5
April
2008
2008 RURAL SCHOOL PARTNERS WANTED / BOOK BONANZA REMINDER / NATIONAL POETRY MONTH, WEEK, DAY / SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA MONTH / LIBRI FOUNDATION GRANTS FOR RURAL LIBRARIES / SCHOOL LIBRARY COORDINATOR POSITION RURAL SCHOOL SIXTH-GRADE PARTNERS WANTED Robin Turk writes:
Sixth grade classes at Colony Middle School in Palmer are looking for rural schools who would like to partner in having online broadcasted discussions about Alaska literature. CMS students will be developing book reviews of Alaska books, creating podcasts and broadcasting them on Radio Free Palmer this summer. Partnering rural schools would be welcome to join us on this technological literature adventure as well. Interested schools would need to have the available technology to use Skype. Skype is a free VOIP service (voice over IP), or talking for free over the Internet. We also hope to use video over IP also supported by Skype. Using Skype would require some kind of broadband connection to the Internet, but other then that is very easy to use and we are just learning too. See http://skype.com/ Interested? Read the letter below from our 6th grade teacher with more details.
My name is Robin Howell and I teach 6th grade language arts at Colony Middle School. My students (about 120 kids) are dedicated readers, writers, and thinkers. We have all made one podcast and we are ready for more. Our 4th quarter goal is to read Alaska genre books, write short, critical, yet entertaining book reviews, and then make a podcast of the written narrative (about 30 sec. to 1 min). It is our thought that tourists who may be visiting Palmer and wandering the aisles of Fireside Books (in Palmer) will be inspired to purchase an Alaskan book to take home to remember our great state. Students will use a first or nick name only so we won’t need to worry about protecting their identity. We would be happy to share some of our better podcasts as a sample of their level of work. We are actively working with our librarian, Robin Turk, in the podcast process. We are also planning on using Skype to expand their understanding of Alaska and the genre by developing “Skype Pals”. Our intention is to connect with students across Alaska to form a technology relationship so they will better understand the book they are reading. Robin Turk is supporting our efforts by sending messages out to state wide librarians. Steve Krueger, our techno wizard for MSBSD is supporting our Skype efforts. Like all great ideas, many hands make light work! We hope to form a partnership with you and support good reading, writing, listening and community building. Thanks so much for your time,
Robin Howell, 6th grade, Colony Middle School
If your rural school is interested in partnering with Colony Middle School, please reply to the school librarian, Robin Turk at: Robin.Turk@matsuk12.us
BOOK BONANZA REMINDER - Deadline April 30, 2008
The deadline for the 2008 Book Bonanza competition is coming up at the end of the month. This year there is an entry form AND the usual essay. For details about how you can enter to win book credits for your school or public library, click:http://www.akla.org/akasl/bonanza/index.html
IS THERE A POEM IN YOUR POCKET: POETRY MONTH, YOUTH POETRY WEEK, POETRY DAY?
April is National Poetry Month, and this year the week of April 14-20 is Youth Poetry Week (almost matches National Library Week), and to make it even better, April 17 is the first Poem in Your Pocket Day.
Poetry may seem obscure to many, but for the last several years the love of poetry has experienced a revival among young people. Poetry slams and contests are flooded with contestants these days.
For some interesting suggestions about how you can make a Poem in Your Pocket day work in your school, library, or community, look at: https://www.poets.org/page.php/prmID/406 They even offer a selection of online pocket poems. Guide poetry readers young and old to the pocket poem link at: https://www.poets.org/page.php/prmID/409
Several poets have web pages featuring their poetry for younger students. Among them are:
Kristine O’Connell George: http://www.kristinegeorge.com/for_students.html
Joyce Sidman: http://www.joycesidman.com/teachers.html (You can hear her reading her poems, and students can submit their own.)
Joyce S. Wong: http://www.janetwong.com/poems/index.cfm
SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA MONTH 
Not only are we celebrating poetry this month, but we can boast that April is School Library Media Month. If you would like to spread the word in your community or just within your school, check the American Association of School Librarians web site at:
http://www.ala.org/ala/aasl/aaslissues/aasladvocacy/schoollibrary.cfm
Here you will find some downloadable School Library Media Month audiospots by Carmen Agra Deedy, a storyteller extraordinaire. There you’ll find spots of a variety of lengths and also some suggestions of how to get them aired outside your school if you have a radio station in your community. At the simplest level, you could air them during school announcements (and possibly throw in a poem, too?).
