NYT Summer Reading Essay Contest for teens 13-19

Fourth Annual New york Times Summer Reading Essay Contest  starts on June 14th and ends on August 16, 2013.
During that time, teenagers, 13-19 can choose any piece in The New York Times they like and write to tell why it interested them. Weekly winning submissions will be chosen. The contest is open to teenagers only — anyone from 13 to 19 years old, from anywhere in the world.

How it Works
The New York Times will  post the same Student Opinion question for every Friday, starting June 14.
Each will ask, “What Interested You Most in The Times This Week?”
That is where students  should post their  picks (and reasons) any time until the next Friday.
Then that post will be closed and  a new one opened with the same question.

Submissions (Comments on a particular article) should be 350 words or less and abide by the rules found here http://www.nytimes.com/content/help/site/usercontent/usercontent.html.

• Comments can be on anything in the print New York Times or on NYTimes.com including  videos, graphics, slide shows and podcasts.
•  Give your first name only, in accordance with the  privacy rules. No last names, but please also post your age and hometown.

Notes for Teachers
 Teachers: If you want all the students in a particular class to write in, just give them a code of some kind to affix to their first names

Teachers can  also consider telling students that it will be their responsibility when they return to school in the fall to provide a list of links to each of their comments.
Each comment has its own unique URL, which can be found by clicking “link” in the upper left-hand side of any individual comment

Rules and more information
See http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/18/the-fourth-annual-new-york-times-summer-reading-contest/#judges

Montclair Film Festival highlights film on Autism in Newark

"Best Kept Secret" is a feature-length documentary about the struggles of JFK teacher Janet Mino, a veteran educator who specializes in helping severely autistic kids. The film follows Mino as she prepares six young men at JFK for the harsh realities of life once they "fall of the cliff" — Mino's words for what happens when they age out of the public school system at 21.
See an srticle about the film at http://www.nj.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2013/05/best_kept_secret_documentary_s.html#incart_m-rpt-1

It premieres:
'Best Kept Secret' at the Montclair Film Festival

Where: Montclair Kimberly Academy, 6 Lloyd Road, Montclair
When: Saturday at 1:45 p.m.
How much: $12.50. Visit montclairfilmfest.org  for more information.

For  a select list of books on autism at the Guarini Library see http://www.njcu.edu/Guarini/department/EdServiceBib/SPECIALEDUCATION-juv.pdf

Free Comic Book Day- 5/4/13

Free Comic Book Day is a single day - the first Saturday in May each year - when participating comic book shops across North America and around the world give away comic books absolutely FREE* to anyone who comes into their stores. *Check with your local comic book shop for their participation and rules.

Need a local comic shop to visit on May 4th? Use the  "shop locator".

http://www.freecomicbookday.com/StoreLocator

More information
http://www.freecomicbookday.com

Comics are educational too!
http://www.njcu.edu/Guarini/department/EdServiceBib/graphicnovels.pdf

Central Park Five- Issues and Lesson Plans

Curricular connections for the Central Park Five

The recently released Central Park Five documentary concerning the 1989 Central Park jogger case and trial in which five teenagers were interrogated, arrested, tried, convicted and many years later found innocent, raises many questions about social justice, race, and the criminal justice system.
 It could be a great starting point for interdisciplinary class room lessons and discussions

VIDEO
The Central Park Five
on PBS. See more from Central Park Five. The video of the documentary currently shown on PBS is available  at http://www.pbs.org/kenburns/centralparkfive/

DISCUSSION
The discussion about the film with all members of the Central Park Five  is available here http://new.livestream.com/accounts/43597/events/1897554/videos/16666317

CONNECTIONS
Some curricular connections can be found in these links:

Primary Documents:
YCTeen story "The Central Park Five:Teens served time for a crime they didn’t commit" by Jovon Ferguson http://www.ycteen.org/issues/NYC235/The_Central_Park_Five.html?story_id=NYC-2013-01-12
(Note : This story also contains instructions for teens and their rights and what to do if stopped by the police, as well as a link to  their original coverage of the case  and a poem by Ray Santana one of the accused. http://www.ycteenmag.org/issues/NYC235/Voices_From_the_Archive.html?story_id=NYC-2013-01-13b)


Lesson Plans

Media/News Literacy Lesson: The Central Park Five
Reading Comprehension, Discussion, and Written Response (some based on archival articles)
http://www.ycteenmag.org/issues/NYC235/Voices_From_the_Archive.html?story_id=NYC-2013-01-13b&lesson=1

Presumed Guilty: Protecting the Accused  (Grades 6-12)
http://www.pbs.org/pov/presumedguilty/lesson_plan.php
(In this lesson, students will analyze a criminal case in Mexico involving an innocent man convicted of homicide. Students will identify and explain the protections for the accused that are outlined in the United States Constitution and infer how such protections might have affected the case in Mexico.)

What Happens Inside Prison?- Lesson Plan ( High School)
http://www.morningsidecenter.org/teachable-moment/lessons/what-happens-inside-prison
(Three student readings offer a case study of what happened to one mentally ill prisoner; a summary of a critical report on America's prisons; and some additional facts and figures. Discussion questions, a writing assignment, subjects for further inquiry and suggestions for citizenship activities follow.)

