Small Steps? Or Giant Leap? I am always up for a new challenge and don’t often shy away because something might be “too hard” or “too much work.” In fact, those are my least favorite words to hear in a… Read More ›
Blog Topics
Using Exit Tickets for Assessment
Last school year, I got to participate in a great project that involved digital fabrication. The school librarian decided to use SeeSaw for sharing the project with the teachers, students, and parents. Each week, she would have the students make… Read More ›
Organizing 3D Printing Projects
The library 3D printers are receiving more use as additional classes utilize these devices for content assignments. When we first received the 3D printer, we began small with individual students creating and printing personal designs. We were encouraged by the… Read More ›
AASL Standards and Multiple Literacies during Academic Flex Time
My school library thrives during interstitial times; in-between moments are quickly filled. My programming and priorities invite large swaths of the student body to utilize the library space to do the social work of education. Like a circadian rhythm, we… Read More ›
Authors to Grow With
One of our goals as school librarians is to create lifelong readers and by extension lifelong learners. There are many ways to instill and inspire a love of reading in a child. Think back to when you were young; who… Read More ›
Lesson Plan Ideas For Teaching Information Literacy
In a recent conversation with seventh graders, I asked the students how many of them in the past few days had read a news article on one of their social media sites. Almost every hand went up. As a high… Read More ›
Gamifying Learning Leaves a Lasting Impression
My mission was clear—take a photograph that represented my three weeks in Helena, Montana, as a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Summer Scholar. I had three hours to complete the task. The picture was to be uploaded to a… Read More ›
Graphic Novelizations in the ELA Classroom
Using graphic format texts to support English language learners (ELL) has been widely discussed and accepted among educators, librarians, and other stakeholders. When adding to our graphic format collection we look at student requests, blogs, professional reviews, etc…all the resources… Read More ›
Keep Kids Creative Week: 6 Lesson Ideas that Support the Standards
Did you know that the last week in September is National Keep Kids Creative Week? Bruce Van Patter, an illustrator and an author, started this holiday in 2003. He wanted to encourage children to imagine and create. Let’s celebrate creativity… Read More ›
Pairing Picture Books and Primary Sources: America’s Champion Swimmer Gertrude Ederle by David A. Adler
My students love athletes, but not just any athletes, the ones that are at the top of their game. Whether it is someone who competed in the Olympics, Super Bowl, World Series, or World Cup, students will ask for books… Read More ›