Thank you to Orca Book Publishers and NetGalley for the ARC of this work. True to Elise Gravel, colorful illustrations and playful characters abound in this delightful book. As Bob sets out in pursuit of a wrench to fix his trusty trike, he is bombarded by tantalizing options such as musical pajamas and a fridge hat....by the way, where can I get one of those? Though the mega store and Mr. Mart may talk Bob into many a frivolous purchase, Bob eventually learns that what he needs has been under his nose the whole time. I recommend educators of preschool and young elementary students include this book in their libraries and classrooms. It is a great discussion starter for needs versus wants, and emphasizing the importance of a tidy closet to discover all that you have already!
Publication Date: September 15, 2020
0 Comments
As teachers nation-wide are being tasked with creation and execution of meaningful lessons in the face of a global pandemic, COVID-19, I began to reflect on the various web 2.0 tools that I have utilized in my classroom and through my graduate coursework. Many teachers are having to figure out how to digitally present material for the first time to their classes in a distance learning environment. Below is a curated list of various web 2.0 tools that are user friendly, free, and that teachers may find helpful during this challenging time.
After reading the blog post, “6 Active Learning Spaces Your Library Should Have” by Diana Rendina (2016), I reflected upon my mentor’s elementary library at Gullet Elementary and how her facility fit within these listed spaces. The spaces included were: small group areas, large group areas, community area, technology-rich areas, quiet/solitary areas, and makerspaces. My mentor’s library, serving approximately 600 elementary students, is a mid-size school library that has been recently renovated. Within the space, there are flexible seating options, a presentation area with foldable tables, story steps for lessons and read alouds, and a computer area with desktop computers. Based on these offerings, my mentor’s library has small group areas from flexible seating, two large group areas that also serve as community areas, a technology rich area, and solitary areas. Reflecting on the spaces described Rendina (2016), the only type of space not included in my mentor’s school library is a dedicated makerspace area. I approached my mentor asking why her library did not include a makerspace area, and she informed me that at her school’s students were given dedicated class periods for specific makerspace activities through a class called the “STEAM Lab”. Though this additional course offering for campus students may satisfy and fulfill teaching inquiry and 21st century skills to Gullet students, I do believe that a small makerspace area included within the library space would promote students visiting the library outside of their scheduled, class time. In “A Team Approach to Designing Future Ready Library Spaces”, Caroline Foote (2019) emphasized the present need to modernize the school library. Other than focusing on fulfilling the six fundamental spaces for modern libraries that Rendina (2016) mentioned, librarians and administrators should also consider community stakeholders, visiting aspirational and effective library facilities, gathering data regarding current facilities, resources, and engagement, and emphasizing 21st century skills within library facilities when considering redesigning their school libraries. Looking towards the future, in order for library lessons to integrate AASL standards for 21st century learners, each library space must include the elements of inquiry and technology to provide a truly effective library program. Additionally, increasing engagement through community stakeholders, such as parents, teacher, and administrators through cross-curricular instruction that makerspaces provide, would ultimately advocate for the library program. For these reasons, my suggested redesign for my mentor’s library would be the inclusion of a small, portable makerspace area such as STEM bins on rolling carts. Having been recently renovated, the highlight of my mentor’s library is the flexibility of the space through large open spaces and flexible furniture options. To continue in this same vain, I would wish for the makerspace area to be flexible and portable as well. Additionally, the recent renovations mean that there is not much money or support for further renovations to the space. Therefor, I believe STEM bin carts would be a great addition and solution to creating a makerspace area within the library, and could easily be supported by data and TEKS as Foote (2019) suggested in her article. To make a makerspace cart, you would need a rolling cart (found at any craft store), plastic pencil boxes, and a variety of building materials such as legos, unifix cubes, or base ten blocks. Many of these resources can already be found on campus. Then, the librarian can either develop their own challenge cards for students to utilize the STEM bins with, or the librarian can find a variety of these challenge cards available online. The original creator and visionary of STEM bins, Brooke Brown, sells a variety of challenge cards and materials on her site and through her Teachers Pay Teachers store (Click Here to See/Buy Brooke’s STEM Bin Materials). After this minor redesign, I would ultimately hope to see more inquiry and discovery within the library setting in conjunction with the already fabulous and modern spaces within the Gullet library. This suggested redesign would be a minor and manageable way to implement an engaging makerspace area in the library. Figure 1. Makerspace Area in Library. Photo is from a blog post by Diana Rendina (2016), https://knowledgequest.aasl.org/6-active-learning-spaces-library/ References Foote, C. (2019). A team approach to designing future ready library
