Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Wednesday, May 6, 2015

The Results Are In: Libraries Matter.

Printing to Raspberry Pi’s: How a Quiet Florida School Library Got Transformed by a Makerspace

Just so you know, makerspaces are NOT all about the 3D printer; makerspaces can be set up with very simple tools! Ask around--your State Library and other organizations may be interlibrary loaning makerspace kits!


Friday, April 24, 2015

Friday, April 10, 2015

Celebrate Library Month....Use this for Free from Commoncraft! 

I've thrown down the gauntlet

So you know it is Library Week next week and School Library Month all of April. This is the perfect opportunity (excuse, if you will) to ADVOCATE for your Library! Tell people what you do. Brag a little! We put up a display entitled "Library Week: We LOVE our librarians...don't you?" which has garnered some very favorable comments. These reactions go a long way (internally) toward good morale and (externally) toward advocacy.

I've thrown down the gauntlet. Share what you have done this month to brag about your Library!

Thursday, April 2, 2015

School Librarian of the Year Award
Nominate Someone You Know! What better way to show your community that the school librarian is a leader! http://www.slj.com/awards/school-librarian-of-the-year/

April is School Library Month!

 

Let's celebrate School Library Month by letting Julianne Moore tell others about what we do. This Public Service Announcement has been made available by ALA for use on your school website. Use it! More information at http://www.ala.org/news/press-releases/2015/03/julianne-moore-speaks-school-libraries-new-psa

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Kids & Family Reading Report
If you haven't seen it, you should. Every year our friends at Scholastic research children's reading habits to help librarians and parents understand how kids read. This most recent report has some great infographics (which are downloadable as posters, too) to help make the case for what kids LIKE to read! http://www.scholastic.com/readingreport/the-state-of-kids-and-reading.htm

Monday, March 30, 2015

What is SCHLIBTALK?
It's a listserv dedicated to the school librarians in North Dakota and the upper Midwest. It's a place where they can seek advice from other school librarians who understand what they are up against in a really small school in a really rural state.

Okay, so what's a SCHLIBTALK? Short explanation: A name gone wrong. It was intended to be an acronym for School Librarian's Talk, but by the time it got out there, it ended up being that sound you make when you lick your finger to turn a page--only with a German accent. Go ahead, say it with me (heavy on the SSSCHHHHHL) SCHLIBTALK.

If you are interested in our discussions, you can join, search the archives or lurk by going to http://library.vcsu.edu/vp.htm?p=1830 I do moderate it to keep it free from advertising and offensive language. REALLY? Offensive language from school librarians?!....not a chance!
Frozen Books!
From the FROZEN streets of North Dakota....
I finally got my act together and decided that, in addition to the SCHLIBTALK listserv that I moderate, it was way past time for me to blog about some of the issues facing school librarians and school libraries. So let's get this party started....

Okay, so I am not the artsy type, but I just HAD to try to my hand at a version of a "pile of white books" that I saw on Pintrest. I wanted to give the college students taking Kiddie Lit a display idea. [The Kiddie Lit classes meet three times a week in our Lower Level (read basement) Curriculum Library and we LOVE having them!] You can find the original librarian's idea by Googling "pinterest frozen book display" and clicking on Images. 

Coming soon...What the HECK is SCHLIBTALK?