Website Review: Steve Jenkins

STEVE JENKINS’ website explores the works of this popular author and illustrator of children’s books.

The website is divided into sections focusing on books and making books, science, and the author. A gallery and links are also provided. Of particular note are the video and pages that discuss the process of making books.

Librarians will find Jenkins’ essay about science useful for talking with children about his nonfiction books and why these types of books are important. Use the galley to inspire children to connect science with nonfiction writing and illustration.

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

Website Review: Royal Institution Games

INTERACTIVE GAMES from The Royal Institution contains dozens of educational games and quizzes exploring science topics.

Users can choose from interactives related to chemistry, engineering, human body, microsites, natural world, and physics. From fighting insect attacks and battling predators to building a skeleton and acting as a forensic scientists, students have many opportunities to apply science knowledge in engaging environments. Students can takes quizzes on topics such as anatomy, DNA, and the periodic table.

Librarians will find these fun games to be useful in learning centers as well as integrating into the STEM curriculum. Fill a learning center with nonfiction STEM books along with a tablet for game playing.

To visit the website, go to http://www.rigb.org/education/games.

Book Review; The Hazel Wood

THE HAZEL WOOD by Melissa Albert is a dark fantasy suspense for young adults.

Alice and her mother are unlucky in life and move frequently. When her mother disappears, Alice must immerse herself in the dark world of her recently dead grandmother’s supernatural world. Filled with strong and sometimes abrasive female characters and lots of twists, Alice along with her acquaintance Ellery must visit the creepy Hazel Wood estate in search of answers.

Librarians will find a following for this book among teens who enjoy fairy tale fantasy, contemporary mysteries, and dark thrillers. Fans of Alice in Wonderful and teens who enjoy literature will enjoy discussing the many literary connections.

Published by Flatiron, an imprint of Macmillan on January 30, 2018. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Website Review: Kevin Henkes

KEVIN HENKES’ website contains information and resources about this popular children’s author and illustrator.

The website includes author and book information, along with resources for adults and short videos. Children will enjoy the questions and answers section along with the book pages featuring his popular characters including Chrysanthemum and Lilly.

Librarians will find dozens of downloadable teaching guides and student activities to accompany many of Henkes’ books. Of particular note are four videos featuring the author discussing his books.

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

Website Review: Journey North

JOURNEY NORTH is a collaborative project website involving youth in tracking migrations and seasons.

This citizen science project is celebrating its 25th year. The program provides an easy way to involve children in real-world, real-time science projects. Teachers can choose from 20 different projects each year. While some projects run during a particular season, others are year-round. The website provides teaching and learning materials for educators along with news, maps, and an opportunity to report sightings.

Librarians will find this online project to be a wonderful way to get the entire school involved with citizen science. Set up a science learning station in the library to serve as the headquarters for the project. Include a map, books, and other materials to engage learners in science.

To visit the website, go to http://www.learner.org/jnorth/.

Website Review: Laurie Halse Anderson

LAURIE HALSE ANDERSON’s website contains resources for students and educators.

Anderson’s website contains a biography, book list, blog, and educator materials. To extend the experience, explore her social media feeds including Instagram, Facebook, Tumbler, and Twitter.

Librarians will find her writing advice of interest to young adults. Weave it into an English lesson connecting books, authors, and writing. Be sure to check out her resources connecting the Hamilton musical with her books. Finally, Anderson’s page on censorship contains useful resources and links to weave into the curriculum.

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

Book Review: This is Not a Love Letter

THIS IS NOT A LOVE LETTER by Kim Purcell tells the heart-wrenching story of a teen dealing with the disappearance of her boyfriend.

When her boyfriend disappears, Jessie immediately suspects foul play. As the story unfolds, readers explore issues from their interracial relationship to mental illness and addiction. Told as a letter to her missing boyfriend, readers become immersed in the local community and are challenged to look beyond racism for answers.

Librarians will find this interracial love story to be popular with a youth who enjoy contemporary, realistic fiction. The compelling mystery and authentic characters make this an engaging young adult thriller.

Published by Disney-Hyperion on January 30, 2018. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Website Review: Web Smarts

WEB SMARTS is an interactive learning experience focusing on digital literacy.

This online tutorial helps youth learn when to trust a website and when it avoid it. Students work their way through a series of screens exploring video-based examples and answering engaging questions. The experience ends with a quiz. A teacher page discusses how the website might be used with students.

Librarians will find this short, online tutorial to be an effective way to help students become more web literate.

To visit the website, go to http://websmarts.thinkport.org.

Website Review: Mouse Circus

MOUSE CIRCUS is author Neil Gaiman’s website for younger readers.

Gaiman’s website is organized into the categories of books, author information, artists, extras, and videos. Of particular note is his biography and question/answers page. Children will enjoy playing online games connected with two of his books. Downloadable activities are also available.

Librarians will find useful information for introducing children to the works of Neil Gaiman. For teens, be sure to explore Gaiman’s main author website including his blog.

To visit his children’s site, go to http://www.mousecircus.com/
To visit his adult site, go to http://www.neilgaiman.com

Website Review: Teaching with Primary Sources

TEACHING WITH PRIMARY SOURCES from Thinkport Education contains a collection of inquiry kits.

This project contains almost a dozen social studies and history units using materials from the Library of Congress. The topics range from early American colonies to modern times. Each theme focuses on a question and includes a series of lessons and primary source documents.

