COMING SOON!

COOKIES, SNOWFLAKES, & STORIES!
We are planning a wonderful Family Event night for Friday, December 18th from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and hope everyone can attend!
The Pioneer P.T.A. is sponsoring this event by providing all the shaped Christmas cookies, the frosting, and the sprinkles to decorate them. Bring your family and share a memory-making evening decorating Christmas cookies with your children. Everyone will be able to take home a plate of decorated Christmas cookies to share! This part of the event will take place in the lunchroom! The P.T.A. will also be serving hot cocoa! Yummers!
Mrs. Russell's room will be the site for stories and snowflakes. I will be reading Christmas stories and there will be plenty of supplies for creating beautiful tissue paper snowflakes! These are perfect for taking home to decorate your home with these unique one of a kind snowflakes!
The Christmas season is upon us and this Family Event is a fantastic opportunity to share the joy, the magic, and the love of the season! Please join us for a warm cocoa and sugar infused night of FUN!

P.S.: If you would like to bring extra sprinkles to share at the decorating tables, please feel free to do so!

GET READY, GET SET, GO!

The new books have all been processed and officially released to the library for check-out! As you each come to library class this week you will be allowed to select ONE of the new books and one of the other books in the library, providing you return your currently checked out books!
The Accelerated Reader tests have been ordered and now I am waiting for the disks to arrive and we will be sure and add them to the database. I will also send a list of the new titles to our webpage manager and she will add them to the AR Quiz list on our school website, although this might take her a little while since I ordered over 200 new tests!
If you would like to stop and chat about some of our new books, please feel free because as you all know...I LOVE BOOKTALKS!
See you soon!

I'm Back and the New Books Will Soon Be Here!

I am so glad to be back and even happier to be feeling better! Thank you to all the students who came in and let me know they missed me and were happy to see me again!
I did make some progress on processing our new books, but mostly slept, rested, and drank gallons of water while I was out with the flu; however, I am now working on completing the books so you can begin reading them!
I will be ordering the Accelerated Reader tests this week as well, so get ready to start racking up the AR points!
I know the anticipation and enthusisasm for our new books is at a fever pitch and I am looking forward to watching everyone 'dive' into them! Keep checking in with me and I will keep you posted on when they will be released!
Happy Reading!

FUN! FUN! FUN! FUN! and more FUN!

Our book buying trip was utterly fantastic! We had so much fun looking at, talking about, and purchasing new books for our school library.
You will all be happy to know that we purchased all the new sequels for the many series that we have in our library. Want to know if we bought a long anticipated sequel? Just stop by and visit with me!
I am busy processing all the new books. I have laminated all the covers, cut them out, and taped them down; plus I have ordered Accelerated Reader tests for all the new books that have Accelerated Reader quizzes. I have put in new pockets and cards (but haven't filled out the cards yet) and I still need to enter all the books into our ascension book, put that data on the inside cover of each book, put spine labels on, and then enter each book into our ResourceMate library program. Whew!
I am hoping to fax in the Accelerated Reader order by Monday, October 12th which will have those tests here that week to enter into the system. I plan on having the books done by the week after that so all students can eagerly dive into a whole slew of fascinating new adventures!
On a side note, today, October 8, is my birthday! I want to thank all of the students, staff, and parents who wished me a Happy Birthday! You all really know how to make my day 'extra-special' and I appreciate you all so very much!
I am glad to see students still 'popping in' and posting to our blog! Great job!
Don't forget to feed the turtles, fish, and the hamster!

This Friday is 'THE DAY'...

Yep...for all of you waiting with anticipation for the 'fall book-buying' spree! The day is nearly here!
I see from the most recent postings that Dyllen is hoping there will be new CHARLIE BONE books. I have not read about any new CHARLIE BONE books Dyllen, but Jenny Nimmo (the author) has written other books. You might like THE SNOW SPIDER which is in our library. Come see me and we will go find it so you can see if it is one you would like to read!
Brady tells me he loves STAR WARS books. We do have a few in the library Brady! So, come see me and we will go look for them together!
I am glad you are excited for the new books too Janie! I remember reading Anne Frank's diary and it had a big impact on me! I am glad to see that you are trying and enjoying a wide variety of genres!
Hey Tyler...I am glad you enjoyed the book SEEKERS and want to hear all about SAVVY when you finish it! It is a book I am going to read for myself soon! I love to hear about books that are real 'winners' for people that have read them. Their excitement and enthusiasm makes me want to read them too!
I am so glad to see everyone not only reading, but excited about reading! Keep reading and keep sharing the joy of reading with one another!

