Sunday, November 26, 2023

Montjoy_Emily_BlogShare

Books to Bring a Spark to Your Library

Imagination Soup-- A blog full of books & fun learning resources written by a mom, writer, former educator and literacy trainer, Melissa Taylor

This blog has become one of my go-to for book resources for children. Author, Melissa Taylor, has vast knowledge on the subject of children's literature and uses her experience in the school setting to help currate book lists for children. This resource is extremely useful for teachers, librarians, parents, and children. If you are looking for a book, you are sure to find what you are looking for here on her blog! There are book lists organized by age, topic, and genre. You can find book lists for audio books, graphic novels, picture books, chapter books, books to read aloud, bedtime stories, books made into movies, etc. The possibilities are endless! I first found her blog through Facebook. She posts regularly, so I highly recommend following her on social media so you catch her latest updates. She also has a section designated for playful learning which includes toys, games, writing, and stem related topics. She also shares seasonal posts full of book ideas to relate to the current holidays. One other useful section on her blog are mentor books for teaching. For example, books to teach letter writing, perspective, or figurative language. This is especially helpful for school librarians who are working with teachers and connecting library lessons to the classroom curriculum.

I could share so many relevant and useful blog posts from this blog, so narrowing it down to three to five was a bit difficult. I can't recommend her blog enough. Here are several blog posts that I thought would be beneficial for librarians.

1. Teaching Information Literacy with Children's Books

https://imaginationsoup.net/teach-information-literacy-with-childrens-books/

This post is written by a guest blogger, Geralyn Westervelt, a a recently retired school librarian. In this blog, Westervelt shares what information literacy is, why it is important to teach it, and how to teach it to students using picture books. She explains how students are exposed to an abundance of information in today's tech-rich world, and it is imperative that we teach our students how to read information and how to determine it's accuracy. She shares this graphic that explains what information literacy is: research skills, digiital competencies, media literacy, and academic literacy. We have a challenging job: teaching children and young adults how to find reliable resources and news outlets, how to use critial thinking skills to analyze the information, and then what to do with the information we have at our fingertips.

In the post, Westervelt shares many picture books that you can use to teach this skill in the library setting. Here are two that looked like good choices to me that I have not seen before!

2. 35 Best Nonfiction Books of 2023 for Kids

Best Nonfiction Books

One week during our classwork we were to read nonfiction books. Personally, I have found that reading aloud nonfiction can be one genre we often shy away from, but we shouldn't. I challenged myself to read more nonfiction aloud to my students and personal child. It is important that just as they hear fiction be read aloud and learn the story structure, it is also important that they hear nonfiction read aloud and modeled for them how to read nonfiction. Nonfiction sometimes gets a sterotype as a boring genre to read, and all to often, it is avoided. I chose this blog so that I could find some new, exciting, award winning nonfiction to read aloud. Taylor emphasizes this same point in her blog. She says often her students struggled more with nonfiction comprehension than fictional comprehension and it was really because of a lack of exposure and practice. "Reading nonfiction builds the very important skill of reading for meaning." (Taylor, 2023) It is a great idea to read nonfiction often to model this important skill and to give students practice as well. This post shares 35 different new nonfiction picture books and a short summary for each one. I am excited to check out these new titles, most of which I have not read.

3. 70 Best Christmas Books for Kids

Christmas Books

I could really spend hours digging through this blog and the numerous book lists. One way I searched was by going to the blog tab and clicking on the "by topic" choice. This has a long list of books organized by various topics in alphabetical order. Since Christmas is coming up, I chose to click and read through this post. In this post Taylor recommends her favorite Christmas picture books, chapter books, middle grade books, and activity books.

The remainder of the post shares various Christmas books, both old and new. Some books were classics and well known books like The Polar Express and Red and Lulu. But there were many others listed that I had never heard of before, so I appreciate her list of newer titles that aren't read and reread. In the library I like to try to find books students have not heard many times and expose them to new literature and a variety of diverse texts and authors. However, rereading some classics just never gets old, like The Polar Express. Children often enjoy hearing their favorites read time and time again.

If you're looking for a book to read, and you need the perfect read aloud recommendation, this blog is a go-to that will be a valuable resource to your professional tool box when working in a library setting.

Enjoy, & happy reading!

What I am reading this week:

We were to read comedy books this week. Reading funny books is a must in the library! I chose to read the books shared in the blog I found this week mentioned above, and this is perfect timing for the upcoming weeks at school. Taylor shared these top picks on her blog for funny Christmas books which will make for great read alouds in the library! Here's what I am reading:

Sunday, November 19, 2023

Montjoy_Emily_FreeChoiceBlog

Storytelling in the Library

Poetry Slams & Podcasts

This week we were able to have a free choice for our blog post. As we are nearing the end of the semester, I thought about what were a few things I wanted to dive into more to take away from this storytelling course and possibly share with fellow classmates who could use the ideas and information as well. The week we read poetry, we also did readings about digital storytelling. Writing poetry and using that to create a digital storytelling experience is definitely something I want to try with my students. After I finished my post that week I remembered how much I loved a book where the main characters were involved in poetry slams and I watched several both online and in person over the years. Poetry slams are usually geared towards high school students (and possibly middle schoolers), but I was curious if this was something I could try with elementary aged students.

