Category Archives: Professional learning

SLAV Online Book Club – November 17th, 2022 – Sport

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Our thanks to those of you able to join us for our November 17th, 2022, online book club meeting to discuss sport titles. As always, so many of you had so many wonderful contributions to share with us, and it is very appreciated.

This was our last book club meeting for 2022, and we want to say a very special thank you to all who have attended and contributed to these informal and informative meetings. We cannot wait to share the Topics we have planned for 2023 and look forward to welcoming you all back to SLAV Online Book club next year!

Disclaimer: The lists generated as a result of Book Club discussions are not, by any means, an exhaustive list of all titles or authors for each genre/category discussed. Nor will all titles be suitable for all libraries. We advise staff discretion when referencing these lists, to properly confirm individual title suitability for individual libraries, school and student’s needs. These are suggested titles only, shared by our members and inclusion on, or exclusion from, a list does not suggest SLAV endorsement or rejection of a title.

Titles Discussed

Existing lists on the internet and at Readings

https://www.scottishbooktrust.com/book-lists/fab-football-books-for-children/

https://www.readings.com.au/collections/books-for-sporty-kids

Little Ash by Ash Barty – junior fiction series

Sam Kerr Series by Sam Kerr and Fiona Harris

Game Day Series by Patty Mills

Specky Magee Series by Felice Arena and Gary Lyon

AFL Little Legends by Nicole Hayes and Adrian Beck

As Fast As I Can by Penny Tangey

Diary of a Soccer Star Series by Shamini Flint

Boss Ladies of Sport by Philip Marsden

Foul Play Series by Tom Palmer (soccer and crime)

My Spare Heart by Jared Thomas – basketball

Grace On Court & Grace Back On Court by Maddy Proud – netball

Mike Lupica has written a number of American sport novels.

Take the Shot by Sue Whiting

Elsewhere Girls by Nova Weetman and Emily Gale

Wizenard Series by Kobe Bryant

The Mamba Mentality: How I Play by Kobe Bryant

Felice Arena’s Sporty Kids series

The Unstoppable Flying Flanagan by Felice Arena

Ultimate Football Heroes by Mike Oldfield

Bouncing Back by Scott Ostler

The Crossover by Alex Kwaeme

Eddie Betts Biography

Sport Titles Published by Barrington Stoke– for students with dyslexia or difficulty reading

Game Changer by John Hickman

Pitch Invasion by Tom Palmer

Break the Fall by Jennifer Iacopelli

The F Team by Rawah Arja

Shoe Dog A Memoir by the creator of Nike, Phil Knight

Review for The Hard Way https://www.shelftalkers.slav.vic.edu.au/review/the-hard-way/

The Boys Club, power and politics and the AFL.

Bios – Soul Surfer by Bethany Hamilton and Layne Beachley – Beneath the Waves

All In by Billie Jean King

Andrew Jobling, does school visits about goal setting etc and has published a few books for adults.

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/series/DWY/who-was

Chessboxer by Stephen Davies

Sports Beat Mysteries by John Feinstein

Kick by Mitch Johnson

Little People, Big Dreams Series

Japarrika Rises by Tiwi College Students

The Selwood Boys by Tony Wilson and the Selwoods

Kicking Goals by Adam Goodes and Anita Heiss

The Jammer by Nova Weetman

Boy 21 by Matthew Quick

ADULT – What We Are Reading

I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy

Mr. Carver’s Whale by Lyn Hughes

Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

A Kind of Magic by Anna Spargo Ryan

Different, Not Less by Chloe Hayden

SLAV Online Book Club September 8th 2022 – LGBTQI Books

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Our thanks to those of you able to join us for our book club meeting to discuss titles and strategies for displaying LGBTQI Books in school libraries. As always, so many of you had so many wonderful contributions to share with us, and it is very appreciated.

This was our sixth book club meeting for 2022, and we look forward to chatting with you again at our next meeting on October 13th to discuss the topic – Climate / Environment Focus. Either in fact or explored in fiction, the environment and climate are issues of significance. What texts are of interest to your young readers as they grapple with these issues?

Disclaimer: The lists generated as a result of Book Club discussions are not, by any means, an exhaustive list of all titles or authors for each genre/category discussed. Nor will all titles be suitable for all libraries. We advise staff discretion when referencing these lists, to properly confirm individual title suitability for individual libraries, school and students needs. These are suggested titles only, shared by our members and inclusion on, or exclusion from, a list does not suggest SLAV endorsement or rejection of a title.

 Articles

Attwell, V. (2021). “In all areas, I cater to the majority”: An investigation of LGBT+ provision in school libraries from the librarian’s perspective. Synergy, 19(1). Retrieved from https://slav.vic.edu.au/index.php/Synergy/article/view/492

Byrne, C. (2021). Mirrors, windows and sliding glass doors: LGBTIQA+ perspectives. Synergy, 19(2). Retrieved from https://slav.vic.edu.au/index.php/Synergy/article/view/530

Day, N. (2019). Windows and mirrors: visibility and representation in Australian LGBTQIA+ YA fiction. Synergy, 17(1). Retrieved from https://slav.vic.edu.au/index.php/Synergy/article/view/v171196