spaces. Knowledge Quest, 47(3), 9-13. Retrieved from knowledgequest.aasl.org Rendina, D. (2016, January 27). 6 active learning spaces your library should have [blog post]. Retrieved from https://knowledgequest.aasl.org/6-active-learning-spaces- library/ Rendina, D. (2016, January 27). Makerspaces: Access to hands-on materials [photograph]. Retrieved from https://knowledgequest.aasl.org/6-active-learning-spaces- library/ Giddy is an understatement when referring to my excitement over this year's Texas Book Festival! The Texas Book Festival is an annual event in which numerous authors from a variety of genres and target audiences come together to give talks and allow visitors opportunities to meet them and have their books signed. (This fan girl was too excited, and also enthusiastically asked Kwame Alexander and Meg Medina--authors of Rebound and Merci Suarez Changes Gears--for pictures.) . Additionally at this festival, the Bluebonnet Award Winners are revealed! I am so excited about many of the works that I have already read on the list, and am anxious to get my hands on the rest! If you have not attended this festival in the past, I strongly recommend you look into going next year. You will not be disappointed! Below I have linked the newly selected Bluebonnet winners:
I am so excited about Jerry Craft's graphic novel and Bluebonnet Award Winner, New Kid. Check out the book talk and book trailer below!
With the influx of information being shared daily through the web, a primary role of modern day librarians is assisting patrons in navigating the myriad of information out there. Not only do patrons need access to information, they additionally need a way to wade through the boundless sea of information available and be able to recognize information that is relevant and trusted for their intended purposes. Curation, a practice conducted since the beginning of the librarian profession, is more important than ever in today’s ever-present, digital environment.
Many sites and apps lend themselves to curating resources for patrons. Some of these sites include Pinterest, LiveBinders, and Padlet. Practicing the art of curation in accordance with Jennifer Gonzalez’s (2018) “curation guidelines” from her blog post, “Are You are a Curator or A Dumper?”, I curated a list of resources through Pearltrees that educators can use to teach the concept of food chains to their students. In her post, Gonzalez emphasized the importance of only showcasing resources that were the most beneficial, chunking information into subsections, adding introductions and text to explain chosen pieces of information and guide patrons, utilizing images within curation lists, and making links readable and user friendly. The author compared digitally curated collections to museum collections, giving examples of how curated museum exhibits guide a visitor through the collected information and artifacts in a friendly way that encourages the pursuit of knowledge rather than just dumping a large amount of information on them with no explanation. Through my exploration of the free version of Pearltrees, I found it easy to follow Gonzalez’s guidelines for best digital curation practices. I was able to curate a specific collection, “Food Chains”, that can ultimately be organized within subfolders on my account that can be accessed by patrons. Within my collection, I was able to add an introduction to the collection, order my resources in a logical way, and rename resources to aid users in identifying why each piece of information is useful in uncovering information about food chains. Overall, using Pearltrees was free and user friendly. I could see utilizing this site again in the future to create more digital collections to share with teachers and students. Additionally, its ease in accessibility leads me to believe that it would be a resource that I could ask students to utilize. In another blog post by Gonzalez (2017), “To Boost Higher-Order Thinking, Try Curation”, the author asserts that allowing students to curate their own collections would allow them to learn about specific concepts while teaching them 21st century skills and hitting higher levels within Bloom’s taxonomy of higher order thinking. I believe that allowing students to utilize a site such as Pearltrees to create thematic, digital collections would be a great benefit for students. Not only will they learn about a concept, but they will gain a more in-depth knowledge of their covered topic through tailoring their digital collection in accordance with Gonzalez’s (2018) curation guidelines. Additionally, they will be able to share their collections with other classmates, ultimately increasing intrinsic motivation. I would love to coordinate with third through fifth grade teachers at my school and attempt a pilot lesson of allowing students to curate digital collections. Since Pearltrees allows a “sign in with Google” feature, creating accounts with students should not be difficult when having them access the site through their already utilized Google Classrooms. The possibilities and potential for digitally curated collections are endless. I am excited for my future collections as well as those created by students! Below I have attached a link to my “Food Chains” collections created through Pearltrees. I highly recommend this site as an introductory curation site to try out in your library.
