Brooklyn Book Festival- 9/22/13

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2013
10am-6pm

RAIN OR SHINE

Brooklyn Borough Hall and Plaza
209 Joralemon Street, Brooklyn NY 11201
http://www.brooklynbookfestival.org/BBF/Home
Workshops, readings and more !

Children's young adult, adult authors and  graphic novelists:

A.M. Homes
A.X. Ahmad
Adam Mansbach
Adam Rubin
Adelle Waldman
Adrian Tomine
Alan Light
Alaya Dawn Johnson
Albert “Prodigy” Johnson
Alex Dimitrov
Alex Gilvarry
Alex Wagner
Alexander Maksik
Alexander Nehamas
Alissa Quart
Amanda Bullock
Amy Brill
Amy Grace Loyd
Anabel Hernández
Anders Nilsen
André Aciman
Angela Ledgerwood
Anne Ishii
Anthea Butler
Anya Von Bremzen
Art Spiegelman
Ashley August
Astra Taylor
Audrey Niffenegger
Ayana Mathis
Barbara Tversky
Ben Dolnick
Ben Katchor
Betsy Bird
Betsy Lewin
Bhakti Shringarpure
Boris Kachka
Brigid Hughes
C. Alexander London
Caleb Crain
Callie Wright
Calvin Reid
Chang-Rae Lee
Charles Simic
Chase Madar
Chinelo Okparanta
Chris Jackson
Christopher Beha
Chuck Klosterman
Claire Messud
Clifford Thompson
Clive Thompson
Colin Channer
Colum McCann
Courtney Brkic
Cristina García
D.W. Gibson
Dan Simon
Dana Spiotta
Daniel Salmieri
Dash Shaw
David Ezra Stein
David Graeber
David L. Ulin
David Levithan
David Prudhomme
David Unger
Dean Starkman
Deborah Copaken Kogan
Diana McCaulay
Dinaw Mengestu
Donald Crews
Doreen Cronin
Ed Piskor
Eddie Huang
Eduardo Halfon
Edwidge Danticat
Elissa Schappell
Elizabeth Kiem
Elliott Holt
Emily Raboteau
Eric Banks
Eric Lundgren
Erika Goldman
Evgeny Morozov
Faith Erin Hicks
Felix Gilman
Fiona Maazel
Francesca Lia Block
Francine Prose
Françoise Mouly
Frank Bidart
Frank Santoro
Gene Yang
Geoff Rodkey
George Packer
Greg Cowles
Halimah Marcus
Herman Parish
Hilton Als
Iris Smyles
Ivy Pochoda
J. Courtney Sullivan
Jake Appleman
Jamaica Kincaid
James McBride
Jane Friedman
Jane Yolen
Janet Groth
Jarrett J. Krosoczka
Jasper Fforde
Jean-Marie Blas de Roblès
Jeff Smith
Jeffrey Lependorf
Jennifer Baumgardner
Jennifer Gilmore
Jeremy Scahill
Jess Row
Jessica Hagedorn
Jessica Valenti
Joanna Hershon
John M. Cusick
Jon Fine
Jonathan Ames
Jonathan Dee
Jonathan W. Gray
Joseph O. Legaspi
Joyce Wan
Juan Gabriel Vásquez
Jules Feiffer
Julie Bosman
Justin Torres
Karen Russell
Karolina Waclawiak
Katherine Applegate
Keith Ridgway
Kekla Magoon
Ken Chen
Ken Foster
Ken Wishnia
Kent Worcester
Kirmen Uribe
Latasha N. Nevada Diggs
Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Lauren Myracle
Leanne Shapton
Leigh Newman
Leila Sales
Leonard Lopate
Leslie Shipman
Lev Grossman
Linda Rodriguez
Lisa Hanawalt
Lisa Zeidner
Lore Segal
Lucy Knisley
Lulu Delacre
Lynn Melnick
Lynn Nottage
Manuel Gonzales
Marie Howe
Mary Williams
Meg Cabot
Meg Wolitzer
Miasha
Michael Buckley
Michael Miller
Michael Moss
Michele Forbes
Miriam Katin
Montague Kobbé
Motoko Rich
Moustafa Bayoumi
N.K. Jemisin
Nan Marino
Naomi Novik
Natalie Diaz
Nelly Reifler
Nicholson Baker
Nick Flynn
Nick Saul
Nick Sousanis
Nina Crews
Okey Ndibe
Oonya Kempadoo
Pamela Erens
Parul Sehgal
Parul Sehgal
Patricia McCormick
Patricio Pron
Patrick Ness
Paul Harding
Paul Pope
Paul W. Morris
Penina Roth
Pete Hamill
Peter Brown
Philipp Meyer
Phillip Lopate
Quincy Troupe
R. Kikuo Johnson
Rachel Fershleiser
Rachel Kushner
Raina Telgemeier
Ray Robertson
Rebecca Miller
Ricardo Liniers
Rich Benjamin
Rick Telander
Rob Sheffield
Robert Antoni
Robyn Chapman
Rosie Schaap
Ru Freeman
Rutu Modan
Sam Lipsyte
Sapphire
Sarah Manguso
Scott Korb
Sean Qualls
Shani Boianjiu
Sharon Draper
Sharon Olds
Sheila Turnage
Sherri Duskey Rinker
Simon Critchley
Sinan Antoon
Sonia Manzano
Sonia Sanchez
Susan Choi
Susan Herman
Svetlana Alpers
Tao Lin
Tara Sullivan
Taylor Mali
Teddy Wayne
Tim Z. Hernandez
Tina Chang
Tom Kaczynski
Tom Lichtenheld
Tom Wolfe
Tonya Bolden
Touré
Tyehimba Jess
Ulli Lust
Ursula DeYoung
Vijay Seshadri
W. Bruce Cameron
William C. Rhoden
Yasmine el Rashidi
Zeina Abirached
Zoë Wicomb

Adam Gidwitz
Adrian Tomine
Alan Cheuse
Alex Shakar
Alexander Chee
Alvaro Enrique
Ameila Gray
Amitava Kumar
Amy Ignatow
Amy Sohn
Anakana Schofeild
Andersen Tepper
Andrea Cremer
Andrew Blum
Andrew Cotto
Andrew Delbanco
Andrew Hacker
Andrew Zolli
Anna Badkhen
Anton Nimblett
Ayad Akhtar
Baratunde Thurston
Barry Lyga
Becky Cloonan
Ben Greenman
Ben Lerner
Benjamin Anastas
Bernice McFadden
Bhakti Shringarpure
Bianca Stone
Bill Kartalopoulos
Bill Peters
Billy Collins
Bob Fingerman
Bob Spitz
Bradford Morrow
Brian Castner
Brigid Hughes
Bronwen Hruska
Carin Clevidence
Carla Speed McNeil
Carlos Andre Gomez
Carol Higgins Clark
Carolyn Mackler
Catherine Chung
Cathy Park Hong
Cecily von Ziegesar
Charise Mericle Harper
Charles Rice-Gonzalez
Chase Novak
Christian Lorentzen
Christine Smallwood
Christopher Hayes
Christopher John Farley
Christopher Ryan
Colin Channer
Colleen Doran
Colson Whitehead
Cynthia Carr
Dan Savage
Dan Yaccarino
Dana Spiotta
Daniel Nayeri
Danielle Evans
Danny Simmons
David L. Ulin
David Rees
Dennis Lehane
Derek Kirk Kim
Donna Hill
E.B. Lewis
E.O. Wilson
Earl Lovelace
Edward Hemingway
Edwidge Danticat
Eileen Myles
Elissa Schappell
Eliza Factor
Elizabeth Crane
Ellen Kushner
Ellis Avery
Emma Straub
Emmanuel Dongala
Eric Alterman
Eric Erlandson
Eric Klinenberg
Eric Wight
Esmeralda Santiago
Esther K. Smith
Eyal Press
Felicia Pride
Fly
Francine Prose
Francois Roca
Frank Viva
Gabrielle Bell
Gail Collins
Gail Tsukiyama
Gilbert Hernandez
Gish Jen
Greg Cowles
Greg Milner
Hanna Rosin
Hillary Jordan
Hirsh Sawhney
Idra Novey
Isabel Wilkerson
Ishion Hutchinson
Ishmael "Ish" Islam
J.R. Angelella
Jacqueline Bishop
Jacqueline Jones Lamon
Jaime Hernandez
Jaime Manrique
James Lasdun
James Romberger
James Wolcott
Jamie Tanner
Jessica Grose
Jessica Hagedorn
Jessica Shrivington
Jill Santopolo
Jim Holt
Jimmie Walker
Jodi Kantor
John Burnham Schwartz
John Parra
John R. MacArthur
Jon Scieszka
Jonathan Gray
Jose Manuel Prieto
Joseph Bruchac
Joseph O. Legaspi
Joshua Cohen
Joshua Henkin
Joyce Carol Oates
Joydeep Roy-Bhattacharya
Judith Viorst
Julia Glass
Julian Tepper
Karen Thompson Walker
Karl Ove Knausgård
Karolina Waclawiak
Kate Bolick
Kate Bornstein
Kathleen Alcott
Katrina vanden Heuvel
Kendare Blake
Kevin Holohan
Kimberley L. Phillips
Kristin Davis
Kurt Andersen
Kwame Dawes
Laura Flanders
Laurie Weeks
Leela Corman
Leora Tanenbaum
Lev Grossman
Libba Bray
Lisa Graff
Lisa Yee
Logan Hill
Louisa Thomas
Louise Rozett
Lowell Hawthorne
Luis Alberto Urrea
Luke Barr
Maaza Mengiste
Malinda Lo
Marc Brown
Marie-Helene Bertino
Marina Sitrin
Mark Leyner
Mark Siegel
Mary Higgins Clark
Meaghan O'Connell
Melanie Maria Goodreaux
Melissa Walker
Michael Miller
Michael Penncavage
Michelle Goldberg
Molly Crabapple
Mr. Fish
Nadifa Mohamed
Naomi Novik
Naomi Wolf
Natalie Standiford
Nathalie Handal
Nathan Larson
Nicholas Laughlin
Nile Rodgers
Nora Guthrie
Noreen Tomassi
Pamela Dorman
Pankaj Mishra
Patricia Engel
Patrick Rosal
Patrick Ryan
Patrick Somerville
Paul Acampora
Paul Auster
Paul Holdengraber
Paul O. Zelinsky
Paul Vidich
Pete Hamill
Peter Kuper
Peter Thompson
Philip Leventhal
Phillip Levine
Phillip Lopate
Pierre Joris
Rachel Eddey
Rachel Eliza Griffiths
Reagan Arthur
Reyna Grande
Reza Aslan
Richard Kim
Rick Bowes
RJ Palacio
Robert Santelli
Robin Shulman
Ron Wimberly
Rosemary Harris
S.J. Rozan
Sapphire
Sarah Porter
Sarah Weinman
Selina Alko
Seth Fishman
Seth Greenland
Shadra Strickland
Sheela Chari
Sheila Heti
Siddhartha Deb
Simon Critchley
Simone Elkeles
Siri Hustvedt
Spike Trotman
Star Black
Stephen Motika
Stephen Savage
Steven Wishnia
Stewart O' Nan
Susane Colasanti
Susanna Reich
Suzanne Corso
Ta-Nehisi Coates
Tariq Ali
Terrence Holt
Terry Bisson
Terry McMillan
Thad Ziolkowski
Thomas Frank
Tina Chang
Tiphanie Yanique
Todd Gitlin
Tony Danza
Tyler Boudreau
Victor LaValle
Victor Navasky
Victoria Brown
Walter Mosley
Wendy Mass
Wesley Yang
Will Hermes
Zoraida Córdova

