Books + Websites = Lamb's Synergy

SYNERGY is a new column written by Annette Lamb that connects recently published books for youth with engaging Internet resources to encourage reading and exploration.

Website: The Great American Read

THE GREAT AMERICAN READ is a reading and video project from PBS.

This eight-part video series explores reading through America’s 100 best-loved novels. In addition to the videos, the website includes information about each book, details about the episodes, additional resources, blog postings, and stories submitted by readers.

Librarians will find the project to be a fun way to explore popular books with teens. Collaborate with the English department to build a unit revolving around the books, videos, and resources. Or, create your own library-based program to celebrate the books.

To visit the website, go to https://www.pbs.org/the-great-american-read/home/.

Book: Captain Superlative

CAPTAIN SUPERLATIVE by J.S. Puller tells the story of a seventh grader who becomes a superhero’s sidekick.

Janey’s goal is to avoid conflict and fly under the radar. However when Captain Superlative arrives bearing acts of kindness, Janey decides to team up with this superhero and take action. This fast-paced and endearing middle school drama explores social themes such as bullying and childhood illness. Elements of humor and authentic characters add to the appeal of the story.

Librarians will find youth drawn to this story of courage and kindness. Feature it along with other positive school stories with a message.

Published by Disney Book Group on May 8, 2018. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Website: Read.Gov

READ.GOV is website from the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress.

The web resource links to key Library of Congress resources connected with reading. In addition to materials related to books and authors, users will also find many ways to participate with Library of Congress activities such as contests, events, and awards.

Students will particularly enjoy learning about the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature and watching author webcasts.

Librarians will find this website to be a great way to weave literature, author, and reading activities into the classroom.

To learn more, go to http://www.read.gov/.

Website: National Book Festival

The LIBRARY OF CONGRESS NATIONAL BOOK FESTIVAL is held each Fall to celebrate books and reading.

The event includes a wide range of programs including dozens of author events.

The National Book Festival website allows people from around the world to participate live through video, audio, and social media activities. Videos and podcasts are also available from past events.

In addition to festival information, the website also links to a book festival blog and kids and teacher’s guide.

Librarians will find this website to be a fun way to kick off the school year or to weaving author and book activities throughout the year.

To visit the website, go to https://loc.gov/bookfest/.

Website Review: HarperCollins 200

HARPERCOLLINS is celebrating it’s 200th anniversary in book publishing.

This web project explores the history of HarperCollins as a publisher along with providing insights into the history of great books. Users can explore a timeline, stories, collection of titles, information about reading and writing, and a look inside the archives.

Librarians will find that this website provides a fascinating exploration of book history.

To visit the website, go to https://200.hc.com/.

Website Review: Pottermore's Hogwarts

POTTERMORE’S HOGWARTS is a section of the website that immerses users in the world of Harry Potter’s Hogwarts.

Users are able to explore Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry including the castle’s exterior, Forbidden Forest, and Quidditch pitch. Users click one of the 100 hotspots to learn more about a particular area. Many of the hotspots contain excerpts from specific books connected with the location, while others provide new insights into the series.

Librarians will find this website a fun way to extend the Harry Potter series reading experience. Explore the project as part of an after-school reading club.

To visit the website, go to https://my.pottermore.com/hogwarts.

Website Review: Origami Yoda

The ORIGAMI YODA website provides resources associated with Tom Angleberger’s books and characters.

Set up as a blog, the website includes news and information about the author’s books and characters. In addition, users can explore information about the author and his books. Videos provide step-by-step origami instructions. Lots of examples of origami projects are available along with the option to submit original designs. In addition, a newsletter is available for educators.

Librarians will find the website provides lots of ideas and resources for book-related activities. Create a makerspace featuring the books along with materials for making origami projects. Include nonfiction books on paper folding along with related titles.

To visit the website, go to http://www.origamiyoda.com/.

Website Review: Roald Dahl

THE OFFICIAL ROALD DAHL website contains endless resources for teachers, adults, and children.

This attractive website contains sections about the author, activities, book and character information, and a link to a blog with up-to-date information. The author section includes stories, characters, a timeline, and archive. The “create and learn” section provides lesson plans connected with reading, writing, creating, and playing.

Librarians will be particularly interested in the author timeline and information about how and why each book was written. Use this section to inspire young authors. Explore the blog categories and tags for activity ideas based on books. Also, consider their many “Dahl Day” activities.

