Avast, Me Bookaneers! Time to do some reading ye scalawags!

Here are some ideas an suggestions for this year's Scholastic Book Fair!

For around my door in the hall way I made two long ship banners that hung over the door. I fastened them at the top only an then just lifted the bottom and pushed the open doors behind them in the morning and took them back out at night. (I think Book Fair business is more inviting and sells more when doors are open and entrance exciting).

  

Next, I made a pirate map style path leading from the door to the exact location of the fair with an X marks the spot at the end. 

I made a mast from pvc pipe (See directions below) and then covered it in brown butcher paper from the school. I could have been cool and painted the poles, but ain't nobody got time for that... 

I bought red an white stripped fabric from hobby lobby for about 6$. I cut holes in the fabric along the top and then tied it to the mast poles with twine.  (I made the welcome to the cove sign the same way). 

          

Book Fair Tips!!!

1. Take all your "toys" and hot glue/tape them to a triboard. Add the prices (INCLUDING TAX). I also numbered each item so that kids could say "I want a number 1 please" instead of, "Can I have that eraser." (to which we know the answer could be one of 10 erasers in 5 colors). Next year I am ALSO going to color code them i.e. Items for under 1.00 are in the red, items for 2 are in the blue etc. I think this will help the little ones that come with their pennies to see what they can get :D
   
2. While Scholastic might totally hate me for doing this, I do it anyway. After all, we are making them big bucks...so well...my conscious is clear. I go through each cart and place the books that are the same price on the same shelf. Then I mark the shelf to show how much each shelf costs WITH THE TAX!!!! I have told scholastic a thousand times they need to do this, because elementary kids just do not get, "bring extra money for tax"  My carts then look like this...                                         
3. ALWAYS place 10 or 20 dollars worth of "change" in the ALL FOR BOOKS box at the start of your fair. (if you can afford it). This way, when your little ones come with five dollars and REALLY want that Shopkins book that costs $5.40, you can help them out.  I am a firm believer in helping a kid buy a book rather than having to get a UV pen because they don't have tax. (Also start the fair with at least 6 rolls of pennies, you are going to need them!)  Remember that getting books into your kiddos hands is the most important reason to have a book fair!
4. Have some kind of "incentive" for buying books instead of a toy. Last year I did little monster book marks, this year I bought 10 dollars worth of plastic pirate "doubloons". If a kid buys a book they get a pirate coin (you can even mark some of the coins and if they get one with a mark they can get a free book! If you have the Scholastic Dollars to cover a few free books that is.)
5. Use Music! There is nothing like watching the kids enjoy the "feel" of the Bookaneer Fair with a bit of pirate music. I purchased a couple of the songs from Pirates of the Caribbean along with some songs from Captain Bogg and Salty! (These are also free on YouTube)                      These made for some awesome background fun! 
6. Dress up and have fun! Don't be afraid to be a little silly. Children need to learn it is ok to let loose and laugh a little. (especially the upper grades when they are in "that is not cool" phase) :D

Good luck with your fair and feel free to comment with your tips and tricks. I will update with your good ideas!

Pokemon Genres! Gotta READ 'em ALL!

Reading incentive time in the Esparza Elementary Library. 

Because Pokemon GO is so popular I have put together a little "genre" reading project. 

First I made a bulletin board in the hallway with one pokemon per genre (My son helped me pick them based on their name i.e. Pikachu loves Poetry!)
I used POKEMON and ANDY font from www.dafont.com.

I got the idea of the giant Pokebook from this great library blog: Http://goo.gl/Q6Z6NR

I think if my library was already genrefied, I might have let students choose ANY book from that section to get credit. Also, students must checkout the book to receive credit as well. (I am going on the honor system as to if they actually read the book).

Once the card is full they are now Poke-masters and receive a prize! I am thinking a 3d bookmark or Pokemaster tag that they can watch print :D Great way to add some technology to the project.


Feel free to use in your classrooms or libraries, but remember DO NOT sell  as all the Pokemon images are trademark/copyright of  Pokémon Ltd and should only be for student use.  

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ttps://www.luminpdf.com/viewer/rpurdS8FajBPs44i7

#LibrarianStereotypes

To shush or not to shush is no longer the question...

Today is the 50th day of school. All around me I see the wonderful 50's costumes. So, being the crazy lady that I am, I busted out the 50's librarian badoo and shushed the day away. This got me thinking about the stereotypes that surround librarians. According to Google definitions online, a stereotype is 

1. "1.

   a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing (2015)."
2. Interestingly enough synonyms include: standard image, preconceived idea, cliche, hackneyed idea...

If you look at stereotypes of librarians through the ages, you will see us most often portrayed in two ways...frumpy old woman with cat-eye glasses who shush and scowl or the opposite over sexualized bomb shells.  

