FROM THE MEMBERSHIP

1. Oregon READS Ideas--Pattie Hart
2. 2010 YRCA NominationS--Ruth Murray
3. PSU Winter Opportunities--Ruth Murray

FROM THE OLA/OASL

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FROM THE PRESIDENT --- Merrie Olson
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Happy 2009!  Hope everyone is rested and glad to see the snow gone.  I think over half the books I checked out in December came due today.  How was your first day back to work? What New Years resolutions did you make this year?   I have only two, the usual, loose a few pounds (yeah right!) and to get my articles in on time.  With that being said, I would like to share a book that I read over the winter holiday.

You Being Beautiful: the owners manual to inner and outer beauty by Michael F. Roizen, M.D. and Mehmey C. Oz, M.D.  

What I found so profound was the inner beauty they talked about.  About getting energized and revitalized. How we need to manage your physical pains in order to revitalize our minds.  Doctor Roizen and Doctor Oz talk about six paths to happiness:
    1.Being positiveand generous.  Research shows that people live longer and are happier when they help other people.
    2.Feeling Empathy.  We have what are called mirror neurons that allow us to mirror back an action (yawning) or an emotion generating Empathy. This is why you feel sad in the face of tragedy since you can empathize with the people who are experiencing it.
    3.Finding authenticity.  That we are just one person in a highly interconnected world of relationships, and that authenticity is this realization.
    4.Embracing emotion.  Our brains are hardwired to pay attention to emotions and to use them intelligently in dealing with others.  
    5.Exploring spirituality.  Scientists have found that religious feelings are tied to a specific part of the brain and that our immune system becomes less agitated, which in turn lead to a physiological response throughout the entire body.
6.Understanding Unhappiness.   Being happy means that you also know there will be times when youre unhappy. This is appreciating life and knowing that sometimes it also stinks.  Do not live in the past or the future, but rather in the present and think more about your relationships, new ideas, and how you fit into this world.  That is what truly makes you beautiful.
    Hope you are all energized and ready for 2009.  Have a BEAUTIFUL New Year!!!  Think about all those smiling faces you see and hearts you touch each day.

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FROM THE MEMBERSHIP
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1. Oregon READS IdeasPatti Hart
Reading
Educating
Articulating
Discovering
Sharing

I have different grades doing different projects:

*Internet research and reading biographies to create information posters about authors and illustrators from Oregon.
*Reading an Oregon author or illustrator's book then creating a PowerPoint presentation or poster about the book.
*Books written about Oregon or taking place in Oregon- (there are several of these surprisingly!), will also have PowerPoint presentations or book reports created.
*Younger grades are doing research with reference materials to look up interesting facts about Oregon.  Ex: state flag, flower, bird, plant, song, drink, dance.  They will create a bulletin board of these facts along with pictures created with KidPix.
*Kinders will be using thier 5 senses to talk about Oregon.  We will be reading B is for Beaver to get some interesting facts about Oregon then we will create a book to share about what you can touch, taste, smell, hear and see in Oregon.    
*Upper elementary will be creating a timeline of Oregon history facts that will extend down our long hallway.  They are also making a bulletin board of odd facts about Oregon.
*Middle school will be working on a play to share with the younger grades.  Knowing them, it will end up being a great comedy about the Oregon Trail!
*Other grades will be working on brochures advertising what Oregon has to offer (beaches, biking trails, site seeing, hiking, eateries, etc.  They will use Publisher to create these and plan on handing them out to the students.

I plan to have an Oregon READS official day where all these items will be on display and classes can come into the library for presentations.  Of course parents will be invited too.

It is amazing how much we take for granted about our state and never think twice about what it has to offer and the beauty it holds.  Just by creating this lesson, I have learned some VERY interesting facts about Oregon!   I can't wait for the weather to be nice again so I can go and explore our GREAT state.

This website provides fantastic information on Oregon to get started:   http://www.sos.state.or.us/bbook/facts/almanac/almanachome.htm

2. 2010 YRCA Nominations Ruth Murray

It's time to nominate titles for the 2010 YRCA awards. Books nominated need to have a copyright of 2007. Fiction, Non-fiction, Graphic Novels etc. are acceptable although starting this year, we will not accept nominations for series books unless it is the first book in the series.  Please send title, author, and the category you wish to place the nomination.  Please send your nominations to ruthanddave1@comcast.net by January 31. Students, teachers, and librarians are allowed to make nominations.Thanks- Ruth Murray- Oregon YRCA representative


