Poetry, Judith Viorst and Photostory

This post brings together several good things : Judith Viorst's poetry, Laura Candler's website, a teacher Radene Girola's great lesson plan using the poem as a "mentor text", and Photostory...

Judith Viorst - author of the much loved, often quoted Alexander and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day, is also a poet sensitive to the world of children and their feelings - here is a short poem called Thank you note (from back when children wrote thank you letters!) at http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/thank-you-note/

I wanted small pierced earrings (gold).
You gave me slippers (gray).
My Mother said she would scold
Unless I wrote to say
How much I liked them.

Not much.


Judith also wrote the poem "If I were in charge of the world..." available at
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/if-i-were-in-charge-of-the-world/

Laura Candler has a useful teachers' resources website with a poetry page (April is Poetry Month in the USA so there is a lot of poetry promotion going on at the moment).
She shares a teacher's lesson which uses Judith's "If I were in charge of the world" poem as a "mentor text" to inspire students to write their own version and once they have written it they produce it as a Photostory.

For Radene Girola's lesson plan go to http://www.lauracandler.com/filecabinet/literacy/poetry.php and scroll to the bottom of the page.

PhotoStory Poem - If I Were in Charge of the World
PhotoStory Poem Lesson Plan

I've mentioned before about Photostory which is wonderful - easy to use, lots of fun and free. Check it out if you don't know it - such an effective presentation tool for students - a blend of text, visuals, narrative, "animation", music...
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/PhotoStory/default.mspx

John Wood and Room to Read

Another inspiring interview from the DesignShare website, this time with John Wood, who while on a trek in Nepal visited a school which had a room designated as a library but with no books - he decided to do something about that...
http://www.designshare.com/index.php/articles/room-to-read-interview

Here is the Room to read website which tells you all about the programme.
http://www.roomtoread.org
Their vision :
Room to Read believes that World Change Starts with Educated Children. We envision a world in which all children can pursue a quality education that enables them to reach their full potential and contribute to their community and the world.

Library design for the 21st century

Thinking about your library layout in terms of the strategies that retail outlets eg supermarkets use to attract customers, direct traffic - http://www.infotoday.com/MLS/jan05/koontz.shtml

and an interesting article on re-thinking and re-designing libraries for the 21st century with Doug Johnson (mentioned in a post a few days ago) and Rolf Erikson at DesignShare which is about "Innovative School Designs + Sharing Ideas in a Global Forum"

http://www.designshare.com/index.php/articles/school-library-future

The article starts :
Without a doubt, the school library remains one of them most symbolic, protected, and expensive ’spaces’ on any campus. But will future designers of school libraries be recreating sacred book spaces of the past or will technology and the ‘consumer’ inspire new design strategies for the future?

For many, the library is the literal information bridge to the future. Organizations such as the Robin Hood Foundation and Room to Read dedicate themselves to building and re-imagining school library spaces around the world by filling shelves with books and making library spaces relevant for our youngest readers. At the same time, with a fast-moving revolution of technology hitting campuses around the world in ways never before imagined, provocative discussions are beginning to challenge the traditional status quo of the school library both in terms of purpose and space. More and more, Library 2.0 is used to define this conversational re-imagination process.

With this in mind, DesignShare spoke with 2 passionate library experts — Doug Johnson and Rolf Erikson — to gain better insight into serving the information needs of students, schools, and communities via the future of school library planning and design. Doug is the author of The Indispensable Librarian: Surviving (And Thriving) in School Media Centers and the Blue Skunk Blog; Rolf is the lead author of Designing A School Library Media Center for the Future.

Read on here http://www.designshare.com/index.php/articles/school-library-future

Eva Ibbotson on libraries

A heartwarming column by the wonderful writer Eva Ibbotson - here she tells of the role her local library played in her life as a young refugee from Vienna during WWII -


I was eight years old when I came to Britain as a refugee - and was not particularly grateful. Mostly this was because after years and years of being a sheep coming to the manger, or a grazing cow, I had at last landed the part of the Virgin Mary in the nativity play at my convent school in Vienna. And then ... Hitler.

We came to London in 1934, a bedraggled party consisting of my fey, poetic mother, my irascible grandmother and confused aunt, and rented rooms in a dilapidated house in Belsize Park which, in those days, was a seedy, run-down part of the city. The house was full of suddenly impoverished refugees facing exile. On every floor were lonely and muddled professors, doctors and lawyers, mostly from German-speaking countries. I had no friends, no school yet, nowhere to play.

Then, one day, waking up the hill towards Hampstead to do some shopping for my grandmother, I came across a building with an open door. I went inside. The room was very quiet and full of books. At a desk sat a woman with fair hair and I waited for her to tell me to go away. But she only smiled at me. Then she said: 'Would you like to join the library?'

My English was still poor but I understood her. In particular, I understood the word 'join' which seemed to me to be a word of unsurpassed beauty. I told her that I had no money and she (her name was Miss Pole ) said: 'It is free.'

Read more... http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2006/jul/09/fiction.features

Do read her books if you haven't - The Dragonfly Pool is one of my favourites. http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/i/eva-ibbotson/

Here is another interview with Eva Ibbotson : http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2004/aug/25/booksforchildrenandteenagers.familyandrelationships

This article was republished as part of the campaign to encourage adults back to public libraries - see http://www.lovelibraries.co.uk/

Ways to cultivate the reading habit

Some good advice in this blog post on ways to achieve the goal of reading more...

http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/14-ways-to-cultivate-a-lifetime-reading-habit.html

“To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life.” — W. Somerset Maugham

Somewhere after “lose weight”, “stop procrastinating”, and “fall in love”, “read more” is one of the top goals that many people set for themselves. And rightly so: A good book can be hugely satisfying, can teach you about things beyond your daily horizons, and can create characters so vivid you feel as if you really know them.

If reading is a habit you’d like to get into, there are a number of ways to cultivate it.

First, realize that reading is highly enjoyable, if you have a good book. If you have a lousy book (or an extremely difficult one) and you are forcing yourself through it, it will seem like a chore. If this happens for several days in a row, consider abandoning the book and finding one that you’ll really love.

