With only a week left at Smithfield High, our Italian and Austrian exchange students are determined to finish our latest jigsaw puzzle – Impossibles. Now that’s persistance! It has been wonderful to meet them all and work with them and we will miss their friendly smiles.
LR – Valentin Weissmann, Matilde Bonacchi, Lisa Andreatta, Monica Rapino
Last week we celebrated the Children’s Book Council of Australia’s national Book Week and we featured Brian Cox’s brilliant science lecture about our unfathomable Universe. It’s easy to download a youtube video – just watch the tutorial for a rapid method. We hung our own milky way of stars around our “Astronomy” and “Early Navigators” display (part of the Yr 8 curriculum). While “Sea Hearts” won the Young Adult category and both “The Ink Bridge” and “Friday Brown” were honour books, we featured a display of the brilliant “Creepy & Maud” by Diane Touchell. All the shortlisted titles are featured on the Book Week tab of our 24/7 Online Catalogue page.
Our Book Week Quiz competition was won by Allysha Sordelli 11F. Alicia matched the titles of 10 Sci-Fi classics with their correct first-lines. Our “Take me to your Reader” poster competition was won by Raylinda Mura 9C.
EBooks are Now on the Menu
Yes, we now hold a few dozen ebooks. Most are copyright free classics but we will be purchasing more contemporary titles as our budget permits. For all instructions about how to select and download our ebooks on your tablet (year 9) iphone, ipad or laptop read the instructions on the Ebooks tab of our Catalogue page.
Spotlight Short Play Competition Winner
Congratul
ations Gianna Perez for winning our regional short play writing competition. Gianna’s play “Room 28” will be staged this October 14 & 15th at our second round of Spotlight evenings with the Performing Arts faculty. Gianna also wins an ipad mini courtesy of Mario Calanna Pharmacies – our sponsor. All entries will recieve a participation certificate and our Judge, Ms Avril Duck has given everyone constructive feedback.
A challenge of a Puzzle
Finally, our latest jigsaw is completed. This butterfly shaped puzzle proved really difficult. Mrs Kosky, our computer technician & Nathan Black, Yr 12, are regular contributors to this communal activity and are pictured fighting over the placement of the last pieces!
WIN BOOKS & PAPER FOR OUR SCHOOL
Simply visit http://books4schools.com.au/ and register as our student, teacher or community member to increase ur chances of winning. Winners will be announced in September. We have to be in it to win it!
Displays
So much has happened this term already. We started Term 3 off with a display about sustainability. Very quickly we celebrated NAIDOC week using indigenous picture books by Percy Trezise and Dick Roughsey for an interactive competition. Kate Parker, Caraline Simank, Zach Galletly & Nathan Black all won a dip in our prize box for taking part. 
In NAIDOC week we kicked off a Book Swap Box as a literacy week initiative and we’ve collected a few donated books. Contribute a gold coin to choose a book during literacy week, July 29 – Aug4. We’re hopeful of donating the funds raised to buy literacy resources to remote communities.
Trinity Bay Writer’s Festival
Students from Smithfield High attended the annual festival. Both Joshua Pelach and Teagan Mapstone, who attended the 2 days of writing and illustrating workshops, share their impressions below.
Providing the opportunity to learn about and talk to famous authors and illustrators as well as workshop our own writing and drawing talents, the Trinity Bay Writer’s Festival was a huge success and provided all those that went with heaps of fresh new ideas and motivation. The two day event took place on the 24th and 25th of July, providing students with the opportunity to meet three authors and an illustrator. This included Boori Monty Prior, inspirational Aboriginal storyteller and winner of six major literary awards; John Heffernan, author of more than forty six successful books and multi-award winner; Prue Mason, best-selling author and winner of the Queensland Premier’s Award in 2005; and Kim Gamble, illustrator of more than 52 books for countless successful authors. As well as this, a small group called “Poetry In Action” performed for the entire group as a finale, highlighting the different types of poetry and its history in Australian culture. Overall, the writer’s festival was extremely successful and I definitely encourage anyone who has a passion for literature or art to take part next year. It is a great opportunity and should not be missed. By Joshua Pelach.
