Library & Digital Resources

• New Ebooks
• Reminder: Annual Iowa School Library Survey
• PreK-12 DVD Collection Is Closing
• Announcement: Tales2Go Audiobooks
• Soundzabound Is Bigger, Better, Louder!
• New Science Digital Resources Coming Fall 2022
• AEA Scout Module Is Online

Direct link to the newsletter: https://www.smore.com/8zpfg

Here is a list of the 50+ ebooks added in February and March to Mackin VIA and AEA Scout. Thank you to the teachers and teacher librarians who recommended these titles.

The annual Iowa School Library Survey is open through April 22. It provides important information about the status of school library programs and their impact on teaching and learning. It's also an opportunity for teacher librarians to continue conversations with administrators and stakeholders about the importance of a school library and its programs and services.

For planning purposes, read through a copy of the survey that you can also use as a worksheet.

The survey should take less than 15 minutes. Here is the link. If you are interrupted, you can leave the survey and come back. When you have completed the online survey, you will see an option to download your responses as a PDF.

The survey results summary will be available at the end of May so that you may use them while planning for the 2022-23 school year. More detailed information on using survey results will be available in the fall.

Let me know if you have questions sschrader@heartlandaea.org.

Technology is changing—again!

We have talked with teacher librarians in the last 2-3 years about how teachers are using DVDs in the classroom and the availability of equipment. We know that streaming video usage is up and DVD usage is down. The DVD usage dropped from 7,927 checkouts in 2011-12 to 156 in 2020-21. The streaming video usage from just Learn 360 is 64,000+ views each year.

As a result, Heartland AEA will sunset the DVD collection late fall 2022. We are now offering the DVDs to educators. Educators can go through the usual checkout process in the library catalog and then keep the DVD to use in the classroom.

As always, we will be glad to work with educators to find additional resources. Please let us know if you have questions.

We learned earlier this week that Tales2Go is going out of business. Schools will have access through June 30, 2022.

Heartland AEA is looking at other digital audiobook vendors to replace Tales2Go.

Iowa’s AEAs are excited to announce that students and educators now have access to all 25 volumes of Soundzabound’s music collection. Soundzabound provides royalty-free music with audio themes and sound effects for presentations, digital storytelling, podcasts, TV broadcasts, web design, athletic events, and more.

The entire collection includes:

● 21st Century Beats

● Animal Soundz

● Background Soundz

● Cinematic Magic

● Creativity Unleashed

● Epic Moments

● High-Frequency Tracks

● Hip Hop Beats

● Instrumental Soundzscapes

● Lo-fi Study Music

● People Soundz

● Production Soundz

● Scary Soundz

● Sports Soundz

● Transportation Soundz

The AEAs have offered the Clipart for Schools product for quite a few years. Usage has declined by about 70% in the Heartland AEA service area over the life of the last contract.

The need for images continues so the AEAs will be providing access to ImageQuest from Britannica in the fall. ImageQuest includes safe and legal digital media to support teaching, content creation, and student engagement. It was named by AASL as one of the best digital tools in 2021. More information will be coming soon.

These resources from Rosen will be available this fall. More information will be shared later.

Core Concepts Science (7th-12th grade)

Videos, digital interactive activities and experiments exploring chemistry, biology and the periodic table.

Power Knowledge Science (3rd-6th grade)

Science fair projects and experiments, interactive games, scientist profiles, live video feeds and nature cams covering life, physical, Earth, and space sciences.

One login. One search. One interface.

This module takes you through the AEA Scout functions and classroom applications. The module is meant for teacher librarians and teachers. Click here.

It features:

• standards correlations
• ideas for research
• ways to create text sets
• how to use AEA Scout to support the inquiry process
• how science teachers use it
• ELA supports
• accessibility features
• folders and curating resources
• persistent links and LMS
• sharing folder resources
• and more.

After you complete the module, you'll also be added to a Google Group. Members are encouraged to share lessons and activities. Members will also get information first about AEA Scout enhancements, folders of curated resources, and more.

Click here for the index to earlier issues.