Gainfield Elementary School

 Book Awards:

• Nutmeg Children's Book Award
• ALSC Awards and Grants Page - From the Association for Library Service to Children.  Includes Notable books, Newbery Award, Caldecott Award, Theodor Seuss Geisel Award books...  
• WebJunction Connecticut - Links to every award winning and notable book list you can imagine!
• ILoveLibraries.org - Links to all the ALA book and media awards
• Database of Award-Winning Children's Literature  - Search for award-winning books by keyword, setting, genre, historical period...
• Reading Rockets - Links to award winning books and great books organized by theme.
• ReadKiddoRead - Great booklists selected by James Patterson and Judy Freeman. 
• Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K-12 - by the National Science Teachers' Association
• Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People - by the National Council for the Social Studies
• Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children - by the National Council of Teachers of English
• Coretta Scott King Book Award Curriculum Resource Center - listen to the authors/illustrators explain their work, link to online resources for Award winners.
• Cooperative Children's Book Center - Excellent bibliographies related to all kinds of topics.

Try one of these Blogs or Podcasts:

• Just One More Book!  - Check out this podcast by Andrea Ross and Mark Blevis about the children's books they love.
• PlanetEsme - Author/teacher/librarian, Esme Raji Codell, reviews books in this great blog.
• Bookwink - For students in grades 3-8, check out these booktalks and find read-alikes.

Great "Book Websites":

• NEW! A Book and a Hug-Great websites for parents and kids trying to find the best book for reading level, interests and your specific personality!  You can even take a quiz to figure out what kind of reader you are.
• Teacher Book Wizard - Search for books by interest, reading level, book type, genre, or "Book Alikes."
• Kidsreads.com
• Book Trailers - from SlimeKids
• World Cat: Genres - Search for books by genre through this authoritative site

- Check out this readers' advisory database from the CT Digital Library.  You will need your public library card to access from home. 

Downloadable Audio Books:

• Connecticut Digital Library - Over 1,200 nonfiction and fiction audio books that you can download to your computer and transfer for limited times to your iPod or MP3 player. Holds and checkout require a valid CT public library card number.  Click here for online tutorials and FAQ for this platform.
• AudioBooksForFree.com - listen to several classics here.
• StoryNory - Free audio stories for kids.
• Lit2Go - Free collection of online stories and poems in MP3 format.
• LibriVox - audio files of books in the public domain

Downloadable eBooks:

• Project Gutenberg - Search the bookshelf for children's books in the public domain.

Check out these Book Commercials, created by some of GES Second-Grade students:

• True Tales of Animal Heroes by Allan Zullo - commercial produced by Marina L.
• Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater - commercial produced by Amelia O.
• 7X9=Trouble by Claudia Mills - commercial produced by Alex D.
• The Gold-Threaded Dress by Carolyn Marsden - commercial produced by Julia C.
• TJ's Secret Pitch by Fred Bowen - commercial produced by Ryan S.
• Riding Freedom by Pam Munoz Ryan - commercial produced by Summer S.
• Fat Bat and Swoop by Leo Landry - commercial produced by Triloshan
• Summer Ball by Mike Lupica  -  commercial produced by Justin O.
• Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine - commercial produced by Michelle L.
• Mia by Laurence Yep - commercial produced by Emily P.
• A Dog on His Own by Mary Jane Auch - commercial produced by Ella S.
• The Sloppy Copy Slipup by DyAnne DiSalvo - commercial produced by Maddy M.
• The Cats of Roxville Station by Jean Craighead George- commercial produced by Allison B.
• Bunnicula:  a Rabbit-Tale of Mystery by Deborah Howe - commercial produced by Lucas V.
• The Lost Flower Children by Janet Taylor Lisle - commercial produced by Skylar A.
• Down Girl and Sit:  Bad to the Bone by Lucy Nolan - commercial produced by Taylor A.

The Cougaricott Award 2012

First graders voted on their favorite picture book.  Students evaluated books based on the following:

• Will the cover get your attention?
• Do the pictures help tell the story?
• Does the style of art fit the story?
• Will kids like it?

And the winner is:   

The results: