Vendor Sessions
Friday, October 20 & Saturday, October 21
During Concurrent Session Timeslots
The listing provided below may differ from content presented at the AASL National Conference as presenters, sessions, etc., may have changed or cancelled since their original acceptance. AASL provides this listing as an example of the professional development school librarians can expect at the event.
Conference attendees may use the AASL2023 app for an up-to-date and comprehensive listing of all conference events. The app will launch in early October.
Ban Those Boring Book Reports and Unleash Student Creativity
Learn how to add adventure to your school library that will spark enthusiasm, invigorate learning, and make book reports a thrilling journey of self-discovery for your students. Bring books to life by adding in all types of multimedia like audio, video, text, drawings and so much more! Hear from a school librarian about creative book projects that engage students and assess their understanding of literature while ensuring equity and accessibility. Be inspired by examples of creative book projects created by students.
Presenter(s):
Kristina Holzweiss, Ed Tech Librarian at Syosset High School
Beyond Dewey: Embracing Genrefication – Revolutionizing Library Organization
Discover the benefits of ditching Dewey for a more intuitive and user-friendly system that aligns with today’s browsing habits and learner expectations. Learn from experienced librarians who have successfully implemented genrefication and discover how it fosters increased engagement, empowers students, and breathes new life into your school library. Unleash the power of genrefication to revolutionize your library’s organization and create a vibrant, learner-centric haven for knowledge seekers.
Presenter(s):
David Atkins, Project Manager/Atriuum Trainer, Book Systems, Inc.
Michelle Barnett, Librarian, Providence Elementary School
Bring Your Read-Alouds to Life
Turn your read-alouds into captivating adventures with Novel Effect! Novel Effect is an app that responds to your voice with interactive music, sound effects, and character voices as you read aloud from your favorite picture books. Through a live read-aloud demonstration, we will illustrate how Novel Effect makes storytime sensational through an immersive, multisensory experience your students are sure to love!
Presenter(s):
Catherine Coyle, Content and Curriculum Specialist, Novel Effect
Blake Hopper, Assistant Principal, Former Librarian, H.Y. Livesay Middle School
Building Reading Culture with Tome Society
Attendees looking for a way to engage students in reading, learning, and creating, will be equipped to implement the Tome Society model. Learn how you can strengthen the reading culture in your school through an active school-level book club that is part of the broader Tome Student Literacy Society network. Tome helps librarians encourage and create confident book lovers. Attendees can walk away ready to maximize the power of Tome to strengthen the reading culture in your school.
Presenter(s):
Jennifer Parker, School Library Media Specialist, 2022 Georgia Library Media Specialist of the Year, Tome Society Co-Founder
Creating a Culture of Reading through Classroom Libraries
Access to reading materials improves independent reading habits for learners. This session will discuss strategies for school librarian- classroom teacher collaborations for classroom libraries that can increase learner usage and offer valuable reporting and impact data. Strategies of interactive reading challenges, discoverability, and use of diverse and high-quality book selections that can meet specific reading and curriculum goals will also be presented.
Presenter(s):
Felix Lloyd, Co-Founder and CEO, Beanstack
David Hopp, Director of School Accounts, Beanstack
Scott Crawford, President & General Manager, AKJ
Cultivate Curiosity Creating Mechanical Computers & Circuits
STEM is for everyone when it is inviting and fun! Attendees will learn how to engage students & ignite a passion for STEM concepts building mechanical computers with Turing Tumble & creating mechanical circuits with Spintronics. Demystify these complex concepts: what is inside a computer & how electronic circuits work playing with ramps, gears, junctions, & chains running through colorful sprockets. Resources shared will ensure success in the library just by pulling it out of the box!
Presenter(s):
Anna Riechers, Director of Education & Outreach, Upper Story
Angela Messer, Media Specialist, Fairglen Elementary School
Cultivating a Culture of Inclusion, Communication and Collaboration
The goal of school libraries is to create human-centered learning spaces that provide access to physical and intellectual resources in a warm, stimulating, and safe environment that promotes curiosity and connection. In this session, we will share a number of specific strategies, tools, and techniques for creating a space where all feel welcome, nurtured, valued, and heard.
Presenter(s):
Sylvia Stein, President/Creator/Founder, StickTogether Products, LLC
Andrea Trudeau, Library Information Specialist, Alan B. Shepard Middle School/Deerfield District 109
Shannon McClintock Miller, District Teacher Librarian at Van Meter
Digital Curation – Achieving Meaningful Engagement
During this session attendees will gain a broader understanding of digital curation challenges and how to effectively address by creating professional and engaging “bundles of resources.” By providing high quality, highly engaging information, with discretely targeted information to students, school librarians can deliver resources while not significantly increasing their workload by using a comprehensive digital curation platform.
Presenter(s):
Colin Bell, CEO, Concord Australia
The Essential Role of School Librarians as Informational Literacy Experts
Student are tasked with navigating an overwhelming amount of information online. There is an urgent need for content-agnostic professionals who can teach these necessary skills in K–12 contexts as leaders: a school librarian is already a multimedia specialist, and now must be a research advocate as well. In this session, we will highlight how school librarians can be leaders and experts in teaching informational literacy skills to students, while providing teachers with informational text resources that support this work across subject areas. Learn how school librarians can empower students to ask better questions, develop more robust research skills, enhance teacher support, and leverage The Juice to build an understanding of the constantly evolving information literacy landscape.