LIBRI FOUNDATION GRANTS - Deadline April 15
The Libri Foundation is devoted to give grants for collections in rural public libraries through the country. A number of Alaska libraries in small communities have won in the past. For information about how you can apply by the nearest deadline check:
http://www.librifoundation.org/apps.html Here you will find the application and guidelines. School libraries cannot apply, but combined school/community libraries are eligible.
There is also a fall deadline on August 15, 2008 and a winter one on January 15, 2009.
SCHOOL LIBRARY COORDINATOR STILL WANTED - Deadline April 25, 2008
If you or someone you know is interested in a job that allows one the opportunity to travel throughout our wonderful state and to use your expert knowledge in a way that benefits Alaska school libraries, please checkout the job posting on Workplace Alaska at: http://notes5.state.ak.us/wa/mainentry.nsf/WebData/1hp1HomePage/?Open
The job, listed as School Library Coordinator AND Librarian III, is located in Anchorage and provides the opportunity to work with a great Library Development team of the Alaska State Library.
Hopefully,
Sue
Sue Sherif
Posted: Grants, Public Libraries, SAYL Mail, School Libraries
17
September
2007
ALASKA LIBRARY NETWORK NEWS / PASSWORD FOR LHH / POSITION POSTING / HOORAY
ALASKA LIBRARY NETWORK NEWS
Kerri Canepa asked me to post this to you all:
The Alaska Library Network has a new web page! Check out http://alaskalibrarynetwork.org/ for loads of promotional materials for SLED and the Digital Pipeline all available for download and printing. You’ll find brochures, bookmarks, posters and other items. Just click on Products & Services in the lefthand column. Keep up with what’s happening with ALN by clicking on News and also Schedule & Events. As ALN grows, so will the web page so make sure to bookmark the site and visit regularly! SLED has a new toolbar that can be added to your browser! It’s customizable and will search SLED from anywhere on the Internet. Go to sled.alaska.edu and click on “Download the SLED toolbar!” text in the lefthand column. Please note, the toolbar does not work with Safari, so if you use Apple products, download the toolbar in Firefox. The Digital Pipeline now features a series of video tutorials! These are designed to provide step-by-step instruction for using the EBSCOhost interface. The tutorials build on each other by explaining the features of the interface and how to use it for searching for information. Each tutorial is approximately 2 1/2 to 3 minutes in length and can be viewed over and over again. Go to sled.alaska.edu/databases/ and click on the “Need Help?” box on the righthand side of the page to get to the list of tutorials. Please send any comments or suggestions about any of the web sites to:
Kerri Canepa, Coordinator, Alaska Library Network Alaska State Library, 334 W. 3rd Avenue, Ste 125, Anchorage, AK
99501907-269-6567 kerri.canepa@alaska.gov
LIVE HOMEWORK HELP PASSWORD (AGAIN!)
Live Homework Help is a valuable afterschool service offered on SLED (http://sled.alaska.edu/) or on a number of public and school library websites each day from 1 to 9 PM for students who need help with their homework. As I wrote last time, it now works with PCs AND Macs, but it requires a password. Although we can not post or mail that password electronically, we can tell you that it is the password that one uses for the databases on the Digital Pipeline. If you do not know the password, look at the Live Homework Help page for the toll-free number to obtain it. Feel free to distribute it freely in paper format, but just DON’T post it on a website or send it to students, teachers, or parents via email. Remember that students will need to know to use the password if they are asked for a library card number. Library card numbers will NOT work despite what the screen asks.
If you would like a couple of cute posters to advertise LIVE HOMEWORK HELP in your school, please contact Priscilla McAdara at priscilla.mcadara@alaska.gov
SCHOOL LIBRARY COORDINATOR DEADLINE EXTENDED TO 10/1/2007
Because there were insufficient applicants for my position, the search has been broadened and the deadline extended. Take a look at the job description to learn how you can apply on Workplace
Alaska at: http://notes4.state.ak.us/wa/PostApps.nsf/0/5A5E395DFF0E09438925735300655EFC?OpenDocument
The position is listed under Librarian III and School Library Coordinator. It’s one job listed two different ways.
HOORAY!
Cheers for all the energetic youth services librarians who gathered in
Anchorage September 11-12 for the first-ever Alaska Youth Services Workshop. Priscilla McAdara of the State Library Anchorage office commented, “I don’t think I’ve ever been around so many people who had so much passion for their jobs.” There were 32 librarians in attendance, but there was enough energy in the room to stoke a few small power plants.
You can post comments on the blog by clicking on the number next to the post title.
