Category Archives: Professional learning

SLAV Online Book Club – 27th August 2020 – Engaging Covers

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Our biggest thanks to those of you able to join us for our recent bookclub meeting. As you can see the list is quite lengthy, which is a wonderful result! Some titles have an indicated suitable age range next to each title, however this is merely a guide and as always we encourage you to use your own judgement, as you know your students best.

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.

Happy reading and don’t forget to join us for our next meeting on October 14 2020 to dicuss biographies. Register HERE.

Covers that do well to engage readers:

George Ivanoff – new reprinted new covers of his series are excellent

The Bad Guys by Aaron Blabey

Real Pigeons Fight Crime Series by Andrew McDonald and Ben Wood

Polly and Buster Trilogy by Sally Rippin

Justin D’Ath – Extreme Adventures Series

Heartstopper Graphic Novels by Alice Oseman

Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

Lost Soul Atlas by Zana Fraillon

Film tie-in covers work well in YA

Five Nights at Freddy’s book series based on the video game

It Sounded Better in My Head by Nina Kenwood

The Stranger Things Books by Various

The End of the World is Bigger Than Love by Davina Bell

Design styles that don’t work as well to engage:

‘Babyish covers’ in a secondary school and other covers that suggest a young audience or young characters

Kids hate old fashioned covers

Cartoonish or illustrated covers in middle grade

Stereo typed colours – pink being for girls

Currently Reading:

Pax by Sara Pennypacker

The Strangeworlds Travel Agency by L.D. Lapinski.

Emergency Rescue Angel by Cate Whittle

Fox Eight by George Saunders

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Metal Fish, Falling Snow by Cath Moore

Ghost Bird by Lisa Fuller

Plain Janes Graphic Novels

Lumber Janes Graphic Novels

Don’t Stop Thinking About Tomorrow – Siobhan Curham (Yr 9)

Taylor Before and After – Jennie Englund (Yr 8)

The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams

Snow by Gina Inverarity

Yellow by Megan Jacobsen

The Scythe Trilogy by Neal Shusterman

Monuments and Rebel Gods by Will Kostakis

Vanishing Deep by Astrid Scholte

Blood Moon by Lucy Cuthew

The Mothers by Brit Bennett

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Kwame Alexander Titles

Sarah Crossan Titles

The Dog Runner by Bren MacDibble

Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

A Silent Voice by Yoshitoki Oima

The Anchoress by Robyn Cadwallader

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

SLAV Book Club July 29th 2020 – Reluctant Readers

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Our biggest thanks to those of you able to join us for our recent bookclub meeting, sharing with us your tried and tested recommendations for reluctant readers. As you can see the list is quite lengthy, which is a wonderful result! We have indicated suitable age range next to each title, however this is merely a guide and as always we encourage you to use your own judgement, as you know your students best. JF – indicates Junior Fiction, MG – Middle Grade, YA – Young Adult, A – Adult.

We have linked each title through to the Readings Website. Please keep in mind that if an item is out of stock, it may take some time to become available again, particularly if it is coming from overseas.

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.

Happy reading and don’t forget to join us for our next meeting on August 27th 2020 to dicuss book covers! Register HERE.