Hello 3rd and 4th graders! Welcome to our blog!

I am glad to see the 3rd and 4th graders posting to our blog! Take a minute and tell me what book you are currently reading, whether you like it and why! What is it about this story that makes it one you enjoy? If you are reading a story you don't particularly like then tell me why you don't like it and what book you will try next!
Wow! Look at all the entries posted by our 3rd and 4th graders! You guys are awesome! I would caution you to ask for help with your spelling, capitalization, and punctuation since I publish these 'as is' with your errors and all! :-)
I see Nick and Stuart are really enjoying the WARRIORS series by Erin Hunter. Did you know Erin Hunter is really 3 authors working together to write the series but using the one name?
Brock is busy finishing VAMPIRE BRAT by Angie Sage who also wrote the MAGYCK series! We have others in the same series with VAMPIRE BRAT!
Piper and Jenna are really enjoying the GERONIMO STILTON series! You will both be glad to know that I plan on purchasing new GERONIMO STILTON books and new THEA STILTON books as well!
Tyler and Keaton are hoping I will purchase new BONE graphic novels. You will be happy to know that there is a new 'pre-quel' (one that starts before the first BONE) book came out. It is called ROSE and I will be buying it too!
Jake wants anything about Aliens or Area 51! I promise to look for some Jake!
Elly is reading CHARLIE BONE and really loves them! I don't think there are anymore in that series but maybe she will write more! I will look!
Jesse says he enjoys BEAST QUEST and would like me to find more of those books!
I am so glad you are all reading and sharing the joy of reading with others through your comments on the blog!
Talk to you again soon!
Don't forget to feed the turtles, hamster, and fish! Brock quit 'bat bouncing' my poor turtles! They are getting dizzy! :-)


P.S.: Way to go Hunter! You are the first kindergartener to post! Fantastic!

It is FANTASTIC to see so many new comments!

I was gone today, Wednesday the 23rd, for an OPI meeting but was so very pleased to see that the majority of you (8 thus far) followed my lesson plans and posted to our blog! I would caution you all to re-read your comments before posting since I publish them 'as is' without correcting spelling, grammar, or punctuation errors! :-)
It sounds like you are all enjoying the books you have selected! I was very pleased that the book I suggested for Quade is one he thoroughly enjoys! I really enjoyed THE CANDY SHOP WAR too!
I have not read SAVVY but am looking forward to it! Thanks Tyler F.!
I, of course, LOVED the HARRY POTTER series and am glad to see some of you are reading it over and over for pure enjoyment! I do that too with favorite books! I love 'stepping back into a favorite world' again and again! Way to go Tyler B. and Miranda!
I also liked the story WALK TWO MOONS and am glad you have all read it and enjoyed the story! Keep at it Emily because it sounds like you are having fun with your books and looking forward to more!
I haven't read a lot of the Kenneth Thomasma books but it sounds like Casey not only enjoys them but whole-heartedly recommends them!
Connor I am glad you enjoyed THE RANGER'S APPRENTICE series and are now into the DELTORA QUEST series! I bought those for my sons Michael and David as well! I am glad to see that recommending those series was a 'good fit' for you!
I can't wait to hear more about HOOT and SWINDLE Kayleen, since I haven't read those books yet!
I would like to see you all post a brief 'review' of a book you enjoyed and why you recommend it to others! Tell me a little bit about your favorite parts or why it 'struck home' with you and made you truly delight in this particular author!
I am very proud of all of you for your committment to reading and sharing with us all!
See you tomorrow!

P.S.: Great Job on posting Austin! I am so happy and impressed with your willingness and ability to post! Thanks for posting again!

Way to go everyone!

I am so glad to see that more and more of my students are not only 'reading' my blog but also 'posting' to it! I was so happy to check it this morning and find that Janie had succeeded in posting to it!
I am also very glad to hear that she is going to Parmly Library to pick up more books to read! Parmly has an 'absolutely' wonderful selection and updates constantly instead of just 2 times per year!
Keep me 'posted' on what you are reading and what you think of the books you read!
Check out our new 'virtual' pets! We now have several fish and a hamster to go along with our turtles! Stop by and feed them all! They love the attention!

Anticipating the new books? Yes, we are!

