If you aren’t already back to school, you will be soon! We thought this list from School Library Journal had some great suggestions that you could potentially use in your school library this year!
Read some of the ideas below, and check out the full list here.
This idea sounds both fun AND delicious: “I’m really excited to be getting a small hydroponic garden system for school-wide use,” says Ellen Luca, media specialist at Brookdale School in Bloomfield, NJ. Reflecting the school’s implementation of Next Generation Science Standards, Luca’s media center “is becoming a hub for STEAM-related activities.” Students will plant lettuce and basil, with the goal of making pesto. “
We love how this school librarian is getting the word out about her awesome media center: “Jaime LeRoy, library media specialist at Cross Timbers (TX) Middle School, is looking forward to another year of sneaky library advertising with her Bathroom Book Blurbs, advertisements for popular titles, in student bathrooms, as well as her Potty Mouth newsletter, housed in faculty restrooms, with news about library happenings, new books, tech tips, and more. “I am willing to do whatever it takes to promote the library and its goings-on!” she says.”
This school librarian has a fun way to get her students to experience her collection: “AnastasiaHanneken, who recently genrefied her school library’s fiction collection, is planning an “Around the Library in 180 Days” program. Students will receive a passport “and will be asked to read a book from each genre, including nonfiction and biography.” Prizes await students who complete the genres in their passport.”
Learning math with dancing robots? Yes, please! “Laura Gardner, teacher librarian at Dartmouth (MA) Middle School and SLJ 2016 School Librarian of the Year finalist, has been collaborating with the school’s math department using Ozobots. Last year they worked with students to teach the mini-robots how to dance, and this year they will use lessons found on the Ozobot website to explore the concepts of pi and slope.”
This public library is teaching students some very important adulting tips: “The San Jose Public Library will continue offering a series of Life Skills Academy programs, says Berman. Teens ages 14–19 can attend sessions on topics including “Pizza Is Not a Food Group,” “There Are No Potty Breaks in College,” and “Why You Shouldn’t Have 27 Credit Cards.”
This media specialist has a cute and relatable idea for her program: “In her new position as media specialist at Falmouth (ME) Elementary School, Amy Reddy will offer the passive program “Once Upon a Time…We Were Your Age, Too!” Teachers and staff will share photos of themselves as kids, with a favorite book. Students will guess their identities, and winners will receive gift cards. At Reddy’s old school, “Students made connections to the teachers and often chose a teacher’s favorite books to read.” Plus, “they realized their teachers were children once, too!”
Everyone in the library world knows that summer is a time for kicking back with some new reading, trying out some new programming, and (hopefully!) bringing in more people to your library! It’s a lot of work, but the results are fun for your patrons.
Thinking up these fun things to do can be the hardest part!
Fortunately, many library people face the same issue; so we can all work together to share ideas. One librarian asked for help in making teen craft programs over the summer, and there were many suggestions from other library people. See if any of them would work in your library! Continue reading Summer reading time approaches!→
CMLE libraries – are you using the iREAD summer resources?? There are all kinds of great links and information here – to help encourage summer reading, to offer summer meals, and more!
The 2017 material is all set up, and now they want you to help contribute information to make the 2018 program fantastic!
The theme for the 2018 iREAD Resource Guide is Reading Takes You Everywhere. We need all of your great ideas to share with librarians around the world who use the iREAD theme. Each idea submitted helps to strengthen the Resource Guide. Use the forms below to submit your theme-related ideas. Please direct comments and questions to the Resource Guide Coordinator Alexandra Annen at ideas@ireadprogram.org.
National Summer Learning Association Now Accepting Applications from Summer Learning Programs for the 2017 New York Life Foundation Excellence in Summer Learning Awards Since 2004, more than 500 programs serving nearly 500,000 youth have applied, offering the most comprehensive look at the national summer learning landscape in America Baltimore, MD.
The National Summer Learning Association (NSLA) is seeking applications from summer learning programs nationwide for the 2017 New York Life Foundation Excellence in Summer Learning Awards. The Excellence Award and Founder’s Award recognize outstanding summer programs and models that strive to curb learning loss in children and youth between pre-kindergarten and twelfth grade. The New York Life Foundation honors programs with a monetary award and NSLA will announce award recipients on National Summer Learning Day, July 13, 2017. Continue reading Call: National Summer Learning Association→
You probably already know that at CMLE, we offer a service called “Notable Dates for your Noggin” which feature special holidays and birthdays of authors, as well as publications of well-known books. In an effort to help you get more from this service, we’ve decided to select one “Notable Date” each month to feature. We will include a few fun programming and activity ideas too, all for you to use!
November 29th is C.S. Lewis’ birthday. Lewis is well known for his series The Chronicles of Narnia and also for his many Christian texts. According to Biography.com, even as a very young boy Lewis had an active imagination that contributed to his love of fantasy.
Or bring Narnia to life, by making your own forest of snow globes or test your culinary skills by making some Turkish Delight! And here’s a link to a site that has tons of Narnia-related learning resources, like lesson plans, worksheets, and coloring pages.
If you aren’t already back to school, you will be soon! We thought this list from School Library Journal had some great suggestions that you could potentially use in your school library this year!
