The View from the Leslie Library Windows

Thursday, January 31, 2013

It's Final

Kids were all done today with finals. I put away all the books we got in. Renumbered and sent 70 copies of Sentence Combining off to North HS today and did all the renumbering of the ones we still have here. Did a lot of checking in today and had a lot of kids that needed money in their print accounts. I opened the cash box up this morning to make change so I could buy a donut from the fund raiser, but was aghast that most of the dollar bills we had in there are gone. Mrs. H and I are the only ones with keys to the box. Unless I'm an unconscious klepto or she is, we have no idea of who is getting in there. It's not like the lock is really any good, but still, we're miffed and upset and there was at least $30 or more that is missing. Not happy :(

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Graphic US Constitution

Yes indeed folks! We got in a marvelous set of the making of the US Constitution in graphic form! It is so cool! One of our social studies teachers wrote a grant to our local credit union and got the money to purchase these books! Thank you so much to Maps Credit Union here in town! Checked in lots of books today and worked on renumbering the Algebra Connections V2 books. Came in early and I freaked out because I nearly hit a kid on the way in. It's dark at that time in the morning, and even though he or she was in the crosswalk, there's very little light and they were wearing all dark clothes. Really creeped me out.

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Finals

First day of finals and I came in early. Since the kids are gone by 1pm, it makes no sense for me to come in late to stay until 3:15. Took in more books today, but still not enough by my thinking. Had a teacher ask for some books that we don't have. He checked them out last year and says he returned them, but they never got checked in under the old system. And the ones we're missing are the ones he had out last year. He says he returned them, but I'm not seeing them. Finished up the Algebra Connections V1 today and started in on the V2 books. Processed in three magazines for teachers and four for us. Helped a lot of kids today, and teachers with the scantron machines! That was a big surprise since I'd never worked with them before!

Playing with Family

Before finals, that is. Got back some books today, but not nearly enough. Worked more on the Algebra Connections books getting them renumbered in the system. I got asked to be a last minute addition to the Sprague play 'Footloose' that starts on Thursday, but then remembered I have family coming into town to celebrate my hubby's birthday and we're all having a family portrait done, so I fudged out. My moment on the stage, given up for family, so I'm happy with that :)

Friday, January 25, 2013

Connections

Finished up the Algebra 2 books and moved on to the Algebra Connections set. Felt so good to give good directions to students today, I helped each and every one with perfect instructions! That felt good! Also had a phone meeting with our textbook guy down at LMSS and we talked about books due at the end of the semester. They had all our year long books down for just one semester! That won't do! I told him about 75% of our classes are for all year, only a few are just a semester. So he will talk to our tech guy to see what they can do for that. He was very grateful for my insights.

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Ditto

More renumbering today. Checked out ten books to a teacher for class. Checked kids for books still out for another teacher. Helped a student with the overstrike key. Got in a copy of Esquire to replace our now defunct Spin magazine. Looked through to see that yep, this is not something we'll put out for students! Thank you magazine company that made that decision :(

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

More Renumbering

More renumbering today, though I did get through the Algebra 2 books (volume 1) and started to work on the Algebra 2 volume 2 set. Processed in 3 magazines for us, worked with a lot of students and staff today. Picked up my W-2 form, cleaned up the scantron boxes a bit that had gotten discombobulated. Love our kids!

Too Busy

Tuesday the 22nd - I was so busy helping hubby get ready to leave that I forgot to post! Oh well! Worked on renumbering the Algebra 2 books. We got in the new Scantron cards and had the sub for Mrs. M portion them out to the teachers that ordered. There were a few missing, most were fine but I did piece together one more order that was out of whack! Did a lot with students today since Mrs. M was gone and finished up in the library since Mrs. H has play practice every night after school.

