Toon Book Reader

Here's another site that features virtual books online:

The Toon Book Reader.

http://www.professorgarfield.org/toon_book_reader/

Great for projectors, Smartboards or individual reading. Also comes with a variety of "wordy" activities.

MeeGenius personalized online storybooks

MeeGenius!

http://www.meegenius.com/

Read classic fairytales and children's stories. Each book can be personalized and viewed with auto-audio playback or manual page flipping. Great for SMARTboards.

"MeeGenius is founded on the philosophy that children learn the most when they love what they are doing. As parents, the co-founders of MeeGenius! wanted to create an inviting site that is easily accessible by parents and children.

All our books come with audio playback and word highlighting, and can be personalized just the way you like them. Just answer a few questions, and presto, the book is rewritten for you. So read and personalize your favorite books!"

Canadian Citizenship Challenge contest - in both languages

English

http://www.canadiancitizenshipchallenge.ca/index.php

Français

http://www.canadiancitizenshipchallenge.ca/fr/index.php

October 2010 is Library Month.

Monday, October 25th is 'National School Library Day.'

(October 2010 is Library Month.)

Share-Celebrate-Advocate.

Everyone can participate:

For more info, downloadable posters and bookmarks, go to

http://bctf.ca/bctla/pub/index.html#dear

WeGiveBooks - virtual reader

For those of you who loved Lookybook (no longer active), WeGiveBooks allows teachers and students to view "virtual" picture books online. It is easy to create an account and you can read from a growing number books to your class using a projector or Smartboard.

This site allows you to read picture books online and for every book you choose, they will donate to needy schools. They currently have a new promotion, and are trying to set a reading record.

For more details about the contest, please visit - http://www.wegivebooks.org/newsletter/view/15

The featured book is "The Snowy Day" and the site offers a number of downloadable activities to go with the story.

http://www.wegivebooks.org/pf/rftr/index.html

(See the bottom of the page for activities)

sample: http://www.readfortherecord.org/site/DocServer/A_Snow_Story.pdf?docID=5461

Poem about "Speak"

Laurie Halse Anderson reads a powerful poem she wrote based on letters from readers who were moved by her novel "Speak". (Her novel has been challenged in a number of jurisdictions but has received glowing reviews from educators and teens alike.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic1c_MaAMOI&feature=player_embedded

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Cool Dog, School Dog

http://www.deborahheiligman.com/cooldog.html

Find out more about this sequel to "Fun dog, Sun dog"  and see a fun little booktrailer.

(Also links to a quiz, bookmark, and other extras.)

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Teaching YA Lit through Differentiated Instruction (Ch 1 online)

https://secure.ncte.org/store/teaching-ya-lit-through-di

(Link to PDF for Chapter 1 is at the bottom of the webpage.)

Authors Susan L. Groenke and Lisa Scherff offer suggestions for incorporating YA lit into the high school curriculum by focusing on a few key questions:

   * Which works of YA literature work better for whole-class instruction and which are more suitable for independent reading and/or small-group activities?

   * What can teachers do with YA lit in whole-class instruction?

   * How can teachers use YA novels to address the needs of diverse readers in mixed-ability classrooms?

Each chapter opens with an introduction to and description of a different popular genre or award category of YA lit—science fiction, realistic teen fiction, graphic novels, Pura Belpré award winners, nonfiction texts, poetry, historical YA fiction—and then offers suggestions within that genre for whole-class instruction juxtaposed with a young adult novel more suited for independent reading or small-group activities.

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Exploring Reading Strategies by Creating a Soundtrack

The novel playlist

http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/musical-note-exploring-reading-861.html

"This lesson takes advantage of young people's interest in music by asking students to create a soundtrack for a novel that they have read. Students begin by analyzing how specific songs might fit with a familiar story. Students then create their own soundtracks for the movie version of a novel they have read. They select songs that match the text and fit specific events in the story. Finally, students share their projects with the class and assess their work using a rubric."

"Examples in this lesson focus on The Beast by Walter Dean Myers, but any piece of literature can be used as the basis of students' soundtracks."

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Celebrate Teen Read Week! (Oct 17-23)

The readwritethink is sponsoring "Teen Read Week" during the 3rd week of October.

The goal is to encourage Teens to read for the fun of it, as hundreds of libraries, schools, and bookstores celebrate Teen Read Week October 17-23.

This year's theme, “Books with Beat @ your library," encourages teens to read poetry, audiobooks, books about music, and more.

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Podcasts, Booktalks, audiobooks - motivators!

Adolescents Reading: A Field of Dreams?" - (PDF download) by Teri S. Lesesne, from Classroom Notes Plus, discusses how teachers can use author blogs, audio books, book talks, and podcasts to share books with students and motivate them to read. The article concludes with strategies for monitoring students' reading progress.

