August-September 2019
Volume 12, Issue 1

The Constellation:

An Assemblage, Collection or Gathering of a Splendid, Radiant or Excellent Sort

Ferguson-Easley Elementary School Media Center Information
Beverly McClellan, Media Coordinator

 The Accelerated Reader (AR) program is designed to promote reading and comprehension by attaching quizzes with point values to great books. Students go online after reading an AR book and take a quiz. Points earned are placed on their individual AR accounts. Students enjoy this simple process of: Reading, Quizzing, Earning Points, and Bragging about the points they have earned. To promote AR we are going to do one more thing. We are going to have students find as many words as possible that have these two letters included while they are doing their regular first nine weeks reading. For example, ALL-STAR has these two letters in order together, while rain has the letters reversed, and format and painter have the letters separated. Constantly looking for words with these two letters “AR” will add thinking time to promoting the Accelerated Reader program and this fun reading game will also promote vocabulary building. We will archive the words that we find so that we can share our knowledge with others. During the second nine weeks we might even add two other letters to search for to keep this reading game fun.

ALL-STAR  Collaborations:

• With the FEES Media Advisory Committee:  Gibbs,  Agor, Melvin 
• With North Carolina Association of Educators leaders/members and other Region 6 leaders.
• With Cumberland County Association of Educators leadership.
• With CCS resource personnel for maintenance and technology.
• With Cumberland County Schools central services personnel including M. Boyd.
• With  FEES employees including McLeod and Blount.
• With Cumberland County Schools media coordinators during professional development.
• With Hoggard on the FEES Webpage.

TIP:

• Exaggeration is a comedy technique for joke telling. Telling jokes and reading funny books can help our students to learn and feel better about life. A study at Stanford University and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital found that giggling can actually help students. Parents Magazine reported that slipups made by students can be changed to a positive situation with just a little activity. For example, if a kid knocks over a beverage, the adult might say, “The table was thirsty!” This is a positive reaction to a negative situation. Educators can also show funny videos that help to spike brain activity that helps to process rewarding feelings. Providing lessons that promote a happier outlook on life can be both funny and respectful.