Reach For The Stars...

S. Christa McAuliffe Elementary School

Where children, “Reach for the Stars”



McAuliffe School Vision

The S. Christa McAuliffe Elementary School community strives to educate the whole child intellectually, emotionally, culturally, socially, and physically by offering rich and engaging instruction in a safe, respectful, and caring environment. Our students and staff strive to be independent thinkers and life-long learners. We believe that collaboration among school, home, and community is essential in ensuring students meet our high academic and behavioral standards and achieve their fullest potential.


Monday, June 29, 2015

Summer Reading News


Lowell Public Schools and Pollard Library Summer Reading Program-Lowell Students Read
Dear Parents, Guardians, and Caretakers:
As partners in the education of our youth, I invite you to help your child extend his or her reading skills this summer.
  • Did you know that if your child reads books this summer, your child will come to middle school better prepared to succeed in 5th grade?
  • Did you know that good readers are more likely to graduate from high school and go to college?
    Here’s how you can help:
  • Check that your child reads for 30 minutes every day.
  • Sign your child’s book log each time your child finishes a book.
  • Take your child to the Pollard Library and make sure your child has a book he or she can read.
    Your child is expected to:
  • Select and read a minimum of one title from the list on the back of this sheet.
  • Return to school prepared to participate in a discussion with classmates and teachers about the book from the list
    that he or she read.
  • Pass in a book log, a list of all the books he or she read during the summer.
    Here’s how Lowell Public Schools is helping:
  1. 1)  On the back of this letter you will find a list of high interest titles that have been selected by fifth grade students
    and reviewed by district personnel.
  2. 2)  All titles are available to borrow at the Pollard Library. Audio books are also available, and these titles may be
    purchased at area bookstores.
Your child will receive a certificate of participation when he/she passes in his or her book log. Each student who reads at least one book will be entered into a drawing to represent their school at a School Committee meeting in the fall.
In partnership with the Lowell Spinners and their support for Summer Reading, each Elementary Student will receive a voucher for one game and a free hot dog.
We know that with your guidance and commitment, your child will be better prepared to begin the middle school journey. Thank you,
M. Claire Abrams
Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment

Summer Reading 2015 Students Entering Grade 5

Lowell Public Schools and Pollard Library Summer Reading Program-Lowell Students Read Students Entering Grade 5
Summer Reading 2015

Book Descriptions: Adapted from Editorial Reviews provided through amazon.com
*The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympian Series), Rick Riordan
Percy is about to be kicked out of school. And that’s the least of his troubles. Lately, mythological monsters and the gods of Mount
Olympus seem to be walking straight out of the pages of Percy’s Greek mythology textbook and into his life. And worse, he’s angered a few of them. Zeus’s master lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect. Now, Percy and his friends have just ten days to find and return Zeus’s stolen property and bring peace to a warring Mount Olympus.
The Watsons Go To Birmingham, Christopher Paul Curtis
The year is 1963, and Byron Watson is the bane of his younger brother Kenny’s existence. Constantly in trouble for one thing or another, from straightening his hair to freezing his lips to the mirror of the new family car, Byron finally pushes the family too far. His Mom and Dad decide to send him to the Deep South to spend the summer with his strict grandmother. Soon, the whole family is packed up and ready to make the drive from Michigan into one of the most chilling moments in America’s civil rights history.
Ginger Pye, Eleanor Estes
Meet Ginger Pye, the smartest dog you’ll ever know. Jerry Pye and his sister, Rachel, feel pretty smart themselves for buying Ginger. It was the best dollar they ever spent. Ginger steals everybody’s heart ... until someone steals him!
The Big Field, Mike Lupica
For Hutch, shortstop has always been home. It’s where his father once played professionally, before injuries relegated him to watching games on TV instead of playing them. And it’s where Hutch himself has always played and starred. Until now. Mike Lupica delivers a feel-good home run, showing how love of the game is a language fathers and sons speak from the heart.
Rules, Cynthia Lord
Twelve-year-old Catherine has conflicting feelings about her younger brother, David, who is autistic. While she loves him, she is also embarrassed by his behavior and feels neglected by their parents. In an effort to keep life on an even keel, Catherine creates rules for him. Each chapter title is also a rule, and lots more are interspersed throughout the book. Set in coastal Maine, this sensitive story is about being different, feeling different, and finding acceptance.
When You Reach Me, Rebecca Stead
Shortly after sixth-grader Miranda and her best friend Sal part ways, for some inexplicable reason her world turns upside down. Maybe it’s because she’s caught up reading A Wrinkle in Time and trying to understand time travel, or perhaps it’s because she’s been receiving mysterious notes that accurately predict the future. Stead’s characters, New York City kids, start to recognize and negotiate the complexities of friendship and family, class and identity.
*series
Summer Reading 2015 Students Entering Grade 5

