This week was extra short and sweet thanks (ha!) to the upcoming Thanksgiving break.
Students had a potluck lunch on Tuesday with their advisories to get them in the Thanksgiving spirit and celebrate the end of the first trimester. Ms. Melinson’s advisory feasted on yummy tri-tip, crazy good mashed potatoes, and delightful apple-berry pie.
Have a happy and restful Thanksgiving!
Anny presented during the Leadership Lunch on Wednesday where she gave a presentation on her trip to Honduras over the summer in conjunction with Unbound, a nonprofit organization that sponsors impoverished children and the elderly in 20 countries to help them meet their basic needs such as health care, nutrition, and education.
Friday was the annual Glass Knife sponsored Speakeasy! Students and faculty read from a variety of poems: current and past Poet Laureates to rappers to poems they’d written themselves. Plus, we had all the yummy snacks.
This week was short and quiet at the Matthews Library, especially compared to last week.
The Political Puzzles Club came in on Monday and Blake went over polling projections (running the Map to 270 like a boss) and then returned with an even bigger group on Thursday to discuss the presidential and senate election results. The Political Puzzles Club is a group of students who discuss political issues. Despite the fact that they don’t all agree with each other, our students are respectful of each other in their discussions. They listen and have civil conversations. Many of our politicians could learn from them.
Dr. Bell’s AP English 12 classes came in on Monday and Tuesday to choose stories and look at critical reviews to help them write their papers.
Wednesday was our monthly Book Club meeting (read all about it here!)
And, finally, Friday was Veteran’s Day where we remember those who served and fought for our country.
This month’s Book Club was a little unusual compared to previous months.
But not unusual were the brownies and hot apple cider!
Instead of talking about new books, Ms. Melinson shared a slew of beautiful books to help cleanse our political palates including Nests: 50 Nests and the Birds that Built Them by Sharon Beals, an illustrated version of The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White, and The Map as Art: Contemporary Artists Explore Cartography by Katharine Harmon.
Anny mentioned reading Between the Lines and Off the Page, both by Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer, and loving the different fonts and stylistic changes that represented each author’s voice. This lead to a discussion between Anny and Ms. B about the possible difficulties of collaborating on a book. Anny also said she started reading The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, much to the delight of of Ms. B and Ms. Melinson, both who said the book is very good.
Josh discussed his enthusiasm for maps and the book he read, A History of the World in 12 Maps by Jerry Brotton. Luca talked about starting Brave New World, describing it as “absurd but good.”
Ms. B recently got Julius Caesar as Artful Reporter by Kathryn Welch through interlibrary loan and talked about how happy she was with that service and how it allowed her to read a hard to find book. Ms. B talked about reading the short story collection Close Range: Wyoming Stories by Annie Proulx and described it as “gritty” and from the “school of realism.”
And after everyone finished talking about their recommendations, there was time to look through all of the beautiful books!
For more information on all the books we discussed at this month’s Book Club, visit our Goodreads page!
It’s been a busy week here at the Matthews Library! Monday was Halloween and we were treated to some fabulous costumes.
Monday also featured a bake sale benefitting The Glass Knife. And speaking of, The Glass Knife met on Wednesday and decided on their theme for the year (but we’re not telling!)
On Tuesday and Thursday, Ms. Melinson had Book Talks with the 6th and 7th graders and they excitedly chose their books with a flurry of Post-Its.
On Tuesday, Country Day was host to students from St. Michael’s Episcopal Day School where they got to shadow Country Day student’s classes and lunch in the library.
And to cap off the week, Friday was Rockvemberfest! Ms. Melinson cooked breakfast for her advisees and then read to them from The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling.
Rockvemberfest featured the Fall Talent Show where we were regaled with poetry, music, and fire. And then delicious tacos for lunch from Tres Hermanos Taco Truck!
Books & Bytes 