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10 Anti-Bullying Picture Books

Bullying is a problem that every school faces. It can affect any child at any time, and in many ways. Below is a curated list of picture books that you can use with your students to teach them how and why bullying is wrong. Frst look below fora few statistics from the National Bullying Prevention Center. Unfortunately there is no simple answer to this problem. However one way that librarians and teachers can help to combat this problem is by reading picture books about bullying and the importance of kindness. By doing this students can begin to learn the warning sings of bullying and understand how their actions have consequences. It will also get them thinking about the importance of kindness and being accepting of other people. My List for Anti-Bullying Picture Books There are so many wonderful books to read that it is difficult to know which ones

6 Book Fair Survival Tips

Book fair! The two words guaranteed to strike fear in the heart of any school librarian. That may be a little melodramatic but book fair week is definitely a very stressful and challenging time. If you have ever run a book fair before then you know what I mean. This post will go over my 6 best book fair survival tips! There are many factors that go into just how challenging your book fair will be. How big is your school? Will you have parent volunteers? Are you going to stop book checkout during this time? A librarian at a nearby school has less students and more volunteers than she could ever use. She love the book fair and can’t wait for it to arrive. I have a large school with very few volunteers, so my assistant and I pretty much do it all. For us book fair time

A Roundup of Dr. Seuss Activities for Read Across America Day

March 2nd is the much-anticipated Read Across America Day! It also happens to be the birthday of Theodore Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss. Now, I’ve got a little confession. I’m a total Dr. Seuss enthusiast. The crazy made-up words and wacky characters? Absolutely my jam! So, when I became a librarian, celebrating Dr. Seuss’ birthday became an annual thing for me and my students. Over the years, I’ve cooked up all sorts of fun. From poster contests and trivia games to roping in some awesome guest readers, I’ve done it all. Oh, I can’t forget about the spirit days. They’re a blast! I’m not keeping all these awesome ideas to myself. Nope! This blog post is a mix of my adventures and some genius suggestions from my Staying Cool in the Library Facebook group. If you’re not part of it yet, I would love for you to join me and

Top 10 Chapter Book Series for Elementary Students

Why series books? Students love to read books in a series. I have found it is one of the best ways to encourage a reluctant reader to read. Why do students love series books? There are a number of reasons. Which series to buy? Book publishers know that series books are very popular and very lucrative. Take the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series for example. After the first couple books became so popular it was almost guaranteed that each subsequent book would be a huge success. This is a good thing but it can make it hard as a librarian or teacher to decide which book series to invest in. So I came up with a list of some of my favorites to help make your decision easier. I came up with two different book lists. The first list is for younger elementary and includes beginning chapter books.

Holding a Mock Caldecott Election

What is a Mock Caldecott? One popular activity that many libraries do around this time of year is a mock Caldecott election. A mock Caldecott is simply where students read and vote on which book they think should receive the Caldecott Medal. There are many ways to do a mock Caldecott. I am going to explain two ways I have done i Holding a Mock Caldecott Election in your library Alternative Idea Digital Mock Caldecott Ideas If you are doing distance or hybrid learning, you may want to try and hold a digital Mock Caldecott. It is definitely more challenging if you are not able to physically be with your students, but it can still be done. The biggest challenge will be finding ways for your students to read the books you have chosen for the election. You can record yourself reading them and share with students that way.

Caldecott Medal Teaching Techniques & Daily Activities

What is the Caldecott Medal? The Caldecott is an award that is given to a “distinguished American picture book for children published by an American publisher in the United States in English during the preceding year.” It is given annually by the American Library Association as part of their Youth Media Awards. When teaching about the Caldecott Medal, you can always go to the ALA’s website you can read all the criteria and guidelines used for selecting the winner. Here they are in a nutshell: Introducing to Students to the Caldecott Medal – Day One Very important: The first thing you want to do is pull all of the Caldecott and Honor books in your library. You will need these books as you go through your lessons. And once you begin talking about them with students, they will all want to check them out. I begin by telling students

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10 Anti-Bullying Picture Books

6 Book Fair Survival Tips

A Roundup of Dr. Seuss Activities for Read Across America Day

Top 10 Chapter Book Series for Elementary Students

Holding a Mock Caldecott Election

Caldecott Medal Teaching Techniques & Daily Activities

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