To visit the website, go to http://www.roalddahl.com/.

Website Review: Scholastic: Librarians

LIBRARIANS from Scholastic is a website specifically designed for school and public librarians.

The librarians section of Scholastic’s website features specific resources of interest to those working with children. In addition to featuring new books, the website provides direct links to major services such as Go!, TrueFlix, ScienceFlix, FreedomFlix, and BookFlix. Dozens of videos feature author interviews. Of particular note is the Idea Share section featuring resources and discussions related to holding book fairs. Be sure to download the “Scholastic Supports Librarians” PDF containing research about the importance of libraries and librarians.

Librarians will find this website to be useful in collection development, lesson planning, and book fair planning. Although it’s focused on works by Scholastic, it contains useful ideas connected all types of materials. Their research on libraries is also useful in preparing to meet with school boards.

To visit the website, go to http://www.scholastic.com/librarians/.

Website Review: Scholastic Student Activities

STUDENT ACTIVITIES from Scholastic has been providing high-quality web and whiteboard activities for decades.

Hundreds of activities are available across disciplines. Activities are organized by grade level (PreK-K, 1-2, 3-5, 6-8). Categories include games, computer lab, interactive whiteboard, listen and read, and writing activities. While many of the activities are associated with Scholastic products such as books, most can be used without special supplies.

Librarians will find endless ideas for the K-8 curriculum. Mine this website for classroom connections. Of particular note are the “listen and read” activities.

To visit the website, go to https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/student-activities/.

Book Review: The Treasure Box

THE TREASURE BOX by Margaret Wild tells the moving story of a boy and his father who save a book after their library is destroyed during war.

This poignant story traces the life of a boy who helps save a book from destruction and later places the book in a new library.

Librarians will find this hopeful story to be useful in discussing topics related to war, emmigration, and cultural heritage.

Published by Candlewick Press on April 25, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Digital Spotlight: City Readers

CITY READERS from the New York Society Library is a project sharing the borrowing records of library users from 1789 to 1805.

Contents: Users can browse or search more than 100,000 records of books, readers, and borrowing history from the New York Society Library’s Special Collections. Users can also explore featured content including visualization tools, circulation records, female records, founding fathers, and library catalogs.

Classroom Connections: Use this amazing collection to teach students about the use of library records in history. These records provide unique insights into library users and their reading habits along with information about books and their readers.

Featured Digital Objects:
Visualizations http://cityreaders.nysoclib.org/About/visualizations
Female Readers http://cityreaders.nysoclib.org/Gallery/60
Founding Fathers http://cityreaders.nysoclib.org/Gallery/46

To visit the collection, go to http://cityreaders.nysoclib.org/.

Technology Review: Hathitrust Digital Library

The HATHITRUST DIGITAL LIBRARY works in partnership with academic and research institutions to provide access to digital materials from around the world.

Users can search full-text or the catalog. Advanced search tools and tips are available.

Visitors can browse collections including user-created featured collections on thematic topics. Users can also create and share their own collections.

An easy-to-use interface is provided to read books online. Users can also download books for reading off-line. While some titles require a login from a cooperating institution because of copyright issues, many are available to the public.

Librarians will find this website to be a good source for difficult to find books. While most of the items are aimed at scholars, many historical books for youth are also available.

To visit the digital library, go to https://www.hathitrust.org/.

Book Review: A Child of Books

A CHILD OF BOOKS by Oliver Jeffers is a uniquely illustrated picture book about the power of reading.

In this visually rich tale, a young girl invites a friend on an adventure into the world of words, books, and imagination. The illustrator uses words as a visual tool that moves reader from page to page.

Librarians will find this fascinating story to be a useful tool in talking with children about their feelings about books and reading. Although the narrator’s font may make this book difficult for young children to read themselves, it’s a useful book for read-aloud activities.

To learn more about the author, go to http://www.oliverjeffers.com/.
To learn more about the illustrator, go to http://www.samwinston.com/.

Published by Candlewick on September 6, 2016. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Technology Review: Internet Archive

INTERNET ARCHIVE is a large website containing access to millions of free books, movies, software, music, websites, and more.

Sponsored by a nonprofit based in California, this digital collection coordinates with many universities, libraries, archives, museums, and historical societies to provide public access to digital resources.

