Hello all,
I decided to divide my choice blog into three parts. Part one covers the required reading genres for our literature log. Part two introduces a professional storyteller I would like to share with you. Part three is my reflection on an article from the reading that I found interesting. I have included my reading log at the end. As always, I hope you enjoy this blog entry!
-Lauren
Part One: Parables, Mythology, and Tall Tales
Week three’s readings took us through the genres of myths, parables, and tall tales. Myths, parables, and tall tales were originally passed down orally, so most are good fits for story telling. I found lots of books but the difficulty came in finding books published in the last ten years.
My favorite genre from this week is myths / mythology. I think that it is fascinating to read about the Gods / Goddesses / Spirits from different cultures. My son, Noah, really enjoyed the Percy Jackson series and I have a lot of fond memories of him sharing his knowledge of Greek Mythology with me.
One interesting discovery, or lack thereof, is that I wasn't able to find any parables outside of the ones in the Bible. Did anyone happen upon secular parables or parables from other religions? I am a Christian myself and not at all opposed to Biblical parables, but I am curious to learn about others that might be out there. Did you guys read any parables outside of the ones told in the Bible? Please let me know in the comments so I can check them out.
Part Two: Donald Davis - Professional Storyteller
For the free choice component of the blog, I wanted to bring attention to a professional storyteller that I really enjoyed. My husband, Will, loves short stories. He had picked up a book of short stories called Listening for the Crack of Dawn by Donald Davis and realized at some point while reading it that the author is a professional storyteller. When we started researching him, we found out that he is from Waynesville, North Carolina. I have family from the area and we have spent a lot of time in that part of Western North Carolina so we thought that connection was neat.
My experience thus far with storytelling has been mostly content directed at young children. It is not that I don’t enjoy those, but it was really cool to hear stories that are designed to appeal to older kids and adults. His stories are about fifteen to twenty minutes long, but they really don’t feel that long when you are listening to him.
I have included some links and embedded content if you would like to have a listen. HIs website also has a calendar if you would like to see if he is going to be in an area near you.
Donald Davis - TED Talk: How the Story Transforms the Teller
Part Three: Get STEAM Rolling! Demystifying STEAM and Finding the Right Fit For Your Library
Many times when we look at articles about makerspaces or STEAM inclusions, we see the most high tech and coolest activities showcased. This is wonderful and it is amazing to see what people are doing, but sometimes people who don’t have the same funding, space, or STEAM knowledge might look at those showcases and feel that they could never pull it off in their library or school.
Amy Koester to the rescue! Her article, Get STEAM Rolling! Demystifying STEAM and Finding the Right Fit For Your Library had some really interesting ideas on how to incorporate STEAM activities in the library. As Koester points out, “Steam programming has the ability to allow libraries to engage with young customers who may not have been drawn to storytimes, book clubs, or craft programs” (Koester, 2014). One thing that I really like is how her approach is not all or nothing and describes how staff can use “passive programming” such as dedicating a spot for observation activities or making take home activities / kits.
While things like having a 3D printer, robots, or coding programs on tablets are all amazingly cool makerspace / STEAM resources and should be celebrated, it is great to see some low cost / low tech ideas on how to incorporate STEAM in the library.
References:
Davis, D. (1990) Listening for the Crack of Dawn. August House.
Koester, A. (2014). Get STEAM rolling! Demystifying STEAM and finding the right fit for your library. Children and Libraries. 22-26.
Hi Lauren -
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed how you broke down your blog into 3 different parts. I had difficulty also with locating parables that were not biblical themed. Like you, I don't have any problem with stories from the Bible. Since I am going into public education, I wanted my readings to reflect what I could use in public school curriculum. Like your son, my son also enjoys Percy Jackson and it opened him up to a whole world that I did not know existed. I think mythology is important to include in curriculums because it does teach about other's beliefs and cultural backgrounds. You did a great job of highlighting mythology and I would have liked to read more about the development of the student when hearing those stories.
I love the idea of STEAM in media centers and creating maker spaces. Thank you for your information regarding low cost activities. Funding is such a critical area for media centers, so it is great to read that there are low cost opportunities, also. Every student learns differently, so if STEAM can capture another audience of students, we should be pursuing it. Thank you so much for your information!
Hi Lauren,
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to start by sharing my appreciation for the graphics you included in your blog that we created using Canva! I have only used Canva a few times myself, but I plan to explore it more. I thought this was a great way to include some original visuals that were directly connected to your content. I also really enjoyed the mythology genre this week and have found myself reading a lot of fiction and YA mythology titles lately. The Percy Jackson series was one of my favorites as a kid, so I look forward to sharing my love for mythology with students in my future library setting. I was really interested in the STEAM article this week too. I actually went to a STEM high school and have loved incorporating these types of activities ever since. I am glad that you brought attention to the issues that many educators face when trying to incorporate STEAM labs or makerspaces, as many cannot afford some of the fancier technology often included in these areas, especially in public school settings. I think being able to keep it low cost with everyday items and building materials is a great way to ensure this aspect is still being included instead of feeling discouraged because tech like 3D printers is outside the budget range. I also thought the take-home kits were a great idea, but I worry about the funds for resupplying these kits depending on how many of them are taken home and if they will be returned or not. However, it is definitely something I am interested in trying in my future library!
Thanks for sharing!
-Christina Lunetta