Some more Edutopia links

Below are a few links from the Edutopia website that caught my attention - so I'm putting them out there for your interest as well. Take a moment to check them out and see what you think.

Putting a Playful Spin on Literary Analysis in High School | Edutopia

New Studies Link the Arts to Crucial Cognitive Skills | Edutopia

The Power of Being Seen | Edutopia

A Simple but Powerful Class Opening Activity | Edutopia 

Edutopia Weblinks on Reading and Literacy

A couple of articles from the Edutopia website on Literacy, Reading and using comics and Graphic Novels.  

Using Comics and Graphic Novels to Support Literacy | Edutopia

Is it Time to Drop ‘Finding the Main Idea’ and Teach Reading in a New Way? | Edutopia

Take a look if you get a few moments and see what you think. 

ABC and Education

I came across these links while chasing something else.  I'm sharing them with you in the hopes that they may be of some use.  The source checker one is actually a game (like Factitious) which might get the kids on board for checking out some 'fake news' material.  Who knows? 

There are also a couple of weblinks regarding mini lessons and secondary programs. 

https://www.abc.net.au/education/media-literacy/

https://games.abc.net.au/res/media-literacy/source-checker/index.html

https://www.abc.net.au/tveducation/programs/mini-lessons/13417954

https://www.abc.net.au/tveducation/programs/secondary/

Anyway, take a few moments and have a look.  They may be of some use to you and give you some ideas. 

World Read Aloud Day

World Read Aloud day is in place to motivate, children, teens and adults to celebrate the POWER OF WORDS.

This global literacy movement is about taking action to show the world that the right to read and write belongs to ALL PEOPLE! And no-one has the power to take it away from you!

World Read Aloud day asks everyone to celebrate the day by grabbing a book, finding an audience, a buddy, or even your furry friend, and reading out loud. (To be honest, my furry friends prefer me to be reading a can of cat food - but they are good enough to sit still for a while and listen.)

Why is reading aloud important? A 2015 study found that children are exposed to a larger vocabulary from picture books read aloud, than from conversations with adults. This appears to be because we tend to speak with the same 5000 most popular words; while books - even picture books - are more likely to use words outside of that popular 5000. (This also demonstrates my point about how important picture books are, no matter your age) The other point that came through clearly in the study was that children who are read to, are far more likely to become lifelong readers.

Although World Read Aloud Day has previously been celebrated on March the 5th - this year it was moved to February 5th. However, don't let that stop you ... we can celebrate it on March 5th or any other day that appeals.

The Future of Libraries and the Why of Daydreaming

Below is a website that has a talk by Neil Gaiman on the future of libraries, and the absolute need for reading, imagining and daydreaming.  

Although it is British based - it really is NO different anywhere else.  There are many salient points in the article - such as being able to work out how many people will end up in prison in the next 20 or so years.  It is done using a very simple algorithm which is based on the number of 11 year olds who can't read!  
Or why China is now finally allowing Sci-Fi conventions to happen there - or even why a book is like a shark!

I love Albert Einstein's answer when asked how we can make our children intelligent: "Read them fairy tales - if you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales."

This article is something that we all need to read - even if it is the only thing you read this weekend.  

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/oct/15/neil-gaiman-future-libraries-reading-daydreaming?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Have an awesome weekend - and may the Force (of reading) be with you!

Picture Book Month

We have received some new books in the Library recently that people may be interested in.  One of them is 'Resist' by Sarah Crossan, which is the conclusion to the story started in 'Breathe'.  These are based on a future and dsytopian world, where all the trees have died out - or been chopped down - and what little oxygen is available is inside a dome, where you follow the rules or are put outside the dome to take your chance. 

There are also a couple of new Choose Your Own adventures: 'The Jungle of Doom' and the 'Desert of Dread' along with 'Vampire Hunter', so you have a choice of adventure or horror in this area.  As well, we have a couple of Interactive stories, which are basically the same style of book, but are about real life happenings.  We have one about the making of Facebook and another about Hurricane Katrina.

There are also some Shakespeare plays,  but in Graphic Novel format which is a different way of reading these classics. 

I would also like to share with you all that November is Picture Book Month. Personally speaking, I am a HUGE fan of Picture Books and there are many reasons to read them or to use them in your classes.  If a picture is worth a thousand words, what does that say about the power of a picture book?  And the world needs picture books. There’s nothing like turning the pages of a beautiful  picture book. They are not all Fiction either and are often a great way to share with kids - and their parents - little known facts.  (See the post a couple of weeks ago about the 'Lone Pine' picture book)
 
Please check out the link below.
http://picturebookmonth.com/

Links for NLNW Activities

Just as a quick follow up to my post about National Literacy and Numeracy Week, please find a couple of links below with online games and activities that you may be able to use in your class.

http://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/students/events/pages/litnumweekchildren.aspx

http://missreynolds1234.blogspot.com.au/

Hope this helps in some way.

Weblinks

Just a few weblinks that may be of interest to staff.  There is probably (definitely) a bias on the subject of QR Codes, but that is mainly because I find them a really good hook to get kids involved. It has worked really well here in the Library and also in scavenger hunts for Guides. (A useful way of using those phones they are always attached to)

http://www.crickweb.co.uk/links-literacy.html   
(Activities and games with a literacy theme)

http://www.edudemic.com/7-fun-ways-to-use-qr-codes-in-education/  
(Pretty much as the title says)

http://www.fractuslearning.com/2012/02/20/qr-codes-in-education/  
(Ideas for using QR codes in classrooms)

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/213921051020118190/
(A Pinterest board with lots of QR Code ideas for use in an educational setting)

https://www.spectronicsinoz.com/blog/apps-and-mobile-learning/qr-codes-what-are-they-and-how-can-i-use-them-in-my-classroom/
(General article about the use of QR codes in teaching and learning)