Recaptains | Book Series Recaps

So, wait, what happened?

https://recaptains.co.uk/

This has happened to all of us. You read book 1 in a series, and a year or two later, you pick up the next title when it comes out, but you can't really remember what happened in the first book! Augh, what to do! Fortunately, Recaptains comes to the rescue. 

Recaptains was created in 2013, as they say on their website, "to spoil books on purpose". While the primary focus is Young Adult fiction, Recaptains is also working on a lot of recaps for adult fantasy and science fiction series. The recap list covers all the titles they have done so far: https://recaptains.co.uk/recap-list/

Check it out.

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Inside the Lines

Art Lesson demos for Elementary 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1CQ7SMbnteDecMxbK6EXNg/videos

Extras for library time: an interesting collection of short videos featuring different styles and artists. They would make a nice complement to launching an inquiry project, or extending thinking after reading a book on one of these artists.

The creator (Anna) writes: "I'm excited to return to my art education roots and share my knowledge and ideas with other homeschooling parents.  I've created this blog to share art lessons that correlate to the Classical Conversations curriculum and to also give parents simple ways to teach art concepts beyond their CC community day experience."

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Summa - Canadian Educational Content On-Demand - at your library

100% Canadian Produced Content

https://summa.can-core.ca/core-list?home

Have you seen this? Can-Core (SUMMA) is a core curriculum content platform created by McIntyre Media Inc. The content is 100% Canadian Produced and has been selected for its strong curriculum fit. It is available at SPL, and probably your local public library as well. (You may need to browse your library's digital resources to find the login link.)

SPL access: http://catalogue.spl.surrey.bc.ca:81/rpa/webauth.exe?rs=summajr 

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Monthly Choice Boards Site

Shannon McClintock Miller has something for you!

https://sites.google.com/view/ourmonthlychoiceboards/home

Looking for monthly ideas to excite your students? How about if they are packaged in an attractive easy-to-browse format? Look no further than Shannon's monthly choice boards - click the link above and be prepared to be blown away!

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Making Media Across the Curriculum - Online Course for Teachers

Take this interactive, engaging and informative course

https://mediasmarts.ca/teacher-resources/making-media-across-curriculum-online-course-teachers

MediaSmarts is pleased to share our new free online course for teachers on media making in K-12 classrooms. Educators can take this interactive, engaging and informative course from their home, on their own schedule.

The course will be offered the following dates:

• November 9, 2020 – December 4, 2020
• November 23, 2020 – December 18, 2020
• December 14, 2020 – January 22, 2021
• February 1, 2021 – February 26, 2021
• March 1, 2021 – March 26, 2021

Making Media Across the Curriculum will provide teachers with training and resources on how to use digital media production of various kinds (games, film and animation, etc.) in their classroom practice.

Teachers will learn how media making can be supported from kindergarten to Grade 12 and how it can be used to assess student learning across the curriculum, from Language/English as a Second Language courses to Social Studies, Health/Life Skills, Mathematics, Science, Special Education and Technology Education/ICT, among others.

Upon completion of the course, teachers will be certified by MediaSmarts as Media Maker Experts.

The History of Dust Jackets: From Disposable to Collectible

From animal skins to silks

https://bookriot.com/history-of-dust-jackets/

(Detail from Lost Art of Oz)

Funny to think that the staple of picture books (the book cover or dust jacket) had such an interesting evolution:

Excerpt from article: "The dust jacket emerged as a way to protect the gilt covers of leatherbound books. Instead of being rebound to match the owner's libraries, these books came with their own ornate binding. In order to keep the gold embossing intact—and protect the books from dust—booksellers or the printers would wrap the books in paper. These dust wrappers, as they were originally called, weren't proper dust jackets. They were plain pieces of paper that were sealed shut, and they were meant to only protect the book while it was at the store."

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How to Make a Digital Escape Room

Teen Librarian Toolbox

http://www.teenlibrariantoolbox.com/2020/11/cindy-crushes-programming-how-to-make-a-digital-escape-room-by-teen-librarian-cindy-shutts/

Using Google forms, Cindy Shutts engages students to explore worlds based on the novels they are reading. (See below for a brief description, click the link above to visit the article on SLJ). This would be a great final project for an English class, or a way to consolidate learning for Socials or even Science. I can also see doing this in other languages to show proficiency with vocab and grammar. Students would have fun sharing and playing each other's "room".

"At my library we have found one of the easiest ways to attract people to  programs is by creating a virtual escape room. They can be used any time of day and are fun to make. I like doing them with different fandoms. I have created two that are published so far one about Animal Crossing and one about Camp Half-Blood (Percy Jackson). My co-worker Faith Healy created two as well. She created an original haunted house one that has been used almost 200 times. She also just released a Mandorlian one in honor of the new season." (from webpage)

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Comic and graphic novel resources, from Jess Keating

How do I get them to love reading?

https://www.jesskeatingbooks.com/comics

Looking for links and ideas for promoting GNs and comics?

"So here's a list of resources for you, dear readers. Below are some links that describe just how wonderful graphic novels can be, in terms of literacy development, empathy and social growth, and many other facets of development and reading enjoyment. Please feel free to share them anytime you encounter someone who doesn't quite get how wonderful these formats can be, and reach out to me if you've got additional info or links you'd like me to add."

