Librarian
- Hardy Oak Library hosted author Bridget Heos in October. Mrs. Darilek organized the visit, with 11 other campuses partnering with Hardy Oak. She was in constant contact with Mrs. Heos to coordinate the visits, contract, and schedules for all campuses.
- Every two months, the Hardy Oak Library sends out a newsletter to update library stakeholders on current and upcoming library programming such as book fairs, author visits, and storybook pumpkins. It also showcased some of our new digital resources and provided information about checking out books digitally or participating in our Battle of the Books, Fairy Tale Bowl, or Bluebonnet reads.
- The library celebrated our third through fifth grade Bluebonnet readers in January. These students read at least five of the 2022-2023 Bluebonnet books and attended a celebration where they voted on their favorite title, as well participated in a magic show and drawings for prizes.
- Hardy Oak second graders enjoyed a friendly grade level competition to determine who knew the most about their chosen fairy tales. Third and fourth graders competed against each other in their annual Battle of the Books, where each class showcased their knowledge of book quotes and authors. What fun they had!
11,979
print books in collection
print books in collection
4,264
ebooks books in collection
ebooks books in collection
25,674
print books checked out
print books checked out
1,130
ebooks books checked out
ebooks books checked out
Teacher
- After reading Speak Up to second graders, students discussed what it meant to be a good citizen, as well as historical figures who demonstrate good citizenship. They talked about ways to exercise good citizenship and researched historical figures who modeled this so they could teach classmates about the qualities exemplified by the researched figure.
- Third grade students read the book, If You Lived Here to compare and contrast different ways that people live all over the world. Students then completed an evaluation recording their observations and demonstrating their learning.
- Hardy Oak fourth and fifth graders explored different countries using the CultureGrams database to find out how children in countries on other continents lived. They then took that information and created a diary or journal entry to showcase their learning and what life would be like living in that researched country. Students were in awe of the great differences between their own and the researched cultures.
- The second graders enjoyed digging into their chosen person for the biography research unit. Students explored District digital databases, like Pebble Go and Britannica. They worked on note-taking skills and documenting resources and concluded by creating their own Canva presentation highlighting learned facts about their biography. They loved showcasing their knowledge through Canva.
Lesson Spotlight
During the November voting week, the first and second graders got to experience what it feels like to vote firsthand. They had been learning about the Caldecott Award and what it represents. Students evaluated each of the campus Caldecott books, voted on their favorite, and watched as votes were tallied. There was much excitement through this event.
Campus Leader
- Mrs. Darilek presented at a faculty meeting in August to train the staff on the new library resources found within Launchpad. The presentation focused on Culturegrams, Newsomatic, and PebbleGo Next, but reviewed the other digital resources available and demonstrated how they can be used by the staff and students to enhance research.
- As a member of the campus leadership team, Mrs. Darilek worked with the principal and assistant principal to plan for and set up our faculty Thanksgiving Luncheon. She spent the day serving lunch to the staff in an effort to demonstrate how much they appreciate all that they give to our students and community.
- Being a part of the leadership team on the Hardy Oak campus, Mrs. Darilek took on a significant role in helping plan, organize, and finalize details for our principal’s retirement celebration in December before the semester break. She organized meetings with grade level chairs, and worked out details about how to best recognize the principal who has been with Hardy Oak for 12 years.
- As a campus leader, Mrs. Darilek notifies staff about monthly spotlights and available resources to support student learning. She creates newsletters that are shared with staff and parents that showcase past and upcoming events in the library. These work to engage and inform the stakeholders about the goings-on with the school for student participation.
