Blog

Fun Lesson with First Graders

Tech Fun In The Library

My first graders come to the library twice a week. If you know this age group you know that there are times they can get a little squirmy and bored if you don’t have something to keep them engaged the whole class period. This week we worked on one of my Google Slides Reading Companions activities. It was the perfect way for students to get back into the swing of library after an extended break.

What are Google Slides Reading Companions?

These are lessons I have created to bring both tech and library together. I not only teach library but I also teach technology. When I first started doing both 8 years ago I had no idea how to get enough time to improve skills in both areas. I decided to create some lessons that would give them the library skills and books while at the same time working on basic tech skills. The Google Slides Reading Companion was born!

No Snow Yet…But We Are Hopeful

As I have said in other blogs winter themed read aloud are perfect for this time of year. I chose to do Just One Flake this week. We read the story and then talked about times that they tried to catch snowflakes on their tongues. Almost all admitted they have tried to do this when it snows. After the story I used the projector to display the slides and show students what they needed to do for each slide. Then students logged onto their Chromebooks and began the lesson.

Tech Skills Practiced

At this age I know mastering the track pad is key to being successful on the Chromebooks. This lesson has a lot of drag and drop activities to give students the practice they need manipulating the trackpad. Is it always easy? No, sometimes they get frustrated when they can’t get the object to move or when they stretch out the circle they are trying to drag and drop. But, as with anything, practice makes perfect. I remind them that the more they practice the easier it will become. Below is an example of one student’s work dragging and dropping circles over the correct number for syllables. As you can see they did stretch out the circles.

Movement During the Lesson

I love that this lesson adds a chance for movement during class. At the end of the slides there is a survey slide that students need to ask their classmates about a favorite event on a snow day. It is so fun to watch them go around asking their classmates what they like best and then dragging and dropping the snowflake to the appropriate box. They love getting to move around and talk while still being engaged in the lesson. Now that is a win for everyone!

A Great Way to Learn

Overall, it has been a great few days working with my first graders. Students have been engaged and having fun which makes them happy. Students have been learning new skills and practicing old skills which makes me happy. I didn’t have to make a stack of copies for assignments, I didn’t have to keep track of unfinished work until the next time they came, and I was able to watch them grow in their computer skills. If you are looking for a fun activity to use with your students Google Reading Slides Companions are a great way to add tech to your lessons.

Shop for your copy of Just One Flake here.

What Are You Teaching In the Library After Winter Break???

Tech Fun In The Library

Aaahhh….that 5:00 am alarm. Yep, it was set and went off first thing this morning. Time to get into the routine of waking up early and heading to work. Back to reality.

If you are wondering what to do this first week back, you are not alone. I saw a reel last night of a teacher saying he had no idea what he was teaching today. He couldn’t even remember where they left off before break. Sound familiar? Yeah, me too.

This week in my library we will be doing a lot of reviewing library expectations and procedures. It has been a few weeks since we have all been together and let’s be honest…things got a bit lax right before break….so time for a refresher. Like us, kids have turned off their school brains over break and many need these reminders to get back on track with behaviors in class, thus going over expectations and procedures is always a good idea.

The other thing I like to do is ease back into things before starting new concepts or lessons. Our library will be doing Caldecott and Newbery Award lessons this month which are fun but I am going to give them a day or two to get back into the routine of school before jumping into these activities.

Here are a few ideas on how to start back a bit more low key but still learning.

New Year’s Themed Read Alouds

This is always a fun way to start back the first day after winter break. I like to read different books with a New Year’s theme to students and then we talk about resolutions or goals they might have for the new year. One of my favorites is Squirrel’s New Year’s Resolution. Students enjoy the story and then can think of ideas on how they can help others each day and make a few resolutions for themselves just like Squirrel. Here is a great Google Slides Reading Companion to go with this book. I love these Google Slides Reading Companions because they take no prep on my part. I don’t have to crowd into the printer room trying to get my turn to make 60 copies of an activity. All I do is put it into the Google Classroom and make a copy for all students.

