Andrew Bauld

Decades of disagreement over reading instruction may be waning as states around the country make the science of reading mandated curriculum. 

Attempts to restrict access to digital materials have been led largely by conservative parent groups and political activists who claim they are protecting students from “obscene” materials.

Solving real-world problems with VR, using translation tools with English-language learners, and upping the robotics game are a few ways librarians use tech to engage students.

Julie Stivers’s library at Mount Vernon Middle School in Raleigh, NC, empowers academic-recovery students to “be brave together.”

Modernizing the library and creating a collection to match her community's needs has been key for Quilantan-Garza at Jaime Escalante Middle School in Pharr, TX, where most students are predominantly Spanish-speaking.

Building access and equity into her collection and programming has become Melissa Corey’s mission as media specialist at Robidoux Middle School in St. Joseph, MO.

Elements of collaboration, relationship building, and creativity in the game world help shore up those strengths in the real world, including for kids whose SEL skills were dulled by pandemic-induced social isolation.

This year, BPS will see 25 new libraries along with 30 new librarians, with funding to ensure an opening day collection of new, culturally sustaining books. 

Writing in library books is typically against the rules, but many public libraries are stocking their collections with test prep workbooks and other materials designed to be written in.