Wings by Christopher Myers

Students who have ever been made fun of or who have stood up for what is right will quickly connect with the characters in Christopher Myer's thought provoking picture book, Wings.  Based on the Greek myth of Icarus and Daedalus, Wings is the story of a boy named Ikarus who is made fun of because he is different. Despite the snickers and snide remarks of his peers, Ikarus stays true to himself and uses his beautiful wings as they were intended: to fly. The narrator of the story, a young girl at Ikarus's school, is also made fun of because she is so quiet. She can't help but notice how Ikarus's wings droop and sag when others make fun of him. Regretfully, she doesn't say anything. As the bullying continues, she eventually finds the courage and her own voice to stand up for what is right. She boldly tells Ikarus what he needed to hear, "Your wings are beautiful." This is a story about bullying and second chances and standing up for what is right when others are being treated poorly.

Literature Connections: Wings is the perfect read aloud to spark meaningful conversations about bullying, being yourself, and standing up for others. This would also work well paired with the Greek myth Icarus and Daedalus. After reading both stories, compare and contrast the character traits of Icarus / Ikarus in each story. Discuss the authors' purpose for each story as well as why the author may have chosen to name the character Ikarus in Wings. What else could the wings in Myer's story represent? Check out the educator's guide, extension activities and vocabulary scaffold for Wings provided by RIF (Reading is Fundamental) here. 

Recommended Ages: Pre-K through 6th grade

Common Core Thrusts Librarians Into Leadership Role

Common Core Thrusts Librarians Into Leadership Role
I came across this article in Education Week today about how school librarians are helping their schools meet common core standards. It's definitely worth the read!

The Power of Story During an Election

As an educator, election season is one of my favorite times of the year because of the opportunities for authentic learning experiences it provides. What better time to teach our students the power of exercising our right to vote than election  day? And what better way to teach this than through the power of story? 

Consider hosting a mock election with storybook characters as candidates. (See book list below for ideas.) Encourage students to consider what character traits they feel are most important in a candidate. Brainstorm each candidate's character traits as evidenced in the stories. Engage students in the planning of the voting event by making voting boxes, ballots, forming campaign teams for favored storybook characters, advertising election day details and counting the votes. *School librarians: Use this opportunity to host a school-wide mock election with storybook characters as candidates. Post or announce election updates throughout the day (or week) as each class votes.

Check out some of the election-themed children's books in the list below. These thoughtfully written children's books are the perfect conversation starters for discussing the importance of elections and the power of exercising the right to vote.

I Need My Own Country by Rick Walton is perfect as a read aloud for K-2 students as well as students in grades 3-6. Frustrated by her little brother, a young girl decides to form her own country, make her own currency and her own flag. She soon realizes the importance of citizenship in her country and the need for rules and laws. 

The Class Election from the Black Lagoon by Mike Thaler will pull the young chapter book reader in with familiar humorous characters from the Black Lagoon. Readers will explore the importance of candidates standing up for what they believe in as characters in this story must choose the offices for which they will run.

Duck for President by Doreen Cronin is an enjoyable read aloud that is sure to spark meaningful discussion among students young and old. Duck is tired of the way Farmer Brown is running the farm so he decides to do something about it by running for office. (See video featuring this book at top of blog post.)

Grace for President by Kelly DiPucchio is a suitable read aloud for students in grades K-6. Grace, determined that there should be a female presidents, decides to run for president at her school's election. Grace for President would be a great introduction for an upper elementary lesson on the electoral system.

Keeper of Books?

This is what a 21st century school library looks like. Check it out! 

When asked what I do, my reply is usually, "I'm a school media specialist." Then I wait. I know it's coming. Assumptions: "Oh, you're a librarian. You check out books." That's about the time I bite my tongue, smile, take a deep breath and try to explain what it is that we media specialists really do and why it is, in fact, the best job in the school.

The role of the media specialist in the 21st century has changed drastically in just the past 10 years. Hey, it's changed drastically in just the past 2 years! As technology continues to change at lightening speeds, the role of media specialist evolves and changes continually too. Long gone are the days as the keeper of the books. Much of the role of a media specialist today revolves around technology and staying current on all the latest, ever changing resources that are becoming increasingly available to the entire learning community. The 21st century media specialist has the unique role of bringing the vast array of resources (both print and digital) to teachers and students while equipping them with the training and skills needed to be effective and responsible users and sharers of information. Even with all the changes in school library media, one thing remains constant: the challenge and joy of fostering in students (and adults!) a genuine love of reading. The wise school library media specialist meets students where they are by using digital media, Web 2.0, and other new technologies to spark student interest in the old fashioned art of reading a book. 

Last spring I had the opportunity to observe Andy Plemmons, Media Specialist Extraordinare, at Barrow Elementary School in Athens, GA. Mr. Plemmons blends information literacy, new technologies and a love for reading into his media lessons in a way that sparks students' interest and makes learning fun. You can almost feel the excitement these students have about learning in Mr. Plemmon's monthly media center report. Check it out!

Teachers + Pinterest = Genius!

Pinterest as Collaboration Tool for Teachers

It's one of the first lessons learned in Kindergarten: Share with others. Teachers are naturally good at sharing, unless, of course, it's the week before school starts and the local teacher supply store is running low on the hottest sale items. Then of course, it's fend for yourself! But most days, if a teacher has a good idea for her classroom, she's likely going to share it with her coworkers at her school. But give a teacher a Pinterest account and she will share those great teaching ideas with teacher friends, friends of teacher friends and other teachers around the world... all with the click of a button.

