KASL

Introduction to Resource Sets

"Introduction to Resource Sets", a two day presentation by Kris Shaw and Suzy Oertel, Kansas State Department of Education, was hosted by the ESU School of Library & Information Management on the campus of Emporia State University. Resource Sets expand on the idea of developing text sets for curriculum units in the classroom. Resource Sets focus on the process of building a set of materials, texts, audio and video clips, art, science hypotheses, or social studies essential questions into a unit. The step-by-step process is clarified by the use of an easy-to-read game board.

Book Study Dissertation

One of our English teachers found a good book report alternative for high school level students. The expectations are specific, and it works well for her.

Download Book Study Dissertation

Download Book Dissertation Rubric

Six Reading Rules for the Common Core

See the full article at LibraryDoor.

How to Create Nonreaders

If you want people to perform better, you reward them. Right? Bonuses, commissions, their own reality show. Incentivize them. That's how business works. But that's not happening here. You've got an incentive designed to sharpen thinking and accelerate creativity. And it does just the opposite. It dulls thinking and blocks creativity. Daniel Pink

Doug Johnson interprets what Pink has to say and applies it to reading program incentives.

Letters About Literature Winners

In Kansas, almost 1,000 students submitted letters to an author for the 2009 Letters About Literature project. Nationally, 54,000 students participated. Three Kansas Students have taken top honors in the reading and writing initiative. Their winning letters have been advanced for national competition and will be posted at the Kansas Center for the Book website.

Sixth grader Lauren Marie Hart, from Holy Spirit Catholic School, won at the Level 1 elementary school level for her letter to Janet Lee Carey, author of "Wenny Has Wings." Hannah Billings, a seventh grader at Monticello Trails Middle School, won in Level 2 for her letter to Cynthia Lord, author of "Rules." Olathe South High School sophomore Jordan Schaper was selected at Level 3 for his letter to Pete Rose, who wrote "My Prison Without Bars."

The state winners will receive a cash award through a Target and Library of Congress Center for the Book grant, a $50 Target gift card and a certificate of achievement at assemblies at their schools so that they will be recognized before their peers. 

Assessing student information literacy

While we all work diligently to improve students’ information literacy, it’s not always easy to assess students’ knowledge and retention. TRAILS (Tool for Real-Time Assessment of Information Literacy Skills) provides one possible solution. Created by Kent State University with funding from the Institute for Library and Information Literacy Education, this free online tool uses multiple choice questions based on both Information Power and Ohio’s 6th- and 9th-grade standards.... AASL Blog, Jan. 20

Information Literacy

AASL’s Information Literacy page offers resources for the development of dynamic, student-centered school library media programs. These programs help ensure that students master the information literacy skills needed to be discerning consumers and creative producers of information and ideas.

Improving Adolescent Literacy

The US Department of Education has just published an extremely practical-looking document called Improving Adolescent Literacy:  Effective Classroom and Intervention Practices.

Download ImprovingAdolescentLiteracy.pdf.