Swank is excited to introduce Vooks, a new way to bring storytime magic to your classroom through Swank K-12 Streaming. Vooks transforms children's books into immersive experiences with animated illustrations, read-aloud text, professional narration, and engaging music.
Link for more info in the graphic above
Why Vooks?
The SLS is rolling out a pilot for the region to try out Sooth for next year! Click the link in the image to sign up today for a free trial so you can see for yourself.
"In today’s digital world, knowledge seekers have access to a vast amount of content but actually finding credible and actionable insights in the flood of noise is very difficult. Sooth addresses that by providing a curated search engine focused exclusively on credible, diverse, expert, and original sources.
With Sooth, you can quickly access high-quality information without the distractions of ads or unreliable content. Our platform enhances the effectiveness and accuracy of your research and accelerates your productivity, enabling you to maximize your learning and production."
Four librarians and one SLS Coordinator traveled to Rochester last week to attend the NYLA School Librarians Conference.
From left: Lynne "Asha" Golliher from Ellenville, Lisa Polack from Kingston, Autumn Cook from Saugerties, Joanna Arkans from Ulster BOCES and Jackie Evangelista from Kingston
One of our own, Lisa Polack from Bailey Middle School in Kingston, presented at an Ignite Session. Her talk was called "Creating a Welcoming & Inclusive Culture in the School Library". Her presentation was excellent and very well received by the audience.
The New York State Education Department's (NYSED's) Office of Early Learning invites library staff to a unique literacy event aimed at supporting the state’s latest literacy initiatives. As essential partners in early childhood education, libraries significantly contribute to nurturing a culture of literacy that reaches beyond classrooms into homes. This session will offer valuable insights into research-based literacy practices, strategies for enhancing the home-school connection, and methods to involve families in creating robust literacy foundations for young learners. Furthermore, the event will showcase the integral role of libraries in fostering a love for reading, establishing them as inviting spaces for gathering, learning, and community engagement.
By the conclusion of this event, participants will:
This session will be recorded for later viewing by those unable to attend live; to receive the recording link, please register and it will be automatically sent to you. If you have any questions or suggestions, please reach out to Sharon Phillips at Sharon.Phillips@nysed.gov
Starting April 28th! Sign up on Frontline for a fully online, asynchronous course for school librarians. ELLs in the School Library will expand your repertoire of resources and strategies for supporting ELLs in the school library. Register today!
The Initiative on Immigration and Education from CUNY has just released a new Immigration Literature Guide. It feature "a carefully curated collection of 100 recently published PreK-12 books that showcase the transformative power of immigration-centered stories."
There are four sections of the guide - early childhood and elementary picture books, upper elementary chapter books, middle school, and high school.
Click on the image above to download the guide.
Sign up today for this full day seminar at Ulster BOCES. Free for our component districts!
Here are some helpful videos from NY State Model Schools to help educators navigate some changes that are rolling out March 1, 2025. As of that date schools in NY State will not be able to offer some Google and YouTube products to students. Click on the image below to learn how to embed YouTube videos in Google Classroom, Slides, and more. There are also resources to help teachers learn how to use Google Translate going forward.
Make sure you take a look at the new Media Literacy Toolkit from NYSED. It showcases what we already do in our roles as librarians. How can we use this opportunity to be leaders in Media Literacy education in our schools?