Lowell Public Schools and Pollard Library Summer Reading Program-Lowell Students Read Book Talks
Talking about books is a way to spark your classmates’ and teachers’ interest and introduce them to new texts that they might otherwise miss. Think of a book talk as a brief commercial for your book. Jot down a few notes to remind you of the essential points you want to make. A book talk will take only a few minutes. You might want to think about the following things when deciding what to talk about in your Book Talk.
You will be responsible to talk about one of the books you’ve read during the summer with your classmates when you return to school.
Talk about the title and the author. (What would be another good title for this text? Explain.) Show the cover and some of the illustrations. (What information does the reader get?)
Read aloud the lead or a particularly interesting or exciting part of the text. (Explain author’s craft in this part of the text. Explain how this part of the text affects the reader’s understanding.)
Connect the book to your life or the lives of students in general. (What did you learn about life or yourself from this book?)
Pose questions. (If you could ask the author one question, what would it be and why?)
Tell about the plot or about one character. (What is one character’s main problem in the story? How did that character
resolve his/her problem?)
Share your own response to the book. (Would you recommend the book? Explain why or why not).
How to Give a Book Talk
(adapted from Guiding Readers and Writers , Fountas & Pinnell, 2001)
  •   Look at everyone in your group or class.
  •   Speak loudly so all can hear.
  •   Talk about the characters, the problem in the story, or some interesting information.
  •   Read a small part of the book to interest the readers.
  •   Create interest in other readers.
Summer Reading 2015
Students Entering Grade 5


Lowell Public Schools and Pollard Library Summer Reading Program-Lowell Students Read Summer 2015
Student Reading Log

Books read by ___________________________________________________ Grade ___________
# Title Author Date Parent Finished Signature
Summer Reading 2015 Students Entering Grade 5 

PARENTS, GUARDIANS, CARETAKERS: WE NEED YOU!

Lowell Public Schools Summer Reading Program K-3 Dear Parents, Guardians, and Caretakers:
As partners in the education of our youth, I invite you to help your children extend their reading skills this summer. Please assist your children by taking them to the Pollard Library and by making sure they have books they can read.
Did you know?
  •   One of the most effective ways to improve reading skills is to read regularly and often
  •   Students and adults who read for the joy of it are the best readers
  •   Families who read together provide the strongest model for future reading
  •   Research has shown that children who participate in summer reading programs reap the benefits of greater academic achievement
To show us how much your child liked one or more of the summer reading books, please have your child complete a project(s) from the list that is attached. You can also create your own project that you think up yourself!
Bring your completed book project back on the first day of school You will be recognized and we will display your project
Return the signed author and title form (attached)
For each project a student returns, his/her name will be entered into a drawing to represent their school at the October School Committee Meeting.
In partnership with the Lowell Spinners and their support for Summer Reading, each Elementary Student will receive a voucher for one game and a free hot dog.
We look forward to sharing your creative responses about what you read this summer! Thank you,
M. Claire Abrams
Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction

Summer Reading - 2015
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SUMMER READING PROJECT Lowell Public Schools
Please show us how much you liked one or more of your summer reading books by making a project from the list below and/or by completeing the attached response sheets. You can also create your own project that you think up yourself! Bring your completed book project back on the first day of school. You will be recognized and we will display your project.
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KINDERGARTEN TO GRADE ONE
Draw or paint a picture of your favorite book character and write about it. Draw or paint a picture about your favorite part of a book.
FIRST GRADE TO SECOND GRADE
Create a colorful new cover for one of your books, showing some event from the book or something you learned from it.
Draw and write about the beginning, middle, and end of a book.

SECOND GRADE TO THIRD GRADE
Choose a character from two different books and draw a picture of them meeting one another. Draw captions to let us know what interesting things they might say.
Create a book poster using pictures you cut from magazines. Include pictures of the setting, important story words, and characters. Paste your pictures creatively on poster board.