New Jersey Book Festivals

Tales of Our Cities 2013

Jersey City Public Library

Tales of Our City

Sunday, September 15, 29013

10am-5pm

Van Vorst Park, Jersey City

Jersey Avenue and Montgomery Street

(across from the Main Library

http://www.jclibrary.org/whats-new/tales-of-our-cities-2013

 

Tales of Our Cities 2013 has an eclectic group of authors, performers and artists including Rick Stromoski, creator Soup to Nutz comic strip, Ralph W. Baker, Jr, author of Shock Exchange: financial literacy for youth and C & D. Matthews, authors of the children's book, School Days.

 

Tel. Sonia Araujo 201-547-4549

saraujo@jclibrary.org

 

 

 

8^th Annual Princeton Children’s Book Festival

Princeton Public Library

Saturday, September 21, 2013

11am-4pm

65 Witherspoon Street
Princeton, NJ 08542

 Tel: 609.924.9529
Fax: 609.924.7937

 

The 8^th Annual Princeton Children’s Book Festival will be held on Saturday, September 21, 2013 at the Princeton Public Library.  Over 80 of the most talented authors and illustrators of children’s literature will be on hand for the afternoon. This year our poster art has been created 2012 Caldecott Honor winner John Rocco.

Avi, Nick Bruel, Sophie Blackall, Bryan Collier, Nina Crews, Ann M. Martin, Anne Rockwell, Steve Sheinkin, David Ezra Stein to name a few. A full list of authors and illustrators can be found on our website:

http://community.princetonlibrary.org/pcbf2013/

Seating locations can be found under Festival Map and presentation schedules are listed too. There will be live music, face painting, and the Princeton Storytellers Circle will be “telling” on the Plaza.

Martin Luther King Jr 1956 comic book

Recently in a  Booklist webinar, I Have a Dream”: An Anniversary Celebration, that highlighted  the graphic novel, March, Book 1 by John Lewis,   One of the co-authors, Andrew Aydin, an aide to John Lewis, recounted the reaction when he told his colleagues that he hoped to do a graphic novel about John Lewis and the 1963 March on Washington.

His statement was greeted by laughter by all except for Congressman Lewis. Congressman  Lewis reminded them that one of the greatest instructional and communication outreach created for the Civil Rights Movement was a 1956 comic book entitled Martin Luther King and the Montgomery Story. This comic has since been translated in many languages and used throughout the world for civil rights and nonviolence instruction.

The work in its entirety can be viewed at
http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/documentsentry/the_montgomery_story_comic_book/

An exhibit about the work can be viewed at
http://www.comicvine.com/martin-luther-king-and-the-montgomery-story-1/4000-257772/

All white world of children's books continues

From NPR:
"When it comes to diversity, children's books are sorely lacking; instead of presenting a representative range of  faces, they're overwhelmingly white. How bad is the disconnect? A report by the Cooperative Children's Book Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that only 3 percent of children's books are by or about Latinos — even though nearly a quarter of all public school children today are Latino."

(image from http://www.amazon.com/Am-Latino-The-Beauty-Me/dp/0316160091

The article also mentions that a young Latina reader likes multicultural books because they feature characters "  ... with their long, dark hair and olive skin, they look a lot like her."  The article glosses over the point that this is not a true  description of all Latinas, a population which has a great deal of diversity. Works by author/illustrators  such as  Eric Velasquez,  Amelia Lau Carling, Yuyi and  Magaly Morales show that this standard description is plainly not the case.

To read the rest of the article, which has similar findings for books about other ethnic groups, see
http://www.wnyc.org/npr_articles/2013/jun/25/as-demographics-shift-kids-books-stay-stubbornly-white/

However, , the situation described in this article  has been with us for decades.

