Library Links

"Content that might be of interest to Teacher-Librarians..."

11.9.13

Dino 101: Dinosaur Paleobiology - online course

Love dinosaurs?
(Watch introductory video on the info page)

Dino 101: Dinosaur Paleobiology is a 12-lesson course teaching a comprehensive overview of non-avian dinosaurs. Topics covered: anatomy, eating, locomotion, growth, environmental and behavioral adaptations, origins and extinction. Lessons are delivered from museums, fossil-preparation labs and dig sites.



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Comic Books and Graphic Novels -online course

Comics have much to teach us
(Watch introductory video on info page.)

"Comic Books and Graphic Novels" presents a survey of the history of American comics and a review of major graphic novels circulating in the U. S. today. It is focused on three main points. First, it argues that as comics develop in concert with, and participate in literary culture, they should be considered literature. Second, it reasons that such a designation forces us to redefine our concept of literature itself. Finally, it explores this transformative literary world by arguing that comics have much to teach us about ourselves.

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9.9.13

Teaching With Movies?

Integrate movies into your curriculum

Teach With Movies site is a resource for those wanting to integrate film into their curriculum. Categories include: Snippets & Shorts, all subject areas, Movie Worksheets, and Social Emotional Learning (among others). The Snippets & Shorts offers ways to use popular films to teach concepts in science, history, English, and other subjects. A short review of each film with a mention of problem scenes is a welcome feature.


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Rita Pierson: Every kid needs a champion - TED

The value of "relationship" in education

Rita Pierson, a teacher for 40 years, once heard a colleague say, "They don't pay me to like the kids." Her response: "Kids don't learn from people they don't like.'" A rousing call to educators to believe in their students and actually connect with them on a real, human, personal level. (7m49s)

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Wordless storybooks may mean richer language

The value of wordless picture books

Researchers at the University of Waterloo have found that children hear more complex language from parents when they read a storybook with only pictures compared to a picture-vocabulary book. The findings appear in the latest issue of the journal First Language.

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CC Search - Images etc. you can use!

From songs and videos to scientific and academic material
If you're looking for content that you can freely and legally use, there is a giant pool of CC-licensed creativity available to you. There are hundreds of millions of works — from songs and videos to scientific and academic material — available to the public for free and legal use under the terms of our copyright licenses, with more being contributed every day.

Note that search.creativecommons.org is not a search engine as such; it uses other search tools to find content labeled CC (You should always verify that the work is actually under a CC license by following the link and checking the permissions.)

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Genius Hour: Passion-Based Learning - webinar

Help students develop their own inquiry question
Classroom 2.0 LIVE webinar: May 18, 2013 (begins at 4m40s)

"Genius Hour is a precious time, loved by all my students. It is when they are allowed to develop their own inquiry question about whatever it is that they want to explore," so says Gallit Zvi (@gallit_z), one of our presenters. Why should you and your students do it? How does this kind of learning inform all we do in the classroom?

Join middle school educators Gallit Zvi, Denise Krebs (@mrsdkrebs), Hugh McDonald (@hughtheteacher), and Joy Kirr (@joykirr), as they share the basic philosophy of Genius Hour (or 20% Time).  You can also find out more on their wiki: http://geniushour.wikispaces.com

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Reader's Theatre ideas and links

Bring text alive with RT

"Readers Theater is readers reading a script adapted from literature, and the audience picturing the action from hearing the script being read aloud.  It requires no sets, costumes, props, or memorized lines.  Instead of acting out literature as in a play, the performer's goal is to read a script aloud effectively, enabling the audience to visualize the action.  Performers bring the text alive by using voice, facial expressions, and some gestures."

Here are some resources to explore:


TLA Texas Bluebonnet Award reading list.
(Every award nominee has a RT script this year. )

Other Reading Theatre resources
Along with many of the kids' magazines in EBSCO, the following three (in HTML only) also have RT articles in many issues.

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Library Sparks Archive

Engaging programming ideas

Selected content from previous Library Sparks magazines.

LibrarySparks Magazine is an indispensable resource bursting with fun and engaging programming ideas for today's elementary school and children's librarian. The pages of the magazine are brimming with practical, ready-to-use lessons and activities that are written by readers just like you. In addition, each issue centers on a theme to help keep your programming fresh and inspired.

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Pairing up students with "the perfect match"

Speed Dating with Books

LMC Magazine has a good article in the Oct 2012 issue about matching kids to books. The article is for high school, but might work well with your Grade 7s.

"Oooh, book speed dating, I remember that. It was fun!" It made me smile to hear a senior boy pass by and say those words as I was setting up the decorations for a group of freshmen. It's always great to have students think a program is fun, but it's an added bonus when that program gets books into their hands that they really enjoy and actually finish. For our high school, speed dating with books is an effective approach to pairing up students with "the perfect match" of a book! ....

