Category Archives: Books

Books, Children's services, Programs, Public

Reader’s Advisory: Storywalk titles!

blue skies
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Have you run a StoryWalk?

Have you been to a StoryWalk?

They sound amazingly fun! And they are a great way to involve kids in a book – and  hopefully interest kids in many more books!

“StoryWalk® is an innovative and delightful way for children — and adults! — to enjoy reading and the outdoors at the same time. Laminated pages from a children’s book are attached to wooden stakes, which are installed along an outdoor path. As you stroll down the trail, you’re directed to the next page in the story.”

“If you are interested in having a StoryWalk® in your community, The StoryWalk Project- FAQ March 2017 Update.doc.“

A library person was recently talking about StoryWalks on the ALSC listserve, and asked for suggestions on other titles to use. She collected the responses, and we are sharing them with you here:

  • Life on Mars by Agee
  • The Three Little Aliens & the Big Bad Robot
  • Seymour Simon has several NF space books
  • The Aliens are Coming
  • Company Coming
  • Postcards from Pluto
  • Magic School Bus Lost in the Solar System
  • Aliens Love Underpants by Claire Freedman
  • I Want To Go To The Moon by Tom Saunders
  • The Darkest Dark
  • Oh No, Astro!
  • Star Stuff

Clearly, this would be a fun program in itself. You can also expand on that by involving some Reader’s Advisory work.

  • Add in signs with additional books on topics for each page. Picture of an ant on one? Recommend an ant book! Ms. Frizzle stops at Jupiter? Have a Jupiter book ready to go!
  • Create a bibliography you can give to parents and caregivers at the end, with similar books to the StoryWalk book you just had fun reading. Also put this online, so everyone can find it!
  • Have kids yell out their favorite books! We are already running (fun!), and adding in a yelling component could be even more fun! Keep track of their suggestions, so you stay in touch with the books important to this community group.

Check out some of the photos of StoryWalks on Pinterest!

Books, General, Tech

Cast some Harry Potter spells!

If you are a Harry Potter fan, there are so many opportunities out there to attempt to recreate the magical spells from the book. One of my favorite recent versions is the Google-enabled control of the flashlight on your Android device.

Another new opportunity to try your hand at spell work comes in the form of a free, downloadable game! Designed by a student at Princeton University, this game looks pretty fun. Check out this article to read about the game’s debut at a Harry Potter library event, and don’t forget to watch the video of each spell!

Accio fun!

 

 

Spell Simulation game a Princeton University student designed for our recent Harry Potter event. There’s video of the 6 spells, and also a free download! https://popgoesthepage.princeton.edu/magicus-extremos/

Books, General

Have you read a book you thought was the worst?

Library people generally love books and reading. But, chances are, since you spend a lot of time reading, you are bound to come across a book or two that you dislike…or even hate!

This article from Book Riot describes one man’s strong dislike of a certain book “that many literary critics and book reviewers say is a timeless classic, while I say it is complete garbage and hands down the worst book I have ever read.”

Read the article to find out which book he is talking about! If you also have feelings of strong dislike for a certain book, we are curious to hear about it! Share with us in the comments.

Personally, I tend to abandon books if I develop hateful feelings towards them, unless they are required reading for some reason. In that case, the last book I really didn’t care for was The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni.

Books, Children's services, Programs, Public, School Media Specialist

New study says toy “sleepovers” can help kids’ literacy

Getting young kids involved in activities that involve reading is important to encourage their literacy skills. And when the kids can bring their favorite stuffed animals along, everyone can participate in the fun!

You may remember a few months ago CMLE’s office mascot Orville got to take part in a great Stuffed Animal Sleepover program offered by the St. Cloud Public library.

These events are becoming increasingly popular all across the world, and thanks to a new study, can even promote early literacy skills. This article from School Library Journal explains just how useful these events can be to get young kids interested in reading!
Continue reading New study says toy “sleepovers” can help kids’ literacy →

Academic, Books, Research

Primary Research Group has published the International Survey of Research University Faculty


Primary Research Group has published the International Survey of Research University Faculty: Use of Academic Library Special  Collections, ISBN 978-157440-439-5

The study presents data from a survey of 500+ faculty at more than 50 major research universities in the USA, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom & Ireland about their use and evaluation of academic library special collections in rare books & documents, film & video, music, photography, rare biological specimens, personal archives, posters and guidebooks and other commercial materials, oral history and many other areas.  The report presents data separately for use of special collections at one’s own university and for use of special collections at other institutions.  The study also gives data on the percentage of faculty that recommend special collections to students, other faculty or other parties. Survey participants name some of their favorite special collections and rate their general level of satisfaction with academic library special collections.

Data in the 196-page study is broken out by more than 10 criteria including but not limited to academic title, age, gender, national origin of university, public/private status, teaching load, tenure status, university ranking and other variables.

The report presents data and commentary on extent of use of various collections, and evaluation of various special collections practices and offerings such as hours of access, quality of digitization, general ease of use, online access, terms of use or borrowing and other factors.

Just a few of the report’s many findings are that:

  • 21.47% of faculty in the Media and Visual and Performing Arts fields accessed photography special collections from outside their institution in the past three years, the most in the sample, followed by those in the Literature and Language fields, 10.00%.
  • Satisfaction with special collections did not vary widely with institution size or type, or with respondent age, gender, political views, or academic field. However, respondents from Canadian universities were relatively more satisfied than were those from other countries with their institution’s special collections,
  • More than a quarter of those age 60 and over found special collections just as easy or easier to find and use than standard library collections, compared to just 11.43% of respondents age 30 and under.
  • Respondents to the far left of the political spectrum reported the highest use special collections based on personal archives or estates, 7.61%, but otherwise political views had no clear impact on utilization of personal archives or estates.
  • 9.73% of respondents teaching more than two courses in the past semester were dissatisfied with levels of online access to collections of catalogs, posters, guides and other commercial materials, compared to less than 3.5% of those teaching two courses or less.For further information view our website at www.PrimaryResearch.com.