Need a smile today? Then catch Elizabeth Bird’s interview with Adam Rex, the author of The True Meaning of Smekday (Hyperion, 2007). It’s part of the “Summer Book Blog Tour,” and Colleen Mondor over on Chasing Ray is kindly keeping a schedule of all of the interviews.
As educators know well, the digital landscape is changing at supersonic speed—fueled by young people who, practically born with a mouse in their hand, are helping transform the online world. read more...
Hot Picks
BOOKS Tadpole Rex by Kurt Cyrus
From SLJ 6/1/2008 K-Gr 3–In a primordial swamp, "One little polliwog swirled in the soup,/bouncing off bubbles–/Bloop./Bloop./Bloop."
VIDEO/DVD Dear Deer PreS-Gr 2–Gene Barretta's fun and quirky introduction to homophones (Holt, 2007) is brought to life in this fun-filled romp through the zoo.
AUDIO Dark Water Rising Gr 6 Up–Seth, 16, has his life planned. He is resolute in his decision to become a skilled carpenter—until his father decides to move the family to the booming metropolis of Galveston, TX, where the opportunity for higher education can become a reality.
"Our librarians rock! Taking them out is a CROCK!" read the signs at a May 12 St. Lucie County (FL) school board meeting. The protest—of a cost-cutting proposal to take school librarians out of the library and reassign them to classrooms—worked. Just this week, School Board Chairman Carol Hilson announced that the district's 45 media specialists and 38 library clerks would remain in their media centers next year.
In an email message, Hilson wrote that the board had decided to "keep our media centers whole for the 2008–2009 school year." read more...
According to a new study, Native American students are still lagging behind many of their peers in reading and math. American Indian and Alaska native (AI/AN) fourth and eighth graders’ reading and math scores in 2007 showed no significant change over their 2005 scores. And these scores were lower than those of non-AI/AN students in both years.
Those are the major findings of the first phase of the 2007 National Indian Education Study, conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics for the Department of Education. The study—using National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores as the basis of measurement—was also conducted in 2005. read more...
Watch and Read: Spotlight on Media Tie-ins
“It’s Not Easy Being Green” The Incredible Hulk (PG-13), a live-action film based on the Marvel Comics character and directed by Louis Leterrier, bursts into movie theaters on June 13, 2008. Following close on the metallic heels of Iron Man (released May 2), which recorded the 10th biggest opening weekend of all time, The Hulk, also the progeny of Marvel Studios, has his work cut out for him. Edward Norton (who also played a major role in writing the screenplay) stars as Dr. Bruce Banner, a scientist who as a result of a military experiment gone awry suffers from gamma radiation poisoning—a condition that turns him into an uncontrollable monster when he is placed under emotional duress. read more...
Are you looking for an opportunity to develop innovative library services? Is working in a beautiful area nestled between redwood forests and the California coast while just across the Golden Gate from San Francisco appealing? Are you a creative, customer-focused manager who values how libraries can energize their communities? If so, we could have the perfect job for you! read more...
To see all positions available through the SLJ Career Center, click here...
K-Gr 3–In a primordial swamp, "One little polliwog swirled in the soup,/bouncing off bubbles–/Bloop./Bloop./Bloop."