I found this article by one of my favorite authors, Ralph Fletcher, How to Host a Poetry Slam. Fletcher visited a school that was presenting a poetry slam and shares tips and the how-to for organizing a poetry contest and poetry slam event. I love the idea of having students sign up to participate in the poetry contest. In the article Fletcher mentions the teacher who organized the event stressed the positive impact writing, reading, rereading, and performing the poetry had on her students. Another great article that explains some of the history of poetry slams, the definition, reasons to include slams in your classrooms and libraries, and great examples can be found in this article by Jill Staake, What Is Slam Poetry and How Can Teachers Use It With Students? Poetry is often looked at as a boring genre to study, but writing and reading poetry can be intense and emotional. Students can often examine tough topics through poetry. Poetry slams gives students a chance to share their writing in a creative way and practice storytelling or performing, engaging with the audience, and adding emotion through tone and mood while sharing something that is important to them.

Here is an example of a student participating in a poetry slam.

"Mathmatical Blues"

Kimberly Simms Gibbs shares information about poetry slams in her blog post, Poetry Slams in Your Classroom. She shares some of the history behind the beginnings of poetry slams from the 1980's. Poetry seemed to be a dying genre, and poet Marc Smith saw people pouring into Wrigley Field, so he decided to use baseball to "jazz" up poetry and created the idea "poetry slams" taking a play on words from the grand slam in baseball. I had no idea this is where this idea originated. I was thinking how fun it would be to host a baseball themed poetry slam in the spring, especially since April is National Poetry Month.

One last resource for teaching and organizing poetry slams is Lindsay Ann's Teaching Slam Poetry I am looking forward to one day hosting a poetry contest and having a poetry slam/ poetry night in the library one day. Have you ever participated in or been a part of an audience during a poetry slam? How would you incorporate this exciting spin on a often forgotten genre?

Podcasts

Another idea I wanted to add to my toolbox was the idea of using podcasts-- either to listen to stories or to record stories. When I first started searching for ideas, I thought, you could connect the poetry slam with podcasting as well! So once I started searching, I did find several podcasts incorporating poetry slams like University of Oxford Recordings from the 2009 Online Poetry Slam competition. However, there isn't many options for poetry slam within podcasting.

I love listening to podcasts, and I have found that my students have really enjoyed them in my classroom as well. There are many options for storytelling podcasts available. One way I want to use them in the library is to have a podcast station where students can plug in and listen to a story. This is similar to audio books or the very popular Tonies (my daughter and now my students favorite audio device for storytelling!). I have zero experience recording podcasts, but I think this is something students would really buy into and be motivated to use in the classroom and library setting. Several podcasts for storytelling that your patrons might enjoy are:

1. What if World-- Stories for Kids by Eric O'Keeffe

2. Stories Podcast by Starglow Media

3. Storynory

4. Story Pirates

5. Circle Round by WBUR

6. Geeking Out from National Geographic Kids

7. Story Seeds

Why use podcasts? Podcasts are great to help students develop listening skills and listening comprehension. Podcasts give students the chance to let their eyes and brains relax from straining to read and enjoy a story and explore new topics and information. One of my favorite podcasts that I have personally used is Circle Round. Circle Round is a collection of folktales. Included with the podcast/ storytelling experience are discussion prompts and coloring pages that students can use while listening to the story. Kids will love this!

Check it out here Circle Round

The last thing that I found while searching for poetry slams and podcasting in the library was a podcast called Story Corps. I had never heard of this one, but you can find the link here Story Corps. Story Corps was created to record, preserve, and stories of Americans. This really reminded me of digital storytelling but in a totally audio format through podcasting. What originally caught my eye was their program called, The Great Thanksgiving Listen. I love the idea of interviewing an elder member of your family or someone older and important to you. Then recording the interview using the Story Corps App. These interviews are preserved and saved for generations to come!

I am really excited to try out these new ideas in the library! I can't wait to hear any of your favorite poetry and podcasts resources as well.

What I am reading this week:

Classic Literature-- I really enjoyed reading some classic stories that have been around for quite awhile that I haven't ever had a chance to read.

1. The Gruffalo

2. Paddington

3. The Tiger Who Came to Tea

4. The Snowman

5. Madeline

6. Olivia

Sunday, November 12, 2023

Montjoy_Emily_StorytellingReflection

Storytelling Session Reflection

During this course, we were able to plan, record, and share several storytime sessions. We presented storytime sessions that were with a book, with props, with interaction, and without a book. Each of these storytime sessions were similar but unique to their own style and requirements. Some sessions were easier, like storytime with a book. Some sessions were harder like storytime with props or without a book. Overall, planning and conducting these storytime sessions helped to gain some experience and feedback from others while I practiced reading and creating an engaging storytime session for others. I felt most comfortable telling a story with a book, and least comfortable with props or no book at all. The story I chose to tell without a book was one I had read aloud many times, so it was okay. I think I could tell some stories from memory that I tell my daughter at bedtime. She often asks for, "tell me a story with your mouth" after we read a book together. Children love storytime, both with books and without!

