Road Trip

There she goes, Megan and her friend are on their way to Indiana. Notice that she is now a blondie! Have fun Megan!

To read makes my speaking English good?

Confession time...when it comes to grammar I am one of those people. You know...the kind who will edit someone's doodles, or worse, their e-mails/Facebook updates/love letters. If you haphazardly scribble me a note I will read it, acknowledge it, and probably add a comma. I can't help it - I love writing, editing, and grammar, especially when it's used correctly. So for this post I would like to share some of the best grammar resources I've found in the SERC Library...



The Chortling Bard - Caught'ya! Grammar with a Giggle for High School (IM 428.00712 KIE)
Tee-hee...chortling indeed...even this book's cover illustration of a puffed up Shakespearean type incites a laugh. In this 226-page resource, the author uses three of the Bard's most famous tales to teach writing mechanics to high school students at any level. She adapts the stories into modern, vocabulary-rich English, and includes thorough sentence breakdowns, word and literary device lists, and corresponding exams, as well as a grammar reference handbook. And as an added bonus, she includes a warm-up exercise for students to construct Shakespearean insults, pointing out that the average person won't know the origins of the words anyway, and that "English teachers are so thrilled that you are using Shakespeare that they won't mind." Now come check out this book, you gorbellied, clapper-clawed connigit!

Grammar Games (CD 372.61 DAV)
This award-winning CD-ROM contains four games for children to practice their grammar knowledge, including proper punctuation, formation of plurals and possessives, and identification of sentence fragments. Each game has multiple difficulty levels, allowing children of all ages to partake in the educational fun. The jungle-themed games (Rain Forest Rescue, Falling Fruit, Hidden Wonders, and Jungle Gizmo) are vibrantly colored and accompanied by a lively beat. This program will work both in and out of the classroom, so parents be sure to check this one out.

Tic-Tac-Grammar (IM 372.61 WIL)
This unique 166-page book fuses grammar lessons with the classic game of Tic-Tac-Toe. There are more than 150 different game sheets included, on which students match pictures with sentences in a fun, lightly competitive way. The games prompt students to make corrections to the provided sentences, in addition to coming up with new ones of their own. The book also contains additional activity ideas, recommended book lists, and blank Tic-Tac-Toe game pieces so that teachers can put their own creativity to good use. The excellent grammar guidance makes checking out this book a no-brainer - the only thing left to decide is who will be X's and who will be O's!

English Grammar in Use: A Self-Study Reference and Practice Book for Intermediate Students of English (IM 428.24 MUR)
Now...admittedly, the first three materials in this post speak to the more light-hearted side of teaching. But this book here? Serious business. This recently revised third edition is nearly 400-pages long, and contains hundreds of grammar rules with corresponding self-check exercises. There is also a CD-ROM included, with hundreds of additional practice activities, audio recordings of major grammar points, a built-in dictionary, and customized tests to help readers work on the areas of their choice. Though geared more towards self-study than school curriculum, teachers will find plenty of material to incorporate into their own lesson plans. It is also excellent for educators, college students, and any other individuals who need to brush up on their writing proficiency, or frankly, for grammar nerds like myself who get a cheeky delight out of testing our syntax savvy. Fun!


Note from the Grammar Police: Please feel free to point out any grammatical errors in this post in the comments. Statistics show a high likelihood of making a grammatical error when writing about not making grammatical errors.

Bonne Fête Nationale! (Happy Bastille Day!)

Il est le quatorzième de Juillet, et en France, c'est Jour de l'Indépendance! La Bibliothèque SERC collection des Jeunes a une section dédiée français, avec des titres tels que:
 
It is the fourteenth of July, and in France it is Independence Day! The SERC Library Young People's collection has a dedicated French section, with titles such as:

Food / La nourriture, By Barron's Educational Series (YP-FR F BAR)

Cuddly and colorful teddy bears teach new words to very young children - in both English and French! Barron's Bilingual First Books give little boys and girls an early start in learning a foreign language along with their own. Des oursons adorables et sympathiques enseignent aux enfants des mots nouvelles - en anglais et en français! Les Premieres Livres Bilingues de Barron's permettent aux enfants de s'initier une deuxieme langue ainsi que d'apprendre la leur initial.