To Kill A Mockingbird and the Scottsboro Boys Trial: Profiles in Courage ( Grades 9-12)
http://edsitement.neh.gov/lesson-plan/kill-mockingbird-and-scottsboro-boys-trial-profiles-courage
(Two part lesson: Lesson One asks students to read To Kill A Mockingbird carefully with an eye for all instances and manifestations of courage, but particularly those of moral courage. Lesson Two also requires students to study select court transcripts and other primary source material from the second Scottsboro Boys Trial of 1933, a continuation of the first trial in which two young white women wrongfully accused nine African-American youths of rape.)

Using Editorial Cartoons to Teach Social Justice ( Grades 6-8; Grades 9-12)
http://www.tolerance.org/activity/using-editorial-cartoons-teach-social-justice ( Using Editorial Cartoons to Teach Social Justice is a series of 14 lessons. Each lesson focuses on a contemporary social justice issue. These lessons are multidisciplinary and geared toward middle and high school students.Students enjoy editorial cartoons. Visual, engaging and often funny, they’re great learning tools. However, editorial cartoons can be challenging because they often require a lot of prior knowledge. These lessons provide strategies for using what students already know to analyze cartoons that may seem difficult to interpret.In addition, these lessons will expand students’ knowledge of social justice issues. They can be used to supplement another lesson or readings, or they can stand alone.)

Rag and Bone Shop Activity
A young adult novel , The Rag and Bone Shop by Robert Cormier is about the interrogation of a an introverted twelve-year-old accused in a high profile murder case.
This discussion guide can supplement issues found in the book and highlight similar issues in the Central Park Five case.
http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780385729628&view=rg

2012 ALA Banned Books List

2012 Most FrequentlyChallenged Books from the American Library Association

(Out of 464 challenges as reported by the Office for Intellectual Freedom)

1.Captain Underpants (series), by Dav Pilkey.
Reasons: Offensive language, unsuited for age group

2.The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie.
Reasons: Offensive language, racism, sexually explicit, unsuited for age group

3.Thirteen Reasons Why, by Jay Asher.
Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, sexually explicit, suicide, unsuited for age group

4.Fifty Shades of Grey, by E. L. James.
Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit

5.And Tango Makes Three, by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson.
Reasons: Homosexuality, unsuited for age group

6.The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini.
Reasons: Homosexuality, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit

7.Looking for Alaska, by John Green.
Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit, unsuited for age group

8.Scary Stories (series), by Alvin Schwartz
Reasons: Unsuited for age group, violence

9.The Glass Castle, by Jeanette Walls
Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit

10.Beloved, by Toni Morrison
Reasons: Sexually explicit, religious viewpoint, violence

For more information see http://www.ala.org/advocacy/banned/frequentlychallenged/21stcenturychallenged
For theLibrary Bill of Rights see http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill
For support for dealing with challenges see http://www.ala.org/advocacy/banned/challengeslibrarymaterials/copingwithchallenges

Help Public Libraries and Literacy- Call Now!

Ask Your U.S. Senators to Sign Library Funding Letters

Appropriations season is heating up in Washington DC. It is imperative that you call your two U.S. Senators by Wednesday, April 24 and ask them to sign two separate "Dear Colleague" letters that will greatly help libraries. Talking points and instructions for the two letters are below.

Support Funding for LSTA in FY 2014

Ask your representative to support funding for the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). Here's why:

•LSTA is the primary source of funding for libraries in the federal budget

•LSTA helps many public libraries provide services to users that include, but are not limited to: job searches, résumé building help, digital literacy workshops, access to e-government services, etc.

Your senator can sign a letter indicating their support for LSTA in the FY14 budget, here's how:

Republicans: If your senator is a Republican, ask them to contact Sen. Susan Collins’ (R-ME) to sign on to the LSTA letter.

Democrats: If your senator is a Democrat, ask them contact Sen. Jack Reed’s (D-RI) office to sign the LSTA letter.

Support Funding for the Innovative Approaches to Literacy Competitive Grant

Ask your representative to support Childhood Literacy in FY 2014. Here is why:

•Congress included $28.6 million in the FY12 budget for this competitive grant administered through the U.S. Department of Education to support school libraries and national nonprofit literacy organization working toward childhood literacy

•A minimum of half of this money will go as a competitive grant to low-income school libraries to help update their books and materials.

Ask your representative to sign a letter supporting Childhood Literacy in FY 2014, here's how:

Republicans: If your senator is a Republican, ask them to contact Sen. Chuck Grassley’s (R-IA) office to sign on to this letter

Democrats: If your senator is a Democrat, ask them to contact Sen. Jack Reed’s (D-RI) office to sign on to this letter

Please call today!
Go to http://capwiz.com/ala/callalert/index.tt?alertid=62592326&PROCESS=Call+Now
Enter your zip code into the "Call Now" box to find the number for your senator.

All calls have to be in by April 24.

Help Public and School libraries Now! Call your representative!

