The 2010-11 Maine Student Book Award winner is...

Nubs; The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle by Major Brian Dennis, Kirby Larson and Mary Nethery was chosen by 396 students from around the State O' Maine as this year’s Maine Student Book Award winner.

"A dog living in the desert in Iraq adopts a Marine and travels alone, 70 miles through the cold with little to eat and drink to be with him. Peppered throughout this moving tale of love between man and beast are photos taken in Iraq and show the harsh condition the two endured."

On April 14, at the 22nd Reading Round Up of Children and YA (Young Adult) Literature Conference held in Augusta the new 2011-12 Maine Student Book Award List was unveiled. The announcement of the list, comprised this year of 38 titles is highly anticipated by students in grades 4 – 8 in those schools or public libraries where they promote the Maine Student Book Award (MSBA) program.

MSBA is a wonderful program that does encourage children to read, and to engage in a conversation about those books they have read. The draw for those children who have read through the list throughout the year can vote for their favorite book by April 1st. The idea is similar to other major book awards such as Newbery and Caldecott, only with MSBA the winner is chosen by the students, not adults.

We at Scarborough Public Library collaborate with Barbara Merritt, School Librarian K-8 and Nancy Coffin at Wentworth Middle School to promote MSBA. Marilyn Taylor, from our Youth Services Department attended the yearly MSBA party held April 29 at Wentworth.While students who participated in the voting experience enjoyed ice cream, Mrs. Taylor and Barbara Merritt tantalized them with talks about the books on the new list.

Come in to the Scarborough Public Library and pick up a copy of the current list. By using Minerva, our online catalog, it is a snap to request the titles your child would like to read. If you have any questions about the books ask us. The Youth Services staff LOVES offering book suggestions. See you at the Library!

It's Lexile time again!

Back in the old day, when asking for a book recommendation, children explained what they had been reading, and what they were looking for now. We’d ask if they liked historical fiction, fantasy, science fiction, or realistic fiction. Through the exchange, we’d get to know their likes and dislikes; when to challenge them and when not to.

But now, when asking for book suggestions we hear, “My child has a Lexile rating of 600. Could you find a book with the same number?” What a way to spoil reading for enjoyment!

The Lexile rating system was developed by MetaMetrics, an educational measurement company. MetaMetrics developed the software that measures how difficult a text is to comprehend based on semantic difficulty and syntactic complexity. To find out more about Lexile and MetaMetrics, visit their web site at http://www.lexile.com/

One of the downsides of the Lexile rating system is that it does not rate the books’ content, quality of writing, or developmental suitability. We’ve done some research. For example, a Lexile rating of 670 pulls up Lauren Child’s picture book, Beware of the Storybook Wovles along with Alice Walker’s The Color Purple. There is no comparison in content matter. And, the higher your Lexile number is, the more challenging it is to find age-appropriate books.

It’s maddening! Children who are already comfortable with reading can become frustrated with selecting a book based on the Lexile Rating System. Imagine your child spending hours devouring a series to then find out, half way through the series that the Lexile number is far lower than they were tested. Do you tell your child they can no longer read that series? How is that going to give them a love of reading?

Successful readers read whatever they want, above and below their ability. As parents, you can foster and encourage them by providing a broad spectrum of reading materials and making regular visits to the public library.

See you at the library.

READING A SERIES

We all know that it takes practice to become a good reader. The more a child reads, the more confident they become. For most children the first books they read on their own are picture books that were read aloud to them at home or at school. They often find it easier to decode words from a story that is so familiar they have memorized it. The better a reader knows a story, the easier it is for them to understand the meaning of the words.

Series books offer a consistency of characters and formulaic plots that provides uncertain readers with the reassurance of familiarity. Novice readers find selecting a book intimidating. By sticking with a series it minimizes the risk of feeling frustrated and allows children to select their next book with confidence.

Reading books in a series can be the first step, a jumping off point before moving to more challenging stories.

For more experienced readers, series helps encourage the reading habit.

Stop into the library and pick up our new brochure that list all the series books found at the Scarborough Public Library.