The Narnian Chronicles

We have just received a classroom set of "The Narnian Chronicles". These are lovely books. All seven of the books are contained in one volume. It is hardbound so it will endure multiple uses. We have had so many of the students ask if they can be checked out. Please keep checking back. When they are done in the classroom, they will be available for individual checkout. CCB

A Christmas Carol

At this holiday season, we would like to share with you the classic tale, "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens. The following link will take you to the complete text online. Enjoy and happy holidays! A Christmas Carol CCB

Inside the Kingdom

I had looked forward to reading Inside the Kingdom by Carmen bin Laden from the time it came into our library. Having read it, I can tell it was written by an untrained author. It has some important perceptions to share but it is also redundant, almost to a fault. I'm glad I read it but I don't know that I would read it again. Would I recommend it? Yes. It is worth reading just not twice. CCB

Library of Congress

Did you know that the Library of Congress has a great link? Check out the possibilities. There is something for everyone! Parents and teachers, this is a great resource to get your kids excited about reading and writing. CCB Library of Congress

Alas, Babylon

Published in 1959, Alas, Babylon was written during the Cold War between Russia and the United States. As I read this thought provoking book, it caused me to reflect on the potential for disaster in our own generation and what would ensure survival. While many approach a nuclear holocaust as unsurvivable, I, personally, prefer to believe that there is hope and that mankind would survive, regardless of how difficult. This book showed the potential. Now, can we apply the theory and learn from the imagination of others? This link will take you to the "cliff notes" version of Alas,Babylon CCB

What type of book do you like?

In "A Thomas Jefferson Education" Mr. DeMille quotes Daniel Taylor’s The Healing Power of Stories in which Mr. Taylor categorizes books in 4 different categories. They are 1) Bent; 2) Broken 3) Whole and 4) Healing As you are involved with your student, it helps to be able to determine which type of story you are reading. Each type has a different purpose and will influence how the book is understood. Following, you will find taken from Dr. DeMille's book the defination of the four types of stories. See if you can tell them apart next time you sit down with a good read. Bent stories are those that make evil good and encourage the vilest of reactions and emotions. Pornography is one example. Broken stories are those where evil is evil and good is good, but evil wins. Books like The Lord of the Flies or Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle are examples of Broken stories. Because Broken stories can be very disturbing, they can often serve to motivate people to get involved in fixing what is broken, changing the wrongs addressed in the books. Whole stories are those where good is good and evil is evil, and good wins in the end. Most classics and wholesome literature fall into this category. Little Women and Robin Hood are two examples of many. Healing stories are those which are either Broken or Whole where the reader is emotionally drawn in and changed significantly for the better by reading it. Charlotte’s Web could be considered a Healing story. As we read about what happens to Charlotte and Wilbur, we are saddened, and yet by the end of the story we’ve grown as we’ve seen their relationship and personalities grow. Can you tell which catergory your favorite book falls into? CCB

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

If you see your student come home with a turquoise blue book, be sure to ask them about it! "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" will open your mind and eyes in a curious and unique way. As I read the opening chapters of this unusual book, I understood thoughts and feelings that my student had been trying to share with me for several months. CCB

Jane Austin

When thinking of the classics, Jane Austin seems to be one of the first authors that come to mind. The following link will take you to a site that lists many of her works and speaks of her life. There are several titles of Miss Austin in the Paradigm Library. We would encourage you to visit the following link to discover with your student some of the works of this prolific author. Thanks for visiting! CCB Jane Austin

Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc

Have you ever wished that you could read some of the material that your students are required to read? Now you can! The following link takes you to Mark Twain's novel "My Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc". The text is there in its entirety. Surprise your students and begin a discussion with them regarding this Twain classic! Mr. Twain is well-known for his works "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" and "Tom Sawyer". However, of his work, Mr. Twain said of the "Personal Recollections" novel "I like Joan of Arc best of all my books; and it is the best; I know it perfectly well. And besides, it furnished me seven times the pleasure afforded me by any of the others; twelve years of preparation, and two years of writing. The others need no preparation and got none." CCB "Personal Recollections of Mark Twain"