Books that have been turned into films often work
The Enemy Series by Charlie Higson YA
Polly and Buster Series by Sally Rippin MG
Choose Your Own Adventure by George Ivanoff MG
Real Pigeons Fight Crime Series by Andrew McDonald and Ben Wood JF/MG
Swerve by Philip Gwynne YA
Pale by Chris Wooding YA
Cherub Series by Robert Muchamore YA
Alex Rider Series by Anthony Horowitz YA
The Bad Guys Series by Aaron Blabey JF/MG
The Fall and Two Wolves by Tristan Bancks MG
Royal Flying Doctor Series by George Ivanoff MG
Escape From Furnace Series by Alexander Gordon Smith YA
Wings of Fire Series by Tui. T Sutherland MG
Warrior Cats Series by Erin Hunter
Rangers Apprentice Series by John Flanagan MG
The Witching Hours Series by Jack Henseleit MG
Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens MG
Ruby Redfort Series by Lauren Child MG
It by Stephen King A
Skullduggery Series by Derek Landy YA
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen YA
Exploding Endings by Tim Harris JF/MG
The Minutes to Danger Series by Jack Heath MG
Scythe, Toll and Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman YA
Diary of a Wimpy Kid Series by Jeff Kinney MG
Treehouse Series by Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton JF
Bro by Helen Chebatte YA
David Walliams Books MG
Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson (post movie) MG
Barrington Stoke Series (for students with reading difficulties) MG – YA
Orca Series JF
Weirdo Series by Ahn Do JF
Able by Dylan Alcott YA
Audio books were also suggested as a way into story
Graphic Novels and Manga also allow a way into the story through illustration
Amulet Series by Kazu Kibuishi MG
Sport Biographies
Nova Weetman titles ALL
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck YA
Garfield JF
Lark by Anthony McGowan YA
Iris and the Tiger by Leanne Hall MG
Once and Then by Morris Gleitzman MG
Grimsdon by Deb Abela MG
Ghost by Jason Reynolds YA
The Dog Runner by Bren McDibble MG
The Stubborn Seed of Hope by Brian Falkner (short stories) A
The War I Finally Won by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley MG
The Girl Versus the World Series by Various MG
Speak and Shout by Laurie Halse Andersen (trigger warning – sexual assault) A
One by Sarah Crossan YA
Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers YA
Nit Boy by Tristan Bancks JF/MG
Life On the Refrigerator Door by Alice Kuipers YA
Risk, Black, Wreck and Found by Fleur Ferris YA
Pretty Monsters by Kelly Link (short stories) YA
M is for Magic by Neil Gaiman (short stories) MG/YA
The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman YA
Road to Winter Series by Mark Smith YA
10 Futures by Michael Pryor MG
The Iron Man by Ted Hughes MG
Lips Touch by Laini Taylor (short stories) YA
Things a Map Won’t Show You (short stories) YA
Little Legends Series by Adrian Beck and Nicole Hayes JF
Specky Magee Series by Felice Arena MG
Take the Shot by Sue Whiting YA
Tiny Timmy Series by Tim Cahill JF
Sporty Kids by Felice Arena JF
The Legend Series by Michael Pankridge MG
Foul Play by Tom Palmer YA
The Bench Warmers by David Lawrence MG
Little Fur Series by Isobelle Carmody MG
More Than a Kick by Jennifer Castles and Tayla Harris ALL
Shatter Me Series by Tahereh Mafi YA
My Sister Rosa by Justine Larbalestier YA
The Breakways by Cathy. G Johnson MG
Boris Series by Andy Joyner JF
Selby Series by Duncan Ball JF
Rabbit and Bear Series by Julian Gough JF
Parvana by Deborah Ellis YA
Tom Weekly Series by Tristan Bancks MG
All Graphic Novels by Raina Telgemeir MG
One of Us is Lying Series by Karen. M McManus YA
Special Forces Cadets by Chris Ryan MG
The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo YA
The Artemis Fowl Series by Eoin Colfer MG
Heartstopper Series by Alice Oseman YA
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas YA
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han YA
Unwind by Neal Shusterman YA
Ice Station by Matthew Reilly YA

What We Are Reading
Anything by Dervla Mc Tiernan A
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid A
Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson A
Factfulness by Hans Rosling A
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah A
Mothering Sunday by Graham Swift A
This is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay A
Gulliver’s Wife by Lauren Chater A
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins YA
Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me by Kate Clanchy A
Smart Ovens For Lonely People by Elizabeth Tan A
Deep Water by Sarah Epstein YA
Every Tool is a Hammer by Adam Savage A
About a Girl by Rebekah Robertson YA
The Phone Box at the Edge of the World by Laura Imai Messina A
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett A
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens A
All Boys Aren’t Blue by George. M Johnson YA
The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta YA
Missing Person by Sarah Lotz A
The Second Sleep by Robert Harris A
Phosphorescence by Julia Baird A

Safe Work Practices in the Library.

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Disclaimer – This post is not intended to replace and or substitute any medical or governmental advice. The suggestions below are merely suggestions and as such are shared in good faith and open for discussion. While every effort is made to ensure that the material is accurate and up to date, we do not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, or currency of the information provided.

As some students and staff return to, or plan to return to school, and items, of various kinds, are returned to the library it is important that we have a range of procedures in place to keep the community safe.

Over the past few weeks, our membership discussion forum has enabled SLAV members to share their ideas around practices and procedures that they have found helpful. We are sharing those ideas and practices here for wider community access. We encourage members to continue to share and contribute to the discussion forums HERE. 

Most of our members are placing returned items on a separate trolley or in a seperate space, and leaving them there for at least 24 hours before wiping them down with antibacterial or antiseptic wipes and returning them to shelves. Many are leaving returned items aside for 3 days or more, some up to a week.

For many libraries, there has been a suspension of hiring items such as headphones during this time, as they are harder to sanitise effectively. Questions around the sanitisation of laptops, calculators and other hardware have been asked, as these items should not be subjected to sanitising sprays and wipes due to their potentially corrosive nature.

