Greetings!
I know that many parents have concerns about the amount of inappropriate stuff that children are exposed to day after day through books, television, movies, games, and other things. How can parents and teacher keep up with everything that comes out and know if it is appropriate for our children?
There is a website called Common Sense Media - www.commonsensemedia.org . A parent, teacher, or caring adult can log on to the website and check out reviews of books, television shows, movies, games, and apps which can help parents make informed choices. Not only are the books reviewed, they also give ratings. A Green Circle means that the content is age appropriate; Yellow Circle is the caution button. This says, “Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids”. The Red Circle means that the material is not age appropriate for kids that age.
One way to search is to click on your child’s age, and then use the other filters to find good choices. For example, I set the age level filter to eight years old, then I filtered movies. I wondered what would come up. Not far down the list the animated movie “Brave” was listed. The review says “Mother-daughter princess tale has some very scary scenes”. The movie has a green circle and the age recommendation is 8 years old and older and there are four out five stars. There is a video clip of the movie which includes a longer review also. I could also have filtered even more, but stopped at just the age and media for this demonstration.
Parents can also type in the name of a movie or other media and get instant information without having to scroll multiple pages. I typed in the name of a movie that is playing now in theaters called “Identity Thief”. The previews that are shown on television depict this as a comedy that could even be a family movie. The review from Common Sense Media gives it two stars out of five with a yellow circle and an age level of 16 years. The one line review says “Great stars can’t rescue uneven, sometimes violent comedy.” This one also has a video clip review with it.
There is much more on this site. Click on the top bar to find reviews, top picks, best for learning, videos, blog, educators, and About Us. The videos section has videos to educate parents about a multitude of subject areas. A few titles I saw are “Violence in Media Really Matters”, “Boys and Body Image”, “Girls and Body Image”, “Texting Tips for Parents”, “Protecting Kids’ Privacy Online”, and other advice videos. The videos are also available in Spanish.
When I first heard of Common Sense Media, I heard that many families use the website to make decisions about the media they purchase or view. If a child wants a particular game for his or her handheld device or if he wants to go see a particular movie, the parents say, “Let’s see what Common Sense Media says about it.” They look it up and use the age recommendations to help decide if the material is appropriate. I think this is a smart way to go.
Check out Common Sense Media and then let the parents of your students know about it.
I hope you have a great week.
Audrey
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Magazines
Greetings!
It’s been a while since I talked about magazines. I know they can be quite expensive, but if you choose carefully, they can be as good as or better than a book in the library.
It is a good idea to have magazines that help support your curriculum such as science, history, and health. It also is great if you can have magazines that support the interests of the students in your school. For example, if you have a number of boys that all ride bikes or are interested in model airplanes; find a biking magazine or a model airplane magazine. If I were choosing magazines to fit the interests of my students, I would talk with them and let them have a say in what magazines they would like to read at school.
If I had to choose only five magazines for my library I would choose the following ones.
Kids Discover - $26.95 for a year (12 issues)– Each issue tackles one subject and the entire issue (approximately 20 pages) focuses on the one subject. The current issue is all about Simple Machines. Sample subjects include Cells, Roman Empire, Ancient Greece, immigration, American Revolution, Ecology, How America Works. The magazine is appropriate for students in grades 4 – 8. Issues can also be downloaded on the iPad. Keep back issues to use in the future.
Cobblestone – $33.95 for a year (9 issues) - This one bills itself as a history magazine for children in grades 5 – 9, but they also say ages 9 – 14. Which is it? I guess probably both depending on your students. Cobblestone is from the Cricket Group and they also choose a theme for each issue. The latest issue is on March on Washington, and other themes include Thomas Jefferson, War of 1812, The White House’s Historic Neighbors, The Manhattan Project, The Great American Road Trip, A Look at the Library of Congress, becoming American: The New Face of Immigration. This is also one to keep for future use.
Faces – $33.95 for a year (9 issues)- Faces is another magazine from the Cricket Group and is similar to Cobblestone, but the main themes are about People and Places or world culture rather than history. Sample themes are China in a Day, Vietnam, Ghosts and the Spirit World (I just don’t put in appropriate issues in the library), How Religion Rules the World, Australian Aborigines, Texas and the Southwest, Nigeria, Top 20 Cities of the World. Even though there is one issue that is listed in this year’s themes, this happens so seldom. I think this is the only issue in the past 12 years that has not been appropriate for our school. This is also a keeper for the future.
