There are some fascinating historically based picture books that focus on a largely unknown moment of a well-known person’s life. The best of those highlights an aspect of that person’s character that helps the reader look at that individual differently… Read More ›
primary sources
Pairing Picture Books and Primary Sources: Thanks to Frances Perkins: Fighter for Workers’ Rights by Deborah Hopkinson and Kristy Caldwell
Many historically based picture books give insight into the life of an individual. Some also highlight how one person can influence the thinking of a nation. Such is the case with the book Thanks to Frances Perkins: Fighter for Workers’… Read More ›
Pairing Picture Books and Primary Sources: Let the Children March by Monica Clark-Robinson and Frank Morrison
I had read Monica Clark-Robinson and Frank Morrison’s picture book, Let the Children March, several times since it was released in 2018. The book, based on the 1963 Birmingham Campaign, is an amazing pairing of powerful words and illustrations. It… Read More ›
It’s Time for a Permanent Change in Reading Habits
If there is any aspect of reading librarians excel at, it’s the curated list. Over the last two weeks – as protests around the country and the world intensify – librarians in New York City shared countless lists on anti-racist… Read More ›
Picture Books and Primary Sources: All the Way to the Top by Annette Bay Pimentel and Nabi H. Ali
The first time I read All the Way to the Top: How One Girls’ Fight for Americans with Disabilities Changed Everything, I felt admiration for Jennifer Keelan-Chaffins, the young girl whose story is told in the book by Annette Bay… Read More ›
Picture Books and Primary Sources: Teaching and Learning from Home
My reality for the past weeks has been the reality of many of my school librarian colleagues. Teaching and supporting students and teachers from home have their learning curves. I was finishing my March Picture Book and Primary Sources post… Read More ›
Picture Books and Primary Sources: Manhattan: Mapping the Story of an Island by Jennifer Thermes
Occasionally there is a picture book that I know will work well with a certain format of primary sources before I even open it. That was the case with Jennifer Thermes book Manhattan: Mapping the Story of an Island. There… Read More ›
Amazing (and Free) Resources from the Library of Congress
What if I told you there are amazing resources you can easily use with students and teachers that will help create curiosity, promote critical thinking, reinforce information literacy skills, and make curricular connections? Better yet, what if I told you… Read More ›
Picture Books and Primary Sources: Interview with Chris Barton, Author of All of a Sudden and Forever
Authors of historically based picture books typically focus on one set of primary sources to tell their story, a set of materials connected with one moment in time. In his new book, All of a Sudden and Forever, author Chris… Read More ›
Picture Books and Primary Sources: Samuel Morse, That’s Who! By Tracy Nelson Maurer and El Primo Ramon
Traveling the world, becoming inspired, overcoming obstacles, and changing life as we know it all sound like parts of some amazing movie. They are also parts of the picture book story of Samual Morse, inventor of the telegraph and Morse… Read More ›