Tag Archives: Children’s Literature

Books, General, Public, School Media Specialist

Books in the Spotlight: March

Sometimes CMLE will highlight several books that have some factor in common. We hope they will give you ideas for your collection, or influence an activity, lesson plan, or display!

This month, we are sharing several different books that have main characters that model good qualities for young readers. This book list began as a discussion from a librarian hoping to help one of her patrons. The patron was looking for suggestions of beginning chapter books for a nine-year-old that contained characters that modeled qualities such as dependability, good time management, etc but without being didactic.

Here are some of the suggestions other librarians came up with:

Continue reading Books in the Spotlight: March →

Books, General

A librarian’s reaction to the Oscar’s mix-up

If you were watching the Oscars last Sunday, or even just tuning into the news regarding the Oscars, chances are you heard about the major mix-up in which the movie La La Land was announced as the winner of the Best Picture award – when in reality the winner was Moonlight.

People reacted with surprise, shock, etc but the best reaction definitely came from a librarian, of course! She chose three picture books with fitting titles to explain the situation – check out the article from MPR here. 

(Platteville Library, the originator of the Tweet, favorited our Twitter response! Talking with library people, on social media, on blogs, and in person, is always fun!)

 

Books, Communication, School Media Specialist

Book Recommendations from the American Indians in Children’s Literature (AICL)


After talking with several of our members, I know that collecting and recommending books that adequately speak to the American Indian experience is important – and a challenge! We want to be sure we are passing on the best information to our patrons and community members; so it is good to get some expert advice.

I wanted to share this information and blog, by Debbie Reese – a member of the Nambe Owingeh tribe. Her blog is called American Indians in Children’s Literature, and has not only book recommendations but also a lot of very valuable information to help library people (and others) to understand books an information in this area.

Continue reading Book Recommendations from the American Indians in Children’s Literature (AICL) →

Public, School Media Specialist, Services

Supercharge your storytime!

Make the most of storytime

Storytime is a fun and important time in all libraries. In order to get even more out of storytime programs, the Library of Virginia has created 12 new videos on how to “supercharge” your storytime.

They define supercharging storytime as incorporating two main characteristics: intentionality, where they focus on making connections between the storytime activities and early literacy, and interactivity, so both the kids and parents participate and get more out of the program.

You can find more resources, including videos and links to articles, on early childhood literacy expert Saroj Ghoting’s website here.

Learn the basics and benefits of supercharging your storytime by watching this short video:

Books, Public, Resources, School Media Specialist

Looking for historical fiction picture books?

Reading about fictional characters in a historical setting can be interesting and education for young readers. If you are looking for suggestions of fiction books in a historical setting, here are a few to try:

Freedom Over Me: Eleven Slaves, Their Lives and Dreams Brought to Life by Ashley Bryan
This book was inspired by actual plantation documents that detailed the monetary value of a slave. This book examines that topic while sharing values that cannot be sold, which are each slaves’ dreams and lived experiences.

Locomotive by Brian Floca
This book takes a look at the early days of America’s transcontinental railroad. The train’s journey comes alive with the sounds, sights, passengers, and workers that all witness the changing landscape of the country.

 

Unspoken: A Story from the Underground Railroad by Henry Cole
This story is about a farm girl that has discovered a runaway slave hiding in her family’s barn. To help the slave, she must act with courage and compassion.

Do you have a favorite historical fiction picture book? Share with us in the comments, we’d love to check it out!