Posted: SAYL Mail, School Libraries, Summer Reading, Technology, Training, Uncategorized
8
September
2007
MADELEINE L’ENGLE / BANNED BOOKS WEEK / LIVE HOMEWORK HELP / NEW BOOK FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL LIBRARIANS / AkLA CONFERENCE 2008 / SCHOOL LIBRARY COORDINATOR POSITION / CORRECTION
MADELEINE L’ENGLE 1918-2007
Beloved author Madeleine L’Engle (A Wrinkle in Time, A Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet and at least 60 other titles) died on Thursday, September 6. To read more about this extraordinary woman and her career, go to her website at: http://www.madeleinelengle.com/
BANNED BOOKS WEEK September 29 – October 6
If you will be celebrating or promoting Banned Books Week at your school this year and haven’t ordered materials, you’ll need to act quickly to get materials from the American Library Association at: http://www.alastore.ala.org/SiteSolution.tafsn=catalog&_pn=product_detail&_op=2374
One needn’t buy the posters and bookmarks to draw students’ attention to the importance of the freedom to read. Your library probably contains books that have been targeting for banning. Use the American Library Association Office of Intellectual Freedom website to learn more about Banned Books Week: http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/bannedbooksweek/bannedbooksweek.htm#wtb
LIVE HOMEWORK HELP CHANGES - IMPORTANT
With the start of the new school year, you may find yourself referring students in grades 4 through beginning college level to LIVE HOMEWORK HELP, available on SLED (http://sled.alaska.edu) or through your own library’s web page. The service is available to people within the state of
Alaska from 1 – 9 PM every day.
The GOOD NEWS is that the people who produce this service, Tutor.com, have finally listened and now offer a Mac compatible version! The BAD NEWS is that students with very old browsers on either Mac or PC platform may not be able to access the live chat with a screened and trained tutor. In addition, right now the service is asking people in some circumstances for a Library Card Number. In Alaska the response should NOT be a library card number, but instead should be the password used for all our proprietary databases on the Digital Pipeline on SLED. If you do not know this password already, you cannot receive or send it via email or on a website. Instead, you can call the toll-free number at 1-800-440-2919 to get the password. Remember you are welcome to share the password with clients of your library to use at the library or at home, but you CANNOT share the password with them via web or email. (This is part of our licensing agreement.)
NEW BOOK FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL LIBRARIES
New at the Anchorage office of the Alaska State Library is THE SUPER3: INFORMATION SKILLS FOR YOUNG LEARNERS by Mike Eisenberg and Laura Eisenberg Robinson. This 2007 Linworth publication provides a scaled-down version of the Big6 research method that they claim will work for Pre-K through second grade. The Pre-K claim may be a serious stretch since all the examples on the numerous worksheets involve writing, but the 3 skills (planning, doing, reviewing) are a good framework for younger students who are just embarking on research projects or beginning to identify story elements. Contact Priscilla McAdara at 907-269-6580 or priscilla.mcadara@alaska.gov if you would like to borrow the book.
AKLA CONFERENCE 2008 – PROPOSAL DEADLINE September 15
The state library conference will be held in Fairbanks this year. The dates are February 28 - March 2, 2008. The Alaska Association of School Librarians will be offering travel grants again this year, and information about how school librarians who are members of AkASL may apply will be posted later in the fall. In the meantime there are two things that you can do to get ready: 1. You can talk to your principal about the dates and the importance of participating in the type of professional development that the conference offers 2. If you have something to share with other librarians throughout the state, you can submit a program proposal online at: http://www.akla.org/fairbanks2008/forms/more.php
SCHOOL LIBRARY COORDINATOR POSITION
There are still a few days to apply for my position as School Library Coordinator. The job is posted at: http://notes5.state.ak.us/wa/mainentry.nsf/WebData/1hp1HomePage/?OpenThe position is listed under Librarian III and School Library Coordinator. It’s one job listed two different ways.The closing date is currently posted as September 12 (Wednesday).
This is a great job, so I encourage anyone who has a solid background and an interest in serving libraries and librarians throughout the state to apply.
My official duties as Head of Library Development begin September 17, but I will continue to keep you informed via SAYL Mail until a replacement has been chosen. I’ve just had a wonderful almost two-week vacation with one of my sisters, so I feel energized to wear two hats for a little while, but hope that I won’t be straddling two positions for long!
CORRECTION
As reported in the last SAYL Mail, Helen Clark of Fairbanks is indeed leading the instructional technology program at the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District, but her duties have expanded, so her official title is: Executive Director of Library Media and Instructional Technology. Katie Sanders will be serving with Helen and have the title of Director of Library Media Services as indicated previously.
You can post a comment to this blog by clicking on the grey number next to the title.
Sue Sherif
School Library/Youth Services Coordinator
Alaska State Library
Posted: Books, SAYL Mail, School Libraries
