Recently here on the SLM Blog and on Twitter (@rebeccajm87) I posed the question, “#WhatWorked this year,” curious to know – in 140 characters – what strategies, ideas, or assignments were effective this year in your classrooms and school libraries.  I tend to be reflective to a fault myself, so the challenge to hone in, describe, and concisely celebrate something good is a thing in itself.  (When I think of reflecting on teaching, I’m always reminded of the time I went into my school principal’s office for my first year-end evaluation as a school librarian, arms full of binders and newsletters, and he asked- what’s all that stuff?)

But thankfully, there are librarians and teachers who can be reflective AND succinct, and the responses and retweets are starting to trickle in!  Here’s a great one:

@Labellamedia the 9th grade Book Blast with red carpet, balloons & cookies is #whatworked this year. Almost 100% initial checkout w/ freshmen

I love this idea!  We often hear about ninth grade library orientation.  I don’t know about you, but in my memories of these, it seems like introducing policies, talking about databases, and explaining how many students may sit at a table or visit from study hall tend to be the more pressing topics.  Why not welcome the kids, show that they’re special and that they belong in the library, and check out some great books?

#WhatWorked for you?  Keep the tweets coming!

–Rebecca Morris

Image: Balloons at Friendlys, by ewan traveler on Flickr. Used with a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 License.

The March issue of School Library Monthly has arrived!  Look over the full Table of Contents here, and be sure to check out this month’s Features:

schoollibrarymedia.com/pdf/CurrentSLMTOC.pdf via kwout

Please check back here for more discussion on this month’s issue!

–Rebecca Morris