My personal background, knowledge, and experienced really helped me with this part of the course. I have been a reading teacher for 17 years so picking a story, planning a read aloud, engaging students, and creating meaningful questions and activities was very familiar and easy to me. I honestly thought this course would be more "storytelling" in the sense of storytellers on stage telling a story from memory. Conducting read alouds is something I do on a daily basis so this came with ease and comfort. However, planning storytime sessions with props and without a book took me out of my comfort zone, as did recording myself and sharing it with other adults. Also, collaborating with others during the course and reading a variety of texts from different genres also helped me to add to my read aloud resources and learn new titles to share with my students and faculty. What I am most excited about is taking what I have learned and using it in the school library. Sharing stories, texts, and ideas through this course will be beneficial to me as I move forward from teacher to librarian.

Beginning

Planning, Story Choice, & Setup

When planning a storytime session, the first thing I think about is the audience. I ask myself, "what is appropriate for this age group?" Small children are not going to be able to sit for as long as older children, so thinking about your audience is crucial to planning a successful storytime. Younger audiences are going to be more engaged with repetition, rhyming, and silly stories. They also appreciate when they can anticipate what is coming and participate in the read aloud. Older audiences are going to enjoy stories that make them think beyond the text, have them guessing what may happen next, surprise plot twists and endings, but also enjoy silly stories as well. When planning the storytime the reader must also think about the audience's interests and any factors that could hinder any of the patrons. For example, I have a student that is blind, so I always try to pick stories for his class that are very detailed in their description so he can follow the story without seeing the pictures. Younger audiences are really going to enjoy props like felt boards or puppets where older audiences may not enjoy those interactive elements, but they do love when I use the novel effect sound effects app and change my voice to complement the text. Also thinking about what time of year you're currently in and any holidays or curricular needs from teachers are important to take into account when planning your storytime.

It is imperative that you read the book prior to the storytime, multiple times if necessary. This practice rehearsal will give you the chance to correct any mispronunciations, plan for places in the story that require you to slow down, speed up, change your voice, add dialogue, check your volume, etc. anything to enhance the actual story to make it come alive for the listeners. I found that practicing and rehearsing the story beforehand helped me to have the correct pace for the story and include any voice changes or questioning techniques to enhance the storytime experience. Setting up your area is also important. Because I was filming this, I chose a quiet place with good lighting. I wanted an area that created a storytime vibe. For example, I had our bookshelves in the background while I was reading and removed any distractions from view. This is important to plan in your real face-to-face storytime sessions as well. Creating an environment that the patrons feel comfortable and can relax and enjoy the story, free from distractions and interruptions, will benefit you and your audience. Making sure everyone can see and if you're using a book that contains pictures, it is important the patrons can see well.

Middle

Performance

When reading aloud to an audience, it can be tricky to make sure everyone is staying focused and engaged. Over the course of the semester, I found that the storytime sessions that included props and interaction helped the patrons stayed focused, engaged, participating, and comprehending the story. This provides a more enjoyable and entertaining experience. However, this is the more tricky part as the storyteller-- planning and prepping and delivering a storytime with props can turn into a juggling act. I used a story that I almost knew by heart. I still held the book in one hand and picked up props with the other hand as I needed them throughout the storytime, but, I definitely think memorizing the story is crucial if you plan on using props. It was hard to manage both the book and props, and my book was smaller size. Also, even though recording yourself is a little nerve-wracking, having a live audience, especially of kids, can create extra jitters since they are sitting there waiting for your next move.

I used Novel Effect for a couple of my storytime sessions. Novel Effect provides "soundscapes" or sound effects that complement the story. This is another way to enhance the storytime experience and engage the audience. I have found that my students are more attentive to the story when I use the music to catch their attention. This is just another way, like using props and interactive methods, to catch the audience's attention and keep them focused throughout the experience.

End

Reactions & My Feelings

Introducing the story and closing the story were aspects that help hook the listener at the beginning and get them thinking about the story, and the closing at the end helps to wrap everything up. Sometimes during recording this is easy to forget to do because there was not a live audience, so I had to constantly remind myself not to leave this out. In my classroom I never just open a book and start reading without saying anything to all of the students sitting there, so it makes sense why this is absolutely necessary. I found the feedback from classmates to be interesting. Most always the feedback was positive, constructive, and helpful. However, there was one week where I had mixed reviews from classmates which I think would be not uncommon in the real world. Some people like the story and the delivery and others do not, which alot of that is based on personal perferences and opinions. I learned to just take the feedback from that week with a grain of salt. However, it was a good reminder to me that every storytime session isn't going to resonate with every student every time. Where one class really loved a story and were engaged and interacting, the next class may roll their eyes and be unamused. Planning a storytimes can be tricky, so providing a variety of storytimes both in style and in diverse titles/ genres will be so important when working in a library and reading to a variety of diverse people with various backgrouds, interests, and abilities.

