School Library Journal articles from June 2012

School Library Journal archives from June 2012

'I Can Help You with That': Providing Solutions Puts Librarians at the Center of Common Core
June 1, 2012... If you want to have a stake in tire Common Core, take a page from Tina Edwards Felder, who responds to her teachers' concerns about meeting the ambitious new standards with a willing, "I can help you with that." Felder, a librarian in New...

A Techie Turned Librarian: Former CNET Editor Margaret Schoen Logged Her First Year as a School Librarian
June 1, 2012... When Margaret Schoen talks technology, she knows her stuff. The library teacher at Franklin Elementary School in West Newton, MA, is tapping her background as a former technology reporter and editor to instill 21st-century skills in the school's...

Ebook Toolkit: Mackin VIA
June 1, 2012... Having just reviewed Follett's suite of ebook-related products last month, it's been interesting to compare how Mackin is serving up digital content they offer the pre-K-12 market, including the more than 37,000 unlimited, simultaneous access...

What's on My iPad: I Now Travel Laptop Free, Thanks to Some Key Apps
June 1, 2012... It's only fitting that I'm writing this column on how using an iPad has changed my work practices over the past two years--on the new iPad. It is, after all, my go-to computing device, having replaced a variety of laptops and, to some extent,...

Every Picture Tells a Story: Inspire Young Storytellers with These Photo-Editing Tools and One for Creating Comics
June 1, 2012... Images are powerful. In the classroom, a compelling picture can provide the creative spark to launch a story or reinforce an important point of a lesson. So many of my students, when asked to write a piece of fiction, respond by saying, "I'm...

Mighty Giants: Kids Can't Get Enough of Elephants, Mammoths, and Mastodons
June 1, 2012... Young readers are fascinated by giants, so feed their appetites for the gargantuan with titles about the world's largest land mammal. Start with Caitlin O'Connell and Donna M. Jackson's The Elephant Scientist (Houghton, 2011), a riveting look at...

Seize the Opportunity: The New Standards Dovetail Elegantly with Inquiry, and We Know Inquiry
June 1, 2012... This is the worst time to be a school librarian and the best time to be one. Our profession is under daily threat of extinction, yet the implementation of the Common Core Standards affords incredible opportunity to make the strongest case for...

Best Book of 2012? Australian Sonya Hartnett's 'Sadie and Ratz' Ain't Your Average Chapter Book
June 1, 2012... You write dark, disturbing novels for teens. No offense, but you're the last person I'd expect to write a chapter book. A lot of people have said that to me, "Why on earth would you write something like this?" But I have always believed that...

The Competitive Edge: Online Gaming Can Motive Students and Make Learning More Fun
June 1, 2012... The word competitiveness often conjures up a negative image. Maybe it's an athlete willing to do anything to be the best. Or perhaps it's a corporate shark climbing up the workplace ladder by backstabbing co-workers. But being competitive...

Staying Power: Edwards Award Winner Susan Cooper Has Been Working Her Magic for More Than 40 Years
June 1, 2012... I'm on my way to visit Susan Cooper on an unseasonably warm day in mid-February. As my car cruises along, about 45 minutes south of Boston, low tide reveals miles of untouched marshland. I drive across a short causeway, creep down an unpaved...

Best in the West: With ALA's Riches and ISTE's Tech Draw, There's Plenty of Reason to Put on Your Traveling Shoes
June 1, 2012... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] PLANNING TO CATCH THIS YEAR'S American Library Association (ALA) annual conference in Anaheim, CA? If you're anything like us, you'll want to make every second count. That's why we've asked seven savvy librarians to...

Every Platform Tells a Story: Transmedia Has the Power to Make Any Topic More Vivid and Personal
June 1, 2012... WHEN ANDY PLEMMONS, A PROGRESSIVE MEDIA SPECIALIST AT DAVID C. BARROW Elementary in Athens, GA, was asked to help create a set of interdisciplinary lessons for fifth graders to learn about September 11, 2001, he naturally took a transmedia...

What's the Future of Reference? Experts Discuss Trends in Pricing, the Rise of Integrated Media, and How to Hook Kids on Good Research
June 1, 2012... The world of reference is moving at warp speed these days. Public library patrons are used to Wikipedia and expect the same convenience when it comes to library resources. And in many school libraries, budget crunches, technology issues, and...