National Geographic Kids - $15.00 for a year (10 issues) This is a nature magazine for kids ages 6 – 14 which likely cover your whole school. Since it is from National Geographic, you know the photography is superb and the information is trustworthy. Again, keep back issues for reference.
American Girl - $22.95 for a year (6 issues) – I like that the magazine is for girls ages 8 and up and is also age appropriate. Girls dress like girls not high fashion and the focus is on friendship, crafts, stories and more. We actually keep these for years and our girls pour over them no matter what year they are. I only discard them when they fall apart!
For an out lay of about $130.00 you have 46 issues all of which can be kept for many years. The information is timely and current. I put them in the computer like I do the books and it is easy for us to find the particular subject we want. When a teacher needs materials on the Civil War, the books and any magazines appear in the list.
You may have noticed that I have not included Listen or Winner. I assume you already know about those and receive them. I also did not include National Geographic. This can be quite pricey, but still great for schools. However, I would imagine that there are parents or other people in your school or church community who get this and would be happy to donate it to the school when they are finished reading it. That is how we got our subscription for a few years. I did not get the magazine right as it was printed, but that was not a problem for me. Unfortunately, that family has moved away, so I need to find another person who would be happy to donate their issues when they are finished.
There are still plenty of other options for magazines that you might use in school. These are just my top five.
Money is a problem for you?! You aren’t alone in this. We all could use more money in our schools and libraries. See if you have any parents or church members that might be willing to donate a subscription or money towards one of the more expensive ones. Have a list of the magazines you would like to have and the cost of each. If you include any of the ones above, make sure to include the fact that they will be kept for years in the future as if they were a book.
One small issue we have had in the past is with some of the magazines such as Motocross Action, Mountain Bike Action, and Model Airplane News. These magazines are really geared more toward adults and some of the advertisements in the magazine have scantily clad women in them. We noticed small groups of boys huddled around one now and then and we would find the issue and quietly remove the offending page or pages later. We usually page through each issue ahead of time to check and pull out anything that might be inappropriate before putting it out for students to check out. I will say that this has not been quite as much a problem as it was a few years ago.
I hope this information has been helpful to you.
Have a great week.
Audrey
It’s been a while since I talked about magazines. I know they can be quite expensive, but if you choose carefully, they can be as good as or better than a book in the library.
It is a good idea to have magazines that help support your curriculum such as science, history, and health. It also is great if you can have magazines that support the interests of the students in your school. For example, if you have a number of boys that all ride bikes or are interested in model airplanes; find a biking magazine or a model airplane magazine. If I were choosing magazines to fit the interests of my students, I would talk with them and let them have a say in what magazines they would like to read at school.
If I had to choose only five magazines for my library I would choose the following ones.
Kids Discover - $26.95 for a year (12 issues)– Each issue tackles one subject and the entire issue (approximately 20 pages) focuses on the one subject. The current issue is all about Simple Machines. Sample subjects include Cells, Roman Empire, Ancient Greece, immigration, American Revolution, Ecology, How America Works. The magazine is appropriate for students in grades 4 – 8. Issues can also be downloaded on the iPad. Keep back issues to use in the future.
Cobblestone – $33.95 for a year (9 issues) - This one bills itself as a history magazine for children in grades 5 – 9, but they also say ages 9 – 14. Which is it? I guess probably both depending on your students. Cobblestone is from the Cricket Group and they also choose a theme for each issue. The latest issue is on March on Washington, and other themes include Thomas Jefferson, War of 1812, The White House’s Historic Neighbors, The Manhattan Project, The Great American Road Trip, A Look at the Library of Congress, becoming American: The New Face of Immigration. This is also one to keep for future use.
Faces – $33.95 for a year (9 issues)- Faces is another magazine from the Cricket Group and is similar to Cobblestone, but the main themes are about People and Places or world culture rather than history. Sample themes are China in a Day, Vietnam, Ghosts and the Spirit World (I just don’t put in appropriate issues in the library), How Religion Rules the World, Australian Aborigines, Texas and the Southwest, Nigeria, Top 20 Cities of the World. Even though there is one issue that is listed in this year’s themes, this happens so seldom. I think this is the only issue in the past 12 years that has not been appropriate for our school. This is also a keeper for the future.
National Geographic Kids - $15.00 for a year (10 issues) This is a nature magazine for kids ages 6 – 14 which likely cover your whole school. Since it is from National Geographic, you know the photography is superb and the information is trustworthy. Again, keep back issues for reference.
