Attention lower school students and parents!  Summer is almost here!  We can hardly believe it!  The library staff wants all Tartans to keep reading over the Summer so . . . the library is hosting a Get-Ready-for-Summer-Reading Book Swap! We invite you to bring your gently used books to the library on the evening of Lower School Open House (May 10th) or any time during the week of May 14th through May 30th.  You can bring up to 12 books, and you will receive a voucher that will allow you …

MS–Wednesday 3/21 at lunch in the Library
US –Thursday 3/22 at lunch in rm. 712 (Ms. Jacobsen’s room)
All are invited to discuss the book The Hunger Games. Bring your lunch and an interest in conversation.
Discussion guide and more information about The Hunger Games Trilogy and Suzanne Collins.

If you like puzzles, then Owen Harding has just the thing for you. Owen’s Encoded Quiz is part code breaking challenge and part scavenger hunt that will test your cranial capacity and visual acuity. But don’t worry about overtaxing your occipital lobe, there are only five questions and there are prizes involved! So just open the Encoded Quiz Word doc and take a crack at it. Then save it and e-mail it to Owen. He’ll be in touch!

Congratulations to Mrs. Donchak’s class and Father Livingston’s class for their quick research skills that won them a box of donuts! This week’s reading trivia questions and answers were:

1. Who won the 1962 Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his interpretation of Atticus Fitch? (Gregory Peck)

2. What is the connection between industrialist, Andrew Carnegie, and libraries? (In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Andrew Carnegie provided grants/funding that sponsored the building and development of public and university libraries around the world including the United States.)

3. What yearly award is administered by the Association for . . .

Thanks to all students and teachers for participating in Stop, Drop, and Read.  This silent demonstration bonded us as readers and helped us to focus on the importance of reading in our lives.  Take a moment to comment here and share your thoughts about Stop, Drop, And Read and/or share what you read!

This March the library will again pull out all the stops to celebrate READING! SMES is already a community that values reading, but once a year the Library offers programs and activities that encourage students to reflect, share, and read more!
Here is a sneak peek at our upcoming special events:
• Stop, Drop, Read On Feb 29th as a kick-off to our celebration, students and teachers in each division will be taking some time to read and discuss the importance of reading in their lives.
• Celebrity Readers: US and MS students will be . . .

Come learn how on October 4th from 8:30-9:30am OR 2:00-3:00pm in the Library Lab.

It wasn’t long ago that I was sneaking novels into various places by tucking them under my shirt and stuffing them into my jacket pockets. But no more! Now I shameless parade my books around everywhere I go. How is that possible without getting in trouble or being one of “those” people sitting alone reading in a restaurant? Because I’ve cleverly hidden my books on my iPad! Now, instead of looking like a recluse, I look industrious no matter where I’m reading…

Battle of the Books (BOB) is a lower school club for students who enjoy reading and talking about good books. Each year, librarians from several schools in Orange County get together and create a BOB List of about 20 titles for students to choose from. Throughout the year, students meet in the library during lunchtime to join in book-related games and discussions (this year’s meetings occur on Day 1 of the rotation). In the spring, St. Margaret’s takes two teams to compete with other independent schools in a Jeopardy-style competition. …

Here in the library, we are always excited at the start of the school year. It is so full of promise!
This summer, we have been getting ready for an exciting new year. We created an early reader library for our youngest readers. We are calling it the Rainbow Room and it contains a collection of easy readers and a comfy reading area.
Also we have launched a MS/US digital library full of titles to download and read/listen to. I’ll be visiting classrooms to show students how to set it up and checkout …

Mrs. Farhadi is the Director of Advancement for our school. Not only is she enthusiastically working to raise money for our middle school and performing arts center, but she’s passionate about reading too! She loves classics and can go hours without a break if she’s enjoying her book. This is the second of a week-long series of videos, where we hear what some of the SMES faculty and staff have to say about what they read, why the read, and how they came to love it.