Internet Public Library

We have discovered the greatest resource for parents and students! It is the Internet Public Library or IPL. We have added this link to our site so that you can get there quickly. It has the complete text of many of the books that the school is using. It also has research capabilities and reference helps. Please check out this great site! CCB

Brandon Mull

Paradigm High Library had the great opportunity of listening to Brandon Mull on Nov. 3, 2009. Mr. Mull is the author of the popular series "Fablehaven". His visit was arranged through the network of Ms. Hanson, one of the English teachers at Paradigm. The students met in the library in 2 sessions and enjoyed Mr. Mull's presentation. The following article was written by Matt Boren, from Paradigm High who attended the presentation. Author Time Paradigm is known for its unusual and exciting classes. Students have the option of taking Astronomy, Leadership, and a variety of other remarkable classes. Another characteristic class of Paradigm is Novel Writing, where young aspiring authors work on their books and help each other improve. Recently, the school arranged for none other than Brandon Mull, bestselling author of the Fablehaven fantasy series, to come and give professional advice to aspiring novelists. Mr. Mull gave advice about many different facets of writing a book. One of the pieces of advice he gave was to be a good observer. If you pay attention to your surroundings, you’ll better be able to describe it to someone, a useful skill in Novel Writing. Character development and plot/conflict also featured big in his presentation. With the advice of a bestselling author now in their mental databases, I’m sure Paradigm will produce many great and famous authors. Thank you for your time and wisdom, Mr. Mull! CCB

New books!!

We are so excited to report that we have received a great donation from one of the school libraries here in the valley! One of the goals of Paradigm High School library is to update/expand the non-fiction section of our library so there are resources for the students to use for learning and research. The donation that we received this last week is moving us toward that goal! We are so excited to be able to get these books cataloged so they will be available to the students. Thanks to our wonderful parents who keep their ears to the ground and look for ways to help us improve our resources! CCB

Thanks!

A library never ceases to grow and in order to help facilitate that growth, we owe a HUGE thanks to all of the parent volunteers that have helped us since school began. These awesome parents have faithfully been at the library each week to help with such tasks as folding and applying laminated book covers, applying new spine labels and helping shelf books. Most of our volunteers have been moms of our students but we have even had a dad come in to help us with moving the heavy stuff; i.e., moving books from shelf to shelf and moving books out of the library. We appreciate their help so much! Our volunteers include: Lynn Dickinson Chris Dickinson Sherie Mattle Monica Cooper LaWaine Rose Mauri Bowles Stacee Pratt Michelle Bennett Lynn Ogzeqalla Cheryl Despain Vicki Fox CCB

Kipling

Born 30 December 1865 in Bombay, India, Mr. Kipling grew up speaking languagues other than English. His native caretakers would speak the native language and then send him to spend time with his parents, reminding him to speak English with them. Although much of his life was spent away from Bombay, Mr. Kipling would always consider Bombay "home". He would later write: Mother of Cities to me, For I was born in her gate, Between the palms and the sea, Where the world-end steamers wait. Mr. Kipling wrote both short stories and poetry. Much of his writing deals with the conflicts he experienced during his own life-time. As was the custom, Mr. Kipling was sent to Londonto be cared for by a couple that took in children of British nationals living in India. Mr. Kipling and his 3 year old sister would live with the couple, Captain and Mrs. Holloway, at their house, Lorne Lodge, for the next six years. Of those 6 years he would later write: "If you cross-examine a child of seven or eight on his day’s doings (specially when he wants to go to sleep) he will contradict himself very satisfactorily. If each contradiction be set down as a lie and retailed at breakfast, life is not easy. I have known a certain amount of bullying, but this was calculated torture—religious as well as scientific. Yet it made me give attention to the lies I soon found it necessary to tell: and this, I presume, is the foundation of literary effort". Writing of his rescue from his unhappiness, Mr. Kipling wrote about his aunt: "Often and often afterwards, the beloved Aunt would ask me why I had never told any one how I was being treated. Children tell little more than animals, for what comes to them they accept as eternally established. Also, badly-treated children have a clear notion of what they are likely to get if they betray the secrets of a prison-house before they are clear of it". Mr. Kipling died January 18,1936. We have several older copies of some of Mr. Kipling's works. These are enchanting stories that appeal to all ages. It would be awesome to have newer copies for our students to enjoy! CCB