It sounds like Piper and Casey have given a lot of thought to what they would like to see in the library when we come back from our 'Book-Buying' trip! Piper enjoys our selection of GERONIMO STILTON books and would like to see new ones! Well, Piper I have a surprise for you...there are two or three new GERONIMO STILTON books out, plus one or two of the new THEA STILTON (his relative) books! You will be so happy!
Casey has been avidly reading the new 39 CLUES series and would love to see the 5 that are available in our library! It is true we do not have them in the library, but it is definitely something we will put on our 'Wish List' and have the teachers check them out! I think they would be a 'great' addition to our library! Did you know that book 6 will soon be out as well? Casey come see me and we will look it up on the Barnes and Noble website!
Thanks for the suggestions girls and a note to everyone to keep the ideas coming!
Don't forget to feed the turtles!
Oh, and check out the fish at the bottom of our page! They need food also!

Upcoming Book-Buying Trip!

We have set a date for our annual Fall Book-Buying Trip! It will be on Friday, Oct. 2nd at Barnes and Noble! This is the night all of the teachers will meet and select new books for our library!
Now would be a good time for students to be suggesting book titles they would like to see in our library! Come see me with your suggestions and I will make sure they get on our list to look at when we go to Barnes and Noble!
This would also be a good time to bring in your suggestions for new Accelerated Reader tests as I will be ordering the new tests shortly after we purchase books! Come and see me with your AR test suggestions and I will check into adding them to our purchase list!

STARGIRL!

Emily is reading STARGIRL by Jerry Spinelli and really likes the book. Jerry Spinelli also wrote MANIAC MAGEE which is occasionally required reading in Mrs. Nys class! I really like MANIAC MAGEE and think I would like STARGIRL if I find time to read it. You can visit this link: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Stargirl/Jerry-Spinelli/e/9780440416777/?itm=2&usri=1 to check out the book and see if it is something you would like to read!
Jerry Spinelli has written many books and if you enjoyed this author and this type of book, then check out this link to look at his other titles!
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/results.asp?AUD=JUV&kids=y&WRD=jerry+spinelli&box=jerry&pos=0

Keep reading and sharing your joy of books with me!

Any other questions or books or share?

Don't forget to feed my pet turtles!

Hey Mrs. Russell...

Okay, Tylar asked "What to read?," and I have some suggestions! Since you are enjoying ELLA ENCHANTED by Gail Carson Levine at the moment, here are some of her other titles:
THE TWO PRINCESSES OF BAMARRE : http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Two-Princesses-of-Bamarre/Gail-Carson-Levine/e/9780064409667/?pwb=1 Follow this link to Barnes and Noble's website where you can read about it, or...
EVER: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Ever/Gail-Carson-Levine/e/9780061229626/?pwb=1 and you can again follow this link to check it out at Barnes and Noble.com, or...
FAIREST: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Fairest/Gail-Carson-Levine/e/9780060734107/?pwb=1 and this link will let you check this out.
Gail Carson Levine has written many books. Go to www.barnesandnoble.com then click on the tab marked Kids, then put in Gail Carson Levine in the search bar and click Go. It will pull up the titles of her books which you may then click on to read about the book and decide if it is one you are interested in reading!
Any other questions? from anyone? Just post and let me know!
Have a great weekend!

Oh, HAPPY DAYS!

I am so happy! Students have found the library blog and are posting comments! Wonderful! I hope that this blog becomes a means of communicating and sharing our love of books, reading, and learning!
I was also very happy that one of my library students came in this morning and checked out THE CANDY SHOP WAR after reading about it on the blog! Awesome!
Just a reminder: Our QSP magazine fundraiser will earn us money to purchase more new library books! Plus the students win prizes for each magazine sold and the address booklets filled out!
Remember that my Library Webpage on the school website at www.pioneerschool.us has oodles of links for homework help and support, plus links with interesting author interviews!
I hope to see everyone at the school OPEN HOUSE this evening! Please stop by and visit with me!

Another Year...Many Adventures!

I love this time of year with the brilliant fall colors, the cool crisp hint of autumn in the air, and the excitement of another school year! As summer slowly comes to a close we turn our focus to books, both for learning and for enjoyment! The many adventures, places, and people we meet in books are waiting for us to 'jump' in and join the excitement in progress!
The latest book I am reading is THE CANDY SHOP WAR by Brandon Mull. Brandon Mull is the author of the FABLEHAVEN series starring Seth and Kendra in their ongoing adventures at the mysterious refuge for mythical and magical creatures. THE CANDY SHOP WAR is not part of that series but is a very captivating book following the adventures, choices, and consequences experienced by Nate, Summer, Trevor, and Pigeon (Paul's nickname); four friends who must make difficult choices while searching for a much sought after magical treasure! I am thoroughly enjoying this story and hope that Mr. Mull continues this with other sequels.
What are some great adventures you have enjoyed through books? I would love to hear about them!
I plan on holding several 'Family Event' nights, with the support and help of our P.T.A., this year! Please check back to see what is coming up!
We will be going on a 'book-buying' trip to Barnes and Noble soon which means 'oodles and oodles' of new adventures will soon be waiting for you to check them out!