American Girl - $22.95 for a year (6 issues) – I like that the magazine is for girls ages 8 and up and is also age appropriate. Girls dress like girls not high fashion and the focus is on friendship, crafts, stories and more. We actually keep these for years and our girls pour over them no matter what year they are. I only discard them when they fall apart!
For an out lay of about $130.00 you have 46 issues all of which can be kept for many years. The information is timely and current. I put them in the computer like I do the books and it is easy for us to find the particular subject we want. When a teacher needs materials on the Civil War, the books and any magazines appear in the list.
You may have noticed that I have not included Listen or Winner. I assume you already know about those and receive them. I also did not include National Geographic. This can be quite pricey, but still great for schools. However, I would imagine that there are parents or other people in your school or church community who get this and would be happy to donate it to the school when they are finished reading it. That is how we got our subscription for a few years. I did not get the magazine right as it was printed, but that was not a problem for me. Unfortunately, that family has moved away, so I need to find another person who would be happy to donate their issues when they are finished.
There are still plenty of other options for magazines that you might use in school. These are just my top five.
Money is a problem for you?! You aren’t alone in this. We all could use more money in our schools and libraries. See if you have any parents or church members that might be willing to donate a subscription or money towards one of the more expensive ones. Have a list of the magazines you would like to have and the cost of each. If you include any of the ones above, make sure to include the fact that they will be kept for years in the future as if they were a book.
One small issue we have had in the past is with some of the magazines such as Motocross Action, Mountain Bike Action, and Model Airplane News. These magazines are really geared more toward adults and some of the advertisements in the magazine have scantily clad women in them. We noticed small groups of boys huddled around one now and then and we would find the issue and quietly remove the offending page or pages later. We usually page through each issue ahead of time to check and pull out anything that might be inappropriate before putting it out for students to check out. I will say that this has not been quite as much a problem as it was a few years ago.
I hope this information has been helpful to you.
Have a great week.
Audrey
Monday, February 11, 2013
Biography Club Idea and More
Greetings!
I enjoy getting emails from you and I enjoy learning about what some of you do in your libraries and classrooms to motivate reading.
Jan mentioned casually to me about the Biography Club she runs at her school. It sounded really interesting, so I asked her for the details of her program.
Students are encouraged to read biographies. Each biography they read is recorded in a notebook that Jan keeps for each grade level. The title and number of pages are recorded. At the end of the semester, the two students in each class that read the most pages are invited to a party in the library. Jan serves root beer floats and homemade cookies. One party is held in December and the other one is held at the end of the school year, thus giving the students plenty of time to read. Jan saves up prizes such as posters, books, and other items that come her way and each student at the party gets to choose a prize.
The program has become wildly popular and Jan did some tweaking of her original rules. Students in grades 2 and 3 need to read at least 300 pages to qualify and students in fourth grade need to read 500 pages to qualify. Students in grades 5 – 8 must read at least 1000 pages to qualify for the party invitation. Students have approximately 4 or 5 months to get the reading done in order to qualify for the party. Jan says that if more than two students read enough to qualify, she includes them anyway. Her club has gotten to be more than the 24 or so she intended, but the students are reading biographies and Jan is happy.
Because of the popularity of the Biography Club, the Buena Vista students do very well in history.
Thanks, Jan for your great idea. This could work for any school of any size.
I am doing something else to encourage reading across the library. I decided to focus on the 3rd and 4th grades this year. I made a card with their name on it and a space for each Dewey hundreds number plus other specific sections in our library. Our picture books are organized in a modified Dewey arrangement, so I included the picture books along with a couple of magazines and a biography. This card is intended to last for the school year. If the whole class finishes their cards, then the class will earn a celebration. I have many smaller easy books in the Dewey hundreds section so students won’t be intimidated by the thick books and I help students find books that they can read. They tell me a little about each book (What did you learn that you didn’t know? or What parts did you like best?) and I write the title on the card.
I’m a little discouraged with the results so far. I thought that I would have more participation and that classes would encourage each other to work on their cards, but it hasn’t happened that way yet. I have one student finished already and a couple more who will soon be done, but I think I will have to change my plan. Instead of having a party for the whole class after everyone completes his or her card, I will probably have one party for the students who have completed their cards and the students who have not completed their cards will have to miss out. Oh, well. I guess I can’t win them all.
If you have some kind of reading program or motivating program and would be willing to share with us, please let me know. I’ll be happy to include it in one of my weekly emails.
I hope you have a great week.
Audrey
I enjoy getting emails from you and I enjoy learning about what some of you do in your libraries and classrooms to motivate reading.
