly interact with the police department, the importance of staying in school, and how joining gangs can be a deadly mistake.

· WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH CELEBRATION 
· A bulletin board display about creative women was displayed in the hall and pictures by famous women artists were displayed. A book display was presented in the library as well.
 
· HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE DAY
· On Wednesday, March 18th, Holocaust survivor Karl Schapiro made an encore visit to our students. He described how he was hidden in a cave in Poland, along with 18 other people during the Holocaust and what he and his family did to survive. He stressed the value of education and democracy and how vital it is for us to continue to fight bigotry and hatred. On April 1st, we were privileged to hear Lena Goren, a Holocaust survivor from Greece tell her story and explain how her family was able to hide from the Nazis and save a large number of other Jews as well. Students in tenth grade English classes have read the book Night by Elie Wiesel and were also studying the Holocaust in their history classes.

·   WE THE PEOPLE BOOKSHELF ARRIVES
·  In April, 2009 the JHS library was awarded a We The People Bookshelf. This collection of over forty books strengthens and encourages the understanding, teaching and culture of American history. The library also received a Picturing America grant of well known replicas of paintings that reflect American culture and history. The bookshelf complements the paintings and encourages our students to learn more about American history.
 
· APRIL IS TAX TIME 
· The students of Mr. Cavelli’s accounting class researched Obama’s tax proposals and debated the pros and cons of his proposals from the viewpoint of different classes of constituents. The students created charts to illustrate their points and presented their findings in our library. 
   · POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY 
· On Thursday, April 30th, JHS once again celebrated Poem in Your Pocket Day by hosting A Celebration of Poetry. Various teachers and over 100 students shared original poetry and/or favorite poems. We also had a poetry wall set up in the library where students free-styled their own poetry.  
 
· KING LEAR: A READ ALOUD  
· On June 2nd, Ms. Reghay, a speech and language arts teacher, presented a read aloud in our library to highlight her students improvement in public speaking. Ms. Reghay was awarded a grant from Donor’s Choose and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for some of the props used in this production. Ms. Frank assisted Ms. Reghay in the writing of the grant proposal.  

· STATISTICS 
· Books checked out:  This year: 1,765; Last year: 1,615:   12% increase 
· Class visits and Teacher Circulation: Many teachers utilized our resources throughout the school year for class visits, research projects and to borrow books for pleasure reading. 
· Visits to the JHS Library Website 
· School web site: This year: 123,248 visits
Last year: 94,605 visits = 23% increase

· USE OF DATABASES:
Databases subscribed to: Ten (including NOVEL databases)

(Site updated: 6/26/09 ef)

 

PROBLEMS? TELL US ABOUT THEM.

Ellen Frank

G. Calandro

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