Wiley Reads One Book

For two weeks at the end of May, everyone in our Wiley Family read Nim's Island by Wendy Orr.  Huge shout out to the Wiley PTA for purchasing the books for us.  This was our first time to do a One Book program and I'm so glad they supported us in our new adventure.

Prior to the kickoff, I put every book into a bag along with a bookmark with the reading schedule, discussion questions, and a map of Nim's Island.  I delivered them to the teachers on the first day we were to begin reading.  The teachers opened them and revealed the book after their classes watched the introduction video.

I incorporated some Nim's Island STEM into our Monday Makerspace Club.  We built tin foil boats and tried to see how many pennies they would hold.  We also made our own Lego Islands.  Mrs. Rose, our art teacher, had students make maps and they also painted animals from the Galapagos (where Nim's Island is possibly located).

Along with a daily slideshow and trivia question, many teachers took it upon themselves to incorporate Nim's Island activities into their class.  Mrs. Owens' class made clay islands, Mrs. Thompson's class made paper turtles, and several teachers used PebbleGo to research animals and beaches.

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We also had a couple of dress up days.  When we read about the tourists coming to the island, teachers and students dressed like tourists.  We also had a day where we dressed like explorers.

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We concluded the fun with a Nim's Island themed Field Day.  Our PE coach, Mr. Schisler created many fun activities with a tropical twist.  Here were a couple of my favorites.

Based on teacher surveys, this program was a huge success.  Teachers and students really enjoyed sharing the book together.  Now I just need to think of a book for next year!