Rupert

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= OELMA Conference 2009 =
 * Caryn Rupert**

Can I just say that OELMA was, by far, the most exciting and informative conference I’ve been to! As a reading teacher, I’ve been to a number of conferences on everything from teaching strategies to classroom management to differentiated instruction. This was my favorite, hands-down. The first session I went to was titled “Yet Another 100! Top Ten-Top Ten Great Websites” and was presented by Greg Byerly Carolyn Brodie. In this session Carolyn and Greg presented over 100 websites in 10 categories. Though the session was only 45 minutes they were able to briefly touch on each site. There were a number of sites I could see myself using, though there were not as many academic sites as I had hoped. Some of the sites I found academically useful included www.refdesk.com , www.factmonster.com @http://www.learner.org/jnorth/. I found the Journey North page on learner.org particularly interesting. On it students can learn about all sorts of migratory animals, view maps of migration patterns, and even participate by alerting the site if they see one of the featured animals, such as a whooping crane or hummingbird.

www.wordle.net a web 2.0 site was also mentioned. This site takes text inputed by the user and makes it into a word cloud. I thought this would be a really neat way to help teach free-form poetry. The second session I attended was “So Many Great New Books, So Little Time!” with Joanne Bongaarts Mark DeYoung. These two touched on over 20 new release children’s’ books and also gave a list of many more, all with brief descriptions. If you are interested in a copy of their recommended book list, their contact information can be found on their website, @http://www.solittletimesomanybooks.com/__ . __ Though the books were mostly children’s books (there were some young adult titles as well), there were several I thought could be used at any grade level to introduce a person or topic.

One of my favorites was titled “Eleanor, Quiet No More” by Doreen Rappaport and Gary Kelley (Illustrator). This book tells of the life of Eleanor Roosevelt through text and stunning paintings by Kelley. It would be great to introduce a biography unit or as supplemental material.

Another book I really loved was “Ron’s Big Mission” by Corinne Naden, Rose Blue and Don Tate (Illustrator). In it Ron is a 9 year old boy who wants nothing more than to go to his library and check out books on airplanes because he want to become a pilot. However, because Ron is African American, he is not allowed to check books out. This book is based on the life Ron McNair, an astronaut on the space shuttle //Challenger//. This book would be a wonderful tool when teaching about the tragic explosion.

I hosted the session “Science and Math through Literature” presented by Craig Knowlton. This was the only session I attended that I found disappointing. It was basically an advertisement for Sylvan Dell Publishings’ books. While the books were great (aligned to standards, well-researched with references and scientific explanations), I was really hoping for a more academic focus with ideas for teaching. There was a highlight when the illustrator talked about the process and research she goes through when illustrating the books. If anyone would like more information the company’s website is: @http://www.sylvandellpublishing.com/index.php

One of my favorite sessions was “Walking the Line 3: Young Adult Literature in the Middle School” by Candi Pierce Garry. Candi provided us with a wealth of information and insight. In her presentation she gave titles for books that were safe, books that were controversial but that she still kept in her (junior high) library, and great books that she decided were inappropriate. It was great not only to hear all the wonderful books she recommended, but also to hear //why// she chose to keep them in her library or not. I truly considered her insight to be invaluable. I know that it can be difficult, especially in young adult literature, to determine what is or isn’t appropriate. Candi was very liberal in her choices, as she has yet to have a book challenge, but I found her reasoning for keeping the titles to be sound. She kept titles that I know I would never have found in my middle school library, but she has truly read each book and can therefore pass judgment. I was unable to find links to her third installment of “Walking the Line” but I did find previous presentations and many of the books she recommends were on this year’s list as well. 



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*If anyone would like the full list of books from this year, let me know and I will try to make copies for our next class on campus!** ======

I also hosted “And Then They Grow Up To Do Terrible Things” presented by author Pete Hautman. Pete really put into perspective how what children read can influence them. We as educators know how impressionable our students are, and it is important to take this into consideration when guiding them in selecting reading material. I felt that this went back to Candi’s sessions emphasis on choosing material that is appropriate for //your audience.// Another thing Pete talked about that I found truly interesting is the responsibility an author has for his/her work. If an author writes a book in which a character does something harmful and a child reads that book and emulates the character, where does the responsibility lie? Pete feels, and I agree, that the author is not solely responsible for acts that follow the reading of their book. This was a truly insightful session that got me thinking. Pete’s website is @http://www.petehautman.com/

Overall I really enjoyed the sessions as well as talking to the vendors and meeting other fabulous librarians and media specialists! Educating 21st Century Learners was definitly a hot topic, though there was a lot of discussion on House Bill 1 and the future of Librarians and Media Specialists.

Can't wait for next year!

CNR

I enjoyed spending the day with you Cayrn. So much to see. I wish I could have gone to Walking the Line. I am always looking for books for middle schooler's who have a high reading level. I will have to check out the site. I have already played with woordle. I was surprised that it was not blocked at school. JD

Again, its sounded like a great conference - I will definitely set my sites on it for next year. I am always on the lookout for new and educationally sound websites and the talk you went to discussing the different sites sounded like a good one. The "walk the line" talk sounded very interesting as the whole censorship idea is hotly contested amongst librarians. Did Candi Pierce Garry ever have a challenge on a book from a parent? How did it come out? --Bill Reagle


 * That Journey North site sounds really interesting. I'd love to have a copy of the book list from Walking the Line 3. Of course school communities differ but I think the thought process is a good one. I also went to Pete Hautman's session . I went right out and bought a couple of his books. I read //All In// (a great book for high school boys about a 17 year old professional high-stakes poker player) in one 2 hour setting - things were slow in the booth Thursday night :-) SB

What wonderful sessions you were able to take part in! I will be checking out the Journey North site. I am sure that kids would love to be on the lookout for featured animals. I may just alert the site myself if I see one. The Walking the Line 3 session also sounds great. I would love to have a copy of the list. Thanks for the great info! JT

Great overview of all the sessions you attended! Thanks for posting links to the power points as well! RL

Thanks for sharing the great books, especially "Ron's Big Mission." I've been searching for a book like this for my Curriculum Development paper. It's fits the bill perfectly! CMS

Caryn, thanks for all of the wonderful information. Even though I wasn't able to attend I was able to find out so much from your wiki! I am definitely going to check out the so little time so many books site. Also, I would love a copy of the book list for this year of walk the line. Thanks! EAS

Caryn, you also have me thinking. Your comments on Pete's session about how reading influences the behavior and decisions of kids is so interesting. How do we help our students with this? I would love to have a copy of the booklist. KAP

It sounds like you went to some great sessions. It is unfortunate that the one session you hosted was basically a sales-pitch, but you were able to get some great information from the rest of the sessions. I wish I could have attended the Walking the Line 3 session because censorship is such a controversial topic. I am curious as to why, specifically, she decided for or against books for her library. This topic ties in perfectly to Pete Hautman's session about author responsibility. Isn't it neat how everything fits together so well...KE

Thanks for the site for book recommendations I will be sure to pass this on to the library aides in the district I work at. I spoke with one of the aides the other day and she said that she has been to the conference before and she had many good things to say about it and she wished that she could go to another conference. I hope to go to the conference next year if my job permits! MP