References
Gonzalez, J. (2018, February 4). Are you a curator or a dumper? [blog
post]. Retrieved from https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/curator -or-dumper/ Gonzalez, J. (2017, April 15). To boost higher-order thinking, try curation [blog post]. Retrieved from https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/curation/ Pearltrees. (n.d.) Retrieved from https://www.pearltrees.com/
When the School Library Research reviews manuscripts, they practice a double blind review process in which both the manuscript submitter and reviewer are unaware of one another’s identities. Each manuscript is reviewed by approximately three to five members of the SLR review team. Once each reviewer has assessed the manuscript by reviewing a set of questions set forth by SLR, they make their recommendation. According to SLR, three or more reviewer rejections will dismiss a manuscript, but if it is approved by majority of reviewers, the manuscript will be posted for a full board review and the review team will take a majority vote regarding the article’s publication. If a manuscript is selected for publication, the review notes will be sent to the author for any further edits, and the manuscript will then be published online. Evidence Based Library and Information Practice (EBLIP): EBLIP practices a double blind reviewing process in which each manuscript is individually peer reviewed by two professional reviewers from the EBLIP team whose expertise is reflective of the subject matter presented within the proposed manuscript. If an article is selected for publication, it is posted online within an EBLIP upcoming issue and eventually their archives.
Published by the American Association of School Librarians, this journal gains authority and trust through its publication by a reputable information source for librarians. Assessing the current editorial board members, each member’s affiliated university and title is given along with each member’s name and title. Positions listed such as university professor or head academic librarian, add authority to the journal, showcasing that its editorial board members are of high standing at trusted institutions. Regarding the members’ affiliated institutions, there is a wide variety of recognized and trusted names, including the University of Texas and the University of North Texas, that offer prestigious library programs and therefor add to the journal’s overall authority on library research. Evidence Based Library and Information Practice (EBLIP): Reviewing the editorial team list for EBLIP—which includes editors, editorial advisors, communications officers, indexing support, copyeditors, evidence summaries team, writing assistance team, and peer reviewers—each member of the staff seems highly qualified. Each individual’s name is followed by their affiliated university and specialty. Not only are there recognizable, reputable universities from the United States listed, such as UC Berkeley and Harvard, individuals from the editorial team span educational institutions around the globe, including State University of Library Studies and Information Technologies in Bulgaria and Duke Kunshan University in China. The diversity of the staff and their associated, reputable credentials offer a trustworthiness of the authority to the journal as a whole and reflect the diversity of ideas and research that are offered within each volume’s publications.
Reading through the archives of School Library Research, three articles stood out as informational articles that would benefit my library practice: “The Motivational and Information Needs of Young Innovators: Stimulating Student Creativity and Inventive Thinking”, “School Librarians Fully Online: Preparing the Twenty-First Century Professional”, and “Drawing Diversity: Representations of Race in Graphic Novels for Young Adults” (Santos Green, Jones, & Burke, 2017; Small, 2014; Moeller & Becnel, 2018). As an aspiring elementary or middle school librarian, the topics covered by these articles—innovative thinking, twenty-first century learning, and graphic novels—seemed immediately relevant in developing my practice. School librarians teaching in the twenty-first century have a responsibility to impart twenty-first century skills including research and critical thinking skills, to their students. For this reason, I believe the innovation and twenty-first century skills articles would be beneficial to review and utilize to reflect upon my current practices. Graphic novels are an increasingly popular genre amongst K-12 students. Their rise in popularity as well as the need for librarians to maintain diverse library collections, prompted my selection of the graphic novels and race article. Evidence Based Library and Information Practice (EBLIP): Perusing the archives of EBLIP, three articles stood out as informational articles that could have a direct impact on my present practice: “School Libraries Play an Active, Transformational Role in Student Learning and Achievement”, “Public Library Summer Reading Programs Contribute to Reading Progress and Proficiency”, and “Impact of Reading Buddies Program on Reading Level and Attitude Towards Reading” (Bogel, 2006; Bogel, 2012; Dolman & Boyte-Hawryluk, 2013). As an elementary school teacher and aspiring elementary school librarian, these articles stood out to me because they address beneficial programming that can be directly implemented within the school library. Additionally, the “School Libraries Play an Active, Transformational Role in Student Learning and Achievement” is an asset to my growing, library advocacy research article arsenal in promoting the continued use and relevancy of school libraries. Summer reading programs and reading buddies are programs that are publicized and enacted at both my current school and my mentor librarian’s school. Reflecting on my future practice, I would like to couple the information gained from these articles with the observations of both school library programs. Additionally, as a future school librarian it is imperative to have resources at the ready for advocating for your local school library as well as libraries as a whole, I believe “School Libraries Play an Active, Transformational Role in Student Learning and Achievement” by Bogel (2006), could be such an article that supports these efforts. References American Association of School Librarians (n.d.). School Library