Other than that, try these tips to cultivate a lifetime reading habit:

• Set times. You should have a few set times during every day when you’ll read for at least 5-10 minutes. These are times that you will read no matter what — triggers that happen each day. For example, make it a habit to read during breakfast and lunch (and even dinner if you eat alone). And if you also read every time you’re sitting on the can, and when you go to bed, you now have four times a day when you read for 10 minutes each — or 40 minutes a day. That’s a great start, and by itself would be an excellent daily reading habit. But there’s more you can do.
• Always carry a book. Wherever you go, take a book with you. When I leave the house, I always make sure to have my drivers license, my keys and my book, at a minimum. The book stays with me in the car, and I take it into the office and to appointments and pretty much everywhere I go, unless I know I definitely won’t be reading (like at a movie). If there is a time when you have to wait (like at a doctor’s office or at the DMV), whip out your book and read. Great way to pass the time.
• Make a list. Keep a list of all the great books you want to read. You can keep this in your journal, in a pocket notebook, on your personal home page, on your personal wiki, wherever. Be sure to add to it whenever you hear about a good book, online or in person. Keep a running list, and cross out the ones you read. Tech trick: create a Gmail account for your book list, and email the address every time you hear about a good book. Now your inbox will be your reading list. When you’ve read a book, file it under “Done”. If you want, you can even reply to the message (to the same address) with notes about the book, and those will be in the same conversation thread, so now your Gmail account is your reading log too.
• Find a quiet place. Find a place in your home where you can sit in a comfortable chair (don’t lay down unless you’re going to sleep) and curl up with a good book without interruptions. There should be no television or computer near the chair to minimize distractions, and no music or noisy family members/roommates. If you don’t have a place like this, create one.
• Reduce television/Internet. If you really want to read more, try cutting back on TV or Internet consumption. This may be difficult for many people. Still, every minute you reduce of Internet/TV, you could use for reading. This could create hours of book reading time.
• Read to your kid. If you have children, you must, must read to them. Creating the reading habit in your kids is the best way to ensure they’ll be readers when they grow up … and it will help them to be successful in life as well. Find some great children’s books, and read to them. At the same time, you’re developing the reading habit in yourself … and spending some quality time with your child as well.
• Keep a log. Similar to the reading list, this log should have not only the title and author of the books you read, but the dates you start and finish them if possible. Even better, put a note next to each with your thoughts about the book. It is extremely satisfying to go back over the log after a couple of months to see all the great books you’ve read.
• Go to used book shops. My favorite place to go is a discount book store where I drop off all my old books (I usually take a couple of boxes of books) and get a big discount on used books I find in the store. I typically spend only a couple of dollars for a dozen or more books, so although I read a lot, books aren’t a major expense. And it is very fun to browse through the new books people have donated. Make your trip to a used book store a regular thing.
• Have a library day. Even cheaper than a used book shop is a library, of course. Make it a weekly trip.
• Read fun and compelling books. Find books that really grip you and keep you going. Even if they aren’t literary masterpieces, they make you want to read — and that’s the goal here. After you have cultivated the reading habit, you can move on to more difficult stuff, but for now, go for the fun, gripping stuff. Stephen King, John Grisham, Tom Clancy, Robert Ludlum, Nora Roberts, Sue Grafton, Dan Brown … all those popular authors are popular for a reason — they tell great stories. Other stuff you might like: Vonnegut, William Gibson, Douglas Adams, Nick Hornby, Trevanian, Ann Patchett, Terry Pratchett, Terry McMillan, F. Scott Fitzgerald. All excellent storytellers.
• Make it pleasurable. Make your reading time your favorite time of day. Have some good tea or coffee while you read, or another kind of treat. Get into a comfortable chair with a good blanket. Read during sunrise or sunset, or at the beach.
• Blog it. One of the best ways to form a habit is to put it on your blog. If you don’t have one, create one. It’s free. Have your family go there and give you book suggestions and comment on the ones you’re reading. It keeps you accountable for your goals.
• Set a high goal. Tell yourself that you want to read 50 books this year (or some other number like that). Then set about trying to accomplish it. Just be sure you’re still enjoying the reading though — don’t make it a rushed chore.
• Have a reading hour or reading day. If you turn off the TV or Internet in the evening, you could have a set hour (perhaps just after dinner) when you and maybe all the members of your family read each night. Or you could do a reading day, when you (and again, your other family members if you can get them to join you) read for practically the whole day. It’s super fun.

Share a story / shape a future

I've promoted before on this blog the wonderful Donalyn Miller, both her blog http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/book_whisperer/
and her book of the same title : The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child by Donalyn Miller ISBN: 978-0-470-37227-2 Paperback 240 pages March 2009



Her blog took part in th US reading promotion Share a story, shape a future 2010
Here is a post about it from The Book Whisperer http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/book_whisperer/
Follow the links to explore some other great blogs...

Share a Story Shape a Future is an annual blog event to promote literacy, celebrate books, and provide resources for parents, teachers, and readers everywhere. This year's theme is "It Takes a Village to Raise a Reader." Join us March 8th to March 12th.

Each day a different kidlitosphere blogger serves as host for the posting of several other bloggers. You may visit the host blogs' sites to find a complete blog roll for each day.

March 8th: The Many Faces of Reading

Host: Terry Doherty at Scrub-A-Dub-Tub

Topics of the day will encompass the relationship aspect of helping children learn to read: parent-child and teacher-parent partnerships, literacy outreach; and libraries, to name a few.

March 9th: Literacy My Way/Literacy Your Way

Host: Susan Stephenson at The Book Chook

Creative literacy in all its forms (writing, art, computers) will be the topic of the day.

March 10th: Just the Facts: The Nonfiction Book Hook

Host: Sarah Mulhern at The Reading Zone

This is the day for exploring the different genres of nonfiction (biography and memoir, science, nature, math, etc), as well as the use (or not) of historical fiction.

