Celebrating National Library Week & National School Library Month

April is a busy month in the library world. Besides celebrating National Poetry Month, we're also recognizing National Library Week (April 10-16) and National School Library Month.

Although we've got events scattered throughout April, most of our "BIG" activities will happen next week. What's the point of School Library Month? According to the ALA, "Every April school librarians are encouraged to create activities to help their school and local community celebrate the essential role that strong school library programs play in a student's educational career." This year's theme is "Create your own story @ your library" so we're focusing on writing and storytelling activities.

Back in September (How I had time to think about this back in September is beyond me....) I collaborated with our local YA public librarian to plan activities for this week. Up first: an author reception with Ellen Yeomans. Ellen's written a wonderful YA novel in verse called Rubber Houses. It's about a teenage girl whose brother is diagnosed with cancer - many of our students have read it. Conveniently, Ellen lives in Baldwinsville, so she's a "popular author" and a "local author" all rolled into one. I've never been to an author reception, but my YA counterpart, Val, says they're just informal gatherings where people can get books signed, shake hands with the author, and ask questions.

Mark Binder: Author,
Storyteller, Nice Guy

Our second round of events happens on Thursday. It's going to be a crazy jam-packed day, but those are the most fun...right? I'll be hosting my VERY FIRST author visit, sponsored by the PTSA. A little nervous about all the little details coming together, but hopefully it goes smoothly. Mark Binder, an author and storyteller is coming for the day. He'll do a morning assembly with our 8th graders and then hold writing workshops with smaller groups for the rest of the day.

In the evening Student Council is hosting our building's annual Spaghetti Dinner, where members of the community come for plates of spaghetti cooked by staff and students. During the dinner PTSA is sponsoring a Scholastic Book Fair (another first since my time here). Mark Binder, our visiting author, is sticking around, and following the Spaghetti Dinner and Book Fair, he'll do a storytelling presentation at the public library for families.

Cross your fingers and hope that I'm still breathing come Friday morning!

What are you doing to celebrate National Library Week and National School Library Month?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

QR Codes and Orientation

Image
There really isn't anything better than hearing a thirteen-year-old whisper to his friend, "This is the coolest library ever!" I can't help but grin when students get excited about lessons. Happily, it's almost a guarantee that they'll dig anything involving the iPads -- library orientation is no exception. I've talked before about creating videos about each section of the library for my orientation lesson. In the past, I've asked students to choose the appropriate video from a list on their iPad's camera roll that corresponds to the stop number. Inevitably, some kids select the wrong video, or get horribly lost. This year, to combat that problem, and also up our cool quotient, I've added QR codes. I'm using the free app " Scan ," which worked perfectly on our iPads to display both text and open URLs. In class, I explained QR codes, and then students practiced using the app by scanning a handout at their table. Each table f
Read more

Updated Facebook Template

Image
For the last couple of years, we've been using a PowerPoint Facebook page as a final product for a research unit. When we used the template last year, my students were quick to point out that the template was "old school" - Facebook has made major tweaks to the layout and design of its site, which weren't reflected in this version. This year, I finally got around to updating the template to reflect Facebook's current look. Click here to download the  new template for PowerPoint 2010 . No, it doesn't have the timeline interface (I'm not using it yet on my own personal Facebook page, so I don't feel comfortable enough trying to recreate it), but otherwise it reflects many of the recent design changes. It is hyperlinked, so when you're in "View Show" mode, you can click on "Wall," "Info," and "Pictures," and go directly to those parts of the PowerPoint - making it behaving like a traditional Facebook page.
Read more

Supporting Social-Emotional Learning with Library Bulletin Boards

Image
  As librarians, we cover so many different standards. Information literacy? Check. English Language Arts? Check. Reading? Check. STEM? Check. Computer science? Check. Over the last year or two, I've added social-emotional learning to the list of skills and competencies I teach through library instruction.  Some strategies are super obvious - like direct instruction as part of my teaching, but other methods like book displays and bulletin boards are more subtle. One primary focus of my library program is supporting students' mental health, which is directly tied to the SEL strand of emotional regulation.  Emotional regulation refers to the ability to manage and express emotions in a healthy and appropriate way. Emotional regulation is essential for secondary students, who are navigating the challenges and complexities of adolescence. During this time, my junior high kids feel a huge range of intense emotions, from excitement and joy to frustration and anger and everything in be
Read more