Discussion in chat about display ideas in school libraries

  • Popular LGBTQI+ books in our high school library. They have a rainbow spine sticker and searchable subject codes.
  • any ideas on whether we should identify books by a genre sticker or in a reading list…seems to be mixed ideas. Is consulting our rainbow group at school enough?
  • I have purchased a rainbow sticker but I haven’t used them yet as I believe that some of the students at my school would feel victimised about reading LGBTQI+
  • I told my junior campus colleagues to read holden shepherd as I felt it was too graphic for yrs 7&8
  • We place the rainbow sticker inside the book on the date due slip or back cover of the book
  • Sorry I don’t have microphone or camera today… Our ‘Pride Group’ meet every Tuesday in our meeting room and I show them new books I have purchased and/or they suggest titles to me.  When I was generifying I also consulted them about where to place the rainbow stickers – inside back cover with another genre sticker on spine for second subject.  I also add LGBTQI+ as a subject/genre in the catalogue
  • We don’t use rainbow stickers – our student parliament didn’t like that idea when we asked their opinion. We do have reading lists and do lots of displays around the various LGBTQI+ events throughout the year.
  • I made a libguide 🙂 https://libguides.ecmelb.catholic.edu.au/c.php?g=942347&p=6823320 and we do displays of rainbow stories pretty regularly
  • Our books are interspersed within our generified collection (obviously with appropriate subject headings and tags) and we do displays to highlight titles as well. I bought stickers (which I was thinking I would put inside the back cover; I remember it was mentioned in a previous book club) but I have not got there yet…
  • Today we have just put up a ‘Diversity’ display which the students have put together – covering not only LGBTQI but also neurodiversity –
  • I’m making sure I have plenty of queer titles as eBooks – all boys’ school so some of the boys are more comfortable borrowing online rather than in person sadly.
  • Back to earlier discussion: We consulted with our LGBTQIA+ club as to how they wanted our books displayed and how they could best access them. We trialled several different ways of presenting the books, including stickers, displays for special days & a stand-alone collection as well as some multiple copies interspersed. We have lists on our OPAC as well.

Links to Lists and Resources

Hi Everyone, sorry joining late, here is a link to our Course Reserve of some books in our middle (secondary ) collection (am at K-12 scl may be of interest https://bialik.on.worldcat.org/courseReserves/course/id/17526105

thinking of ebooks /eAudio you may like to check out EPIC Books – teachers can sign up for free and can share books with students https://www.getepic.com/app/search

Readings https://www.readings.com.au/collection/lgbtqia-books-for-teens

Diverse Book Finder https://diversebookfinder.org/content/lgbtq/

New Yorker Article https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-education/lgbt-books-kids-ban

Buzzfeed List of upcoming 2022 books https://www.buzzfeed.com/dahliaadler/new-lgbtq-young-adult-books-summer-2022

Titles Discussed

Graphic novels:

Heartstopper Series (obviously 😊 )

Kiss Number 8 – Colleen AF Venable

Séance tea party – Reimena Yee

Bloom – Kevin Panetta

Mooncakes – Suzanne Walker

Snapdragon – Kat Leyh

Verse novels:

The Black Flamingo – Dean Atta

Other fiction we love:

Wayward Children series by Seanan McGuire (#1 Every Heart a Doorway) – yr 9 and up

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

Take a Bow, Noah Mitchell – Tobias Madden

The First Third by Will Kostakis

The Sidekicks by Will Kostakis

Dancing Barefoot by Alice Boyle

We Could Be Something – Will Kostakis COMING May 2023

The House by the Cerulean Sea – TJ Klune

Heatwave by TJ Klune

Julian is a Mermaid by Jessica Love

Where You Left Us by Rhiannon Wilde

Aristotle & Dante. Film adaptation produced by Lin Manual coming out soon.

Lost Soul be at Peace by Maggie Thrash (senior graphic novel)

All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson. A memoir manifesto about growing up black and queer

Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

I Kissed Sarah Wheeler by Casey McQuiston

Cinderella is Dead by Kaylnn Bayron

This Poison Heart by Kaylynn Bayron

This Wicked Fate by Kaylynn Bayron

Highway Bodies by Alison Evans has Horror/ Zombies and LBTQI

Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

Boy from the Mish by Gary Lonesborough

Dread Nation by Justina Ireland – zombies and lgbtqi

The Comediennes Guide to Pride by Haley Thompson

What We Are Reading

The Marriage Portrait – Maggie O’Farrell

Here Be Leviathans – Chris Flynn

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch

The Rising Tide by Ann Cleeves

Indira Naidoo’s The Space Between the Stars

The Dictionary of Lost Words – Pip Williams

Legitimate Sexpectations – Katrin Marson

 Sources for Reliable Reviews

Goodreads lists

Novelist – I found a public library that subscribes to Novelist so I don’t have to pay

Readings Monthly and Website

Common Sense Media (although sometimes with a grain of salt)

Read Plus

Oz Print

Magpies

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SLAV Online Book Club – August 10th 2022 – Reluctant Readers

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Our thanks to those of you able to join us for our book club meeting to discuss titles and strategies for engaging Reluctant Readers. As always, so many of you had so many wonderful contributions to share with us, and it is very appreciated. This topic has been one of our most popular book club meetings and our third discussion on this subject. It was wonderful to engage with new recommendations, revisit old favourites and consider strategies that help school libraries support their reluctant readers.

This was our fifth book club meeting for 2022, and we look forward to chatting with you again at our next meeting on September 8th to discuss the topic LGBTQI+ titles. We will discuss across all age groups which texts are working well for those wishing to engage with LGBTQI+ experiences? How are these texts positioned in your school library to support and bolster inclusion?

Disclaimer: The lists generated as a result of Book Club discussions are not, by any means, an exhaustive list of all titles or authors for each genre/category discussed. Nor will all titles be suitable for all libraries. We advise staff discretion when referencing these lists, to properly confirm individual title suitability for individual libraries, school and students needs. These are suggested titles only, shared by our members and inclusion on, or exclusion from, a list does not suggest SLAV endorsement or rejection of a title.