March 11th: Reading Through the Ages: Old Faves & New Classics

Host: Donalyn Miller at The Book Whisperer

Bloggers will share thematic book lists that include newer titles and the classics we loved as kids.

March 12th: Reading for the Next Generation

Host: Jen Robinson at Jen Robinson's Book Page

Join us as we talk about how to approach reading when your interests and your child's don't match. It may be that you don't like to read but your child does, how to raise the reader you're not, and dealing with the "pressure" of feeling forced to read.

Texting and literacy research UK

Another post by Bryan Toporek :

Great Textpectations
http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/webwatch/2009/12/great_textpectations.html

A recent study of 3,001 children by the National Literacy Trust in the United Kingdom finds that children who engage with technology have stronger core literacy skills than their technologically unsound peers, according to BBC News.

The survey found that 24 percent of children ages nine to 16 have their own blog, and that 82 percent of those children send text messages at least once a month. "This suggests a strong correlation between kids using technology and wider patterns of reading and writing," said Jonathan Douglas, director of the National Literacy Trust.

"Engagement with online technology drives their enthusiasm for writing short stories, letters, song lyrics or diaries," Douglas explained.

The survey found that 47 percent of children who didn't blog or use social networks rated their writing as "good" or "very good." By comparison, 61 percent of students who blog and 56 percent of the social networkers described their writing the same way.

Dismissing the criticism that texting can adversely affect communication skills, Douglas said, "Our research results are conclusive—the more forms of communications children use the stronger their core literary skills."

John Coe, general secretary of the National Association for Primary Education, recognizes the potential benefits to texting and "online speak."

"It is a form of reading and writing. It might not be conventional but they are communicating, so there is a general gain," said Coe.

Research about copying homework

From a US educational blog here is a post by Bryan Toporek on some research done by MIT about the impacts of students' copying each other's homework rather than doing it themselves...
http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/webwatch/2010/03/the_cost_of_copying_homework.html

And what can teachers do to dissuade students from copying?
"Providing more instructor contact, giving shorter and more frequent assignments, switching from pass-no record to grades, and discussing the correlation of copying and course performance with students" were all suggestions in the MIT report. During the study, the researchers found that these changes to a course's format reduced homework copying by a factor of four.

Reading Rockets

Reading Rockets http://www.readingrockets.org provides free newsletters aimed at parents to help their children become readers.
Though they may need adapting slightly for a New Zealand audience, they could provide a useful starting point of information to go in school newsletters or home to parents in other ways on a regular basis to keep the home reading practice thriving...

Here is this week's newsletter http://www.readingrockets.org/article/36295 and you can browse previous issues and subscribe for free to get an email link directly...

The Importance of Reading Widely
By Reading Rockets (2010)

It's easy to find yourself lugging home a stack of library books that your kids will love to listen to. It's harder to make sure you're bringing home a wide variety of books. But that may be just as important. Sharing lots of different kinds, or genre, of books with your young reader exposes them to different words, different pictures, and whole new worlds. Below are some genres to try with your reader that complement 'traditional' fiction. Some are suggestions that can be used as read alouds, other may be ones your child can read.

• Fantasy/Science Fiction
  From talking dogs to imaginary underground worlds, fantasy books contain elements that are not possible in real life. Cornelia Funke, J. K. Rowling and Lemony Snicket are all authors to consider within the fantasy genre.
  
• Historical Fiction
  Well written historical fiction helps past events come alive for children. With topics as wide ranging as pioneer life and ancient civilizations, books within this genre awaken the historian in any child.
  
• Biography
  Biographies have a way of inspiring kids. The best ones introduce famous presidents, inventors, educators and scientists in a way that helps kids identify with the person. David Adler has a series of biographies that are well loved by early elementary students.
  
• Informational Books
  What makes a volcano erupt? How tall is the tallest man? Where does the word pumpkin come from? Kids ask many questions, and reference books help them find the answers. When choosing reference books for your child, make sure they were recently written and seem to contain accurate information.
  
• Poetry
  Poetry just isn't as widely read as it should be. Several children's poets have collections that will make your child howl with laughter. Poetry is often shorter too, which makes the task of reading less overwhelming for new or reluctant readers. Jack Prelutsky and Shel Silverstein are great authors to start with in this genre.
  

Whatever you choose to read with your child, make it an enjoyable experience. Have fun visiting that magical place, getting to know that famous person, finding the answers to questions, and reading with the rhythm of poetry.

Google - deeper web

Here's a link to a new service which is another way to search Google.
http://www.deeperweb.com
It puts search results in tag or phrase clouds, let's you limit searches easily to specific sites and domains and a lot more.

Author interview videos

Here is a website which has interviews with authors including Lois Lowry, Katherine Paterson, Jon Scieszka, Tamora Pierce, Laurie Halse Anderson, Avi, Gail Carson Levine...
http://www.abookandahug.com/books-alive

Student writing / writing competitions

Here is a collation of various student writing opportunities / competitions, complied by Angela Soutar and shared on the school library list serv.

Writing competitions / student writing publishing opportunities

1. NZ Post – March, information sent to schools – by 30 April
2. Scholastic NZ by 30 April , primary age http://www.scholastic.co.nz/schools/index.php
3. STORYLINES/PUFFIN writing competition – by 11 June 3 age groups, mostly primary Yrs 4-6 Yrs 7-8 Yrs 9-11 http://www.storylines.org.nz/Other+Stuff/Puffin+Short+Story+Competition.html
   
4. NZ Book Council, once a month, 2 age grps up to 13 yrs http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/Education//Writers_Gallery/Creative_Writers_Gallery.htm
5. Upstart Magazine – continuous http://www.upstartmag.co.nz/
6. http://www.kidpub.com/ Kids submit their stories and poems
7. Kidzmag - available Whitcoulls etc – there is no website, continuous kidzmag@gemfishpublications.com
8. NZ Book Month , ASB Wordbank - October, various ages http://nzbookmonth.co.nz/default.aspx
   
9. Write on Magazine – continuous 8-18 yrs SECONDARY [mainly]
10. http://thepulse.org.nz/Read/Get-Published/Competitions/ Christchurch school for young writers and loads of others but mainly 13 yrs up
    
11. AUT writing competition including song lyrics, 15 yrs up http://www.aut.ac.nz/study-at-aut/study-areas/languages-social-sciences/creative-writing-competition
    
12. http://www.aucontraire.org.nz/competitions-writing.php Sci fi , fantasy, under 18 yrs can apply and will compete with adults.
    