Nonfiction Books I am Reading this Week:

Jumper

We Are Branches

Evelyn the Adventurous Entomologist

A Search for a Giant Squid (Pick Your Own Path)

Keepunumuk: Weeachumun’s Thanksgiving Story

Sunday, October 29, 2023

Montjoy_Emily_ReadingReflection

Reflections on Readings

Digital Storytelling & Poetry in Storytelling

Poetry is one of my favorite genres to share with students because it is often overlooked and misunderstood. Many people think of poetry as a short rhyming piece of writing with one column of six to eight stanzas and written in a way meant to have the reader thinking deeply and critically to infer the meaning of the poem. Poetry is so much more than that though! I always share novels written in verse with my students like The Crossover by Kwame Alexander, Love That Dog by Sharon Creech, Forget Me Not by Ellie Terry , or Missing Mike by Shari Green just to name a couple. Poetry can be written to tell a story, and novels in verse provide an example of this variation of the poetry genre.

Narrative Poems are another great example of using poetry in storytelling. Narrative Poems are often used in picture books to tell a shorter story. When searching for several poems to read this week, I found this blog with a great explanation of narrative poetry and how to write your own! Narrative Poetry Narrative poetry would be a great addition to a storytelling session in the library as well as writing and creating a digital storytelling piece. There are many benefits to reading and reciting poetry. As stated on Argo Prep, "Poetry is an exciting and easy way to help kids become stronger readers. Research shows that poetry helps build literacy skills, including phonemic awareness, memory, and fluency, especially if you read poems aloud! Poetry also helps develop spelling and vocabulary. Reading and writing poetry can spark creativity while building up critical thinking skills."

Another article I found when looking for poetry to read was one written by poet Kwame Alexander. He described list poetry and the benefits to sharing this format with students. You can read this helpful information here List Poetry and Storytelling in the Classroom Students are often intimidated reading poetry and especially writing poetry. Using list format is a great introductory tool to writing poetry. List poems can tell a story. There are no rules to follow when writing list poems, they can rhyme or not, they can contain figurative language or not, they can follow a pattern or not. I really enjoyed reading this article and plan on trying this style with my own students. I also found reading these poems enjoyable. I think the simple style really packs a punch when the poet is telling a story, espcecially if it is about something personal. This is a powerful way to share those thoughts and feelings.

Ten Poems to Share

This week I read the following ten poems:

"The Storyteller" by Mike Jones This poem was also set to music.

"My Autumn Senses" by Staci Eirich (storyberries.com-- great narrative poem to teach descriptive writing)

"A Penny's Travels" by Ranbir B. (an example of a list poem)

"Ten Reasons Why Fathers Cry at Night"- Kwame Alexander (another list poem)

"Going Nowhere Slowly" by Kenn Nesbitt https://poetry4kids.com/poems/

"Underneath the Apple Tree" by Kenn Nesbitt

"The Strongest Girl I Ever Knew" by Ronald Doe

"The Rat Race" by Lorna Welch

"Noone Saved Us" by Patricia Fleming

"The Door of Dreams" by Jessie Rittenhouse

https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poems/

Digital Storytelling

Until this class, I was unfamiliar with digital storytelling. Digital storytelling is using digital tools, technology, and multimedia to tell a story. The storyteller may write a story, and then create a video of sort to share the sound, like a read aloud of the story or voice over, music, and images and pictures to complement the story and bring it to life. Digital storytelling focuses on one topic or idea to tell the story. These could be personal stories, historical recounts of events, memories, responses, etc. Digital storytelling can be used in the classroom to bring writing to life, but also in content areas like social studies. This link has more educational information about digital storytelling. http://digitalstorytelling.coe.uh.edu/page.cfm?id=27&cid=27

This one image digital storytelling idea is another idea to use in the classroom and library setting. Single image Digital Storytelling This link also gives the "how-to" steps to creating your own digital storytelling piece which is very beneficial. These steps will really be helpful to a beginner in digital storytelling, like myself, or students who wish to create their own digital storytelling pieces. This educational tool will also be one that content teachers could use in social studies and science classrooms as well.

One example of digital storytelling that I watched was this one entitled, "Daddy's Girl" by Deidre Johnson. Daddy's Girl The author shared in a very short 3-4 minute narration the special bond she had with her father growing up and the heartbreaking struggle they live as he ages and faces dementia. The story was gripping and powerful. Story Center for Digital Storytelling had such a wide variety of examples of digital storytelling. I would love to find something similar for young audiences in a school library setting! I found several links when doing a quick search, so I am going to share those here. Please share any resources you have for digital storytelling for kids! Technology can often be overwhelming or intimidating for me, but our students are so tech-savvy, I think this would be a project that they would love and would also be very beneficial. This also could be a great way to partner a reluctant writer with a confident writer and a tech-savvy student with another student who lacks tech skills. I look forward to creating my own digital story as well as guiding students in the school library with their digital stories!

