Useful Blogs For Teacher-Librarians

There are so many things about the internet that we love to hate, but it has brought about the opportunity for a jackpot of shared ideas and networking. As librarians, we are taught about the downsides of Google giving endless lists of search results and sponsored ads topping your results, and how it is driven by money making. The algorithms are getting better everyday, however, and It did successfully bring me in contact with some great blogs written by librarians and storytellers that I would not likely have known about otherwise. At the top of that list is a blog I mentioned in my previous post, but bares repeating. Demco Ideas & Inspiration is chock full of ideas for story time and for running and setting up a library. The original post that drew me in was about Lessons That Connect Making and Children's Literature. I am a big proponent of the use of. Maker Space after seeing how much the children at my school love it and how it engages their creativity. This blog post connected that makerspace idea with books on different topics linking things like STEM and K'Nex and robotics. The great thing about it continues to be that it can be adapted for all different age groups. I found this video below as I continued to brainstorm opportunities for new creative storytime and makerspace paired activities.

`One good thing about blogs like this is the way they sometimes spark an idea and you can take it and make it something entirely your own. As the name of the blog implies, it is full of "ideas and inspiration." There are photos of how different libraries are set up to help inspire you in your own creative library space. They also have free activity guides you can download and use to jump start new programming. Demco Ideas and Inspiration's blog touches on so many other subjects that are important in librarianship from activities calendars, library setup, purchasing, and even how to repair damaged books. The set up of this blog is streamlined and easy to navigate, too. Demco does have a shop where you can purchase book repair kits, shelving materials, etc., but the information is free.

The second blog that I would recommend is The Lego Librarian. I came upon this blog by accident when I was trying to come up with a book to read for my interactive storytelling experience. Peter Blenski is known as the Lego Librarian. He is a children's librarian and runs a Lego Club. He wrote a blog post entitled Tell stories like a rock star–the best interactive picture books which I can credit for finding the book When I Say Ooh You Say Aah that I ended up using for my call and response reading. In that article alone he gave book recommendations for preschool through elementary school ages that are fun and easy to get the kids engaged. His fun read-a-long videos like the one linked below are good examples of what storytelling should look like with young children. He also gives tips in this post for making it your own experience and one that is tailored to the kids you will be reading to.

Image from * https://legolibrarian.com/2018/03/09/tell-stories-like-a-rock-star-the-best-interactive-picture-books/

From his blog alone, Mr. Blenski's fun, silly nature comes through. It is obvious that he loves with working children and he is not afraid to get on their level to make an impact. Aside from his storytime posts, he also has a wealth of ideas for children and tweens' library programming including everything from storywalks to scavenger hunts. Since he runs a library club he has different challenges for the club that he posts information about. His tween library programming goes from creative bad art to escape rooms. One I found particulary entertaining was his Frankentoys programming from "Sid's Room" like Toy Story. I can see how these types of programs would draw kids in this age group in. I have bookmarked his blog for my own future reference, because I love some of his ideas.

The third and final blog that I would like to share today is Mrs. Readerpants. As with a lot of the blogs I have found, Mrs. Readerpants has a shop. This blog in particular has a shop that sells digital content, like bulletin board designs, and templates. The blog contains a lot of free content as well, though. She has designed digital content worksheets, book talks, and bulletin board designs that are free to download and use under her freebie library tab that matches with seasons and themes you may be using at a given time. She also has a book tab where she discusses her take on specific books, as well as ideas on how to use pictures books with older readers, etc.

One of my particular favorite posts on this blog, however, comes from her Ideas tab. We have a new librarian at our school this year and I always find the new creative ideas that each person in this role brings to the table, and this year for the first time we have what is being called "First Chapter Fridays." I had never heard of this before, but as I was exploring the Idea tab for Mrs. Readerpants, she has a post called Hook New Readers with First Chapter Fridays. For an older student reading chapter books, this is one of the closest things to a storytelling experience I see consistently demonstrated in our library, and it encourages these students to check out the book if the book caught their attention. Mrs. Readerpants gives so many good recommendations for books that work well for a First Chapter Friday and tips on what to choose to draw the students in quickly which is key for a program like this. Other ideas in this section of the blog include book-a-thons, reading bingo, shark week themed story time, library orientations for the first weeks of school, and so much more. There are so many great ideas out there and when we share our ideas our children win in the end. I hope you enjoy the blogs that I have shared above.

Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash

What I Am Reading This Week: Tall Tales

• Who Broke the Vase? by Jeffrey Turner

• Rainbow Fish and the Storyteller by Marcus Pfister

• Pecos Bill by M. J. York

• American Heroes & Legends: John Henry by Brad Kessler

• Johnny Kaw: A Tall Tale by Devin Scillian

• Hi'iaka Battles The Wind by Gabrielle Ahuli'i

References:

Blenski, P. (2023, March 18). Tell stories like a rock star–the best interactive picture books. The Lego Librarian. https://legolibrarian.com/2018/03/09/tell-stories-like-a-rock-star-the-best-interactive-picture-books/

Collazo, L. (2023, October 2). Ideas. Mrs. ReaderPants. https://www.readerpants.net/get-real

Maslyk, J. (2023, May 4). Lessons that connect making and children’s literature. Ideas & Inspiration from Demco. https://ideas.demco.com/blog/making-and-childrens-literature/

Ms. Lindsey's Book Nook. (2021, Feb 17.). Be A Maker ~ STEM read aloud ~ STEM Storytime ~ STEAM books. {Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/lpYPEUJObQ0?si=pmISEVYRrypvCc5X