Books that have been adapted for TV and Movies

Heartstopper Series by Alice Oseman (YA)

The Babysitters Club by Ann M. Martin (MG)

Sandman by Neil Gaiman (Mature Readers)

Enola Holmes by Nancy Springer (MG)

Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett (YA)

Love and Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch (YA)

High Engagement Reads

School of Good and Evil by Soman Chainani (MG)

The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells

Fart Boy Series by Adam Wallace

Ninja Kid/Wolf Girl/ Weirdo Series by Anh Do

Anything by Colleen Hoover (Mature Readers)

The Crossover by Kwame Alexander (the original verse book and the graphic novel version)

John Scalzi books suit those who want something a bit outside the box. We have Redshirts (sci fi) and Lock In (mystery/suspense)

Warcross by Marie Lu (YA great gamer tie in)

Football Superstar series (soccer) – easy on the eye layout, not much text. Super popular with boys not confident with reading

Making Friends by Kirsten Gudsnuk

Diary of a Wimpy Kid Series by Jeff Kinney

A number of our Year 7-8s love ‘Electric State‘ by Simon Stålenhag – it’s a bit more expensive, but it’s beautiful and the illustrations are amazing!

Verse Novels

Verse novels by Sarah Crossan have worked will with students who wanted Colleen Hoover books

The Poet X is a fantastic YA verse novel, Other Words for Home for a slightly younger reader

Bindi by Kirli Saunders is a beautiful verse novel too

I sell the verse novels to reluctant readers by pointing out that they are a super quick read, but you’ve read a whole book!

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

Steven Herrick verse novels are well used at our boys school, including as class texts Yr 9-12

When the Stars Wrote Back by Trista Mateer (mature readers) – poetry

NCACL verse novel database

Other titles that work well

The Other Side of the Sky Series by Amie Kaufman, Meagan Spooner

(Horror) Dark Hunter books by Benjamin Hulme-Cross

Flowers in The Attic by Virginia Andrews (YA)

Gordon Korman books have been popular with boys who reject other things e.g. Restart and The Unteachables Planning to buy War Stories, Linked, Notorious, and The Fort (His books cover many genres)

Stormbreaker Series by Anthony Horowitz (novels and graphic novels)

A Spoonful of Sadie by Lana Spasevski, Joanie Stone (Illustrator) (soccer)

The Fox Swift Series by Cyril Rioli (AFL)

I Can Be Series … Belinda Clarke (etc) Phil Kettle author (sport)

Ash Barty Junior Fiction Series – Little Ash (tennis)

The Life and Times of Gracie Faltrain by Cath Crowley (girls soccer story fiction)

More Than a Kick by Tayla Harris

Chessboxer by Stephen Davies is amazing – suitable for secondaries

Bulletcatcher is a well-written series (Barrington Stoke) by Chris Bradford

Virtual Kombat trilogy by Chris Bradford  www.barringtonstoke.co.uk

We recently bought the Investigators series, and the primary students love them

I’m pretty sure LMERC have audio books if you join them https://lmerc.softlinkhosting.com.au/oliver/libraryHome.do

I Survived graphic novels are great

Strategies Shared

Try matching books to video games https://screenrant.com/ten-best-video-games-based-books/

Making book lists on our catalogue e.g. Bring the Tissues, At Least One Explosion, Enemies to Lovers, etc

Getting them to talk with their peers about books they recommend

Flip Guides to assist them with choosing

Display or list of banned books – everyone wants read something that they are not allowed to!

Create a short / quick or easy book collection

Have students choose the book they will study for English and buy it or have them choose books from a bookshop for the library.

Invite students to choose from our Lamont book boxes to be added to our collection

Definitely do displays based on Booktok and Bookstagram trends. Latest is the “He’s a 10 but…” meme.

Our students recommend books – a tick is added on the cover and it’s displayed faced out

For the students who don’t know what they want to read we have top 30 lists for different year levels and top 6 lists for all of our different genres. They use them far more than I thought they would

Invite the author to speak

Promote the audio of the book

We have a ‘Bookflix’ window for trending books

I always ask them what they enjoy watching and go from there

Adding book promos to our library promotional trailer (runs over lunchtime) is very successful

What We Are Reading Adult Titles

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

Salt and Skin by Eliza Henry Jones

Tanith Lee novels

In by Will McPhail is a great adult graphic novel.

Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey

Partway through ‘Wake’ by Shelley Burr

The Crimson Thread by Kate Forsyth

Her Majesty’s Royal Coven by Juno Dawson

Dinner with the Schnabel’s by Toni Jordan

 

 

 

 

 

SLAV Online Book Club June 16th 2022 – Non Fiction.

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Child reading at Brookline Booksmith.jpg

 

Our thanks to those of you able to join us for our book club meeting to share your favourite Non Fiction picks. As always, so many of you had so many wonderful contributions to share with us, and it is very appreciated.

This was our fourth book club meeting for 2022, and we look forward to chatting with you again at our next meeting on Wednesday August 10 to discuss the topic: Books for Reluctant Readers. This topic has been one of our most popular in past book club meetings. We’d like to engage with new recommendations, revisit old favourites and consider strategies that help school libraries support their reluctant readers

Disclaimer: The lists generated as a result of Book Club discussions are not, by any means, an exhaustive list of all titles or authors for each genre/category discussed. Nor will all titles be suitable for all libraries. We advise staff discretion when referencing these lists, to properly confirm individual title suitability for individual libraries, school and students needs. These are suggested titles only, shared by our members and inclusion on, or exclusion from, a list does not suggest SLAV endorsement or rejection of a title.