A DELIGHTFULLY DELICIOUS MORNING!

Our pancake breakfast has come and gone for another year! Although the morning air was crisp and cold, the smell of pancakes and blueberries wafted out the door greeting everyone as they joined us in the lunchroom. It was awesome! Fresh hot pancakes, sweet blueberries, thick maple syrup, cold milk and orange juice...a winning combination on a cold day!
I was so glad to see everyone take part in this community event! I am always so impressed at the enthusiastic participation by our school and community even in the early hours of the morning! You are all wonderful!
Thank you PTA for providing all the ingredients! Thank you Mr. Russell and Mr. Seavey for flipping pancakes all morning! Thanks to Mrs. Michael and Mrs. Bullard for helping to clean up afterwards! Thank you so much to Mr. and Mrs. Palmieri and Mrs. Murray for monitoring the playground that chilly morning! A fantastic job from all of our dedicated volunteers!
I hope to see everyone again next year!
Mrs. Russell

TOMORROW IS THE DAY!

Tomorrow is the big pancake 'eat-a-thon'! We are ready to flip pancakes till everyone feels full, happy, and ready to face the day! Thanks to the PTA we have the ingredients to make both blueberry pancakes and plain pancakes. We will also be offering milk, orange juice, and coffee to drink! Umm! Hot pancakes, sweet syrup, and cold milk! My favorite breakfast on a cold winter morning!
We have over 125 people signed up to come and join us in this fun event! I can't wait to see all of you!
Your children have been listening, and laughing, as we read the book TALLULAH IN THE KITCHEN this week. Tallulah's love of pancakes and her experiment with blueberry pancakes is a wonderful story to read and then practice making and eating pancakes of your own!
Check back for an update about our always successful pancake breakfast!

COMING SOON! ARE YOU HUNGRY?

Our annual Pancake Breakfast is a tradition started 6 years ago, when I talked my husband into making pancakes for our entire school/community to correspond with a book I read titled, Old Black Witch! by Wende Devlin. The students enjoyed the book and they absolutely loved the pancake breakfast. Thus a fantastic new community event was born! The PTA provides the ingredients/supplies for this event with my husband and Mr. Seavey flipping the pancakes while I serve orange juice, milk, and keep the syrup containers filled. What a busy but thoroughly enjoyable morning!


This year our Pancake Breakfast will be held on Friday, March 13th in the school lunchroom beginning at 7:00 a.m. (yes, if you come earlier there will still be pancakes!) and running till 8:30 a.m.! What a great way to begin the day! Our community, parents, staff, and students all come together to eat warm syrupy pancakes and visit with one another!



Keep your eyes open for the letter which will be coming home in the next week! We need to have you sign up letting us know how many will be coming and what they would like to drink! This helps me purchase the right amount of ingredients plus we can give the bus driver a heads up as to who will be on the bus that morning. They usually have a very light load!



So wake up the kids, grab grandma and grandpa and come on down for some hot pancakes and warm conversation!

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!

Our Barnes & Noble Bookfair was FANTABULOUS! We all had such a great time on Saturday and I was so happy to see so many of our students, families, staff, and community members join us!

Joann Palmieri and Becky Middendorf did an absolutely awesome job with the face-painting! I received many compliments from parents and Barnes & Noble staff regarding the outstanding designs and attention to detail they lavished upon the students! Thank you both so very much!

Mrs. Peterson's girls showed up for the harmonica concert and played, accompanied by my husband, much to the enjoyment of everyone there. Many thanks to Casey Skinner, Kayleen Hager, and Tyler Fleury (and my husband Francis Russell)! You guys rock!

The costume contest was a blast! You are all so creative and have wonderful imaginations! Thank you for taking part! The winners were: Bailey Erfle (Goldilocks and the 3 Bears), Brady Skinner (Indiana Jones), and Emily Millard (Pippi Longstocking)!

