“The only thing that you absolutely have to know, is the location of the library.”
-Albert Einstein
Virginia Association of School Librarians
This is a local state resource for school librarians. They promote professional development and growth within the Virginia Library System. They have an annual conference that is on my bucket list. Their mission is to align libraries with VA State SOL standards. The main resources the VAASL features are networking and relationships, tech toolkits and helping to support you as a librarian.
Young Adult Library Services Association
The YALSA is a division of the ALA. This is an association that is tailored towards teens and young adults. They advocate for programs such as Teen Read Week, TeenTober, and Teen Tech Week. This is a great resource for curating YA collections as they have award winners and book features.
Teen Librarian Toolbox
This is a blog created by Karen Jensen that is designed specifically for teen librarians. One of the topics that engages my curiosity is their teen topics. There are a variety of troubling topics and resources to navigate through. Another favorite is their makerspace tab which has a plethora of ideas. They also have some great literacy projects that may be helpful for english teacher collaboration.
In the Library with the Lead Pipe
This is a peer reviewed academic journal that touches on topics in all libraries. The mission is to develop library projects and professional development. The lead pipe publishes articles for exploring new ideas and conversations within the library. This site generates discussions within the library system and pushes you to be more open to ideas and opinions. EBSCO uses these articles in their database collection.
Junior Library Guild
This is an organization that most school libraries in my area use to help support their collection of books. They have subscription boxes that deliver monthly. They help curate collections by hand selecting books. They show new releases and the awards they have earned. The best resource is their webcasts and blogs. These would be a great addition to school websites to broadcast resources and help students find insight when selecting books.
Common Sense Media
This is a great resource for keeping digital based media safe. They cover reviews for a variety of entertainment including movies, books, podcasts, and tv shows. My first interaction with this organization was through the use of digital citizenship. They offer videos, websites, and even interactive games. The programs Common Sense endorses are research, latino, privacy and digital citizenship.
American Association of School Librarians
The AASL is a division of the ALA. My favorite resource within this website are the digital tools selection. AASL also offers great resources for finding library jobs, education, licensing, and recruitment. They have a variety of toolkit collections that could help with expanding libraries specifically critical thinking. They are aligned with the common core curriculum which is not connected to VA SOL standards but is easily correlated.
Book Riot
Book Riot is an editorial book site. They address many diverse topics in the library. They offer newsletters and podcasts. This is a great resource when exploring book topics and interpretations because they give honest reviews and try to focus on inclusion within the library. They offer deals on books as a personal note. They also offer a service called TBR which is tailored book recommendations which could be very helpful when selecting a collection.