3. PSU Winter Opportunities--Ruth Murray

Winter is on its way and Portland State is presenting courses offered just for you. PSU offers an endorsement, masters, graduate certificate, or an initial teaching license in library media. Anyone can take our classes. However, although you need not be in the library media program to sign up for a class, if you are planning to pursue an endorsement and/or a masters, you should apply before you take more than one or two classes. For credit registration go to http://banweb.pdx.edu . If a first time PSU student, call 503-725-4832. Web site information: http://www.ceed.pdx.edu/lib_media/  Questions? Ruth Murray- murrayr@pdx.edu.   503 725 9860

We have graduate and undergraduate sections of Childrens Literature. If you took this class years ago, you may need a refresher. If you have never taken it,  you should.  Dolores Johnston will help you become familiar with materials for grades K-5, including traditional genres such as picture books, traditional tales, modern realism, romance, adventure, mystery, historical fiction, science fiction, fantasy, biography, poetry, and nonfiction. Study literature illustrating cultural diversity. Learn about resources for selection and about awards and honors.

If you have already taken Childrens Literature and want more, we are offering Multi-Cultural Literature taught by Leigh Morlock. This course provides an introduction to contemporary multicultural literature, fiction, and nonfiction, for use with early childhood, elementary, middle school, and high school students. Emphasis is on the selection, evaluation, and utilization of literature in the classroom and library media center.

Collection Development will be offered completely online this term. Kathy Fritts is teaching remotely as she travels the world. If you are new to a library this may be the class for you. Study the principles and practice of evaluation, selection, and acquisition of all types of materials included in a library media center collection. Understand selection and collection development policies and procedures. Become familiar with the study of professional evaluation and selection sources. Field activities are included. Prerequisite: LIB 428/528

Information Literacy and Online Searching is a one credit class that will be taught by Leigh Morlock winter term. Learn approaches for improving online information-searching skills: selection of databases, advanced search strategy techniques, and methods for teaching information literacy skills to K-12 students. This class meets Friday, February 6 from 4:30 to 8:30pm and Saturday, February 7 from 9am-4pm.

Bob Kuest will be teaching a great one credit class during winter term. Managing the Tech-Savvy Classroom and Media Center will help you learn to keep video and overhead projectors, digital and document cameras, computers, printers, and other classroom and library media center equipment running smoothly and efficiently. Explore the management of technology equipment in the classroom and media center. Leave with new skills and informative handouts. He will also explore the unique uses for equipment. This class will meet Friday, January 30, from 4:30- 8:30pm and Saturday, Jan. 31, from 9am -4pm.

Connie Pappas is offering her popular Podcasting Possibilities class again this winter term. Understand the basics of creating a podcast and using podcasting with students, teachers and the community. Learn to publish your podcast to your website or to ITunes. Class meets two Saturdays, February 21 and 28, 9am  3pm.

Come join us for another exciting term at Portland State University.

FROM THE OLA/OASL

March 5, 2009 8:30 to 3:00
Join your colleagues for a day of talking to legislators, hearing about issues, checking out the remodeled Capitol, and helping keep libraries visible in the political decision making process.  Help with the efforts of Fund Our Future Oregon's upcoming bill, sponsored by Representative Peter Buckley of Ashland.  More details to follow.  For further information, contact Gregory Lum, OASL Legislative Liaison, glum@jesuitportland.org

FROM THE STATE LIBRARY

1. EBSCO vs. OSLIS LOGINS Jennifer Maurer
After fielding 3 months worth of questions as the new School Library Consultant at the Oregon State Library, I have learned that some www.oslis.org  users confuse the location where they are to log in to EBSCO when away from school.  The OSLIS website has two login points, and these have different purposes and require different user names and passwords.

OSLIS Login:  One feature of OSLIS 2.0 is a My Stuff folder in which users may store documents, timelines, links, and other items related to their current research project.  To create a My Stuff folder, click on the word Register in the yellow bar at the top of any OSLIS page.  During this registration process, users choose a user name and password, which they must remember.  Then to access their My Stuff folder, users click on Log In, located next to the Register link, and enter their personal user name and password.  All of this is optional and is not related to the EBSCO login.    

EBSCO Login:  For remote access to EBSCO, start at www.oslis.org and click on the most relevant entry point: elementary student, secondary student, elementary educator, or secondary educator.  All of the four landing pages display resources in a column on the right side of the screen.  When users click on an EBSCO product in that column, they will be prompted for their EBSCO user name and password.  Call or email if you need your school districts user name and password.

Soon the OSLIS website will be redesigned with the goal of emphasizing its three primary functions and making it easier to navigate.  If access points for the OSLIS or EBSCO logins change, I will let you know.  Please contact me if you have any questions.

Thanks.  --  Jennifer Maurer jennifer.maurer@state.or.us 503-378-5011

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Oregon Association of School Libraries