News and Issues for K-12 education from School Library Journal en-us http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/community/Education/47062.html?nid=3252 2009 Reed Business Information. Subject to its http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/info/260304.html Terms of Use. Mon, 09 Nov 2009 04:08:32 MST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6705831.html?nid=3252 If you’re looking for a way to teach a lesson on climate change that includes science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts, you’re in luck. PBS TeacherLine has partnered with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to create a series of professional development courses and teaching resources on the subject. Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6704854.html?nid=3252 California is developing statewide school library standards for the first time—and a draft document is available for public comment until December 18. Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6703700.html?nid=3252 A colleague put a lovely image into our heads at a recent discussion of best practices for family storytimes. Librarian Maria Lowe offers family storytimes in the evenings, and she always includes a time for “family boats.” A mom and dad sit on the floor, join hands and encircle their children, or a single adult clasps his child in his arms, and they all begin to rock as Maria leads... Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6704221.html?nid=3252 Librarians and media specialists are secretly saying "I told you so" about the Walt Disney Company’s decision to issue a full refund on the Baby Einstein videos that parents have bought by the millions over the last five years. Thu, 29 Oct 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6700794.html?nid=3252 The nation is one step closer to a unified platform for educational standards, as the first draft of what students need before entering college, or launching their career, went live last month. Thu, 08 Oct 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6700578.html?nid=3252 Students are taught to read in their early years of schooling—but that doesn’t mean they’re given the keys to comprehension. And it’s this skill that the Carnegie Corporation of New York believes is the cornerstone to academic—and lifelong—success, says a new report. Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6699357.html?nid=3252 The library, as we once knew it, may no longer be relevant. School librarians, as we once knew them, may no longer be relevant. And, yet, this is undoubtedly the most exciting time in history to be a librarian. The future of the school library as a relevant and viable institution is largely dependent on us and how quickly we respond to change. Thu, 01 Oct 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6699099.html?nid=3252 Dear Cushing Academy Parents: Soon, your child will have access to one of the most innovative secondary school libraries in the country. Over half-a-million dollars are being invested to transform your library into an interactive learning center with monitors providing news feeds, state-of-the-art computing, a cyber-cafe (with a $12,000 cappuccino machine!), and much more. Thu, 01 Oct 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6696777.html?nid=3252 Nearly 2,600 preschoolers in Indianapolis will get a head start in reading each year, thanks to a $1 million gift to the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library to expand its “Ready to Read” early childhood literacy initiative. Fri, 18 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6697397.html?nid=3252 High school students have some fairly heavy hitters behind them, with the launch of Get Schooled—a five-year program designed to help kids not just do well in class, but also graduate. Thu, 17 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6687154.html?nid=3252 The American Library Association (ALA) wants school libraries get their share of federal funds from the Obama Administration’s new “Race to the Top” education reform competition. Tue, 01 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6685554.html?nid=3252 You’ve won five Caldecott Honors and five Coretta Scott King Awards. But a lot of folks are saying this is your best book yet. You often hear authors and artists say, “I respond to and I’m inspired by the child within me.” And a lot of my career was about that. I was reaching down to find that part of me that spoke not only about my childhood but what I thought about chi... Tue, 01 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6685542.html?nid=3252 Digital textbooks, once the playthings of a few Arizona high schools, are suddenly looking like they might become commonplace. And that could end up being a great thing for school librarians and, more importantly, students. Back in May, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced the Free Digital Textbook Initiative, which would make open-source textbooks—for now just in science a... Tue, 01 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6685541.html?nid=3252 On these early autumn days, in communities big and small, kindergarteners are stuffing backpacks with colored markers, glue sticks, tissues, and sometimes a favorite book or stuffed animal. Getting ready to start school requires so much preparation that it often eats up the last few weeks of summer. But as we know, preparing for kindergarten entails a lot more than one month of gathering suppli... Tue, 01 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6675216.html?nid=3252 What book left a lasting impression on you as a kid? For actor Morgan Freeman, it was Anna Sewell’s Black Beauty. For singer Patti LaBelle, it was Johanna Spyri’s Heidi, and for Newbery-award-winning author Kate DiCamillo, it was Margaret Mitchell’s Gone With the Wind. Mon, 10 Aug 2009 14:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6673581.html?nid=3252 The American Association of School Librarians’ (AASL) decision to require permission—and potentially a fee—to commercially use its Standards for the 21st-Century Learner (bit.ly/lWd9B) has generated ire among its members. “At first I was annoyed, but now getting mad,” posted librarian Beth Frise on Twitter. Sat, 01 Aug 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6673572.html?nid=3252 At 7:25 am on the last day of school, five avid fifth-grade readers hustle into the library of Chamberlin School in South Burlington, VT. They shrug off backpacks and pull out advance copies of The Brilliant Fall of Gianna Z, my middle-grade novel about a Vermont girl who’s convinced her school leaf collection project is ruining her life. Sat, 01 Aug 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6673570.html?nid=3252 Marco Robertiello arrived on schedule in October 2000, weighing in at five pounds, seven ounces. Apart from being a little underweight, he had a near-perfect Apgar score, and by the looks of things, the brown-haired, brown-eyed newborn was healthy. In fact, everyone thought Marco was a perfect baby. He was quieter than most and didn’t need much attention. Sat, 01 Aug 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6672530.html?nid=3252 Libraries with a focus on family literacy now have three $10,000 grants to help them keep their programs flourishing. Fri, 24 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EST http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6668338.html?nid=3252 Kevin Youkilis, an all-star first baseman with the Boston Red Sox, is going to bat for young readers with his Hits for Kids, an organization that hopes to collect 100,000 new or gently used books for Boston’s public school libraries over a two day period. Thu, 09 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EST