The SurRural Librarian

I’ve been reading Farfallina & Marcell by Holly Keller with my first & second grade classes for a couple years and I like it more and more. It’s an easy read for the age group, so it eases them back into sitting still and listening to a story. And it’s got a caterpillar changing into a butterfly, which gives the kids a chance to revisit last year’s monarch studies.

But what makes it right on target for a first day of school read is the way it leads into good conversations about friendships. The characters are consistently considerate of each other and treat each other well. When they meet again after each has grown and changed, neither recognizes their friend at first. Which gives us a chance to look around at our pals and see how much we’ve all grown, plus reminds us to play nice.

And what kid wouldn’t like saying Farfallina out loud?

I like it. It’s another of the millions of titles that seem to have flown under the radar, so I like to share it.

Trying to beef up our graphic novel collection, I picked up a copy of the Courageous Princess by Rod Espinosa (2003). I tossed it in my book bag along with a bunch of picture books I planned to try out on my four year old. She took it out and hasn’t put it down yet. I’m surprised she’s not sleeping with it.

It’s interesting to see how the book has really captivated her. I think it must be that she can understand the whole story without having to know how to read. And the images are so vivid and unlike any of the picture books she’s had so much exposure too.

I haven’t read the story to her yet, because it’s so fun that she can “read” it on her own. But I do like the story, and I think it’s a great, safe buy for anyone looking for graphic novels, especially ones with strong female characters. Great for ages 5 up to (at least) 8.

Now that Apple has sent AppleWorks out to pasture in favor of iWork, I feel like it’s a good time to transition the school to something different. Many of my older machines still have AppleWorks, some have Office, and some - so far - nothing. I can’t afford to buy something new for every machine, so I need to make some decision on what to promote.

I could go all Word. All my kids 5th and up are addicted to PowerPoint, so I could go for Office. But I certainly can’t afford enough licenses for the school. I had planned on just getting PPT alone. Buying the complete Office would mean fewer machines with PPT.

I could just move on to iWork, but it only has word processing and presentations. (I’m particularly bummed, because I was going to try out creating an easy AppleWorks database with my 3rd graders this year. And Access is out of the question.) Drawback, again, I don’t have the dough to cover all the machines.

I could go with NeoOffice. Free, open source = whoopee. But, I’ve had it on my iBook for a year, and stopped using it when I got Office because it was so slow to load, and not too exciting. However - the new version based on OpenOffice 2 is available in Beta, so I’m going to try it out. This might be my solution.

Then there are web-based word processors like Writely & Zoho. I might try these out with my JH kids who move back and forth between their own PCs and the school’s Macs. It might solve some compatibility issues for them. Then again, it might be a bust since *if* they have internet at home, it’s mostly dial up.

The open source solution is the only one that could give me coverage on all machines. But I know that brand loyalty and comfort level are going to make it tough to get everyone to buy into using it.

My first challenge is to get everyone to stop saying “Appleworks” and start saying “Word Processing”. It’s like getting people to say facial tissue instead of Kleenex.

Treehugger is reporting on a new Solar Wi-Fi project that will be piloted this year in India…

Their wi-fi access nodes, which consist of a small solar panel, a heavy-duty battery, and a router, can be linked together to extend one internet connection into a larger network.

This just screams Vermont. The vast majority of the homes in the towns I teach in are still on dial up, and will be for the forseeable future. This would be such a hit.

This week’s This American Life starts with a great piece on the High Strung’s 2005 Library Tour in Michigan. This summer the band is on a national tour, playing loud rock in libraries.

These guys sound loud, like MC5 loud. Listening to that kind of distortion in a small space must be incredible. I love Alex Blumberg’s discriptions of the audiences, ten year olds covering their ears with their jaws hanging. Awesome.

Don’t miss the kids’ comments at the end of the piece on how the concerts made them feel differently about the library. I have to admit, I was really surprised. It’s great that this is the first concert alot of these kids are attending.

My favorite part was the band members’ description of why the library is cool. I wonder, are libraries seeing lots of touring bands coming in to shave and check their email?

Now if I could just convince the Boredoms to tour school libraries. hmmmm…

You can listen here if you missed the broadcast.

Follett is emailing offers of free copies of The Library Lion. I saw this book on the Eric Carle Museum’s new book shelf the other day. I can’t wait until Booklist reviews it.
A lion walks into a library. (So far so good). And there’s the uptight librarian Miss(!) Merriweather who’s only concerned with…rules. Is the lion breaking any library rules? No? Well then he can stay, as long as he’s quiet. I do believe I even spotted a card catalog. Ah, the good ol’ days.

You know, I wouldn’t be so annoyed by this book if I weren’t so turned off by these frequent attempts by publishers to suck up to librarians. How many mediocre kids books about librarians do they expect us to by? They know we’re all out here, thinking about what books to read to the little kids on the first day of school. They know we’re the ones with the book budgets. And who wouldn’t love a charming little book that told a good story as well as introducing the concept of library to little kids? Well, you know what, I would. So publish one!

Oh, and Follett includes a darling little plush lion. Let the love fest begin.

Just in case you’ve been on vacation, or just don’t read any other librarian blogs, the House has passed another reactionary, ill-informed, goofball bill all in the name of “protecting our kids”. Even VT’s Bernie voted for it. I sometimes think these guys will never get anything about the web, kids or libraries.
There’s plenty to chew on, if you’re looking for info ALA has a good breakdown. It’s on to the Senate, so think about contacting your elected officials and ask them to try to learn about technologies before they ban them.

I’m a big lover of nineteenth century literature, so since I started working with children, I wanted to see if I could share that love with them. I thought I’d try out some of my old favorites with my four-year old. Wow, not what I had hoped for. Guess maybe my tastes have changed since I was five (thankfully).
Winnie the Pooh went great, Alice in Wonderland - she loved,even though it’s pretty nutso, honestly. Then we got to Peter Pan, oy vey. I’m not sure what bugged me more, the bogus gender roles, the racism, the violence. Here’s the passage that finally got us to just put the darn thing back on the shelf…

On the trail of the pirates, stealing noiselessly down the war- path, which is not visible to inexperienced eyes, come the redskins, every one of them with his eyes peeled. They carry tomahawks and knives, and their naked bodies gleam with paint and oil. Strung around them are scalps, of boys as well as of pirates, for these are the Piccaninny tribe, and not to be confused with the softer-hearted Delawares or the Hurons. In the van, on all fours, is Great Big Little Panther, a brave of so many scalps that in his present position they somewhat impede his progress. Bringing up the rear, the place of greatest danger, comes Tiger Lily, proudly erect, a princess in her own right. She is the most beautiful of dusky Dianas [Diana = goddess of the woods] and the belle of the Piccaninnies, coquettish [flirting], cold and amorous [loving] by turns; there is not a brave who would not have the wayward thing to wife, but she staves off the altar with a hatchet.

Um, yuck.