No Shhing Here

This spring I added two really popular things to our collection. Popular Item #1 Up first, the new addition to our Makerspace. In March I asked students to vote on how to spend the rest of the year's Makerspace funds; they picked from the following options: a Cue robot, a sewing machine, a button maker or more Little Bits. Although the Cue robot ultimately won, the button maker was the second runner up, so I purchased it as well. I got the Neil 2 1/4" button machine , along with an XXL circle punch .  The kids looooove the button maker. It has quickly become the most popular Makerspace tool in the library. I think they're enjoying it so much because it allows them to express themselves in a really easy, convenient, and polished way. They like the concept of displaying their feelings, interests, ideas, etc. on a button, and they just.can't.get.enough. Popular Item #2  Q: What's one of the biggest stressors faced by high school kids? A: A cell p...

I was super inspired last week when I came across the SLJ article by Cicely Lewis called "' Read Woke’ School Reading Challenge Makes an Impact ." According to the author, Read Woke is  "a feeling. A form of education. A call to action, and our right as lifelong learners. It means arming yourself with knowledge to better protect your rights. Learning about others so you treat people with respect and dignity, no matter their religion, race, creed, or color."  Side note: In thinking about the #readwoke challenge, I did a bunch of reading on the word #woke. I wanted to make sure I knew what I was talking about and that I understood the origins of the term. I think these two articles were especially enlightening: " What Does 'Woke' Mean? There's More To The Slang Term Than You Think " from Bustle and the NYT article " Earning the 'Woke' Badge. " I hope when I share the challenge with students that we're able to explore ...

I just flipped my calendar, so that means it's time for a new bulletin board. Although we try to mix library programming and curriculum into many of the bulletin boards around the school, I pay special attention to the board right outside the library door. Although bulletin boards aren't a new trend, I think it's still a great form of passive program advocacy. As April is National School Library Month, it served as the inspiration for the board. AASL's 2018 theme is "Making Connections ," so I ran with the puzzle imagery and color palette in the promotional materials.   When I have time, I enjoy getting all creative, but when I'm scheduled to my eyeballs, maintaining the bulletin board becomes a chore. I am by no means a bulletin board expert, but I do have a few strategies and tools I regularly use to quickly get something up that looks okay.  1) In my head, I divide the bulletin board into zones - so different parts of the board have diff...

I love being crafty and creative, and I groove on putting together interesting book displays. But there's only so much time in a school day, so I typically squeeze all my creative ambitions into 15-minute chunks at the end of lunch. I like book displays that include more than just books - I usually want to incorporate a little text-based information, sometimes photos and graphics, different textures and colors, and a variety of different height. In the past, I've hung things from the ceiling in order to get more display space, but that makes the fire code guys nervous. I'm also super clumsy, so even though the custodians have given me my own ladder, I still have to climb on bookcases to get things just right -- I'm just waiting to topple off of one. Last year I set out to devise some kind of display sign that I could rest on TOP of the bookcase to give me vertical surface area to expand the displays without having to use the ceiling. Here's my Pinterest boar...

It's almost time for the 2018 winter Olympics and I could not be more excited. I love everything about the event, but I especially groove on the sense of community at a global level. This year I'm trying to find a way to tie together our Makers and the Olympics. Here's what I've got planned: 1) Students using the library's Makerspace will be invited to design Olympic events. I've provided them with four broad categories: spinning, sliding, jumping and throwing. All the events they design must fit into one of those areas. Students are welcome to use any Makerspace supplies (like styrofoam cups, CDs, straws, etc.) and non-consumable PE supplies like tennis balls and four-wheel scooters. They can develop and test their game in the Makerspace. Once students finalize their game, they will submit an "Event Proposal."( Here's a link to the form ). 2) My library advisory committee will test the events and select four or five to include as our ...