World Read Aloud Day

On February 1, 2019, we will celebrate World Read Aloud Day. Wellington C. Mepham High School is celebrating by reading You Read to Me, I'll Read to You: Very Short Stories to Read Together by Mary Ann Hoberman via Skype to students at the Belton School District #124 in Belton, Missouri. Mr. Achtizger's 12th grade AP students will connect with Mrs. Davis's second grade class. We aren't the only ones celebrating! World Read Aloud Day is celebrated in over 100 countries!

LitWorld

From LitWorld: 

"We think everyone in the world should get to read and write. Every year, on World Read Aloud Day, people all around the globe read aloud together and share stories to advocate for literacy as a human right that belongs to all people. Here's why that's important:

• 750 million adults around the world - two-thirds of them women - lack basic reading and writing skills
• Reading aloud to children every day puts them almost a year ahead of children who do not receive daily read alouds
• 66% of kids ages 6-11 say that reading together is fun"

#WorldReadAloudDay

Ozobots

Ozobots have found a home in Mepham's MakerSpace. We purchased six Evos this year. Award-winning Evo is a robot designed for ages 9+. It is for beginners to master coders. It offers two ways to code: online and screen-free. It's app connected and blue-tooth enabled. It has many programmable features, such as optical sensors for detecting lines and color codes, proximity sensors for obstacle detection, 7 LED lights, wheels and motor, and a built-in speaker. It also is Bluetooth® Smart (30 ft. range) and has a strong polycarbonate shell. It has automatic firmware updates, regular app updates with new features and games, and a rechargeable LiPo battery (60 minute charge time).

Evo by Ozobot

Students can request it at the circulation desk. We can't wait to see what you will dream up using Evo.

Interactive Ancient History Museum

Mr. Patten and Mr. Mazieka's 9th grade World History classes recently came into the library to research four ancient civilizations: India, China, Rome, and Greece. Each group was assigned four categories: geography, government, society, arts and culture. The arts and culture students were responsible for producing a 3D print of an object that represented their time period. The other groups had the option of creating a digital and/or a hand-crafted display to present what they learned. All students utilized Mepham's MakerSpace. On Friday, we opened the library for students to walk the exhibits.

3D prints from Mepham's MakerSpace 

Do you have an idea worth spreading?

Made with Canva

Do you have an idea worth spreading? We are looking for dynamic voices on the theme: "Together in the Divide." Click here for the speaker application. Our next TEDxWCMephamHigh event will take place on Saturday, March 30th. Be on the lookout for more information coming soon or check out our website here. 

Holiday Cheer

Flyer created using Canva.com

Join us in the school library in our MakerSpace to craft holiday cards for Mercy Haven’s network of families. Mercy Haven is  a non-sectarian, non-profit organization located in Islip Terrace that offers assistance to over 3,000 Long Islanders, approximately half of which are children. Mercy Haven’s mission is to acknowledge the dignity and potential of people who are homeless, living with mental illness, or living in poverty by providing housing, advocacy, education, and life skills development. All craft supplies will be provided. We look forward to seeing you there! 

3Doodler Start

3Doodler Start 

This award-winning kid-safe 3D printing pen has been a big hit here at the Mepham High School Library. Even though this pen is designed for ages 6+, our high school students love how easy it is to use. We started with the 3Doodler Start Essentials 3D Printing Pen Set, which includes a 3Doodler Start Pen (Blue), 2 Packs of 3Doodler Start Plastic, Activity Guide (with over 12 projects) and Micro-USB Charging Cable. We also have the 3Doodler Create which is designed for ages 14+, but the students like the grip better on the 3Doodler Create. We have purchased accessories, such as molds and stencils now that the students have a good idea how to use this device. The 3Doodler  pens are available in the library (behind the circulation desk) for all our students to create. Just ask Ms. Stack or Ms. Gellerman. What will you make?

Mindfulness in the Library

Last year you may recall that we hosted the health classes in the library for our stress-reduction stations (you can read all about it here) and this year we are bringing back a few old favorites and changing some stations up.

Station # 1: Kindness Rocks Project
Station # 2: Board Games - Tic Tac Toe, Jenga, Chess,Checkers, & Rubik's Cubes
Station # 3: Color Me Poster
Station # 4: Button Maker / Origami
Station # 5: 3Doodler Pen / littleBits
Station # 6: Bracelet Making (to support the non-profit Reason2Smile)
Station # 7: Stick Together
Station # 8: Meditation / Virtual Reality

The holidays can be a very stressful time for teens. Most parents are consumed with their own stress this time of year, so teens might not get the level of support that they are accustomed to. It's also the end of the marking period, so some teens might be worried about grades. Most of our seniors are working on college applications as well. This is all very stressful. We need to take time to de-stress. This might be a foreign concept to many of our students. This lesson is designed to teach them to take time to focus on a singular task, to put down the electronics, and to spend time talking to their peers. It is 42-minutes for them to decompress. The thing I love most about this day is that everyone (usually) leaves with a smile on their face. They seem a little more relaxed and ready to take on the day.