Stop! Now Read.....

Back in high school, we had this thing where the school would stop for about 10 minutes or so and everyone in the school would stop whatever they were doing and read.

What a concept, huh?

In your gym class? You stopped running and read.
In math? You put down that calculator and read.
Drivers Ed? Well, I'm not sure how that worked, but you get my meaning....

The entire school came together for a few minutes and read. When I was the student, it meant I got out of schoolwork for a few minutes and I loved it. But as an adult, as someone who wants to go into education, specifically library and media, well....I think about it a little differently. Yes, we spent a little time exposing ourselves to literature. But really, the big picture of it all, was we spent time reading together. Everyone! Students, teachers, administrators...the act of reading, not just the literature itself, unified us.We talk about the power of words and the impact of literature, but when people are able to share those experiences together, not just alone, it creates a sense of importance to an act that we often don't get to experience.

There are some days, when I'm at work, when I just wish that announcement would come over the intercom. Maybe one day, it will again.

Potty Mouths and Permission Slips

For one of my graduate courses, I am writing a research paper that dives into the issue of profanity and young adult/children's literature. I have to say, this has been an inspiring topic to research, particularly when it comes to how librarians handle challenges to literature.

Between pulling, burning, and censoring books, the most interesting technique has definitely been the permission slip tactic. Really, I would LOVE to see how a modern high school librarian deals with that. To be quite honest, once that item has left the library the librarian loses control of the item. That book can get read by anyone, not necessarily the person who checked it out. So, does the permission slip tactic really "fix" the issue?

It's kind of like that with a lot of things. Isn't it slightly human nature that if someone tells you that you can't do something, it just makes you want to do it more?? Really, I truly believe that the best thing parents who are worried about a book can do is communicate with their child. Encourage parents to read the book first, and take a look at issues that might come up. Have them talk with their kids! Sometimes, controversial books about tough topics can spark meaningful conversations that parents should be involved with.

So, really, the permission slip tactic might just make it harder for a kid to have access to a book, but that doesn't mean they won't get access somewhere else. Parents should look at the situation as an opportunity to discuss their values with their kids.

Pirates and Librarians Don't Always Get Along

Just in time for Talk Like a Pirate Day (September 19)! I recently found this post on the YALSA blog. I answer questions everyday about proper citation and copyrights, and I often find myself explaining that not everything on the Internet is "free game". Just because it is there does not mean you can use it however you want. So, maybe this blog will be as informative for you as it was for me. Take a look at my comment on the bottom!

http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2012/09/24/the-copyright-quagmire/