https://www.middleweb.com/45799/digital-storytelling-an-exciting-teaching-tool/

https://cooltoolsforschool.net/digital-storytelling/

https://brandietrent.weebly.com/uploads/8/8/2/1/8821291/digital_storytelling_descprition_and_resources1.pdf

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/ccia-digital-storytelling-tools-ela-monica-burns

https://www.commonsense.org/education/articles/how-to-use-scratch-for-digital-storytelling

https://creativeeducator.tech4learning.com/digital-storytelling

I found so much to read and dive into with digital storytelling. I am looking forward to learning more from my fellow classmates and futher reading and researching. One of the articles that perked my interest the most was the comic-based digital storytelling. I could see many of our students and graphic novel fans take interest and ownership of a comic-based digital storytelling project. What digital storytelling ideas did you find most appealing to add to your professional toolbox?

Citation:

Ten Poems to Read on National Poetry Day for Young Readers. Argo Prep.

https://argoprep.com/blog/k8/10-poems-to-read-on-national-poetry-day-for-young-readers/

Sunday, October 15, 2023

Montjoy_Emily_BlogShare

Blogs to Better Your Budding Readers

This week our assignment was to find a library related blog to share. This was a fun assignment because there are so many informative blogs right at our fingertips sharing useful information. One way to become a better librarian is to take part in collaboration and continuous learning. Educators are always learning new ways to do things better and more effectively to reach our students. I found so many great blogs that it really is hard to share just one, so I am going to share two that I found very beneficial to me as a librarian.

The Library Voice

The first blog I am going to share is The Library Voice Blog. This blog is created by a librarian, Shannon McClintock Miller. She is a district librarian and shares many useful tips for librarians to use in their libraries. She shares a variety of resources from technology and apps to use with your students in the library to monthly calendars for choice boards centered around thematic books, writing, research, virtual bookshelves, BreakoutEDU, to practical ideas like setting up Destiny self checkout in your library and using Canva to create signs for your library. Her blog is a plethora of helpful hints, tool, and resources.

One particular post that caught my attention as a new librarian is Picture Books For Digital Citizenship and Media Literacy Conversations and Learning. I am coming from the classroom, so my experience is teaching reading--from how to become a better reader (skills and strategies) to how to help students find books they love and generate a desire to read more! We used our chromebooks and technology a good bit in the classroom, but we always depended on our school librarian's expertise to teach digital citizenship. This is a topic that I do not know a great deal about, not necessarily what it is, but how to teach the importance to our students in grades K-5th. This week begins Digital Citizenship Week, so I want to use this chance to talk to my students about the importance of being a good digital citizen while using technology. Our students are involved in technology related activities more now than ever before, so it is crucial to bring awareness to this important topic. Ms. Miller shares four picture books to use when teaching digital citizenship and media literacy. She also shares a link to a padlet page with additional books where anyone can share ideas centered around this topic. Two books she shared that I want to add to my collection are Selfie by Sandy Horsley and Me, Myselfie and I...A Cautionary Tale by Jamie Lee Curtis and Laura Cornell.

If you'd like more information about Digital Citizenship, here are a few more resources:

https://mydigitallife.discoveryeducation.com/

https://www.commonsense.org/education/digital-citizenship-week

https://www.aeseducation.com/blog/how-to-celebrate-digital-citizenship-week

https://nearpod.com/blog/digital-citizenship-week-free-lessons/

https://www.twinkl.com/event/digital-citizenship-week-usa-2023

https://brittanywashburn.com/2021/08/digital-citizenship-week-activities-for/

https://blog.tcea.org/digital-citizenship-week-2022/

Seven Additional Picture Books to Teach Digital Citizenship

The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) Blog

This blog is a collection of posts from over 4,000 librarians, literacy experts, publishers, educators, and others with one common focus-- to create and provide an exemplary library service. This blog has so. much. information. Luckily, there is a search bar so you can search for specific topics and information. There is also a "categories" drop down menu including topics like: audio books, author spotlight, book clubs, children and technology, collaboration, collection development, digital world, diversity, grants, information literacy, intellectual freedom, podcasts, programming ideas, research, school library media specialists, stem, storytime, summer reading, technology, tweens, and an interesting category "what I wasn't taught in library school". This blog literally has a little bit of everything!

I focused on the category "storytime" for the purpose of this blog share. The blog posts under this specific category include posts explaining and highlighting topics like using felt boards and early literacy, puppets, book selection, storytime: handling the adults, singing, using board books, storytime crafts, movement and mindfulness storytimes. There are so many useful ideas for librarians to use when planning storytimes in the library!

