Baton Rouge Police Chief Murphy Paul speaks with Lower School students during the community read.

​“Different languages, different food, different customs. That's our neighborhood: wild and tangled and colorful. Like the best kind of garden.” ― Katherine Applegate, Wishtree

The Wish Tree created by art teacher Caroline Hagan and her student artists as a visual complement to the story.

Several third graders courageously shared their impressions of the book in front of a standing-room-only Greer Center Morning Meeting and at a parent-student book discussion later in the day. Students also shared their wishes with the larger Episcopal community by displaying them on the Episcopal wish tree. The tree was created by art teacher Caroline Hagan and her student artists as a visual complement to the story. Students wished for everything from kindness, peace and harmony to a unicorn, better handwriting and a puppy. “Making others feel safe is a fine way to spend your days.” Katherine Applegate, Wishtree. There were several special guests in attendance to highlight Episcopal’s connection to the broader community.  Baton Rouge Police Chief Murphy Paul enthusiastically spoke to students about the importance of faith and family. Chaplain Charlie, who arranged for the chief to attend, told the audience that Chief Paul exemplifies the message of community in the book.

Pictured at the Lower School Community Read are Lower School Librarian Catherine Word, Mary Pollard and Steele Pollard.

If you are interested in digging into some research on the topic of media literacy, I recommend checking out this study completed by the Stanford History Education Group on Evaluating Information: The Cornerstone of Civic Online Reasoning. They assessed how middle school, high school, and college-age students evaluate information online. This recent PEW study assessed the ability to distinguish between factual and opinion statements in the news is also worth a read.

Tiffany Whitehead

Tiffany has been an educator for eleven years and serves as the Director of Library at Episcopal. A lifelong resident of Baton Rouge, she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Education from Southeastern Louisiana University and her Masters in Educational Technology Leadership from Northwestern State University of Louisiana. She has served as the President for ISTE’s Librarians Network and was recognized as one of ISTE’s 2014 Emerging Leaders. Tiffany is National Board Certified in Library Media and was named one of the 2014 Library Journal Movers & Shakers. She was the 2016 recipient of the Louisiana Library Media Specialist Award and is currently the President of the Louisiana Association of School Librarians. Tiffany speaks regularly at state, national, and international conferences on school library and technology topics.

“Red is an oak tree who is many rings old. Red is the neighborhood "wishtree"—people write their wishes on pieces of cloth and tie them to Red's branches. Along with her crow friend Bongo and other animals who seek refuge in Red's hollows, this "wishtree" watches over the neighborhood.

You might say Red has seen it all. Until a new family moves in. Not everyone is welcoming, and Red's experiences as a wishtree are more important than ever.”   wishtreebook.com

Given this year’s Lower School theme of Love Your Neighbor, Episcopal Librarian Catherine Word knew Wishtree was the perfect choice for a Community Read. Wishtree emphasizes loving others even when they are different and has a unique narrator: a tree. It also has themes of kindness, compassion and friendship.  Word officially kicked off the book club at Morning Meeting this week by giving every third grader a copy of the book to read along with their families over the next six weeks. The Greer Center was filled with excitement as students took a peek inside the fresh, new copies of the book. Word even gave away several copies to faculty members, who were eager to join in the fun.

​“Beloved author and Newbery-winner Applegate returns with a moving tale starring, of all things, an oak tree….Timely, necessary, and brimming with heart.” Booklist

“A distinctive call for kindness, delivered by an unforgettable narrator.” Publishers Weekly
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“Elegant and poignant…another stunning effort from Applegate.” School Library Journal

“This swiftly moving yet contemplative read is great for early middle grade, reluctant or tentative readers, or precocious younger students. A deceptively simple, tender tale in which respect, resilience, and hope triumph.” Kirkus Reviews

Catherine Word

Catherine Word is the Lower School Librarian. She received her Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood Education from the University of Alabama and her Masters of Library and Information Science from Louisiana State University.  Before coming to Episcopal, she taught first grade and eighth grade English, and was a Middle School Librarian. Catherine not only loves to help students fall in love with reading, but also creates an environment of creativity and exploration through participation in Maker Space. Her passion motivates her to stay current with library science skills to enhance student creativity and exploration through participation in programs such as Worlds of Making Makerspace Admiral Program. Catherine works side by side with technology staff and teachers in professional and student development through trainings and on-hand, in-class modeling.