13. Sunday Star-Times usually have one, closing date late August Secondary schools section
14. Library week /LIANZA usually have a selection of writing competitions, late August? Check their website, 2009 covered yr6 upwards
    
15. BNZ Writing competition, 13 yrs up http://www.contest.co.nz/other-competitions/26596-bnz-short-story-competition-win-10-000-a.html
16. Write on – continuous contributions 8-18 yrs http://www.schoolforyoungwriters.org/writeon/index.html School for Young Writers.
    

Doug Johnson

Here is Doug Johnson's website http://www.doug-johnson.com/ which has the slogan : Writing, Speaking and Consulting on School Technology and Library Issues

He has written a book which is available as a free download from Lulu as a pdf -
My book Machines are the easy part; people are the hard part is now available as a free download at Lulu.

It is an entertaining list of 75 "rules" based on experience in education and technology and libraries, with short annotations - things we know but it is good to be reminded about...

Here is one which I've heard both Gary Hartzell and Ross Todd use - remembering what we are in this library business for - the student at the heart of what we do, learning outcomes as our raison d'etre...

15 : Remember the Drill Bit Rule
An old maxim states: “People don't buy a drill bit because they want a drill bit; they buy them because they want a hole.”
You don't buy technology because you want technology; you buy it because you want a more effective school. You don’t have a library for the sake of having a library; you have a library because you want better educated kids.
Too often we confuse the thing with the reason for the thing, much to our own peril. Having a computer on every desk is not a goal. Having x number of books in the library is not a goal. These may be means to reach a goal, but they are not the goal itself.

Great Libraries of Learning - G8lol

I've done a post before about G8LOL - Great Libraries of Learning - I find it SO inspiring...
Here is the wiki http://21cschoollibrary.wikispaces.com/

Here is a link to a powerpoint show of libraries for the 21st century
http://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dhkzq3nr_162x9257hm

A week without books

A column by Bibi van der Zee on the withdrawal symptoms of going a week without books, in the Guardian newspaper Wednesday 3 March 2010, shared by Bridget Schaumann on the list serv...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/mar/03/a-week-without-books

Indie Librarian : new public libraries in France and London

The Indie Librarian blog by Kimberly Bolan Cullin http://indielibrarian.blogspot.com/ is well worth browsing... Check out the label "teens" for lots of great posts with ideas, links, examples of programmes etc.

Library Dreamspaces in Europe
David Adjaye explores the beautiful architecture of Peckham Library in London and two others in Lyons, France. Back in the UK he talks to architect Wil Alsop about his design for the Peckham Library and the importance of architecture and community...

Check out this BBC video clip.

Another great article on weeding your library

Check out this great article on weeding the collection :

Dickinson, Gail. "Crying Over Spilled Milk (PDF)." Library Media Connection. 23, no. 7 (2005): 24-26.

She uses a milk analogy to help people clarify in their mind what they are doing and why : the milk in the refrigerator is past the sell date, has an odor, and is curdled and lumpy.
Would you...

• Keep it, because you don’t know when you could get to the store tobuy more?
  Then why would you keep a book on the shelf with misinformation because you don’t know when you could replace it?

• Keep it, because otherwise your refrigerator would look empty?
  Then why would you keep outdated books on the shelf to preserve a false collection size?
  

• Give it to a neighbor to keep in his or her refrigerator?
  Then why would you send outdated encyclopedias or other materials to a teacher for classroom use?
  

• Donate it to a food pantry for hungry children?
  Then why would you send outdated resources to be used by children in this or other countries?
  

One of the suggestions is to ask students to help review a section of the library, evaluating the material as part of an information skills lesson (see Davis, 2001) - wonder how this would work?

Demco - UK library design company

You might be interested in visiting this website Demco Interiors
http://www.demcointeriors.co.uk/default.aspx

They are a UK library design consultancy, specialising in the design, specification, installation and project management of library refurbishment and new build projects. From the Home page you can go to Projects and to School Libraries to see some photos...

Book spine poems

Book Spine Poem blog post from http://bookends.booklistonline.com/ :

Over at 100 Scope Notes Travis is building a gallery of book spine poems. I was fascinated by this idea and had to try it out. Since this is Women’s History Month I decided to build on that and my love of storytelling. Here’s my found poem, “Every Girl Tells a Story.” Read down the stack of books, reading only the titles (a teacher of mine says this poem reads just as well from the bottom of the stack up–I wonder if she knows about reverso poems ?!
I could easily get addicted to this activity. While scanning my library’s shelves for this poem, I got ideas for many more. Spine labels can be annoying, though, when they get in the way of good words! I’m thinking a book spine poetry contest is in order in April at my middle schools…

Reading aloud

This article in the New York Times describes a wonderful reading aloud bond between a father and daughter...

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/21/fashion/21GenB.html?pagewanted=1&hpw

WHEN Jim Brozina’s older daughter, Kathy, was in fourth grade, he was reading Beverly Cleary’s “Dear Mr. Henshaw” to her at bedtime, when she announced she’d had enough. “She said, ‘Dad, that’s it, I’ll take over from here,’ ” Mr. Brozina recalled. “I was, ‘Oh no.’ I didn’t want to stop. We really never got back to reading together after that.”

Mr. Brozina, a single father and an elementary school librarian who reads aloud for a living, did not want the same thing to happen with his younger daughter, Kristen. So when she hit fourth grade, he proposed The Streak: to see if they could read together for 100 straight bedtimes without missing once. They were both big fans of L. Frank Baum’s Oz books, and on Nov. 11, 1997, started The Streak with “The Tin Woodman of Oz.”

When The Streak reached 100, they celebrated with a pancake breakfast, and Kristen whispered, “I think we should try for 1,000 nights.”