Librarians will find this resource to be useful in teaching both inquiry and the use of primary source materials. In addition to the kits, be sure to check out the research learning modules and the additional resources.

To visit the website, go to http://www.thinkport.org/tps/.

Book Review: A Place to Start a Family

A PLACE TO START A FAMILY by David Harrison is a picture book focusing on animal shelters.

This informational poetry book begins with an introduction to animal shelters. Each two-page spread features a different creature including birds, sea creatures, and land animals. From nests and webs to tunnel systems, mixed media illustrations feature a wide range of animal homes. The book concludes with a review of underground, land, water, and air builders.

Librarians will find this picture book to be a useful addition to the nonfiction collection. The poems are perfect for a read-aloud activity combining science and poetry. Create a display featuring books that feature animal homes and habitats.

Published by Charlesbridge on January 16, 2018. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

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: Fred Rogers Center

THE FRED ROGERS CENTER is a website dedicated to enriching the lives of children.

The website includes the Fred Rogers archives, initiatives, and more. The website contains a few examples from the archives. The initiatives section explores projects of the organization. The blog contains resources and ideas that connect with the project mission.

Librarians will find resources connected to the role of digital media and technology in the lives of children and families. Use the resources at the site to celebrate 50 years of Mister Rogers Neighborhood.

To visit the website, go to http://www.fredrogerscenter.org/.

Website Review: Joan Aiken

JOAN AIKEN’s author website provides children’s with information about this popular writer.

The Wonderful World of Joan Aiken is a website celebrating the author’s fifty years as a child’s book author. The resource contains information about the the author, her books, engaging activities, resources, and a bibliography. A link to the author’s blog provides up-to-date news and information.

Librarians will find the “What Do You Like?” page to be useful in helping children select interesting books to read. Students will enjoy reading the many letters the author has received from her fans. Use it to jumpstart a “letter to authors” activity.

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

Book Review: Write to Me

WRITE TO ME by Cynthia Grady tells the true story of letters written by Japanese American Children during World War II.

As children leave San Diego for internment camps, librarian Miss Breed gives the children books and postcards. She asks her young patrons to write her about their experiences. The short picture book concludes with an author’s note, timelines, historical information, and further reading. The front and end-pages include historical photos.

Librarians will find this new addition to the well-known story of Miss Breed to fill an important niche in their collection. This picture book would be useful as a read-aloud as well as part of a display including other informational books connected with Japanese American Internment Camps.

Published by Charlesbridge on January 9, 2018. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Digital Spotlight: Children's Historical Lit Collection

CHILDREN’S HISTORICAL LITERATURE COLLECTION from the University of Washington contains thousands of digital objects related to the history of children’s books.

Contents: This comprehensive collection includes books from the 18th through the 20th century. A wide range of book types include alphabet books, chapbooks, dictionaries, hornbooks, and spelling books. From manners and etiquette to natural sciences and health, the collection explores all subject areas.

Classroom Connections: Students will enjoy exploring the books that children their age read in the 18th through the 20th century. Looks for ways to connect these historical primary sources with topics throughout the curriculum including science, math, and health. Ask students to compare and contrast life and learning in two different time periods.

Featured Digital Objects:
Health and Hygiene - https://goo.gl/iHZZT9
Manners and Social Etiquette - https://goo.gl/W7L3Dt
Natural Sciences - https://goo.gl/rbvgj2

To visit the collection, go tohttp://content.lib.washington.edu/childrensweb/index.html.

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: MapStory

MAPSTORY is an online tool for creating local, regional, and global scale maps.

The MapStories website contains hundreds of maps to explore. Conduct a search or explore categories such as geopolitics and human settlement. Users can become part of the online community and contribute data and stories to existing projects. Students can also combine narrative elements that include images, text, and video to explain how and why changes happen in specific locations in their own projects. The maps can be connected with social media including Twitter and Facebook.

Librarians will find that students enjoy exploring existing maps along with creating their own. Use this tool in geography lessons along with map-related activities in science and social studies.

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

Book Review: Black Panther The Young Prince

BLACK PANTHER THE YOUNG PRINCE by Ronald L. Smith tells the origin story of this popular superhero.

Twelve-year old T’Challa is a young prince living in the hidden African nation of Wakanda. When he and his friend M’Baku are sent to a private academy in Chicago, T’Challa soon learns that his experiences have not prepared him for life in America. To protect his friends, he must face evil and become a hero.

Of particular interest is how the author deals with T’Challa’s conflicting emotions related to America’s history of racial inequality and African heritage.

Librarians will find this book to be a popular extension of the Black Panther universe. Feature this engaging fantasy adventure along with other recently released Marvel superhero origin stories.

Published by Disney-Hyperion on January 2, 2018. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Website Review: TimelinesJS

TIMELINEJS is an easy-to-use tool for building timelines.

TimelineJS is an open-source resource for creating professional-quality, interactive timelines. Users create a Google spreadsheet including short narratives and visuals. The images and videos from social media sites can be incorporated into the timelines. Users then provide the URL of the spreadsheet at the Timeline website. It’s then transformed into a timeline.

Librarians will find this an excellent way to teach both Google spreadsheets and the basics of building timelines. This tool can be applied to content across the curriculum.

To visit the website, go to https://timeline.knightlab.com.