2014 Teen Reader's Choice Award Winner

The votes have been counted and I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban has emerged as the 2014 Teen Reader's Choice Award Winner. The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey came in second with third place going to Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell. 

The Coles gift card was won by Megan Purdy. Laurel Singer was the winner of two of the top ten books. 

Ms. Allen and Mrs. Ryan-Connolly would like to thank the many students who took part in the 2014 TRCA. 

 

Free Audiobooks

SYNC offers 2 FREE audiobooks each week May 15 - Aug 20, 2014. 

This week it’s intrigue across the ages as we enter the world of time travel with H.G. Wells in the SYNC Classic spot and the FBI’s WARP (Witness Anonymous Relocation Program) leading the action in the SYNC YA title.

Download this week’s audiobooks here.

 

CCRSB Teen Reader’s Choice Award

Attention all CEC students! You have two weeks left to participate in the third annual CCRSB Teen Reader's Choice Award. This year's top ten books are as follows:

• The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey
• The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider
• Bomb: The Race to Build – And Steal – The World’s Most Powerful Weapon by Steve Sheinkin
• Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
• Every Day by David Levithan  
• Far Far Away by Tom McNeal
• I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai
• Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick
• Nothing Can Possibly Go Wrong by Prudence Shen and Faith Erin Hicks
• Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

Don’t forget to read one or more of these books and discuss the titles on an online forum with other CCRSB students. Voting for your favourite book from this list will take place until May 9th. A winner will be announced on May 20th. CEC students can now vote electronically online or in the library by paper ballot.

During the May 20th awards ceremony a draw will be held with the prize being a Cole's gift certificate. This ceremony will take place at noon time (12 p.m.) in the library. 

Students must participate in the TRCA to be eligible for the draw.    

New Fiction

Dreams of Gods & Monsters by Laini Taylor

Daughter of Smoke and Bone; Book Three

“When a brutal angel army trespasses into the human world, Karou and Akiva must ally their enemy armies against the threat--and against larger dangers that loom on the horizon. They begin to hope that it might forge a way forward for their people. And, perhaps, for themselves--maybe even toward love. From the streets of Rome to the caves of the Kirin and beyond, humans, chimaera, and seraphim will fight, strive, love, and die in an epic theater that transcends good and evil, right and wrong, friend and enemy.” – Publisher.

Half Bad by Sally Green

Half Bad; Book One

”In modern-day England, witches live alongside humans: White witches, who are good; Black witches, who are evil; and sixteen-year-old Nathan, who is both. Nathan’s father is the world’s most powerful and cruel Black witch, and his mother is dead. He is hunted from all sides. Trapped in a cage, beaten and handcuffed, Nathan must escape before his seventeenth birthday, at which point he will receive three gifts from his father and come into his own as a witch—or else he will die. But how can Nathan find his father when his every action is tracked, when there is no one safe to trust—not even family, not even the girl he loves?” –Publisher.

Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi

Shatter Me; Book Three

With Omega Point destroyed, Juliette doesn't know if the rebels, her friends, or even Adam are alive. But that won't keep her from trying to take down The Reestablishment once and for all. Now she must rely on Warner, the handsome commander of Sector 45. The one person she never thought she could trust. The same person who saved her life. He promises to help Juliette master her powers and save their dying world ... but that's not all he wants with her. –Summary.

Illusion by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Chronicles of Nick ; Book Five

“Nick Gautier is tired of his destiny. He doesn’t want to be the son of a demon who’s fated to end the world. Nor does he want to see another demon or other preternatural creature who wants to kill or enslave him. He just wants to be normal and have normal problems like everyone else. But normality isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. When he gets sucked into an alternate reality where his mother has married his mentor and his Atlantean god best friend has become a human geek, he begins to understand that no life is free of pain, and that every person has a specific place in the universe . . . Even the son of a hated demon.” –Publisher.

Panic by Lauren Oliver

"In the poor town of Carp, New York, a group of teens enters a high-stakes game that involves a series of secretive, possibly deadly challenges throughout the summer, with the winner receiving more than $50,000--enough money to start a new life" –Publisher.

Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong

Age of Legends; Book One

“In the Forest of the Dead, where the empire's worst criminals are exiled, twin sisters Moria and Ashyn are charged with a dangerous task. For they are the Keeper and the Seeker, and each year they must quiet the enraged souls of the damned. Only this year, the souls will not be quieted. Ambushed and separated by an ancient evil, the sisters' journey to find each other sends them far from the only home they've ever known. Accompanied by a stubborn imperial guard and a dashing condemned thief, the girls cross a once-empty wasteland, now filled with reawakened monsters of legend, as they travel to warn the emperor. But a terrible secret awaits them at court--one that will alter the balance of their world forever.” –Jacket.

The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B by Teresa Toten

Adam not only is trying to understand his OCD, while trying to balance his relationship with his divorced parents, but he’s also trying to navigate through the issues that teenagers normally face, namely the perils of young love. –Summary.

New Biographies

Canada’s Prime Ministers, Governors General and Fathers of Confederation by Irma Coucill

This book tells the stories of 21 Canadian Prime Ministers, from Sir John A. Macdonald through Paul Martin. It also includes 26 Governors General, and all 36 Fathers of Confederation. The 83 portraits are accompanied by concise biographies that provide a unique look at the people who led our nation through its most important events. –Summary.

Journey To God’s House by Brock Talon

“A naive young man named Brock Talon journeys to the World Headquarters of Jehovah's Witnesses in New York City, seeking a spiritual paradise. But things are not at all what he expects. Join Brock as he rubs shoulders with the powerful leaders of the faith, explores the mysteries of Armageddon, investigates the secrets of paradise and wrestles with the conundrum of sex, romance, drinking and sin.” –Publisher.

Millions of Souls: A Holocaust Memoir by Philip Riteman

Philip Riteman is a Holocaust survivor who educates today’s youth on the atrocities committed against millions of Jews by the Nazi regime during World War II. From the Pruzhany Ghetto in Poland, Philip and his family were deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau where Philip’s entire family was exterminated. As the lone survivor, Philip was used as a forced labourer in five concentration camps. At these camps he witnessed the cruelest treatments that can be inflicted on human beings. This is his story. –Summary.

My Journey by Olivia Chow

Olivia Chow, Member of Parliament, seasoned politician and widow of former New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton, tells her story in this candid memoir. –Summary.

Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup

”Solomon Northup was an entrepreneur and dedicated family man, father to three young children, Elizabeth, Margaret, and Alonzo. What little free time he had after long days of manual and farm labor, he spent reading books and playing the violin. Though his father was born into slavery, Solomon was born and lived free. In March 1841, two strangers approached Northup, offering him employment as a violinist in a town hundreds of miles away from his home in Saratoga Springs, New York. Solomon bid his wife farewell until his return. Only after he was drugged and bound, did he realize the strangers were kidnappers—that nefarious brand of criminals in the business of capturing runaway and free blacks for profit. Thus began Northup's life as a slave” –Jacket.

New Nonfiction

Development by Garrett Nagle

Series: Access to Geography

This book provides an in-depth assessment of current development and underdevelopment trends and issues. The effects of development on population, food supply and the environment are considered as is the issue of sustainable development. –Summary.

Economic Activity and Change by Paul Sheppard

Series: Access to Geography

Economic Activity and Change examines the dynamic nature of industry on a global scale. –Summary.      

Globalisation by Paul Guinness

Series: Access to Geography

This book assesses globalization and changing economic activity, the impact associated with transnational corporations, the role played by newly industrialized countries, and the nature of the future global economy. –Summary.

Migration by Paul Guinness

Series: Access to Geography

Migration examines important developments in the field of migration. It looks at migration’s causes and consequences in both the developed and developing worlds. –Summary.

Rural Settlement and the Urban Impact on the Countryside by Michael Hill

Series: Access to Geography

Rural Settlement and Urban Impact on the Countryside focuses on the geographical issues that have changed the countryside through urbanization and counter-urbanization. Economic conditions which lead to rural depopulation are considered as are those that have led to the repopulation of some rural areas. The impact on the countryside and the concept of the 'post-rural' society are also examined. –Summary.