October is National Book Month and fall break is a great time to snuggle up with a good read.  Here are a few favorites from our Episcopal staff:

Tiffany Whitehead – Director of Library My favorite book, if I must choose just one, is “The Thirteenth Tale” by Diane Setterfield. It’s a booklover’s book and one that I can read again and again. Suspenseful, mysterious, and haunting, the novel spins the tale of a famous author who is sharing her final story to a young biographer. It’s full of beautiful words and phrases that you can’t help but savor as a reader, but the intrigue of the story pulls you along and keeps you guessing until the end.

Dr. Rebecca Kuhn – Social Studies Department Chair/Upper School Social Studies My favorite books are by Willa Cather. I have been moved by her “My Antonia, O Pioneers!”, and “Death Comes for the Archbishop”. Stories of leaving one's home, settling the Great Plains, creating community, and making one's living from the land resonate with me and my family's history.

Lucy Smith – Middle School Division Head I love to read, so it is very hard to pick one favorite book. If I have to choose, “To Kill a Mockingbird” probably is my all-time favorite.  My grandmother, whom I loved and admired tremendously, introduced me to the novel when I was quite young, and I grew to appreciate and love the book even more as I used it with students as an eighth grade English teacher.  The setting, the characterization, the theme and the powerful, positive life lessons in Harper Lee’s story combine to make this book so very special.

Martha Guarisco – Middle School English First, choosing a favorite book is like choosing a favorite breath of air.  I read a ton of Young Adult fiction because there’s always an element of hope, unlike many works for adults.  My current favorite is “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas because of its questions about cultural identity and its depiction of someone trying to bridge the divide between two very different lifestyles.  After the death of Alton Sterling, I’ve found myself wanting to understand more about what it must be like to fear those charged with our protection, and “THUG” has done that for me.  Plus, Angie Thomas is coming to Baton Rouge for the Louisiana Book Festival! A good line from the book:  'Sometimes you can do everything right and things will still go wrong. The key is to never stop doing right.'

Bridget Henderson – Lower School Division Head I first read “Rebecca” by Daphne duMaurier as a class novel when I was in the eighth grade.  I loved it then, and nearly forty years later, I consider it to be my all-time favorite novel.  This psychological thriller has everything I love in a book:  vivid descriptions, believable—and in some cases despicable—characters, a ghost of sorts, and twists a reader couldn’t possibly predict.  The first time I read it, I remember hiding under my covers with a flashlight way past bedtime, turning page after page through the compelling story to an unpredictable conclusion.  After at least ten more readings, though I know how it ends, my heart still races with “Rebecca”.

The new site presents our digital resources in a visually appealing way, making them easily accessible to users. Resources are further broken down and described in more detail in each of the various content pages. I am currently working with faculty members in the different subject areas to add high-quality free collections to the site in order to build an even more robust collection of resources for students conducting research. "Students don’t just have access to these amazing resources on campus. They are available 24/7 to Episcopal students via our library website."

Should I be using Google or the Library resources for paper?

Tiffany Whitehead

Tiffany has been an educator for nine years and joins the Episcopal faculty this year as the Upper and Middle School Librarian. A lifelong resident of Baton Rouge, she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Education from Southeastern Louisiana University and her Masters in Educational Technology Leadership from Northwestern State University of Louisiana. She has served as the President for ISTE’s Librarians Network and was recognized as one of ISTE’s 2014 Emerging Leaders. Tiffany is National Board Certified in Library Media and was named one of the 2014 Library Journal Movers & Shakers. She was the 2016 recipient of the Louisiana Library Media Specialist Award. Tiffany speaks regularly at state, national, and international conferences on school library and technology topics.

Introducing Overdrive

Catherine Word

Catherine Word is the Lower School Librarian. She received her Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood Education from the University of Alabama and her Masters of Library and Information Science from Louisiana State University.  Before coming to Episcopal, she taught First Grade, Eighth Grade English, and was a Middle School Librarian. Catherine not only loves to help students fall in love with reading, but also creates an environment of creativity and exploration through participation in Maker Space. Her passion motivates her to stay current with library science skills to enhance student creativity and exploration through participation in programs such as Worlds of Making Makerspace Admiral Program. Catherine works side by side with technology staff and teachers in professional and student development through trainings and on-hand, in-class modeling.