A. Conan Doyle

The Hound of the Baskervilles A Classic Sherlock Holmes Adventure! Do you want to check this book out to see if you like it before actually reading the whole thing? Why don't you check out the following link. It will take you to an electronic version of this classic work. Let us know what you thought of it--should it be in Paradigm's library collection? CCB Hound of the Baskervilles

Jack London

Jack London was born January 12, 1876 and died November 22, 1916. An American author, he wrote "The Call of the Wild", "White Fang", and "The Sea Wolf" along with many other popular books. Mr. London was a pioneer in the opening world of commercial magazine fiction. He was one of the first Americans to make his living exclusively from writing. Mr. London spent a period of time in the Klondike region of Alaska which is also the setting of "The Call of the Wild". He had a varied and interesting life before turning to writing. Many of his experiences can be found online. Reading about them make his stories easier to understand and appreciate. The following link seems to be one that has reliable information: London The copies that we have of "The Call of The Wild" and "White Fang" have been well used and worn. It would be great to have newer copies so the students didn't have to worry about losing pages or not understand the story because pages have been lost. CCB

Kipling

First published in 1912, Just So Stories is a delightful book of 12 short stories by Rudyard Kipling. In reading the first story, I was reminded of an early "Dr. Seus" for words were made up to make a rhyming pattern. Although it wasn't throughout the story, it reminded me of the stories have taught the current generation to read. If you would like to read this delightful book online, please click the following link. It will open in a new window. To get back to this blog, simply hit the back button. Kipling CCB

Core books

One of the guiding philosophies of Paradigm High School is discovering your "core" books---those books that touch your deepest part, even after repeated readings. The classics are some core books. Then there are other great pieces of literature like Les Miserables, Don Quixote, A Man for All Seasons, Johnny Tremain, Freckles; just to mention a few, all of which are in the Paradigm Library. Why don't you step into the library and let us help you discover what your core books are. How have they changed you and what have they taught you about life? CCB

Madeline L'Engle

Do you enjoy a fantasy story that doesn't break it's own rules? Madeline L'Engle is a master fantasy story teller that maintains 100% believability. Her best known work is "A Wrinkle in Time". I just finished her sequel "A Swiftly Tilting Planet" over the week-end. It was great! It was fun to be able to pick up the book and be able to know the characters from a previous story. The only sad part was that the book was old and missing some corners so it was hard to read all the words. It would be a great story to have replaced! The link below will take you to a page that will tell you about this amazing author, her life, her works and her accomplishments. L'Engle CCB

The Agony and the Ecstasy

This novel is the classical story of Michaelangelo. We currently have 1 copy in the library but it has been well loved and well used. We would love to have a newer copy that is appealing to the kids. Irving Stone is a prolific writer with some 15 major novels to his credit among which are "Lust for Life" (the story of Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln) "The Immortal Wife"(the story of John C. Fremont) and "The President's Lady" (the story of Andrew Jackson). His favored genre is historical fiction based around the lives of well-known figures. A lot of his research was done "in the field"--meaning that he lived in the area of his characters so that he could gain a greater appreciation of their lives and surroundings. His novels are internationally known and cover international personalities. Many of his novels have been the basis of major motion pictures. CCB

