January is an exciting time for readers all over the world, as it is awards season! I will be featuring lessons about award-winning books, different types of book awards, and ways to recognize an award-winning book (medals, spine stickers, etc.). If you would like to watch a portion of the awards ceremony, it is being live-streamed HERE on January 30th at 9:00 am.

Our discussion of many of these widely known awards will lead into a study of the NC Children's Book Award in February. This is a really neat award because it is voted on entirely by the students in North Carolina, so their voice and vote really matters! We will be reading selections from the list and voting beginning in March. You can find out more about this award HERE. To see a list of ALL of the NCCBA winners from 1992 to present, click HERE.

Here are some important awards in children's literature that you may want to know more about. This is just a SMALL sampling of the awards that are out there.

Caldecott Medal: awarded yearly by the American Library Association to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children. "Any (picture) book published in the preceding year shall be eligible to be considered" for the Caldecott Medal. This award is named for Randolph Caldecott, an English illustrator in the 19th century. The award dates back to 1938 and yearly there are Honor books or runners-up are also chosen.

Newbery Medal: awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children to the author of the most distinguished contribution to literature for children , named for 18th-century British bookseller John Newbery. (first awarded in 1922)

Coretta Scott King Award (CSK): given annually to outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values. The award commemorates the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and honors his wife, Mrs. Coretta Scott King, for her courage and determination to continue the work for peace and world brotherhood.
NEW CSK BLOG: Follow the latest news and information from CSK on the brand new CSK Blog! To learn more, visit www.olos.ala.org/csk.

Pura Belpré Award: named after Pura Belpré, the first Latina librarian at the New York Public Library. The Pura Belpré Award, established in 1996, is presented annually to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth.

Robert F. Sibert Award: awarded annually to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished informational book published in the United States in English during the preceding year. The award is named in honor of Robert F. Sibert, the long-time President of Bound to Stay Bound Books, Inc.

Schneider Family Book Award: honors an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences.

Theodor Seuss Geisel Award: established in 2004, is given annually (beginning in 2006) to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished contribution to the body of American children’s literature known as beginning reader books published in the United States during the preceding year.

Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature: honors and recognizes individual work about Asian/Pacific Americans and their heritage, based on literary and artistic merit.

American Indian Youth Literature Awards: Given biennially, the AIYLA identifies and honors the very best writing and illustrations by Native Americans and Indigenous peoples of North America. Books selected to receive the award present Indigenous North American peoples in the fullness of their humanity. In odd-numbered years, nominations are encouraged in fiction or nonfiction and may include graphic novels; for picture books, the award is for both author and illustrator. Awards are granted in even-numbered years. Authors/illustrators may win the American Indian Youth Literature Award in the categories Best Picture Book, Best Middle Grade Book, and Best Young Adult Book. In addition, up to five awards may be selected as Honors books in each category.

Stonewall Book Awards: presented to English language books that have exceptional merit relating to the LGBTQIA+ experience, determined annually by the Rainbow Round Table of the American Library Association.

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If you have students in 2nd-5th grades, please make sure to send them with their Chromebooks EVERY time they have library class. We will be doing more online activities in the coming weeks, and I want to make sure everyone can participate.

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Library Schedule:

January 9-13th--B Week

January 16-20th--A Week

January 18th--Golightly and Daniels Off-Campus at Monthly DTL Mtg at MCMS

January 23-27th--B Week

January 25th--Golightly Out AM ONLY for medical appt (No open circulation that morning)

January 30-February 3rd--A Week

K:

• Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes (Caldecott Medal)
• This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen (Caldecott Medal)
• Focus: the power of visuals and how illustrations can significantly impact a story

1st:

• Sam & Dave Dig a Hole by Mac Barnett/Jon Klassen (Caldecott Honor)
• The Rough Patch by Brian Lies (Caldecott Honor)
  
• Focus: surprising images and how visuals convey emotions

2nd:

• Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McClosky (Caldecott Medal)
• The Three Pigs by David Wiesner (Caldecott Medal)
• Focus: the history of illustrations, color, and the style of pictures impacting a story

