Write a letter to Santa and help others!

Published on December 6, 2010 in Just for fun, Website to Explore and Writing. 2 Comments

In 1897, eight-year-old Virginia O’Hanlon wrote a letter to the editor of the New York Sun newspaper, asking if there really was a Santa Claus. The editor promptly replied, assuring her that yes, indeed, there is a Santa. This is one of the most famous news stories in history. Macy’s department store has created a way for kids to help other kids based on this story. They are donating $1.00 for every letter that is written to Santa and put in their mailbox at their store! The goal is to raise one million dollars for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, who provides wishes for kids who have life-threatening illnesses.

Let’s help them reach their goal! Write a letter to Santa using this great online tool. In your letter, persuade Santa that you should be on the Nice List. Also, be sure to let him know your Christmas wishes. When you finish, let me know so I can help you print your letter.

Just so you know, there will be a TV special on CBS on December 17 at 7:00 p.m. based on the Virginia story. :)

Your library lady,

Mrs. Matzat

Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Published on December 3, 2010 in Book Movie and Website to Explore. 4 Comments

Many of you are familiar with C. S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia series and have enjoyed watching the movie versions of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, and Prince Caspian. But did you know that before they were movies, they were books! The movie version of the third book, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is opening in theaters on December 10. Before you go see the movie, you might want to read the book. I have the whole series in the library, so come check them out!

While you are waiting for the movie and book, check out the Narnia movie website. It has lots of interesting activities to explore, and it has a preview of the new movie.

Be sure to let me know what you think of the site. I’d also like to know which of the stories is your favorite!

Your library lady,

Mrs. Matzat

Oweny arrives at the Branson Elementary West LMC!

Published on November 8, 2010 in Projects. 274 Comments

Oweny the Mail-Pouch Pooch has arrived in our library! A couple of weeks ago, I received a message from Mona Kerby, the author of the book, saying that she would like to give away an Owney stuffed animal to be used for a special project. I was so excited! We get to host the Owney Project here at our school. As part of the project, we are going to send Owney to other schools in Missouri and track his travels!

Owney will start his adventure here at Branson Elementary West. As you know, Owney was a real dog that traveled the railways as the mascot for the Railway Mail Service back in the 1880s and 1890s. If Owney traveled to Branson, what are some things he would see? Write a message to me letting me know what you think Owney would see if he visited our town. Also, what book do you think he would read when he visited our library?

I can’t wait to hear your thoughts!

Your library lady,

Mrs. Matzat

Internet Safety

Published on November 1, 2010 in Website to Explore. 149 Comments

Last week we started talking about Internet safety. Here’s a great site to help you learn more about being safe online. Check out the website, and then let me know what you think are the most important things to remember to be safe when you are online.

Your library lady,

Mrs. Matzat

Family Reading Night Photos and ANOTHER Comic Creator!

Published on October 15, 2010 in Family Reading Night and Just for fun. 7 Comments

I must have superheros stuck in my head after our wonderful family reading night last week. I hope you all had as much fun as I did. I loved seeing you create your own superhero costumes and learning about your super hero identities. Check out these great photos from the event.

I found another super hero comic creator. You’ll have to give this one a try as well and let me know what you think of it. I can’t wait to see what you write!

Create your own Graphic Novel!

Published on September 30, 2010 in Writing. 2 Comments

Do love reading graphic novels? Now you can create your own with Comic Master! This site lets you create your graphic novel, complete with backgrounds, characters, props, dialogue, and special effects. If you want to save your creations, you do have to create an account. Be sure to ask your parents to help you sign up if you use it a home. Let me know what you think by posting a comment!

Your library lady,

Mrs. Matzat

Create your own online book with My StoryMaker!

Published on September 9, 2010 in Website to Explore and Writing. 27 Comments

I found a great new site that I just had to share with you! It’s called My StoryMaker, and it lets you make your own online story book that you can print and save to share with others. The tool helps you select the characters, setting, plot, and more for your book. Here’s what the site creators say about My StoryMaker:

“Can a lion share a cupcake with an astronaut? What happens when a pirate meets a fox in the woods? You have the power to decide — meeting new characters, going on great adventures and creating your very own story along the way.

My StoryMaker lets you control characters and objects – and creates sentences for you! Once you are done with your story, you can print it out. You cannot go back and edit a story once you have ended it but, if you click “yes” when asked to share it with others, you can print it out again by entering the magic number it gives you in the box on the right.”


One thing to note is that they only save your stories online for 1 month, so if you want to keep a copy, be sure to save the .pdf file that prints to your computer. I can show you how to do that when you visit the LMC. :)

Check out My StoryMaker, create your own story, and let me know what you think about this site. I can’t wait to hear from you!

Click here to create your story

Click here to log in and view a saved story (remember, it will only save for 1 month)

Your library lady,

Mrs. Matzat

Welcome Back!

Published on August 20, 2010 in Uncategorized. 33 Comments

Greetings Branson Elementary West!

I hope you had a great summer vacation and are as excited as I am to start our new school year together. This summer my family traveled to California and went hiking in Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks! They were amazing places to visit and I can’t wait to share some pictures with you soon. The coolest thing we experienced was seeing 10 bears on a trail that we hiked in Sequoia! I also spent lots of time reading this summer. One of the best books I read was Happenstance Found by P. W. Catanese. If you like fantasy and adventure stories, you’ll love this one.

But, enough about me. What did you do over the summer? Did you read any great books I should know about? What are your reading goals for yourself this school year? What do you hope we will do in library? I can’t wait to hear from you!

Your library lady,

Mrs. Matzat

Time to vote for your favorite doodle!

Published on May 19, 2010 in Contest. 23 Comments

The regional winners in the Doodle 4 Google contest have been posted, and now it’s time for you to vote for your favorite! Go the the Doodle 4 Google site and select your favorite. Be sure to check out each grade level.  Let me know which one was your favorite and why you liked it.

Also, I have some really cool news! Mrs. Turk’s daughter won for the state of Missouri. Be sure to check out her doodle. She did a great job. :)

I can’t wait to see which ones you like!

Your library lady,

Mrs. Matzat

Guess the Mystery Reader?

Published on May 9, 2010 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments

This week we celebrate Children’s Book Week. I thought it would be for you to try my little Mystery Reader quiz. See how many of the mystery readers you can identify. Good luck!

Guess the Mystery Reader on PhotoPeach