( image from http://www.amazon.com/White-Childrens-African-American-Literature/dp/0865434778)

In 1995, Frances Smith Foster in her article " Since the Sixties" in th The all-white world of children's books and African American children's literature , bemoaned the fact that  "...since the eighties, the stream of books for children by African -Americans has slowed to a trickle.   Many books are out of print and new titles are few and far between. Only about 1% of children's books published in the first half of the 1980s focus upon African-Americans and many of these are not by African Americans ( p.42) ."

The book in which this essay appears, The all-white world of children's books and African American children's literature edited by Osayimwense Osa. (Africa World Press, c1995) also reprints the original Larrick  article from the Saturday Review of Books. The other  essays examine several aspects of the  representations of diversity in children's literature.( Guarini Library PS153 .N5 A399 1995)

( image from http://www.amazon.com/Free-Within-Ourselves-Development-Literature/dp/0325071357/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1372174815&sr=1-3&keywords=free+within+ourselves)

 In 2007, in her book, Free within ourselves : the development of African American children's literature,(Portsmouth, NH : Heinemann, c2007), Rudine Sims Bishop voiced a similar opinion.

 "In spite of major increases in the number of children's books about Black people since 1965,  African American children's literature continues to exist as a very small subset of the estimated 5000 new children's books published each year in the United States (p.xii)...The highest proportion of books about people of African descent produced by Black writers and artists was 65 percent, achieved only once in 2000 with 96 of 147 books. in recent years it has ranged between 40 percent and 60 percent  (p.xiii)."

(Guarini Library- PS153 .N5 B526 2007b 2007 )

[ Please note there has been controversy about how these and other books are marketed in bookstores   See http://nkjemisin.com/2010/05/dont-put-my-book-in-the-african-american-section/; http://gawker.com/5628781/ohio-wal+marts-have-carefully-segregated-book-departments]

Librarians have tried to promote multicultural literature with the

Coretta Scott King Awards

Pura Belpre Awards

But the situation and articles like these show that there is very little change.
When will the publishers get on the bandwagon and realize that they are missing an increasing population of Americans, and that most Americans (of any ethnicity) will view multicultural literature as reflecting their reality?
.

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 https://livestream.com/accounts/15501555/centralpark5/videos/150835805

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
(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)
 
Time       

I’m wasting time for a serious crime

A crime I didn’t do

A crime that traps black people like me and you

Teens having dreams but not going to the extreme

Peer pressure from friends that will lead you to a dead end

I’m not a follower. I was just with the wrong crowd

The type of crowd that could have left me on the ground

The white man tries to put us down

But we as blacks, could turn that around

I just want to go home and get my head out of this dome

I wish I could disappear and get out of this jail atmosphere

This is not a rhyme—it’s just time.

—Ray, Spofford Voices, September 1991

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.)

A Study Guide for Place in the World Prepared by Roberta McNair for CFI Education
Film Discussion Guide of Ken Burns Documentary (Grades 10-12)
http://cfieducation.cafilm.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Central_Park_Five_Study_Guide1.pdf
A PLACE IN THE WORLD is for grades 10-12. Participating schools are chosen from different Bay Area locations and with as much diversity in the student body as possible. Study guides and clips for all films are provided and sent out two weeks prior to an event for class preparations. CFI staff also visits the schools prior to the program’s start to familiarize students with the program and to answer questions. On the event date: the film is shown; discussion conducted with director or principal speaker; small group break-out with adult discussion leaders for personal reflection.

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/resource/the-rag-and-bone-shop/

http://www.readinggroupguides.com/reviews/the-rag-and-bone-shop/guide

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.

Grade 1-4 students vote now for the Black Awards or Cook Prize

Calling First to Fourth Grade elementary school students (and their teachers and librarians).

Time to vote for the Irma Simonton Black and James H. Black Award and the Cook Prize!