Speaking Out
June 1, 2012... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The right resources can save lives. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and/or questioning teens are disproportionately at risk for being bullied, becoming homeless, and attempting suicide. Despite an increased...

Catch a Wave: Get Kids Listening and Beat the Summer Wipeout
June 1, 2012... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] AS THE DAYS OF SUMMER APPROACH, thoughts turn away from structured routines and toward opportunities for fun. Unfortunately, research continues to indicate that extended learning breaks contribute to diminishing...

Can't Wait
June 1, 2012... * Can't Wait. CD. 30:53 min. New Sound Kids. 2012. ISBN unavail. $14.98. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] PreS-Gr 3--Grenadilla (South African name for passion fruit) is a six-woman band that performs in various musical styles, including the...

Grow
June 1, 2012... Grow. CD. approx. 43 min. with booklet. Merriweather Records. 2011. ISBN unavail. $15 (+ s/h). PreS-Gr 4--Canadian songwriters Andrew Queen and his wife, Karen Stille, have composed a collection of 14 tunes that is sure to fickle the fancy of...

Instrumental Dreamland
June 1, 2012... * Instrumental Dreamland. CD. approx. 33 min. Putumayo Kids. 2012. ISBN unavail. $14.98. PreS-K--The Putumayo staff has chosen 11 beautiful, melodic, soft, and slow pieces to lull children to sleep. Each of the tracks features professional...

La Bella Stella: Celebrate Earth Music Series
June 1, 2012... * La Bella Stella: Celebrate Earth Music Series. CD. approx. 41 min. Prod. by Big Round Records. Dist. by Recess Music. 2012. ISBN unavail. $12.99. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] PreS-Gr 5--Fifteen stellar performers celebrate earthly and heavenly...

Monster Suit
June 1, 2012... Monster Suit. CD. 34 min. Prod. by Hey! Bacon!! Records. Dist. by mophillips. com. 2012. ISBN unavail. $12.99. PreS-Gr 1--Portland, Oregon-based independent musician Mo Phillips grabs listeners and just doesn't let go on his third CD for...

Nature Jams
June 1, 2012... Nature Jams. CD. approx. 57 min. with DVD. myKaZoo Music. 2012. ISBN unavail. $10.98. PreS-Gr 3--Singer/songwriter Farmer Jason (Jason Ringenberg) has added star power to each of the 16 original country tunes on dais themed recording about...

Spaghetti Eddie! and Other Children's Songs
June 1, 2012... Spaghetti Eddie! And Other Children's Songs. Vol. 2. CD. 27 min. AV Cafe. 2011. ISBN unavail. $10. PreS-Gr 3--Oklahoma native Brendan Parker performs ten original songs with very pleasant vocals. Instrumental performances, primarily on...

What'll I Do with the Baby-O? Songs and Rhymes for Little Ones
June 1, 2012... What'll I Do with the Baby-o? Songs and Rhymes for Little Ones. CD. 30 min. with lyrics. Black Sheep Press. 2012. ISBN 978-0-9698666-5-7. $14.95. PreS-K-Jane Cobb, workshop presenter, children's librarian, and author, offers the companion CD...

Ant in Her Pants
June 1, 2012... * Ant in Her Pants (We Read Phonics Series). CD-ROM. Win/Mac. Treasure Bay Interactive. 2012. ISBN 978-1-60115-654-9. $9.95. K-Gr 2--In this cleverly illustrated interactive story, a busy ant manages to make a new home in a young lady's pants...

Distributors
June 1, 2012... Artobet, 5410 Manning Place NW, Washington, DC 20016; 202/321-0570; artobet.com AV Cafe 6201 S. 58th St., Suite A, Lincoln, NE 68516; 877/228-2233; theavcafe.com Black Sheep Press, Box 2217, Point Roberts, WA 98281; 604/731-2653;...

The App Review: Best of Apps & Enhanced Books
June 1, 2012... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Reviews in this column first appeared in SLJ's blog Touch and Go. After each review, you'll find the date it appeared online. Online, there are links to related resources, a trailer (if one exists), and a "purchase"...