Open House :)

It was great to see so many students and families tonight at Open House! I loved hearing about all the books you read over the summer--I know you kept your brain fueled while you were away from Club :) Welcome to our new families; I hope you will feel at home in the Media Center. Seeing all the familiar faces, receiving warm hugs, and connecting with new manatees has been the highlight of my week!

Fourth graders excited to check out books!

Connecting with other readers through Destiny Quest (and also teaching dads how to do it!)

Welcome back, Manatees!

I hope everyone had a wonderful summer! We've been working hard at school to prepare for your arrival. I hope you will stop by and visit me in the Media Center during Open House tomorrow from 4-6pm. Check out a few pictures below to see what I did on my summer vacation! I spent a lot of time traveling to visit family and friends in Ohio, Tennessee, and Florida. My husband and I also took a trip to Seattle, WA, and Vancouver, B.C. It was a busy, relaxing summer but I missed my awesome readers :)

We hiked up many mountains on our trip to the Pacific Northwest!

I loved taking my sweet Ollie for long walks :)

And of course I read a TON!!

I can't wait to hear about your summer adventures and what you've been reading! See you soon!

Battle of the Books!

Our 4th and 5th grade Battle of the Books team competed in the district competition on Friday, April 19. These students have been meeting weekly in the Media Center to read and discuss books from EBOB state list. Although our team was comprised of 30 students, only 12 were selected to compete against teams from other elementary schools in Durham. The students represented Club Boulevard well and we had a great time!

Please enjoy a slideshow below of all the reasons that this year's team enjoyed Battle of the Books.

Caldecott Challenge!

This year is the 75th anniversary of the Randolph Caldecott Medal. This medal is awarded annually to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children. To celebrate this anniversary, I issued a Caldecott Challenge to the families of Club: read 10 or more Caldecott winners out loud together as a family; discuss the artwork and compare/contrast the books.

Families who accepted the Challenge gathered in the Media Center on April 9th for the Caldecott Celebration breakfast. We enjoyed a light breakfast, activities related to the books, and a wonderful read aloud by Principal James. It was great to have so many dads in attendance :)

Mrs. James selected one of her favorite Caldecott medal winners to share with students: When The Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant.

A fun morning of reading and discusssing great books was had by all! What is your favorite Caldecott medal winner? Maybe you might like to read the 2013 winner, This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen. Epiphany and her brother, Noah, filmed a book advertisement at the breakfast about this funny book. Check it out!

Washington, D.C.

Last week I had the pleasure of chaperoning the 5th grade trip to Washington, D.C. The students represented Club Boulevard well and learned so much about our nation's capitol! Some of the highlights of our trip included: visits to the Smithsonian Museums; touring the Capitol building and meeting with Congressman David Price; visiting the Lincoln and Vietnam Memorials at night; dinner at Union Station; and seeing the Dr. King Memorial and the White House. It was an action packed trip!

Below, please enjoy 2 slideshows. The first is a slideshow of pictures and the second is a short compilation of videoclips. Both will give you a taste of what the students experienced! For additional information, find a 5th grader to tell you more :)

Poetry Inspired by Romare Bearden

Mrs. Lopez's 2nd graders studied the art of Romare Bearden and wrote poems inspired by his art. We used Voicethread to record each student reading his/her poem. Turn up your volume and enjoy their wonderful writing!

Black History Month Living Museum

Last Thursday, 25 Club Boulevard students interacted as notable African Americans with students and guests at our Black History Month luncheon. These young actors from grades K-5 each researched a notable African American scientist, inventor, artist, historical figure, author/poet, entrepreneur, or musician and acted as that person to share important facts about his/her life. They did a fantastic job and we learned so much from them!

Please watch the slideshow below to see our young actors in action.