Urban Settlement and Land Use by Michael Hill

Series: Access to Geography

Urban Settlement and Land Use provides an overview of urban geography through the study of both the role of cities in a changing world and the distinctive sections within cities. –Summary.

A Sisterhood of Suffering and Service: Women and Girls of Canada and Newfoundland during the First World War edited by Sarah Glassford and Amy Shaw

“Drawing upon a multidisciplinary spectrum of recent work – studies on mobilizing women, paid and volunteer employment at home and overseas, grief, childhood, family life, and literary representations ­– this book brings Canadian and Newfoundland women and girls into the history of the First World War and marks their place in the narrative of national transformation.” –Publisher.

Families Count: Profiling Canadian Families by The Vanier Institute of the Family

Through the use of easy-to-read charts and tables and commentary, Families Count identifies trends, successes, and challenges facing Canada’s families today. –Summary

Have A Little Faith by Mitch Albom

When an eighty-two-year-old rabbi from Albom's old hometown asks him to deliver his eulogy, Albom goes back to his nonfiction roots and becomes involved with a Detroit pastor--a reformed drug dealer and convict--who preaches to the poor and homeless in a decaying church with a hole in its roof. A timely, moving, and inspiring look at faith: not just who believes, but why. –

Summary.

Music: A Window to the Soul by Lorraine Kneier

A well-reasoned and clearly written guide for all those who seek to experience, understand, and share a love for classical music through informed listening. –Summary.

The Kane Chronicles: Survival Guide by Mary-Jane Knight

Profiles the people, places, gods, and creatures found in Rick Riordan's #1 New York Times bestselling Kane Chronicles series. –Summary.

The Little Immigrants by Kenneth Bagnell

“The Little Immigrants is a tale of compassion and courage and a vivid account of a deep and moving part of Canadian heritage. In the early years after Confederation, the rising nation needed workers that could take advantage of the abundant resources. Until the time of the Depression, 100,000 impoverished children from the British Isles were sent overseas by well-meaning philanthropists to solve the colony's farm-labour shortage.” Back cover.

Professional Development Resources

10 Things Every Writer Needs to Know by Jeff Anderson

“Whether writing a blog entry or a high-stakes test essay, fiction or nonfiction, short story or argumentation, students need to know certain things in order to write effectively. In 10 Things Every Writer Needs to Know, Jeff Anderson focuses on developing the concepts and application of ten essential aspects of good writing--motion, models, focus, detail, form, frames, cohesion, energy, words, and clutter.” –Publisher.

Engaging the DisEngaged by Beth Charlton

“This book discusses how disengagement can affect the performance of all students and how it leads to students who are ‘doing school,’ rather than engaging in the process. It challenges educators to view students from the perspective of what they ‘can do’ rather than what they ‘can’t do.’ It recognizes the importance of acknowledging what each person brings to the learning situation and shares poignant moments of unanticipated learning and re-engagement.” –Publisher.

Enriching Comprehension with Visualization Strategies by Jeffrey D. Wilhelm

This book provides a wealth of enactment techniques that help students apply their social, physical, and intellectual selves to the books they read to help improve their comprehension. Includes a range of visualization strategies that teach students to picture scenes, events, settings, characters, and ideas. The accompanying DVD demonstrates visualization techniques at work in classrooms, as well as forms and PDFs.

Igniting A Passion For Reading by Steven L. Layne

“Steve Layne shows teachers practical ways to engage and inspire readers from kindergarten through high school, to develop readers who are not only motivated to read great books, but also love reading in its own right.” –Publisher.

iWrite: Using Blogs, Wikis, and Digital Stories in the English Classroom by Dana J. Wilber

In iWrite, Dana shows you how to guide students through the complexity of new literacies, including: how to discern between media; how to account for audience and voice; how to choose appropriate genre; and how to harness what they already know to be more successful in school. –Summary.

