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.

• My Favorite Collaborative Lesson: Mixing Figurative Language and Coding

  By Kelly Hincks on 01/11/2021 • ( 0 )

  

  As a school librarian collaborating with classroom teachers is a key component to our role in the school community. Collaboration can come in many forms, but the goal is to move past just the curation of resources. The focus is… Read More ›

• 4 Things Being a Mentor Taught Me

  By Kelly Hincks on 12/09/2020 • ( 0 )

  

  Recently, a local university was looking for mentors for Librarian and Information Science students. The e-mail went something like, “Help the next generation of school librarians…” My first thought was I am not sure I am qualified! I mean I… Read More ›

• The Original Plan vs. What It Really Looks Like

  By Kelly Hincks on 11/13/2020 • ( 1 )

  

  This year I have been teaching students who are face to face as well as those who are learning remotely. At the start of the school year, I had grand plans. I was going to do all the things and… Read More ›

• 8 Games to Play Virtually with Elementary Students

  By Kelly Hincks on 10/13/2020 • ( 1 )

  

  Like most educators I know I have been learning everything I can about how to best support students who are face-to-face being socially distant as well as those who are learning remotely. Recently, in one of the Facebook educator groups,… Read More ›

• Using Canvas in an Elementary Library

  By Kelly Hincks on 09/10/2020 • ( 0 )

  

  My school has been using Canvas as its learning management system (LMS) for the past three years. At the elementary level, we were using Canvas primarily to communicate with parents. Before last spring, there was limited, if any, curriculum content… Read More ›

• Librarian on a Cart: Bringing the Library to the Classroom

  By Kelly Hincks on 08/12/2020 • ( 5 )

  

  In September, the plan is to head back to in-person learning. Since I work with elementary students, the goal is to provide fewer transitions to different locations in the building. The homeroom class will be their cohort to help limit… Read More ›

• 4 Takeaways about Applied Digital Skills

  By Kelly Hincks on 07/09/2020 • ( 0 )

  

  You know when you learn about a resource and say to yourself, “Ah, I wish I had learned about this before!” That is how I feel about Applied Digital Skills by Google for Education. Recently, I was fortunate enough to… Read More ›

• Summer Reading Family Packs

  By Kelly Hincks on 06/09/2020 • ( 1 )

  

  As school librarians we often provide summer reading recommendations to our students. This year our libraries wanted to provide something to support the entire family regardless of age or level. We came up with six different family packs. Each pack… Read More ›

• 7 Ways to Keep Kids Reading Even at a Distance

  By Kelly Hincks on 05/13/2020 • ( 2 )

  

  Even in our remote learning model, I am still working to provide opportunities to support reading for enjoyment. This is a bit more difficult when you cannot see the children you teach regularly, but here are seven ways I, with… Read More ›

• Remote Learning Lessons PreK to 4th Grade

  By Kelly Hincks on 04/09/2020 • ( 8 )

  

  Let me start by saying I have never been a remote learning teacher before. This is not something that I have taken a class on or claim to be an expert in. Teaching elementary age students in this setting is… Read More ›