COLLECT + CONNECT

The US Census takes place in our country every ten years. Data collected from the Census has the power to affect all of us including our students. Many school services and community programs are funded with federal dollars that directly affect children. Think: special education, Head Start, food assistance programs, child health programs, classroom technology, teacher training, and after school programs that happen in libraries. census.gov/programs-surveys One way to create a local awareness about the US Census is to teach students about this decennial event through a primary source like  Statistics in Schools ! The website, from the U.S. Census Bureau, is loaded with kid-friendly data, numerous activities, and other resources that can be incorporated into a variety of subject areas. New activities spotlight the 2020 Census and how it impacts our nation's people. Be sure to check out the state facts section in which students can collect, analyze, and compare easily-...

This is post 2 of 4 about the SD School Library Standards. The  first post  provided a general overview and a little background history. In the next three posts, I'll cover each strand of that document. To make this post less lengthy, I'll share all of the objectives but only of grades kindergarten, 6th, and 9-12th. This condensed snapshot should give you an idea of grade-level expectations, known as vertical alignment. Of course, to view all of the grade levels, take a look at the official  SD School Library Content Standards . The first of three strands in the standards document is Textual Literacy.  The first strand is all about reading and engaging with reading.  In the coding system, the TL indicates this strand. [i.e. KG.LIB. TL .1.1] TEXTUAL LITERACY (TL): Reading & Engagement ----- There is only one standard in the TL strand. In the coding system, the number after the strand indicates the standard. [i.e. KG.LIB.TL. 1 .1] Stud...

Lately, I've received quite a few questions about the topics of copyright and fair use.  I thought I'd share two resource links that may be helpful as you teach digital citizenship skills. The first is  my curated Pearltrees collection.  This collection has links about copyright, fair use, free-to-use images, plagiarism, etc... The second is one that I've link on this Pearltrees list. It's called  Copyright & Creativity , and it's pretty great. It's a free, one-stop-shop for teaching topics of copyright and digital citizenship; and as busy educators, don't we love that? Within this website you'll find comprehensive lessons to teach elementary (1 per grade level), middle, and high school students about copyright and fair use. Each lesson has slides and a PDF for the instructor plus short videos to show students. There are also printable posters and a  flyer  to share with stakeholders. You'll also find a professional de...

So far the South Dakota State Library has offered two sessions of the online course titled  An Introduction to the 2019 School Library Standards . 48 school librarians, paraprofessionals, and teachers have earned college credit or CEU hours by taking part in this course. The SD State Library will offer another session in March 2020. Registration for this session opens in early February 2019 and will be communicated via the SD School Library Listserv . I'll spend three more posts highlighting of each strand of the 2019 School Library Standards , but for this one, here's a bit of background info. For more depth and breadth, you'll have to take the course! 😉 Content standards provide educators a roadmap for what their students should know and be able to do. Standards are not curriculum. The South Dakota School Library Standards are designed to be age-appropriate guides for successful student learning - learning that should be differentiated , c...