COLLECT + CONNECT

View the SD Teen Choice Book Awards winners! And for the Prairie Awards... View the winners and the complete list of nominees.

With the unprecedented influx of money headed to South Dakota schools and libraries, it's super important to start thinking about what your library needs to make its services more effective and efficient. This applies specifically to technology and curbing student learning loss due to the pandemic. The State Library will be receiving approximately two million dollars with which to distribute to all types of libraries. This American Rescue Plan Act funding will be made available to libraries through grants. This means librarians need to be ready and waiting with a strategized list. Here are some items to think about: wifi hotspots for checkout computers laptops printers copiers ILS systems self-checkout systems recording studios to record music, podcasts, etc. digitization equipment (scanners, computers, VHS to digital converter) tables with tech embedded charging stations ebooks and audio book subscriptions (with the understanding that this money is one-time money and the subscript...

Each year the South Dakota Library Association  offers one librarian in the state its Librarian of the Year award. This year the Association chose school librarian Shelley Rath! Shelley is a certified school librarian at West Middle School in Rapid City, SD. The SD State Library asked Shelley ten questions about her role as a teacher-librarian. Read on to learn a little about Shelley and her top-notch work. Shelley in her library. Tell us a little about your personal background. I was born and raised in Minnesota. I’ve been married 33 years and have three daughters. I graduated from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in Elementary Education and my first teaching job was at Duke School for Children in North Carolina. When I became a mom, I took time off from teaching to focus on my own children and was a major PTA volunteer. In 2001, we moved to South Dakota and the rest is library history! I worked as a librarian at Corral Drive Elementary for two years and then at West Middle ...

This year the 2020 South Dakota Festival of Books will be virtual and there's still time to register for this mostly free event! It'll kick off with a welcome Thursday, Oct. 1, and continue with events throughout the weekend and into late-October.  REGISTER! As part of the Virtual 2020 Young Readers Festival of Books, the South Dakota Humanities Council has posted seven “Virtual School Visit” videos by authors and illustrators. These videos are FREE for teachers, librarians, and parents/guardians to use as they like, and they will remain available for viewing through at least October 31, unless otherwise noted. They include: Alison McGhee Bink & Gollie: Three for One: Creating the 2020 Young Readers One Book McGhee talks about how Bink & Gollie came to be and answers questions from South Dakota students – focused on 3rd grade Angelica Shirley Carpenter & Edwin Fotheringham (with Jennifer McIntyre)   Writing and Illustrating The Voice of Liberty  Carpenter (a...

Congratulations to all of the recipients of the Library Technology grants funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services through the federal CARES Act.  This grant funding is intended to update, expand, or improve technology in the public and school libraries.  pixabay.com/images/id-820272/ And... a special shout-out to school library recipients! Huron School District Kimball School District Watertown School District See news release for all 16 second-round recipients. See  news release  for all 19 first-round recipients.

To assist school library staff as they prepare for the 2020-21 school year, the SD State Library, in partnership with the SD Department of Education, has created a document titled Starting Well 2020: A Guide for School Libraries . The document contains questions and considerations intended to help school librarians and administrators think about from-the-library and in-the-library adaptations that may be needed for face-to-face learning, distance learning, or a hybrid of the two. Locate this document on the Starting Well page , in the Toolkit for Schools, under the General Guidance heading.  The State Library has also linked on the  COVID-19: Information for SD School Libraries page.

Thinking about heading back to the school library either in person or virtually... or both? Be sure to check out the COVID-19: SD School Libraries page on the SD State Library Resource Guide.   There you'll find a collection of back-to-school and at-school/at-home resources aligned to what we do in our school libraries. Topics include cleaning and care, digital books, read-alouds, copyright and fair use, digital learning tools, professional time, and SDSL K-12 databases. Newly added:  COVID-19 Publisher Information Directory from School Library Journal Lists numerous publishers and revised copyright and fair use policies due to the pandemic. Starting Well  from the SD Department of Education Provides South Dakota specific guidance for reopening and daily operations for the 2020-21 school year. Second Snapshot of School Librarian Roles during School Closures from AASL School Library Closure Impact Surveys via Knowledge Quest Captures trend data and includes questi...

This is post 4 of 4 about the SD School Library Standards. The  first post  provided a general overview and a little background history. The  second post highlighted Textual Literacy  and the   third post covered the Information Literacy strand .  The last of the three strands in the SD School Library Content Standards document is Civic and Ethical Literacy.  This strand is all about ethical participation and digital citizenship. In the coding system, the IL indicates this strand. [i.e. KG.LIB. CE .1.1] CIVIC & ETHCIAL LITERACY (CE): Rights & Responsibilities ----- There is only one standard in the CE strand. In the coding system, the number after the strand indicates the standard. [i.e. KG.LIB.CE. 1 .1] Students recognize the rights, responsibilities, and opportunities of living and learning in an interconnected world. ----- There are six objectives in the CE strand. In the coding system, the objective is the very last numb...

This is post 3 of 4 about the SD School Library Standards. The  first post  provided a general overview and a little background history. The  second post  covered the Textual Literacy strand. This post introduces the Information Literacy strand. The second of the three strands in the SD School Library Content Standards document is Information Literacy.  This strand is all about the research process. In the coding system, the IL indicates this strand. [i.e. KG.LIB. I L .1.1] INFORMATION LITERACY (IL): Inquiry & Research ----- There is only one standard in the IL strand. In the coding system, the number after the strand indicates the standard. [i.e. KG.LIB.IL. 1 .1] Students use research strategies to create and share new knowledge.  ----- There are six objectives in the IL strand. In the coding system, the objective is the very last number. [i.e. KG.LIB.IL.1. 1 ] OBJECTIVE  1 KG.LIB.IL.1. 1 -  Explore the physical and/o...

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...

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...

As many of you know, the SD State Library has recently launched its new website. A lot of work and time and expertise went into this major update and we hope you find it valuable both professionally and personally. We'd love your positive or constructive feedback! Just email me and I'll send your message along. I encourage you to spend some time browsing and even bookmarking pages that you'll know you'll refer back to. I'll list a few that you might find most useful for you and your students. School Library Services The  School Library Services  homepage is a one-stop source for you as a librarian. library.sd.gov/LIB/SLC Note the three 'big hitter' buttons and all the other drop-down topics below those buttons. We've made the  K-12 Student Research button  easy to locate and we sought to make it student-friendly by categorizing databases by age group.  So if you click/tap the K-12 Student Research button  on the School Libr...

Be sure to check out the  South Dakota Historical Society Press  as we celebrate Native American Day in South Dakota on October 14. If you're looking for South Dakota and regional history-related books for your library, this is a wonderful outlet. As part of the South Dakota State Historical Society, the Press preserves, researches, and promotes South Dakota's rich and varied culture and heritage by providing award-winning, reputable books for readers of all ages. I'll highlight three books that might be nice additions to your school library, but know that there are many titles that can support your South Dakota, Native American, and history collections. THE CHRISTMAS COAT: MEMORIES OF MY SIOUX CHILDHOOD  written by Rosebud Sioux member Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve and illustrated by Ellen Beier https://www.sdhspress.com/ Virginia’s old coat is too small. The cold South Dakota wind blows across the Rosebud Indian Reservation, making her shiver as ...