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5.9.13

The Power of Reading - Stephen Krashen

Stephen Krashen - The COE Lecture Series

A seminar presented by Dr. Krashen at the University of Georgia in 2012. The content is very similar to his session at the BCTLA Summer Institute. He has some compelling things to say about literacy and "Free Voluntary Reading", backed up with research. Entertaining and enlightening!

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Elementary Math titles

Picture books with a Math angle

Want to integrate some Math into your library program, or support an existing Math unit? Take a look at these titles (list compiled by Janice Novakowski)

The Boy Who Loved Math: The Improbable Life of Paul Erdos
by Deborah Heiligman - 2013
ISBN 978 1596433076

That's a Possibility!: A Book About What Might Happen
by Bruce Goldstone - 2013
ISBN 978 0805089981

Sir Cumference and the Off-the-Charts Dessert
by Cindy Neuschwander - 2013
ISBN 978 1570911996

Millions, Billions and Trillions: Understanding Big Numbers
by David A. Adler - 2013
ISBN 978 0823424030

Bedtime Math
by Laura Overdeck - 2013
ISBN 978 1250035851

How Long?: Wacky Ways to Compare Length
by Jessica Gunderson - 2013
ISBN 978 1404883246

Growing Patterns: Fibonacci Numbers in Nature
by Sarah C. Campbell - 2010
ISBN 978 1590787526

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Webinar for New Teachers from MiddleWeb

New to teaching the middle grades?

Middleweb's 7/30/12 webinar for new teachers (and teachers new to the middle grades) was a great success! See above page for the webinar archive link – it's on the Blackboard/Elluminate Live platform. You'll also find information about the discussion leaders – along with handouts, webinar slides and more.

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Newseum - Papers from around the world

Today's Front Pages

Through an agreement with more than 800 newspapers worldwide, the Newseum displays front pages each day on its website. (The front pages are in their original, unedited form, and some may contain material that is deemed objectionable to some visitors.) This is good way to get some international perspective on the top stories of the day. From the PDF front page, you can link to the online version of the individual papers.

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26.8.13

CMEC presentation resources

COPYRIGHT IN THE CLASSROOM

The Copyright Consortium of the Council of Minister of Education, Canada (CMEC), has developed an on-line presentation on the use of copyright-protected materials in the classroom. (see above)

While teachers have new opportunities to use copyright protected materials in their lessons, there are limits to what can be copied and communicated in the classroom. What can teachers do (and not do) with the copyright-protected works of others?  The presentation provides an overview of the new "Fair Dealing Guidelines" and of "Copyright Matters!" (It also provides principals, teachers, and staff with compliance measures for use in their schools.)

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22.8.13

TVOKids Shows for Ages 6-11

Find programs targeted at kids' learning needs

Selected episodes of these shows can be watched online.

"What TVOKids program is right for your child's age and learning needs? Just use this chart to find the right match. Who knew so much thought went into each program! Use this chart to find programs targeted at kids' learning needs."

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Cable in the Classroom brings you "InCtrl" for 4-8

InCtrl—Teaching Digital Citizenship

95% of teenagers use the Internet. Teach them how to use this technology responsibly!

Cable in the Classroom presents "InCtrl", a series of free lessons that teaches key digital citizenship concepts:

  • Cyberbullying
  • Ethics/Copyright
  • Privacy
  • Media & Information Literacy
  • Communication & Collaboration
Each lesson contains videos, background information, and activity ideas and is designed to engage students in grades 4-8th through inquiry-based activities. These lessons can be used as a series or individually.

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PermaBound's 2013 Author-Illustrator Calendar

Who shares Your Birthday?
PermaBound has produced an authors' birthday calendar you might find useful. The 2013 version still has some useable months left - (I'm hoping the 2014 one will be out soon.) You can download and print individual pages from the scribd link above. It also comes with a name index at the back so you can look up individual authors and illustrators.

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24.7.13

Does listening comprehension correlate with reading comprehension?

Is Listening to Audio Books Really the Same as Reading?
"..., even research that predates CDs suggests that reading and listening are strikingly similar cognitive processes. For example, 1985 study found listening comprehension correlated strongly with reading comprehension – suggesting that those who read books well would listen to them well, also. In a 1977 study, college students who listened to a short story were able to summarize it with equal accuracy as those who read it."

Read the complete article for more details.

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An interview with Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman talks about his love of libraries

"Neil Gaiman has long been on record as a fan of libraries, sometimes even calling himself a "feral child" raised by librarians among the stacks. So it should come as no surprise that the American Library Association chose Gaiman to be the Honorary Chair of this year's National Library Week. As both a librarian and a fan of Gaiman,  [Kate Pritchard] was thrilled to be able to interview him about National Library Week and what libraries have meant to him."

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