Mr. Brozina was delighted, but what he was thinking was, a thousand nights?! “I thought, we’ll never do it,” he recalled. “And then we got to 1,000, and we said, ‘How can we stop?’ ”

For 3,218 nights (and some mornings, if Mr. Brozina was coming home too late to read), The Streak went on. It progressed from James Marshall’s picture books about George and Martha (two close friends who happen to be hippos) to middle-school classics like “When Zachary Beaver Came to Town” to the 14 Oz books (which they read four times each), to Harry Potter, Agatha Christie, Dickens and Shakespeare, continuing on, until Kristen’s first day of college...

Read more

Wordle as an analysis tool

Here is an example of using Wordle (www.wordle.net) as an analysis tool...
This blogger used Wordle to analyse the verbatim responses of those who support and those who oppose the Health Care bill being proposed and debated in the USA...
http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2010/03/two-pictures-tell-story-on-health-care.html

AASL - Reading Role

There is a FANTASTIC new toolkit available on the AASL website (American Association of School Librarians - a division of the American Library Association) on the School Library Media Specialist's role in reading...

http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aaslissues/toolkits/slmsroleinreading.cfm

Reading is a foundational skill for 21st-century learners. Guiding learners to become engaged and effective users of ideas and information and to appreciate literature requires that they develop as strategic readers who can comprehend, analyze, and evaluate text in both print and digital formats. Learners must also have opportunities to read for enjoyment as well as for information. School library media specialists are in a critical and unique position to partner with other educators to elevate the reading development of our nation’s youth.

Books and memory

A blog post by Richard O' Mara from Baltimore on the way revisiting books can unlock memories....
http://www.urbanitebaltimore.com/sub.cfm?issueID=82&sectionID=4&articleID=1456

DK and the future of publishing

A clever Youtube clip from Dorling Kindersley entitled ‘The future of publishing’ was shared by Trish Webster on the school library list serv

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqO2fXukLJk&feature=youtu.be&a

At DK we have been doing a lot of thinking recently about the future and about how we are at the tipping point of how people will read and access information. It's an exciting time and we have really enjoyed envisaging what our business may be like in 2020. From that thinking the marketing team created this short film with the help of Khaki, a video production company, that captured the way we are changing as a company and how we are really listening to the people who access our content.

21st century skills in 13 words : Jamie McKenzie

From Jamie McKenzie's website From Now On http://fno.org :

21st Century Skills Bookmark: A Dozen I-words Trump the 4 Rs
During the previous century, there was often talk of the 4Rs: Reading, wRiting, aRithmetic and Reasoning. It was a user friendly way to focus on the basics.
With all the talk now of 21st Century Skills, we need a model that is equally user friendly - just the right number of prime thinking competencies to fit on a handy bookmark or poster to remind all teachers and students about core values...
My bookmark offers thirteen competencies, all beginning with the letter "I" - a baker's dozen http://fno.org/Jan2010/bookmark.html

Jamie McKenzie, ©2010, all rights reserved.

YALSA Competencies for serving youth

YALSA has revised Young Adults Deserve the Best: Competencies for Serving Youth, a set of guidelines last published in 2004. The competencies were streamlined and updated to reflect changes in youth services over the past five years. They are available online at www.ala.org/yalsa/competencies and can be downloaded as a PDF.

YALSA developed the competencies for individuals and institutions, offering librarians guidelines for providing quality library service in collaboration with teenagers and giving libraries a framework to improve overall service capacities and increase public value to their respective communities.

The competencies are divided into seven areas: leadership and professionalism, knowledge of client group, communication, administration, knowledge of materials, access to information and services.

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins is the first in a compelling trilogy... The second book is Catching Fire and the third one is due out this year - Mockingjay. They would be suitable for high school students and mature intermediate school readers.

Here is an entertaining review of the first book The Hunger Games by Elizabeth Bird on her great blog http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/blog/1790000379/post/90029009.html

And I've just come across Amity School's Bethany Media Centre http://www.bethanymediacenter.com/Home.html which created their own version of The Hunger Games in three parts - a trivia challenge based on the books, a physical challenge and a cornucopia challenge.

There is a description of what they did on their blog if you want to check it out http://amitybooktalk.blogspot.com/2010/03/hunger-games-party-activities-and.html
and a related tab on their website for the actual resources they created for the games http://www.bethanymediacenter.com/hungergames.html

Michael Rosen again

You'll be able to tell that I am a great admirer of Michael Rosen, not only a wonderful poet and author, but a man passionate about connecting children with the joys of literature.
He has been a marvelous advocate during his tenure as Children's Laureate in the UK (2008 /9) for poetry, for school libraries and access to real books, for humour in children's books...

Here is a short piece from The Guardian at the end of his Laureateship...

The ups and downs of a story
As he bows out as children's laureate today, Michael Rosen looks back on the warmth and enthusiasm of his young audiences... and the blank looks of politicians....
http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2009/jun/09/michael-rosen-creativity-in-the-classroom-teaching

New theme at Te Ara : Economy and the City

The fifth theme of Te Ara the Encyclopedia of New Zealand has been launched - the 'Economy and the City’ - http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/economy-and-the-city

Compiled by leading economists from around the country, the entry tells the story of New Zealand’s economy from its earliest beginnings through to the present day. The entry uses hundreds of archival photos, videos and audio clips, making this an interesting and accessible resource for students, researchers, and anyone with an interest in the history of our economic fortunes.

100 Best Blogs for School Librarians

Came across this great list of blogs to explore...

100 Best Blogs for School Librarians (July 2009)
School librarians, whether they work small college libraries, large research universities and departments, or elementary schools, need to stay current on the latest in technology innovation, reading lists, the publishing world, ebook trends, special project and lesson ideas, and a lot more. Luckily, you don’t have to think of everything all by yourself. These 100 bloggers serve as excellent reference resources for learning about everything from library technology to young adult fiction.

http://www.onlinecollege.org/2009/07/07/100-best-blogs-for-school-librarians/

The list is split into useful sections - Technology, Reading, Librarians Blogs, Teens and Youth, Project ideas and Industry, Humour and Library culture, Libraries and Associations, Miscellaneous.

