Make your library the center of your school
Picture this: You teach different grade level library classes back to back without a break in between. Although you are working on the same topic with each grade level (maybe library catalog practice), the lesson materials and practice pages are slightly different. After a couple of classes, your teaching area is a mass of white worksheets and you can’t find the materials your need for
A few years ago, I was looking for strategies to keep my youngest learners engaged and ready to learn. It was at that time that I tried Yoga Storytime with my kindergarten and first grade classes. That experience propelled me into a new learning experience in which I stretched myself to become the “singing librarian” I had always wanted to be! All kidding aside, I
A couple of weeks ago I shared some ideas for school librarians as they get ready to go back to school. As more and more librarians find out what their unique back-to-school situations may be, whether face-to-face teaching, blended learning, or distance learning, they are scrambling to make back to school plans. So I’ve got a few more back to school library ideas for you!
We know that students benefit from collaboration between classroom or content area teachers and the school librarian. You can read my previous posts for more information: Students benefit from Collaboration in the School Library and More Ideas for Collaboration in the School Library. I’d like to invite you to consider school specialist collaborations to energize and unite your school community around a common theme. I
As school librarians, we are constantly striving to form collaborative relationships with classroom teachers and content area teachers. We know that school library collaboration strengthens and deepens learning for our students. When we work with teachers to support and augment classroom instruction, our students benefit greatly. In my last post, Students Benefit from Collaboration in the School Library, I shared some ideas for collaborating with
Collaboration in the school library has been a key component of school librarianship as long as I’ve been in the profession. Even now, “Collaborate” is one of the shared foundations in the National School Library Standards. We collaborate by working with classroom teachers and content area teachers to ensure the learning in the library augments and supports the learning taking place in the classroom. School
Education in the midst of a pandemic brought a great deal of uncertainty. School districts had to cut back on budgets and eliminate positions as they reorganized for the 2020 – 2021 school year. As librarians we had to refresh our advocacy skills and learn how to effectively advocate for our school library programs. Since we never know when future budget cuts may threaten our
February is “I Love to Read Month!” It’s the perfect time for you to celebrate reading in your school! Start with an “I Love to Read” bulletin board and a book recommendation center and you’ll help your students and staff spread the love of reading throughout the school. This article may contain Amazon affiliate links for your convenience. This means that if you click a
It’s been on my radar for a while to make a box of emergency lesson plans – at least one plan for each grade level. It would be such a great idea to have this, especially since in the library these lessons could sustain a Guest Teacher for a whole week. You never know when you might be hit with a serious bout of the
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, that is! I’ve always loved watching this parade on Thanksgiving morning. This year I am thankful for Melissa Sweet’s book, Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade. This fun book was the winner of the Robert R. Sibert Informational Book Medal in 2012. This week I plan to use the book with all of my
