Jean Darnell: Awaken Librarian

As those of you that follow my blog know, I enjoy having book fairs ! There's nothing like seeing eyes light up like fire-crackers at the presentation of so many wonderfully colorful and diverse books! In fact, this fair is the first that I've been able showcase over thirty books with Black Americans on the cover: @diversebooks Never have I been able to showcase 30 books w/faces like mine in the #library ! #ReflectionsInBooks This is why #WeNeedDivLibs ! pic.twitter.com/3hA7bpmgaL — AwakenLibrarian (@awakenlibrarian) October 11, 2016 Bit by bit, we'll erase tweets like these... Dear #kidlit Writers of Color: The odds are not in your favor. #amwriting #amediting #diversity #YA #WritersLife https://t.co/cv7ydsskzn pic.twitter.com/0LdXfIChQD — MayraCuevas (@MayraECuevas) September 30, 2016 because it's all too important for children to see faces like theirs on the cover and in the content of books. #WeNeedDiverseBooks As Walter Dean Myers wrote in his N...

Would you rather be a poet or a rapper?? To some of us...there's little difference. How many times have you heard a lyric in a song so poignant and poetic that it rivets your soul? Like some of you, I can listen to a song and travel back in time. So...being a kid of the 80s/90s and loving all genres of music (like I love all genres of books), I thought I'd collaborate and combine my two great loves: poetry and music...specifically rap music! I came across the idea a couple of years ago via Book Riot's post: Poetry Line or Rap Music. We begin the lesson with a few foundation questions via a Gallery Walk! With 8 poster size sticky notes and the following questions, we were able to build a foundation for the poetry vs. rap: 1. What are some characteristics of poems? 2. How do you encounter poetry in your everyday life? 3. What is poetry to you? 4. What makes a good poem? 5. What makes poetry easy? Difficult? 6. If poetry was a food, then which food and w...