April 24, 2013

Chi City Youth by Jazmine McKinney

I selected Jazmine McKinney's poem, 'Chi City Youth' to wrap up poetry month.   This spoken word poet eloquently describes the violence that Chicago's youth must face daily.  McKinney's vivid description of the day-to-day struggle is not to be taken lightly and she does not hold back.  This video is a 'real' and provides the listener with a true account of life in Chicago's from the lens of a young person.  

This video is part of a projected funded in part by a City of Urbana Arts grant and produced by University of Illinois PhD student Raymond Morales.   I encourage you to listen 12 audio works and several videos by six Illinois artists.   The audio is available for download on Morales website at The Show 1045.  

Like my friend said, "Poetry is a way for young people to express themselves, allow them to use a pen, paper and their authentic voice as their instrument."

April 18, 2013

A Special Project

     This week the 'Behind the Paws' student news crew shot a very interesting project in the Library Media Center.  'The Belle's of Bronzeville Prom Boutique Extraordinaire' is a dress donation program for Phillips female students who are in need of prom attire.  Eligible participants will have the opportunity to select gently used prom attire for FREE!

     Created by Phillips Language Arts teacher, Mrs. Henderson and SGA Community School Coordinator, Candice Peoples, this program will assist financially challenged students find the perfect dress for this special event.

     Some members of the BTP crew served as models while others shot video and created a 'mini' runway for the fashion show in the library!  It was really cute, all of the students and audience members had fun during the show.  My library media center has been used for many events but never something so creative and 'fashion forward' as this event.

     The boutique will open on May 18, 2013, so mark your calendars.  If you are interested in donating gently used/dry cleaned prom attire, please watch the following video for contact information for this program.

The Belles of Bronzeville Prom Boutique Extraordinaire from WPAHS Video Page on Vimeo.


April 13, 2013

Collection Development and Street Lit.

CPS Librarian Hall of Fame Sideshow
Yesterday I gave a presentation at my district's annual librarian professional development day at the Chicago History Museum.  My presentation, "Urban Fiction/Street Literature Collection Development for School Libraries" provided librarians with a blue print for including great Street Lit. reads for 6th-12th students.  Books that appear on my list also include adult Street Lit. titles that teens would enjoy reading.  
So far, this year has been a wonderful school year for me.  My work with using technology with teens  has been highlighted and I have gained so much from learning from others during special training sessions.  The highlight of yesterday's professional development was my induction into the Chicago Public School's Librarian Hall of Fame.  To receive this recognition from my librarian peers meant more to me than all of the awards/recognition I've received this year.  As I said at the beginning of my presentation, "I'm a librarian, and it happens to be the best job on the planet!."

Enjoy the presentation below!

April 10, 2013

School Library Journal Announces the SLBAM Young Adult Winner/Honorees

School Library Journal recently announced the SLBAM Young Adult Winner and honorees.  The Street Lit. Book Award celebrates the best that has been published within the Street Lit. genre each year.  The winners and honorees are based on popularity by readers in school, public and academic libraries.  

The SLBAM committee is comprised of public, school and academic librarians from across the country.  The I'm proud to say that I have served as a committee member since 2010.   The committee members are proud of our contributions to this medal award because it serves as a wonderful resource for librarians as they continue to develop their Street Lit. collections in their libraries.  

To access this year's winners and honorees, adult and young adult, log onto Dr. Vanessa Irvin Morris website StreetLiterature.com.  To access a list of winners and honorees from years past, logon onto SLBAM Historical List.  

Re-posted from School Library Journal