Mrs. Levine Teach

T he learning that was created for me with this course has been absolutely invaluable.  Through the course projects, our gifted professor and guest speakers, all students enrolled were able to leave with a better understanding of what it takes to lead a school library program. It showed me how collaboration with colleagues across the district can create much needed changes in our policies and procedures and have plans to develop those lacking areas this year.  The text book that we purchase was inspiring and gave me actionable steps to managing the school library including collection developments and developing relationships with staff and patrons.  The discussions and assignments motivated me to implement ideas immediately into our library programming.    Flexibility and understanding by our instructor, Judith Kaplan, were commendable during this course.  For many of us, this was absolutely the toughest year in education.  I have b...

  November 10, 2021 As I write this date, it doesn't seem possible.  I have two thoughts.   1.) How is it ALREADY November 10th?  2.) How is it ONLY November 10th? This year seems to not allow enough time for all of the things that need to get done in both of my schools that I work in this year but it also seems to be dragging by as it feels like there is no end in sight.  It's a hard hard year.  I've been teaching since 2006 and this is by far the hardest.  I have asked around how others are feeling.  Was last year harder?  Is this year the hardest?  I have not found one person, not one in the dozens I've asked that said last year was worse.  So what is it?  What is making this so difficult for everyone?  The answer:  EXHAUSTION. We are mentally and emotionally exhausted.  The worries we carry everyday around the health and well being of our families and our colleagues are impossible.  The stress and worklo...

 October 24, 2021 As my second course in the librarian series at UVM begins to wrap up, I am feeling so grateful for my mentor, Michael Flanagan.  For years people have been telling me that we are two kindred spirits.  Two peas in a pod.  But it wasn't until I went to visit him and his space that I actually believed it! His palpable energy is felt throughout his space.  It's excited, it's put together, it's inviting....just like him.  Although he has been doing this for five years now, he still makes me feel like I have something to offer HIM in the library/tech world.  I see this being a true partnership as we move forward. We have already begun to discuss a common section procedure and challenged book policy for our district.  We do not currently have one that has been adopted by the school board and are both anxious to have more "teeth" in the documents that protect our collections and ourselves.   This project has been my favorite so far ...

 October 2nd, 2021 Well, I just finished up my very first celebration of Banned Book Week and I am feeling empowered, invigorated, and so so hopeful!  The students were engaged and more motivated than ever to ask questions, seek answers, and promoted others to get involved too.  This was a huge win. Students not only read the books but they participated in a socratic seminar too!  Kiddos that read a banned book motivated me to bust out the button maker and we made buttons that said, "Censorship leaves us in the dark.  Read a banned book." They were so excited to use this maker space resource, send a message to the world about their stance and have some fun while we were at it!  They also were able to pull a vinyl sticker from the cool bin I stocked up at the beginning of the year.  Who doesn't want a great sticker for their water bottle?!  They were a huge hit and I plan to continue with that external motivator in some of the other library challen...

It's me again!  I'm officially gearing up for my first banned book week and I couldn't be more excited.  I can't wait to motivate our 7th/8th graders who are seemingly not all that excited to read through critical thinking and questioning.  I love this!  

I have three schools in my life this school year! I am the library media and ed tech specialist at Fairfield Center School and the librarian at St. Albans City School.  I am finishing up my first week of my second library media specialist class at the University of Vermont and my third week in this split role in elementary education.   Both of these schools vary greatly in size but both serve grades PreK-8. And still I am attending the University of Vermont! 💚💛 This gif is what I feel like my husband, family, friends & the registrar staff at the UVM must be saying about my school career there. 😂  I have been going to UVM since 2002.  19 years.  And I think everyone is still waiting for me to be finished with my learning there.  What maybe they don't realize and most educators do though is that our learning is NEVER done.   My journey has been formative and truly exciting. For the first 14 years of my career I was a classroom teacher...