Ms. Debi Gray - Library/Upper Grades Connections
"Be still, and know that I am God." - Psalm 46:10
Debi came to Memphis in 1975 from her hometown of Fountain, Florida, to attend Rhodes College. After earning a BA in psychology, she held positions as a preschool teacher, remedial reading specialist, and a children's librarian in the Memphis Public Library and the Memphis City School systems. In 2000, Debi completed a masters degree in curriculum and instructional leadership from the University of Memphis, and joined the CMDS faculty the next year.
In 2008, Debi was chosen to participate in the Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund teacher program, traveling to Japan for three weeks as a guest of the Japanese government, and returning to share her experience of Japanese culture with our students.
Debi enjoys camping, reading, and traveling to new places. She is also passionate about her mission work. Inspired by a 2003 trip to Zambia, she founded the Maanza a Leza project, a non-profit jewelry-making business run by herself and several other volunteers. All proceeds from the sale of their handmade jewelry go to build and furnish classrooms in a needy Zambian village.
Click here to see Ms. Debi Gray's Photo Gallery.Welcome to the Christ Methodist Day School library page! CMDS Grade School students are taught library skills, including the use of our online library catalog, as well as basic study and research skills. They learn how to select books for pleasure reading, school assignments, and exploring new interests and discovering new worlds. Students listen to great children’s literature read aloud by the Librarian, practice reading for comprehension, and celebrate the joy of reading with fun and creative activities. Each week Christ Methodist Day School grade school students are able to check out up to three books. The goal of our library program is to foster a love of books, so that students become life-long self-directed readers and learners.
Mission Statement
Christ Methodist Day School is dedicated to quality Christian elementary education for boys and girls. We promote spiritual development, academic excellence, social responsibility, and personal integrity.
April
PreK: Story-time themes -- Easter, Spring, poetry and rhyming stories.
JrK: Story-time themes -- Easter, Spring, poetry and rhyming stories.
SrK: Story-time themes -- Easter, Spring, poetry and rhyming stories.
1st grade: Identifying the difference between fiction and nonfiction, and understanding where each type is in our library. Read-aloud: Humorous stories, poetry, and rhyming stories.
2nd grade: Locating picture books on the shelf by author's last name. Recognizing Caldecott Medal winning books. Read-aloud: The B.F.G., by Raold Dahl.
3rd grade: Using the library's computer software to look up books by title, author, and/or subject. Locating books in the fiction section by author's last name. Read-aloud: The Tower by the Sea, by Meindert DeJong.
4th grade: Read-aloud: The Tower by the Sea, by Meindert DeJong.
5th grade: Identifying different children's book awards, including "children's choice" awards, and using websites to locate lists of award-winning books. Using atlases and reading maps. Read-aloud: The House of Sixty Fathers, by Meindert DeJong.
6th grade: Identifying different children's book awards, including British and international awards, and using websites to locate lists of award-winning books. Using the library online catalog to locate fiction and nonfiction on specific subjects. Read-aloud: The Haunting, by Margaret Mahy.