Support library funding: Call your U.S. Rep. today

Appropriations season is heating up in Washington DC. It is imperative that you call your U.S. Representative by Wednesday, April 10 and ask them to sign two separate "Dear Colleague" letters that will greatly help libraries. Talking points and instructions for the two letters are below.


Support Funding for LSTA in FY 2014

Ask your representative to support funding for the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). Here's why:

•LSTA is the primary source of funding for libraries in the federal budget

•LSTA helps many public libraries provide services to users that include, but are not limited to: job searches, résumé building help, digital literacy workshops, access to e-government services, etc.

Your representative can sign a letter indicating their support for LSTA in the FY13 budget, here's how:

Democrats and Republicans: Ask your representative to contact Rep. Raul Grijalva's (D-AZ) office to sign the LSTA letter.

Go to http://capwiz.com/ala/callalert/index.tt?alertid=62560381&PROCESS=Call+Now
 if you do not know who your representative is.

Support Funding for the Innovative Approaches to Literacy Competitive Grant

Ask your representative to support Childhood Literacy in FY 2014. Here is why:

•Congress included $28.6 million in the FY12 budget for this competitive grant administered through the U.S. Department of Education to support school libraries and national nonprofit literacy organization working toward childhood literacy

•A minimum of half of this money will go as a competitive grant to low-income school libraries to help update their books and materials.

Ask your representative to sign a letter supporting Childhood Literacy in FY 2014, here's how:

Republicans: If your representative is a Republican, ask them to contact Rep. Don Young's (R-AK) office to sign on to this letter

Democrats: If your representative is a Democrat, ask them to contact Rep. Jim McGovern's (D-MA) office to sign on to this letter

Go to http://capwiz.com/ala/callalert/index.tt?alertid=62560381&PROCESS=Call+Now \
if you do not know who your representative is.

Calls have to be made by April 10, 2013

Claudette Colvin, Civil Rights Heroine visits Newark 3/28/13

Claudette Colvin

HEROINE OF MONTGOMERY BUS BOYCOTT,

in Newark NJ

Thursday, March 28, 2013

6:30 PM

Abyssinian Baptist Church

224 West Kinney Street

Newark, NJ

On Thursday, March 28th, the People’s Organization for Progress will host a special women’s history month discussion with special guest Claudette Colvin, an unsung heroine of the Montgomery Bus Boycott!
This special gathering will take place at the Abyssinian Baptist Church, 224 West Kinney Street, Newark. Doors open at 6:30pm.

While the December 1, 1955 arrest of Rosa Parks is world renown, several months earlier on March 2nd,Colvin, only a 15 year old student and member of the NAACP Youth Council in Montgomery at the time, similarly refused to give up her seat to a white woman and faced arrest.

Because her action was more spontaneous and because her personal profile was not as “reputable,” Colvin’s action did not get the attention that Parks would later. Unlike Parks, Colvin also endured a terrible beating when she was arrested. Colvin and her family were not deterred, however. Later on, lawyers on her behalf, and on behalf of three other young women, Aurelia Browder, Susie McDonald and Mary Louise Smith, who also dared to faced arrest protesting Montgomery’s segregated busing, filed a case in federal court that would ultimately be the case that would be used to ban segregated busing in Alabama. The case is known as Browder v Gayle. It was on June 5, 1956 that federal judges ruled that segregated busing was unconstitutional citing the historic Brown v. Bd. of Education case of 1954. Knowing that the city and the bus company would appeal the ruling, Dr. King vowed to continue the boycott until the ruling was put into action. That would not come until December 20, 1956 when the Supreme Court upheld the earlier decision.

Ms. Colvin’s moving story was also captured in the book, Twice Towards Justice, by Phillp Hosse, a recipient of the National Book Award.“We are honored beyond words to have this brave and heroic freedom fighter in our midst,” said a humbled but impassioned Lawrence Hamm, the organization’s chairman.

“The People’s Organization for Progress will proudly aid every effort to see to it that Ms. Colvin gets the proper official recognition she is most certainly due.”The People’s Organization for Progress meets every Thursday at Abyssinian Baptist Church at 6:30pm.

For more information, please call 973 801 0001

Two new documentaries on American high schools

Watch Preview on PBS. See more from 180 Days.

180 Days: A Year Inside an American High School premieres Monday, March 25, 2013 on PBS stations. Following the day-to-day stories of students, parents, teachers and staff at the Washington Metropolitan High School (also known as DC Met), 180 Days: Inside An American High School, is an intimate portrait of a public school that attempts to make a difference in the lives of students each and every day.



A Tale of Two Schools: Race and Education on Long Island. ERASE Racism’s documentary, A TALE OF TWO SCHOOLS: Race and Education on Long Island, follows David and Owen, two African American teenagers during their senior year of high school. Even though the students have a lot in common, they go to very different schools. A TALE OF TWO SCHOOLS spotlights these differences and the results of educational disparities. The film also focuses on the benefits that diversity provides for all students.
See http://www.eraseracismny.org/our-work/education/a-tale-of-two-schools-race-and-education-on-long-island

Both documentaries give interesting perspectives on American education today.