MSBA Book Buzz

Fun with Animoto

msbabookbuzz — Thu, 17 May 2012 15:13:29 +0000

We had 8 MSBA Book Club members join us at McArthur Public Library last night to learn how to create book trailers using Animoto! The workshop started with a yummy dinner of pizza and pier fries, then we got down to business! Mrs Dee walked us through how a book trailer is created. From choosing pictures, to what music to use, and choosing just the right words a lot of thought has to go into putting together a book trailer so that each piece helps “sell” the book to other readers. Deanna helped us understand the concepts of copyright and Fair Use rules to use images, music, and texts in appropriate ways.

Then the fun really began! Each MSBAer got their own Animoto account and started creating a book trailer for a book they’ve already read from the 2012-2013 MSBA Nominee List. After brainstorming some picture ideas on paper everybody just started searching and playing with the tools on the site. There were so many creative ideas buzzin’ around the room it was difficult to keep up! We didn’t quite get them finished so students will continue working on them at home and school. We hope to have some completed ones to share at our last MSBA Book Club meeting of this school year next Wednesday, May 23rd!

Click to view slideshow.

Maine Reading Round Up

msbabookbuzz — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 13:41:20 +0000

Students from Biddeford Intermediate School and Biddeford Middle School presented at the Maine Reading Round Up Conference in Augusta yesterday, April 12th. After the final 2012-2103 Maine Student Book Award list was finalized on March 10, 2012 these students chose one or two books from the list, read them, wrote a book talk, and then did a LOT of practicing in just one month! They were extremely excited to present their book talks to librarians from all across the state of Maine!

Approximately 60 librarian attended the workshop session and they were kept very busying taking notes on each book that was presented. Students didn’t let the fact the it was standing room only in the room throw them at all! Hearing the opinions of students the same ages as students they work with, gave the librarians very useful “insider” information about books they are considering for their collections.

It was a fantastic day for all involved!

Click to view slideshow.

And the Winner is…

msbabookbuzz — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 14:59:22 +0000

The books have been read, the readers (that’s YOU) have voted, and the votes have been counted! There were 4, 077 students across the state of Maine who participated in the 2011-2012 Maine Student Book Award program! And guess what? 221 of those students were from Biddeford Intermediate School! Way to go readers!

First Place

Smile by Raina Telgemeier

(Click on the book title to see the book trailer. Click on the author’s name to visit their website.)

Second Place

Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper

(Click on the book title to see the book trailer. Click on the author’s name to visit their website.)

Third Place

The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan

(Click on the book title to see the book trailer. Click on the author’s name to visit their website.)

Congratulations to all of the authors and their FANTASTIC books!

And congratulations to all of you who read and buzzed about the books on this year’s list!

A sneak peek at a book on the 2012-2013 MSBA Reading List!

msbabookbuzz — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 21:09:20 +0000

Charlie Joe Jackson’s Guide to Not Reading

MSBA Book Club

msbabookbuzz — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 14:11:21 +0000

Lots of book buzz in the room!

Hey MSBAers! We had a fantastic turn out at the MSBA Book Club meeting on February 29, 2012. Deanna and Mrs. Dee gave a “little” behind the scenes view of the process of how books are chosen for the Maine Student Book Award list. Congratulations to all of you by the way! You book buzzers sent in 39…yes count them… 3-9 recommendations for the 2012-2013 list. That was more than any other school system in the state! Way to make your voices be heard!

We also buzzed about what book has been our absolute favorite on the 2011-2012 MSBA List. Loud shout outs were given to Smile! by Raina Telgemeier, The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger, Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper, Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine, The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester, and A Tale Dark & Grimm by Adam Gidwitz. Everyone agreed that voting for just ONE title is going to be VERY difficult!

Our next MSBA meeting will be Wednesday, March 21st! We will be getting ready for our Book Talk Presentation at Maine Reading Round Up! Come join the fun!

Don’t Forget!

msbabookbuzz — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 16:12:51 +0000

Hey MSBAers!

Don’t forget that our next MSBA Book Club meeting is TOMORROW, Wednesday, February 29th from 2:30-3:30 in the BIS Library! We’re going to be buzzing about our favorite books from this year’s list as we get ready to cast our official votes in a few weeks.

And remember that Pen Pal project we started last month with the library in Canada? Well, we will be continuing our correspondance with them too.

As always we’ll have snacks, book giveaways and the Late Bus will be available! Come buzz with us about books!

It’s Almost Time!

msbabookbuzz — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:18:36 +0000

Hey MSBAers!

We are coming down to the wire for reading books on the 2011-2012 MSBA List! We’ve seen lots of great books in your hands over the past couple of months. The MSBA Bookshelves at BIS and McArthur Public Library have been getting lots of love for sure! We will be voting at BIS March 21st through 27th during Library class so you still have time to read! If you don’t go to BIS you can stop in the Children’s Room or Teen Section at McArthur Public Library to vote too! Deanna and Brooke would be happy to help you out! Remember you only need to have read three titles off the list to be eligible to vote.

Now you know we are wondering…what’s been YOUR favorite MSBA book this year? Leave a comment telling us the title and why you liked it!

How They Croaked: The Awful Ends of the Awfully Famous by Georgia Bragg

msbabookbuzz — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:39:02 +0000

How They Croaked is an informational book of how the deaths of the famous occurred. To name a few: King Tut, Julius Caesar (my favorite part), Cleopatra and more.

How They Croaked is definitely gory. So, if you like gore, blood, deaths and etc. you will love this book, just like I did, but if you can’t handle all of the above… DON’T READ IT!

I loved this book because it was so detailed and I could picture everything in my mind!!! I also loved how there are some pictures and some of the paragraphs are wicked funny! The only thing I didn’t like about this books was that it had to end.

-Madelyn Farley, Grade 5

Ghetto Cowboy by G. Neri

msbabookbuzz — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:19:06 +0000

Ghetto Cowboy is about a kid named Cole. His mother is tired of him always being in trouble so she drives him to his dad, Harper’s house, in Philadelphia. The problem is Cole’s dad hasn’t seen him since he was born. At first it seems Harper doesn’t like Cole and Cole sure feels the same way! Cole discovers that his dad is a horseman who keeps horses in the middle of the city but the city is threatening to close down the stables. Will Cole and his dad be able to work together to save the horses? And what about Cole’s mom? Will she come back for Cole? Read this amazing book to find out! – Marty M. Grade 5

Book Review: Diary of a Wimpy Kid – Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney

msbabookbuzz — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 18:40:07 +0000

Greg is blamed for vandalism on school property. And a huge blizzard hits Greg’s town and no one can drive till it’s over! Now Greg has to face his biggest challenge yet! Will he get in serious trouble or will he have a happy ending?

I loved it! It was very easy to read and it was funny, though at times it was very slow moving. I’d recommend it for 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th graders.

-Reviewed by Matthew F., grade 5