MBAEA Media Library Newsletter

In response to recent legislation, we have worked vigorously to find the best format for addressing AEA and district media needs beginning July 1, 2024. As a result, we are happy to report that we can continue providing the following services for the 2024-2025 school year.

• The current suite of digital resources; including access to MBAEA OneClick.

• Access to the entire physical collection of resources through van delivery.

• Details regarding the breadth of service based on district contributions are forthcoming.

• Negotiated pricing for Pear Deck and SeeSaw for Schools will be available to districts and schools.

It’s important to remember that “Media Services” also encompasses Creative Services. Creative Services pricing will remain the same through this summer.

Unfortunately, the need for change is inevitable. We will continue to share progress, upcoming changes, and any relevant decisions made. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please contact Heather Whitman at hwhitman@mbaea.org.

Our last Media Academy session of the year focused on artificial intelligence (AI). We discussed its opportunities and challenges. Thank you to Sean McGinn and Aaron Maurer for leading the AI learning and Deb Meyne for providing an overview of best practices for personalizing learning for all students.

I appreciate the teacher librarian feedback from the survey shared in April. If you would still like to provide ideas, please complete the survey. The input will be used to develop content for next year's Media Academy sessions.

Please reserve the 2024 - 2025 dates in your calendar.

• Monday: October 21, 2024

• Tuesday: December 3, 2024

• Thursday: January 30, 2025

• Thursday: March 27, 2025

The annual Iowa School Library Survey, in which we ask for teacher-librarian participation to help gather the current snapshot of Iowa School Libraries, is paused for this year. We are working on the implementation of the survey under a new system alongside ongoing consideration of which data to collect and what questions to ask to best tell the stories of Teacher Librarians across the state. The results from the 22-23 survey can be used in communications with your local stakeholders. You can access the link here under the heading “2022-23 School Library Survey”: https://iowaaea.org/school-staff/iowa-school-library-survey/

We're excited to unveil a more impactful survey in the spring of 2025.

Additionally, if you would like to be included in a crowdsourced map of school librarians in the state of Iowa, please add yourself to the map linked below.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1xP1UvHbwhfQwT9f08sdh5sRKVaOewiw&usp=sharing

Directions: First click on your AEA on the left column so that a blue line appears on the side of the box. Search for your location. Place a flag/icon representing you as a school librarian.

1. If you are not a certified librarian (a teacher with the 108, 109, or 174 endorsement) please make your marker YELLOW and place it in the school you serve.

2. If you are a certified TL and work at one school, please make the icon RED and place it at that school location.

3. If you are a certified TL and you work for a district, please make it BLUE and place the pin at the district office location and list the schools you serve in the description.

4. If you are a certified TL and you work for more than one district, please make the marker GREEN and place the pin at the location you feel best suits the majority of your time and use the description box to list the schools you serve.

You are invited to list your name, but you are not required to include this information.The library ICON can be found under places if you prefer this over a flag.

Let's celebrate our collective work across the state! Maybe we will find some neighbors who can be part of our professional worlds.

This is a message from the Iowa Teacher Librarian Leadership Team.

The MBAEA Media Library is offering the opportunity to enhance your classroom resources. In accordance with board policy, we are listing some of our gently used collections for giveaway. District or school educators are invited to request these items for classroom use, adding value to your teaching materials.

There are two ways to request giveaway materials.

• Search 'giveaway' on the MBAEA Media Library Catalog and book the materials you need. For those new to our media library catalog, use the provided instructions to log in for the first time or book an item.

• Browse the giveaway list and request materials by emailing media-center-staff@aea9.k12.ia.us.

The materials will be given away on a first-come, first-served basis, and items will be delivered as time allows. Educators can browse in person anytime Monday through Friday between 7:30 and 4:30. Please note that MBAEA reserves the right to impose quantities.

Contact our media library staff anytime with questions at 344-6231 or media-center-staff@aea9.k12.ia.us.

The 2024-25 IASL Award book titles that are available in digital content will be in MackinVIA soon. I completed one audiobook and am deciding which title to listen to next!

The last monthly sync of the year is May 28 at 3:30 PM. It is intended to create a space to answer any and all Pear Deck related questions. In these syncs, Brittany, from the Pear Deck team, will use the time to cover Pear Deck updates, dive into features, and highlight teachers in the state of Iowa. This is for all Iowa educators to learn more about Pear Deck, but also to get your questions answered. To add your question or topic to the agenda complete this form prior to the sync session.