WISH LIST NEWBERRY AWARD WINNING BOOKS

2009 Medal Winner: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, illus. by Dave McKean (HarperCollins) Honor Books: The Underneath by Kathi Appelt, illus. by David Small (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster) The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom by Margarita Engle (Henry Holt) Savvy by Ingrid Law (Dial Books for Young Readers, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group in partnership with Walden Media) After Tupac & D Foster by Jacqueline Woodson (G.P. Putnam's Sons, a division of Penguin Books for Young Readers) 2008 Medal Winner: Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village by Laura Amy Schlitz (Candlewick) Honor Books: Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis (Scholastic) The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt (Clarion) Feathers by Jacqueline Woodson (Putnam) 2007 Medal Winner: The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron, illus. by Matt Phelan (Simon & Schuster/Richard Jackson) Honor Books: Penny from Heaven by Jennifer L. Holm, (Random House) Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson (Delacorte Press) Rules by Cynthia Lord (Scholastic) 2006 Medal Winner: Criss Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins (Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins) Honor Books: Whittington by Alan Armstrong, illustrated by S.D. Schindler (Random House) Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow by Susan Campbell Bartoletti (Scholastic) Princess Academy by Shannon Hale (Bloomsbury Children's Books) Show Way by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated by Hudson Talbott (G.P. Putnam's Sons) 2005 Medal Winner: Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata (Atheneum Books for Young Readers/Simon & Schuster)Honor Books: Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko (G.P. Putnam's Sons/a division of Penguin Young Readers Group) The Voice that Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights" by Russell Freedman (Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin) Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt (Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin) 2004 Medal Winner: The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering, (Candlewick Press)Honor Books: Olive's Ocean by Kevin Henkes (Greenwillow Books) An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 by Jim Murphy (Clarion Books) 2003 Medal Winner: Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi (Hyperion Books for Children)Honor Books: The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer (Atheneum) Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff (Random House/Wendy Lamb Books) Hoot by Carl Hiaasen (Knopf) A Corner of The Universe by Ann M. Martin (Scholastic) Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie S. Tolan (HarperCollins) 2002 Medal Winner: A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park (Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin)Honor Books: Everything on a Waffle by Polly Horvath (Farrar Straus Giroux) Carver: A Life In Poems by Marilyn Nelson (Front Street) 2001 Medal Winner: A Year Down Yonder by by Richard Peck (Dial)Honor Books: Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer (G.P. Putnam’s Sons) Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo (Candlewick Press) Joey Pigza Loses Control by Jack Gantos (Farrar, Straus, and Giroux) The Wanderer by Sharon Creech (Joanna Cotler Books/HarperCollins) 2000 Medal Winner: Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis (Delacorte)Honor Books: Getting Near to Baby by by Audrey Couloumbis (Putnam) Our Only May Amelia by Jennifer L. Holm (HarperCollins) 26 Fairmount Avenue by Tomie dePaola (Putnam)

Student Wish List

I've noticed many of you coming into the library looking for a book to read and walking back out. I would like to propose a student wish list. If you have a series or certain author or a favorite book. PLEASE POST IT HERE AND I'LL PUT IT ON THE WISH LIST. MAKE IT A GREAT DAY Please submit the following information: Title Author Series (if applicable) Your name and grade Thanks

Wish list Author Shannon Hale a local author

New York Times best selling author Shannon Hale started writing books at age ten and never stopped, eventually earning an MFA in Creative Writing. After nineteen years of writing and dozens of rejections, she published The Goose Girl, the first book in her award winning series, followed by Enna Burning and River Secrets. She also has two standalone books for young readers--Book of a Thousand Days, a CYBILS award winner, and Princess Academy, a Newbery Honor Book. With Austenland and The Actor and the Housewife she crosses over into books for adults. Her latest is a graphic novel co-written with her husband Dean, Rapunzel's Revenge, an Al's Book Club for Kids selection featured on NBC's Today. They reside near Salt Lake City with their toddler son, baby daughter, and their pet, a small, plastic pig.

Shannon Hale's official link can be found at Shannon Hale Goose Girl Princess Anidori, on her way to marry a prince she has never met, is betrayed by her guards and her lady-in-waiting and must become a goose girl to survive until she can reveal her true identity and reclaim the crown that is rightfully hers. Enna Burning Sequel to: The goose girl. Enna hopes that her new knowledge of how to wield fire will help protect her good friend Isi--the Princess Anidori--and all of Bayern against their enemies, but the need to burn is uncontrollable and puts Enna and her loved ones in grave danger. Books of a Thousand Days Fifteen-year-old Dashti, sworn to obey her sixteen-year-old mistress, the Lady Saren, shares Saren's years of punishment locked in a tower, then brings her safely to the lands of her true love, where both must hide who they are as they work as kitchen maids. River Secrets Young Razo travels from Bayern to Tira at war's end as part of a diplomatic corps, but mysterious events in the Tiran capital fuel simmering suspicions and anger, and Razo must spy out who is responsible before it is too late and he becomes trapped in an enemy land. Princess Academy While attending a strict academy for potential princesses with the other girls from her mountain village, fourteen-year-old Miri discovers unexpected talents and connections to her homeland Rapunzel’s Revenge Rapunzel, having grown up in a lovely castle with the woman she thought was her mother, is placed in a very tall hollow tree as punishment after her curiousity prompts her to climb the castle wall and look at the ruin of the world beyond her home, but she is able to escape and with the help of Jack, embarks on a plan to free the land from the grip of the witch. Forest Born When her beloved forest no longer gives her comfort and her brother Razo invites Rinna to the city to be one of Queen Ani's waiting women, she happily accepts, only to discover her own strength comes from places both expected and unexpected.