PowerPoint for Teachers by Ellen Finkelstein and Pavel Samsonov

This was written for teachers who want to use PowerPoint in the classroom to enhance your presentations, teach your students how to use the application, and create interactive educational projects. –Summary.

Successful Inclusion for Students with Autism by Sonla R. deBoer

Many students with autism spectrum disorders are being taught in mainstream classrooms for at least part of the school day, yet teachers receive little to no training on how to successfully include these children. Educators need a roadmap showing them how to set up an effective inclusion program for their students with autism. –Summary.

The Art of Slow Reading: Six Time-Honored Practices by Thomas Newkirk

“This book rests on a simple but powerful belief-that good readers practice the art of paying attention. Building on memoir, research, and many examples of classroom practice, Thomas Newkirk, recuperates six time-honored practices of reading-performance, memorization, centering, problem-finding, reading like a writer, and elaboration-to help readers engage in thoughtful, attentive reading.” –Publisher.

Understanding Asperger’s Syndrome: Fast Facts by Emily Burrows and Sheila Wagner

The purpose of this guide is to help educators become acquainted with identifying and meeting the needs of the student with Asperger's Syndrome. –Summary.

Unleashing the Potential of the Teenage Brain: 10 Powerful Ideas by Barry Corbin

Provides teachers with specific guidelines to establish an optimal learning environment for teenagers and offers case studies that illustrate how to translate theory into workable classroom practice. –Summary.

Bookworms and Dominoes: Nonfiction

Formula One by Alex Raynham

Oxford Bookworms: Stage Three

"It's an exciting life - full of fast cars, money, and travel. The names of Formula One champions are known all over the world. And everywhere young drivers dream of success one day in Monaco, Melbourne, Monza ... But it is a difficult life too. Drivers need strong bodies - and minds. They need to think quickly, drive hard, and sometimes look death in the face. This is the dangerous, exciting world of Formula One - where the world's best drivers have only seconds to win or lose a race.” –Back cover.

Martin Luther King by Alan C. McLean

Oxford Bookworms: Stage Three

“The United States in the 1950s and 60s was a troubled place. Black people were angry, because they did not have the same rights as whites. It was a time of angry words, of marches, of protests, a time of bombs and killings. But above the angry noise came the voice of one man - a man of peace. 'I have a dream,' said Martin Luther King, and it was a dream of blacks and whites living together in peace and freedom. This is the story of an extraordinary man, who changed American history in his short life.” –Back cover.

Titanic by Tim Vicary

Oxford Bookworms: Stage One

"On a quiet sea, the biggest ship in the world is waiting.  There is no noise from the engines. Up in the night sky there are hundreds of stars.  Behind the ship, an iceberg - a great mountain of ice - goes slowly away into the black night.  In the beautiful first-class rooms, rich passengers eat and listen to music.  Down in the third-class cabins, families sleep.  An exciting new life is waiting for them in America.  But for many of the people in this small 'city on the sea' this is their last night alive...." –Back cover.

William and Kate by Christine Lindop

Oxford Bookworms: Stage One

“Everybody took photos of Prince William when he first arrived at the University of St Andrews. Crowds of photographers came to the little Scottish town next to the sea and took pictures of this new student - the nineteen-year-old grandson of the Queen of England. But nobody photographed Kate Middleton on her first day at the university. She moved in quietly, ready to begin her studies in art history. She was just an ordinary student with an ordinary future in front of her. Or was she?” –Back cover.

Bookworms and Dominoes: Fiction

A Pretty Face by John Escott

Oxford Dominoes: Starter

Zoe Baker works in a bookstore. She also likes acting, and she has a part in the play 'Romeo and Juliet'. Mike Morrison writes about the play for the newspaper. What does he write about Zoe? Is Zoe a good actress ... or is she just 'a pretty face'? What does Zoe think when she reads the newspaper? What does she do? –Summary.