I also was curious how the "searchbar" feature would work. Since my first blog above centered around digital citizenship, I decided to search their blog to see what was available on this topic. There were many blog posts dedicated to digital citizenship so it would be a great place to go-to for more information. This blog post caught my attention because it mentioned how important it is to teach students to navigate information online geared towards children in grades 3-6. The blog mentions that, "Google furnishes presentations to use on categories like “Share with Care,” “Don’t Fall for Fake,” and “It’s Cool to be Kind-” providing the opportunity to learn how to keep personal information safe, how to treat others in a digital world, and how to discern true from false information." (ALSC Children and Technology Committee, 2020) The blog also mentions that Google has a game called Interland that has different levels addressing topics like password choice, interacting online with kindness, and securing information.

I really enjoyed searching for blogs this week that would be beneficial to myself as a school librarian as well as my classmates to add to their professional toolbox. I hope you are able to take something away this week and use it in your libraries to come!

6 Tall Tales

Johnny Appleseed Graphic Novel version

The Spider and the Waterberry Tree

The Tall Tale of the Giants Causeway

How Dachshunds Came to Be

Hunter's Tall Tales

The Legend of Lightning Larry: A Cowboy Tall Tale

Citations:

ALSC Children and Technology Committee. https://www.alsc.ala.org/blog/2020/04/be-internet-awesome-a-path-to-digital-citizenship. April 11, 2020.

Sunday, October 1, 2023

Montjoy_Emily_FreeChoiceBlog

Storytelling Resources to Create Snazzy Sessions

Novel Effect

During my last storytelling experience, I used music and sound effects. Adding music to your storytime session is especially pleasing to young children and hooks and maintains their attention from the very beginning and throughout the story. Several classmates were curious about the resource I used to add this effect to enhance my storytelling session. You can listen to my recording here Storytelling with Sound Effects. Here is another example: a recording of author Josh Funk reading aloud his book, Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast using the Novel Effect Soundscape to enhance his story. Author, Josh Funk, reads aloud his book with Novel Effect

I wanted to share this amazing tool that I used when reading aloud. It is great for teachers or librarians who want to spice up their read alouds and storytelling sessions. Novel Effect is an app that listens to you read aloud a book, responds to your read aloud, and provides on-cue music and sound effects for the story. The app is programmed to respond when it hears you read certain words from the book. When it hears you read signal words, the app knows to activate the music and sound effects. Novel Effect brings stories to life as your audience is entranced and captivated with the unexpected sound effects that correspond to the text you are reading. Novel Effect has a book list of available titles that have Soundscapes available (music and sound effects). Book List for Soundscapes available on Novel Effect and link to book activities if available

Additionally, some book titles have book activities that have already been created that you can use to follow up in your library sessions. These planned activities and lessons are especially benefical to school librarians and teachers who may use Novel Effect in their lessons. I have used the Novel Effect app with my students, and they are amazed and engaged in the story. They are always focused and wondering where the sounds are coming from, and they ask me each week if our story will have sound. They look forward to me reading aloud using the Novel Effect app to enhance my storytelling and read aloud sessions. Creating an engaging session creates an atomosphere that encourages the students' attention and builds comprehension of the stories.

Novel Effect also provides a monthly calendar with various read alouds and storytelling sessions grouped around themes based on the current month. Here is a look at this month's October calendar with all of the books they have available for read alouds with sound effects, or Soundscapes. Many of these books are books you already own or are very popular and would probably already plan on reading aloud to your students or patrons. Adding Novel Effect just takes your read alouds and storytelling up a notch and makes the session a little more snazzy! Students and patrons are engaged with the storyteller, and this provides a more successful and meaningful storytime session.

Also, it is imperative that storytellers include a variety of stories and use diverse titles to encompass different cultures, races, backgrounds, abilities etc. Novel Effect offers a variety of Soundscapes to accompany a variety of diverse titles. You can also check out their blog for more ideas with highlighted themes such as Hispanic Heritage Month, Black History, Native American Heritage, etc. Novel Effect blog

"The storyteller who tells to children with special needs must have all the qualities of a good storyteller--only more so. ...Storytellers who have the opportunity to work with special needs children consider it a joy and a challenge. ... Effective storytelling has the capacity to reach children with visual and hearing impairments, children who struggle with reading and writing, children who have behavioral issues, children who have processing and communication difficulties, and children with attention deficit." (Greene & Del Negro, 2010, p. 111)

Live Storytellers

Every year, the Stone Soup Storytellers come visit my school and share their storytelling experiences with our students. The storytellers come from all around, but they are all very lively and engaging. Most of our students are not exposed to storytellers who have had training and practice like these professional storytellers. These storytellers are animated, rehearsed, and performing stories from memory. Some use props and music, but all use their bodies, gestures, and voice to create an entertaining storytelling session. You can find more information about the annual Stone Soup Storytelling Festival here.

Last year we had a storyteller visit our school that was one of the best I have ever heard, Gwendolyn J. Napier. She had every student sitting on the edge of their seat, soaking in her every word. She was a true entertainer and the students were enthralled with her storytelling abilities. She involved the audience at various times throughout her session which kept everyone engaged and attentive. Her interactive, lively style was phenomenal, and I am not sure I have heard a storyteller as entertaining as her in quite awhile. After the program I went over to her and introduced myself. I told her I was a teacher and future librarian and would love to connect and have her in my library some day. She shared her information, so I am passing it along if you are ever looking for a live professional storyteller to host in your library. She is sure to bring the spice and snazzy session to you!

