Events & Pd

From educational equity and fan fiction to Kanye West and serious games, educator Antero Garcia brought it all together in a rousing keynote, inspiring attendees of the September 28-29 School Library Journal Summit in Austin, TX. The complete presentation is viewable here, along with additional comments from Garcia and related resources on participatory culture.

Innovative school librarians invaded Austin, Texas en masse from September 28-29 for School Library Journal’s ninth annual Leadership Summit. With invigorating presentations by journalist Annie Murphy Paul, author of the forthcoming Brilliant: The New Science of Smart (Crown, 2014) and Colorado State associate professor Antero Garcia, library leaders gathered together to discuss and plan for the future of education and the profession. Take a sneak peek at some of the scenes from the weekend with a slideshow from the Summit.

She’s not a teacher or a librarian but, during the more than 25 years that Sesame Street’s Sonia Manzano has spent talking about kindness with Big Bird, letting the Count number her toes, and singing about trash to Oscar the Grouch, she has observed quite a bit about how kids learn. The actress, education advocate, and children’s book author was presented with the Américas Award in Washington, D.C., on September 23, given annually by the Consortium for Latin American Studies Programs (CLASP).

Star Wars fans around the world—from the youngest padawan to the wisest Jedi—along with authors, artists, and costumed volunteers will be flocking to libraries and bookstores this Saturday, October 5, for the 2nd annual Star Wars Reads Day (SWRD), an event that harnesses the appeal of the popular franchise to celebrate literacy and reading. The day is being sponsored collaboratively by Star Wars creator Lucasfilm’s publishing partners: Abrams, Chronicle, Dark Horse Comics, Del Rey, DK, Random House Audio, Scholastic, and Workman.

October is Connected Educator Month (#ce13). The CEM calendar is packed with opportunities for growth and, of course, connection. The Starter Kit, by Sheryl Nussbaum Beach and Powerful Learning Practice, in collaboration with the Connected Educators initiative, is packed with links and videos and takes a 31 days approach for this special month, giving you one simple way to [...]

Since 1982, Banned Books Week has been an annual opportunity during the last week of September for librarians and other freedom fighters around the country to celebrate banned and challenged books, shine a spotlight on censorship, and honor those heroes working for open access to materials and the right to read for all. This year’s campaign is proceeding in some unique and wonderful ways. How are you marking the occasion?

Fighting censorship and limited access to materials is an integral part of a librarian’s mission and job description. Launched in 1982, Banned Books Week is the national book community's annual celebration of the freedom to read. More than 11,300 books have been challenged since then. The following is a selection of SLJ’s news coverage of challenged books, interviews with oft-banned authors, and tools for showcasing censored titles during Banned Books Week, and all year.

A group of forward-thinking and trailblazing school librarians will soon be gathering at School Library Journal’s ninth annual Leadership Summit. Taking place in Austin, Texas from September 28-29, the event will showcase the transformative work that educators are doing all over the country through effective collaboration. Check out the full schedule here.

Torrential downpours did not dampen the crowd’s enthusiasm for the over one hundred authors and illustrators who participated in the Library of Congress’s 13th annual National Book Festival on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., this weekend. Hundreds of attendees jammed the festival tents to see and hear such favorite authors as Richard Peck, Katherine Paterson, Phyllis Naylor Reynolds, Oliver Jeffers, Veronica Roth, and Jon Klassen.