Deep Trouble by Lesley Thompson

Oxford Dominoes: Level One

"Amy and Matt are bored. They don't want to study for their exams - they want to have a good time. So they drive to the marina at West Palm Beach and Matt jumps onto one of the boats. But when the owners of the boat come back and find them, Amy and Matt are in deep trouble." –Publisher.

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Oxford Bookworms: Stage Two

In 1875 Jonathan Harker comes form England to do business with Count Dracula of Transylvania. Strange things begin to happen at night and Jonathan is afraid. Count Dracula is a vampire. –Summary.

Emma by Jane Austen

Oxford Dominoes: Level Two

Emma Woodhouse is beautiful, clever and rich. She lives alone with her father, and spends a lot of her time thinking about future husbands - for her friends. When she meets Harriet Smith, a poor girl with no family, Emma decides that she must find a husband for her. Harriet is pleased to be Emma's friend - but will Emma's matchmaking make Harriet happy? –Summary.  

The Girl With Red Hair by Christine Lindop

Oxford Bookworms: Starter

"Every day people come to Mason's store -- old people, young people, men and women.  From his office, and in the store, Mark watches them. And when they leave the store, he forgets them.  Then one day a girl with red hair comes to the store, and everything changes for Mark.  Now he can't forget that beautiful face, those green eyes, and that red hair…." –Back cover.

Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne

Oxford Dominoes: Starter

Professor Lindenbrock and his nephew Axel, on a quest to reach the very core of the earth, gain access to the interior by entering through the cone of an extinct volcano in Iceland. In their descent they pass through the strata of successively earlier and earlier periods until they glimpse a prehistoric man guarding a herd of mastodons. –Summary.

Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Oxford Dominoes: Level Three

A family travels from the big woods of Wisconsin to a new home on the prairie, where they build a house, meet neighboring Native American Indians, build a well, and fight a prairie fire –Summary.

The Mystery of Manor Hall by Jane Cammack

Oxford Bookworms: Starter

"Manor Hall is an old dark house with a mystery. Nobody can go into the music room. But one night Tom and Milly hear something. The noise is coming from the music room. Tom and Milly open the door. Someone in the music room is singing. Tom and Milly are afraid, but they can't move. Can Tom and Milly discover the mystery of Manor Hall?" –Back cover.

The Piano Man by Tom Vicary

Oxford Bookworms: Stage One

A woman finds a man on a beach. He is very cold, his clothes are wet, and he cannot speak. The woman phones for help, and an ambulance comes and takes the man to hospital. In hospital they ask the man questions, but he does not answer. He still cannot speak - or does not want to speak. Who is he, this strange man from the sea? What is his name? Where did he come from? And why do they call him the Piano Man? –Summary.

Red Roses by Christine Lindop

Oxford Bookworms: Starter

Anna and Will see each other once in passing but do not actually meet. Each keeps thinking about the other, but they keep just missing each other and don't actually meet until one rainy day. –Summary.

The Witches of Pendle by Rowena Akinyemi

Oxford Bookworms: Stage One

"Today, of course, most people don't believe in witches. But in 1612 everybody was afraid of them. Young Jennet Device in Lancashire knew a lot about them because she lived with the witches of Pendle. They were her family." –Back cover.

Oxford Read and Discover: Nonfiction

Animals at Night by Rachel Bladon

Discover: Level Four

"Read and discover all about amazing animals at night ... Why do some animals come out at night? What special senses do nocturnal animals have?" –Publisher.

How We Make Products by Alex Raynham

Discover: Level Three

”Read and discover how products such as cars, chocolate, clothing and electronic products are made.” –Publisher.

Machines: Then and Now by Robert Quinn

Discover: Level Four

"Read and discover all about machines in the past and today. When did people invent the wheel? What is a nanobot?" –Publisher.

Transportation: Then and Now by James Styring

Discover: Level Five

“Read and discover all about transportation in the past and today... What were the first planes made of? How fast can solar cars travel?” –Publisher.

Why We Recycle by Fiona Undrill

Discover: Level Four

"Read and discover all about why we recycle waste ... What waste materials can we recycle? How long does plastic take to decompose?" –Publisher.