There has also been much discussion around capping numbers of students and staff in the library at any given time, and how to manage this, particularly with winter approaching and students wanting access to indoor spaces rather than being outside in the weather.

ALIA has developed an extremely comprehensive guide that not only provides guidelines for best practice, but document templates for planning library reopening. You can download this document HERE.

ALIA Safety Guidelines are as follows –

Physical distancing

Maintain at least 1.5 metres distance between people.

• Rearrange furniture and computer facilities.

• Provide a separate entrance and exit to the space.

• Mark out the distance from the main service points, to minimise

face-to-face interaction.

• Ask people who are feeling unwell to stay away from the library.

Limit the usage of the space to one person per 4 square metres

• Calculate the area of the public floor space. Divide the area by four. Limit the

number of people in the space (including staff) to this number.

• Set up a safe queueing space outside the library – marking every 1.5 metres on

the ground.

Safe handling of physical materials

• Wear gloves when moving collections into quarantine and remove them

immediately afterwards.

• Ask visitors to use self-checkout machines to minimise the exchange of

physical items.

• Avoid handling cash or credit cards – use ‘tap and go’ if receiving payments.

Sanitising objects and surfaces

• Provide hand sanitiser and/or alcohol-based soap for staff and visitors.

• Clean and disinfect computer equipment between uses.

• Avoid the sharing of close-contact equipment such as headphones and

VR headsets.

Quarantining and sanitising collections

• For paper-based products, leave books untouched in a dedicated quarantine

area for a 24-hour period prior to handling and recirculating. Sanitising books with

liquid disinfectants can damage books and is not recommended.

• For DVDs or other materials with plastic covers, wipe them down with alcohol wipes.

• Clean and disinfect hard, high-touch surfaces, such as railings, doorknobs, faucets,

light switches, at least once a day – more often if possible.

This information has been gathered based on guidelines provided by Safe Work Australia (4) and advice provided by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (ILMS) (5) and the Northeast Document Conservation Center. (6)

The American Libraries Magazine has also published a informative article addressing many of these issues, you can read it HERE.

 

Online resources

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During this time, there are many lists being shared that can help you find quality resources to support online learning in your school.  We look for institutions that we know produce reliable and authentic information, and are collating a page of links to resources, guides and useful information HERE for ease of access. We will continue to update this page as we find new resources to share.

 

Professional Learning Resource Round Up

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As we all respond to the directives and guidelines in relation to COVID – 19 our association is working hard to ensure we are doing all we can to support our members.

With some schools needing to close for indefinite periods of time there may be a need for your school library staff to indicate ways they are exploring professional learning during a period of school closure or changed operations.

To assist, we have created this post, listing a range of professional learning opportunities made available to members.

A range of presentations from past Professional Learning Events can be accessed via the SLAV Member Login page HERE.

Over the past two years we have created podcasts of all of our Reading Forum events as well recording a selection of presentations given at our major conferences. These podcasts are available to anyone online and can be accessed HERE.

Synergy is our online, research based, journal. The most recent edition of the journal is closed to members only but all other editions of the journal are made freely available in light of the Associations interest in being collegiate and supportive of the wider professional community. We encourage you to explore the wealth of information from current and past editions HERE. 

Digital issues of our publication – FYI – can be accessed HERE. 

As a SLAV member, you also have access to resources from the International Association of School Librarianship through our partner membership status. There are some wonderful resources to be accessed on the IASL website and we encourage you to find time to explore them. Login details are available on our Member Login page.

Finally, a word on our 2020 Professional Learning Calendar. As we advised in our most recent newsletter we are doing all we can to ensure we are keeping our members and presenters safe, and are responding to guidelines and directives accordingly.

Events – cancellations and postponements

Our March 23 conference has been cancelled.

The IB workshop to be held in conjunction with DATTA Vic at Kardinia College on April 16 has been cancelled.

Our May Masterclass in conjunction with LMERC – Powering Learning: Supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives has been moved to September 4.

Our May 29 Conference – School Libraries: Powering Primary has been moved to September 14.

The National Education Summit on August 28 and 29 at MCEC, a strand of which we are a partner in providing, has been postponed to a later date yet to be announced.

All other Reading Forums, Workshops and Masterclasses

The remainder of our program are events that are to be held in school venues. At present we are continuing to plan and offer these events on the understanding that a decision will be made a month to two weeks out from each as to whether they are to go ahead. As it is very difficult to know exactly where we will be in two months’ time this approach is hopefully the best response in unknown times.