The Writers Festival held at Trinity Bay High School on the 24th and 25th of July was a beneficial experience for all future writers. It was a fulfilling and captivating two days. During the two days, students had the chance to meet and work with famous, well-known writers.
Boori Monty Prior was a cheerful and animated author. During his workshop he had the students interested about the topic as he engaged and captivated us all. He was also very funny as he wrote about experiences and memoires from his own life. John Heffernan was the author of books such as Spud; he spoke about writing from the heart. He was also very helpful with telling us some good tips on becoming better writers. Prue Mason was a fantastic author to work with as she taught us how to develop characters in stories. She gave us items that we then used to develop our own character and story during her workshop. Kim Gamble the illustrator of the Tashi series and other books demonstrated how to draw his own drawings and taught us how to draw an underwater scene.
The Writers Festival was a fantastic opportunity for all writers. It was an exhilarating experience and a must for all keen and interested writers. By Teagan Mapstone
Digital Citizenship
Click on the poster to enlarge and download the .PDF Use this flow chart to be aware of your rights and responsiblities online and make the right choices about the use of images online. For more information about Digital Citizenship, scan our diigo subject list of copyright websites. A particularly useful site with entertaining podcasts to teach you everything you need to know about the internet, is Let’s Talk Net.
Welcome back. You’ll notice some changes already but we have more surprises to come. No. 1 is our first installation. Look up and you’ll see it. Why do we have glass raindrops in the atrium ceiling? 2013 is the UN International Year of Water Cooperation. We’d like some feedback from everyone, particularly our Art students – what mark would you give us for this assignment? What would you have done differently?
You’ll notice all new sled based research chairs and gas lift computer chairs. New desks in all 3 main classroom areas are still coming, so we’re not finished yet. Checking out your books and laptops, changing passwords and seeking information or assistance will be more pleasant now we’ve a new circulation desk too. We have a huge new colour printer R45 but you’ll still be able to print black and white to R42. Just make sure the printer you choose starts with “O” for O Block, i.e. your Library.
New Books
We already have some great new titles, all of which are reviewed on our RED HOT READS page. We must give a rousing three cheers to Cassie Kosky for donating her entire collection of Lord of the Rings and Twilight coffee table books. These Movie Companions and Visual Guides to the feature films are really very valuable in their own right. We have many fans at Smithfield and I know they won’t be on the shelf for long.
Julie & Andrew Matthews from Seashell Publishers have kindly donated multiple copies of their latest book, “Stop the Bullying”. Whether you’re a student, parent or teacher, this book has some good advice for you.
Cairns Library
Of course many students are card-carrying members of the Cairns Public Library. Borrowing books, audiobooks and DVD’s for free is cheaper than buying them or renting them. But there are a few other advantages. With your library card, and a pin (just ask at the counter) you can use the internet for free for an hour at the Smithfield branch located at our back door. Edatabases like Ancestry.com can be accessed in the Smithfield Branch Library on any public internet terminal. But using your library card, you can register for a QPL Account and have access to many free Edatabases even at home. e.g. The Library Press, which is a directory of most of the world’s newspapers online. Most Learning Academy students have their QPL account – it’s easy to register. If you have trouble, just see Mrs Robins in the library to show you how.
And we’re off. Our olympic display and competitions are open. We’ve even started a Scoop-It page especially about our Reading Olympics this term. As you will see, teams Australia, Brazil and the USA are in the lead on borrowing and returning points. Who will win the cooked breakfast at the end of term? It’s still any Form Class’ game with scores very close.
Congratulations Rosheka Warwick (8G) who was the winner of the first Olympic competition. The next competition is Flags of the World so come in this week and have a go.
To feature our new books, we’ve kicked off another Scoop-It topic. Red Hot Reads, will give you a little more information about our new and not-so-new hot reads. Check it before you borrow.
We haven’t had a celebrity reader for a while. Hey we get pretty busy in the RC most weeks. Incredibly we’ve had 49,750 visitors through our doors in the first 6 months of this year!
