Smart Librarians: May 2013

Thursday, May 9, 2013

May 9, 2013

Every Other Thursday, you’ll get this short, fun, relevant newsletter. It will contain a quote or smile about the library and those who love it, an idea you can use to promote your library or reading in general, a Common Core implementation idea and occasionally a shameless plug for the programs I offer. Enjoy!

This is the last EOT of this school year! I have really enjoyed this and have gotten great feedback from you about it. I hope it has been helpful and fun! If you have missed any previous EOT issues, you can read them all at http://smartlibrarians.blogspot.com/.

Library Quote/Smile

“Anyone who says they have only one life to live must not know how to read a book.”

~Author Unknown

And one more, since it’s almost summer.

“Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.

~Attributed to Groucho Marx

Promote (From the “Promoting Reading” Section of 45 Ideas in 45 Minutes)

6. Place carts of Quick Reads on the halls before the library opens for the year and after the library closes during those last days of the school year. Books can be on curriculum standards or for leisure. From the first day of school till the last we should be saying and showing that we believe that reading is important, but if we don’t get books in their hands, we send a mixed message. Providing a cart of grade level appropriate quick reads on the halls near the rooms, we can get them reading from day one until the last day of the year.

Common Core Connection

Find a way to communicate with parents about the importance of summer reading AND getting/staying prepared for the fall. Maybe a Summertime Media Center newsletter or a paragraph in the school bulletin or even a postcard. Include the information about the FREE summer reading promotions mentioned in the last issue (http://smartlibrarians.blogspot.com/2013/05/april-25-2013-every-other-thursday.html) and tell them about this great resource JUST FOR PARENTS. Scholastic has a super segment of their website devoted to parents and the Common Core. It’s where I learned a lot of what I understand about the CCC, and it wil help them too! Got to http://www.scholastic.com/commoncore/common-core-for-parents.htm and see what they have to offer!

Shameless Plug

I may be coming to a library near you this summer to perform “Dig a Little Deeper!” my summer library show about GENRES! Or I may be doing a magic workshop or the VERY popular TeenBoss Workshop. Find out more about the programs and check out my calendar at www.tommyjohnspresents.com! I’d love to see you this summer!

Let me know how I can help!

Encouraging kids to read, I am
Tommy Johns
Educational Entertainment Specialist
www.TommyJohnsPresents.com
tommy@tommyjohnspresents.com
Call (770) 640-6509 or Toll Free at (866) 490-READ
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You are receiving “Every Other Thursday” because you have attended one of my workshops, invited me to your school, or registered for a free half day of assemblies at a conference. If you’d like to unsubscribe, simply click reply and let me know. Have a WONDER-Filled Day!

April 25, 2013

I missed an issue during spring break, but we are back on track! Just 2 more EOTs this school year!

If you have missed any previous EOT issues, you can read them all at http://smartlibrarians.blogspot.com/.

Library Quote/Smile

The library connects us with the insight and knowledge, painfully extracted from Nature, of the greatest minds that ever were, with the best teachers, drawn from the entire planet and from all our history, to instruct us without tiring, and to inspire us to make our own contribution to the collective knowledge of the human species. I think the health of our civilization, the depth of our awareness about the underpinnings of our culture and our concern for the future can all be tested by how well we support our libraries. (emphasis mine)

~Carl Sagan, Cosmos

Promote (From the “Promoting Reading” Section of 45 Ideas in 45 Minutes)

DOUBLE BONUS SUMMER IDEAS!
Summer reading is a HUGE factor in academic success! Encourage your readers to keep on reading all summer long!

11. Don’t reinvent the wheel for encouraging summer reading. Barnes & Noble, Scholastic, and your public library all have summer reading programs. Promote theirs and save your money! Links are www.BN.com and www.Scholastic.com. Search for summer reading promotions.

12. Bring your public librarians in to promote the summer reading program – it’s free and they know how to talk to their audience. And they WANT to come to your school! Every library system has a person assigned to do programming for children and teens. Often they are sadly the best kept secret in the county. Get to know your library’s staff and find out what they are doing to promote reading in the summer.

Common Core Connection

As the year begins to wind down, this would be a great time to survey your colleagues and ask them how the media center has supported the transition to Common Core in the first year and how we can improve for next year. Part of making yourself indispensable is demonstrating and proving your value to the ADULTS in the building as well as the students! Look for ways to strengthen the link between the media center and the classroom AND the media center and the grade/department level meetings. They cannot do CCS without a well stocked, well staffed media center! And if they don’t know it yet, show them!

Shameless Plug

I still have a few dates and times available to reward your readers for the end of the year! Reward the top readers with a single show they will talk about all summer, or show the whole school how proud you are of the great work they’ve done all year with a half or full day of programs. Remember, that trinkets from that Oriental trading place will get lost of broken, but experiences stay with children a LONG time! Check out my calendar and fees at www.tommyjohnspresents.com!

Let me know how I can help!