If you have any queries about this, please contact the SLAV office on 0477 439 593 or email slav@slav.org.au

We encourage all members to stay in touch with each other in these challenging times. Our branch structure is an excellent source of local support.  We encourage you to reach out and offer collegiate advice wherever you can and to ask if you need help or assistance. Our social media platforms can also be a source of connection. Please do reach out, we are open to assisting you in any way we can.

Redesigning thinking in school libraries

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notosh

As school libraries forge a new future, it’s clearly apparent that no two libraries are the same.  Whilst we can exchange ideas and hold discussions on ‘what works’ for us, defining the role of a school library is an exercise in knowing what is best for our own community.

Last week, at the SLAV workshop Redesigning thinking in Libraries, Hamish Curry of NoTosh guided library staff through a design thinking approach to exploring the future possibilities for their libraries and schools.  With an explicit focus on the areas of Mindset, Skillset, and Toolset, delegates were led through a critical and creative process learning to think deeply and constructively.  They thought through the current position of their school library and explored possibilities from different angles and through various lenses.

The room buzzed with energy as throughout the day they used words such as ‘and’, rather than ‘but’, to shake off the limitations we often place on our own thinking.  Delegates learnt about ‘ideation’ and ‘actions’ and the ‘7 spaces’ concept.  By the end of the day new ideas had been formed along with the conviction to put them into practice.

Hamish is an old friend of SLAV, having previously collaborated through his role in the Education Team at State Library of Victoria.  The new knowledge he brought from No Tosh is timely inspiration and guidance for school library staff charged with the responsibility of re-envisaging the traditional school library service.

This Storify captures some of the Twitter feed shared via #slavconf.  Thanks to delegates who tweeted from the workshop enabling the capture of this valuable record.

Hamish’s presentation is available in the member’s area of the SLAV website.

The new Victorian Curriculum

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vic-curriculum1

As has been the practice for a number of years, the first SLAV conference for 2016 focussed on the role of teacher librarians and school library staff in the learning and teaching program.

The 18 March SLAV Conference entitled Student Centred, Curriculum Centred: Exploring the new Victorian Curriculum, was launched with keynote David Howes, Executive Director, Curriculum Division, Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA).  David introduced the new Victorian Curriculum  to delegates, explaining similarities, differences and integration with the Australian Curriculum (ACARA).  He emphasised that the new Victorian Curriculum supports the Victorian State Government’s goals for education which has as its aims:

Over the next 5 years:

  • 25% more Year 5 students will reach the highest levels of achievement in reading and maths.

Over the next 10 years:

  • 25% more Year 9 students will reach the highest levels of achievement in reading and maths.

  • 33% more 15 year olds will reach the highest levels of achievement in science.

  • More students will reach the highest levels of achievement in the arts.

  • More students will reach the highest levels of achievement in critical and creative thinking.

David also introduced the  Teaching and Learning Toolkit which is an ‘accessible summary of educational research’ designed to support quality learning and teaching.  Its layout is based on the research of Prof John Hattie, where from a series of explicit goals you delve into the site to discover research and practice to support the topic.  This will be an excellent professional learning tool for teachers.

Rhonda Powling captured the Twitter stream from the Conference to create this Storify which includes tweets relating to David’s presentation and others on the day (more about them to come).

SLAV delegates appreciated the depth of analysis and explanation provided by David who appreciates the role of the school library that is actively working with teachers and curriculum leaders to provide the best possible outcomes for students.  His full presentation is available on the Member’s section of the SLAV website.

Make the web work for you – new VicPLN course

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H5546_BI

Many of you are part of the community that has grown out of the VicPLN series of online courses. With your feedback in mind, we’ve created a new course for 2015 which integrates the best of two previous courses into one:  Make the web work for you.

Make the web work for you introduces key concepts and skills in digital and information literacy, and models the use of simple and free web tools, enables people to join or create personal learning networks, and encourages everyone to play and explore online. But it’s also designed to give participants the chance to apply their learning to an authentic research task in a guided online learning experience.

The course is designed for people hoping to get more out of the web and build their confidence using technology in the workplace.

This six-unit, self-paced program covers:

  • advanced searching and information evaluation skills
  • social media for professional learning
  • web tools to help find, manage, store and share information
  • digital publishing including ebooks
  • online collaboration and networking.

We hope to keep challenging ourselves and our community to think differently about our work, how we learn and share ideas. As part of the work of a new team at the State Library Victoria focusing on learning design, we’ll be beginning to talk more about our professional learning model, Connected Inquiry.

Our new course Make the web work for you is based on the principles of Connected Inquiry, a great deal of thinking, evaluation and research. We’ve tried a few new things, we’ve done in-depth research in partnership with AITSL, and we’ve gathered really helpful feedback from course participants.

