Lower School Prouty Library 

Library classes are held in the Prouty Library and are filled with new discoveries. Students meet a variety of friends throughout the books we share, the discussions we have, and the reading programs in which they participate. Research skills are taught using both print and electronic media. All students locate and checkout their own materials using the online catalog. Grades 1-5 visit the library with their class once in a six-day rotating schedule, with the exception of Kindergarten that comes once a week.  The library curriculum often integrates classroom units as well as complements activities and projects from other Specials. The activities are organic and foster an integration of central subjects.

Kindergarten

The forty-five minute class is broken up into three parts that include reading a story, locating and checking out books, and completing an extension activity. Highlights of the school year include sharing Caldecott Award winning books, learning the location of specific materials, acquiring a basic vocabulary of literary terms, and becoming comfortable with exploring the library and its materials.

First Grade

The one-hour class is broken up into three parts that include reading a story, locating and checking out books, and completing an extension activity.  Highlights of the school year focus on discovering what makes a story a good story. This is in preparation for writing and illustrating a book with a Bancroft senior in the spring. Each first grader receives a copy of their book, which is sewn together by the senior. The library also receives a copy of each first graders’ book, which is processed, cataloged and ready for circulation by the fall of the following school year.

Second Grade

The one-hour class is broken up into three parts that include reading a story, locating and checking out books, and completing an extension activity. Highlights of the school year include locating information from resources about mummies for a mummy accordion book, exploring the most recent World Almanac for Kids book in order to complete a folktale unit, creating a kamishibai after reading, discussing and analyzing classic Japanese kamishibai stories.

Third Grade

The format for third grade library classes is different from kindergarten through grade 2. The focus changes and there is a balance between information and imagination. Students learn to write a bibliography card and notecard using the Modern Language Association’s (MLA) standards documentation. Students complete two formal research assignments during the school year and are assessed on each one.

Fourth Grade

Fourth grade students meet for one hour and complete two formal research assignments during the school year. Class times are doubled when working on research projects. The fall project is locating information from resources on an endangered species. The second project is collecting information and writing notecards on pilgrims and Native Americans. Both projects are directly related to their classroom studies and students follow the Modern Language Association’s standards of research methodology and documentation. Fourth graders recognize different genres and continue to select novels and nonfiction for their recreational reading.

Fifth Grade

During library classes, fifth graders are mastering an array of information skills, strengthening their reading talents and further developing an appreciation for books. Two formal research assignments are completed during the school year following the Modern Language Association’s standards of research methodology and documentation.  Students learn how to read and choose books for their first grade book buddies, participate in the Accelerated Reader Program, and master an array of skills to prepare them for Middle School.

Mrs. Lisa Leach