Shop for your Google Slides Reading Companion here.

Winter Themed Read Alouds

There are sooo many great winter themed read alouds it is hard to choose. One of my favorites is Blizzard by John Rocco. The illustrations are great, the story is great, the fold out pages are great…and right now many are dealing with huge snowfall so it is definitely timely. Another fun one for younger grades is Just One Flake by Travis Jonker. My students love this story and can definitely relate to trying to catch snowflakes on their tongues. Then you can switch it up and read The Snow Globe Family or Snow Globe Wishes both great winter read alouds. With so many great reads out there you can’t go wrong just grab some and enjoy!!

Shop for your book activities here.

Winter Themed Library Activities

Choosing activities that go with the seasons are always a fun way for students to learn in the library. I like to add some digital activities to my centers along with games and writing activities. Some fun winter themed digital activities are these snowman library skills drag and drop activities. Students can practice their shelf order skills, call number skills, and Dewey Decimal skills with these fun winter themed Google Slides. Easy to share with students to use in centers or for something to do after check out.

Shop for your Snowman Library Skills Practice Bundle here.

Library Centers Games

Kids love games and adding games that practice library skills is a win for any library centers activity. My students love Shark Bite! and Kaboom! both are great ways to practice library skills. Younger students enjoy playing the memory games that focus on book genres. Another popular one is UNO. Everyone loves to original game and this library themed one is a hit as well. These are just a few ideas to add fun and games to your library centers as you head back to school.

Shop for your Shark Bite Game Bundle here.

Shop for your Kaboom Game Bundle here.

Shop for your Book Genre Memory Game here.

Enjoy the Time with Students

As hard as it is to go back after a break remember how excited some students are to be back at school and be back to the library. They are going to be excited to see you and eager to do whatever fun activities you have planned for them in the library. Enjoy the time you get with students, bring them more great stories and activities that will help them connect to reading and the library.

How I Teach the Newbery Medal Awards

Tech Fun In The Library

January has arrived, winter break is almost over, and planning for a new year has begun. The Newbery Awards is one of my favorite lessons to do in January, second only to Mock Caldecott, but just as worthy of some recognition. I feel it is a valuable lesson that exposes students to past winners and hopefully gets them reading some of these great books that are hiding on the shelves. There are reasons why the books on this list have won and exposing students to good literature is a key part of our job. Adding this unit has been a great way to keep students engaged and learning about NEW and OLD books in my library.

What is the Newbery Medal Award?

The Newbery Medal is an annual award given by the American Library Association to the author of the most distinguished children’s book published in the previous year. The winner is announced at the end of January at the same time Caldecott and other literature awards are announced. The Newbery Medal winner is chosen by a committee of 15 people. The winning author receives a bronze medal and may have a metallic seal of the medal added to future printings of their book. In addition to the medal winner, one or more honor books are also chosen each year. 

Each year I start my unit by doing a Google Slides presentation to teach students about the Newbery Medal. Even though students may hear the lesson a couple times they are still learning as the information is lost over the year and reteaching is always a good idea. After the lesson slides we read the book Balderdash!: John Newbery and the Boisterous Birth of Children’s Books by Michelle Markel. This book gives some great background on John Newbery.

Finding Newbery Winners in Your Collection

Most of us have or should have many of the Newbery Award winners and Honor winners in our collections. This is a great time to bring them to the attention of students and get them circulating again. I like this lesson because it does stimulate circulation of good books that may have been forgotten. The lesson I use is a scavenger hunt that sends students into the stacks looking for the Newbery winners. Not only will they be looking at books to possibly check out later but they are also practicing finding books within my library. That is a win win in my book.

To add to this lesson and give them more to do than simply find the books and write the call numbers. While they are doing the scavenger hunt they will also need to make book recommendations. I usually have them do 2 recommendations from all the books they will search. This is just short form they fill out with title, number of pages, and brief synopsis.

What if I Don’t Have the Book?

