CheckThisOut! Multimedia Subscription Kits -- 4 deliveries remaining this year, sign up now!

Did you know that the ERS Library’s CheckThisOut! Multimedia Kit Subscription Service is specifically designed to simplify how you request educational & engaging resources that support your virtual AND in-person classroom lessons? And that these monthly, curated resource kits can be emailed** or delivered to your school site?  Now is a fantastic time to start taking advantage of this incredible FREE service!   There are four kit deliveries remaining in the 2020-21 school year...January, February, March & April. You can select from random or lesson specific 4-6 or 8-10 item kits that include your choice of the following material types:
·       Digital resources on the ERS Portal** ·       Fiction & non-fiction books ·       Graphic novels ·       Spanish & bilingual materials ·       Art prints ·       Big Books & Big Book kits	·       Class novel sets (8-30 copies of same title) ·       Storytelling Kits ·       DVDs ·       Professional Development books ·       Puppets ·       Board books
or opt to try our popular “Class Library” kit that includes thirty random, grade level appropriate, fiction and nonfiction books for your students to enjoy.
**Locating high quality, age appropriate, digital resources for your virtual classroom just got easier!  When you sign-up for only the *Digital Resources from the ERS Portal* option (see image at left), you will receive an email each month containing links to standards-aligned digital resources from Discovery Education Streaming Video, TeachingBooks, World Book & Britannica Encyclopedias, ProQuest’s Culture Grams, SIRS Discoverer and eLibrary, Opposing Viewpoints and others. The ERS Library’s digital resources support learning in grades K-12. Interested? Click here to sign up today!
Want to know more or start receiving your own curated kits? Click here, or on the CTO! banner above, to visit the CheckThisOut! information page where you will find the sign-up link, participant reviews from fellow teachers, administrators and school library staff, as well as general information and our FAQ section.

2021 Virtual Learning Resources & Tech Tools Sessions

Educators at ERS Library contracting sites are invited to attend 45 minute virtual sessions designed to highlight the ERS Portal digital resources in support of distance learning AND two-hour Tech Tools sessions covering a multitude of educational technology resources, at no charge.

Sessions are currently scheduled throughout the month of January 2021.

Click here to view available sessions and register.

Greetings and...

 

StoryCorps: Listen.Honor.Share

 

StoryCorps reminds the nation that every story matters and every voice counts. Since 2003, StoryCorps has given a quarter of a million Americans the chance to record interviews about their lives, to pass wisdom from one generation to the next, and to leave a legacy for the future. It is the largest single collection of human voices ever gathered. These powerful stories illustrate our shared humanity and show how much more we share in common than divides us.

Developed in March 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, StoryCorps Connect is a first-of-its kind platform that enables you to record a StoryCorps interview with a loved one remotely using video conference technology. The audio and a still photo from each interview goes into our archive at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress.

STORYCORPS CONNECT IN FIVE STEPS
- Plan Your Conversation. Pick someone you want to honor with an interview and invite them to participate. Prepare for your interview using StoryCorps Great Questions list and aim for 6-8 questions over the course of a 40-minute interview.
- Join Our Community. Make sure both you and your partner are logged in on the StoryCorps Archive and visit the StoryCorps Connect recording page.
- Record Your Conversation. Make a plan to record and when you’re ready, start recording by sending the interview link to your partner. Once you are there, send the provided interview link to your partner.
- Preserve It for History. When you’re done, click “Stop Recording,” and then, “Save Interview”. Add a title and keywords to your interview if you are the organizer of the interview.
- Share Your Interview. When you’re done recording, you’ll be prompted to select your privacy settings. Share your interview with the world, or save it for friends and family.

Visit the StoryCorps Archive to listen in on hundreds of previously recorded interviews.

Did You Know? - December 2020

 

When you are looking to pass along fun and exciting resources to your students, don’t forget about TumbleBookLibrary, for TK-6^th grade, and TeenBookCloud, for grades 7-12. Both these dynamic literacy-based resources are available to your students through the ERS Portal.

TumbleBookLibrary features a variety of different kinds of eBooks and audiobooks. Story Books are read aloud, semi-animated, and feature text that change color as it is read which allow emergent readers to follow along. Story Books also feature music and sound effects. Read Alongs are narrated chapter books that feature color changing highlighted text beneficial for both emergent readers and independent readers. eBooks are full-length chapter books for grades 2-6. There are also Graphic Novels, Nonfiction, National Geographic Videos, Puzzles and Games, and 

                                                                            Language Learning modules. Many books allow the reader to create a 

                                                                            book report or quiz themselves on the books content.

TeenBookCloud, support students in 7-12th grade, and is organized by Fiction, Nonfiction, Drama and Poetry, Graphic Novels, and AP English. Fiction is further divided into Middle School Fiction and Teen Fiction. Helpful sections include Hi/Lo Fiction and books for older readers written at a lower reading level. Enhanced eBooks are also available, featuring audiobooks with highlighted text so readers can follow along. 

There is a world of exciting digital books at your fingertips with TumbleBookLibrary and TeenBookCloud, available through the ERS Portal!