bookmarkNewsletter of the

New Jersey Association of School Librarians

November, 2011

From the President . . .

A few weeks ago, NJASL received exciting news. The NJ Study of School Libraries, One Common Goal: Student Learning, Report of the Findings and Recommendations of the New Jersey School Library Survey Phase 2 is complete. As I read through the draft copy, I was encouraged by the comments of the focus groups. The comments tell the story of the importance of the school librarian and the school library program to the students , teachers, and administrators in each of the twelve schools studied. The qualitative portion is powerful. The study deserves to be widely read.

One Common Goal: Student Learning will be posted on our web site shortly. Please take the time to read and think about it. There are a number of recommendations for taking action in the report. The NJASL Board will begin considering these recommendations and will be acting on them in the future.

I’d like to thank Dr. Ross Todd, Dr. Carol Gordon, Dr. Ya-Ling Lu, and the entire team at CISSL for their work on the study. If you’d like to learn more, Doctors Todd, Gordon, and Lu will be at the NJASL Conference this December. They will be presenting their findings at several sessions during the conference.

Speaking of the conference, there are only a few weeks left before December 2nd. If you haven’t registered yet, please do it now. Our NJASL Conference is the only conference in NJ dedicated solely to the professional development needs of school librarians. If finding out more about the NJ Study isn’t enough to convince you, how about hearing Wendy Mass, Jordan Sonnenblick, Cathy Dempsey, and Connie Paul? Or meeting over 75 authors in Authors’ Alley? This year we have the new Thursday night event and vendor demos (classes) in the Exhibit Hall. Learn about updated and upcoming products. Try your luck with the many raffle prizes. Meet your colleagues from around the state. Send your registration in today!See you at the conference!

Fran KingNJASL President

Vol XLI, Number 3 PO Box 610, Trenton, NJ 08607 609-394-8032 http://www.njasl.org

Calendar2011

Dec 2, 3, 4 - NJASL Fall Conference Ocean Place Resort and Spa Registration on the website

2012Jan 6 - Letters About Literature Deadline Entry coupon on the website http://www.lettersaboutliterature.org

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Attention: Morris County Librarians

If you are attending the 2011 Annual NJASLConference and live or work in Morris County, please join the Morris County School Media Association (MCSMA) for informal socializing and networking in the Oceanport Room at 5:00 on Friday.

AECT

Visit the AECT Booth at the NJASL Conference to learn more about AECT and the Villy Gandhi Leadership Scholarship.

Have you registered for the NJASL Conference yet?Conference planning is in full swing and we have a full program planned for you.

Conference Update PD Credit for Thursday evening:

Register for the Pre-Conference event, and earn 1 hr. PD credit, as we learn about innovations in technology from several exhibitors. D.O.E. Travel Waiver for Conference: Acting Commissioner of Education Cerf has approved a travel waiver for the NJASLconference. Go to the NJASL website for a copy of the letter that you can submit to your Board of Education.

NJASL Annual Fall Conference

If we fail to speak up about the value of school library programs and state certified school librarians, who will?

Point to Ponder:

Saturday’s Leadership Breakfast

Start your Saturday with the amazing Connie Paul as she inspires us to better serve the entire school community during our Leadership Breakfast. Connie has been very involved with local and international library organizations and is well aware of the challenges that affect the school librarian. Join your colleagues for a delicious breakfast while Connie helps to nurture your leadership skills, shares outstanding strategies in library leadership, and helps you ensure your library attracts and inspires your entire school community.

Who is Connie Paul?

Connie was the Executive Director of the Central Jersey Regional Library Cooperative for thirteen years until its close in 2010. She is a former English teacher and was a high school librarian for 22 years. She is currently head of CISSL’s Management Team. In 2002 she was named NJLA’s Librarian of the Year. She was responsible for two statewide leadership programs: The NJ Academy for Library Leadership (funded by the NJ State Library), and NJLA’s Emerging Leaders program.

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AASL - Communicating with YOU

Hilda K. WeisburgAASL Liaison, AA Delegate

Here goes one of my “between” columns. I finished my two-part report on what occurred at ALA Annual and will be reporting on the AASL Conference in Minneapolis in the following issue of Bookmark, so this is where I get to talk about how AASL reaches out to members and nonmembers.