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Storytime with Ryan & Craig

Inspiring both boys and girls about reading

https://www.ryanandcraig.com/

"Storytime with Ryan & Craig is a free, short-form reading show for children, parents & educators. Every week, Ryan and Craig read aloud a new children's book. This show is different from other read aloud videos for several reasons: First, it's hosted by not one, but two men, which is fairly uncommon in the literacy and early education world. This offers a new dynamic to inspire and excite both boys and girls about reading!"

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TL-teacher collaboration?

What can collaboration with a Teacher-Librarian look like?

https://t.co/TRwcyvvXEb?amp=1

Great handout that highlights the many supports that a TL can provide to the classroom teacher.

From the PDF download: 

"Collaboration is an explicit part of every teacher-librarian's job description, and scheduled activities may take a variety of forms. All collaborative activity aims to support and extend learning opportunities. All collaborative activity is valuable. The examples of collaborative activity which follow is not a prescriptive list. Collaboration looks different in every school community, and is dependent upon the needs of all the learners involved."

Surrey Schools ONE | Digital Resources

Supporting teaching and learning with digital resources

https://surreyschoolsone.ca/

⁦‪@Surrey_Schools‬⁩ Teacher Librarians #sd36tl worked together this week to start this ONE place for a curated collection of online resources to support learning and teaching. New resources being added daily!

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Get a #surreylibraries card from home

Read from anywhere!

Get a #surreylibraries card from home, and let the eReading begin.

(Thanks to the LAM TL for promoting this!)

1. Go to http://surreylibraries.ca 2. Scroll to 'Surrey Residents can now get a library card from home' 3. Click heading 4. Fill out form 5. Enjoy free ebooks

https://twitter.com/i/status/1245135332804136960

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Google Maps and the permanence of borders

Redrawing the borders on maps - depending on who's looking

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/google-redraws-the-borders-on-maps-depending-on-whos-looking/ar-BBZZOHy

This is an interesting area for TLs to explore with their students - how do we determine how reliable information sources are. We generally think that maps are relatively neutral - but borders can be contested, and countries can be fluid!

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Give Vooks a try - free trial

Narrated, animated picture books

https://watch.vooks.com/free-access

"Vooks is a streaming service that brings children's storybooks to life with animated illustrations and narrated story. Imagine storybooks where the illustrations move, the sounds sound, and the story comes to life! Children can read along, watch, or giggle at will."

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Not Censorship But Selection

I select but he censors: musings on selection

http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/NotCensorshipButSelection

Lester Asheim raises some important considerations when selecting titles for one's collection. Published in 1953, the questions he raises are timely in light of the current "book banning" zeitgeist.

Form the article:

"Selection, then, begins with a presumption in favor of liberty of thought; censorship, with a presumption in favor of thought control. Selection's approach to the book is positive, seeking its values in the book as a book, and in the book as a whole. Censorship's approach is negative, seeking for vulnerable characteristics wherever they can be found – anywhere within the book, or even outside it. Selection seeks to protect the right of the reader to read; censorship seeks to protect – not the right – but the reader himself from the fancied effects of his reading. The selector has faith in the intelligence of the reader; the censor has faith only in his own."

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MDS - like DDC

A quick, clickable classification

I came across this LibraryThing shortcut to generating an approximate DDC-like number for specific titles.

https://www.librarything.com/mds/0

 

You simply click on the boxes that correspond to category of the book in front of you and it builds a DDC-like number. (They use "Melvil" because "Dewey" is copyrighted.)

Then it generates a list of titles in LibraryThing that have that number, and some categories at the bottom of the page that probably overlap ("Far friends"). You can also see a bit of a word cloud/tag cloud to the right that gives you a sense of what topics the real DDC number would likely address. (If you have a LT account, you can even see which of your own books fit the category.)

 Not as accurate as some other tools, but rather a "quick and dirty" guide.

 

(It's also fun to click through and see what titles come up.)

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John Green keynote | SLJ Summit 2017

The importance of caring adults in the lives of students.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chDOCrJl284

Author John Green opens the 2017 SLJ Summit in Nashville, TN, and speaks about many things, including the role of TLs as the last best defence against the false information, and the importance of teachers who extend caring to students with struggles.

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Author Shaun David Hutchinson keynote | SLJ Summit 2016

Diverse books are bridges.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWr2d00i7_c

Shaun David Hutchinson, author of 'We Are the Ants' and 'The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley' delivers a moving keynote at School Library Journal's 2016 Leadership Summit on October 16, 2016 in Washington, DC. He speaks passionately about the bridges that diverse books can be in the lives of teens, and how teacher-librarians are the caretakers of those bridges.

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Forest Teen Committee Summer Reading List

Check out what teens should be reading! 

http://www.accessola.org/web/Documents/OLA/Forest/Resources/2019/Teen-Committee-List-2019.pdf

"Pump up your summer reading with our Forest Teen Committee Summer Reading List. Check out what teens should be reading - as chosen by the readers themselves!: http://bit.ly/ForestTeenList2019"

How do we teach students to identify fake news?

Fact and fiction can be difficult to distinguish

https://www.edcan.ca/articles/teach-students-identify-fake-news/

TLs have a particular interest in teaching both students and staff the tools to be more critical consumers of news and media in general. This article (plus the downloadable "factsheet" from EdCan will help!

In a "post-truth" era where people are increasingly influenced by their emotions and beliefs over factual information, fact and fiction can be difficult to distinguish, and fake news can spread rapidly through mainstream media sources and social networks. Moreover, fake news is often meant to do harm, by tricking us into believing a lie or unfairly discrediting a person or political movement.

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