🍐REGISTRATION LINK 🍐

Access the AEA Digital Resources highlighted below through MBAEA OneClick. Remember to log into the resources through MBAEA OneClick before clicking the links for immediate access to the resources.

Many of the AEA Digital resources allow students and educators to search, sort, filter, or provide content in different reading levels by Lexile Level. Access to high-quality, age-appropriate databases allows learners to self-select reading opportunities based on content knowledge and will enable educators to scaffold instructional practices quickly.

Please share the Personalization Lexile Level/Text Complexity flyer with families and educators and contact Heather Whitman, hwhitman@mbaea.org, with any questions.

Even though her Hawkeye basketball career is over, Caitlin Clark's career is just beginning. It is great to know that there are safe, trusted resources where learners can go if they want to learn more about her. PebbleGo and Britannica, for instance, have articles devoted to this trailblazer. Other databases, such as Gale in Context, provide access to articles, videos- to name a few. Each resource offers text-to-speech, automatic citations, images, and more.

Are you looking to spice up your lessons with a world-known singer? Use the Pear Deck Shades of Emotion poetry lesson to provide eighth-grade through tenth-grade students opportunities to analyze the use of color imagery in Shakespeare's 'Sonnet 73' and Taylor Swift's 'Red' and examine how color contributes to the thematic and emotional content in both texts.

In addition, offer students the chance to contemplate the significance of copyright in relation to both images and text, integrating the SIRS article Taylor Swift's Lyrics are too Lame to Copyright, Judge Hilariously Rules into the discussion. Below, you will find the correlations with standards.

AASL Student Standards: Engage

• Learners follow ethical and legal guidelines for gathering and using information
• Learners use valid information and reasoned conclusions to make ethical decisions in the creation of knowledge

ISTE Student Standards 1.2 Digital Citizen 1.2.c Intellectual Property

ELA

• CCSS.ELA-Litearcy.RL.8.4
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL 8.2
• CCSS.ELA-Litearcy.RL.9-10.2
• CCSS.ELA-Litearcy.RL.9-10.4

Photo courtesy of Britannica ImageQuest

Empower your students’ research abilities with the user-friendly PebbleGo Next Biographies and Gale online databases. In PebbleGo Next, have students compare and contrast influential people across 11 categories: business leaders, actors and entertainers, explorers, and more. Dive into the lives of Dwayne Johnson, Zendaya, Mark Zuckerberg, or Malala Yousafzai. Don't forget to explore the timelines and engage in critical thinking activities at the bottom of each article to enhance their understanding.

Gale curates magazines, audio, news, and other content for students to continue their exploration at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. On each individual's main article overview, there may be varied levels, such as 840 or 1070 Lexile levels, and sidebar options that include timelines, main ideas, fast facts, and vocabulary.

Image courtesy of Gale

Collaboration between schools and public libraries encourages independent reading over the summer. Themed lists for summer reading programs like Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP) and Read Renew Repeat (iRead) are available to save, edit, and share.

TeachingBooks allows you to build and share your own recommended lists.

• Create a list of students' favorite reads to recommend to their peers

• Promote lists of titles related to upcoming library programs

• Collaborate on lists of school-recommended titles available at the public library

Facilitate school and library staff communication and ensure everyone in your literacy community has easy access to your booklists.

• Add recommended lists as highlighted TeachingBooks account lists

• Embed summer reading lists directly into your library or school website

• Share lists with ready-to-use printables that can be sent home with students or shared with families at the library

Contact Heather Whitman at hwhitman@mbaea.org to learn more about these resources.

Discover resources and tips to utilize technology to meet the needs of all learners.

We offer media kits, assistive technology, set books, robotics, and much more. Log in to our media catalog today! Please do not hesitate to contact us with any issues logging in for the first time or booking an item.

We are here to support you!

Email: hwhitman@mbaea.org or media-center-staff@aea9.k12.ia.us
Website: https://mbaea.org/media-library/
Location: 729 21st Street, Bettendorf, IA, USA
Phone: 563-344-6256
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/missbend9/
Twitter: @MBAEA

We deliver weekly to district-designated locations and AEA buildings.

Our offices are open from 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Before/after-hours pickup options are available at the Bettendorf office from 6:00 a.m.- 8:00 p.m. Please get in touch with us at media-center-staff@aea9.k12.ia.us with any questions.

The Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, gender identity, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, age, socioeconomic status, or disability in its educational programs, services or employment practices. Inquiries concerning this statement should be addressed to Joe Prosek, Equity Coordinator, at 563-344-6445.