Biography/ Auto Biography

It’s Trevor Noah: Born a Crime: (YA edition) Trevor Noah https://www.readings.com.au/products/26362986/its-trevor-noah-born-a-crime-ya-edition

Stolen Science: Thirteen Untold Stories of Scientists and Inventors Almost Written out of History
Ella Schwartz, Gaby D’Alessandro

https://www.readings.com.au/products/33519384/stolen-science-thirteen-untold-stories-of-scientists-and-inventors-almost-written-out-of-history

The Missing: The True Story of My Family in World War II
Michael Rosen

https://www.readings.com.au/products/33504834/the-missing-the-true-story-of-my-family-in-world-war-ii

365 Real-Life Superheroes
Valentina Camerini

https://www.readings.com.au/products/31822668/365-real-life-superheroes

Looking for Heroes: One Boy, One Year, 100 Letters
Liisa S Ogburn, Aidan A Colvin

https://www.readings.com.au/products/22984731/looking-for-heroes-one-boy-one-year-100-letters

Rescue
David Long (Author), Kerry Hyndman

https://www.readings.com.au/products/32084191/rescue

Rejected Princesses: Tales of History’s Boldest Heroines, Hellions, and Heretics by Jason Porath https://www.readings.com.au/products/22054173/rejected-princesses-tales-of-historys-boldest-heroines-hellions-and-heretics

Good Night Stories For Rebel Girls: 100 Immigrant Women Who Changed The World by Elena Favilli https://www.readings.com.au/products/32689349/good-night-stories-for-rebel-girls-100-immigrant-women-who-changed-the-world

Stories for South Asian Supergirls by Raj Kaur Khaira https://www.readings.com.au/products/34215640/stories-for-south-asian-supergirls

Rise Up: Ordinary Kids with Extraordinary Stories by Amanda Li, Amy Blackwell

https://www.readings.com.au/products/30005242/rise-up-ordinary-kids-with-extraordinary-stories

A Different Sort of Normal by Abigail Balfe https://www.readings.com.au/products/33474833/a-different-sort-of-normal

The First Scientists: Deadly Inventions and Innovations from Australia’s First Peoples by Corey Tutt https://www.readings.com.au/products/33865889/the-first-scientists-deadly-inventions-and-innovations-from-australias-first-peoples

Heroes, Rebels and Innovators: Inspiring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from history by Karen Wyld, Jaelyn Biumaiwai https://www.readings.com.au/products/33495703/heroes-rebels-and-innovators-inspiring-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-people-from-history

Able: Fully Updated Edition by Dylan Alcott https://www.readings.com.au/products/28423908/able-fully-updated-edition

Holocaust by DOLAN HUGH, Adrian Barbu https://www.readings.com.au/products/33406409/holocaust

Sport

Unbelievable Football: Winner of the Telegraph Children’s Sports Book of the Year 2020
Matt Oldfield, Ollie Mann

https://www.readings.com.au/products/28351559/unbelievable-football-winner-of-the-telegraph-childrens-sports-book-of-the-year-2020

Football School Terrific Teams: 50 True Stories of Football’s Greatest Sides by Alex Bellos, Ben Lyttleton, Spike Gerrell

https://www.readings.com.au/products/33549748/football-school-terrific-teams-50-true-stories-of-footballs-greatest-sides

Football School Epic Heroes: 50 true tales that shook the world
Alex Bellos, Ben Lyttleton, Spike Gerrell

https://www.readings.com.au/products/32717105/football-school-epic-heroes-50-true-tales-that-shook-the-world

Football Legends 2022: Top 100 stars of the modern game
David Ballheimer, Opta Sports

https://www.readings.com.au/products/33586092/football-legends-2022-top-100-stars-of-the-modern-game

F2: Ultimate Footballer: BECOME THE PERFECT FOOTBALLER WITH THE F2’S NEW BOOK!: (Skills Book 4)
The F2

https://www.readings.com.au/products/29937445/f2-ultimate-footballer-become-the-perfect-footballer-with-the-f2s-new-book-skills-book-4

Stars of the NBA
Kjartan Atli Kjartansson

https://www.readings.com.au/products/33595782/stars-of-the-nba

FIFA World Football Records 2022
Keir Radnedge

https://www.readings.com.au/products/33676082/fifa-world-football-records-2022

Animals/Environment

Finding Gobi (Younger Readers edition)
Dion Leonard

https://www.readings.com.au/products/23772562/finding-gobi-younger-readers-edition

The Gentle Genius of Trees by Phillip Bunting https://www.readings.com.au/products/33497412/the-gentle-genius-of-trees

Weird But True’ series by Nat Geo Kids https://www.readings.com.au/products/20987376/nat-geo-kids-weird-but-true-ripped-from-the-headlines-3

Tim Flannery Series https://www.readings.com.au/products/29598891/explore-your-world-weird-wild-amazing

Stand up for the future https://www.readings.com.au/products/26210620/stand-up-for-the-future-a-celebration-of-inspirational-young-australians

With a Dog’s Love: Clever Dogs Helping Humans by Gina Dawson https://www.readings.com.au/products/34251481/with-a-dogs-love-clever-dogs-helping-humans

Walking in Gagudju Country by Diane Lucas, Ben Tyler, Emma Long  https://www.readings.com.au/products/33523197/walking-in-gagudju-country

Book of Curious Birds by Jennifer Cossins https://www.readings.com.au/products/33748907/book-of-curious-birds

The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Peculiar Pairs in Nature by Sami Bayly https://www.readings.com.au/products/33665861/the-illustrated-encyclopaedia-of-peculiar-pairs-in-nature

Popular Culture

Ninja: Get Good: My Ultimate Guide to Gaming by Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins https://www.readings.com.au/products/28770118/ninja-get-good-my-ultimate-guide-to-gaming

The Ultimate Superhero Movie Guide: The definitive handbook for comic book film fans
Helen O’Hara

https://www.readings.com.au/products/27754564/the-ultimate-superhero-movie-guide-the-definitive-handbook-for-comic-book-film-fans

The World of Avatar: A Visual Exploration
Joshua Izzo

https://www.readings.com.au/products/27628093/the-world-of-avatar-a-visual-exploration

Complex Presents: Sneaker of the Year: The Best Since ‘85
Complex Media, Inc., Marc Ecko

https://www.readings.com.au/products/32866170/complex-presents-sneaker-of-the-year-the-best-since-85

Crystals: Everything you need to know to Heal, Cleanse, Love, Energize by Cassandra Eason https://www.readings.com.au/products/24375598/crystals-everything-you-need-to-know-to-heal-cleanse-love-energize

