To SIRS with Love...

As promised, here are the slides from yesterday's presentation. Hopefully, you all feel like you "Leveled Up" your knowledge of these databases. I forgot to highlight the fact that SIRS Decades is all primary sources - perfect for History Fair research. Also, here is a quick cheat sheet of where to find the educator resources/promotional tools for each database:

• SIRS Discoverer - right hand sidebar (Database Features) towards the bottom (Educator Resources)
• SIRS Knowledge Source - bottom middle  (Educator Resources)
• SIRS Decades - bottom middle (Librarian's Corner)<iframe 

To SIRS with Love... from Dedra Van Gelder

And last but not least... if you or someone you know is a certified school librarian still looking for work, consider applying to Charles County Public Schools. We currently have four elementary schools in need of enthusiastic and qualified librarians. Click here to learn more.

Great article just in time before Hispanic Heritage Month ends....

I read this article this morning and found myself both cracking up and then nodding in agreement. Reading a book (or poem or play or anything really) where the characters have authentic voices is fun. It's real. We don't all sound the same, so why should the characters we read about. I think this is especially important when writing for children and young adults. Kids should be able to see (and hear) themselves in books - the mirror effect. Equally important are those books that give kids a window to the world and let them see and experience something beyond themselves and their own culture. If you've got a few minutes (it's a short article), then give it a read. Gracias, Noemi Gamel! Your article started my day off on the right foot. Three Reasons Why I Use Spanish Phrases in My Writing by Noemi Gamel  Also, if this is your first time visiting the Latin@s in Kid Lit website.... de nada. :) Thank you, Dan Gattuso, for helping me discover the site!

On the hunt...

If you or someone you know is a certified school librarian still looking for work, consider applying to Charles County Public Schools. We currently have four elementary schools in need of enthusiastic and qualified librarians. Click here to apply.

QR Code Generators

Just finished printing some new business cards to take with me to the AASL conference, and since I was making them myself I decided to splurge and print on both sides. The front has your standard information, and on the back I put my Twitter handle (@nerdeelibrarian) and a QR code that links to this blog. To make the QR code, I went to http://www.qrstuff.com/ which was super easy to use. All you do is choose your data type, add the content (url, phone number, etc.. what ever it is you are linking to), choose a color, and then download/print/email your finished QR code. It's 4 simple steps! You can even order items with your code on it - coffee mugs, t-shirts,ties, etc... Another free and easy to use generator is http://goqr.me/. I like this one because it was simple easy to add text. I have visions of a library scavenger hunt... kids scanning QR codes and getting clues or questions to unlock the next piece of the puzzle. It would be a blast!

Thanks giving... Day 5

As the work week wraps up, I leave you one more wonderful stash of book trailers: Book Trailer Resource - LiveBinder. There are links to tons of great sites including publisher YouTube channels, comic book trailers, and more. There's so much to explore, that I'll just leave you to it!

Thanks giving.... Day 4

Want to see a gold mine of student made trailers? Then check out Book Trailers for Readers: Spotlighting Great Books for Kids and Teens. Not only do they have tons of fantastic trailers, but they also have lots of support if you are looking to help your own students get started making their own. There's even info on how incorporating and/or creating book trailers connects to the Common Core.  

Thanks giving... Day 3

Are you ready for some fun? Visit SlimeKids (School Library Media Kids) for a  mix of professional and student made book trailers. They are organized grade level and by year. If you hover over a book cover, you'll see the genre, Lexile level, approximate grade levels, and whether or not it is a high interest/low level novel. Each book trailer also includes a text description of the book and a short bit of information about the author. This is a great site to use in conjunction with teaching students how to create their own book trailers. You can have kids watch a few trailers to tease out the basic elements and format. They can talk about what works and what doesn't - really building a feel for what techniques they want to incorporate into their own production. Another great way to use this is to have students watch trailers for books they've already read. After viewing, they can analyze whether or not the trailer was an accurate intro to the book. Quick and easy opportunity to get your students thinking (and then writing or speaking) critically. :)