Last summer, I wrote about “How to Make a Game Plan for Your Next Conference.” If you haven’t read that one yet, I highly recommend checking it out, as it’s some of my best overall advice for attending large conferences… Read More ›
June is Mentoring month for the AASL Induction Program, and as a facilitator for the program, I’ve been thinking quite a bit about mentoring. Unfortunately, mentoring has not been one of my strengths. I’m quite resistant to being mentored, and… Read More ›
Curation is the process ofculling resources to fit a particular need, but it is also the process of connecting with a global community by sharing those resources. One of the Shared Foundations in the AASL National School Library Standards is… Read More ›
“Would you ever consider letting students take books out of the library for the summer?” a classroom teacher asked me in passing one early June afternoon. She glanced at my face–filled with my typical I-don’t-know-what-the-right-answer-to-this-question-is, and tacked on, “Think about… Read More ›
As the school year ends, many librarians around the country are retiring. These librarians are building leaders and mentors that impact the school culture and student learning. They have seen many, many changes and have adapted in various ways to… Read More ›
AASL announced its 2018 Best Apps and Best Websites for Teaching & Learning at the American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference in New Orleans. The annual lists honor 25 apps and 25 websites that provide enhanced learning and curriculum development… Read More ›
A picture book often is a wonderful 32 pages with a distinct beginning, middle, and end. When picture books depict a historical event or individual, the story often does not stop there though. Primary sources can help students ground themselves… Read More ›
Are you looking for a way to start a meaningful conversation with learners? Here’s an interesting idea: begin with a compelling illustration from a picture book. Just open up the book and give the audience time to notice…quietly. After some… Read More ›
Recently, while sitting in a jury pool at the local courthouse three days into jury selection, I realized that there was no possible way that I’d be chosen. Each side had already used up several options for peremptory cause dismissal,… Read More ›
The truth is everywhere and nowhere these days. We are reminded in an increasingly partisan political climate that there are many “truths” (in quotes) floating around the universe of information, and that every story has multiple sides. Postmodern theory reminds… Read More ›
Kudos Those little notes you get from students over the years, the thank-you notes from parents, administrators, teachers; the illustration of you as a librarian with a superhero cape–I save these over the years and put them in a back… Read More ›
District/county office of education supervising librarians positions have been drastically cut over the last few years. So it’s not surprising that there have been a flurry of posts about combining the district librarian position with a site teacher librarian position…. Read More ›
For librarians, Intellectual freedom is a living concept, a core value reflected in the ALA Code of Ethics, the Library Bill of Rights, the Freedom to Read Statement, and Libraries: An American Value. It is highlighted annually during Banned Books… Read More ›
Display Philosophy: Each school year we struggle with the theme of the final book display. Some years we go with “beach reads”; other years we might have a camping theme. This year we decided to go with philosophy, specifically creating… Read More ›