Google It: A History of Google by Anna Crowley Redding

https://www.readings.com.au/products/33430860/google-it-a-history-of-google

Are You Afraid Yet?
Stephen James O’Meara, Jeremy Kaposy

https://www.readings.com.au/products/4687128/are-you-afraid-yet

Aliens, Ghosts and Vanishings: Strange and Possibly True Australian Stories
Stella Tarakson, Richard Morden

https://www.readings.com.au/products/21981225/aliens-ghosts-and-vanishings-strange-and-possibly-true-australian-stories

An Illustrated History of UFOs by Adam Allsuch Boardman

https://www.readings.com.au/products/32799126/an-illustrated-history-of-ufos

History

Underground: Marsupial Outlaws and Other Rebels of Australia’s War in Vietnam by Mirranda Burton https://www.readings.com.au/products/33712647/underground-marsupial-outlaws-and-other-rebels-of-australias-war-in-vietnam

Sapiens Graphic Novel (Volume 1) by Yuval Noah Harari, Daniel Casanave, David Vandermeulen https://www.readings.com.au/products/33022493/sapiens-graphic-novel-volume-1

The Bomber Mafia by Malcolm Gladwell https://www.readings.com.au/products/33532144/the-bomber-mafia

Adult

The Boy Behind the Curtain by Tim Winton https://www.readings.com.au/products/23899122/the-boy-behind-the-curtain

Cold Enough for Snow by Jessica Au https://www.readings.com.au/products/34432167/cold-enough-for-snow

The Golden Book by Kate Ryan https://www.readings.com.au/products/33520392/the-golden-book

The Winter Dress by Lauren Chater https://www.readings.com.au/products/33810738/the-winter-dress

Careering by Daisy Buchanan https://www.readings.com.au/products/34295064/careering

Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk https://www.readings.com.au/products/25586213/drive-your-plow-over-the-bones-of-the-dead

Before You Knew My Name by Jacqueline Bublitz https://www.readings.com.au/products/33470299/before-you-knew-my-name

Circe by Madeline Miller https://www.readings.com.au/products/26360827/circe

Joanne, Wantirna College – shared via email

Popular science:

  • Humble Pi : a comedy of math errors by Matt Parker (2020)
  • What if? : serious scientific answers to absurd hypothetical questions by Randall Munroe (2015)
  • Gory details : adventures from the dark side of science by Erika Engelhaupt (2020)
  • Dr Karl books

Other:

  • Sport bios – mainly AFL and basketball
  • Guinness Book of Records
  • Ripley’s Believe it or Not
  • The animal book : a visual encyclopedia of life on Earth by David Burnie. (DK 2013)
  • Joke books

Pam Saunders – shared via email

Life in five seconds. 1623650127 #Humour #short

This is not a sex book 9781786693037 #sexed (constantly stolen or moved or falling apart)

Fifty _____ ideas you really need to know (various titles in series published by Quercus) #shortfunfacts

Sneakers the complete limited edition guide 9780500517284 (maybe dated by now) #fashion

The intelligent investor 9780060555665 #shares #makingmoney

Beginners guide to the stock market 978-1099617201 #makingmoney

Zen Pencils 9781449457952 #humour #short

How to: Absurd scientific advice for common real- world problems 9781473680333 #funfacts

30 Second Series (various titles) by Ivy Press eg 9781782405474 #quicksummaryoftopics

Factfulness: Ten reasons we are wrong about the world …..ISBN13: 9781473637467) #globaliization

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Essential Leadership of School Librarians

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Important professional reading recently published. You can read the PDF using the link below.

Ness, Molly & Merga, Margaret & Torres, Julia & Chambre, Susan. (2022). The Essential Leadership of School Librarians LITERACY LEADERSHIP BRIEF. Copyright 2022 International Literacy Association | No. 9466

This literacy leadership brief is available in PDF form for free download through the International Literacy Association’s website:
literacyworldwide.org/statements.

Media Contact: For all media inquiries, please contact press@reading.org.

Suggested APA Reference
International Literacy Association. (2022). Librarianship and literacy [Literacy leadership brief]. https://literacyworldwide.org/docs/default-source/where-we-stand/the-essential-leadership-of-school-librarians.pdf

About the International Literacy Association
The International Literacy Association (ILA) is a global advocacy and membership organization dedicated to advancing literacy for all through its network of more than 300,000 literacy educators, researchers, and experts across 128 countries. With over 60 years of experience, ILA has set the standard for how literacy is defined, taught, and evaluated. ILA’s Standards for the Preparation of Literacy Professionals 2017 provides an evidence-based benchmark for the development and evaluation of literacy professional preparation programs. ILA collaborates with partners across the world to develop, gather, and disseminate high-quality resources, best practices, and cutting-edge research to empower educators, inspire students, and inform policymakers. ILA publishes The Reading Teacher, Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, and Reading Research Quarterly, which are peer reviewed and edited by leaders in the field. For more information, visit literacyworldwide.org.

Guest Blog Post – SLAV Spotlight On Series

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SLAV Spotlight On Sessions

Over the past couple of months I have had the pleasure of completing a virtual placement with SLAV as I near the end of my studies in librarianship at CSU. A major part of the placement included my attendance and participation in a variety of professional development sessions and events offered by SLAV. One of these sessions—and possibly the most influential and impactful, were the Spotlight On Sessions.

These sessions featured three guest teacher-librarians, who gave virtual tours of their respective libraries. We heard about a number of programs including ‘Summer Reading Challenges’ and innovative online/web-based programs to support such challenges, as well as forward-thinking initiatives to support digital literacy and future-ready skills for students. Guests shared information about some of the ways wide reading is supported within their schools, how teacher-librarians build and maintain relationships with teaching staff, and how the use of LibGuides can be maximised to support educational outcomes for students.

