16th November World Idea Day

Today is World Idea Day. Essentially, it was founded because ideas are powerful tools to do good things in the world. Without ideas, we would be neither creative nor innovative. In that regard, progress would simply not happen. However, ideas have to be realised in the real world! That's when action comes in. While ideas are our guides, action is what creates change!

Children have lots of ideas, many of them very good ideas, but some children are not risk-takers and do not have a positive growth mindset, so teachers spend time in classrooms working on this. Here's some books which will help with ideas and discussions of creativity.

• What Do You Do With an Idea? by Kobi Yamada

This is the story of one brilliant idea and the child who helps to bring it into the world. As the child's confidence grows, so does the idea itself. And then, one day, something amazing happens.

• The Most Magnificent Idea  by Ashley Spires

The girl in this story, with her dog at her side, loves to make things. Her brain, she says, is an "idea machine," so full of ideas that she can hardly keep up. But then one day... it isn't. All of a sudden, the girl can't come up with a single idea for what to make. She tries everything: brainstorming, gathering new supplies, even jumping up and down on one foot to shake an idea loose. But, nothing. 

• The Very Important Idea  by Emma Dodson

This amusing picture book tells the story of a rat and a cat, and explores the nature of ideas. Where do they come from and how are they rated A good idea for a cat is not necessarily the same thing as a good idea for a rat.

• I Have an Idea!  by Herve Tullet

This is at once a meditation on and a celebration of the magic of the birth of a simple idea. Sparkling with visual wit, it is a richly emotional exploration of the creative process, from the initial anticipation of the hunt for an idea, to the frustration of chasing the wrong idea, to the exhilaration of capturing just the right idea.

• Emily's Idea  by Christine Evans

This inspiring tale begins when a little girl decides to create a paper chain of dolls. Her idea catches on and spreads far and wide, as children around the world begin to create and share their own.

• Ruthie Rose's Big Idea  by John Schu

Ruthie Rose wakes up with an idea. A big, bright, beautiful idea.
An idea so great! An idea so grand! Ruthie Rose can’t wait to share it with her idea-loving teacher librarian, her art teacher, and her best friend.

• The Book of Mistakes  by Corinna Luyken

Told in minimal, playful text, this story shows readers that even the biggest "mistakes" can be the source of the brightest ideas-and that, at the end of the day, we are all works in progress, too.

• The Imagineer  by Christopher Cheng

Penny has a massive imagination. She loves to draw up plans, gather her tools and turn sketches and scribbles into new creations. One day, she visits her grandpa's house and is amazed at his gadgets and gizmos. He has a telephone hanging on his wall, an organ with bellows to pump and a contraption with a handle to churn homemade butter.

• Once Upon a Big Idea  by James Carter

Telescopes and clocks and trains- all big ideas from human brains! From bridges and boats to medicines and mobile phones, this book takes readers on a journey of discovery through all the amazing inventions human beings have come up with. 

9th November International Inventor's Day.

November 9th is International Inventor's Day. There are a few celebrations concerning inventors, and this one is held in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland in honour of actress and inventor Hedy Lamarr, born in 1914. Beyond being an incredible Hollywood actress, she is also considered one of the creators of WiFi technology. In 1942, she invented the frequency-hopped spread spectrum, which is the repeated switching of the carrier frequency during radio transmission to reduce interference and avoid interception. The day was designated by German inventors and entrepreneurs Gerhard Muthenthaler and Marijan Jordan to encourage people to believe in their ideas and honour forgotten inventors.

There are several picture book biographies about Hedy Lamarr. Our library has these two

Given the premise of the day it would be good to use Hedy Lamarr's Double Life and then look at all the wonderful picture book biographies written by Laurie Wallmark.

This is a good day too, to encourage girls 'to invent things'.

See books on this Pinterest page Girls and Stem for ideas.

13th November World Kindness Day

World Kindness Day is a global day that promotes the importance of being kind to each other, to yourself, and to the world.

If every Australian performed an act of kindness on World Kindness Day, we would have 25 million acts of kindness in a single day.

The day was established by the World Kindness Movement in 1998. It serves as a reminder of the power of empathy. 

Reading books and putting yourself in a character's 'shoes' develops empathy so the  library is a great place to collect books that you could read on this day. We will display some. Usually I steer away from books that have the 'theme' as the 'title' because often they are heavy-handed, preachy and dogmatic, but today I have chosen to suggest some books which do have 'kind' or 'kindness' in the title because for my young audience these books are worth sharing.

6th November Outdoor Classroom Day

Outdoor Classroom Day is a global movement to inspire and celebrate outdoor play and learning, at home and at school. On Outdoor Classroom Day itself, which has two dates each year, teachers celebrate with a special day outdoors for their class.

Children are spending less time outdoors than ever before and this is affecting their health, wellbeing and development. 

Outdoor learning can be so easily incorporated into so many different areas. To make outdoor learning experiences effective, teachers should design activities that meet curriculum aims. Science courses might contain experiencing experiments in the natural environment, which will lead to insights about ecosystems and environmental science. Map reading and walks can be used to provide these geography lessons.

Art projects can be nature-inspired, requiring students to make art out of natural materials. These practice are more than the reinforcement of the traditional curricula; it is an expression of creativity and self-developed art.

