ALA 2013!

You know where ALA's HQ is, right? :)

Yesterday was  my first ALA Convention, hosted at McCormick Place! For those of you who don't know what ALA is, it's the annual convention hosted by the American Library Association. Basically, it's San Diego Comic Con, but for librarian's best practices, and a celebration of the relationships between librarians and the literary world. My star-struck self had an awesome time, described below.





Cool Things I Saw

1. The ALA Store: Wanted to buy all of the things. Some librarians have credit card problems, okay?

2. Graphic Novels!: Jon Scieszka (who is a RIOT and one of my all-time favorites) moderated a session on kids' graphic novels with Raina Telgemeier, Jarrett Krosoczka, and Doug TenNapel. Ms. Telgemeier was gracious enough to personalize a copy of Drama for my student who adores her. A 7th grader is about to be very happy!

3. Edwards Luncheon: Best of all, I attended the Margaret Edwards Luncheon, to honor the body of work put out by the venerable Tamora Pierce. I say "venerable" because of the immense respect I have for this young adult giant. Ms. Pierce is known for her fictional realm Tortall, inhabited by heroines like Alanna of Trebond, Daine Sarassri, Kelandry of Mindelan, Beka Cooper. The Circle of Magic series saw her rise to even greater heights. She writes diverse stories about girls who face tyranny, war crimes, misogyny, changing bodies, sex, racism, and everything else women fight. For the past 25 years, she's destroyed gender roles with a smile. Without her work, YA wouldn't be the female-friendly zone it is today. I wouldn't be the warrior I am today.

My mother read me Alanna's Song of the Lioness series when I was in third grade, and I've reread it dozens of times into adulthood. At the time, I wrote her a letter and she wrote me back, saying I was one of the youngest people to ever write to her. I've held onto that letter since. Later, a fellow GSLIS student met Tamora and sign a book for me, saying "Hi Kristy, what are you doing now?" (Thank you again, Eti.)

I attended with two colleagues: the aforementioned GSLIS alum, and my mentor librarian who recommended me SoL back in the day. First, Tamora punked the audience by pretending to be a doddering old lady, but then laughed at us all and launched into a brilliant speech describing her frustrating childhood full of male heroes. In the spirit of "Write the book you want to read," Tamora decided to write fantasy books about heroines who weren't princesses, but knights and soldiers and policewomen. Her books resonate with me and other women who take on physical roles protecting others, and who mentor other women who want to make change. ALA, I need for you to put up a transcription of this speech ASAP!

Attending the session with my mentor librarian, Stephanie, was extra special. Steph pushed me up to meet her, despite the fact that I was already reduced to tears by her speech. Wordlessly handing her that letter seemed to be pretty overwhelming for the both of us. Because I was shamelessly bawling, Steph had to talk and tell her my story. Such a special moment for all three of us.

My experience with Tamora Pierce reinforced several things for me:
- Librarians and educators must help children build relationships with authors. Author studies should be a critical part of emergent literacy.
- Text-to-self connections are an instant win for readers.
- Seeking mentors is an important life skill. Becoming one is the way you repay the favor.

I wish you could see TP's pendant: a double-edged battle axe. WIN.

ETA: Here is School Library Journal's writeup of the event, summarizing some of the best points. 

Classroom Libraries & Leveling

Classroom libraries are always hot mess, period. See the pic -- accurate to how my school library feels sometimes. I don't know a single teacher who doesn't bemoan the process of keeping their classroom library stocked, organized, and properly leveled. (No matter how many times you buy the Wimpy Kid books, you'll never end the year with them...)

BUT, it doesn't have to be this way! Want to automate your systems for next year and level quickly? Check out the following apps and services below! 

CLASSROOM LIBRARY CHECKOUTS

BookSource Classroom Organizer (web, iOS, Android): For the teachers who are jealous of librarians with a scanning system! Paired with a cheap barcode scanner, the BSCO web service and phone app "allows users to maintain and inventory books and eBooks in their classroom library." I have a colleague in 2nd grade who already uses it, and we're adding it to our leveled book room next year, because teachers can check out items right from their phone. I highly recommend it! 

Delicious Library (iOS): For the Mac/iPad teachers, this personal library app may also be very helpful in the classroom - especially if you're trying to see the total value of what your library is worth or want to integrate your iTunes account. 

GoodReads (web, iOS, Android): Full disclosure - I'm personally addicted to GR, see the sidebar. However, social media apps like GR, Shelfari, and LibraryThing can serve an excellent role in the connected classroom, because you can use the tags to catalog your classroom library. You can even have students create a tag of their own name and tag a book when they read it, or add reviews through comments. 

LEVELING

The Book Leveler App (iOS): Here's an iPhone app to help teachers do summer leveling on Guided Reading, or may be helpful to share with parents who frequently take their children to the library. 

Scholastic Book Wizard (web): An old go-to. This service has improved over the years to include Lexile and DRA a well as Guided Reading, but it's limited to only titles offered by Scholastic. 


Have a favorite leveling app or classroom library suggestion? Leave it in the comments!