It was nothing short of inspiring to hear from librarians who are continually striving to develop best practices to support their students and colleagues in an environment that like many others, has had to pivot and embrace the online space due to Covid-19 and associated challenges. After attending the Spotlight On sessions, what became clear to me was that this kind of professional learning allows one to get an intimate glimpse of how colleagues within the profession continually strive for excellence in their respective roles. In turn, this exchange of ideas can help us to constantly adapt and grow as information professionals, whilst also ensuring the best possible outcomes for the communities in which we serve.

 – Vanessa Carnevale – From 2022 Community Hub Manager – Plenty Valley Christian College

SLAV Online Book Club October 14 – Murder Mystery and Mayhem

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Our thanks to those of you able to join us for our recent book club meeting to discuss titles that fit into the Murder, Mystery and Mayhem category. As always, so many of you had so many wonderful contributions to share with us, and it is very appreciated.

Below is the list of titles and series shared and discussed. Some titles may have an indicated suitable age range next to each title, however this is merely a guide and we encourage you to use your own judgement, as you know your students best.

We look forward to seeing you at our next meeting on Thursday November 18 to dicuss the topic: Books that every school library should have. What books do you think are essential for a school library? Popular or important, award winners or timeless but maybe not a classic? There are various criteria one could use – what are your must haves? Join us HERE.

Disclaimer: The lists generated as a result of Book Club discussions are not, by any means, an exhaustive list of all titles or authors for each genre/category discussed. Nor will all titles be suitable for all libraries. We advise staff discretion when referencing these lists, to properly confirm individual title suitability for individual libraries, school and students needs. These are suggested titles only, shared by our members and inclusion on, or exclusion from, a list does not suggest SLAV endorsement or rejection of a title.

Book List

Murder Most Unladylike Series By Robin Stevens
Young Bond Series by Charlie Higson
Friday Barnes Series by R.A. Spratt
Diamond Brother Series by Anthony Horowitz
Agatha Oddly Series by Lena Jones
Embassy Row Series by Ally Carter
Picture Book: There’s a Ghost in this House by Oliver Jeffers
That Weekend by Tara Thomas
The Cheerleaders by Tara Thomas
SelfLess By Aviva
Lies Like Wildfire by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez
The Cousins by Karen M. McManus
They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
Wilder Girls by Rory Power
Kath Reich’s series The Virals
Teri Terry Book of Lies
Good Girl’s Guide to Murder Series by Holly Jackson
Wolf Creek by Greg McLean
None Shall Sleep by Ellie Marnie
The Break by Phillip Gwynne
The Diviners by Libba Bray
Deep Water by Sarah Epstein
Imposter by Susanne Winnacker
The Merciless by Danielle Vega
Cry Blue Murder by Kim Kane
We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
Rivers of London Series by Ben Aaranovich
Small Spaces by Sarah Epstein
Her Perilous Mansion by Sean Williams
The Supernatural Survival Guide George Ivanoff
The Ghost of Howlers Beach by Jackie French
Risk by Fleur Ferris
Enola Holmes Series
Jonathan Stroud The Screaming Staircase
Horror Bury Me – K.R. Alexander; Shadow House series
Model Under Cover by Carina Axelson
His Name Was Walter by Emily Rodda
Five Nights at Freddie’s Series (based on the video game)
Sleepless by Lou Morgan
Tech Fury by J. A. Darke
The Gallagher Girls Academy by Ally Carter
The Body- Stephen King
The Fall by Tristan Bancks
Conspiracy 365 Series by Gabrielle Lord
Nancy Drew and Trixie Beldon books
Newt’s Emerald by Garth Nix
Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard
Frightville – Don’t Let the Doll In by Mike Ford
Phoenix Files by Chris Morphew
The Magpie Society by Zoe Sugg and Amy McCulloch
48 Hours Series by Gabrielle Lord
Barrington Stoke Series has many horror and mystery titles
Younger/Primary Horrific Tales of Horrifying Horror by Adam Wallace
The Red Eye Series
The Lily and the Rose by Jackie French
The Inheritance Games Series by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Dan Brown
Matthew Reilly
For older –
Girl A by Abigail Dean
Lianne Moriarty
Jane Harper
James Patterson
Shift by Em Bailey
The Loners by Lex Thomas

ADULT – What We Are Reading

Who Gets to be Smart by Bri Lee
Melbourne Circle by Nick Gadd
The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris
Thursday Murder Club books 1 and 2 by Richard Oseman
Writers and Lovers by Lily King
The Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
The Summer House by James Patterson
The Book Ninja by Ali Berg
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams
Thursdays at Orange Blossom House by Sophie Green
Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty
Bodies of Light by Jennifer Down
The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth
The Chemist by Stephenie Meyer
The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman by Julietta Henderson
The Long Game by Simon Rowell
Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins
Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell
Reading the Seasons – Books Holding Life & Friendship Together by G Leece and S Tsakalakis
The Girl Remains by Katherine Firkin
Sticks and stones by Katherine Firkin
One Italian Summer by Pip Williams
The Mystery of a Hansom Cab by Fergus Hume
The Broken Shore by Peter Temple
Truth by Peter Temple
The Good Wife of Bath by Karen Brooks
Peter May Novels – The Lewis Trilogy
Late Bloomer by Clem Bastow

 

 

 

SLAV Online Book Club – September 9th 2021 – Culturally Diverse Books

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Our thanks to those of you able to join us for our recent book club meeting to discuss Culturally Diverse titles. As always, so many of you had so many wonderful contributions to share with us, and it is very appreciated.

Below is the hugely diverse and broad list of titles and series shared and discussed. Some titles may have an indicated suitable age range next to each title, however this is merely a guide and we encourage you to use your own judgement, as you know your students best.

We look forward to seeing you at our next meeting on October 14th for the topic: Murder, Mystery and Mayhem. From the classic whodunnit to the modern-day book about political intrigue, murder and mystery are everywhere in print, on the screen, both real and imagined. What are your students reading in this space? Is this a cross over genre for young readers?

