Sonoma County Library’s Winter Reading Challenge

Video: During Winter Break, I’m logging my minutes for Sonoma County Library’s 2022 Winter Reading Challenge.

‘Gift of Literacy’ for California students

California students can enjoy the “Gift of Literacy” from now through Jan. 31, 2022: unlimited access to thousands of digital books and news articles through the Renaissance myON digital library.

First-chapter Friday : The Other Boy

Each Friday I share the link to a read-aloud preview of a book from our school library, with the SRCSA community. The “First-chapter Friday” selection for Dec. 10, 2021 is The Other Boy, by M. G. Hennessey.

What I’m reading : Foundations of Library and Information Science

Foundations of Library and Information Science, by Richard E. and Rachel G. Rubin, is a book that I will reach for again and again as I advance in my studies, and in my professional development, for Library and Information Science. I am reading the fifth edition of this book (published in 2020), and am finding it timely and relevant. The book includes discussion of the COVID-19 pandemic and how the shutdown of physical libraries affected delivery of services. The subject of library outreach during COVID was “still being written” at the time of publication, and this book does an excellent job encapsulating a situation that continues to evolve.

Book-Talk : Solimar, by Pam Muñoz Ryan

If you like adventure stories that feature resourceful princesses, Solimar, by Pam Muñoz Ryan, is a book you’ll want to read. For my video book review, I dressed up as a princess to honor the protagonist, who is the princess of a fictional kingdom: San Gregorio, in Mexico. Princess Solimar’s kingdom is home to a forest that’s a migration stop for Monarch butterflies. Wanting to sit with the butterflies when they arrive in the forest, Solimar is caught up in a magical experience: she has been chosen to be protector of young and weak butterflies that cannot survive on her own, and, while she serves as protector to the young butterflies, Solimar will be able to predict the near future.

Book-Talk : The Okay Witch and the Hungry Shadow

I recently received a mystery box from Simon & Schuster featuring middle-grade graphic novels. Among promotional copies included in the box was The Okay Witch and the Hungry Shadow, by Emma Steinkellner (July 2021). I heartily recommend this graphic novel, which features compelling characters, a strong plot, a valuable lesson about being able to accept yourself, and being able to promote positive changes within your community.

Book-Talk : Dragons in a Bag

If you haven’t yet listened to my read-aloud of Dragons in a Bag by Zetta Elliott, now is an excellent time to do so. Dragons in a Bag is the selection for younger readers in this year’s Global Read Aloud. I am now recording a read-aloud for The Dragon Thief, second book in the series, and the story will continue in The Witch’s Apprentice, which is expected to be published in January 2022.

What I’m reading : The Dragon Thief

Introducing … my latest read-aloud recording, The Dragon Thief by Zetta Elliott. It is a sequel to Dragons in a Bag, so be sure to read it, or listen to my read-aloud, before listening to The Dragon Thief.

Jaxon had just one job -- to return three baby dragons to the realm of magic. But when he got there, only two dragons were left in the bag. His best friend’s sister, Kavita, is a dragon thief!

Kavita only wanted what was best for the baby dragon. But now every time she feeds it, the dragon grows and grows! How can she possibly keep it secret? This story is in alternating first-person accounts by Jaxon and Kavita.

First-chapter Friday : A Wish in the Dark

Each Friday I share the link to a read-aloud preview of a book from our school library, with the SRCSA community. The “First-chapter Friday” selection for Nov. 12, 2021 is A Wish in the Dark, by Christina Soontornvat.

First-chapter Friday : Total eclipse of Nestor Lopez

Each Friday I share the link to a read-aloud preview of a book from our school library, with the SRCSA community. The “First-chapter Friday” selection for Oct. 29, 2021 is Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez, by Adrianna Cuevas.

Book-giveaway resources

Video: Last school year, our school families and staff donated books for teachers to give to students who have few or even no books at home. There are still books available for teachers to select from, to give as gifts to their students.

Let’s build a Community of Readers

Before the COVID-19 shutdown, I’d been promoting these flyers for staff to showcase what they are reading. Now that we are back together again, I’m hoping to resume those efforts. I’d love to see these flyers posted all over campus. My design is based on one by Andrea Trudeau, which she shared among California library professionals.

Virtual tour of SRCSA library

It's Back-to-School Night at elementary sites, Santa Rosa City Schools, and at Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts. Here is a virtual tour of SRCSA library, along with a presentation slide.

What I’m reading : Flying Lessons

One of my absolute favorite genres is the short-story anthology; it’s a great way to be introduced to new authors, as well as explore new facets to your favorite writers and the worlds they build.

Flying Lessons, edited by Ellen Oh, features “some of the best children’s authors including Kwame Alexander, Meg Medina, Jacqueline Woodson, and many more.”

Published in partnership with We Need Diverse Books, this collection of stories “celebrates the uniqueness and universality in all of us.”

Video review: ‘Crunch’

Video: Get to know my latest read-aloud, Crunch, by Leslie Connor.

Productive start for new school year

Video: There’s plenty to do in SRCSA library, to get ready for the beginning of school.

What I’m reading : Name of the Wind

The rural Waystone Inn is tended by a humble innkeeper, Kote — but peril stalks the land, and a pursuer of legend has followed stories of an infamous adventurer, Kvothe. Those stories have led him to Kote, who proposes to tell him his life-story over the course of three days.

The Name of the Wind, published in 2007, was the first volume in what author Patrick Rothfuss envisioned as a trilogy. It was followed by The Wise Man’s Fear, in 2011, but The Doors of Stone, third book in the series, remains “forthcoming” as of 2021. While fans wait, the earlier books are worth being read again, for the depth and richness of the story.