A basic and advanced search tool provides access to individual digital objectives. Users can also explore sections focusing on text, video, audio, software, and images.

The WayBack Machine allows users to enter a URL or keywords and see the history of over 279 billion web pages.

The website’s entry page provides links to top collections such as American Libraries, Live Music Archives, and Community Audio.

Librarians will find this website to be one of the best starting points for difficult to find historical materials, particularly books. Their web-based interface works well for reading these historical documents online.

To visit the website, go to https://archive.org/.

Digital Spotlight: Librivox

LIBRIVOX

Contents: Librivox is a website containing public domain books for free in an audio format. Volunteers donate their time to record the books. The connection contains books from around the word. Users can browse the catalog by author, title, genre, subject, or language. A blog features news items and recent additions to the collection. Users can download the audiobooks on their computer or mobile device.

Classroom Connections: Students and teachers seeking audiobooks will find this free collection to be useful across the curriculum. While it’s best known for its many classic works of literature, it also contains children’s books and nonfiction works. The collection is particularly useful for special needs students and those that learn best through listening.

Featured Digital Objects:
Origin of the Species by Charles Darwin https://goo.gl/ssAqRI
Aesop for Children https://goo.gl/jVnZFZ
Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame https://goo.gl/NJaVji

In addition to the website, the content is also available through both Apple and Google Play.

To visit the website, go to https://librivox.org/.

Book Review: The Storybook Knight

THE STORYBOOK KNIGHT by Helen and Thomas Docherty tells the story of a young knight who would rather read than fight.

Leo would rather spend his days with a good book than fighting like the other knights. When Leo is sent on a quest, he encounters a scary griffin, hungry troll, and messy dragon. Rather than fight, he uses the power of books and reading to save the day.

Librarians will find this picture book to be a fun addition to the library’s picture book collection. Use the book to jumpstart a reading campaign focusing on the power of books.

To learn more about the author, go to http://www.helendocherty.com/.

Published by Sourcebooks Jabberwocky on September 6, 2016. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Digital Collections: NINES

NINES: Nineteenth-Century Scholarship Online

Contents: This collection contains nearly 900,000 digital objects from 139 federated sites. It includes well-known materials by Jane Austen along with books, letters, diaries, and other fascinating primary sources. Tags are used to explore areas of interest.

Classroom Connections: The NINES Classroom area allows teachers to set up accounts for classes to create exhibits and discuss objects. Although it’s used primarily by colleges, any educator can set up an account.

Featured Digital Objects:
Costume resources - https://goo.gl/Qe1Qfu
Frankenstein resources - https://goo.gl/V8Gpjg
American Civil War resources - https://goo.gl/vKlCqc

To visit the collection, go to http://www.nines.org/.

Technology Review: DOGOnews

DOGOnews is a website and app resource focusing on current events, news, and nonfiction articles for students and teachers.

The website consists of short articles. Most of these informational stories contain numerous images. Vocabulary words that may be unfamiliar to youth are highlighted and link to pop-up definitions and examples. Each article ends with reading comprehension questions, a critical thinking challenge, and vocabulary. A game helps readers review the vocabulary. While the website contains limited, education related advertising, it’s not distracting to readers.

Tabs lead users to articles about news, books, or movies. Within the news category, students can choose from science, sports, social studies, world, green, entertainment, fun, and other categories. They can also narrow by grade levels including K-3, 3-5, 3-8, and 3-5. This is useful when accessing articles that are appropriate for particular reading and interest levels. Within the book category, students can choose clubs, series, freebies, or seasonal works. Books are also organized by genre and reading level. Within the movie category, children can browse by categories such as mystery or animation.

The website also offers special features for students and teachers. Students can create their own avatar, earn badges, share articles, and write articles. Teachers can set up classroom accounts and make assignments.

The app works much the same way as the website. The easy-to-navigate app contains access to over 3,000 articles across the curriculum. Articles are categorized by grade level. Clicking on highlighted works leads to definitions and places are linked maps. Lesson plans are connected to national standards.

Librarians will find this easy-to-use resource is useful in reading activities. It’s also valuable for informational reading in the subject areas such as social studies and science.

To visit the website, go to http://www.dogonews.com/.

To download the app, go tohttps://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dogonews/id740364862.