My name is Jordan. I normally just like to read on my bed – nice and comfy. At the time I took the survey I was reading a Dr Who Book. I have a few favourite authors, my absolute favourite being Robert Muchamore. I loved reading his books as a child and still do. I’d like to meet Robert Muchamore, to discuss certain aspects behind his books. Most of the books in our house are kept on the large bookcase in our sitting room.
I’ll probably take the Hunger Game series with me on my next holiday, I often read on holiday and I really want to reread the series before all the movies come out. The last book I bought for someone was Sabriel by Garth Nix. My most memorable reads would have to be The Cherub Series. I still remember waiting the long months for the new books to be released. The Harry Potter series I’ll never forget, I’m sure everyone loved these and I just waited in anticipation as a child. And lastly the FAYZ series, which I just devoured on a camping trip.
My favourite book(s) as a child were the Harry Potter series. I’d just love for the Cherub Series to be made into a film, seeing all the stunts they do in real life would be awesome! Although, unless they work closely with the author it may be ruined!
THANKS JORDAN !
This week we launched our new online 24/7 resource catalogue. Now we can search all school resources from school or home. This means we can locate all library, departmental and textbook room resources. We can browse over 1000 titles in our stock of ClickView films and by switching to “websites search” we can search over 10,000 human-selected educational websites shared by school libraries around Australia via the Curriculum Corporation. “Safe Google searching” is optional for every related subject found. The best thing about our new catalogue is the number of “see references” and “related subjects,” which can guide us to finding all relevant resources on a particular topic. Take our online library for a test drive, then explore the Quick Links to familiarize yourself with all the online resources available to you.
Tony Ford, from Licode library management systems is pictured inservicing all library staff.
Mrs Johnston is our Celebrity Reader 15/05/12
I will read anytime and anywhere I get the chance. I am currently reading, Midwinter Sacrifice by Mons Kallentoft. My favourite authors are: Jeffrey Deaver, Kathy Reichs, Stieg Larsson, Michael Connelly and David Baldacci. Most of my books are either in my bedroom or on book shelves in the pool room. I’d take Perfect People by Peter James with me on a holiday. My most memorable reads are: Perfect People, The Stieg Larsson trilogy and The House of Sand and Fog. My favourite childhood book was The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
Infographics are easy to make , if you use the right tools. There are a handful of good Web 2.0 utilities to help you. One of the most notable is http://www.easel.ly/ because you can drag and drop readymade design components, add one of the pre-made themes or upload graphics of your own to make stunning graphic representations of the information you wish to present. Complementing your publications with good graphics makes it much more likely that your audience will read and remember what you have to tell them. Richard Byrne in Freetech4teachers uses easel.ly with zoomit to showcase his infographics. Another alternative to movie making and documenting your opinions, metacognition and reflection is Fotobabble. With Fotobabble, you record your presentation so that it is linked to a still photograph. If you don’t want to be seen at all, Voki allows you to create a speaking avatar to do your communicating for you. Thanks to Mrs Bell for that tip.
If you saw “My Week with Marilyn” based on a week in her life, or rather a week in the life of a young Englishman, you’d know that Michelle Williams was superb as the tortured Monroe. Marilyn Monroe was actually not a bad philosopher. She said, “I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they’re right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.”
The changes in the library over Easter are probably far less dramatic. First, it’s clear we’ve had a makeover -all external and internal walls were painted.
Secondly, Max Ibrahim and Dave Shenton have paved our little courtyard making an additional area outside in winter for small groups. They did such a great job of the area, we’re looking to enhance it with a few hanging plants and some plant pots if anyone in the community would like to make a donation? Please email us if you have plants to give away. Deputy Principal, Sue Davidson and Dave Shenton gave the area a test over a hot cuppa.
Mrs Sheppard set the clock on our new interior weather station, so we can be aware of changes to our interior environment. It’s so small you might miss it. Find it on the circulation counter. Remember, for authoritative weather information you can’t go past the Bureau of Meteorology.
April is “Feeling” month for the NYR, Tom Hanlon decided to try out our “Massage Chair”. If you can’t get down to try it, maybe you can find someone to give you a stress relieving neck massage. We don’t know who enjoys a quick massage more – Staff or Students?