Return-to-school for 2021-2022

Video: Classes begin Aug. 12, 2021 in Santa Rosa City Schools.

Santa Rosa CityBus : Young people ride for free

Young people can ride Santa Rosa CityBus for free, through the Unlimited Rides (UR Free) pilot program, which operates through Dec. 31, 2022.

ALA Virtual 2021 : ‘Conference at Home’

Video: With ALA’s annual conference held virtually in Summer 2021, attendees were able to enjoy the “Conference at Home” experience. Appreciation to everyone who had a hand in shaping and underwriting this event.

End-of-school-year, 2020-2021

Congratulations to our departing eighth-graders; it was great to be able to see you receive your certificates with an in-person promotion ceremony. Best wishes for next school year, everybody, at Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts. And whatever else you do this summer, be sure to log the time you spend reading for our public library’s Summer Reading Challenge.

Turn in textbooks and library books

We only have a few more days until the end of the school-year. Students, if you have textbooks or library books at home, be sure to turn them back in. And teachers, if students are bringing these books to your classrooms, please make sure that I have an opportunity to scan them off students’ accounts.

Scholastic Book Fair at SRCSA

Our socially distanced, in-person Scholastic Book Fair takes place from May 12 to 14, 2021. You can also purchase books online.

Video review: ‘In Real Life’

A teen gamer, Anda, is invited on missions with real-world earning potential: money will be deposited in her PayPal account if she kills “gold farmers” in the game. Here is my video review of In Real Life, written by Cory Doctorow and illustrated by Jen Wang.

Book-Talk : Get a Grip, Vivy Cohen!

Major-league pitcher VJ Capello has been Vivy Cohen’s hero ever since he showed her his grip for the knuckleball at a social event for people on the autism spectrum and their families. Vivy writes a letter to VJ to satisfy the requirements of her social-skills class and, after Vivy sends him several letters, VJ actually writes back! The author, Sarah Kapit brings her lived experience as an autistic individual to craft Vivy as a believable character. In 2021, Get a Grip, Vivy Cohen! was an Honor Book for the Schneider Family Book Award.

‘The Eleventh Trade,’ my current read-aloud

Recently, I agreed to record a read-aloud of a suspenseful story, and the middle-school language arts teacher at my school posed a vote among her students for the titles I’d suggested. The Eleventh Trade was the winning vote-getter. Here’s my Book-Talk video for The Eleventh Trade. Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel if you are enjoying my videos.

Classified Employee of the Month

Exciting news: I was honored at a recent board meeting for Santa Rosa City Schools as its Classified Staff Member of the Month for March 2021. Here I am in our school library with the official certificate.

‘Introduce yourself!’ (Library Juice Academy)

Video: I’m taking a course in cataloging from Library Juice Academy. During this first week of class, we were asked to introduce ourselves.

What I’m reading : Mort(e)

While much of my reading is Tween and Young Adult fiction, I also enjoy Science Fiction and Fantasy for an adult readership. One of the books I am currently reading is Mort(e) by Robert Repino.

Giant ants have masterminded an uprising by surface animals, whose intelligence has been boosted and who now possess the ability to walk upright on their hind legs.

The warrior Mort(e), formerly a housecat named Sebastian, searches for his lost companion, a dog named Sheba, while a mysterious prophecy tells of animals and humans joining forces to overthrow the ants.

The Case of the Burgled Bundle, by Michael Hutchinson

Video book review: The Mighty Muskrats — Chickadee, Atim, Otter, and Sam — are on the case after the Treaty Bundle — centerpiece of a four-day-long ceremony among the National Assembly of Cree Peoples — is stolen. The Case of the Burgled Bundle stands as a particularly strong entry in author Michael Hutchinson’s Mighty Muskrats series. It offers a gripping, tight mystery that I think really speaks to Hutchinson’s deft ability as a writer.

With COVID-19, inmates’ access to books is gaining greater attention

While COVID-19 has wrought many changes in library and information science, one positive development may be growing attention to inmates’ access to reading materials, as observed in recent actions by the American Library Association (ALA). My concern is if these efforts are tied too closely to COVID-19, then any concessions granted during the pandemic may lose ground once the pandemic is behind us.

Rotary ‘Dictionaries for Kids’

The Rotary Club of Santa Rosa is giving a brand new dictionary to every third-grade student in Santa Rosa City Schools. This gift to our families is part of a distribution of more than 30,000 dictionaries from Sonoma County to the Oregon border — more than 2,000 dictionaries in Santa Rosa alone.

Sonoma Storysharing Project

Here’s an opportunity that could be just the thing for our creative community at Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts: The Sonoma County Office of Education and CoBUILD-at-home is inviting Sonoma County students to share a story of how COVID19 has impacted them, or their community, through a wide range of expressive avenues, such as drawing or sketching, painting, photography, short film making, oral history or interview. Stories should be submitted by Friday, May 7, 2021. https://sites.google.com/scoe.org/cobuildselstorysharing/home

SRCSA library : Welcome to 2021

It’s a brand-new year, and there’s a lot going on in SRCSA library. Here’s a review of recent highlights, including my read-alouds. The charter school lottery application window is open, if you’ve thought about attending our school.

Discussing violence with children, resources from SCOE

Parents, are you wondering how to talk with your children about this week’s violence in Washington DC? Here are a couple of recent bulletins from Sonoma County Office of Education.