Ideas

As the economic landscape continues to shift, the mission of schools and libraries to address the gaps intensifies, and the work of the key players, teachers and librarians, has never been more essential.

In response to LM_NET queries, Doug Johnson published a BFTP (blast from the past) post today on Your Library’s Back-to-School Letter. Doug encourages us to use the start of school as an opportunity for connection and advocacy, inspiring us to design an initial communication that conveys the energy and contributions of our library programs in [...]

The very language of the Common Core State Standards calls for librarians’ key skills: research; equipping students to access, evaluate, and synthesize information; and strengthening literacy. Paige Jaeger, a coordinator of school library services in Saratoga Springs, NY argues that librarians can build a strong case for a seventh shift in the CCSS: research.

The most exciting time for a kindergarten teacher is when a kid looks up and says, ‘Hey, I can read!’” Fostering early literacy is the focus of our very first theme issue. We're also debuting a new look, with some significant improvements to the all-important reviews section.

Chair of the American Library Association's Intellectual Freedom Committee Pat Scales tackles censorship questions about The Hunger Games, grammar in "Junie B. Jones" series, and why reporting materials challenges to the ALA OIF is so important.

Emily Gover and Caity Selleck, information literacy librarians and content developers for EasyBib and its new platform, ResearchReady, posit that libraries should stay open later hours in order to serve students' research needs.

Here is some feedback in response to Rebecca T. Miller’s editorial, “It’s Time to Step Up” (June 2013, p. 11) about the need for the American Library Association (ALA) to become actively engaged in advocating for school librarians and provide administrators with solid data on their value to our children’s success.

Check out School Library Journal’s reader responses to Keith Curry Lance and Debra E. Kachel's “Librarian Required” article, tweets from SLJ's first Public Library Think Tank, and highlights from the #lovemylibraryjob social media campaign.

The Common Core State Standards place strong emphasis on vocabulary, and librarians are in a prime position to actively support this shift. This month's "On Common Core" column shares how, including selecting read-alouds with robust language, helping students find engaging (and challenging) nonfiction books that match their interests, carefully choosing titles for reading lists, and initiating independent reading incentives.