What is a storyteller? Listen to an interview and a few stories with Ms. Napier here.

Gwendolyn J. Napier

Master Storytelling Artist

(404) 310-4833

(404) 755-4860

missluvdrop@yahoo.com

Ms. Napier's website

"The story qualities that appeal to young adults are the qualities of traditional literature, and that influence can clearly be seen in popular media. Young adults form a hard-core fan base for contemporary fantasy and science fiction, whether novels, films, or television shows. Traditional literature is the well from which much contemporary fantasy springs, which makes the more complex traditional tales, such as romances, hero tales, ghost stories, and epics a rich source for storytelling to young adults." (Greene & Del Negro, 2010, p. 176)

Seven Legends

Bruce and the Legend of Soggy Hollow

Inukpack and His Son (based on a traditional Inuit legend)

Nian, the Chinese New Year Dragon (retelling of the Nian legend)

A Wave of Stars (legend of the moon rainbow)

The Happiest Herder in the Land (legend of the origin of coffee)

Maya by Mahak Jain (This story is beautiful! The main character is struggling with fear, loss, grief and her mother tells her the legend of the banyan tree to distract her. The story takes her mind off of her fears as the story takes over her imagination. This book is a must have as it teaches the power of story.)

Paul Bunyan: The Invention of an American Legend (A TOON graphic novel)

The Very True Legend of the Mongolian Death Worms

Seven Myths

Sugar in Milk

Cyclops of Central Park

Cyclops Tells All (The Other Side of the Myth)

Uni the Unicorn and the Haunted Pumpkin Patch

Unicorns by Gary Jeffrey (graphic novel)

Dragons Love Tacos

The Lonely Beast by Chris Judge

**Preorder upcoming release Nov. 7, 2023: In my search I found this book that looks amazing, so I am just sharing it to put it on your radar!

"Young adults enjoy the grand adventure story. They are fascinated by tales with multidimensional characters who are journeying, seeking, facing challenges, and defining who they are, just as the young adult listener is doing." (Greene & Del Negro, 2010 p. 181)

Citations:

Greene, Ellin & Janice M. Del Negro. (2010). Storytelling : art and technique. Libraries Unlimited.

Sunday, September 17, 2023

Montjoy_Emily_StorytellingReflectionBlog

Story Telling Experience Reflection

By: Emily Montjoy

My first storytelling experience was a read aloud session with a book. You can listen to my recording here Storytelling Experience with a Book I appreciate the list of books for read alouds that was shared in our text book on page 67. Stories: A List of Stories to Tell and to Read Aloud, published by the New York Public Library. This resource will be helpful when selecting stories to tell in the future. During this session I chose to read aloud How to Catch a Witch by Alice Walstead. When I was planning my storytelling session with a book, I used several tips from our textbook, Storytelling Art and Technique by Ellin Greene.

"The storyteller must take the story from the printed page and blow the breath of life into it."

(Greene, 2010, page 59)

Selection

"The storyteller, then, must enjoy the content, mood, or style and must have a desire to share this enjoyment." (Greene, 2010, page 59) First of all, I wanted to choose a book that I enjoyed reading aloud. I also wanted to choose a book that the content, mood, and style fit my audience. In this case I was reading aloud to my graduate classmates, but I imagined I was reading it aloud to children. I chose this book too because October is just a couple of weeks away, so this book fit the current season. Greene also lists several characteristics of a good story for storytelling:

1. a single theme

2. a well-developed plot

3. style (look for vivid word pictures, pleasing sounds, rhythm)

4. characterization

5. faithfulness

6. dramatic appeal

7. appropriateness for the listener (Greene, 2010, page 61-62)

Preparation

"Live with your story until the characters and the setting become as real to you as people and places you know." (Greene, 2010, page 80)

Greene (2010) suggests, "Read the story from beginning to end several times. Read for pleasure first. Then read it over with concentration. Analyze the story to determine where the appeal lies, what the art form is, what word pictures you want your listeners to see, what mood you wish to create." (page 80-81) Greene (2010) also suggests reading the story and timing it as well as observing the sentence structure, phrases, unusual words and expressions. (page 81) While I was preparing for my storytelling session, I read the book multiple times. I practiced reading it aloud to my daughter to see what parts caught her attention the most. I read the book and timed myself to be sure I was around five minutes so it met the time requirements. This was also important when I was picking out the book, not to pick a book that was too long. I also wanted to practice to be sure I felt comfortable enough with the story so that I didn't read too fast and so that I pronounced words correctly and paused in the correct places since this book did have rhyme and rhythm. If I didn't read the story with the correct rhythm, it could make the story offbeat, which if you've ever heard someone sing or clap offbeat, it's pretty awkward. I also looked up the pronunciation for ghouls to be sure that I was pronouncing it exactly right, especially if a rhyming pattern depended on my pronunciation. I recorded myself once and listened to the playback so I could correct anything that was not clear or precise. I also wanted to be sure I was loud enough because I do tend to be more soft spoken when reading aloud. Additionally I wanted to be sure that my tone of voice, breathing, pauses, emotion, expression, gestures, etc. added to the story in a natural way that complemented the characters, story, tone and mood while also not distracting the listener.

