Courtyard Update

So...last week I met with local landscaper, Vic Lance and our Operations Director, Dave Hansel. A plan is in progress! Vic will begin to clean out the area of over growth and pruning the two existing trees. Top soil will be brought in and seeding will be done in late summer. Vic will also take care of resurfacing and staining the patio once a shade has been selected. Of course, I have all the fun jobs such as choosing the patio stain and selecting patio and garden seating. Luckily, I'll be getting some great assistance from project mentor, Rosanne Hansel of the Education Fund Committee.
As far as plants and flowers - why not ask the community to donate plants from their own gardens? What a great way to involve the New Hope community and make them a part of our little garden haven.

I was very surprised to stumble across a WikiREADia article on How to Create a Reading Garden-an initiative from the 2008 National Year of Reading. Should be a very helpful resource for us!

Good things to Come!

A picture of our courtyard as it looks now.

Students will soon have a relaxing, quiet place to read, reflect and gather together in the high school library courtyard! Thanks to the NHS Education Fund, a proposal has been accepted to have this area majorly spruced-up. Renovations will include patio restorations, flowers, plants and shrubs, garden décor, and comfortable patio seating. Student artwork will adorn the park-like setting in the form of wall murals, mosaics and sculptures. The new courtyard will provide a perfect setting for getting lost in a good book, creating “en plein air” art or hosting small class discussions.

But that's not all! The Education Fund has also accepted a proposal for hosting diverse, inspiring speakers to our school next year. We are so, so fortunate to have this committee of community members working to improve and enhance our students' education!

At the Movies: Marley & More

Big excitement in the nearby city of West Chester, PA where they are filming the movie, Marley & Me. The movie, based on the book by John Grogan, stars Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston. Maybe it's just me, but I just can't picture them playing the parts of John Grogan and his wife. Perhaps I'll be pleasantly surprised when it is released at the end of the year.

Of course, that's not the only "movie-based-on-book" we have to look forward to: Twilight (based on the ever-so-popular book by Stephenie Meyer) is also set to come-out at the end of the year. Based on the trailer which was recently released, it looks like it's going to be great. Perhaps it will be worth another school-trip to see the release, as we did for The Kite Runner!

King Dork, based on the book by Frank Portman and starring Will Ferrell, is set to be released
sometime this year (exact date to be determined). And we have quite a wait for the release of The Lovely Bones (based on Alice Sebold's novel). That movie, starring Atonement's Amanda Michalka, as well as Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz and Susan Sarandon, is not due to be released until October of 2009! Of course, that also has local ties as much of it was filmed in Hatboro.

And, last but not least, The Dangerous Book for Boys hits not just the screen, but the tube very soon. Written by British authors, Conn and Hal Iggulden, the television show will air in England but may have a spin-off in America. It appears that both in the show and the movie, some of the British past times may be "Americanized" to make the viewing more appealing to the US population.

Summer Reading Book Fair

Good news for our students! You will be able to browse and select books for your required English reading on May 28th, 29th and 30th. All books will be on display in the library and order forms will be available for you to purchase the books at a 20% discount from Borders Bookstores.
Wondering what the books consist of? Stay tuned! The lists are being fine-tuned by the English teachers and will be posted in just a day or so.

Stamp of Approval

From Bucks County Courier Times, 5/12/08

How proud James Michener would be to know that he is today honored with his own postage stamp. The Pulitzer prize author from Doylestown was an avid stamp collector.

For Walter Dean Myers Fans

Many of our students just can't get enough of Walter Dean Myers. They'll be very pleased to learn that not one - but two - new Myers books have just been released.
As is the setting for many Myers books, Harlem is the location of the high school where Drew Lawson is a basketball player in the novel, Game. As he aspires for college and a future with basketball, Drew must deal with his anger over the arrival of two, new white players on his team.
And for you lovers of Fallen Angel, look forward to reading Sunrise over Fallujah - a sequel in a way. A Private Perry once again narrates Sunrise, but this time the war is Iraq and the private is Robin Perry - the nephew of Fallen Angel's Private Richie Perry.
For a full review, see today's NYT's Sunday Book Reviews.

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Twitter Your Library

Sarah Houghton-Jan (aka-The LibrarianInBlack) recently did a webcast for OPAL, Online Marketing for Libraries. You can find the archived presentation through OPAL's archive site.  She has tons of great tips on getting your library -and your library website- publicized and seen.  One of the things she mentions is iLibrarian's Guide to Twitter for Librarians.  Lots of great tips on how Twitter can be used to get information out to your students and to the community. Included is David Lee King's 10 Ways to use Twitter.  So many useful ideas!

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