Crow Winter by Karen McBride
I haven’t had such a big crying cathartic end to a book in a loooong time.
Category: school library
The Impressions of Walquiria: Buenos Aires comes to Canada
This article was originally published in Canadian School Libraries Journal Spring 2020. It is the third part of 3 articles on my relationship with the school libraries in Buenos Aires including 1) Donde esta Alanna King? At the Jornada de Bibliotecas Escolares and 2) Getting on the Train: A Decade of Shifting Culture in the […]
My acceptance speech: Angela Thacker Memorial Award 2020
I’m the type of person who generally doesn’t like surprises. 2019 has been full of them for me.
Getting on the Train: A Decade of Shifting Culture in the School Library
Students were empowered to use technology for their learning as they were ready, and it was the librarian’s job to be responsive to this need.
Donde esta Alanna King? At the Jornada de Bibliotecas Escolares
[This article was originally published in December 2019 edition of the Ontario School Library Association’s Teaching Librarian magazine] I am sitting in an auditorium in Buenos Aires, Argentina wearing headphones and a team of translators are converting every Spanish word spoken on stage for my benefit. As exciting as the journey itself has been, to […]
How to coddle a volunteer
This week I finished my volunteer stint as co-planner for the Ontario School Library Association, which for a rough estimate, is about 100 hours per year. As one of the best volunteer experiences of my life, I’d like to take you through why it’s such a fine way to give your time back to your […]
Trickster Drift by Eden Robinson
Trickster Drift by Eden Robinson My rating: 5 of 5 stars Eden Robinson you have created such delicious characters. If Jared or Georgina or any of them knocked at my door and said, “There’s an emergency! The coy wolves are eating the dolphin people and they need your help!” I’d shape-shift into my amphibious alter-ego, […]
Celebrating school libraries today!
I am the Head of the Library and Learning Commons at my secondary school, and that means I work 4/6 in the library, 1/6 in a EWC 4C/4U classroom, and 1/6 in a fully online ENG4C class. I have held this role since 2010 with variations on which classes I teach. So my year […]
Scarborough by Catherine Hernandez
Scarborough by Catherine Hernandez My rating: 5 of 5 stars This is my favourite book that I’ve read this year HANDS DOWN. It first came to my attention because I enjoy reading from the Ontario Library Association’s Evergreen book list each year. I enjoyed the audiobook version through Audible as Hernandez narrates her own book. […]
School Library Makerspaces: Grades 6 – 12 by Leslie Preddy
School Library Makerspaces: Grades 6-12 by Leslie B Preddy My rating: 3 of 5 stars As a secondary librarian, without planning time, without my own students focused on design/construction/creativity, I’m launching a full-time makerspace this fall that is filled with mostly donated items from the now-extinct home economics and fashion programs at my school. We […]
Our library learning commons annual report
There is nothing like ending the school year on a high. My friend and colleague Lisa Unger diligently spends time each year to collate the work that we’ve done that may seem invisible but all together looks outstanding! How does Lisa make this annual report? She began by returning to one of our guiding documents: […]
Starting a path of inquiry
Intrinsically, I have emphasized information and literacy in my work for the brief time that I have been a secondary school teacher-librarian. I have witnessed staff frustrations when students can’t seem to go more deeply into topics and I too have been frustrated when students seem to get stuck. I hoped that in taking this […]