When using the Newbery winner and the Honor Medal list there may be a number of books you don’t have in your library. I also don’t have all of them but this leads to a great opportunity for students to use Destiny….or whatever system your library uses…to look up the books. They can then see if the book is available in the library or if it might just be checked out by someone else. If it is not available I have them put an X on the box. If it is in our library but checked out I have them put a check mark on the box. I have found this to be a great way to get students using the library system to look for books and then later they can use that skill to find books they are wanting to read.

Wrapping Up the Lesson

This lesson may take more than one library class to complete. I have them work with a partner and that does help speed up the process as one can be the person who reads the call number while the other is writing it down. Same with the recommendation form, one can read the synopsis out loud and both can decide how to summarize it. Once they have completed the scavenger hunt and the recommendations I give them an exit ticket which is a half sheet that the fill out with the titles of 3 Newbery Award books they think they would like to check out in the future. I feel this adds to the lesson because students are picking up the books, reading the synopsis, and then deciding if it might be one they would like to read in the future.

I believe this is a great lesson for getting students out looking through your collection, finding Award winners, evaluating them, and maybe even reading some of them.

Shop for your Newbery Medal Award Unit Lesson Plan here.

Shop for your Caldecott and Newbery Unit Lesson Plan Bundle here.

Grab your your FREE Coretta Scott King Awards Google Slides Presentation here.

MLK Read Alouds

Tech Fun In The Library

In honor of Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday I like to read books about his life and contributions during the month of January. I feel it is important to introduce his powerful words and ideas to students of all ages. Whether teaching about his role in the Civil Rights Movement or simply sharing the values of equality and justice, books about Dr. King are a great way to engage young readers. Here are 12 of my favorite MLK books that offer valuable lessons for students and are both educational and inspiring.

Be A King by Carole Boston Weatherford: Uses key moments from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life to inspire children to stand up for what is right and make the world a better place.

I Have a Dream by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: Presenting key excerpts from the speech alongside vibrant paintings depicting the March on Washington and the dream of a racially harmonious America

We Dream a World by Yolanda Renee King: With inspiration from Langston Hughes and deep love for her grandparents, Yolanda King shows the world that young people are strong enough to carry on their elders’ legacy while creating a new path for themselves.

Martin Luther King, Jr.: A Kid’s Book About Advancing Civil Rights With Nonviolence by Mary Nhin: Find out what happens in this kid’s book about achieving goals with nonviolence. Sometimes, we are faced with challenges that seem insurmountable. But with grit and hard work, one can achieve great things!

Good Night Martin Luther King Jr. by Adam Gamble and Mark Jasper: An educational board book that teaches young readers about the life of Martin Luther King Jr., a leader of the American civil rights movement

I am Martin Luther King Jr. by Brad Meltzer: Biography that tells the story of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s life from childhood to his role in the civil rights movement

A Place to Land by Barry Wittenstein: Focuses on the night before Martin Luther King Jr.’s historic “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington, where he struggles to find the perfect words to end his speech.

My Daddy Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by Martin Luther King III: Kids will learn about the early civil rights movement, growing up as the son of a famous activist, how it feels to experience racism as a child, and what it’s like to lose a parent at a young age.

A Picture Book of Martin Luther King Jr. by David A. Adler: A brief, illustrated, biography of the Baptist minister and civil rights leader whose philosophy and practice of nonviolent civil disobedience helped American blacks win many battles for equal rights.

Why Having a Diverse Collection Matters

Tech Fun In The Library

 In an increasingly diverse world, one of the most important responsibilities of libraries is to make sure our collections reflect a wide range of voices, experiences, and perspectives. A diverse collection in a library is not merely a matter of quantity—it’s about ensuring that everyone can see themselves represented in the materials we have in our libraries. The content in libraries should reflect the richness of human experience, addressing issues of race, gender, class, sexuality, ability, and beyond. Here’s why a diverse collection is so important:

Promoting Inclusivity and Representation

Representation matters. When libraries feature diverse materials, they validate the experiences of all groups. This is especially crucial for young readers and members of underrepresented communities who might not see themselves reflected often in books. Diverse collections ensure that every patron, regardless of background, can find books that connect with their identity, experiences, and struggles.