Deadline April 15, 2013.

The Irma Simonton Black and James H. Black Award for Excellence in Children's Literature (Irma Black Award) goes to an outstanding book for young children - a book in which text and illustrations are inseparable, each enhancing and enlarging on the other to produce a singular whole. The Irma Black Award is unusual in that children are the final judges of the winning book.

The award is presented each May at a breakfast ceremony held at Bank Street College.

How to participate in next year's award

First and second grade readers will be choosing their favorite picture book after careful thought, deliberations, discussions, and dialogue! We hope you and your classes have fun while learning about the joy of reading! Fill out the Registration form .
VOTES ARE DUE ON APRIL 15TH.
Voting link will be emailed after you submit your registration
Go to http://bankstreet.edu/center-childrens-literature/irma-black-award/
or email kfreda@bankstreet.edu for more information.

2013 Finalists
Big Mean Mike
by Michelle Knudsen, illustrated by Scott Magoon
Candlewick

Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs
by Mo Willems
Harper Collins

The Duckling Gets a Cookie!?
by Mo Willems
Hyperion

This is Not My Hat
by Jon Klassen
Candlewick

The Cook Prize honors the best science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) picture book published for children aged eight to ten. It is the only national children's choice award honoring a STEM book.

Cook Prize finalists are chosen from a list of sixteen STEM books included in the Children's Book Committee Best Books of the Year.
A panel of judges comprised of two math/science faculty from the Graduate School of Education, two teachers from the School for Children and two distinguished Bank Street alumni will narrow the field of sixteen to four.
Following the same format as the Irma Black Award, third and fourth grade teachers and librarians are invited to read aloud, discuss and encourage students to vote for their favorite STEM book of the finalists.

How to participate

Your third and fourth grade readers will be choosing their favorite STEM picture book of the year. These 5 books were carefully chosen by educators, scientists, and librarians who wish to promote nonfiction picture books as a wonderful and joyful resource for young people. We hope you and your classes have fun while engaging in the joy of reading!
VOTES ARE DUE ON APRIL 15TH.Submit a Registration form  and a voting link will be emailed after you submit your registration.
Go to http://bankstreet.edu/center-childrens-literature/cook-prize/
or email  jbrown@bankstreet.edu for more information
2013 Finalists

Busy Builders
by Roxie Munro
Marshall Cavendish

How Many Jelly Beans?
by Andrea Menotti, illustrated by Yancey Labat
Chronicle

Infinity and Me
by Kate Hosford, illustrated by Gabi Swiatkowska
Carolrhoda

Ocean Sunlight: How Tiny Plants Feed the Seas
by Molly Bang and Penny Chisholm
Scholastic

Timeless Thomas: How Thomas Edison Changed Our Lives
by Gene Barretta
Macmillan

Congress, Sequestration and Education

From http://aacte.org/federal-grassroots-action-network.html

Automatic “Sequestration” Cuts to Begin March 1

Unless Congress acts, on March 1, 2013 all federally-funded education programs (other than Pell grants) will be subject to a 5.1% automatic across-the-board cut as part of sequestration.

This will reduce funding for education programs by $2.6 billion. Important programs for educator preparation such as Teacher Quality Partnership grants, School Leadership grants, Transition to Teaching, and Math and Science partnerships will all be cut.

Other consequences of sequestration:

• Head Start will be cut by $409 million.

• Title I will be cut by $745 million.

• IDEA will be cut by $636 million.

• Funding for Title II, ESEA Teacher Quality Grants will be cut by $127 million.

• Student financial aid programs such as Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants and Work-Study will be cut by $88 million.

• Higher education competitive grant programs will cut by a combined $132 million.

• Career, Technical and Adult Education will be cut by $89 million.


Education has already been cut by over $1 billion in the last two fiscal years. Congress needs to show leadership and find other ways to lower spending – education has done its part.

Contact Congress today and tell them to compromise so these cuts do not happen.