Goodnight everyone / Bonne nuit à tous, by Lone Morton (YP-FR F MOR)

It's Martha's bedtime, but first she has to say goodnight to all her cuddly friends: teddy, penguin, monkey and little mouse. They're all tucked in...but will there be room for Martha? This delightful, appealing story has colorful illustrations and an easy-to-read text in both English and French. C'est l'heure du coucher de Marthe, mais d'abord qu'elle a à dire bonsoir à tous ses amis en peluche: Teddy, pingouin, le singe et la petite souris. Ils sont tous rentré po...mais il y aura place pour Martha? Ce superbe histoire appel a des illustrations colorées et faciles à lire le texte en anglais et en français.

My house / Ma maison, By Berlitz Kids (YP-FR F BER)

This interactive book teaches child friendly words in two languages. Meet this fun family and take a tour of their home. Each room has flaps you can lift to discover a surprise underneath! The book includes colorful illustrations and plenty of useful words in both French and English. Ce livre interactif apprend aux enfants, paroles amicales dans les deux langues. Rencontrez-vous familial et visite guidée de leur maison. Chaque chambre dispose de volets que vous pouvez soulever pour découvrir une surprise en dessous! Le livre comprend des illustrations colorées et beaucoup de mots utiles en français et en anglais. 
 

Happy Independence Day!

Ah yes, America...it's that time again. July has swept over us, bringing with it sticky summer days, sweet summer nights, and an explosion of patriotism. If you can bear to unfurl yourself from those red, white and blue streamers and put down that veggie burger, we'd like to share with you some of our favorite "America, yay!" library materials...

Okay folks, step right up! First things first, you've got your history - U.S. history - and plenty of it! From that fateful summer of 1776 to the Civil Rights era, we've got your history needs covered, with titles such as America's Story (IM 973 BER) and Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong (973 LOE).  You'll also find an abundance of materials that put a more unique slant on American history, such as Building a Legacy: Women in Social Education 1784-1984 (372.89 CRO), A History of Black Achievement in America (IE 960.73 AMB), and The Latino Experience in United States History (IM 972 CAB).

When it comes to highlighting our unique nation, history is only the beginning.  We're going to let you in on a little secret...the SERC Library owns nearly 50 National Geographic videos!  These amazing documentaries manage to walk that elusive line between education and fun, and we think they'll be equally useful to a bright-eyed classroom as well as kids on summer vacation who need a little break from the sun.  There are geographical explorations of America's natural beauty, like The Pacific Edge (IM 970 NAT) and Let's Explore a Wetland (IM 591.52 NAT).  Then there are the sciences, from biology - Your Body: Muscular and Skeletal Systems (IM 612 NAT) - to chemistry - Solid, Liquid, Gas (IM 530.4 Nat) - to botany - What is a Leaf? (IM 581 NAT).  You'll also find videos on wartime history, dinosaurs, the four seasons, and geography.  Oh, and our personal favorite, Killer Whales: Wolves of the Sea (IM 597 NAT), which wins based on that title alone!

Of course, being SERC, we also have plenty of items that focus on education in America.  Some of our newest titles in this area are Catching Up or Leading the Way: American Education in the Face of Globalization (370.973 ZHA) and Immigrant Families in Contemporary Society (308.4 LAN).

In honor of our nation's birthday, we are offering a free eco-friendly SERC Library tote bag to the first commenter to guess what tune the following is set to: (yes, really!)

For my education degree
I love the SERC Library
From thee I bring:
Tests in rolling suitcases,
DVDs with fancy cases,
IMS, IEs and Young People's Books...
And membership is free!