GUFS eBooks Now Available!

GUFS Creative Kids Elementary eBook 2011-12

GUFS Creative Kids Middle School eBook 2011-12

Lulu PDF & eBook versions (for computer viewing, iPad, Smartphone, other ereaders)

Available soon on:

iBookstore

Barnes & Noble (for Nook)

School's First Skype Assembly Welcomes Student Author-Activist Olivia Bouler!



An exciting interactive assembly using Skype technology for the first time in the school's gymnasium brought this year's Parents As Reading Partners activities to an inspiring conclusion. Garrison virtually welcomed Olivia Bouler, a 12-year-old who wrote a book filled with original bird drawings to raise money for wildlife endangered by the Gulf oil spill. Her efforts have raised more than $200,000 for the cause and brought her national attention, including an invitation to meet with President Obama at the White House. Olivia left her own school early to connect via Skype in her family's Long Island home office from 2 to 3 p.m. on Nov. 30, two weeks after her talk had been postponed due to a school power outage. "Kids of any age can make a difference," she told the students, appearing on a large screen over the gym stage. "You can make a difference." Saying that meeting President Obama is going to be "awesome," Olivia shared with the entire school how she was motivated to help the birds and other wildlife when she saw how helpless they were as they tried to care for their young in the midst of the oil spill. "Kids are the next generation," she said. "We are going to be the ones to stand up for the animals and the environment. Kids can believe in the impossible." She said she had a strong connection to the area after spending many summers along the Gulf of Mexico with her grandparents who live there. She has always loved to draw so she combined this passion with the idea for a book, which became "Olivia's Birds: Saving the Gulf." Sincere and unpretentious, Olivia made it easy for her audience to connect with her. Dozens of students raised their hands during what became an extended Q-and-A session. It was a thrill to see the students have the chance to interact with Olivia and showed the potential for such visits in the future with speakers who similarly might not otherwise be able to travel to the school in person. In response to one eighth-grader's question about how to start her own effort, Olivia advised that she needed to feel passionate about the cause, find a platform and a hook that uses her talents, like she did with her writing and drawing, and use social networking to spread the message among all her friends so it will "go viral." When Olivia allowed in response to another question that the newfound fame had led to teasing from some other students, Guidance Counselor Mike Williams asked her to explain how she deals with that. "I ignore them and know that they are just being losers and don't have anything better to do," shared Olivia. "They are putting off their own self-disappointment on you." When asked by a fourth grader how her success helping the Gulf Coast birds has made her feel, she replied, "Fantastic!" Special thanks to environmental educators Cathy Bakker and Pete Samuelsohn for proposing and arranging Olivia's visit and to GUFS technology specialist Nancy Romano for making it happen!

The End: Upper & Lower Grades Share Joy of Reading!

Dress As Your Favorite Literary Character Day!

We spotted some famous literary characters in the halls of Garrison today! We caught glimpses of that Wimpy Kid, Jo March, Fancy Nancy, Junie B. Jones, Harry Potter, Ruth Rose Hathaway, Dink Duncan, Dr. Seuss, Eloise, and other all-time favorites!

eBook Submission Deadline Extended to Thurs Dec 1!

Reading is Magical…Because of New Technology!
NOTE NEW DEADLINE!
Call for Submissions

All students are invited to contribute to the “First Ever Garrison School eBook!” The GUFS eBook will be professionally edited and sold to the public through iTunes, Barnes & Noble, and Amazon as a PTA fundraiser. Students may submit original jokes, riddles, poems, and short stories. Scanned illustrations, color or black & white, may also be submitted. Authors will be identified by first names and last initials. All submissions must be emailed to gufsparp@gmail.com by THURSDAY DEC 1. Questions? Please email gufsparp@gmail.com.

Olivia Bouler Postponed Until After Thanksgiving Due to Power Outage!

Ron Roy Reveals "A to Z Mysteries" Secrets to Elementary School!

Grades K through 5 enjoyed Ron Roy's humorous presentations on the writing process today. Mr. Roy is famous for his bestselling "A to Z Mysteries" series, regarded as among the best easy readers for young children. There are 26 books in the series, one for each letter of the alphabet, beginning with The Absent Author and ending with The Zombie Zone. The immense popularity of the original series inspired a follow-up series with the same characters. Mr. Roy is also writing the Calendar Mysteries series, which starts with the "January Joker." His next two in the ongoing series--"July Jitters" and "August Acrobat"--are expected out this summer. As one student noted after his presentation, "I loved it! He was really funny. I learned that if you love to do something, you should never give up but work harder and harder." A very special thank you to the Garrison Children's Education Fund for making Mr. Roy's visit possible!

A special thanks to the PTA Class Parents who put together a sumptious dessert reception for our faculty and authors today!

Novelist Todd Strasser Inspires the Middle School!

 Novelist Todd Strasser led energetic, engaging writing workshops with all of our Middle School English Language Arts classes today. Mr. Strasser is the author of more than 120 books for teens and middle graders including the best-selling Help! I'm Trapped In ... series, and numerous award-winning YA novels including The Wave, Give A Boy A Gun, The Accident, Can't Get There From Here, Boot Camp, and If I Grow Up. His newest series for grades 3 - 6 is The Tardy Boys. Several of his books have been adapted for television and his novel How I Created My Perfect Prom Date became the feature release Drive Me Crazy. His books have been translated into more than a dozen languages, and he has also written for television, newspapers, and magazines such as The New Yorker, Esquire, and The New York Times. Todd now divides his time between writing books and speaking at schools and conferences. His presentations today were described as "beyond fabulous!"

Middle School Poetry Slam Rocks Gym!

Special thanks to our visiting poets, to our emcees GUFS Guidance Counselor Mike Williams & Middle School English Language Arts Teacher Ian Berger, & to GUFS Parent Kara Raynaud for organizing this amazing event that turned our school gym into a coffeehouse & performance space for the night! Also special thanks to GUFS Parents Stacy & Art Labriola for sharing their musical talents and expertise! And congratulations to all the students who shared their own poetic and musical talents to make the night a success!

PJ Storytime: Milk, Cookies, Crafts &...Puppies?!

Special thanks to Polly Townsend, the Desmond-Fish Children's Librarian, for organizing a special Thanksgiving bookmaking craft for the evening!

Special thanks to Mrs. Marsh, GUFS Teacher Aide, for sharing her prize-winning canines with the enthusiastic crowd! And special thanks to Debbie Earle, GUFS Librarian, for organizing and hosting the Mystery Readers event!