Disclaimer: The lists generated as a result of Book Club discussions are not, by any means, an exhaustive list of all titles or authors for each genre/category discussed. Nor will all titles be suitable for all libraries. We advise staff discretion when referencing these lists, to properly confirm individual title suitability for individual libraries, school and students needs. These are suggested titles only, shared by our members and inclusion on, or exclusion from, a list does not suggest SLAV endorsement or rejection of a title.

Book List

The F Team by Rawah Arja’s
Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron
The Poisoned Heart by Kalynn Bayron
Flock, First Nations Stories Then and Now. Curated by award-winning author Ellen van Neerven
The Firekeepers Daughter by Angeline Boulley
The Coconut Children by Vivian Pham
Future Girl by Asphyxia
You Must Be Layla by Yassmin Abdel-Magied
The Truths We Hold: An American Journey (Young Readers Edition) by Kamala Harris
Maxine Beneba Clarke – ALL Titles.
Yes, No, Maybe, So by Becky Albertalli with Aisha Saeed)
More to the Story by Hena Khan
The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling by Wai Chim
Does My Head Look Big in This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah
When Michael Met Mina by Randa Abdel-Fattah
Little People Big Dreams Series for very young students, covers a very diverse range of key people in history.

Please Don’t Hug Me by Kay Kerr
One Hundred Days by Alice Pung
The Boy Who Tried to Shrink His Name by Sandhya Parappukkaran and Michelle Pereira
Sugar Town Queens by Malia Nunn
Culturally Diverse Resources – Languages & Multicultural Education – Oliver (softlinkhosting.com.au)
Frankly in Love by David Yoon
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
The Katha Chest by Radhiah Chowdhury and Lavanya Naidu
The Capybaras by Alfredo Soderguit
Mask of Shadows and Ruin of Stars by Linsey Miller
Parvana by Deborah Ellis ( a graphic novel is also available)
George by Alex Gino
When Stars Are Scattered – Victoria Jamieson GN
Muddy People by Sara El Sayed
My Name is Sangoel by Karen Lynn Williams, Khadra Mohammed, Catherine Stock
Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal
The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi (available as eBook and picture books through LMERC)
My language, your language by Lisa Bullard
The book of languages : talk your way around the world by Mick Webb (2015)
Illegal – Eoin Colfer GN
When Stars Are Scattered – Victoria Jamieson GN
Stories for South Asian Supergirls by Khaira, Raj Kaur
The Ink Bridge by Neil Grant
When the Ground is Hard Malla Nunn
Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls by Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo
Parachutes by Kelly Yang (Year 10 and above)
The Interrogation of Ashala Wolf by Ambelin Kwaymullina
On Two Feet and Wings – Abbas Kazerooni
Land Beyond the Wall : An Immigration Story by Charles, Veronika Martenova
This is How We Do It by Mat Lamothe
Bindi by Kirli Saunders and Dub Leffler
Suri’s Wall by Lucy Estela
Escape From Syria by Kullab, Samya GN
Anthologies such as Growing up Asian/Aboriginal/African/Disabled edited by Various
Catching Teller Crow by Ambelin Kwaymullina, Ezekiel Kwaymullina
Ghost Bird by Lisa Fuller
Paper boats: an anthology of short stories about journeys – great for EAL students with little English
After Story by Larissa Behrendt
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
The Happiest Refugee by Anh Do
A Long Way Home by Saroo Bierley,
Sold by Patricia McCormick,
Her Father’s Daughter by Alice Pung
Nona & Me by Clare Atkins
My Two Blankets by Irena Kobald, Freya Blackwood
Crow Country by Kate Constable
Becoming Kirrali Lewis by Jane Harrison
Look to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation website for lists of titles
The Song of the Crocodile by Nardi Simpson (adult)
All Will Kostakis Novels
Multiversity which is Marvel but the first issue features an Aboriginal Australian superhero called Thunderer, named after an Aboriginal thunder god, Wandjina
Where We Begin by Christie Nieman
Ubby’s Underdogs by Brenton E. McKenna, Banjo Woorunmurra GN
Matty Forever by Elizabeth Fensham (middle to upper primary)
Shauna’s Great Expectations by Kathleen Loughnan
Metal Fish, Falling Snow by Cath Moore
Yinti Desert Child Trilogy by Pat Lowe & Jimmy Pike
ALL Remy Lai books – humorous – upper primary, lower secondary
The Tribe by Michael Mohammed Ahmad (adult)
The Boy at the Back of the Class by Onjali Q. Rauf, Pippa Curnick

Welcome to the Aboriginal and or Torres Strait Islander Resource


We have older boys very interested in sport biographies–Majak Daw, Marlion Pickett (upper secondary)
Sister of the Bollywood Bride by Nandini Bajpai
Follow the Rabbit Proof Fence by Doris Pilkington
Freedom Ride by Digger J Jones
Little Jiany by Shirley Marr
From the Chat:
Proudest Blue is gorgeous picture book about wearing first hijab
When Dimple Met Rishi is good = has a Netflix tie in.
Noughts and crosses by Malorie Blackman explores a fantastic dystopian world – a Foxtel series
Henna Wars is fantastic – Latinx, Indian, LGBTIQA rep and discusses cultural appropriation
Basketball manga set in high schools in Japan… Kuroko’s basketball by Tadatoshi Fujimaki and another Slam Dunk by Takehiko Inoue He has also wrote another that is about Wheelchair Basketball
Living On Hope Street by Demet Divaroren
Cloudwish by Fiona Wood (CBCA Winner 2016). Between Us by Clare Atkins (pub. 2018) is excellent.
Becoming Muhammad Ali is a hit with a great cover by James Patterson
Young adult version of the Trevor Noah biography
Born a Crime
Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park. Graphic version is Nya’s Long Walk
I Am Malala- Malala Yousafzai. Different format of the story- Picture book, Biography
The Mediterranean- Armin Greder- Picture book older readers, quite confronting
The Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
Sister Heart by Sally Morgan
Eric by Shaun Tan
The Happiest Man on Earth by Eddie Jaku
The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna – fantasy – fantastic cover and wonderful story
Fat Chance, Charlie Vega by Crystal Maldonado
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han
Hello! illustrated by Tony Flowers
Russian folklore – The Republic of Birds and The Girl Who Speaks Bear
Rick Riordan Presents imprint – mythologies from diverse cultures told from the POV of people from those cultures. The ones I’ve read and LOVED are Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, and Sal & Gabi Break the Universe
Fantasy – Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko (Redemptor – book 2 – has just been published). West-African based
The Monkey King’s Daughter is a series of books by author Todd DeBonis
Ms Marvel – Kamala Khan – Muslim teen superhero
Buttons my cat does not have boundaries
Adib Khorram – Darius the Great is not OK
Mazin Grace by Dylan Colemen
Last Gate of the Emperor by Kwame Mbalia and Joel David Makonnen
Our library has a learnpath page with info about culturally diverse literature https://lmerc.softlinkhosting.com.au/oliver/learnpath/guide/CulturallyDiverseResources
Kwame Alexander titles
Kicking Goals by Adam Goodes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Anime_and_manga
Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson is a great verse memoir

