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Excellent tips for nonfiction book evaluation. Wonderful information.

Terrific site for evaluation online information

Website credibility

ALSC (ALA's Association for Library Service to Children) announced the redesign of the Great Web Sites for Kids site. Newly evaluated and accepted sites are added to the database three times a year. The committee also reviews all sites within the database twice a year to guarantee sites are still relevant, appropriate and accessible.

Evaluation of webpages, resources... good, plus many other worthy videos available.

I think there is also a perception that if we don't have the paper books then we don't need the library or the librarians in schools. I think it's flawed logic. Information is changing its format; yes, it's online, it's an ebook, it's a book you can download onto an iPad, but it's still information. Kids need to know how to evaluate it even more so now than before because there is much more of it. Kids need to be able to determine whether it is useful or valid information. Librarians take the lead in helping educate students through the information jungle, and with even more sources and formats, the role of the librarian becomes even more critical. So even though paper books are becoming less prominent, the skills needed are even more advanced than what was needed before. School librarians are critical to helping students navigate through this information explosion.

ISTE's NETS for Students (NETS*S) are the standards for evaluating the skills and knowledge students need to learn effectively and live productively in an increasingly global and digital world.

Connecting K-6 Teachers With Great Books
My goal is to create a resource for teachers, home schoolers and anyone interested in quality books for children. Each title is one I have carefully evaluated and selected to support curriculum as well as your class read-alouds. Elementary school librarians are losing their jobs nationwide resulting in the loss of this valuable resource for students and teachers. I have 35 years experience working with kids and their books, so you can consider me your personal librarian!

Carl A. Harvey II has some thoughts on that. He's a nationally recognized school librarian and the 2011-12 AASL President. A few years ago he created a handout to describe for administrators the varied roles of the 21st century school librarian.

Kathy Otto, an Oregon school librarian, has a blog about incorporating children's books when teaching in grades K-6. "My goal is to create a resource for teachers, home schoolers and anyone interested in quality books for children. Each title is one I have carefully evaluated and selected to support curriculum as well as your class read-alouds. Elementary school librarians are losing their jobs nationwide resulting in the loss of this valuable resource for students and teachers. I have 35 years experience working with kids and their books, so you can consider me your personal librarian!" Check it out!

"Qwiki's goal is to forever improve the way people experience information. Whether you're planning a vacation on the web, evaluating restaurants on your phone, or helping with homework in front of the family Google TV, Qwiki is working to deliver information in a format that's quintessentially human - via storytelling instead of search. We are the first to turn information into an experience. We believe that just because data is stored by machines doesn't mean it should be presented as a machine-readable list. Let's try harder. Think of asking your favorite teacher about Leonardo Da Vinci, or your most well-traveled friend about Buenos Aires: this is the experience Qwiki will eventually deliver, on demand, wherever you are in the world… on whatever device you're using."

What this tool can do for you: Help you better understand how to determine the "fairness" of a use under the U.S. Copyright Code.

I just used this to determine if I was violating Fair Use with the book trailer videos I'm posting onto Destiny. My "conclusion" showed that I was within Fair Use guidelines. I have printed the document and will keep it - hopefully I won't ever need it! Although not legally binding, this site is a very helpful tool in providing clear criteria to the Fair Use decision.