Finally, we have a really big change coming this week. Here’s a clue below but you’ll have to ask Library staff if you think you know.
February has been a real mixed bag with Valentine’s Day reading as well as Humour (February’s theme for the National year of Reading). Teddy Bears helped us highlight some romances and relationships novels, but joke books, cartoon books and humorous fiction are still on display.
WHO IS OUR CELEBRITY READER No 1 ?
Mrs Dowling
My favourite place to read is by a resort swimming pool. Otherwise on my back deck. I’m currently reading A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin. My favourite author is Paullina Simons. My daughter’s book collection already supersedes mine. So most of our books are in the lounge room where they can easily be accessed. The last book I bought someone was “The Red Tent” by anita Diamant.
Some of my most memorable reads are:
“Looking for Alibrandi” Melina Marchetta, Bronze Horseman” Paullina Simons, “Up the Duff” Kaz Cooke
As a child, I loved the Baby Sitters Club Series by Ann M. Martin and the Faraway Tree series by Enid Blyton. I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, but was rather disappointed by the movie. Sometimes good books, are best left that way.
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Donation of Books
Thank you to Mr Jack Cowan and Mrs Ilona Born who have recently donated books to our library. Your generosity is greatly appreciated.
Can’t find scholarly references in your information search? Try Google Scholar, or better yet Hirewire Journal Database
Books Mov(i)ed into Films
Our new easel sign announces our occasional need to highlight a book which has been made into a film. With the upcoming release of Tom Hanks’ latest film, “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close”, Taylor Ives has ‘drawn’ our attention to the fact that we can view this text at the cinema at the moment. Which do you think is better – book or movie?
This is our first blog post for nearly a term. We’ve featured some funky library displays while the school website was under repair. The centrepiece of our Extreme Sports display was a canoe! Lately they’ve been more low key, with some wonderful self-portraits and sculptures decorating our Mental Health Week display last week. (featured). This week is National Nutrition week. Check whether we made the right decisions about which foods earn a healthy TICK or an unhealthy CROSS. Browse the latest edition of New Scientist magazine for the full story about how the foods we eat have been modifying our genes.
The focus of this blog post however is Documentaries. We have bookmarked some interesting directories where you can go to watch documentaries. Youtube may be the most popular repository of films on the net, but you will agree, not all are of any educational value. That’s because every man and his dog can upload their home movies and mash ups. The documentary sites we link to, point to at least 5 sites where films have been selected by the site because they have educational value.
Your teachers will have shown you many films using our school based index of films – Clickview. We update this digital collection of films every week. You are free to search “Clickview Player” and watch films that interest you or finish watching a movie you stared in class. You can even take them home on your USB drive to watch them at home. You do have to download and install the Clickview Player on your home computer or your new laptop first. We have updated a pamphlet with instructions about how to do this, and copies are located at the loans desk for you to take. Or you can view instructional tutorials by clicking on the links above.
Library staff all contributed some worldly items to complement the cultural museum box, which was used to build our CBC Book Week display. We have thee competitions that will run until end of August so there’s still time to enter to win a book or anatomical keyring. We’ve displayed statues and monuments of authors and book characters all week on our LCD screen hoping some will guess their identity or location.
Why is Book Week still relevant to teenagers? We all get so caught up working hard on our next assignment, we often forget that the absolute best way to do well on unseen tests (like Core Skills or NAPLAN) is to have a lot of recreational and wide reading over time. And, reading literature for pleasure makes you a more interesting all-round person just like reading the newspaper or watching the news makes you a better citizen of the world!
A sincere ‘Thank you’ to Collins Bookstore, Smithfield for donating book prizes and collating a small book fair/sale for us to inspect. Check out our “World of Stories” display below or on AuthorStream, if you missed our display last week.
The Midnight Zoo by Sonya Hartnett, The Red Wind by Isobel Carmody, The life of a Teenage Body-Snatcher by Doug McLeod , Hamlet by Nikki Greenberg, Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley. Many of the Book Week books and some new titles are currently on display on our library bookshelf below. Read more about the CBC Shortlist for 2011