Write a poem about a book.
Make an interesting facts poster about a nonfiction book.

THIRD GRADE TO FOURTH GRADE
Write a letter to a friend telling why he/she should read your book.
Write a list of five questions you would ask the main character of a book. Create a paper chain of events from a book. Each link can describe something important. Place the links in order.
Write a song or rap about your favorite book.
Pretend you are a teacher. Make a quiz for the book you are reading.


ALL GRADES project option
Title of book_______________________________________________________
Sketch and write about a character, something you learned or a summary of the story.
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ALL GRADES project option
Title of book_______________________________________________________
Sketch and write about a character, something you learned or a summary of the story.
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ALL GRADES
Please write the titles and author names of the books you read this summer on the lines below.
If you read more than 8 books, please attach additional sheets with author and title information.
  1. Author and Title ___________________________________________
  2. Author and Title ___________________________________________
  3. Author and Title ___________________________________________
  4. Author and Title ___________________________________________
  5. Author and Title ___________________________________________
  6. Author and Title ___________________________________________
  7. Author and Title ___________________________________________
  8. Author and Title ___________________________________________
Return this form with your project(s) on the first day of school. We will be using your summer reading as part of our literacy instruction during the first week of school.
For each project you return, your name will be entered into a drawing to represent our school at the October School Committee Meeting.
HAPPY SUMMER READING!!!
Submitted by:
Student: ____________________________________


SUMMER READING 2015
Lowell Public Schools and Pollard Memorial Library
We encourage our elementary school students to read for enjoyment this summer. Our hope is that children will engage in self-selected reading that captures their interests, enhances their imagination, and generates their enthusiasm for reading.
While we have made specific suggestions, we encourage children to add to their own list of favorites and explore additional titles by favorite authors.
List compiled by Lowell Public Schools and Pollard Memorial Library.
Recommended Books for Children in Kindergarten through Grade 4
Alsdurf, Phyllis Armstrong, Jennifer Arnold, Katya Bachelet, Gilles Bailey, Linda Barnett, Mac Beaumont, Karen Bell, CeCe Bemelmans, Ludwig Bently, Peter Bingham, Kelly Brett, Jan
Brown, Margaret Wise Brown, Monica
Brown, Peter
Bunting, Eve

Burton, Virginia Lee Carle, Eric Chodos-Irvine, Margaret Chwast, Seymour Coffelt, Nancy Costanza, Stephen Crews, Donald
Crews, Nina
Cunnane, Kelly
Davies, Nicola Daywalt, Drew DePaola, Tomie Dunrea, Olivier Ehlert, Lois
Elya, Susan Middleton Falconer, Ian Fleming, Denise Floca, Brian

Fox, Mem Frost, Helen
It's Milking Time
Once Upon a Banana
Elephants Can Paint Too
My Cat, the Silliest Cat in the World
Toads on Toast
Count the Monkeys
I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More
Rabbit and Robot: the Sleepover
Madeline & other titles
King Jack and the Dragon
Z is for Moose
Annie and the Wild Animals & other titles
Goodnight Moon & other titles
Marisol McDonald Doesn’t Match
Children Make Terrible Pets
I Like the Way You Are and other titles
The Little House
; Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel & other titles The Grouchy Ladybug & other titles
Ella Sarah Gets Dressed
Get Dressed
Fred Stays with Me!
Vivaldi and the Invisible Orchestra
Ten Black Dots & other titles
Neighborhood Mother Goose
Chirchir is Singing
Dolphin Baby
The Day the Crayons Quit
Fin M’Coul, The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush and other titles Gossie and Gertie and other titles
Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf & other titles
Bebe Goes Shopping & Bebe Goes to the Beach
“Olivia” books
Alphabet Under Construction
Locomotive
Koala Lou and other titles
Step Gently Out


Gravett, Emily
Guy, Ginger Foglesong Henkes, Kevin Hoberman, Mary Ann Hoff, Syd
Hopkinson, Deborah Isadora, Rachel Jeffers, Oliver Jenkins, Steve Jordan, Deloris Kaster, Pam
Keats, Ezra Jack Kerley, Barbara
Khan, Rukhsana Klassen, Jon. Lehrhaupt, Adam Light, Steve
Lin, Grace
Lionni, Leo
Little, Jean
Look, Lenore McCloskey, Robert McKissack, Patricia C. McMullan, Kate McPhail, David Medina, Meg
Morales, Yuyi
Munsch, Robert Newbery, Linda Polacco, Patricia Prelutsky, Jack Raschka, Chris Rathmann, Peggy Reich, Susanna
Rey, H.A.& Margret Ringgold, Faith Rohmann, Eric
Ryan, Pam Munoz Rylant, Cynthia
Salas, Laura Purdie Savage, Stephen Sayre, April Pulley Schwartz, David Scieszka, Jon.
Seuss, Dr
Seeger, Laura Vaccaro Shannon, David Silverstein, Shel
Sis, Peter