The Think-Fun games were just that...FUN! We had such fun playing them and entering to win the prizes! Our winners were: Kayleen Hager, Brayden Erfle, Alec Nys, and Jacob DeBuff.

Our Scavenger Hunt was another big hit! The older students searched for 18 hidden tokens while the younger students searched for 15 hidden tokens. Although it took me and my daughter two hours to hide all the tokens, it took our students only 20 minutes or less to search and discover all of them. The winners were: Emily Millard (grades 4 and up, with 7 tokens) and Brenner Bushfield (grades K thru 3, with 6 tokens).

Again, I want to thank our PTA for providing the prizes for the Storybook Character contest as well as the hourly drawings for $5 gift cards to be used in Barnes & Noble. I also want to thank them for their support and help that day. Joann Palmieri was instrumental in setting up the television interviews with KTVQ2 and KULR8 and she was very supportive in interviewing with me on both occasions! It wouldn't have been nearly as successful without you all!

I want to thank Barnes & Noble for their help and contributions. They gave us the gift cards for the Scavenger Hunt prizes and provided both the cookie decorating activity as well as taking care of the set up and clean up for the bookfair. Lorrie Niles was fantastic! Last but not least, a big thank you to my 4 children who worked with me all day including setting up and clean up!

Now...(drum roll please!).... We earned $664.00 plus we received $93.75 worth of books donated to the school from our 'wish table' of book selections! That comes to a whopping $757.75 for our bookfair! WAY TO GO EVERYONE! YOU ALL ROCK!

BIKES FOR BOOKS IS HERE!

The annual Bikes for Books contest sponsored by the Huntley Masonic Lodge is once again in full swing. This contest runs throughout February and March and is open for all of our students. The Masonic Lodge is purchasing 4 bikes and helmets for prizes, however the Howe family will be purchasing one bike and helmet, Mrs. Ny's father will be purchasing one bike and helmet, and my family will be purchasing one bike and helmet which gives us 7 bikes/helmets. This means one student out of every class will be a winner!
The rules are simple: READ, READ, AND READ SOME MORE! Every book you read is a ticket to enter into the drawing. If you read an AR book you will get the same number of tickets as there are AR points for that book. If the AR book is only 1/2 point, you will still get one ticket! If your parents read to you at home they can fill out a ticket for every book they read to you!
Ask you teacher for the tickets! Ask me for the tickets!
What a great program and a fantastic reward for our reading program!
Thanks to the Huntley Masonic Lodge and the families that are purchasing the extra bikes! Our school community and families are the best!
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to stop in, or call, or blog back to me!
HAPPY READING! Let's stuff our classroom ticket boxes FULL!
Mrs. Russell

Please Join Us This Saturday!

I am sure most of you know about our great Valentine's Day Fundraiser at Barnes & Noble! It is going to be a fabulous day with many fun activities and prizes! All day Saturday anyone purchasing anything at Barnes & Noble merely needs to say, "I am with Pioneer School" for us to benefit from their purchase. Barnes & Noble will give us a percentage (15%) of what is spent as long as the purchaser mentions they are from Pioneer School. This is a great way for us to earn money for our school library! Remember it will cost you nothing extra, just let them know you are with Pioneer School and the library will benefit!

We plan on having the following activities:

*Face painting

*Think-Fun Games to play and compete for prizes

*Harmonica concert by the 4th grade and my husband, Francis Russell

*Valentine cookie decorating

*A scavenger hunt (one for grades K-3 and one for grades 4 and up) with prizes

*A 'Come Dressed as Your Favorite Story Character' contest with prizes

*Free Coffee & Cookie give aways for the Barnes & Noble Cafe every hour (for adults)

*and more!

Come join us that day, sign in with me and get your "I'm with Pioneer School" sticker to wear and show your pride in our school!

I look forward to seeing all of you!

Mrs. Russell

Welcome to Pioneer's Book Quest!

This is our school library book blog! A great place where we can discuss and share our latest adventures in reading.
I would like to start with one of my favorite books as a young girl. I loved reading The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis. I was fascinated by the idea of entering a wardrobe to discover another world peopled with talking creatures, mythical beings, and magic. The fact that years and years could go by in Narnia with all the fantastic adventures to be lived and enjoyed while only moments would pass by in our time, was such an awesome concept for me to understand and explore. I re-read the story on many occasion spending days imagining myself as Susan, the brave heroine.
The ability to 'lose' yourself in a book and visualize the experience in your mind is part of the 'magic' of books!
What books have you found especially amazing or magical?