School Library Month

April 2020

NCSLMA Virtual Activities for School Library Month

School Library Month is the American Association of School Librarians celebration of school librarians and school libraries. Every April, school librarians are encouraged to host activities and events to help their school and local community celebrate the essential role that strong school libraries play in transforming learning for teachers and students. This year, NCSLMA is reaching out to share a digital calendar that allows students to participate in virtual library activities. Enjoy!

April 1

April is School Library Month - need a resource for your celebration?

April 2

Love to create? Design a poster that creatively promotes your school library. Email or share with crystaljoyce@ncslma.org by April 30. Posters will be showcased on our website and social media sites.

April 3

Play NCSLMA Reading BINGO. How many can you accomplish?

April 4

Get to know your family and your ancestors. Here are some Genealogy Activities for Elementary Kids

April 5

Start and keep a journal of your daily activities. This is a primary source document that you can share with others when you go back to school. You can use a notebook for a journal.

April 6

Tired of sitting at home? Let the virtual library help you take a Surfing Safari to a museum.

April 7

Let’s travel out of this world! Choose one of these digital books to see videos of astronauts reading books while traveling through space! How cool is that?!

Story Time from Space

April 8

Are you feeling antsy at home? Get creative and use materials that you already have at home to complete one or more of these great STEM challenges! I’d love to see your creations!

STEM Maker Stations Upload photos of your creations here.

April 9

Do you know how to analyze photos and primary sources? Use this photograph from the National Archives to investigate women’s suffrage. Print out our “Analyze a Photo” worksheet for kids (PDF) to walk through the process, or share this online activity. Create your own banner or picket sign using 10 words or less to show support for a cause of their choosing.

April 10

It’s also National Poetry Month! Using your favorite book, choose actual quotes from the book to create a Haiku poem. Remember, in order to meet the qualifications, the quotes have to naturally break into lines of five syllables, seven syllables, then five syllables -- the traditional haiku form. Upload your poem here.

April 11

Every good book needs a good bookmark. Choose from these bookmarks to print out and color. Botanical Paperworks, Skip to my Lou, or design your own bookmark.

April 12

Happy Easter! Enjoy one of these Easter read alouds!

April 13

Happy Birthday Thomas Jefferson! Did you know that President Jefferson came to the rescue of the Library of Congress after it was burned down in 1814. Read how and the rest of the LOC history here.

April 14

Tune into author Dan Gutman’s Facebook page at 2pm EST daily to hear him read from one of his extremely zany chapter books.

April 15

Teachers and librarians - Read a Scholastic book to your students online (Live Stream or Video).

April 16

Today is National Librarian Day! Design a thank you card or note for your favorite librarian. Let them know how much you appreciate them and miss them.

April 17

Play NCSLMA Reading BINGO. How many can you accomplish?

April 18

Enjoy author Lauren Tarshis as she reads Chapters 1 & 2 from her book, I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912. If you subscribe to her YouTube Channel, she has posted videos of her reading the rest of the book.

April 19

Do you have a question for an author? Have you ever wondered how they write their books? Here is your chance to write to an author. Author to write to:

- Chris Grabenstein (author of Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library). Make sure to include your return address on the envelope for a reply!

Chris Grabenstein

Planetarium Station, PO Box 1050

NY, NY 10024

April 20

Are you in grades 6-12? Do you have a story to tell? Consider podcasting! Podcasts are audio recordings that tell stories, talk about current events, or encourage people to do something. Teens can share their ideas and opinions with a wide audience by recording podcasts. Email podcast location or link to crystaljoyce@ncslma.org

April 21

Listen to a podcast of Kids Ask Authors by Grace Lin, author of Mulan: Before the Sword. Which episode is your favorite? Did you know that you can submit a question, review, poem, or a joke? If you do, don’t forget to fill out the permission form.

April 22

It’s time for a field trip! Choose one or more of these awesome virtual field trips to visit.

Which one was your favorite place to go? Would you like to visit in person?

April 23

Ever tried listening to an audiobook? Try one of the many audiobooks at Lit2Go.Don’t forget to read along with the added PDF text. My favorites are The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Dracula. What are yours?

April 24

Play NCSLMA Reading BINGO. How many can you accomplish?

April 25

Today is Independent Bookstore Day. Where would we be without the support of independent bookstores to share the love of reading? Let’s support our NC Indie Booksellers by shopping with them. Find your favorite NC bookstore here.

April 26

Read NCCBA nominated book

“The Crayon Man” Research how crayons are made and present your findings to your teacher.

April 27

Enjoy coding? Use Scratch to tell/re-tell your favorite story. Make sure to login and save your story.

April 28

Create a song, rhyme, poem, rap, or TikTok of what you’re currently reading in class. Remember, it’s still National Poetry Month. Share with your teacher.

April 29

Write a graphic novel or comic about the school library and all it offers. Share your graphic novel or comic here.

April 30

Play NCSLMA Reading BINGO. How many can you accomplish?

Thank you for having fun with us as we celebrated School Library Month!

Event Information

NCSLMA School Library Month Virtual Calendar

Join us as we celebrate School Library Month with these student activities that can be done from home. During the month of April, we celebrate school libraries and school librarians and the vital role they play, both in the education of our students, and in the collaboration with our teachers.

When?