As we move into Week 5 of online learning I had a yearning to return to my librarian roots. I was prompted by our librarian network sending out a notice for the voting for the annual Panda Book Awards. Despite the closures the voting will continue. In my previous incarnation as a PYP librarian in … Continue reading Panda Madness
I had lunch with an old friend of mine yesterday. We've kept in touch over the last 20+ years when we did an MBA together. She's had a successful career in finance while I've had a liquorice all-sorts type of constantly changing occupational therapy for a mind that can't stay at rest too long. Anyway, … Continue reading Dyslexia – don’t make it about you
One of the hidden advantages of learning Chinese is that I often catch myself pretending to learn and it gives me an acute insight and experience into the nature of real vs. faux learning. I'm doing a lot of "busy" work today on trying to get my document together for my ISTE certification (faux learning) … Continue reading Pretending to learn
I've always been a huge fan of picture books. I'm the librarian that will read "Maia and what Matters" to a group of Middle School teachers and struggle to continue through tears. I spend a reasonable chunk of my budget on picture books (or as some librarians like to refer to the "sophisticated picture books … Continue reading Picture books as a panacea?
Our G6 Language & Literature classes have just started a unit on "Unlikely Heroes" and I must admit I've been having an amazing time finding some fantastic new biographies and memoirs to entice them into reading this genre and keeping an interest in the lives of people who may not always make the headlines, or … Continue reading Unlikely new nonfiction
I was prompted to think about this again with the publication of the White Ravens 2019 list at the Frankfurt Book Fair. The issue of increasing diversity in an international school setting is a complex one, and something I've written about at length in the past. There's the linguistic diversity bit - collections of books … Continue reading Enough windows – where are the mirrors?
I am convinced that there are generations of parents (and librarians) who think the main purpose of a librarian is to create age/grade related lists of books for students to read. When parent-teacher conference time comes around, if parents venture into the library and engage - as opposed to using us as a baby-sitting booth … Continue reading Resist the list
One regularly hears phrases bandied around schools such as "Every teacher is a language teacher"; or "Every class should start with 10 minutes of reading" and you'd be hard pressed to find a teacher who doesn't agree in theory, that reading is a good thing. But then there is the "reality" of supposed too little … Continue reading Content plus
This week's blog post will be very brief as a function of my extreme exhaustion - just been up and down to Bangalore for the Neev Literature Festival 2019. Beijing-Bangalore is not a commute I'd recommend to anyone who prizes their sleep or sanity but WOW what an intense 2 days it was. The theme … Continue reading Why awards?
About to start our second week of school, and after the first 3 days of teacher planning week I'd just like to make a quick shout-out to some people who make a librarian's heart very happy! The new teacher, overloaded with moving continents with a family who came into the library and borrowed 4 books … Continue reading Librarian Crush – Folks I’m loving right now
Informative Flights - Musings of a Teacher Librarian 