First and foremost, AASL produces two publications: School Library Media Research (SLMR) is available only online and is a scholarly, academic journal. Anyone can go to the website http://www.aasl.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aaslpubsandjournals/slmrb/schoollibrary.cfm (or go to http://www.ala.org, click on “Publications & Journals,” and then select SLMR). While articles are structured and written appropriately for the scholarly nature of the journal, you can find ones that might help in your teaching (or advocacy), such as “Exploring the Experiences of Upper Elementary School Children Who Are Intrinsically Motivated to Seek Information” by Sherry R. Crow in Volume 14.

Knowledge Quest is a much more accessible periodical, available both in print and online to members. Nonmembers can go online and find helpful highlights from the current issue. The September/October, 2011 issue was an outstanding one on Educational Gaming. (The theme was a result of an Affiliate Assembly Statement of Concern asking for AASL help and guidance for librarians seeking to implement gaming in their libraries.) In addition to the co-editors’ (Christopher Harris and Terri Kirk) column, there is a podcast interview with Terri.

Elementary librarians can benefit from the Bonus Feature where Khalida Mashriqi, a school librarian in Queens, NY, provides a downloadable PDF of lessons in addition to the ones she describes in her article “Implementing Technology and Gaming Lessons in a School Library.” Annalisa Crews, the author of “Using Games to Support the Curriculum: Getting Teachers on Board” led a webinar in October based on her article. She discussed how to help students learn and have fun with board games aligned with the curriculum and offered tips on starting your own board game program.

For those of you who like the research backup, there is a link to a gaming article in SLMR, as well as links to free video game-making sites. Unlike members who have the hard copy to remind them to check out the additional offerings available online, those who aren’t have to make a conscious effort to check out the website and see what is there. As Knowledge Quest is published bi-monthly, you might want to set an alarm reminding you to see what the November/December, 2011 issue will bring.

Before going onto other communications from AASL, I want to point out what else was included in the issue. A big shout-out to our own Mary Fran Daley for her L4L column on “Using Video Games to Embrace Inquiry-Learning for Life Through Fun.” There is also an article by Lesley J. Farmer on getting girls involved in gaming, and one showing collaboration between a school librarian, a teacher, and a scientist who developed a third grade anatomy lesson using games (authors Sara Wolf, Andrea M. Summer, and Michelle de Freitas). There’s more, but I am sure you get the idea. Now you need to get the publication – which is a benefit of membership.

AASL Hotlinks is sent to members email inboxes every month. I forward them to NJASL members on the listserv, but anyone can retrieve the current issue on the website. (Past issues are for members only.) I hope

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you have been reading and using this communication from AASL. Each issue has news relating to AASL and to education, resources for you to use, and grants and awards (which are particularly helpful in these budget-strapped times), plus a few other features as well.

I have mentioned research earlier in the context of SLMR articles, but there is also a link on the AASL website to other studies and reports that are of interest. Many of you have participated in the longitudinal study led by Keith Curry Lance, and all the reports and more are there. Urban librarians should check out the 26-page PDF of the AASL Urban Schools Task Force Survey Report (January 8, 2011). Everyone needs to look at The Condition of U.S. Libraries: School Library Trends, 1999 - 2009, which is excerpted from the larger report (also available) on U.S. libraries.

Want to know how New Jersey’s education reforms compare with what’s happening in other states? The report from the National Center for Education Reform is another link on the research page. Some of you are interested in the Improving Literacy through School Libraries Program and should look at the evaluation report from the U.S. Department of Education, since it explains how funds are targeted.

I have mentioned this numerous times, but the topic is so important it definitely bears repeating. AASL offers a wealth of support on “Issues & Advocacy.” You don’t have to be a member to take advantage of the resources. Just go on the website, and start using what has been developed for you.

Although some of what I have presented is available only to members, most of it is for the entire school library profession. It is an outgrowth of AASL’s Mission Statement --The mission of the American Association of School Librarians is to advocate excellence, facilitate change, and develop leaders in the school library field. The first three of AASL’s eight Essential Functions are part of its Responsibility to the Field.

Obviously, you can get much from AASL if you don’t join. But you make it harder for the organization to do its job if it can’t draw on the financial resources of a strong membership base. With so many school library jobs disappearing, those remaining, now, more than ever, owe it to all of us to stand up and be counted.

