Help! I lost my library/media specialist!
TeachersFirst's resident library media specialist shares monthly columns designed to help you build student skills across research, information literacy, digital citizenship, and more — even if you don't have a specialist down the hall. Each column includes background knowledge to build your own confidence, curated book lists for introducing the topic to students, classroom activities, extension ideas, and correlations to standards. Topics range from media literacy and AI to ancient civilizations, the arts, and equity-centered history. Browse the full collection and discover something you can use tomorrow.
0Do You Hold the Key? - Integrating Escape Rooms to Engage Students in Lessons
As You Teach, You Learn (Jewish Proverb) - Contributions of Jewish Americans
East Meets West - Contributions of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
An Ember that Blazes Forever - Contributions of Hispanic Americans
Rock the Vote - Incorporating Local, State, and National Elections into the Classroom
If You Read It On The Internet, It Must Be True! - Media Literacy in the 21st Century
Hail to the Chief - Exploring American Presidents
Hey Siri…what is AI? - Introducing Students to Artificial Intelligence
Crowdsourcing Science - Using Citizen Science in the Classroom
America's Second Independence Day - Juneteenth
Who Runs the World? GIRLS - Women as Changemakers
Good as Gold - Figurative Language in the Elementary Classroom
The Story of My Life - Using Biographies to Enhance and Extend Instruction
Boys Will Be Boys - Keeping Boys Engaged in Reading
Learning from Experts - Author Studies in the Classroom
Whodunnit? - Bringing a Little Mystery into the Classroom
I Think That I Shall Never See - Using and Analyzing Poetry in the Classroom
I'm Trying to Love Math - Expanding Mathematics Across the Curriculum
If You Build It - Engineering in the Classroom
Cracking the Code - Coding in the Classroom
Music Speaks - Music Appreciation in Literature
You Can't Play a Symphony Alone - Instruments of the Orchestra
All that Jazz - Exploring Jazz Music
Everything to Learn - Diving Into the Life and Art of Edmonia Lewis
Life is a Blank Canvas - Exploring Painting and Painters
All the World's a Stage - Incorporating Dramatic Arts and Dance into the Classroom
It's a Big Blue World - Keeping Our Oceans Sustainable
There is No Planet B - Climate Change and its Impact on the Earth
Water, Water Everywhere - Looking at Clean, Accessible Water for All People
All Roads Lead to Rome - Engaging with Ancient Rome through Literature
It's All Greek to Me - Taking a closer look at Ancient Greece
Walk Like an Egyptian - Exploring Ancient Egypt Through Literature
Beyond Mulan - Using Literature to Learn about Ancient China
Tales from the Griots - The Mali Empire
Votes for Women - The 19th Amendment
War to End All Wars - Looking at World War I Through the Eyes of Literature
Change is Coming - Looking at the Progressive Era in Books
Picking Up The Pieces - Exploring Reconstruction through Literature
How the West Was Won - Using Literature to Enhance the Study of Westward Expansion
Extra, Extra, Read All About It - Looking at Current Events with an Analytical Eye
Generation to Generation - Preserving Our Past with Oral History
A Whole New World - Using books to help teach students about Colonial America
Brother Against Brother - Books to Help Teach Civil War
What a Character! - Using Fictional Characters to Help Students Fall in Love with Reading
The British are Coming! - Using Literature to Bring the American Revolution to Life
Hey! That's Mine! - Putting Ideas into Your Own Words and Avoiding Plagiarism
A Giant Step for Small Feet - Short, Focused Research Projects for the Primary Grades
Adult Summer Reading: Honing Your Craft During the Dog Days of Summer
"DEWEY" KNOW HOW TO FIND INFORMATION - Finding Nonfiction Resources in a Traditional Library Format
Embracing Research - Identifying Reference Resources
Work Smarter, Not Harder: Using Nonfiction Text Features to Find Information Efficiently
Dog Days of Summer - Keeping Students Engaged in Literacy During Summer Vacation
How Does Your Garden Grow? A Project-Based Approach to Learning
You Are What You Eat - Examining Nutrition through Literature
Read, Tell, and Sell: CCSS through student book promotions
Powerful Pairings: Read-Alouds for Working with the Common Core
Questions and Thinking in Common Core - Part 1
Questions and Thinking in Common Core - Part 2
Teachers' Common Core Planning Toolkit
Going Deep with Award Winning Books: Close reading and text-dependent questions
For the Sake of Argument: Another Common Core Shift
Common Core Part 2: Moving Forward with Informational Text
Looking for more book lists and reading suggestions? See TeachersFirst’s CurriConnects curriculum-related booklists, TogetheRead family literacy themes, and more in our Reading for All pages.