Presenter(s):
Dr. Cris Slotoroff, ‘Pedagogy and Partnerships Advisor, The Juice
Brendan Kells, VP of Education, The Juice
Keys to Elevating Readers with Ebooks and Audiobooks
Take a deep dive into best practices for teaching and engaging readers using eBooks and audiobooks. You will learn how to draw and share data with administrators to support students and teachers, plus how to promote, use, and share digital books like a pro. Last (but not least!) you also discover how to connect students to the public library to gain even more access to books.
Presenter(s):
Jody Brookshire, Account Executive, Sora by OverDrive Education
Gretchen Zaitzeff, District Library Media Specialist, Canyons School District (UT)
Library Centers as a Strategic Solution for Overworked Librarians
Come learn why library centers can be an effective time-saving strategy with instructional benefits to your school library. Library centers can be a management tool and a strategic solution for teacher-librarians who are pulled in too many directions. Discover how you can increase student engagement and standards-based learning while decreasing your prep time.
Presenter(s):
Cari White (she/her)
Collette Jakubowicz (she/her)
Proactively Addressing Challenges to Your Comics Collection
With book challenges sweeping the country, including many targeting award-winning comics, the need for education and resources to properly address them has never been greater. This session will present a brief history of comics challenges and offer a range of proven strategies for reviewing and protecting your collections, your staff, and your students.
Presenter(s):
Moni Barrette, MLIS — Past-President, ALA’s Graphic Novel & Comics Round Table; Director, Collection Development, LibraryPass
Protecting Your Collection, Budget and the Planet!
Learn how environmentally sustainable protective options for your collection can double the average life of a book, increase overall sustainability, and reduce repurchase costs. See a practical demonstration and gather important insights from a librarian and current CoLibrì customer to see how the CoLibrì System can fit in your library and your budget!
Presenter(s):
Tommaso Garavaglia, National Sales Manager Colibri System
Abid Yadgaari, East Coast Sales Representative, Colibri System
Reading the Rainbow: Books for and About LGBTQ+ People
This session will introduce you to some of the newest and best books that reflect the diversity of the LGBTQ+ community, many of which include lesson plans/activities for use with students. In the midst of the backlash against LGBTQ+ inclusion and equity, ensuring that the best and most representative books for and about LGBTQ+ people, for students across the K-12 spectrum are available to your school community is paramount.
Presenter(s):
Ellen Kahn, Senior Director, Programs and Partnerships
Science of Reading in 30 Minutes: Support Reading Instruction Through the Library
While the emphasis of Science of Reading is on the shift towards explicit phonics instruction, phonics is not the only component of successful literacy instruction, and school library resources can play a key role. Gain an insightful overview of the Science of Reading and the essential components of a successful literacy block in under 30 minutes. Discover how to effectively leverage the authentic literature in your library to support classroom teachers and enhance their direct instruction. Delve into the benefits of helping students build background knowledge, expand their vocabulary, and explore the power of print in fostering a love of reading.
Presenter(s):
Joe Burns, Product Marketing Capstone
Shannon McClintock Miller, VanMeter School District
Storytelling Environmentalism Through Photography
Learn how to connect the science curriculum of environmental changes to photography and stories. National author & award-winning wildlife photographer Michael Patrick O’Neill will share storytelling through photography. He will discuss the importance of considering target audience, using the appropriate tone, and the need to “hook” and captivate the audience from the very beginning and keeping it engaged throughout.
Presenter(s):
Michael Patrick O’Neill, Author & Photographer, Batfish Books
Transforming What It Means To Be Inclusive
This session will highlight diverse and educational graphic novels that have inspired children to read and enhance their ELA skills. Covering the power of inclusivity, the use of comic books to connect history with reality, and the importance of voices from the community leading the charge, Black Sands provides content that can help alleviate their urges and expand their interests in a broader scope of history. Session attendees will learn about curating content for modern youth audiences, as well as ways to engage interested readers to encourage more individual growth.
Presenter(s):
Manuel Godoy, CEO, Black Sands Entertainment
Christina Norman Ed.D, Textbook/Library Media Coordinator, Birmingham City Schools
Transforming Your Library with Wakelet
Join this session to learn how librarians use Wakelet to model and teach students and teachers how to level up their curation strategies, communicate with all district stakeholders, support digital literacy and citizenship initiatives, streamline resources for their school community, and showcase learning with digital portfolios for all students.
Presenter(s):
Deb Zeman, Library Media & Instructional Design Specialist, Hedrick MS/Lewisville ISD
Kristi Starr, Library Media Director, Mustang High School, Mustang Public Schools
Using Virtual Author Visits to Excite Students about Reading & Writing
Meeting an author, especially one who looks like them, can have a profound impact on students of all ages. It can encourage them to read more, to write more, and to see how what they are learning is used to create the books they love. For reluctant readers, in particular, hearing from an author can lead directly to an interest in reading that cajoling from teachers and parents failed to achieve. This session will share some best practices around author visits to make the most of them, including what to do before, after, and during. We will walk you through pre- and post-visit lesson plans, extension activities, and other ways to keep the magic alive in your library so that your students can get the most out of any author visit.
Presenter(s):
Yapha Mason, Librarian & BookBreak Operations Manager
Jazmin Castillo, Librarian & BookBreak Author Talk Host
225 N. Michigan Ave, Suite 1300, Chicago, IL 60601