UK Literacy Trust website

The ever wonderful UK Literacy Trust website has a vibrant new look - do visit and explore... http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/

There is an amazing range of resources available - here are just a couple I came across which I hadn't seen before...

Top tips for choosing a book
http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/assets/0000/3043/choicetips.pdf

Heroes and villains booklist
http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/assets/0000/2073/Heroes_and_villains_book_list.pdf

Stephen Krashen

Here is a podcast of a talk on encouraging reading, given by Stephen Krashen at an Ohio educational conference speedofcreativity09012006.mp3

In this podcast he talks about the current Int Rdg Assoc President's messages on testing, research on Accelerated Reader programme, reading rewards - extrinsic and intrinsic, home-run books, subversive reading (Captain Underpants vs Newberry winners), comic books, vocabulary, reading volume, reading aloud, and above all ACCESS TO BOOKS and a quiet comfortable place to read... and that happens during school and in school - in the library...

"A good school library makes things possible, without it you go nowhere. It is the first necessary step..."

"School library research is I think the hottest area of research now in language education where we get the most payoff from the research results...."

2 examples :

• Where did you get the book you are reading ? Most often from a school library.
• The better the school library, the higher the school's reading scores.

Stephen Krashen is an ardent proponent of FVR - Free Voluntary Reading and what needs to be in place for this to happen : access to books and other print resources (magazines, comics etc) through school libraries, making reading time and having reading role models.... He is the author of The power of reading : insights from the research which is a resource I strongly recommend.

Here is his website http://www.sdkrashen.com/

BBC news website for children

From the school library list serv :

A teacher at our school has found a great e-resource, thought I'd pass it on to you all. He has been finding this site really useful. This link is to the teacher's page which has a large number of topics below and shows how to integrate them with current-events and ICT. If you click on "Home" on the left it takes you to a news page made especially for young people. http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/teachers/default.stm
Jenny Whiting, Favona Primary School.

Jobs of yesteryear

Times change - here is a story about jobs that no longer exist - but I am old enough to remember a few of them... elevator operator, milk man, manual phone exchange operators...
This isn't really to do with books or libraries but I guess a link can be made to life long learning and career changes as a reason for including it in this blog, but really I just liked the story, with such great photo illustrations and links to personal narratives...
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124251060

NZ children's books - review blog

You may be interested having a look at this blog which promotes children's books written by New Zealand authors, mainly reviewed by Maria Gill, author of many great NZ non-fiction titles including Rangitoto and Save our seas
http://kidsbooksnz.blogspot.com/

From the introduction :
Each week we will select the latest top quality children's books written by New Zealand authors and review them. We'll categorise them under these headings:
* Picture Books
* Chapter Books 6-8 year olds
* Chapter Books 8-12 year olds
* Young Adult Books 13 years+
* Non Fiction Books
You'll find out what makes them so good, whether they're age appropriate and how they fit into the school curriculum (if appropriate). I hope it inspires you to buy or borrow them!

Magpies and Literature Base subscriptions - new details

Julie Harper and her family have sold Jabberwocky Bookshop in Auckland and the new people are no longer handling the subscriptions for Magpies and The Literature Base, never mind what the Magpies website says at the moment !
Either you can subscribe online at the Magpies website http://www.magpies.net.au/magpies/public/?MIval=m_pages&pagename=SAOI or you can print off the subscription form and post it to Magpies Subscription, PO Box 75 Paparoa 0543.

Wayne Mills on libraries

Wayne Mills wrote a great article at http://www.odt.co.nz/the-regions/north-otago/96084/libraries-key-learning for the Otago Daily Times last week on libraries and librarians - well worth a read and displaying.

Whakatauki

Isn't this a beautiful whakatauki, from the website of One Tree Point School http://www.otp.school.nz

Tohua nga whatatipuranga ki te inu I te puna o te matauranga.
Kia hora ai te whakaruuru hau o te ora, ki ranga ki te iwi.
Kia kaha, kia toa, kia manawanui.

Show the young how to drink from the spring of knowledge
So the sheltering mantle of well-being may spread over the nation
Be strong, be courageous, be resolute.

Visual thinking strategies, art and picture books

There are a couple of interesting articles on the School Library Journal website about encouraging children to look at and appreciate the art in picture books, based on workshops run at The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art www.carlemuseum.org

Part 1 - If a picture is worth a thousand words, what’s a picture book museum worth? By Wendy Lukehart -- School Library Journal, 1/1/2010 http://tiny.cc/artinpicturebookspart1

Part 2 - How do a museum’s philosophies work in a public library setting? By Wendy Lukehart -- School Library Journal, 2/1/2010 http://tiny.cc/artinpicturebookspart2

Here are a couple of short extracts from the articles :

Thumbnail Sketch of Visual Thinking Strategies VTS - from Part 1 article

The leader invites the group to take a few moments to look closely at an image and then asks these, and only these, open-ended questions:

• What’s going on in this picture?
• What do you see that makes you say that?
• What else can you find?

The leader continually paraphrases student responses, all the while increasing the accuracy of the language without making participants feel corrected, validating individual views, connecting observations, and pointing out differences of opinion.
Participants must provide visual evidence to support their interpretations.

VTS is both the name of a curriculum and a framework for looking at a single image. For much more see: www.vtshome.org To see a short video of children engaged with VTS, click on: www.vtshome.org/pages/videos

Whole Book Approach Guide - from Part 2 article

Spend time with the book before sharing it with a group ; consider how each element contributes to meaning. Use these questions as a guide to draw attention to aspects of the design and illustration that are noteworthy.

• Jacket: Think of the jacket as a poster for the book and use VTS questions. (See Part 1 of this series)
  
• Spine: Does the jacket image wrap around the spine? Consider the lettering.
  
• Cover: Is it cloth bound? Embossed? What are the colors? Why?
  
• Format: Portrait? Landscape? Square? Shaped? Why?
  
