February
20, 2014
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 a shameless plug for
the programs I offer. Enjoy!
If
you are new to EOT or have missed any previous issues, you can read them all at
www.smartlibrarians.com. And please tell
your friends about it!
In this issue:
·
Library
Quotes
·
Host
a Family Reading Night to promote reading
·
Common
Core help from Galileo!
·
Shameless
Plug
Library Quote/Smile –
“You should never read just for
“enjoyment.” Read to make yourself smarter! Less judgmental. More apt to
understand your friends’ insane behavior, or better yet, your own. Pick “hard
books.” Ones you have to concentrate on while reading. And for god’s sake,
don’t let me ever hear you say, “I can’t read fiction. I only have time for the
truth.” Fiction is the truth! Ever hear of “literature”? That means fiction,
too.”
-John
Waters, author of Role Models
“Be awesome! Be a book nut!”
-Dr.
Seuss
Promote (From the “Promote Reading” Section of 45
Ideas in 45 Minutes)
19. Host a Family Reading
Night. I have seen this done a variety of ways. Sometimes it is called
Family Literacy Night, but I like Reading better. (I’m more likely to go to a
Reading Night than I am a Literacy Night. We LOVE reading, but we are already
literate at my house.)
You can set up stations for
genres, age groups, independent reading or read-alouds. Keep in mind your theme
for the year and decorate/promote accordingly. For example, if you are doing a
Reading Round Up, all reading stations could be like cowboy campsites and the
stories would be about life on the range, excerpts from Hank the Cowdog books,
folk tales like Pecos Bill and biographies of Annie Oakley and Wild Bill
Hickok. You could even invite a motivational reading show performer (see www.tommyjohnspresents.com for more info!).
Common Core Help
(This
tip is for GA media specialists only. There may be a statewide database in
Alabama or Florida that does some of the same things. If so, I’d LOVE to hear
from you!)
I
attended a media specialist training session in January and Karen Minton (not
the WSB meteorologist, but the GALILEO expert) shared some of the hidden
treasures you can find in Georgia’s statewide education database, GALILEO. GALILEO
stands for GeorgiA LIbrary
LEarning Online, an initiative of the Board of Regents of the University
System of Georgia. GALILEO is an online library portal to authoritative,
subscription-only information that isn’t available through free search engines
or Web directories. Participating institutions may access over 100 databases
indexing thousands of periodicals and scholarly journals. Over 10,000 journal
titles are provided in full-text. Other resources include encyclopedias,
business directories, and government publications.
Here’s
one super cool feature – Go to SIRS Discoverer. You’ll need to go to http://www.galileo.usg.edu/kids, login and click on
SIRS Discoverer. Here you can find “Common Core Standards Correlations” and
find resources for lesson plans, suggested reading and a LOT more! Learn more
at http://www.proquest.com/assets/downloads/services/commoncorestds_sirs.pdf.
Also
at http://www.proquestk12.com/demo/10/k12videos/2Min_Menu.shtml, there are a lot of
short videos that can help you when planning collaboration and teaching
research. At the top of the video box, there is a drop down menu where you can
select videos by Grade Level, by Subject or by Product. Take a few minutes and
see what SIRS Discoverer has to offer!
Next
time – hundreds of unlimited access DK informational full color e-books that
are tablet formatted and ready for use by your students and teachers!
And
don’t forget to check out www.CurriculumDivas.org for lots of
resources for your school!
Shameless Plug
It’s
the time of year to start thinking about those end of the year reading rewards.
You COULD place an order with Oriental Trading and buy a bunch of plastic stuff
that nobody really wants OR you could give your students an experience that
will remind them to read all summer long! Look over the many programs offered
at www.tommyjohnspresents.com/programs.htm and choose one that
fits your theme and needs. Give me a call or send me an e-mail and let’s book a
visit to your school!
Here’s
what one of your colleagues has to say about the shows we offer:
“Tommy’s
shows are an amazing combination of fun and learning - and what better way to
learn than to have so much fun doing so that you don't even realize you are!
Students gain vocabulary, thinking skills, questioning skills, AND excitement
about magnifying those skills by using the library for fun reading and
independent research.
“The
fact that you care about learning more than anything else is evident - you
don't find that in many "entertainment" programs. Fantastic!”
Elizabeth Foster, Carnesville, GA
Let
me know how I can help! See you in two weeks!
Encouraging
kids to read, I am
Tommy Johns
Educational Entertainment Specialisttommy@tommyjohnspresents.com
Call (770) 640-6509 or Toll Free at (866) 490-READ
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Your peers appreciate your advice about quality programs. Please tell them about your experience working with us. Our best sales people are our many loyal clients.
Call (770) 640-6509 or Toll Free at (866) 490-READ