For example, children who see characters from various cultures, backgrounds, and abilities in books are more likely to develop empathy and an understanding of people who are different from themselves.

Encouraging Critical Thinking and Empathy

Our library collections should serve as a mirror to the world. Having library materials that present different viewpoints, backgrounds, and beliefs, will help encourage students to think critically about the world around them. Exposing students to diverse perspectives helps them to develop a deeper understanding of the world and people around them.

Fostering a Sense of Belonging

Libraries should be safe spaces where students can explore new ideas, learn, or even just find comfort in a place they feel safe and seen. When library collections are diverse, they create an environment where everyone feels seen and heard. For members of underrepresented communities, knowing that the library acknowledges their histories, experiences, and identities fosters a sense of belonging and respect.

These are just a few of the reasons we should be making sure that our collections are diverse to meet the needs of all our students. It is never too early to get started on making your collection as diverse as possible. A diverse library collection is not just about offering more books—it’s about building a more inclusive, understanding, and just world for everyone.

Book Shelving…Who Has the Time?

Tech Fun In The Library

Here we are almost half way through the current school year and book returns are on the rise. While this is great it does pose a problem….shelving. One of the big issues I hear from school librarians is that there is very little time to shelve books. What do you do about book returns? How do you get them back on the shelves in a timely manner? As a librarian of a K-12 library with no aide, I understand the difficulties of shelving books while conducting back to back classes. I have made a few adjustments in my library to make it easier to go home with an empty book cart every day.

Baskets for Series Books

When I set up our new library 7 years ago I purchased baskets for all of the elementary series books. There are sooooo many series books and they take up valuable real estate on the shelves. Putting the series books in baskets was a game changer for our library.

Putting them in baskets means that all of the series books are easy for students to find and easy for me to shelve. The bulk of my books, aside from graphic novels, that are checked out by 1st through 4th come from these baskets. Students find a book they like and then they run with it and finish the series. When books are returned I just walk around and drop them in the correct basket. I don’t worry about putting them in order within the basket during the school year. At the end of the year, if I have time, I go through and arrange them in order but to be honest being out of order within the basket does not seem to hinder students in finding their desired read.

What about the cost? I had no budget when I set up our brand new library 7 years ago. I went to Dollar Tree and found these green baskets that matched the color decor fairly well. I wondered how they would hold up but I have not had to replace one basket in 7 years so I would say they were worth the dollar. There are lots of options out there for baskets that would work for your library.

Graphic Novel Section

The busiest section of my library is the graphic novel section. Student’s love these books so making them easy to access was key. I moved them out of the nonfiction section and created a section of shelving just for the graphic novels. When I first set it up I had 5 sparsely filled shelves. Fast forward to today and I have 36 shelves of graphic novels. I just had to move things around this week to free up space so the shelves weren’t packed so tightly. I keep series books together within this section and…total transparency here… the rest are just put on the shelves in any order. They go in and out so quickly I don’t worry about alphabetical order. When shelving I am able to grab the graphic novels and go right to this section to put them away. Again, easy for students to find the graphic novel section and easy for me to shelve.

Finding the Time

I have found that shelving books is much like doing laundry. If you take the clothes out of the dryer and throw them on the sofa or in a spare room to “fold later”. They can pile up and become an overwhelming task. But, if you fold each load right as it comes out of the dryer it only takes a few minutes. For me, it is the same principle with shelving books in the library. When students come in they put their books on the blue book cart I use for library returns. After we read a story and they start their lesson or centers I go and scan the books that were returned. I then call them over 2 at a time to check out. While they are checking out I am walking through the stacks putting books away. With the systems I spoke of above it takes no time at all to put them back on the shelves. I have all the books from each class put away by the end of that class. If something happens, and I get busy I might end up with a few at the end of the day but I can quickly get those put away after my last class before heading home.