One last reason for joining AASL now -- Barbara Stripling (past AASL President) is once again running for President of AASL. Within the past few years, we have had three AASL leaders run for that position. All of them lost. Members did not , and not enough of us are members. Again, STAND UP AND BE COUNTED!

As always, if you want any information about ALA/AASL, including membership and committee appointments, or if you want further information about anything relating to AASL, contact me at 732-566-1995 or e-mail to: hildakw@gmail.com.

Bookmark is published monthly, September through June, by The New Jersey Association of School Librarians, PO Box 610, Trenton, NJ 08607. October through May are online editions. Deadlines are always the 15th of the month. Editors: Pat Morris, Bev Siti. Email to <justbev@juno.com> and please put NJASL or Bookmark in the subject line.

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Alice DinizoNJASL-R Reporter

One of this reporter’s happiest memories from her long ago childhood is that of our entire class having been read to each day by our sixth grade teacher. She knew that there was no school library and tried her very best to make certain that we all knew great books. And we did! She read us Little Women, The Secret Garden, and many other wonderful works that live forever.

As No Child Left Behind is re-examined and politicians pledge that our schools will receive additional monies, we hold our breath. To know that, in our state, a brilliant school librarian has been laid off and library is now reduced to one day a week is not good news.

We hear news media go on and on about how lawmakers will establish anti-bullying legislation, but what better way to teach a child about the effects of bullying than to read Patricia Polacco’s Thank you, Mr. Falker? Nothing like a school librarian, is there?

***************************************************************************** This month of November features Children’s Book Week. Retired? Don’t let those wonderful skills rust away. Sit with a favorite child, grandchild, or neighbor and introduce them to a special favorite. My ten year old grandson was entranced and intrigued by Virginia Lee Burton’s The Little House. “Is this story really seventy years old?” was foremost on his mind.

Elspeth Goodin, our NJASL-R President, has put out a request to retirees to volunteer at the upcoming NJASL Conference. Volunteer, and your conference registration is gratis. Any takers? Contact Elspeth at jmsgoodin@gmail.com.

New Jersey Center for the Book, www.njcenterforthebook.org

The Miss Rumphius Award celebrates collaboration between librarians and teachers. What great project have you done recently that can be replicated by your peers? Get your entries in.

The Letters about Literature contest reaches so many New Jersey students. It is a perfect blend of literacy and authentic writing. This is a wonderful national contest that is sponsored by the Library of Congress Center for the Book. Students write letters to an author. What could be simpler? Please be sure to put your email address on your entry. The deadline is January 6, 2011, and more information is available at http://www.lettersaboutliterature.org, including the entry coupon that must be attached to the entry.

Visit our website for more information and to see what the Center has been up to lately.

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Lisa Bakanas Named 2011 Villy Gandhi Scholar

Lisa Bakanas, library media specialist at Cherokee High School North, is the 2011Villy Gandhi Scholar. The Villy Gandhi Leadership Scholarship is awarded annually in honor of past president and library media specialist Villy Gandhi, who is remembered for her extraordinary leadership and contributions to NJASL. Each year the Villy scholar participates in a conference offered by the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT), an NJASL national affiliate.

Lisa will participate in the 2011 AECT International Convention in Jacksonville, Florida, in November. Her activities will include the board and membership meetings of the School Media and Technology Division, checking out the International Student Media Festival, keynote sessions, workshops, and concurrent sessions. Lisa will also serve on a panel on Collaboration and be a speaker at the SMT/TED divisions breakfast. As the Villy Scholar, Lisa will serve as a member of the NJASL Board of Trustees in 2011-2012.

Lisa began her career in information technology in the 90s, when the “web” was just starting. She was a project manager for the implementation of the first email system for the Jefferson Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. This was before email was common, and Google was far from being developed. Lisa says “This IT experience was valuable training for my career as a media specialist. I am always thinking about how the technology I am using in the media center enhances my students’ learning.” While she was at home with her children, Lisa did volunteer work at an elementary school in Medford, NJ, where a friendship with the School Library Media Specialist inspired Lisa to go to graduate school to become a SLMS. Lisa began graduate school at Rowan University in 2006 to become a library media specialist, which she completed in 2007. She is a Board Member of the Medford Education Foundation as well as Vice President of Fundraising for the Shawnee High School Band Parent Association. She has been a member of NJASL and BCASL since 2007 and helped with registration at last year’s NJASL Conference.