Orange Pear Apple Bear
Siesta!
Penny and Her Marble & other titles
You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You
Stanley & other titles
Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt
Old Mikamba Had a Farm
This Moose Belongs to Me
What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?
Dream Big
Molly the Pony
A Letter to Amy & other titles
The World is Waiting for You
Big Red Lollipop
This is Not My Hat
Warning: Do Not Open This Book!
Trains Go
Ling and Ting titles
Swimmy & other titles
Emma’s Yucky Brother
Henry’s First Moon Birthday
Blueberries for Sal; Time of Wonder and other titles Goin’ Someplace Special
I Stink! and other titles
Sisters & other titles
Tia Isa Wants a Car
Nino Wrestles the World
Stephanie’s Ponytail & other titles
Posy
The Bee Tree & other titles
Read-aloud Rhymes for the Very Young & other titles A Ball for Daisy
Officer Buckle and Gloria
Minette's Feast
Curious George & other titles
Aunt Harriet's Underground Railroad in the Sky
My Friend Rabbit
Mice and Beans
The Relatives Came
A Leaf Can Be
Where’s Walrus?
Eat Like a Bear and other titles
Rotten Pumpkin
Battle Bunny
The Cat in the Hat & other
Green and other titles
Duck on a Bike
A Light in the Attic & other titles
Komodo! & other titles


Small, David
Stein, David Ezra Steptoe, John Teckentrup, Britta Van Allsburg, Chris Wells, Rosemary Willems, Mo

Adler, David Arnold, Ted Chaconas, Dori Danzinger, Paula Guest, Elissa
Hayes, Geoffrey Howe, James
Kelly, David
Lobel, Arnold McMullan, Kate Mills, Claudia Minarik, Else Osborne, Mary Pope Parish, Peggy

Park, Barbara Prineas, Sarah Roy, Ron
Rylant, Cynthia Sharmat, Marjorie Sobol, Donald Stilton, Geronimo West, Jacqueline Willems, Mo

Adoff, Arnold Aliki
Alvarez, Julia Amenta, Charles Atinuke

Backer, Miles Barretta, Gene Barrows, Annie Barshaw, Ruth McNally Berne, Jennifer Bishop, Nic
Blume, Judy Bober, Natalie Branford, Anna
Imogene's Antlers
Interrupting Chicken
Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters & other titles Animal 1 2 3
Two Bad Ants & other titles
Bunny Cakes and other titles
The Duckling Gets a Cookie & other titles

Young Readers Series
“39 Clues” series
The "Cam Jansen" books
The “Fly Guy” books
The "Cork and Fuzz" books
The “Amber Brown” books
The “Iris and Walter” books
The “Benny and Penny” books
The "Pinky and Rex" books
The “Baseball Mysteries” books
The “Frog and Toad” books
The “Pearl and Wagner” books
The “Gus and Grandpa” books
The "Little Bear" books
The “Magic Tree House” series
The "Amelia Bedelia" books
The “Junie B. Jones” books
The Magic Thief (series)
The “A – Z Mysteries”
The "Henry and Mudge" books and “High Rise Private Eyes” The "Nate the Great" books
The "Encyclopedia Brown" books
The “Geronimo Stilton/Thea Stilton” books
The Books of Elsewhere (series)
The “Elephant and Piggie” books

Young Readers
Street Music & other of his poetry books Digging up Dinosaurs
How Tia Lola Came to Visit/Stay
Russell’s World

Good Luck, Anna Hibiscus Travels with Charlie Timeless Thomas
“Ivy and Bean” books “Ellie McDoodle” books Manfish

Nic Bishop Spiders
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
Papa is a Poet
Violet Mackerel’s Brilliant Plot and other titles