Now, that being said my book return cart is empty each day but that by no means is saying I have everything on my library list done. Back in my office I have an overflowing cart and stacks of books waiting to be processed and put on the shelves. But….we will leave that for another blog post. Happy shelving friends!!

What have you done in your library to make shelving easier? Any super tips you would like to share?

Go Fish! Library Centers Game

Tech Fun In The Library

Keeping the library fun and educational can be a challenge. One way to do this is to have a good selection of center activities for students. One of my favorites to give students the opportunity to practice book genres is Go Fish! Book Genre Game. Most of the students already know how to play the classic game of Go Fish! so it is a familiar game that is easy to learn.

Go Fish! Book Genre Game is a great way for students to practice book genres in a fun way. Students get to see and say book genres over and over and as we know repeatedly exposing students to information or skills helps them retain it long term.

How to Play Go Fish!

  • Each player gets 7 cards. 
  • First player will ask one other player if they have a book genre card to match one of theirs. (Do you have Nonfiction with a snake?)
  • If the player has it they give it to them. This is a match and they lay the matched cards in front of them. The player gets to go again. 
  • If the player does not have it they say, “Go Fish” and the first person draws from the pile. If they do not get the card they asked for it is then the second players turn. 
  • The game continues until someone is out of cards. The person with the most matches wins the game.

Shop for your copy of Go Fish! here.

January is “Mock” Caldecott Time!

Tech Fun In The Library

January is right around the corner and that means it is time for our “Mock” Caldecott. This is one of my favorite units because it gets kids reading and evaluating books. January can be a bit rough as we come back from an extended winter break and the fun of all the holiday activities is behind us. Adding this unit has been a great way to keep students engaged and learning in the library.

Preparing for the Unit

Getting ready for this unit does take a bit of preparation on your part as you need to decide what books you will have students reading and evaluating for the unit. I go on the Internet and search up Mock Caldecott books that others have posted and are using. There are also Mock Caldecott groups on social media that can be very helpful. I try to find ones that are mentioned on numerous sites. No one knows for sure what books are being scored by the actual Caldecott judges but so far I have always ended up with winning books in the list of books I provided for my students to judge.

Where Do You Get the Books?

Of course, I don’t always have all of the books that I put on my list. I work in a small district so purchasing that many new books for one unit is not feasible. What do I do? I go to my public library and check out the ones I don’t already have in my library. I make sure that I remind the students over and over that the books we are looking at do not belong to our school so we need to be extra careful when reading them. I have never had an issue with damaged books. If using the public library isn’t an option you can still do the unit by just picking books from your library that you feel have great illustrations and would be good for student evaluations. It is the process of viewing books and illustrations that is important for this unit not necessarily the books themselves.

Time to Start

On the first day of the unit I pull as many Caldecott and Honor winners as I can from my collection and display them on the tray of the whiteboard. When students come in they notice the books and they start asking about them. I find this is a great way to introduce the unit because it has already captured their attention. I then ask them what the books have in common. There are lots of different answers that arise but each time one student does notice the Caldecott Medals on the front. Once they know this is what we will be learning about I start my Google Slides lesson giving background about the award. Yes, I do this year after year and my upper grade students have heard it before but they always forget so it doesn’t hurt to reteach.

Looking Closely at Picture Books

After that we dive into the books and get started. (Step by step lesson plans are included in my Mock Caldecott Unit Lesson) I choose to use 12 books each year and it takes us 2-3 weeks to get through them. I read the books to lower elementary then they vote. For upper elementary I have them read the books to themselves and vote. My students, even the reluctant readers, enjoy this unit because they are really evaluating the illustrations and the pressure to read is not there as it is in some other reading activities. As they are working on each book I love the conversations I am hearing about the books.

Overall, this unit is a great way for students to be exposed to new books and to take the time to evaluate the illustrations. I know my students enjoy this unit because each year when they come in and see the books on the whiteboard tray I hear, “Oh yay, we are picking the winners again!”

