EARCOs Librarians' Weekend 2019

For the last year I've been working with the librarians at Taipei American School to organize the EARCOs Librarians' Weekend (hosted at TAS). It has been a year of very hard work but it was completely worth it. It's been amazing. I got to meet my educator hero Pernille Ripp who was our keynote speaker, and catch up in person with so many librarians I've met online through various networks. The workshops presented by my colleagues were all top notch and very enlightening. I learnt so much about LibGuides I don't even know where to begin with revamping my own. Today is Sunday and I am completely exhausted. Tomorrow Matt Phelan will be visiting my school so it's an early night for me tonight. Need every ounce of strength I can muster to make sure tomorrow is a success. No rest for a librarian :D

Axel Scheffler author visit

On the back of the Taipei International Book Exhibition, we were very lucky to get author/illustrator Axel Scheffler to visit our school for a couple of hours. He was so kind and patient with the kids, and insisted on drawing a character in every single book that they brought to him for signing. His minders were frantic when he was running over time so he insisted that we box up all the books still not signed and he would take them back to his hotel to do that evening. What a guy! His session with the students was just superb. His easy manner and rye wit were a hit with everyone. I was very star struck. We've been really lucky this year to have so many amazing people visit our school. It's been hard to fit them all in but I'm so glad that I went all out to pack the calendar with exciting events. 

Reading buddies

We had some stuffed animals in our library storage cupboard for ages and one day I decided to put them out in the Junior library on display. The kids loved them. So I decided to buy some more. The reaction to them was so good that I had to buy more! We now have a huge collection of 'Reading Buddies' which the children can come and get during library time. They all sit and snuggle up together with their chosen buddy and look like they are in heaven. If you ever consider doing this, I can't recommend it more highly. Having something to cuddle while they read has had a big impact on their concentration, and they always leave smiling. We got the majority of them from IKEA but we also had some book characters from a while back. 

Liu Hsu Kung author visit

Tatekawa Shinoharu - Rakugo Storyteller

Today we treated our students to an incredible performance by Mr. Tatekawa Shinoharu, a Rakugo storyteller from Japan. The library served as the venue for his performances with over 190 students in attendance for each session. Students and teachers were left with smiles all round as they heard four traditional stories including ‘The Zoo’ and ‘Tenshiki’. The library was rocked with laughter from start to finish. 

Rakugo is a 400 year old comedic verbal artform; literally meaning a story with a punchline. Mr. Tatekawa began by talking about what rakugo is, how the stories are told, what props are used, and a little bit of the history behind it. Our students had never heard Rakugo stories before so there were lots of questions asked in the Q&A portion of the event. He really was a joy to host. If you're looking for an event that's a little different, he's a really good person to invite.

 

Steve Antony & Mr. Panda

Today we were very lucky to host Steve Antony on his Scholastic Taiwan tour. In advance of his visit, our students decorated their own unique donuts to celebrate the book Please Mr. Panda. The library was covered in their wonderful creations. 

LKSW 2017

I've been very lucky this year to attend two fantastic courses. Today I am in Ho Chi Minh attending the Librarian's Knowledge Sharing Workshop at AIS. Being with so many fantastic librarians doing fun, interesting things is truly inspiring.

Sharing on Twitter on the hashtag - #lksw20172018

And on Facebook using the same hashtag

 Catching up with old friends

Touring the elementary library (AIS Ho Chi Minh)

Designing our ideal library

Matters of the heart

When it comes to Romance novels, I know nothing. And quite frankly I'm happy to stay that way. I am not a fan of romance novels, not even as a teenager. They just hold no appeal to me. 

But.... I'm a librarian and a large part of my job is being able to recommend titles to students in genres that THEY like. Now if I was a high school librarian (like my boss and two other colleagues), I'd be able to provide a long list of titles. But suitable romance novels for 11 year olds that are actually good books are hard to come by it seems. I've spent the last hour and a half scouring the internet for suggestions but can't seem to find anything that I think will appeal. The girl I'm helping at the moment has given me some titles that she's read before and wants something like those. The problem is that the titles she's been reading (not from my library) are not technically suitable for her age group (ex. The Fault in our Stars which is labelled as 14+). 

So I'm a bit stuck. I don't like censoring what kids read. They all develop at different times and at different rates and while I'm happy she's reading books she's enjoying, I can't really recommend titles that I know contain sex or that I think might be a bit too mature for her age. SIGH!

What's really funny is that she said to me today that she can't wait to get to high school so she can read all the books she has been wanting to read. She is currently 11, the new school year starts in August and she turns 12 in February 2016. Made me laugh. So while she can't get hold of the books in my library (at age 11), when she moves up to our high school campus in a few months time (still age 11) she'll be able to read them there. LOL! I guess it will be someone else's problem then. 

Kids do the sweetest things

Two of my year 3 students made me this book; all about me and my favourite authors. I'd had a really crappy morning and honestly, I cried when they gave it to me. Best thing I've ever been given by a kid. 

Things I never thought I would have to say (part 1)

"Jonathan, please stop scaring the girls with your centipede."