Make your library the center of your school
I don’t read picture books to my upper elementary students very often, but I’ve found a pair of books that hold their attention and teach some valuable lessons about friendship and the role of technology in our lives and friendships. I read the books Nerdy Birdy and Nerdy Birdy Tweets (by Aaron Reynolds and Matt Davies) to all of my classes in grades 3, 4,
Earth Day is a day to take action. Children in schools across the country will be setting up recycling stations and picking up garbage. They’ll be making posters and remembering to turn off the lights when they leave a room. Here are seven books to motivate your elementary school learners and inspire them to make a difference for the planet that we love! I borrowed
Mo Willems’ Elephant and Piggie series for early readers is popular with young children for a reason. They are fun, exciting, surprising, and full of genuine emotions! Although the final book in the series was just published in 2016, these engaging stories have already become a classic staple in elementary school libraries and kindergarten and first grade classrooms across the country! At my school, older
A friend shared a great idea with me for helping my fourth and fifth grade students focus on uplifting messages and positive thoughts using the quotes from the book 365 Days of Wonder: Mr. Brown’s Book of Precepts. She had torn out several pages from the book, let students choose one, and write a reflection on what the precept meant to them. I loved the
Either I”m getting old or “youngsters these days have a harder time sitting still!” I really think it’s a combination of both, but regardless of that, what are we going to do about it? I’ve found yoga to be a great outlet for me in my personal life as far as my concentration, mindfulness, and overall health, so it makes sense that yoga could be
As a school librarian, I am constantly looking for great new books for kids, but this past year I have had extra opportunities to be exposed exciting new titles in children’s literature. In July I became a reviewer for Kid Lit Exchange (you can read more about that fun group and even sign up to be a reviewer yourself here), in October I had the
I didn’t notice when I stopped by Harper Collins’ booth at the AASL conference that all of the galleys they gave me to review for them were full of GIRL POWER! What a pleasant and fun situation I found myself in when I came home and read these four picture books. I was excited to write a brief review of each for Kid Lit
February is full of fun holidays and events, from Chinese New Year to President’s Day. I’ve found some great read-alouds for you to have on hand this month (I checked out these books from my school library) and paired them with some fabulous free resources you can find on Teachers Pay Teachers! This blog post contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click on a link
As school librarians, our biggest mission is to connect kids with books they will love. A Book Tasting Event can give your students the opportunity to sample library books that they might not otherwise consider in a fun, festive environment. You can have a book tasting at any time of year: it’s fun at the beginning of the school year, anytime you may have a
Do you have students who find a favorite book series and then want to read all of the books in order? On any given day in my library, students come in asking questions like: “What’s Magic Tree House number 17?” “Which book is after Rodrick Rules?” “What’s the first book in the Underland series?” Now, I know it is relatively easy to look up the