Shop for your 2026 Mock Caldecott Unit Lesson Plan here.

Shop for your 2025 Mock Caldecott and Newbery Award Unit Lesson Plan Bundle here.

Grab your your FREE Coretta Scott King Awards Google Slides Presentation here.

How to Play Kaboom! a Library Centers Game

Tech Fun In The Library

When it comes to teaching elementary library classes I try to keep it fun and educational. One of the ways I do this is by offering library centers activities for students to use after a lesson or on specific days. Students want the fun aspect of library centers and my admin wants me to make sure that it is educational…the solution to both is using games like Kaboom!.

Kaboom! is one of my student’s favorite library centers activities. It can be used to practice book genres, shelf order, and the Dewey Decimal System. When it comes to reviewing or practicing these skills Kaboom! is the answer!

How to Play Kaboom!

Extra perk…Kaboom! is a very simple library centers activity. To set up, all you need is a set of Kaboom! cards and a bucket or some type of vessel to put the cards in so students can’t see them when drawing a card.

 Let’s use Book Genre Kaboom! for the sake of instruction.

  • Students find their place at the table.
  • One at a time, students pull a card out of the bucket. 
  • The student drawing will read the book genre card and then tell the group what genre it is describing.
  • If the student gets the correct answer, they keep the card. If not, they put the card back in the bucket. 
  • The game continues as students take turns playing.
  • If a student gets a Kaboom card, that student puts ALL of their cards back into the bucket. 
  • The student with the most cards at the end of time is the winner.
  • I have one “expert” at the table who has the answer key and can judge whether the students have given the correct answer. The “expert” can rotate in and then someone else will become the “expert”.

As you can see, this game can be done with any concept, just switch book genre with one of the other library related Kaboom cards.

Secret fact about the game…IT NEVER ENDS. Eventually, somebody gets a Kaboom! card which means they have to put their cards back in the bucket thus adding to the cards in the bucket over and over again. For library teachers this means students are engaged and learning the full 10 to 15 minutes of the library centers rotation.

Shop for your copy of Kaboom! here.

Black History Month Read Alouds

Tech Fun In The Library

Black History Month gives us an opportunity to educate our young readers about the contributions and experiences of African Americans and celebrate diversity through read alouds. Selecting the right books will not only inform students but also help inspire students to understand and appreciate contributions made by African Americans.

Reading books about African Americans gives us elementary librarians the opportunity to promote understanding and appreciation of diverse cultures through read alouds. These books not only celebrate the contributions of African Americans but also foster an understanding of their cultural significance within American history.

Here are a few of my favorites to use in the library during Black History Month.

The Oldest Student by Rita L. Hubbard: The true story of Mary Walker, a formerly enslaved woman who learned to read at the age of 116, becoming known as the “nation’s oldest student”.

Mae Among the Stars by Rhoda Ahmed: Mae dreams of dancing among the stars and becomes an astronaut with unwavering determination and support from her family.

Henry’s Freedom Box by Ellen Levine: The true story of Henry “Box” Brown, an enslaved man who, after being separated from his family, decides to mail himself in a wooden crate to freedom in Philadelphia.

Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry: Dad has to step in to help Zara do her hair but things don’t go as expected.

Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly and Winifred Conkling: The story of three African American women who helped during the Space Race.

Not Quite Snow White by Ashley Franklin: Tameika wants to play Snow White in the school play but negative comments by classmates and her own self doubt could keep her from trying out for the part.

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer: The true story of William Kamkwamba, a young boy from Malawi who builds a windmill to bring electricity to his village during a drought.

Kick Push by Frank Morrison: The story of a skateboarder named Epic who learns to be himself and finds new friends in the process.

The Year We Learned to Fly by Jacqueline Woods on: A brother and sister learn from their grandmother to use their imaginations to “fly” above their difficulties.

Shop my store for Black History Month activities.

 Not Quite Snow White: Google Slides Reading Companion

Henry’s Freedom Box: Google Slides Reading Companion

Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry: Google Slides Reading Companion