AASL's Best Digital Tools for Teaching and Learning + SDSL Databases
Looking to work in some more digital literacy and informational literacy into your library curriculum?
We took a look at a few of the resources on AASL's Best Digital Tools for Teaching & Learning list and paired them with some of the South Dakota State Library databases,
SDSL databases and digital resources are offered free to all South Dakotans with instant access (no login required!) to almost all of the databases if within the geographical boundaries of South Dakota. Access the complete list sorted by alphabetical order or access our student research lists for elementary, middle, and high school.
BookFlix is a highly engaging literacy-based read-aloud experience for young children learning to read. The thematically-aligned fiction and nonfiction pairs help children grow their oral vocabulary while providing academic and content vocabulary in context.
Culture Grams from ProQuest offers statistical and cultural information about each US state and 200 countries. It provides country reports that go beyond facts and figures to deliver a one-of-a-kind perspective on daily life and culture, including the background, customs, and lifestyles of the world's people.
Books and Authors is a reader’s advisory database that helps users match their reading interests. This database is loaded with read-alikes, reviews, award winners, and themed book lists.
Disclaimer: The South Dakota State Library does not endorse any service, product, or recommendation listed in this post.
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KidLit TV is a PreK-3 library resource offering in-depth interviews with authors and illustrators, book trailers, how to draw videos, and other literacy-related activities. Get a backstage pass to all kinds of literacy goodies.
KidLit pairs nicely with a variety of SD State Library databases including but not limited to Book Flix, True Flix, Miss Humblebee's Academy, and Books and Authors. Book Flix, in particular, is an excellent choice.
BookFlix
- Encourages independent listening and reading practice
- Builds knowledge and encourages developmental concepts, ideas, and information
- Supports reading comprehension and oral language gains
- Teaches beginning readers to differentiate fiction from nonfiction
- Strengthens fluency, multi-media literacy, and cross-textual comparison
Masters of Tradition is an interactive story map from the Smithsonian that allows students to explore diversity in the United States - the diversity of cultures, communities, and artistic traditions. Find photographs, audio, video, short text, and first-person quotes. The story map addresses themes including immigration, migration, identity, heritage, and community.
Masters of Tradition pairs nicely with a variety of SD State Library databases including but not limited to Culture Grams, Indigenous Peoples of North America, Heritage Quest, Ancestry, Fold3, Gale Primary Sources, Black Freedom Struggle in the United States, and Sanborn Maps Collection.
Culture Grams from ProQuest offers statistical and cultural information about each US state and 200 countries. It provides country reports that go beyond facts and figures to deliver a one-of-a-kind perspective on daily life and culture, including the background, customs, and lifestyles of the world's people.
TeachingBooks introduces students and teachers to authors and includes book guides, activities, lesson plans, and readings. Free options and subscription options. The Library Programming section houses resources for book talks, book clubs, storytimes, literary calendar, virtual author visits, and much more.
Teaching Books pairs nicely with a variety of SD State Library databases including but not limited to Books and Authors, Book Flix, True Flix, Miss Humblebee's Academy, and any database offering ebooks and lesson plans.
