Why should you read...

You all know what a big fan I am of TED-Ed. Well, they started producing a series of video lessons titled Why Should You Read... And it's perfect for high school students. Check out the one below on Moby Dick by Herman Melville.

You can explore all TED-Ed videos here. 

Coronavirus and Technology

Many technology education companies are offering their services at reduced rates or for free, as we navigate these unprecedented times of mass school closings. One such company, BrainPOP (which we currently subscribe to), has a video that does a wonderful job of explaining the Coronavirus to students. It is linked below. Students can access all BrainPOP resources by going to the Mepham High School Library Website and clicking on the Database tab. Once you land on this page, hit the "Click Here for Databases." The databases are listed in alphabetical order. Click on BrainPOP. These databases are password-protected. Refer to your username and password handout or stop by the library if you need an additional copy. You can always email Mrs. Stack at sstack@bmchsd.org with questions.

BrainPOP

BrainPOP Coronavirus Description

It can be scary to hear about a disease outbreak, but learning the facts can help ease your mind. A new coronavirus—a type of virus named for its crown-like shape—emerged in Wuhan, China in 2019, and then spread to people around the world. While the most severe cases often dominate the headlines, they’re not the whole story. Most coronavirus cases have been mild, and healthy bodies can fight off the infection on their own. Find out more about how viruses work, and the best ways to prevent them from infecting more people. Viruses can’t spread without our help, so click play to learn how not to help them!

Women's History Month

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Check out the displays throughout the library celebrating Women's History Month. If you are looking for even more books written by women authors, novels with female characters, or biographies of women, please see the librarian for suggestions. We have lots of different options!

Packed House for Author Visit

Packed house for our annual author visit

Junior Christina DeMarco won a copy of author, Claribel Ortega's new book, Ghost Squad

Student thoroughly engaged in the presentation

Mepham juniors and seniors packed the school library for today's author visit with Claribel Ortega. Thank you to the National English Honor Society for hosting this event. Ms. Ortega discussed the arduous task of writing a novel and the more arduous task of getting your novel published. She talked about the difficulty she had finding a quality agent. She spoke of all this through humor and memes. Ms. Ortega spoke about her struggles with anxiety and depression and made a true effort to connect with our students. The students asked thoughtful and genuine questions about writing, publishing, books, and so much more. The turnout at our annual author visit is proof that students are seeking to make meaningful connections with adults in fields of English and it's our job to provide them with these opportunities. 

Claribel Ortega

Author, Claribel Ortega, to visit Mepham High School

We are so very excited to welcome author, Claribel Ortega, to Mepham High School on Tuesday, February 11, 2019. This event is hosted by the Mepham High School chapter of the National English Honor Society. We will have a reading from the author's novel, Ghost Squad, which is set to be released on April 7, 2020. The reading will follow with a Q&A with our students.

About the author (from her Website):

Claribel Ortega went from journalism student, editing her classmates often times hilarious ads and ramblings on the back page of SUNY Purchase’s Independent Newspaper, to a small town reporter, where she enjoyed going to board of ed meetings and texting the town mayors about the line at Starbucks. 

Today she’s busy turning her obsession with eighties pop culture, magic and video games into books while traveling the world for her day job in marketing. She is the host of the WRITE OR DIE podcast, owner of small graphic design business GIFGRRL and the GIFGRRL SHOP which creates apparel for writers and creatives. 

She lives in New York with her motorcycle-riding poet boyfriend & her suspiciously intelligent yorkie, Pancho Villa. 

Claribel’s debut middle grade novel GHOST SQUAD is coming from Scholastic in 2019.

World Read Aloud Day

Skyping with Mrs. Sullivan's 4th Grade Class

In honor of yesterday’s #WorldReadAloudDay, Mr. Achtziger’s & Mr. Richard’s 12th grade class Skyped with Mrs. Sullivan’s 4th grade class from Levy Lakeside School @MerrickUFSD. Both classes took turns reading aloud.

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Did you know that according to the latest report (2016), 758 million adults - two-thirds of them women - lack basic reading and writing skills. World Read Aloud Day, founded by LitWorld, is an international advocacy day celebrated by over 170 million people worldwide. When communities have access to strong literacy tools, every aspect of life improves, from family health and nutrition to civic engagement and participation in the labor market, to poverty reduction. - From LitWorld

Black History Month

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Library display

Check out the displays throughout the library celebrating Black History Month. If you are looking for even more books written by African-American authors, novels with African-American characters, or biographies of African-Americans, please see the librarian for suggestions. We have lots of different options!