(Librarians, 2015)

     Strangely, most scholars, historians, and librarians were originally men and were given the portrayal of mysterious "intelligent gentlemen." Romance novel heroes are often given large libraries as the setting for the dark and brooding lair, the bigger the library the better and smarter the hero. 

                                                        (Disney, 1991)

     So, this begs the question, why are men portrayed as intelligent and woman as frumps or sex kittens who only shush and shelve books? Has this stereotype really changed in today's world? I had a someone innocently say to me, "they pay you THAT much just to be a librarian?" This thought process is as much my fault as hers. As a modern librarian what have I done to change the stereotypes about my profession? Have I educated my family, friends, and community about what we really do? Have I abolished shushing and cat-eye glasses woman with my whit, savvy, and intellectual integrity? It is a dilemma, as 21st century teacher librarians, we should be fighting to change with every book we will always have to shelve...

For further reading:

http://belleofthelibrary.com/2013/09/16/shelving-the-stereotypes-when-i-say-im-a-librarian/

http://www.ala.org/acrl/sites/ala.org.acrl/files/content/publications/booksanddigitalresources/booksmonographs/stereotype_Prelim.pdf

https://www.alastore.ala.org/detail.aspx?ID=11057

References:

 Librarians (2015) Retrieved (November 3, 2015) from http://belleofthelibrary.com/2013/09/16/shelving-the-stereotypes-when-i-say-im-a-librarian/

Disney (1991) Beauty and the Beast Retrieved (November 3, 2015) from http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/beauty-and-the-beast/images/30575011/title/library-photo 

Book Character Parade!

There is nothing I love better than Book Character Day! The only trouble I have is choosing WHO I want to be! This year I chose Laura Ingalls Wilder and made a little "wagon" for myself. 

DIY: I used...1 cardboard Box, 4 wire hangers, 1 brown poster board, I sheet of white fabric (I used felt because that is what I had), a printed cover of "Little House on the Prairie." 

1. To start, with a brown marker, I drew horizontal lines on the books, grain lines, and nail dots on the box...

2. Fold cardboard into 4ths. Then use a bowl (I used the school trash can bottom :D) to draw a large circle. Then I used a cup to draw a small circle. *Tip: Make sure you staple the four circles together makes cutting easier. You can then cut out spokes or draw them onto the circle. Then glue, tape, or use brads to place the wheels on the box. 

3, To make the canopy, I jut hot glued three straightened hangers onto the white fabric. then I poked the ends of the hangers into either side of the box flaps and glued the fabric down :D

At the end of the day I got tired of "carrying" the box so I also added straps to hold it on my shoulders and added the little house book cover on the front of the wagon.

Have fun! READ ON!

Teacher Wish List Board

I've seen some super cute boards for Book Fair teacher wish lists. Mine was done very quickly to match my doors!

Monster Readers

So just when you think you can't work any harder, you do! Running in elementary school book fair is never easy but it is amazingly worth it and such fun!

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Monster Book Fair!

I almost didn't decorate this go round. However, thanks to some great teacher promptings, my assistant principal, and a great mom helper, I was able to get it done!

So much fun it is "SCARY!" #esparzalibrary

Olive's Ocean by: Kevin Henkes

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Title: Olive's Ocean / Kevin Henkes

Publisher: Greenwillow Books, p2003, c2003

ISBN-13: 978-0-06-053543-8

Interest Level: 6-8

Reading Level: 6.6

Book Summary:

Martha keeps inside of her an ocean of secrets. Olive, a girl from her class, did too. It is not until Olive's death that Martha realizes that this shy girl was more like her that she realized. During the summer Martha begins to see frailty of life through her grandmother's stories and gnarled aging hands, experiences first love, heartbreak, a near-death experience, and bravery she never knew she had.

 

My Thoughts:

I cannot understand how this book would ever be censored.  This amazing story touches the very heart of what being a 12-year-old girl truly is.  The fear of death, of loss, growing old, and feeling alone with emotions you just can't share are all things coming of age girls will relate to.   The relationship between all the characters are extremely realistic. This book touches on mulch-generational relationships, sibling relationships, Peer-relationships, and personal discovery.  This is a must have for all middle to high school libraries.

 

Library Tool Box of Tips and Tricks:

Banned books display:  Moments that change our lives

Display the book Olive's Ocean with a poster board of all the "first lines of poems" Henkes lists on p. 175.  Invite students to choose their favorite line and write a poem about their own lives. The poems do not need to follow a format, but rather it should focus on choosing the most precise, vivid words that they  can to describe  a moment in their life that changed them.

Resources:

Image: Olive's Ocean [book cover] Retrieved from:  

     Http://www.titlewave.com/cover?FLR=30875L8& 

     SID=8afe34243bd86d1caf27a7d25aadf6ca&type=cover