Martin Luther King Day, Reading Study, and Contest Opportunity

Martin Luther King Day will be observed on Monday, January 19th.  I have included two links that may help you recognize this day with students.  The first link, NEA MLK Day Resources  is organized by grade level, and includes several lessons for elementary age students.  History.com MLK Day Resources ,the second link, is an excellent resource for historical data in general, and provides several multimedia resources to use with middle and secondary age students. As well, please access the Follett Destiny catalog to locate books and other materials available throughout the Marshall Public School library system.

The main focus of the article, NYTimes Scholastic Reading Study Article linked here is the importance of continuing to read to children even as they grow older.  However, the study also noted factors that helped determine whether students read for fun or not.  In children aged 6-11, those who were read aloud to regularly, and had restricted online time were found to be heavier readers on their own time. For those in the 12-17 age category, the greatest influence was having time during the school day to read freely.  This speaks to the importance of working towards creating dedicated "reading time", and making it an integral part of every school day for all students.

While reading the latest issue of American Libraries, I noticed an opportunity for students to participate in making a PSA video on the dangers of distracted walking.  The grand prize winners receive $1000, and a trip to New York City to professionally film their video. Students in grades 6-12 are eligible to participate.  Read more on this opportunity here Scholastic Drive2Life Contest .  While at the site, have a look at the previous winning videos; the student creativity demonstrated is amazing.

Copyright Morsel (By Diane Konjura)

As I continue to share information regarding copyright, I include articles that I hope are helpful to clear some of the copyright confusion out there.  The following article: 12 Most Picture Perfect Ways You're Legally Using Online Photos shares some ideas about using photos legally.  Some that I would highlight is the difference between plagiarism and copyright, and there is a difference; the suggestion to use photos in the public domain or learn more about Creative Commons and the different options that are a part of this licensing; and most importantly assuming that every image you see is copyrighted.  Check out this article when using photos or asking students to include photos in their projects.