Wood Gormley Elementary School

Check out this exciting opportunity!

Spring Break started a day early thanks to snow! Hope fun is in your forecast over the next week. Stay safe and we will see you back at school on March 27th 🌷💚

Students have been hard at work - and it shows!!

Save the date, Panthers!!

Here's another great middle years read from Mr. Dawson:
"Set in the not too distant future, Bacigalupi looks at where climate change may be taking us. Massive hurricanes routinely hit the Gulf coast and the U.S has been reduced to a collection of city states. The opening pages introduce us to the deadly and toxic industry of ship breaking, currently conducted only on the shores of third world countries. The world building is phenomenal and the plot is tense, action packed, but a bit brutal."
- Mr. Dawson, 5th grade teacher

Happy Monday, Panthers! On this day off, here's a read-aloud suggestion from library teacher Ms. Amy: "Dandelion by Don Freeman (of Corduroy fame) is about a lion who decides to get spruced up for a tea party. However, when Dandelion gets a little TOO fancy, his friends don't even recognize him! I love this book so very much and have for as long as I can remember. As a child, I loved the story: a funny, lovable lion transforms himself only to get soaked in the rain. Now as an adult, I appreciate how Freeman's wonderful midcentury illustration style is on full display. And of course the message -always being yourself - is a timeless one." -Amy Wynn, library teacher

Finding engaging books for middle readers can be challenging, but Mr. Dawson has some great recommendations, like the Newberry Medal winner "Elijah of Buxton".
"A thorough examination of the horrors of slavery and the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 through the lense of a ten year old free born narrator, Elijah Freeman. Elijah is from Buxton, a very real place and was once an escaped slave colony in southern Ontario, just over the American and Canadian border from Detroit Michigan. Curtis draws his readers in with humor and adventure before delivering a carefully crafted emotional wallop."
- Mr. Dawson, 5th grade teacher

Happy Monday, Panthers! Here's maybe one of the funniest read-aloud books ever, recommended by our music teacher, Mr. Darrow:
"I love to read The Book with NO Pictures by B.J. Novak. I especially like to read it out loud to kids and fun adults. It gives me a chance to be VERY silly with my voice. Each reading is a performance, and you have to take deep breaths to be able to say all the words!" -Mr.Darrow, Music Teacher

A HUGE thank you to our wonderful Wood Gormley PTC for the recent library glow up✨✨thanks to their generosity, students can now curl up with a good book at the "pond" with new flexible seating bean bags...we are so appreciative for all the PTC does for our school!!

Here's a favorite book from 6th grade teacher Mr. Ellis-Green:
"It is difficult to find (out of print) but Witch Hazel was a favorite of mine and my kids when they were young. Moody, evocative, atmospheric, and fun to read! I could never resist putting my all into making the spooky wind sounds. The illustrations are classic, too." - Mr. Ellis-Green, 6th grade teacher

Wood Gormley Elementary held a family engagement night called “Caldecott Book Night”. The Caldecott Medal is awarded to the most distinguished picture book, one of the most prestigious awards in children's literature. Families went to five rooms where five books to be considered for the Caldecott Medal were read.

Students got their passports stamped as the moved room to room, then they voted at the end for the winner. The next day we compared our winner to the Caldecott winner, which was "Hot Dog" by Doug Salati! Wood Gormley students voted "Hot Dog" in second, so they have an eye for good books!

The author does an incredible job telling the story through Ivan, the gorilla's, eyes. The story is based on a real gorilla who lived in a shopping mall in Washington for 27 years. I highly recommend it as a book to read with your family. - Ms. Marrufo, 1st grade