Research (SLR). Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/aasl/pubs/slr Bogel, G. (2006). School libraries play an active, transformational role in student learning and achievement. Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, 1(4), 49-53. https://doi.org/10.18438/B8HS3G Bogel, G. (2012). Public library summer reading programs contribute to reading progress and proficiency. Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, 7(1), 102-104. https://doi.org/10.18438/B8G898 Dolman, H., & Boyte-Hawryluk, S. (2013). Impact of the reading buddies program on reading level and attitude towards reading. Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, 8(1), 35-46. https://doi.org/10.18438/B8N89T Evidence Based Library & Information Practice (n.d.). Home. Retrieved from https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/eblip/index.php/EBLIP Moeller, R., & Becnel, K. (2018). Drawing diversity: Representations of race in graphic novels for young adults. School Library Research, 21, 1-17. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/aasl/slr/volume21/moeller-becnel Santos Green, L., Jones, S., & Burke, P. (2017). School librarians fully online: Preparing the twenty-first century professional. School Library Research, 20, 1-21. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/aasl/slr/volume20/santosgreen-jones-burke Small, R. (2014). The motivational and information needs of young innovators: Stimulating student creativity and inventive thinking. American Association of School Librarians, 17, 1-36. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/aasl/slr/volume17/small When you are absent for a week to attend the amazing Texas Library Association conference and walk into a classroom with a GIANT projection system taking up a quarter of your room, it is reasonable to say some choice words about the inconvenience of it all. I am here to say that I was this teacher and am now fully eating my words! In Austin ISD we have received a new roll out of technology to older campuses, such as mine that was built in 1939. Though our new equipment is a bit of an eyesore, it has the propensity to be the most amazing educational tool my classroom has in its arsenal! Shown in the picture above are students working on curating boards about ecosystems and resources streaming in real-time over the projection screen! As a teacher, I have control over who is streaming and who is not. So far this system has done two major things: 1) students are less apt to visit sites they were not assigned to peruse and 2) students are able to build ideas off one another and share in each other's continuous revising process. The possibilities are endless and I am so excited for everything my students will be able to do through this system!
Today students were able to participate in the fabulous activity that my mentor librarian, Jeneen Irwin, calls "Book Tasting". Jeneen curates a selection of books for each specific class, then during students' library time, she has the class sit in a circle with pencils and paper in hand. During the book tasting, each student started with a random book selection that Jeneen handed them. Then, she would set a timer for them to read each book's synopsis and the first few pages for a minute. When the timer went off, students passed their book to the student on their right and the process continued until every student was able to "taste" each book. At the end of the activity, students had "To Be Read" book lists in hand and were able to "bid" on any books that were used during the book tasting to take home that day. Students who did not win their rock-paper-scissors bid were given the opportunity to add their names to the "Waiting List" Jeneen has constantly posted on the circulation desk. Something else to note is that Jeneen not only has a "Waiting List" posted along the circulation desk but a "Wish We Had the Book" chart posted as well to receive input and suggestions on works students wish were available in the library. What a fantastic way to introduce students to unfamiliar works and receive student feedback on the library collection!
Students were extremely excited to talk about Book Fair the week of November 7th. Along with a viewing a preview video provided by Scholastic, students were informed of buying times for students, and taught how to fill out a wish list they would use during their scheduled Book Fair Preview later in the week. During students' preview time, students were given a wish list sheet, clipboard, and pencil that they used to record books they were interested in.
When helping Ms. Irwin set up this year's fair, themed "Enchanted Forest", I was primarily interested in the logistics of how she coordinated parent volunteers in helping her set up and decorate. Jeneen's strategy of keeping everyone efficient was first listing out a step-by-step list of items that needed to be accomplished. Then, she either drew out her ideas for each decor item or provided a similar image from Pinterest. Through this system, we were able to set up the library in less than one school day. Through Book Fair week, I spent time speaking with Jeneen and training on the logistics of Book Fair, such as how she keeps track of money, how to operate the cash registers, and her system for pre-ordering popular books. |
AuthorMy name is Mackenzie Wright. I am currently a teacher in the Austin area, and am finishing my Master's in school librarianship through UNT. Categories
All
|