Lisa has been described as “an inventor and implementer” and, after reading about the One Book, One School program that she is so intricately involved in at the school, I understand why. The program sounds fantastic! Lisa has everyone in the school involved, and incoming ninth graders are drawn into the decision of the book to be read making them feel part of the community of Cherokee. She has worked with teachers to make them and their students feel comfortable doing research. She helps the students to understand the various research techniques, the hazard of plagiarizing, and citing sources.

One of Lisa’s goals is to look for ways to infuse technology into her lessons. An example of this is how she has used Microsoft Movie Maker as an alternative to Power Point presentations. Over the years, the use of Movie Maker has become popular, and Lisa has given an in-service that has made the teachers more comfortable with the process so that they are creating projects that are better suited to the student project. The students enjoy using their creativity, and, over time, their projects have grown to everyone’s delight.

In her school, Lisa Bakanas is known for her professionalism, enthusiasm, and organization. She has been described as having “an infectious sense of adventure and ‘can do’ attitude that is contagious” to her colleagues students. I can’t wait to see her in action at the upcoming AECT Convention - I am sure she will make as great an impression on them as she has made to her colleagues and students at Cherokee High School North and to NJASL. Again, congratulations, Lisa!

Leslie Blatt, AECT LiaisonMrsLes@aol.com

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Book News

Buzzeo, Toni. Lighthouse Christmas. Illustrated by Nancy Carpenter. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers, 2011. 978-0-8037-3053-3 $16.99.

Can a motherless lighthouse keeper’s family celebrate Christmas on their isolated island? Surely children Frances and Peter will have a happier holiday on the mainland with Aunt Martha and her family. A Nor’easter changes everyone’s plans – reinforcing the vital role of lighthouses and their keepers. Christmas is saved when the children’s small handmade presents are augmented with a surprise drop from the Flying Santa Service.

The children’s sacrifice and the father’s hard work are real and necessary – and especially difficult as they face their first Christmas without their mother. Supplies run low because of the rough weather, and hopes are simple – a great contrast to some twenty-first century children’s lives and holiday expectations.

Nancy Carpenter’s detailed watercolor illustrations capture both time and place of this story. Cast iron stoves, rocking chairs, and brass beds set this story in the 1920’s; the rocky coastline and scrubby pine Christmas tree emphasize the isolation of the island. The author’s note and website link add details about the Flying Santa Service which still serves today. This would be a great book to extend units on early aviation or lighthouses as well as a most satisfying holiday read. Submitted byCorrin SellenGeneral Charles G. Harker SchoolWoolwich Twp., NJ 08056csellen@swedesboro-woolwich.com

VISIT THE VENDORS—THEY ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO US!

Don’t forget to visit our vendors while at the NJASL Conference. They are a very important part of the Conference! They help to supply our raffle prizes and are sponsors to various events and awards. Their support is what helps to keep our registration cost down, and we need to thank them! We know it is December, and few of us have any funds left, but that doesn’t mean it is a waste of time to see the vendors. Spring orders will be needed before you know it, and the vendors will have previews of the newest products.

During the Conference, the vendors’ area will also be the place to purchase lunch on Friday and Saturday and breakfast on Friday. While there, visit the vendors. On both days, we will have mini demonstrations where the vendors will be showing some of their new products –like ebooks and other digital products. Most of the demonstrations will be about 15 minutes long and may be held in between sessions. On Saturday, there will be a longer time for these sessions. Please check for these times, and come see what is new for the spring.

Now for RAFFLES---Raffles will be held on Thursday night, Friday, and Saturday. The times will be posted, but you don’t have to be present EXCEPT for the Saturday drawing. ALL prizes will have to be picked up before a specific time on Saturday as we will NOT mail anything. YOU must pick up your receipt for your prize from the Vendor registration desk. So check the posted lists to see if you won!

If anyone would like to volunteer to help with Raffles and/or Vendors - please contact me!Leslie BlattMrsLes@aol.com