Sisson Library News

LIBRARY NEWS

 Summer must-read for kids?  Any book at all!

By Carole Howard and the Library Staff        

Has your child cracked a book this summer?

Several studies have documented a “summer slide” in reading skills once school gets out.  The decline in reading and spelling skills are greatest among low-income students, who lose the equivalent of two months of school each summer, according to the National Summer Learning Association, an education advocacy group.  And the loss compounds each year.

New research offers a surprisingly simple and affordable solution to the summer reading slide.  In a three-year study, researchers at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville found that simply giving low-come children access to books at spring book fairs – and allowing them to choose books that interested them – had a significant effect on the summer reading gap.

Children who chose reading books and those who picked free activity and puzzle books were tracked for three years.  Those who received free reading books posted significantly higher test scores than the children who received activity books.  The effect – 1/16^th of a standard deviation in test scores – was equivalent to a child attending three years of summer school.  The difference in scores was twice as high among the poorest children in the study.

One of the notable findings of the study was that children improved their reading scores even though they typically weren’t selecting the curriculum books or classics that teachers normally assign for summer reading.  That conclusion confirms other studies suggesting that children learn best when they are allowed to select their own books.          By the way, the most popular book during the first year of the study was a biography of Britney Spears.  As one observer said, “Whatever it takes – even poring over details of Britney Spears’ life – to foster reading something longer than a 140-character Tweet has to be laudable.”    

Orchid class

            This evening (Thursday, August 26) from 5-7 p.m. Lake McCullough will present a free orchid care and maintenance class at the library.  She will focus on the basics of orchid botany as it relates to how these unique plants grow and protect themselves from disease.  She also will address how to provide an optimal growing environment for several commons orchid species.  The latter portion of the class will be an orchid clinic where you can bring in your own orchids for specific care suggestions.  Lake is an enthusiastic local orchid grower and owner of Earthsense Herbals and Gift Gallery here in Pagosa.

 Local author’s true story

            “Eva Says, You’re My Dad” is a true story by Pagosa resident Faith E. Richardson that chronicles her search for her father.  Her quest began with a question about his missing grandfather by her son, and was totally supported by her husband.  Once found, Faith’s father was a bit reluctant.  But a series of snail-mail letters and e-mails, backed by strong religious faith on all sides, brought them together.  Faith has donated a copy of her book to the library, where reading it will let you share in her joy.

 Large print

            “Stay a Little Longer” by Dorothy Garlock is a mystery set in America’s heartland at the end of World War I.  “The Vigilantes” by W.E.B. Griffin and William E. Butterworth IV is a murder mystery in the Badge of Honor series set in Philadelphia.  “The Rembrandt Affair” by Daniel Silva is the latest in the art world mystery series featuring Gabriel Allon.

Mysteries and thrillers

            “Burn” is the latest in the Nevada Barr series featuring National Park ranger Anna Pigeon, this one set in the New Orleans Jazz National Park.  “Scarlet Nights” by Jude Deveraux is a mystery about a fiance to disappears and another man who appears in strange circumstances.  “Hangman” by Faye Kellerman is the latest thriller featuring Petr Decker and Rina Lazarus.  “In Harm’s Way” by Ridley Pearson is the latest in the Walt Fleming series set in Sun Valley.  “Queen of the Night” by J.A. Jance is a thriller involving three families among the Tohono O’odham people in the Arizona desert.  “Stork Raving Mad” by Donna Andrews is the latest in the Meg Langslow series.  “Hardball” by Sara Paretsky is the latest in the series featuring V.I. Warshawski.

Other new novels 

             “The Red Queen” by Philippa Gregory is the second in the Cousins’ War series set in Tutor England.  “Mothers and Other Liars” by Amy Bourret explores the aftermath of a split-second decision made nine years earlier at an Oklahoma rest stop.  “West East” by Harry Turtledove is an alternative history that explores what would have happened if British prime minister Neville Chamberlain had stood up to Hitler.  “Blue Eyed Devil” by Robert B. Parker is a western involving law enforcement in Appaloosa.      

Nonfiction

            “Angelina” is the unauthorized biography of actress and philanthropist Angelina Jolie.  “Washington Rules” by Andrew J. Bacevich explores the origins of our national security policy and why it needs to be changed for today’s conditions.  “The Girls of Murder City” by Douglas Perry is the true story of the beautiful killers who sazzled a city and inspired the musical “Chicago.”

Book for teens

            “Ghost Hunter” by Michelle Paver is the final book in the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series.  “Foundling” by D.M. Cornish is a fantasy about a foundling drafted into the ranks of the Half-Continent’s lamplighters.  “Some Day This Pain Will Be Useful To You” by Peter Cameron is a novel of a teen adrift in an adult world.      

Quotable quote

            “The stages of a writer’s professional life are marked not by a name on an office door, but by a name in ink.” – Contemporary American journalist and author Anna Quinlen.

 Thanks to our donors

            Our gratitude to W.C. and Clareve Enmon, visitors to Pagosa, for their “thank you” donation to the library.  We’re also thrilled to receive from Rick and Lynne Stinchfield and Ponderosa Lumber a total of 24 Adirondack chairs — in the cheerful colors of hot pink, lime green and purple — for our new outdoor fenced-in area..  For books and materials this week we thank Merilyn Moorhead, Pat Kochheiser, Patty Latham, Jane Reseigh and Codie Wilson.

Web site                                            

For more information on library books, services and programs – and to reserve books from the comfort of your home – please visit our web site at http://pagosa.colibraries.org/.

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Posted by normvance on Aug 27 2010. Filed under Letters & Press Releases. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.