Updates From State Library Services
 Join a Project READY Cohort
The events of this past summer have inspired many to engage in personal reflection and professional learning around racial equity.
In partnership with ITEM and MLA, State Library Services invites you to join a cohort of colleagues to engage in this work through Project READY (Reimagining Equity and Access for Diverse Youth).
This online professional learning curriculum is targeted at youth services and school librarians, but it has broad applicability. We will focus on the first 13 modules, covering a range of topics from the history of race to implicit bias to cultural humility.
Cohorts will work through the online content on their own and meet online for one hour every other week for a facilitated discussion of their learning. The cohort(s) will start in January and continue until the summer.
To learn more, please join us December 1, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., for an informational webinar in Zoom.
Register for the Project READY informational meeting.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. This meeting will be recorded and available for viewing after the event. To receive the link, or ask further questions, please contact Leah Larson.
Seeking Input on State Library Services' EDI Plan
State Library Services held listening sessions on racial equity in Summer 2020. We've drafted a plan based on the results of the listening sessions, and we are looking for feedback from Indigenous and library staff of color in addition to those who attended the sessions.
If you identify as Black, Indigenous, or a person of color, and are willing to meet and review our ideas for racial equity initiatives, please let us know by filling out this form by Tuesday, December 8. If you have questions, please email or call Leah Larson (651-582-8604).
|
Volunteer as a Writing Award Juror
Minnesota is a partner for the national 2020 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. State Library Services is recruiting up to 20 volunteer jurors to read and rate creative writing submissions from teens in grades 7-12.
How can you pass up the opportunity to read what creative teens are writing during the most tumultuous epoch of their lives?
To volunteer, please complete the juror sign-up form.
This opportunity is open to all, regardless of library type, position, etc. Each juror will dedicate 10-15 hours to reading and scoring a maximum of 100 submissions in the span of three weeks (December 18, 2020, to January 8, 2021).
Contact Hannah Buckland at hannah.buckland@state.mn.us with any questions.
Connect with ConnectedMN
ConnectedMN is a public/private/philanthropic partnership to bring computing devices, internet access, and related supports to students across the state, especially families most in need, including students who are Black, Indigenous, People of Color, and students from low-income families. ConnectedMN’s approach is to augment and supplement where existing structures have been insufficient to fill remaining needs.
In this spirit, we are planning to reach out to businesses to drop off working/serviceable computers (desktops or laptops) that are rolling off lease or otherwise being retired (ideally 4 years old or newer). Working with partners, we would refurbish or recycle these devices and distribute to local families.
We're requesting support from local libraries to serve as collection centers for company donors dropping off devices. Devices collected in your community would be refurbished and delivered back to students in your area.
We realize there are logistical/operational considerations to work out, and we're prepared to work through those with you. Please email Scott Cole (scott.cole@collectivity.coop) to learn how you can help, and to receive additional information. You’re welcome to call Scott, if that's easier, at 651-276-5775.
|
Learn to Code Without a Computer
Hour of Code™ activities may look different in 2020 for many teachers, students, and families, so to support a variety of learning environments, Google's CS First created a new lesson that can be used completely offline and without a computer.
CS First Unplugged includes a printable booklet that contains three computational thinking activities in which students (grades 4-8) learn about how computer science helps us communicate and stay connected with people around the world.
For those with a connected device, CS First’s Dialogue lesson includes video-based instruction to guide students as they program a conversation between two characters. They’ll use Scratch, a block-based coding language, to animate and bring their story to life with movement, dialogue and more.
CS First Unplugged and Dialogue are both available in English and Spanish. Lesson plans and solution guides for teachers (or parents and guardians!) are provided so that anyone can teach and learn with Hour of Code™ – no prior computer science experience required.
These activities are released as part of this year’s Hour of Code™, a celebration of Computer Science Education Week (Dec. 7-13, 2020).
|
Submissions Open for Letters About Literature
The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, as the Library of Congress-designated Minnesota Center for the Book, along with local sponsor Red Balloon Bookshop, continues to invite all Minnesota students in grades 4-12 to participate in the 28th annual statewide Letters About Literature competition.
The program asks students to read a book, poem, or speech and reflect on how the work affected them personally. Students then write to the author to express what the book meant to them. Authors can be of any genre or time period and can come from any country.
Online submissions are open now and the deadline is Friday, December 18, 2020. For official guidelines, entry forms, and teacher guides, please visit www.thefriends.org/letters.
|
Photo/Illustration Credits: Fausan Mayeh (Noun Project), Huntsman Library
|