Fablehaven

We are in the process of authorizing a wish list to post on the blog. In the meantime I would like to post one of my favorite authors on this wishlist. It is a local author, his name is Brandon Mull. I'm not sure how many Fablehaven fan are out there. His stories are a fabulous fantasy with action and unexpected twists. We would love to have all four of his books in our library in hardback.

Fablehaven Book !

Kendra and Seth find themselves in the midst of a battle between good and evil when they visit their grandparents' estate and discover that it is a sanctuary for magical creatures.

Fablehaven Rise of the Evening Star

At the end of the school year, Kendra and Seth return to Fablehaven to help their grandfather defend a hidden artifact of great power from the Society of the Evening Star.

Fablehaven Grip of the Shadow Plague

While Kendra searches with the Knights of Dawn for a hidden artifact, Seth discover a plague that changes beings of light into evil creatures and must decide if he can trust the help of Vanessa or the Sphinx to stop it.

Fablehaven Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary

When Kendra and Seth go to stay at their grandparents' estate, they discover that it is a sanctuary for magical creatures and that a battle between good and evil is looming.

S.O.S. Save Our Library Our library has been on an incredible journey the last few years. It has charted many courses through the journey of learning. We have expanded our classroom sets that our mentors are using for their classroom curriculum. As we have evaluated our collection in the library itself we are finding the average copyright date to be between 1960 and 1975. We are looking to update our collection keeping the classical flair. Our non-fiction section is in special need for more books, then students will be able to do better research. These are the ways you can help: 1. Purchase a book from our wish list preferably hardbound. 2. Donate slightly used books from your own collection that you no longer need. If you choose to donates books you already own please keep the following things in mind. *We appreciate books that are in good repair. *We prefer hardback books whenever possible because this ensures a longer shelf life. 3. Make a monetary donation to the library. If you choose this option we can choose library bound books from bookseller like Follett Library Resources that are fabulous bindings and are guaranteed for life. When you make a donation to our library we will put a plaque inside the book with your child's name inside. This way your child's legacy will be at Paradigm forever. Thank your for your generousity!!!

Welcome to the Paradigm Library Blog

I enjoyed meeting many of you at our Meet and Greet last week. I first would like to introduce myself. My name is Emilee McCoy and I am the new media specialist here at Paradigm. I have a BS degree from Utah State University in Elementary Education. I have taught 3rd or 4th grade for 7 years. Last year I opened and organized a elementary library at a charter school called Canyon Rim Academy. I realized then that I have found my calling in life and I am in the process of getting my Library Endorsement in addition to my degree. I have a passion for children's literature and find myself reading a book aloud to anyone who will listen. I feel blessed to be here at Paradigm and look forward to creating an appealing library where people will want to mingle and mix and be. I look forward to getting to know each of you better. Thank you for you support here at Paradigm.

Mentor-Parent Meet and Greet

The motto for Paradigm High School is "A Different Kind of Think". That motto can be seen reflected in the new books that we have ordered for the mentors to use in their classroom curriculum. They are nicely framed in new bookshelves behind the librarian's desk and in the west wing of the library. We are so excited by this new addition! The annual meet and greet event for Paradigm High School will be Sept. 22 and 23rd from 5:00PM to 8:00PM. The library at Paradigm will be open for parents to come and peruse the collection that we currently have.