Take these 4 easy action steps to save funding for education programs:

• Click on this link. It will bring you to a prepared alert on AACTE’s Grassroots Action Network.

• Fill in your information so that the message goes to your elected representatives.

• Fill in any information you wish to add in the editable text box (e.g. if you have a federal grant tell them how important the program is for recruiting students, reforming educator preparation, etc. and what would be lost if spending is cut.).

• Click Submit.

If you have any questions please contact Jon Gentile at jgentile@aacte.org

National Digital Learning Day-2/6/13

Celebrate National Digital Learning Day - Wednesday February 6, 2013!

The second annual National Digital Learning Day will take place on Wednesday, February 6. This event celebrates innovative teaching practices that encourage exploration of digital learning, emphasizing how it can provide students with crucial skill sets and increased opportunities. Digital Learning Day recognizes all educators and the successful use of technology in the classroom. Educators are encouraged to participate and personalize the day to inspire students, parents, principles, teachers and other educators to embrace digital learning.

Join the Online Digital Chats

Digital Learning Day Live Chats

As part of the Digital Learning Day celebration, the Alliance has brought together education experts for a series of live chats on the best practices in digital learning and how to improve the educational experience and outcomes for all students.

Details on each of the three live chats are below, followed by a separate “Cover It Live” chat box dedicated to that specific chat. Click http://www.digitallearningday.org/chat to access the chats

•9:00 am – 11:30 am (ET): DLD 2013 Morning Chat: Focus on Instruction, Lesson Plans, and Innovative Strategies and Tools

•11:30 am ET – 12:30 pm (ET): DLD 2013 Special Edition: Chat with Rock Stars on Education Policy, Practice, & Media

•2:30 pm – 3:30 pm (ET): DLD 2013 Afternoon Chat: Project 24: A Focus on the Digital Learning Transition

National Digital Learning Day is presented by the Alliance for Excellent Education and other national educational organizations. The American Library Association's American Association of School Librarians, as well as teachers and other educators are key partners is promoting the event.

For more information on National Digital Learning Day, including toolkits, advocacy tools and current news, visit: http://www.digitallearningday.org/

David Luibar and Wendy Mass at South Orange Public Library 2/10/13

Authors David Lubar and Wendy Mass at South Orange Public Library!

Sunday, February 10, 2013, 2:00 pm

South Orange Public Library,
 65 Scotland Rd,
South Orange, NJ
Get Directions »

FREE

These are the authors your kids read and love, David Lubar and Wendy Mass! Come out and meet them in person at the South Orange library on Sunday February 10th at 2pm! Sponsored by Friends of the SOPL and Sparkhouse.

http://www1.youseemore.com/southorange/default.asp
https://sites.google.com/site/friendsofsopl

ALA Book Media Awards announced 1/28/13

Caldecott:

Award:
Jon Klassen, illustrator and author  of” This Is Not My Hat” ( juv.K635t)

Honor:
“Creepy Carrots!” illustrated by Peter Brown and  written by Aaron Reynolds
“Extra Yarn,” illustrated by Jon Klassen, written by Mac Barnett
“Green,” illustrated and written by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
“One Cool Friend,” illustrated by David Small, written by Toni Buzzeo
Sleep Like a Tiger,” illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski, written by Mary Logue

Newbery

Award:
Katherine Applegate, author of “The One and Only Ivan, illustrated byPatricia Castelaoand

Honor:
“Splendors and Glooms” by Laura Amy Schlitz
"Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon” by Steve Sheinkin
“Three Times Lucky” by Sheila Turnage

Printz

Award:
 “In Darkness,” written by Nick Lake

Honor:
“Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe,” written by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
“Code Name Verity,” written by Elizabeth Wein
Dodger,” written by Terry Pratchet
“The White Bicycle,” written by Beverley Brenna