Jan mentioned casually to me about the Biography Club she runs at her school. It sounded really interesting, so I asked her for the details of her program.
Students are encouraged to read biographies. Each biography they read is recorded in a notebook that Jan keeps for each grade level. The title and number of pages are recorded. At the end of the semester, the two students in each class that read the most pages are invited to a party in the library. Jan serves root beer floats and homemade cookies. One party is held in December and the other one is held at the end of the school year, thus giving the students plenty of time to read. Jan saves up prizes such as posters, books, and other items that come her way and each student at the party gets to choose a prize.
The program has become wildly popular and Jan did some tweaking of her original rules. Students in grades 2 and 3 need to read at least 300 pages to qualify and students in fourth grade need to read 500 pages to qualify. Students in grades 5 – 8 must read at least 1000 pages to qualify for the party invitation. Students have approximately 4 or 5 months to get the reading done in order to qualify for the party. Jan says that if more than two students read enough to qualify, she includes them anyway. Her club has gotten to be more than the 24 or so she intended, but the students are reading biographies and Jan is happy.
Because of the popularity of the Biography Club, the Buena Vista students do very well in history.
Thanks, Jan for your great idea. This could work for any school of any size.
I am doing something else to encourage reading across the library. I decided to focus on the 3rd and 4th grades this year. I made a card with their name on it and a space for each Dewey hundreds number plus other specific sections in our library. Our picture books are organized in a modified Dewey arrangement, so I included the picture books along with a couple of magazines and a biography. This card is intended to last for the school year. If the whole class finishes their cards, then the class will earn a celebration. I have many smaller easy books in the Dewey hundreds section so students won’t be intimidated by the thick books and I help students find books that they can read. They tell me a little about each book (What did you learn that you didn’t know? or What parts did you like best?) and I write the title on the card.
I’m a little discouraged with the results so far. I thought that I would have more participation and that classes would encourage each other to work on their cards, but it hasn’t happened that way yet. I have one student finished already and a couple more who will soon be done, but I think I will have to change my plan. Instead of having a party for the whole class after everyone completes his or her card, I will probably have one party for the students who have completed their cards and the students who have not completed their cards will have to miss out. Oh, well. I guess I can’t win them all.
If you have some kind of reading program or motivating program and would be willing to share with us, please let me know. I’ll be happy to include it in one of my weekly emails.
I hope you have a great week.
Audrey
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
E-Readers at School
Greetings!
Last week a teacher contacted me to ask about the use of e-Readers at school. She wondered what other teachers do about this and if it has been a problem. It got me thinking about our school.
Last year Rogers had less than ten students with e-readers that came to school. Most of them were in our junior high. I know that one of the students had dyslexia and her parents bought her a Kindle with ‘read-to-me’ capabilities so she could follow along and be able to read her assignments more quickly.
At Rogers I am working this year to put e-books (electronic or digital books) in our library for student and teacher use and I am hoping to get some Kindles for student and teacher use. But along with the new technology, I also need some user guidelines or policies.
I researched to see what other schools use for their e-Reader Acceptable Use Policy and found policies from six different schools, public and private Christian. I was quite surprised at the rules these schools have made regarding the use of personal e-Readers. The numbers after the rule indicate how many schools had the same rule.
Some of the rules listed were:
1. Materials on and the use of the e-Reader must be in full compliance of the (Name of school). (2)
2. E-Readers will only be used for reading appropriate books (approved by teachers) and accessing programs to assist students in reading (dictionary assistance, highlighting, note-taking, etc.) (4)
3. E-Readers must only be used at appropriate times in accordance with teacher instructions. (4)
4. The e-Reader must not be a distraction for the student or those around him/her nor be a source of any classroom disruption. (4)
5. The e-Reader must not be used for other purposes such as communication, entertainment, music, gaming, etc.
6. E–Readers may not be used at school for audio books. (Personally, I actually like the idea of using them for audio books.)
7. All e-readers must have cellular and network capabilities disabled (turned off) while the device is at school. This means that books must be downloaded prior to coming to school. (4)
8. Students will follow all school guidelines concerning the appropriate use of an electronic device as explained in the Technology Honor Agreement Code.
9. All e-readers must be labeled with the student’s first and last name.
10. Each student is responsible for his/her own e-reader and is not allowed to lend it to another student while at school.
11. The e-reader must be charged prior to bringing it to school. Students will not be allowed to charge their e-reader at school.
