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Activities to Help Students Understand Why Citations Are Important

An age-old question students have is, “Why are we doing this?” Students have asked that question for decades before us, and they will continue to ask well into the future. Luckily, there is a simple answer to why citations are important. In the digital age we live in, it’s absolutely critical to understand copyright and plagiarism. Citations are important whether students are writing a paper and need to cite evidence, or when using music for a presentation. Each of these areas comes with its own rules and regulations for copyright. Why Citations are Important Citations are important because they protect people’s work. When we cite a work correctly, we are giving credit to the owner or creator of that work. Being fair is something students are often naturally passionate about, so help bridge that connection for students. When we cite = we are being fair. In order to appropriately

10 Library Grants Every Librarian Should Apply For

Applying for library grants is a great way to leverage your library. While school events and fundraisers can help, they require a lot of work. Grant money can help you create a more robust library with a lot of variety to offer your students. One common misconception when it comes to writing grants is that they take a lot of time. In reality, applying for library grants does not have to be too time-consuming, and the payoff can be really big. Check out the list of the ten library grants every librarian should apply for. Dollar General Youth Literacy Grant This grant can be used for schools, public libraries, and nonprofits who work with students that need help improving their literacy skills. You can use the grant funding to expand literacy programs, purchase equipment, and technology to support literacy, and also purchase books and materials for any literacy programs.

Library Book Display Ideas for Every Month of the Year

As librarians, we are always looking for new ways and opportunities to get students reading (and enjoying it!). Having a monthly book display is a great way to bring awareness to different topics, seasons, and celebrations for each month. Plus, you can get students interested in brand-new books that might have been hidden on the shelves and out of sight. I know that coming up with library book displays can take some time (especially when you start running out of creativity mid-year).I put together a list of book library book display ideas for the entire year. You can use one of these ideas or use this list to get your creative juices flowing. January Not only is January the first month of the year, but it also includes New Year’s day, Martin Luther King Jr Day, and is a part of winter. Here are a few more creative library

Must-Have Activities for Teaching Internet Safety to Kids

The internet is a double-edged sword. It’s filled with useful information. We have knowledge and power at our fingertips, and there is a lot of good it can do for the world. But, the internet is also dangerous and scary. There are dark corners of the internet where harmful things lurk. How can we keep our students safe? If you ever use technology in your classroom, it’s imperative that you teach internet safety for kids. What does internet safety mean? Internet safety for kids can mean a wide variety of things, from protecting passwords to not having access to inappropriate content. Essentially, internet safety is about protecting the student (and also equipment) from potentially dangerous content. When teaching internet safety, especially to young students, it might feel a little awkward. How do I explain that the internet can be a dangerous place? However, with younger students, you don’t need

Ideas and Activities for a Successful Literacy Night

Hosting a family literacy night or reading night is a great opportunity to get parents involved in the school and grow students’ love of reading. Parents don’t often get a glimpse of what their child is working on and doing at school each day, but with literacy nights, you can bring the parent into the school and share literacy tips and research. Of course, a well-planned literacy night can take time and effort to put together. I want to pass along some planning tips, literacy night themes, and activities you can use as you plan. What is a Family Literacy Night? Also called family reading night, a literacy night is a chance to provide important information about a child’s literacy skills and share reading strategies with families. It’s also an opportunity to get families involved in the school and student learning. During the literacy night, you can focus on

Caldecott Medal 2023 Predictions

The 2023 Caldecott Medal award winner will be announced January 30, 2023, which means it’s time for my predictions on which book will take home the top prize and who will be runner-up. The ALA awards will be given out sometime in mid-January. Members of the Caldecott committee work hard all year to choose the book they think is deserving of this distinguished award. Members of the committee read thousands of picture books throughout the year. Then they must narrow their choices down to 7 titles each. Once they have this much smaller list, they spend hours debating about which book should receive the top honor. Every year I always come up with my own list of titles that I believe will be contenders. This year I have come up with 15 books that I believe should be on the list (although I have not read nearly as many

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Activities to Help Students Understand Why Citations Are Important

10 Library Grants Every Librarian Should Apply For

Library Book Display Ideas for Every Month of the Year

Must-Have Activities for Teaching Internet Safety to Kids

Ideas and Activities for a Successful Literacy Night

Caldecott Medal 2023 Predictions

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