Adult Book List – What We Are Reading
Wild Abandon by Emily Bitto
I Am Change by Suzy Zail
The Mad Women’s Ball by Victoria Mas
Punching the air Zoboi, Ibi Aanu
Beautiful World Where Are You? by Sally Rooney
The Locksmith’s Daughter by Karen Brooks
I read The Auschwitz photographer, haunting
Just Mercy-biography about black lawyer in modern America fighting for justice in Alabama
Big sister, Little sister, Red sister about the Soong sisters in pre rev. China,
Emotional Female by Yumiko Kadota. Memoir about training to be a surgeon.
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (pub. 2015).
Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy
I read the new Haruki Murakami short story collection.
The Book Ninja by Ali Berg
Salt Creek by Lisa Treloar
Wolf island by Lisa Treloar
The Mountains Sing by Nguyen Phan Que Mai
Anything But Fine – Tobias Madden
Muddy People by Sara El Sayed
Escape from Manus by Jaivet Ealom
One Hundred Days by Alice Pung
The Last Guests by J.P. Pomare
The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Hellar
Songbirds by Christy Lefteri
A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra

 

The Importance of Reading and School Libraries

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Library professionals have long known the benefits of school library spaces, managed and staffed by qualified library staff. We are all very aware of how vital school libraries are, for a myriad of reasons.

COVID19 has had an enormous impact on how our students learn, access books, resources and libraries. It has also had a significant impact on student wellbeing. Much is being written about the importance of reading for continued well being, including this excellent article written by Dr. Margaret. K. Merga and published on The Conversation on August 9th 2021.  She writes “We know that adults who are avid readers enjoy being able to escape into their books. Reading for pleasure can reduce psychological distress and has been related to mental well-being. Reading-based interventions have been used successfully to support children who have experienced trauma. In a recent study, around 60% of young people agreed reading during lockdown helped them to feel better.” 

The article draws upon findings from her important research into Libraries as Wellbeing Supportive Spaces in Contemporary Schools published in July of 2021.

Dr. Merga’s findings further reinforce the important work that SLAV completed in 2020. During June 2020, the School Library Association of Victoria surveyed its members in order to gain a picture of what remote learning meant for school libraries during term two. 269 people responded to 20 questions in an online survey.

From the Executive Summary – “The results of this survey clearly indicate the vital role of school libraries in our school communities. There are many examples here of trained library professionals displaying creativity and flexibility in responding to the learning and teaching needs of remote learning. Results clearly demonstrate how a well-staffed and well-resourced school library supports and enriches a school community. This is vital for learning and teaching, but also in support of the general well-being of staff and students and the common pursuit of developing resilient, life-long learners.” You can read the full report which includes a comprehensive reference list – here 

From SLAV Executive Officer Dr. Susan La Marca – “The spread of articles published during this period both online and in our journals, on this topic, are excellent examples of best practice responses to remote learning. They also indicate a high level of engagement with the issues related to learning and teaching by school library professionals during a time of disruption. These teacher librarians, and their school library teams, have also demonstrated a level of proactivity, expertise and reflection that is to be celebrated.”

 

Continuing To Work From Home – Some Ideas

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With the recent lockdowns and remote learning continuing on and off, many of our members have been sharing (through our discussion forums) tasks they are prioritising and assigning library staff during our time working from home. We thought it might be helpful to share a list of those here for you to reference and, if needed, to jog your memory for tasks that can be done remotely at this time.

These two articles from Knowledge Quest offer food for thought:

The School Library Is Still Open! Ten Ways to Change Our Physical Spaces into Virtual LibrariesThe New

Virtual Reality: Surviving and Thriving as a School Librarian during a Pandemic

Other tasks you might like to consider and schedule are:

Revisit, revise or update policy statements on library operation
Update procedures manual
LMS
• Reconsider home page
• Revisit loan period dates
• Fix cataloguing errors
• Maintain authority file
• Update patron records
• Reassess genre lists
• Update cover images
• Update keywords and subject headings

Professional learning
• Reading – FYI and Synergy
• Access past event material in the members only area of the SLAV website
• Access webinars on your particular LMS, databases etc

Update the library website
Promote ebooks and databases to staff and students
• Create user guides

Promote your availability for one-on-one online support to staff and students
Promote online competition options for students
Consider opportunity to attend more faculty area meetings
Curate resources to support projects and tasks across remainder of 2021
Liaise with teachers to incorporate research skills into future units of work
Plan displays and library activities for remainder of 2021
Begin compiling statistics and data for annual report to school admin / council

What can you work on now to ease the load in 2022? If you have any ideas or suggestions, or you think of something we may have missed, please feel free to contribute in the comments.