A brilliant discussion about Copyright...and why it's a hinderance.

Lessons from the fashion industry! I couldn't help but be amused my a Glee episode this season that incorporated a knock off of the "JK Wedding Dance." Professionals copying from the amateurs, with I suspect, no remuneration for the amateurs. Here's the argument for a level, creative playing field.

Experiential Learning

Moving past traditional education...clearly presented and argued. AND she's in PA making a difference!

Promoting Library Use - How Many Dentists Recommend Libraries?

Here's a fun take-off on the Old Spice Guy ad.
I'd also like to see a library parody of Staples' old slogan "Yeah, we've got that," set to music...perhaps to the music of "Eww, Don't Touch That," clearly with revised lyrics...or to a more current song that's similarly catchy and direct. Libraries are all about getting to "yes," making things happen, and enabling the success of our customers (students, faculty, parents, and public).

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan

June 28, 2010 at ALA Conference, U. S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan identified libraries as often being “at the heart” of school success stories.

Read full article - here.

Tom Lehrer - Lyrical Commentary on US Politics

Thanks to Mary C. I was introduced to Tom Lehrer over the July 4th weekend. He's too good...gotta share!

Here's an April 30, 2010 NPR link with information and commentary.

YouTube offers up several Lehrer songs. This is "Send the Marines" dedicated by Lehrer to then President Johnson.



China gets the bomb, aka "the device." Lehrer sings "Who's Next?"

Excellent Plagiarism Video from Norway's University of Bergen

Clearly, designed for college age students.

Creativity Is As Important As Literacy

Sir Ken Robison makes several excellent points about the talents of children and the deficiencies of our educational system. Education, he suggests, educates creativity right out of children.



Follow him on Twitter.

An article in The Guardian: "Fertile Minds Need Feeding."

"Transform Education? Yes, We Must." by Robinson

The Learning Revolution.


Some great quotes from his talk:
Life is not linear, it's organic...so is learning.
A three year old is not half a six year old.

Paraphrased here...
Human flourishing is an organic, not mechanical, process.
We should tread softly around children's dreams.

And a Lincoln quote. (1862)
"The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew,. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country." -Abraham Lincoln

What Motivates Us

When it comes to thinking...it's not money! This reminds me of Clay Shirky's comments about "cognitive surplus" - what we've got when we're not watching tv :) It also supports Stephen Krashen's comments about reading being its own reward and not needing external incentives.



I LOVE Clay Shirky; always fascinating to listen to. In the following TED video he too addresses motivations - social and economic.

Books on the Bus...making a difference

Here's a terrific segment from NBC News. Books do make a difference! So do people!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Amahl and the Night Visitors

An opera composed by Gian Carlo Menotti and presented on NBC in 1951.
Worth checking out on DVD or even going to University of North Carolina, Greensboro, where it's performed annually. UNC Greensboro was where Jamal (Bill McIver) taught music for many years. While the story seemed to start out slowly, it quickly became a memorable opera with an equally memorable cast. A Christmas gem that sparkles any time it is seen.

NH Great Stone Face Awards Book List for 2010-2011

For information about the book awards program and present and past lists go to: Dover Public Library, NH .



Great Stone Face 2010 - 2011 Book Brochure, includes lexiles, genres, and information about the award and past winners.

Made by
Charlotte Lesser
Director of Elementary Library Services
Monadnock Regional School District

"Caught" by Harlan Coben

Coben's popular with teens and adult readers alike. Here's a good post from Penguin's Website about his latest book, complete with commentary by Coben.

PA Young Reader's Choice Awards Book List 2010-2011

Kindergarten – Grade 3

Peter Catalanotto Ivan the Terrier
Michelle Cook Our Children Can Soar w/ Curriculum Connections

Doug Cushman Dirk Bones and the Mystery of the Missing Books

Kate DiCamillo Louise: The Adventures of a Chicken
Karen English Nikki and Deja
Mordicai Gerstein A Book
Betty Hicks Goof-Off Goalie
Kimiko Kajikawa Tsunami! The author's site includes curriculum connections.
Brian Lies Bats at the Library
Lucy Nolan Bad to the Bone
Kenneth Oppel The King’s Taster
Joyce Sidman Red Sings from the Tree Tops: A Year in Color
Judith St. George Zarafa: The Giraffe Who Walked to the King (excerpt)
Melanie Watt Chester
Mo Willems Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed

Mo Williams talks about his books and characters:



Grades 3-6

Michael D. Beil The Red Blazer Girls: The Ring of Rocamadour
Nic Bishop Nic Bishop Frogs
Found his Spiders book on YouTube.



Nic Bishop talking and taking pictures of spiders. While it's not Frogs, it probably is a gives one a good idea as to the formatting and information to be found in Frogs.



Elise Broach Masterpiece Author's site offers discussion guide and audio excerpt.

Michael Buckley Nerds

Here's Michael talking about his book...clearly a better writer than speaker.



Shana Corey Mermaid Queen
Paul Fleischman The Dunderheads
Dennis Fradin Duel! Burr and Hamilton’s
Deadly War of Words
Sundee Tucker Frazier Brendan Buckley’s Universe and
Everything in It

From Blog That Book and the Sunshine State Young Reader Awards Book List.


Mike Knudson Raymond and Graham Rule the School
Kirby Larson and Mary Nethery Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship, and Survival


Lenore Look Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School and
Other Scary Things Schwartz & Wade
Wendy Mass 11 Birthdays Scholastic
Marc Tyler Nobleman Boys of Steel: The Creators of Superman Knopf
Gary Paulsen Mudshark Wendy Lamb
Jonah Winter You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax? Schwartz & Wade

Grades 6-8
Mary Jane Auch One-Handed Catch Henry Holt
Susan Campbell Bartoletti Boy Who Dared Scholastic
Julie Berry The Amaranth Enchantment Bloomsbury
Pseudonymous Bosch The Name of This Book Is Secret Little Brown
Joseph Bruchac March Toward the Thunder Dial
Patrick Carman Skeleton Creek Scholastic
John Feinstein Cover-up: Mystery at the Super Bowl Knopf
Pete Hautman Snatched Putnam
Ingrid Law Savvy Dial
Scott Mebus Gods of Manhattan Dutton
Edward Myers Storyteller Clarion
Gary Schmidt The Wednesday Wars Clarion
Roland Smith Peak Harcourt
Rebecca Stead When You Reach Me Wendy Lamb
Jacqueline Woodson Peace Locomotion Penguin

Young Adult
Peter Abrahams Reality Check Harper Teen
Jay Asher Thirteen Reasons Why Razorbill
James Dasher The Maze Runner Delacorte
Amy Efaw After Viking
Simone Elkeles Perfect Chemistry Walker
Beth Fantaskey Jessica’s Guide to Dating on the Dark Side Harcourt
Gayle Forman If I Stay Dutton
Shelley Hrdlitschka Gotcha’ Orca
Jennifer Jabaley Lipstick Apology Razorbill
Mariatu Kamara and
Susan McClelland The Bite of Mango Annick
Norman Ollestad Crazy for the Storm: A Memoir of Survival

David Small Stitches: A Memoir Norton
Maggie Stiefvater Shiver Scholastic
Scott Westerfeld Leviathan Simon Pulse
Carole Lynch Williams The Chosen One St. Martin’s Griffin

A Terrific Library - Reading Promo

A Treasure Trove of Children's Lit from Univ of S.C.