Read this article How Outdoor Learning Works Around the World to see what is happening in other education systems. The weather in Australia certainly is conducive to getting outdoors and most schools have a playground or nearby park or beach to explore, but it is getting close to the end of the academic year and teachers will say that there is too much to do at the moment, so perhaps the date in May is a better time to celebrate. The Australian Curriculum has a rationale for why Outdoor Education is must.

A study in the UK found:

I have a Pinterest page devoted to Outdoor Education, one on trees, another on stones and rocks, and yet another on sticks. These will show you a number of books that you could connect to outdoor classrooms,  or you could try some of these:

1st November Fairytales Losing Out to AI-Driven Apps (SMH Spectrum pg 12)

Reading for Pleasure -a door to success

Today there is an article in our Sydney newspaper written by Jane Sullivan asking the question Why aren't more young people reading for pleasure? She suggests some reasons, admits to parents being time-poor and lacking in knowledge of what to read, talks about an AI app that writes stories for reading at bedtime. She does say that it is not ideal. Of course it is not ideal, reading to your children is also about the special bond that is established while you read and the chance to touch a book, talk about what is on the page and relate it to your own life. Reading to your child cannot be out-sourced to a device! They need to see you read. You have to model reading, so that your child thinks that you think reading is important and worthwhile doing.

Jane Sullivan mentions a report from the National Institute of Education in Singapore which recommends a number of strategies to tackle the problem of declining reading skills and enjoyment among young people.

• better access to books that reflect children's lives.

• support to enable them to choose books for themselves.

• quality time set aside for reading.

• opportunities to reflect and share their experience with other readers.

• development of a positive reader identity.

The emphasised words are me, not the report. All of these things point to the importance of school libraries and a knowledgable teacher librarian who is able to facilitate all of these strategies. There is a difference between a public library and a school library. The public librarian can certainly recommend books, but the teacher-librarian should know a child's interests, approximate reading ability and want to broaden their choices so as to increase their reading stamina, empathy and vocabulary. 

Of course these strategies will be enacted upon by classroom teachers and parents as well, but the teacher-librarian needs to make this their priority. All school libraries should facilitate parent borrowing. Schools need to make it very easy for parents to find books to read to their children and if they can do it when they drop off or pick up their children they are more likely to do it. 

I am the teacher-librarian in a school library that caters to preschoolers and children in Kindergarten to Year 2. This enables me to give the students access to to books that reflect their lives. All classes come to the library weekly, but the parents can come before and after school to borrow ten books at a time. Most parents come weekly or fortnightly. At the beginning of the year we encourage the families to take part in the Premier's Reading Challenge, but most parents keep coming even once they have finished the challenge. I also run parent workshops and have a parent newsletter which ensures they are well informed about what the library and library staff can offer them.

Learning to read is a partnership between home and school. Parents who read to their children daily long before school, set their children up for reading success. Then the school takes on the task of teaching children the important skills they need to decode, comprehend and evaluate what they read, while there is still a reading culture occurring at home and their is support with choosing books in the school library.

This week I attended a breakfast at which Natalie Wexler, a respected American educator spoke. She is a proponent of evidence-informed literacy education and has recently spoken about how 'teaching phonics is not enough'. At the end of her talk she was joined on the stage by Erica Stanford, the Minister of Education in New Zealand and Lorraine Hammond, an advocate for the Science of Reading and explicit instruction. 

Erica Stanford spoke about the curriculum situation in New Zealand with much knowledge, passion and determination to get it right. I found this wonderful, but given the push towards a knowledge-rich curriculum, I thought it sad, that New Zealand had made the decision not to have primary-school-based libraries. When I visited New Zealand last, they were leaning towards bulk borrowing from a city-based school library where schools requested books and could keep them for the term. I wanted to ask her if this has changed.

Many states and Education systems in Australia are also closing school libraries or talking about why they are needed. Some schools have volunteer parents buy and loan the books. Many schools have also done away with time set aside for reading, such as USSR (Uninterrupted Sustained Reading) or DEAR (Drop Everything and Read) time, citing lack of time, but if we want students to read at home, we need to give them time to read at school. 

Reading for Pleasure revolves around personal enjoyment and the inherent pleasure of reading itself. It is a voluntary and self-directed activity driven by individual interests, preferences, and curiosity. It is not bound by specific guidelines or requirements and allows readers to choose their own materials based on their personal tastes, preferences, and reading level. Before a child can read, the choice to read is made by parents or other adults such as teachers. Once a child can read adults need to make sure there is an environment where children choose to read.

Literacy levels and reading for pleasure will continue to decline if schools do not ensure that the five strategies above are easy to implement!

31st October Teachers' Day

Teachers' day in Australia is celebrated today, the last Friday in October. World Teachers' Day is celebrated internationally on 5th October and in India it is celebrated on the 5th September, the birthday of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, an eminent educationist, the first Vice-President of India, and the second President of the country.

Whenever you celebrate it, the day is a tribute to educators who shape the future by guiding students not only academically but also in values and life skills. They inspire, motivate, and strengthen the foundation of society, leaving a lasting impact on generations.

As teachers we know the profound difference that one brilliant educator can make in a child's life and we all aspire to do that.

There are some wonderful picture books that highlight exemplary teachers.