Author Archives
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Finding Hope
I was very inspired by this year’s winner of the Google for Doodle contest, which was announced June 14, 2021. The doodle from sixteen-year-old Milo Golding from Lexington, Kentucky, is titled “Finding Hope.” He described the elements of the doodle… Read More ›
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New 2020-2021 Practices to Keep in the School Library
“What are some new things that you have done this year that you will continue in the future?” This a question that the middle school librarians in my district were asked at our May professional learning community (PLC) meeting. This… Read More ›
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Examining Our Biases and Speaking Out against Racist Incidents
The article “7-year-old girl traumatized after White school staff member cuts her hair” first came across my news feed on Saturday evening, April 17. I clicked on the article to learn more. How could something like this happen in a… Read More ›
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School Libraries – More Than Just Books? (or More Than Just Book Check Out?)
In Michigan, we are preparing for an upcoming Michigan Library Advocacy Day on April 20, 2021. The virtual library advocacy day is a partnership between the Michigan Library Association (MLA), the Michigan Association for Media in Education (MAME), and the… Read More ›
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March Is Reading Month! Celebrate & Advocate!
March Is National Reading Month! March is always a fun-filled month of activities to celebrate reading with learners and their families. The National Education Association’s “Read Across America” initiative has always been a big part of this celebration. National Read… Read More ›
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Answering the Call for Media Literacy Education
Martin Luther King, Jr., wrote in 1947, “Education must enable one to sift and weigh evidence, to discern the true from the false, the real from the unreal, and the facts from the fiction.”(1) With the attack on the Capitol… Read More ›
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Moving Forward to Build a Stronger Library Ecosystem
As we head toward the new year, I am already looking ahead to update and set some goals for 2021. As a new member of the ALA Library Ecosystem Subcommittee (a subcommittee of the ALA Committee on Library Advocacy (COLA)),… Read More ›
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Grateful for My Professional Organizations
During the holiday season, reviewing all of the things that I am grateful for has become a yearly tradition. In this unprecedented year, with the COVID-19 pandemic affecting our lives in so many ways, taking stock of items to be… Read More ›
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Access to Print Books? Yes!
In this time of virtual and hybrid learning, are print books still important? My answer is a resounding “yes”! However, what do you do if your administrator doesn’t “get it”? I received a request for advice from a school librarian… Read More ›
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Lessons Learned from the Michigan ESSA Workshop
Sylvia Norton, AASL Executive Director, and Marci Merola, ALA Director for the Office of Library Advocacy, came to Michigan on September 17 to lead a workshop on unpacking the school library provisions of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). Provisions… Read More ›