Friday, January 18, 2013

Friday

Crazy insane day! The kids were wild and wooley! But I still worked on renumbering the Algebra 2 books. Worked the front desk for the afternoon after Mrs. M left for the day since Mrs. H was working in a classroom. Processed in two magazines for us. Helped lots of students and that was fun! Three days off! See you Tuesday!

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Renumbered

Finished up all the novel renumbering today from the novels we use every year. Then started on the Algebra 2 books. Also processed in one magazine and helped a lot of students on various things.

What I'm Reading

The Butchering Art by Lindsey Fitzharris was a great non-fiction read! Love a good non-fiction! Joseph Lister worked hard, studied hard, never gave up on his ideas that something outside was causing untold numbers of people to die after surgery. His quest to find the answer was long overdue and he was the one to craft it and make it a medical standard. Brilliant!
Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Boy by Emmanuel Acho was so good. I liked it even better than Stamped. His honest and open look at what is was like for him growing up really brings the issues into focus. Highly recommended!
Verify by Joelle Charbonneau - what if everything went digital which gave the government and people in power a way to change history, past and current. What happened to some words, like the word 'verify' that is no longer in the digital dictionary. Meri has lost her mom and her dad drowns sorrow in liquor. Meri is entranced by her mom's last art pieces and is given a slip of paper (the horror! what about the trees? recycling?) and on it is the word 'verify'. Atlas gives her a dictionary, a paper one and an old history textbook. Meri jumps on the train with him so they can change the world.
Kalahari by Jessica Khoury - what a ride! I even took this home one night to finish! Sarah lives with her dad doing research deep in the Kalahari. A group of students are sent to see if they can qualify for a grant and when her dad goes missing when he heads off after poachers, she is left to take care of them. Her dad doesn't return and the poachers are after them. They come across a white lion stalking them, but wait? It isn't white it's something else. They come across a lab and realize there is a virus, that has been let loose on the Kalahari that could destroy the whole world. So exciting!! Great ending as well!
The Year of the Buttered Cat by Susan Haas with Lexi Haas - Okay. I have to admit that I got this book because of the title. Buttered cats, what an intriguing thought! But the real intrigue is the persistence, the optimism of Lexi. Because of jaundice, she was disabled and this story is about her decision to take a chance on ground breaking surgery to try and get some mobility, speech and live her gifts. She has five she had to find. Read it for Lexi (and maybe to find out about that buttered cat).
Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram. There are spaces only you can fill, and Darius learns this as his family travels to Iran to see his grandfather who is dying. Along the way he deals with his depression, makes a friend, has innumerable Star Trek references and also learns that it's okay, to not be okay. I must admit, I had to look up some of the places he got to visit. What a rich heritage. I thought Zoroastrians were long gone, but no, they are still practicing today in Iran. Great book, totally okay.
The Last Bookshop in London by Madeline Martin - perfect book lover tale of a woman captivated by a man and a bookstore and how she made more impact on her fellow book lovers and the man who got her to read than any bomb that fell during the Blitz. Very lovely!
The Girl From the Channel Islands by Jenny Lecoat - Lovely WW2 story by Jenny who actually grew up on one of the Channel Islands. Hedy fled Austria only to find her island haven invaded by the Germans. And though she is wary, she falls in love with a German officer. The twists and turns of German occupation test them both as each find a way to help the allied forces win.
Ancestor Approved edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith. I loved these short stories that all center around a modern day Native American Powwow. My fave was Rez Dog and they were all a great window into culture that I have rarely seen. I watched some videos on Fancy Dancing because of this and I would love to attend one, but feel a bit like a looky loo if I did. Fun, eye opening and full of information. Loved it!
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams Loved this fictionalized tale of the daughter of one of the lexicographers of the first ever Oxford Dictionary. As Esme goes from hiding under the sorting table, to one day being a lexicographer herself, we see her story unfold along with the people attached to the dictionary. It was really wonderful as we glimpsed her life and how the words she found and rescued formed the backbone of this novel. Really well done. It will stay on my shelves.