Pura Belpre Awards

Author  (Narrative)Award
Benjamín Alire Sáenz, author of “Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Author (Narrative) Honor:
“The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano” by Sonia Manzano

Illustrator Award:
David Díaz, illustrator of “Martín de Porres: The Rose in the Desert written by Gary D. Schmidt

There were no Illustrator Honor awards

Coretta Scott King Awards

Author Award:
Andrea Davis Pinkney, author of “Hand in Hand: Ten Black Men Who Changed America,”

Author Honor awards:
"Each Kindness” by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated by E. B. Lewis
“No Crystal Stair: A Documentary Novel of the Life and Work of Lewis Micheaux, Harlem Bookseller” by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson; illustrated by R. Gregory Christie

Illustrator Award:
Bryan Collier, illustrator of “I, Too, Am America written by Langston Hughes ( juv.811.52.H893i)

Illustrator Honor:
“Ellen’s Broom” illustrated by Daniel Minter, written by Kelly Starling Lyons (juv. L9913e)
"H. O. R. S. E.” illustrated and written by Christopher Myers
“I Have a Dream: Martin Luther King, Jr.” illustrated by Kadir Nelson, written by Martin Luther King, Jr

Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award

Award:
Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon,” written by Steve Sheinkin,
Honor:
“Electric Ben: The Amazing Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin,” written and illustrated by Robert Byrd  “Moonbird: A Year on the Wind with the Great Survivor B95,” written by Phillip M. Hoose
“Titanic: Voices from the Disaster,” written by Deborah Hopkinson

YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults:

Winner:
“Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon,” written by Steve Sheinkin,

Finalists:
 “Steve Jobs: The Man Who Thought Different,” written by Karen Blumenthal,
“Moonbird: A Year on the Wind with the Great Survivor B95,” written by Phillip Hoose ( Juv.598.072 H789m)
“Titanic: Voices from the Disaster,” written by Deborah Hopkinson, published by Scholastic Press,
“We’ve Got a Job: The 1963 Birmingham Children’s March,” written by Cynthia Levinson,

Theodor Seuss Geisel Award for the most distinguished beginning reader book

Award:
Up, Tall and High!” written and illustrated by Ethan Long

Honor:
“Let’s Go for a Drive!” written and illustrated by Mo Willems,
“Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons” by Eric Litwin, created and illustrated by James Dean
 “Rabbit & Robot: The Sleepover,” written and illustrated by Cece Bell .

Schneider Family Book Award for books that embody an artistic expression of the disability experience:

Children ages 0 to 10.

“Back to Front and Upside Down!” written and illustrated by Claire Alexander

Middle-school (ages 11-13)
“A Dog Called Homeless” written by Sarah Lean

Teen (ages 13-18)
“Somebody, Please Tell Me Who I Am,” written by Harry Mazer and Peter Lerangis

Stonewall Book Award  for English-language children’s and young adult books of exceptional merit relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender experience:

Award:
“Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe,” written by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Honor:
Drama,” written and illustrated by Raina Telgemeier ( Juv.T2714d)
Gone, Gone, Gone,” written by Hannah Moskowitz
“October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard,” written by Lesléa Newman
“Sparks: The Epic, Completely True Blue, (Almost) Holy Quest of Debbie,” written by S. J. Adams

Mildred L. Batchelder Award for an outstanding children's book originally published in a language other than English in a country other than the United States and subsequently translated into English for publication in the United States:


Winner:
“My Family for the War” (originally published in Germany in 2007 as “Liverpool Street)” written by Anne C. Voorhoeve, translated by Tammi Reichel and published by Dial Books, an imprint of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

Honor:
 “A Game for Swallows: To Die, to Leave, to Return,” written and illustrated by Zeina Abirached, translated by Edward Gauvin and published by Graphic Universe,
“Son of a Gun,” written and translated by Anne de Graaf, and published by Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

An archived webcast of the awards is available here:
http://cdnlive.webcastinc.com/ala/2013/live/