Common+Core+Standards+in+the+California+Avenue+School+Library

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** Common Core Standards in the Library Media Center ** ** by Ellen McCann **

In the Library Media Center, our students have been researching and writing about various topics that support the Common Core Standards. These Standards encourage non-fiction informational text, flexible communication and collaboration.

Our library collection at California Avenue School consists of over 18,000 library books and magazines. We offer varied collections of fiction and non-fiction materials that support the classroom curriculum. We also have an extensive collection of online databases (i.e. PebbleGo.com, BrainPOP Junior, Bookflix, etc.) that we access during library class and students can utilize from home.

We are very fortunate that we can travel all around the world while remaining within the walls of our school library. Some of the research topics we have discovered this school year are: life in polar regions, the weather, natural disasters, the moon, ancient Greece, the Titanic, and the Underground Railroad. We have also studied several authors and their works.

Students are challenged to research their topics, to write about their discoveries and to share what they learn with one another. They are challenged to answer high level questions that encourage development of critical thinking skills. Our students have access to a variety of information sources and we are constantly striving to provide them with the best resources we can offer to promote the love of reading and learning.