Peculiar Primates and More!

by Debra Kempf Shumaker and illustrator Claire Powell

Author Debra Kempf Shumaker and illustrator Claire Powell got me thinking about primates a lot through their book Peculiar Primates: Fun Facts About These Curious Creatures.  This nonfiction story-telling book is full of peculiar primate tidbits, and has you wanting more.

At the back of the book, the author offers "Further Learning."  Here is some of what she shares:

WEBSITES:

- New England Primate Conservancy

    - Videocasts by New England Primate Conservancy

VIDEOS:

Bulindi Chimps - "Nest Making is Serious Business!" (1:45)

Baby Chimps Playtime / Africa's Hidden Wonders / National Geographic Wild UK (3:56)

BASTION BOOKS:

- Primates

- Monkeys

ORL BOOKS:

- Primates

- Monkeys

Asian Heritage Month / Mois du Patrimoine Asiatique - 2024

While Bastion students and I expand our learning about Black History Month in February, in May we continue our cultural WONDERINGS through Asian Heritage Month.  As the teacher-librarian I found we do not have a lot of resources for this theme - I am slowly changing that reality.  

Please make  suggestions that may be a great addition to our collection.

Celebrate Canada's Asian Heritage - Asian Heritage Month (33 secs)

CBC Kids - Asian Heritage Month

• The Groups of People Who Live in Asia: the Biggest Continent in the World!

Historica Canada Heritage Minute: Paldi

CBC writes about Paldi which was the first "multicultural settlement in a designed way" in B.C.

Minute du patrimoine: Paldi

Heritage Minutes: Vancouver Asahi 
From 1914-1941, the Vancouver Asahi were one of city’s most dominant amateur baseball teams, winning multiple league titles in Vancouver and along the Northwest Coast. In 1942, after Canada declared war on Japan, 22,000 Japanese Canadians were interned in the interior of BC, including the Asahi players. For more information about the Vancouver Asahi, please visit: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.c... Thanks to SIM International for their sponsorship of this Heritage Minute. Credits: Asahi player – Lou Ticzon Narrator – Kaye Kaminishi

A Chinese Legend: "The Water Dragon" Kids Book Read Aloud (19:03)

Once Upon a Book Read aloud by "Read with Anna" (5:27)
Written by author Grace Lin

Grace Lin: The Story Behind Once Upon a Book by Reading Rockets (1:41)

Further Digital and Print Resources to Explore::

• Mois du Patrimoine Asiatique - Government du Canada
• Asian Heritage Month - Canadian Government
• Mois du Patrimoine Asiatique - RCI Radio Canada Internationale

• Asian Heritage Month - Radio interview of former Canadian senator Vivienne Poy by Radio Canada International, who proposed the idea of Asian Heritage Month

Some themes to explore in our Canadian History related to the struggles of the Asian Immigrant Experience:

• The "Continuous Journey Regulation" (1908) and the Komagata Maru;
• The Chinese Migrant Workers of the Gold Rush and Canadian Pacific Railway;
• The Chinese Immigration Act;
• Japanese Internment during the Second World War;
• Anti-Asian Riots of the early 1900s; and
• Islamophobic hate crimes in recent reports. 

KOMAGATA MARU:

Historica Canada (video): “The Sikh migrants who challenged Canadian immigration law” 

(approx. 7 minutes; available in French) 
Historica Canada tells of the Komagata Maru immigration attempt story.

• The Canadian Encyclopedia: Komagata Maru (available in French)

City of Vancouver: Remembering Komagata Maru (10:44)

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES

• Open School BC: Saffron threads: Exploring South Asian culture, history, and heritage 

• See also Komagata Maru learning resource (available in French) 

CHAPTER BOOK TRAILORS:

Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga by BPLibraryKids

"Escape from Syria" Book Trailer by Firefly Books (2:40pm)

Front Desk by Kelly Yang (Scholastic) (1:02)

Movie trailer for author Deborah Ellis' story The Breadwinner (1:54)

J Torres and Ainara Presentation about Torres' graphic novel Stealing Home (6:34)

Refugee by Alan Gratz, book trailer by Scholastic (1:12)

Heart of a Champion by Ellen Schwartz, Red Cedar Book Trailer (1:26)

Come and Learn Ozobot Coding with Us!

Ozobots are a fun way to learn how to code.  

Bastion Bobcats see the introductory videos below to begin your journey:

Introduction to Color Codes 01: Training [Full] (12:39)

How To: Colo[u]r Codes (1:56)


Learn to Code Getting Started with OzoBlockly and Ozobot Bit Robot (2 mins)

Note: a reminder to press the checkmark box after you have calibrated your Bit Robot
(so the software knows the calibration is complete)

Introduction to Ozobot Blockly 02: Sequences [Full] (12:17)

Note this video is for an "Evo" Ozobot which can load your code sequence by blue tooth connection (and thus you do not have to load the coding program on the iPad or computer screen
like you do for an Ozobot "Bit").

This Youtube tutorial is great for teachers/adults using Ozobot (Bit) 

for the first time and learning how to charge and calibrate them:

Ozobot Bit How to Power On and Calibrate (3:00)

Charging and Storing Ozobots:

If Ozobot blinks red, then the battery needs to be charged as soon as possible. 
Plug the mini USB charging cable into a computer or multi-port charger and plug Ozobot into the other end.

Ozobot blinks green when it is partially charged,
and shows a solid green light when fully charged.

When Ozobot is stored for long periods of time,
leave the battery at medium charge,
since high or low charge can hurt the battery.