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Strategies to strengthen Independent reading

"Independent Reading Inside the Box" by Lisa Donohue shows how K-6 students can use a single piece of paper - the "Reading 8-Box" - to strengthen and monitor their comprehension, language, and thinking skills.

Filled with student samples, reproducibles, and rubrics. Click here to read Chapter 1 online!

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SMARTboard lessons for Librarians

http://fcpslibrary.wikispaces.com/

Here are series of lesson plans related to library themes. The note on the site says that the creators are in the process of moving to another venue, so the lessons may not be available much longer. Most have a Smartboard document that can be downloaded.

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Reading about YA fiction

This very engaging site reviews current YA titles and interviews the authors. While the themes and storylines might not be everyone's "cup of tea", Risha Mullins, the blogwriter, shares her love of the genre and her passion for good reading!

http://fortheloveofya.blogspot.com/

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Gaming in the Library? Some useful tips.

If you are thinking of bringing more than chess into your library, this page may have some ideas to explore. This link (funded by the ALA) offers pointers on how to incorporate ancient civilizations games in your library, with an emphasis on the curricular connections.

http://librarygamingtoolkit.org/gvbocesmiddle.html

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Living the Digital Life - lesson plans + More

I've had some questions about finding good resources for teaching about online safety, ethical behaviour, privacy issues, etc. These four sites are just a sample of what's available.

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WebAware

http://www.bewebaware.ca/english/default.html

Be Web Aware is a national, bilingual public education program on Internet safety. The initiative was developed and supported by Media Awareness Network (MNet), Bell and Microsoft Canada. (French and English)

Net Cetera

http://www.onguardonline.gov/topics/net-cetera.aspx

The internet offers a world of opportunities to socialize and communicate. But they come with risks. OnGuardOnline.gov's Net Cetera campaign provides information and resources about helping kids make safe, responsible decisions when they're online.

Common Sense Education Programs

http://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators

Today’s kids connect, create, and collaborate through media. But who helps them reflect on the implications of their actions? Who empowers them to make responsible, respectful, and safe choices about how they use the powerful digital tools at their command?

RCMP Internet Safety Site

http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/is-si/

General Information about online issues. (French and English)

Flexbooks - digital highschool texts

Please share this with your senior Math and Science teachers.

http://www.ck12.org/flexr/books/cafreetextbooks/

ROWSEfornia Free Digital Textbooks Titles:

• CK-12 Probability and Statistics (Basic)
• Dow12 Probability and Statistics (Advanced)
• CK-12 Calculus
• CK-12 Geometry
• CK-12 Trigonometry
• CK-12 Biology I
• CK-12 Earth Science
• CK-12 Life Science
• CK-12 Chemistry
  

People's Physics Book

http://www.ck12.org/flexr/flexbook/734

Digital Textbooks

Turning the Page: Forget about those bulky backbreakers, digital textbooks are the future.

Here's an interesting article from School Library Journal on the rise of digital textbooks.

http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/slj/home/886880-312/turning_the_page_forget_about.html.csp

"As more digital learning environments emerge, they’ll need to be effectively managed. School librarians, in particular, Mardis says, must demonstrate their unique resource expertise and skills in content management. If not, it may not get done and we’ll likely find that the promise of digital textbooks and flexbooks will never be realized."

What is the purpose of the read-aloud?

I came across this interesting article that addresses how to use Read-Alouds in a classroom when one has a student with autism. Along the way, the author discusses the value of Read-Alouds in general. I've pasted below her main points, and a link to the full article. It's worth reading.

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What is the purpose of the read-aloud?

http://readerswithautism.com/2009/08/the-problem-of-the-read-aloud/

• The read-aloud is used for the primary purpose of exposing kids to necessary and important text that is higher than their own reading level.
  
• The read-aloud is used to expose the kids to the pleasure of the written word.
• The read-aloud is used in writing intruction to show kids how words, the rhythm of language, and rhymes can influence a text.
  
• The use of read-alouds to support lessons in writing instruction is a best practice employed by most literacy teachers.
  
• The read-aloud is used as a warm-up or cool-down exercise for kids as they prepare to transition to other tasks.
  
• The read-aloud is used as a break from other academic tasks.
  
• The read-aloud is used to engage kids in bringing a period of history or a certain situation they’ve read about in other contexts to life.
  
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DVDs "Spreading the word" Readers' Festival

As Vancouver gets ready to host the Vancouver International Writers and Readers festival October 19-24 (http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/media/spokenworld2010), DRC has DVDs from previous years that you may wish to preview or use with your students:

• Spreading the word 2003 : reality meets fantasy
• Spreading the word 2003 : two in the morning
• Spreading the word 3 (2006)
• Spreading the word 4 (2006)

There are also video resources on the website:

http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/schools/spreadtheword

(You can watch these in "full-screen")

Here is the link for the School Events Page (Some are already sold out)

http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/2010festival/events/school

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