• Endpapers: How are they the visual overture for the art in the book?
  
• Front Matter: How do these pages ease you into the book?
  
• Gutter: How does the artist accommodate or use the gutter between the verso and recto pages?
  
• Typography: How are all elements of the book proper arranged on the facing pages? Consider the absence or presence of frames, the use and pacing of double and single spreads, font choices, placement of text and pictures, etc.
  
• Medium and Style: How does the artist’s choice and use of medium(s) suit the story? How does the medium generate attention to artistic elements (color, line, shape, etc.) and principles?
  

The following link offers an edited WBA reading led by Megan Lambert at The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art: www.picturebookart.org/Noggin2

Getting boys to read

There is a wealth of information, research, booklists and suggestions about getting boys to read out there on the web... Here is one site Getting Boys to Read http://www.gettingboystoread.com/
"a community based blog for parents, librarians, and teachers, providing information and support through articles, videos, interviews, and our forum."

The latest post is about Getting boys into the library http://www.gettingboystoread.com/content/getting-boys-library

Temple Grandin's TED talk

I've just finished listening to another inspiring TED talk - this one by Temple Grandin
http://www.ted.com/talks/temple_grandin_the_world_needs_all_kinds_of_minds.html

Temple Grandin, diagnosed with autism as a child, talks about how her mind works -- sharing her ability to "think in pictures," which helps her solve problems that neurotypical brains might miss. She makes the case that the world needs people on the autism spectrum: visual thinkers, pattern thinkers, verbal thinkers, and all kinds of smart geeky kids.

TED Each year, fifty of the world's most fascinating thinkers gather in Monterrey and deliver the 18 minute speech of their lives about an exciting idea in science, business, the arts and the global issues. The TED website makes these wonderful talks available to the rest of us as streaming video.

Non-fiction and wonderment

Keith Schoch in his blog Teach with Picture Books has done a fulsome review of a book called
A Place for Wonder: Reading and Writing Nonfiction in the Primary Grades

http://teachwithpicturebooks.blogspot.com/2009/11/nurturing-sense-of-wonder-with.html

The book is available to read in full online if you are interested.
http://www.stenhouse.com/shop/pc/viewprd.asp?idProduct=9176

Teaching thinking in art

Here is a thoughtful article aimed at art teachers about teaching thinking skills in the art classroom http://www.artjunction.org/thought.php
The article can be downloaded in two parts - it is from a presentation by Dr. Craig Roland, of the University of Florida, at the 2001 National Art Education Association Conference in New York City.

The website has lots of other resources and useful links for teaching art - all ages, and using web 2.0 resources too http://www.artjunction.org/index.php Maybe share this with art teachers in your school ?

National Library has many wonderful picture books which are about artists and / or which reference artworks - and of course picture books are often works of art in themselves...

I shut my eyes in order to see. Paul Gauguin

Art does not reproduce what we see. It makes us see. Paul Klee

Into the book

Here is a link http://reading.ecb.org/teacher/index.html to a wealth of resources for teachers and also activities for students - "developed by the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction and a team of experienced educators".

From the website :

Into the Book is a reading comprehension resource for K-4 students and teachers. We focus on eight research-based strategies: Using Prior Knowledge, Making Connections, Questioning, Visualizing, Inferring, Summarizing, Evaluating and Synthesizing. Try the online interactive activities, or click below to find out how to get our engaging 15-minute video programs.

Behind the Lesson provides information and teaching resources for each strategy. Watch our 10-minute professional development videos and explore the Web site for lesson plans, video and audio clips, downloads, and more.

I found some of the video clips rather too staged and scripted to feel like natural interactions with children, but there are many other resources to view, adapt, download...

I enjoyed having a look around the print rich environment of Gale Chartier's first-grade classroom http://reading.ecb.org/teacher/makingconnections/mc_slideshow.html
You can click on the pictures to enlarge them so that you can read the charts, examples etc.

Teach with picture books

I've just come across another really useful blog called Teach with Picture Books by Keith Schoch http://teachwithpicturebooks.blogspot.com/

"The main purpose of this site is to help teachers and homeschooling parents in grades 3-8 use picture books to enhance their instruction. If you'd like to know the reasons why you should be using picture books in your classroom, visit the sister site called Teaching with Picture Books Across the Middle Grades."

The Tuesday 2 March 2010 post describes Ten Not-to-Be-Missed Picture Book Reference Sites Check it out - it will lead you from one wonderful resource to another.

I also liked this post with suggestions for ways to share picture books (with upper primary / intermediate age students) http://teachwithpicturebooks.blogspot.com/2010/01/ways-to-share-picture-books.html

This is his related wiki which includes "focused reading skills" which is being developed collaboratively... http://atn-reading-lists.wikispaces.com/Focused+Reading+Skills

SLANZA Northland Term 1 2010 meeting and AGM

Kia ora Northland librarians, teachers, bookclub members, parents…

You are all welcome to the free Term 1 SLANZA Northland event, a bookshop gathering at Kaye Neely’s newly-opened, second-hand bookshop Village Books - located across the carpark from the Warehouse, Waipapa. Kaye Neely - a school librarian in a former life - is a long-time member of SLANZA and our esteemed Northland Treasurer !

• 5pm - 6 ish, Thursday 18th March
  
• Delightful drinks and nibbles
• Short SLANZA Northland AGM
• Kaye Neely talking about the rewards and challenges of setting up her bookshop
• Browsing and buying from the wide range of second-hand books, in the company of fellow readers...

It would be helpful for catering arrangements if you could RSVP by Monday 15th March with your name or number of people attending to Jeannie Skinner on ph 09 407 6718 or e-mail jeannie.skinner@natlib.govt.nz - thanks !

John Vaughan's "Books to read" list

Vasanti Sima from Kaitaia Intermediate School shared this good booklist at the Far North school library network meeting this week : Books to read, Feb 2010 edition. Thanks, Vasanti.