If you haven't yet joined Pinterest, here's how it works: Pinterest is a free virtual bulletin board that allows the user to "pin" a webpage or blog post while capturing the link that takes you back to the source from which it was "pinned."

Old School: when teachers found an idea or resource to use in their classroom they photocopied it and put it in a notebook or pinned the page with a thumbtack to a bulletin board for later reference. With Pinterest, teachers can save those great ideas they find on professional websites and blogs onto their Pinterest account by creating and organizing virtual bulletin boards and "pinning" the picture links to their boards. They can then go back and click on the pin (or picture) and it will take them to the website or blog where they found that great idea in the first place. They can also "Repin" pins that other have found and "follow" other pinners or other boards. Here is where the sharing comes in. Everything that you pin can be viewed by other pinners that follow you as well as other pinners that just happen to explore the topic you organized it under. (If you aren't in the sharing mood, you can also limit who sees your pins.)

I have pinned numerous recipes, home renovation tutorials and nifty craft ideas in the short time since I joined Pinterest. While browsing pins of those I "follow" I could not help but notice my teacher friends are pinning like crazy! Popular pins include everything from bulletin boards and favorite read alouds to research projects, math center ideas, Web 2.0 resources and Common Core Curriculum. As the first day of school inched closer, the number of teaching pins increased so much that I found myself secretly blaming the teachers who had become Pinaholics avid pinners over the summer break as the reason the Pinterest app on my phone was moving so slow. No kidding! It is working fine now that school has started.

Pinterest makes it easy for teachers to collaborate on themes by allowing multiple pinners to pin on the same board. True story: Erin, a second grade teacher was frustrated with the low writing scores in her class. She browsed pins on Pinterest about teaching writing. After finding many great ideas for Writer's Workshop online and from other Pinners, she created a board, "2nd grade Writer's Workshop" and shared the board with the other teachers on her grade level. After giving her coworkers access to pin to the board, her teammate Jan, then browsed the board adding in the comment box on one of the pins, "This will work great for teaching author's purpose too. What do you think?"  The other 2nd grade teachers also added to the board and commented on the pins already there. They can each access the board individually from school, home or on their cell phone via the Pinterest app. At their next collaborative planning meeting they were able to go back to several of the ideas they pinned to their shared board for a quick reference to the new resources.
 
If only we could get PD credit for all our "Professional Development" time spent on Pinterest! Oh, wait, I think I saw a quote about that on Pinterest the other day...

School Librarians as Common Core Partner

Teacher of year advocates for school librarians as Common Core Partner

With the implementation of Common Core curriculum, now more than ever, school librarians are a vital partner for the school learning community. Despite this growing need for the expertise of school librarians across our nation's schools, a growing trend in today's dismal economy is the elimination of school library media specialist positions due to budget constraints. Unfortunately, outdated stereotypes of school librarians as merely a 'keeper of books' has shaped the misconception that schools will get along just fine without them. To those who reason their school budget can't afford to keep a school librarian, consider this: How can you afford not to?

The ever changing digital age in which we live and teach requires our students to not only be proficient in using the latest technology but in being masters of transliteracy  in which students are expected to merge how they read and respond to what they get from traditional literacies with how they interact with new and emerging literacies such as digital media and Web 2.0. In an age where anyone can publish anything online with the click of a button, the 21st century learner must be able to use current technology and print resources to interpret information effectively, evaluate information sources critically and share information responsibility.  How can we expect teachers to teach these skills without access to their very best resource and Common Core partner, the school librarian? Better yet, how can we expect students who don't have access to this valuable resource to compete with students from other schools who do?

In light of this growing need for advocacy, I'd like to offer a big shout-out to Kentucky Teacher of the Year, Kimberly Shearer, who advocates for school librarians as Common Core Partner. She states in the July 2012 issue of Kentucky Teacher digital newsletter that, "school librarians have the resources, training and knowledge to help us make those meaningful connections between the Common Core Standards and our students’ interests and lives." Shearer goes on to list reasons why teachers and students need school librarians "now more than ever." Amen, sister!

More than ABC

While packing for my upcoming move to NC, one of my favorite books about my favorite state caught my attention. T is for Tar Heel, a North Carolina Alphabet and other ABC state books like it (try P is for Peach, a Georgia Alphabet) draw the reader in with color, rhythm and rhyme while tucking state symbols and bits of history among the side bars of each page. While ABC books are traditionally used with younger students, their value for teaching in the content areas with older students should not be missed. Consider creating your own class's version of an ABC digital book centered around a science, history or math theme. Choose your curriculum based theme and brainstorm with students potential words to include from each letter of the alphabet. After students choose letters, allow them to work individually or in groups to research online data bases and informational books to write a brief paragraph about their letter / word and how it relates to the overall topic. Use a rubric to keep students on track while providing additional guidance during each step of the project. Consider using digital format such as a blog, digital picture book, or even a simple power point slideshow to combine each student's or group's letter page for the final product. Share the project on your class website for parents and others to enjoy. It's way more than ABC! It's collaboration, research and technology integration at it's best!