Byrd, Robert Cherry, Lynne Cleary, Beverly Clements, Andrew Cole, Joanna Coren, Stanley Cowell, Cressida Cronin, Doreen Cusick, Dawn Dahl, Roald
Dakos Kalli Davies, Nicola DiCamillo, Kate DiTerlizzi, Toni Eszterhas, Suzi
Florian, Douglas Gibbons, Gail
Gifford, Peggy Giovanni, Nikki Goldberg, Whoopi Graff, Lisa
Hanlon, Abby
Hartland, Jessie Harvey, Jeanne Walker Hatkoff, Isabella Hatkoff, Julianna Heppermann, Christine Ho, Mingfong

Holm, Jennifer Hopkins, H. Joseph Hopkins, Lee Bennett Huey, Lois Minor Janeczko, Paul B. Janeczko, Paul B. Jaramillo, Nelly Palaio Jenkins, Emily Jenkins, Steve
Katz, Alan
Laidlaw, Rob
Leedy, Loreen
Levine, Sara
Lewis, J. Patrick
Lin, Grace
Look, Lenore
Marcus, Leonard Markle, Sandra Markle, Sandra Martin, Ann M.

Electric Ben
A River Ran Wild
Ramona the Pest & other titles
The Jacket
The "Magic School Bus" books
Why Do Dogs Have Wet Noses?
“Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III” books
The Chicken Squad: The First Misadventure
Get the Scoop on Animal Poop
Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator & other titles
If You’re Not Here Please Raise Your Hand & other poetry books Surprising Sharks
Flora and Ulysses & other titles
The Spiderwick Chronicles
Sea Otters
Eyewitness Books
Comets, Stars, the Moon and Mars & other of his poetry books Ladybugs
Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little and other titles
Rosa
“Sugar Plum Ballerinas” books
Absolutely Almost
Dory Fantasmagory
How the Meteorite Got to the Museum
Astro, the Stellar Sea Lion
Owen and Mzee
Leo, the Snow Leopard
City Chickens
Brother Rabbit: a Cambodian Tale
The Fourteenth Goldfish
Tree Lady
Dinosaur Poems & other poetry books
Ick! Yuck! Eew!
The Dark Game: True Spy Stories
A Poke in the I & other of his poetry books
Grandmother’s Nursery Rhymes
Toys Go Out & other titles
The Beetle Book
Take Me Out of the Bathtub & other of his poetry books
No Shelter Here
Measuring Penny
Bone by Bone
World Rat Day& other of his poetry books
Year of the Dog & other titles
Ruby Lu, Brave and True and Alvin Ho, Allergic to Girls & other titles Randolph Caldecott
“Outside/Inside” books**
Waiting for Ice
The "Doll People" books



McCully, Emily McCully, Emily Arnold McDonald, Megan McKay, Hilary
Mills, Claudia Montgomery, Sy Moss, Marissa Nelson, Kadir
Nelson, Kadir Newquist, H.P. Pennypacker, Sara Pinkney, Andrea Prelutsky, Jack Rapport, Doreen

Rosenstock, Barb Sachar, Louis Seiple, Samantha Sendak, Maurice Shaughnessy, Dan Singer, Marilyn Stone, Tanya Lee Turner, Pamela Viorst, Judith Warner, Sally Wiles, Deborah Wise, Bill
The Bobbin Girl
The Secret Cave
Stink and Judy Moody books
LuLu and the Dog from the Sea & other titles
How Oliver Olson Changed the World
Kakapo Rescue
Mighty Jackie
Nelson Mandela
We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball Here There Be Monsters
“Clementine” books
Hand in Hand
My Dog May Be a Genius & other of his poetry books Helen's Big World
Rescuing Animals from Disasters Series
Thomas Jefferson Builds a Library
Marvin Redpost books and Wayside School books
Byrd and Igloo
Where the Wild Things Are & other titles
Legend of the Curse of the Bambino
Mirror Mirror
Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors?
Dolphins of Shark Bay
Lulu and the Brontosaurus & other titles
EllRay Jakes books
Love, Ruby Lavender
Silent Star

**Outside/Inside Titles by Sandra Markle:
Alligators
Birds
Rats
Giant Squid
Killer Bees Mummies
Woolly Mammoths

**Eyewitness Books series
**Rescuing Animals From Disaster
Aronin Saving Animals from Volcanoes Markovics Saving Animals After Floods Person Saving Animals from Hurricanes Person Saving Animals from Oil Spills 

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