From the introduction :
This list is compiled based on my years as a teacher, encouraging my students into reading. The books or authors I have listed are ones which I have either had a lot of success with over the years as a teacher, or have been read by my students and recommended to me. The titles are targeted at the Year 7-8 age group, but can definitely be enjoyed by older (and sometimes younger) readers as well!

Books to read 2010b Feb 2010

LIANZA Library Week 2010

The LIANZA Library Week this year is August 16^th – 22^nd 2010.

Stay tuned for further announcements about the theme, materials, NZ’s Biggest Storytime book and other planned events.

Brigid Brammer, Chair, Library Week Committee 2010

"Picture book of the day" blog

I've just come across this blog which may be of interest - Anastasia Suen’s Picture Book of the Day blog at http://picturebookday.wordpress.com/

This blog recommends a picture book each day of the week (some days have a special focus eg Non-fiction Monday, Poetry Friday) with a 1 or 2 line plot summary, a short quote from the text (in italics), and a suggested writing activity for one of the six traits of writing

The six traits of writing were identified in the 1980s as a way to help young writers look at their own writing. They are

1. Ideas
2. Organization
3. Voice
4. Word Choice
5. Sentence Fluency
6. Conventions

The books featured in Anastasia Suen's blog are American, but many are available from National Library and may trigger ideas for similar books / activities.


Here is a link http://educationnorthwest.org/resource/503 to more information about the 6 Traits which has been expanded to now include a 7th - presentation...

The 6+1 Trait® Writing analytical model for assessing and teaching writing is made up of 6+1 key qualities that define strong writing. These are:

• Ideas, the main message;
• Organization, the internal structure of the piece;
• Voice, the personal tone and flavor of the author's message;
• Word Choice, the vocabulary a writer chooses to convey meaning;
• Sentence Fluency, the rhythm and flow of the language;
• Conventions, the mechanical correctness;
• and Presentation, how the writing actually looks on the page.

Dr Seuss' birthday today

The 2nd March is Dr Seuss’s birthday !
Here is a link to LM_NET posts with ways various schools in the USA are celebrating the day. http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/archive/LM_NET/2010/Feb_2010/msg01018.html

Gaelyn Gordon Award for a “much-loved” book

The Wednesday Wizard, a 1991 book by Tauranga-based fantasy writer Sherryl Jordan, has won the 2010 Storylines Children’s Literature Trust’s annual Gaelyn Gordon Award for a “much-loved” book. The Gaelyn Gordon Award is given by Storylines to honour a work of fiction that did not win an award at the time of publication but, by remaining in print for more than five years, has won acceptance by young readers as a successful book of enduring appeal.

“While Sherryl Jordan has gone on since 1991 to win praise as an author of young adult novels, particularly in America, this early book for younger readers, a time-slip story set in medieval England, has proved itself a true classic,” says Trust chair Dr Libby Limbrick. “It also led to two sequels, also both admired.”

Sherryl Jordan was the 1988 winner of the Choysa Bursary for promising writers, and has subsequently won children’s literature awards in New Zealand and overseas, mostly for her young adult fantasies Rocco, The Juniper Game, The Raging Quiet and most recently her 2007 works (both published in America) The Silver Dragon and Time of the Eagle. She won the 1993 Iowa Writing Fellowship and in 2001, the Storylines Margaret Mahy Medal for her contribution to children's literature in New Zealand.

The Gaelyn Gordon Award was established in memory of New Zealand fiction writer Gaelyn Gordon, who died in 1997. Previous winners have included novels and picture books by Maurice Gee, David Hill, Elsie Locke, Pamela Allen, Fleur Beale and Lynley Dodd. For more information, including background information on the Storylines Gaelyn Gordon Award and Storylines, and/or to arrange an interview with Sherryl Jordan, please contact: Tessa Duder, Storylines Trustee, phone 021-667670 or email tessa.duder@ihug.co.nz.

Margaret Mahy Medal 2010

Dunedin publisher Barbara Larson is the 2010 winner of New Zealand’s top award in children’s literature, the Storylines Margaret Mahy Medal. Given annually by the Storylines Children’s Literature Trust, the award recognises Barbara Larson’s specific and outstanding contribution to the important genre of young adult fiction. “Barbara’s continuing personal commitment to publishing high quality novels for teenagers for more than a decade has been remarkable,” says Storylines Trust chair, Dr Libby Limbrick.

“Her company Longacre Press has attracted not only some of the best established authors in the country – among them William Taylor, Jack Lasenby, Joanna Orwin and Kate De Goldi – but solidly put its faith in nurturing a generation of new writers. “These have included Bernard Beckett, Ella West, Anna MacKenzie, Sandy MacKay, Fleur Beale, Penelope Todd, Lorraine Orman, Ted Dawe and Tania Roxborogh. Novels by this extraordinary stable of authors have figured prominently in children’s literature awards for the past 15 years. Many have also been published, and won acclaim, internationally.”

Established in 1994, Longacre Press quickly became recognised as a leading independent publisher, producing at least six works for young readers a year as well as award-winning high-quality non-fiction. In late 2009 the company was purchased by Random House New Zealand. “We are pleased that Barbara, though based in Dunedin, will become a roving commissioner of new fiction for Random,” says Dr Limbrick, “so that her extraordinary instinct for spotting and nurturing new talent will continue.”

Barbara Larson is the second publisher to win the Margaret Mahy Medal since its inception in 1992, joining Ann Mallinson, Wellington-based publisher of Lynley Dodd’s Hairy Maclary books. Other winners have included writers Joy Cowley, Maurice Gee and Dorothy Butler, and illustrators Gavin Bishop and Robyn Belton. Barbara Larsen will be presented with the Margaret Mahy Medal, and deliver the annual Margaret Mahy lecture, at Storylines’ annual Margaret Mahy Day in Auckland on Saturday 27 March 2010. For more information, including background information on the Margaret Mahy Award and Storylines, and/or to arrange an interview with Barbara Larson, please contact: Tessa Duder, Storylines Trustee, phone 021-667670 or email tessa.duder@ihug.co.nz

Vicki Cunningham Storylines Administrator
Email: admin@storylines.org.nz Web: www.storylines.org.nz