So what is Connected Inquiry about?  It’s in part a series of principles to help shape professional learning experiences that mirror the best of what we do as educators. Can an after school PD, online course or conference be built on the same principles we would an inquiry project for students – real life applications, personal relevance and curiosity? We think yes and we look forward to sharing our learning with you.

So if you’re interested in the course which begins April 20 or have any questions, you can contact us at learning@slv.vic.gov.au

Make the Web Work for You: an introduction to digital learning for school library teams and educators, 6 units over 8 weeks starting 20 April 2015.

And we’ll continue to be part of your personal learning networks: online, at SLAV conferences, and as part of the professional development program here at the State Library Victoria.

 Image credit – State Library Victoria

Blogging – Revisiting VicPLN Course tools and support

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Screen Shot 2014-11-04 at 7.08

When you’ve been connected online for some time, it’s possible to lose sight of the perspective of staff new to the professional online environment.  Library staff in particular can come into the profession via a route that hasn’t involved interacting online other than in the personal social media apps such as Facebook and Instagram. In joining the school library workforce, however, they must be, or become, digitally literate.  Every member of staff in a school library must be actively digital, it’s the very nature of today’s libraries.

Being ‘digitally literate’ involves knowing how to use digital tools and, most specifically, knowing how to apply them to a specific task.  In recent years hundreds of people have participated in and completed, to various degrees, the VicPLN Course  (Personal Learning Network) conducted by the State Library of Victoria learning team in conjunction with the School Library Assoc of Victoria.  It’s amazing, however, that I constantly encounter people who ‘never really got their head around the PLN tools’, ‘don’t have a use for them’ or feel, ‘they don’t apply to the library role’.

If you work in a school library today you need to be using social media, blogging, curating resources and actively building your own Personal Learning Network (PLN).  Building a PLN according to personal interests, fosters enthusiasm and reveals relevance as you increase your involvement.  This doesn’t mean that everyone must be tweeting, skyping and Google+ing, however, it does mean that they must be looking outside the walls of their library for ideas and inspiration.

Blogging is a good place to start.  Read other people’s blogs, comment and contribute where possible.  The emphasis on blogging has changed since the introduction of curation tools such as ScoopIT and Flipboard but they’re for another post.  Today we’re talking blogging because blogs are a powerful tool in schools, both at the learning and resourcing levels.

Blogging tools recommended:

The VicPLN Team at the State Library created a fabulous resource to support participants of the online VicPLN Web 2.0 Course.  The course material was refined over a number of years and VicPLN Unit 1: Start your blog is the recommended place to start your blogging journey.  In addition to finding recommended resources and blogs to follow, you’ll find tips, tutorials and a wealth of support material.

A note to Library Managers:  Creating a blog for library staff use only is a great place to start.  Use it as a communication and professional ‘sandpit’ learning tool within the library team.  Use your library blog to:

  • Share library staff news and events
  • Record meeting notes, ideas and suggestions
  • Link to professional learning
  • Learn by actively participating

Once confidence is built, start blogging:

  • Book reviews and recommended reading blog
  • Travel blogs for school trips, camps etc
  • Support classroom teachers in using blogs
  • Library news and updates blog

The message cannot be overstated.  Library staff build your skills.  Review your practices, put aside the time-consuming busy work, book displays etc and become an indispensable, digitally skilled workforce.  Blogging is a good place to start.

Bright Ideas will revisit the tutorials and support resources of the VicPLN Team in future posts.  You’re invited to come on board with a commitment to personal skills growth and the development of your own Personal Learning Network (doc will download).

Comments and feedback is welcome as always.

 

 

 

Creating a Virtual Learning Commons

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VLCommons

At the recent SLAV Conference Building a Participatory Learning Community, school library leaders Dr David Loertscher (USA) and Carol Koechlin (Canada) presented the concept of a Virtual Learning Commons.  School libraries have become familiar with the model of ‘learning commons‘ which considers the library as place, an environment that enhances social interaction and cross-disciplinary learning outside the classroom.  This conference transferred that idea to a virtual space in keeping with the changing nature of library services where visiting the library is no longer a necessity when online access is available.

David and Carol demonstrated the depth to which a Virtual Learning Commons can support the organisation of library resources and bring a community together.  A template is provided to simplify the process of making one for your own library.

The SLAV Learning Commons includes the template and all the resources to you need to bring together learning resources, thinking skills, examples of best practice for library innovation and much more.  Take time to explore these resources and you will find a wealth of ideas and support to enhance the learning experience for your school community.