3rd:

• Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World's Most Famous Bear by Lindsay Mattick (Caldecott Medal)
• The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordecai Gerstein (Caldecott Medal)
• Focus: using picture books to convey historical information

4th:

• Coming on Home Soon by Jacqueline Woodson/E.B. Lewis (Caldecott Honor)
• Freedom on the Menu by author
• Focus: historical perspectives told through picture books (point-of-view; primary sources)

5th:

• How I Learned Geography by Uri Shulevitz (Caldecott Honor)
• Knock, Knock: My Dad's Dream for Me by Daniel Beaty (Coretta Scott King Award)
• Focus: primary sources; writing--the power of small moments

Stations/Centers/Activities:

• Igloo Cup Stacking Challenge--Can you design an igloo with cups?
• Giant Coloring Posters
• Guess the Mystery Book (book quote station)
• Book Recommendation Station
• Ride and Read Station
• Puzzle station
• Lego Station: build an igloo, penguin, polar bear, snowman, or snowflake, or you can build a wintery animal habitat! (ex--bear's den)
• "I Spy" station
• Magnet boards
• Bookmark Creation Station
• "Let's Stick Together" Mystery Picture Station

This month, I want to share some resources with you about doing research with your students, including using primary sources. The linked elements below include ready-made lesson materials to make it easier to implement research and history into your teaching.

Kid Citizen:

Primary sources are an amazing way to help your students really "see" into the past and understand what it was like to have been there and experienced these things. I know 2nd is working on biographies now, for example, and Kid Citizen is a very kid-friendly site to walk kids through primary sources from the Library of Congress that makes exploring primary sources fun.

Here is an example using a primary source greeting card from Rosa Parks that is a simple activity to introduce students to primary sources.

Click HERE for another Kid Citizen lesson that is a great intro to using primary sources.

BONUS: There are some lessons in Spanish for our newer English learners, too, which is awesome!

As your students research a famous person or time period, here are some questions that can help them as they dig into primary sources a little more:

• Ask Students to describe their world compared to that of the person/time period in the primary source:

• School

• Play

• Family/Chores

• Introduce "See, Think, and Wonder":

• What do you see?

• What do you think is going on?

• What does it make you wonder?

Zoom In:

This is a great strategy for older students to examine an image and think about its significance. What's going on? Why? As you reveal new pieces of the image, how does it change your thinking? How is that important during this time period? How does that relate to me and my life today? This can be an assignment, or something as simple as a class discussion or Socratic Seminar. If you are interested in creating some primary source lessons, please feel free to reach out to me for help with your planning! This is a great way to get kids excited about our history and show them that research can be fun!

Circle of Viewpoints:

Using this image from the Greensboro sit-ins, students write about the viewpoint of a particular person in the image. For example, your viewpoint may change if you're one of the students who sat at the lunch counter, compared to the person standing behind the lunch counter, or compared to their parents, who were at home, worrying about them and their safety. This is a fantastic way to get kids using higher-order thinking skills, primary sources, and writing about their reading and learning in a meaningful way.

More Resources from the Library of Congress

Teaching with Primary Sources Teachers Network

Citizen U has a huge bank of resources, teaching materials, and guided lessons on this!

Staff Survey:

Mr. Daniels and I are working to create some great tech PD opportunities for our staff, but we want to make sure what we are offering is what you actually WANT, so please fill out this short survey so we know what you want and need for this year! CLICK HERE

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Library Schedule:

January 9-13th--B Week

January 16-20th--A Week

January 18th--Golightly and Daniels Off-Campus at Monthly DTL Mtg at MCMS

January 23-27th--B Week

January 25th--Golightly Out AM ONLY for medical appt (No open circulation that morning)

January 30-February 3rd--A Week

(Currently available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, I Heart Radio, and Google)

Email: emily.golightly@carteretk12.org
Website: bit.ly/golightlyreads
Location: 219 Chatham Street, Newport, NC, USA
Phone: 2522234201
Facebook: facebook.com/nesmediacenter
Twitter: @EmilyGolightly3