Author Archives

I am the librarian at Detroit Country Day Lower School in Bloomfield Hills, MI. I have worked as a librarian for the past nine years. I was a classroom teacher for four years prior to that. I have worked in charter, public, and private schools. My favorite thing about being a librarian is the opportunities I have to work both with students and teachers. I love the co-teaching opportunities and connections I have been able to make! I have served on AASL committees as a member and chair. I was most recently a member of ALA's Ready to Code (RtC) Task Force.

• 12 More (mostly cheap) Teacher Tricks that Work in an Elementary Library

  By Kelly Hincks on 02/11/2020 • ( 2 )

  

  In 2017, I wrote a blog post titled “12 (mostly cheap) Teacher Tricks that Work in an Elementary Library.” What I did not realize when I wrote that post was the positive response it would receive. The goal was to… Read More ›

• 3 Reasons to Love Self-Checkout in an Elementary Library

  By Kelly Hincks on 01/16/2020 • ( 9 )

  

  I know what you must be thinking: I am late to this party! If you complete a quick Internet search you find many, many posts from librarians who have been using self-checkout for years. I mean, years! So now I… Read More ›

• Four Times to Bail on a Lesson

  By Kelly Hincks on 12/17/2019 • ( 0 )

  

  We have all been there when a lesson falls flat. When your best-laid plans just do not work. Recently, I had a lesson crash and burn. As someone who has been teaching for over twelve years, I am always humbled… Read More ›

• Create Your Own Graph: A Math Collaboration in 5 Steps

  By Kelly Hincks on 11/19/2019 • ( 0 )

  

  Recently, a second-grade teacher and I had the opportunity to work together on a project in math. Her class was finishing a unit on graphing and I recommended the book The Great Graph Contest by Loreen Leedy. The book sparked… Read More ›

• 4 Thoughts from the Elementary School Library Tour

  By Kelly Hincks on 11/15/2019 • ( 1 )

  

  I had the opportunity to participate in the Elementary School Tour as part of the 2019 AASL National Conference on Thursday, November 14. During the tour, the group visited two elementary schools in Jefferson County Public Schools. We started our… Read More ›

• Meaningful Displays: 4 Examples of Displays with Purpose

  By Kelly Hincks on 10/17/2019 • ( 2 )

  

  In November 2015, Jennifer LaGarde wrote a blog post called “Six Tips for Building Book Displays That Matter.” In the post, she shared how her philosophy around displays had changed since starting as a librarian. She questioned, “Why would we… Read More ›

• The Upside of Transition: A Reflection about Change

  By Kelly Hincks on 09/18/2019 • ( 0 )

  

  Change can be exciting and hard. It is also a fact of life in the world of education. This year my school is going through a tremendous transition. There is a new school building being constructed with a mid-year move… Read More ›

• 6 Things I’ve Learned about Collaboration

  By Kelly Hincks on 08/14/2019 • ( 1 )

  

  Collaboration with classroom teachers is one of the many components of a school librarian’s job. Some might even say that it connects all elements of our profession. Working closely with teachers allows for library skills to be taught throughout classroom… Read More ›

• 5 Parts of the ALA Annual Conference

  By Kelly Hincks on 07/17/2019 • ( 1 )

  

  Recently, I had the opportunity to attend the ALA Annual Conference in Washington, D.C., for the first time. This was made possible by receiving a professional development stipend from the Library of Michigan. As I reflected on my experience I… Read More ›

• Summarizing with Dash: A Collaborative Project in First Grade

  By Kelly Hincks on 06/11/2019 • ( 0 )

  

  Recently, a first-grade teacher wanted to have her students use coding to create a summary. Her goal was to have students share a story and include how the main character developed as well as how the setting changed. She sought… Read More ›