…changing the world, one reader at a time.
Does it feel sometimes like we live in a world where words are shared without much thought to their consequence? Educators have the opportunity to teach students just how powerful their words can be. Now more than ever we want our children to know that words matter. Words can build up or tear down, and […]
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I need to confess something: I have barely picked up a book all summer long. Instead I have filled my days with friends, sipping cool drinks and brushing mosquitos away as the smoke from the grill tumbles skyward behind me. I have flown across oceans, hiking up mountains to discover waves thrashing the bases of […]
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You’ve heard me talk a lot on this blog about Books on Bikes (no really… a lot). It combines my very favorite things: books, exercise, popsicles, and the Charlottesville community. Biking with the Books on Bikes team is the best part of my summer every year, and I’m so excited to be introducing this amazing project to […]
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The other day, a sixth grader approached me when I was standing at the circulation desk. “Have you read Mountain Dog?” He asked. Students approach me about books like this all the time. It’s my favorite part of the day. Sometimes it’s to talk about how much they loved a book – sometimes it’s to […]
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When I first started working with kids, I was under the naive assumption that parents and teachers had complete power over the opinions of the children that they work with. “My students will always be kind and patient and tolerant,” I thought, “because that is what I will teach them.” Cute, right? Enter: Reality. Children […]
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Over on School Library Journal today, STAB Computer Science Coordinator Kim Wilkens and I are talking about Foiling Fake News, a unit we developed for fourth graders to help them to put their digital literacy and computer science skills to the test. We had a blast while helping our fourth graders to sharpen their critical thinking […]
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When I feel small in a world so big, when I wonder how I fit in, when the world is spinning so fast… I tell my wiggling body: be still. I tell my thinking mind: be quiet. I tell my racing breath: be slow. – I Am Yoga, by Susan Verde In the transition from […]
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It’s time for some real talk. I have to admit something. Something that most teachers and librarians will never admit. It’s not a particularly popular opinion amongst educators. But I’m not ashamed. I’ll shout it from the rooftops: I love graphic novels. Seriously. I do. Give me all the epic adventure series, the cartoon fractured […]
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Note: This post is intended to be a resource for parents, educators, and students, instead of a personal reflection. If you would like to hear my personal feelings about 13 Reasons Why or engage in a discussion about difficult topics in young adult literature, I invite you to contact me privately via email at fitzbetweentheshelves@gmail.com. When […]
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Her hair fell into her face and she hunched over, tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth, fingering an LED light and a strip of copper tape. The cardboard car sat stubbornly askew on the tabletop. She moved silently, in tiny increments, only pausing to wipe her hand on her skirt or tuck her […]
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