12. The student is responsible for knowing how to properly and effectively use their e-Reader; students may not ask teachers to assist with the use of the device. (l) (another rule said it was not to be a burden to the teacher)
13. (Name of school) is not responsible for any damage or loss associated with a student’s e-reader.
14. The school reserves the right to review the contents of the reader if needed.
15. The school reserves the right to deny use of certain devices that have e-Reading capabilities on a case-to-case basis. (Smart phones, etc.)
16. The privilege to use an e-reader can be revoked at any time. (2)
17. Students may bring their e-Reader on campus once the Parent/Student agreement form has been signed and returned.
18. All e-Readers must be registered with the (Name of school) Media Specialist and accompanied by the Acceptable Use Agreement Form signed both by the parents and the student.
Basically the first eight rules discuss when and how the e-Reader may be used at school and what materials can be on it. I thought it was interesting that two schools specifically stated that only materials that are appropriate for the school could be on the device.
Rules nine through thirteen have to do with the device itself and the last five or six rules cover the school’s responsibility.
For the most part, I thought you might simply be interested in what other schools do regarding the e-Readers and you also might decide that your school could benefit from your own policy.
I am interested in whether you allow e-Readers at your school and if you have a policy or rules for them. Please let me know and I will give a quick update next week.
I hope you have a great week.
Audrey
Last week a teacher contacted me to ask about the use of e-Readers at school. She wondered what other teachers do about this and if it has been a problem. It got me thinking about our school.
Last year Rogers had less than ten students with e-readers that came to school. Most of them were in our junior high. I know that one of the students had dyslexia and her parents bought her a Kindle with ‘read-to-me’ capabilities so she could follow along and be able to read her assignments more quickly.
At Rogers I am working this year to put e-books (electronic or digital books) in our library for student and teacher use and I am hoping to get some Kindles for student and teacher use. But along with the new technology, I also need some user guidelines or policies.
I researched to see what other schools use for their e-Reader Acceptable Use Policy and found policies from six different schools, public and private Christian. I was quite surprised at the rules these schools have made regarding the use of personal e-Readers. The numbers after the rule indicate how many schools had the same rule.
Some of the rules listed were:
1. Materials on and the use of the e-Reader must be in full compliance of the (Name of school). (2)
2. E-Readers will only be used for reading appropriate books (approved by teachers) and accessing programs to assist students in reading (dictionary assistance, highlighting, note-taking, etc.) (4)
3. E-Readers must only be used at appropriate times in accordance with teacher instructions. (4)
4. The e-Reader must not be a distraction for the student or those around him/her nor be a source of any classroom disruption. (4)
5. The e-Reader must not be used for other purposes such as communication, entertainment, music, gaming, etc.
6. E–Readers may not be used at school for audio books. (Personally, I actually like the idea of using them for audio books.)
7. All e-readers must have cellular and network capabilities disabled (turned off) while the device is at school. This means that books must be downloaded prior to coming to school. (4)
8. Students will follow all school guidelines concerning the appropriate use of an electronic device as explained in the Technology Honor Agreement Code.
9. All e-readers must be labeled with the student’s first and last name.
10. Each student is responsible for his/her own e-reader and is not allowed to lend it to another student while at school.
11. The e-reader must be charged prior to bringing it to school. Students will not be allowed to charge their e-reader at school.
12. The student is responsible for knowing how to properly and effectively use their e-Reader; students may not ask teachers to assist with the use of the device. (l) (another rule said it was not to be a burden to the teacher)
13. (Name of school) is not responsible for any damage or loss associated with a student’s e-reader.
14. The school reserves the right to review the contents of the reader if needed.
15. The school reserves the right to deny use of certain devices that have e-Reading capabilities on a case-to-case basis. (Smart phones, etc.)
16. The privilege to use an e-reader can be revoked at any time. (2)
17. Students may bring their e-Reader on campus once the Parent/Student agreement form has been signed and returned.
18. All e-Readers must be registered with the (Name of school) Media Specialist and accompanied by the Acceptable Use Agreement Form signed both by the parents and the student.
Basically the first eight rules discuss when and how the e-Reader may be used at school and what materials can be on it. I thought it was interesting that two schools specifically stated that only materials that are appropriate for the school could be on the device.
Rules nine through thirteen have to do with the device itself and the last five or six rules cover the school’s responsibility.
For the most part, I thought you might simply be interested in what other schools do regarding the e-Readers and you also might decide that your school could benefit from your own policy.
I am interested in whether you allow e-Readers at your school and if you have a policy or rules for them. Please let me know and I will give a quick update next week.
I hope you have a great week.
Audrey
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