Presentation

When planning the setup, I chose to read aloud and record my storytelling experience in front of a little cozy area with bookshelves in the background. I also displayed other Halloween, fall, pumpkin, and scarecrow themed books on the shelves behind me to help give my set up and presentation the same mood and theme as the story I had chosen to read. If I were not recoring this for my classmates and had been reading aloud to children in a library setting, I would have had a similar setup and backdrop to create and match the atmosphere to the storytime experience. I wanted the environment to reflect the storytime theme and complement my story choice. However, it is also important to remember that you do not want your background to distract or overpower the actual storytelling. Greene (2010) suggests, "Look directly at your listeners. As you tell, let your gaze move from one to another so that each child feels involved in the telling of the story." (page 95) It's easy to forget to make eye contact when you are reading aloud a book to children and you're holding the book in your hand. It is especially easy to forget to make eye contact when you are reading aloud to an imaginary audience and recording yourself! This was something I continued to remind myself in my head to look back to the camera after every page or every couple of pages to engage my audience and make eye contact. I also stopped and asked questions, and paused for my listeners to think about the story while I was reading. Because I was videoing myself and the camera was showing about waist up, I also displayed the book pages closer to the camera so the viewers could get a better look at the illustrations because they were hard to see from the set up location and distance of the camera, but they were interesting and important to the story so I wanted to zoom in to show the important illustrations to the story.

Green (2010) also suggests, "Speak in a pleasant, low-pitched voice with enough volume to be heard easily by listeners in the last row. Speak clearly, distinctly, smoothly, and at a pace suitable for the story." (page 96) I really tried to speak loud enough to be heard, clearly, and at a pace that was suitable for this storytelling experience. The story is a fun, upbeat story, so I wanted my pace to give a peppy read aloud experience and not a slow-paced tone. However, it is also important to be sure not to read to fast so that the audience isn't given enough time to hear, process, and comprehend the story. There is a fine balance to consider. Greene (2010) also instructs, "The storyteller extables the mood of the storytelling program. Physical appearance, a pleasant expression, a smile, personal warmth, and pleasure in the story--all of these give a sense of enjoyment. Sometimes new storytellers wonder what to wear. Dress comfortably and simply." (page 96) When planning for my presentation and recording of my storytelling experience, I decided to wear all black so that my clothing was not clashing or distracting from the storytelling experience and the viewing of the story and illustrations in the book. Also, I made sure that I remembered to smile at the audience and used a pleasant expression. This is something I need to remind myself of more when reading aloud to children so that my expressions and smile create a pleasant, warm mood and atmosphere so that the reader has a pleasant and enjoyable storytelling experience.

Closing/Reflection

When closing my story, it was a little awkward because you don't know how to end it, what to say, what not to say, and even more so when you are recording yourself reading to an imaginary audience, but your graduate class is listening to the recording. I didn't think much about how to end the story or what to say to conclude the storytime experience. Greene (2010) suggests, "End with the ending of the story. When the story is over, its spirit remains. Honor the story with a minute of two of silence. Do not ask questions about the story or try to elicit comments. Let the children leave with their own private thoughts. Do not invade their privacy. After a few minutes of silence, a simple 'Thank you for coming' is a good conclusion to a program held in a public library or recreation center." (page 105) I think the teacher in me wants to wrap up the storytelling experience with a teachable moment and ask questions, discuss their thoughts, and teach a standard. This will be important for me to remember when closing a storytelling experience that is strictly for the enjoyment of a story and not intended to be used to teach students a standard. I appreciated the feedback that I received from our professor and classmates.

"Storytime should be an interactive experience where librarians share the sheer joy of telling tales with their young audiences." -(Christie Underdown-DuBois, 2011)

Citations:

Greene, Ellin & Janice Del Negro. (2010). Storytelling : art and technique. Libraries Unlimited.

Underdown-DuBois, Christie. (2011). Bringing Storytime Alive with Acting and Storytelling Techniques: an Interactive Article. 61(2), 2.

5 Fairy Tales

Last week I collected five (or six!) new-to-me fairy tales, and this week I read six folktales. I really had a great time searching for new titles that I have not read and titles that have been recently published. I am looking forward to adding many of these titles to my school library. Fractured fairy tales are some of my favorites to share with children. We've all seen this spin of a a retelling from a different perspective, but I had no idea there were 20 books in this series, or collection, called The Other Side of the Story. I chose to read a newer title in this collection that I had never heard of before, Honestly Our Music Stole the Show.

Wordless picture books are great to use in libraries to help teach students to infer and predict. I found this retelling of The Little Red Riding Hood called, Red. I found the author Jed Alexander just recently published another wordless picture book retelling of Goldilocks called, Gold.