Information Literacy

Today’s students have a world of information at their fingertips.  The Terry James Resource Library has many materials available to help teachers help students deal with the information age.  An example of these resources is:

Building Info Smarts by Carol Koechlin & Sandi Zwann

Help students master the tools and strategies that they need to work with all kinds of information and make it ther own — from reading books and analyzing a movie to working on a research project.  Grades 4-12.

Link to our catalogue

Grammar

The Terry James Resource Centre Library has many useful resources on teaching grammar.  Some of the new titles include:

Grammar Study: Helping Students Get What Grammar is and How it Works — Teaching Grammar With Perfect Poems for Middle School — Teaching Grammar With Playful Poems — Painless Grammar — Teens, Technology and Literacy: Or, Why Bad Grammar Isn’t Always Bad.

Link to our catalogue

Motivating Students

The Terry James Resource Library has  many resources on motivating students.  One of our more recent additions is:

The Book Whisperer

Known for her popular blog, “The Book Whisperer,” Donalyn Miller says she has yet to meet a child she couldn’t turn into a reader. No matter how far behind Miller’s students might be when they reach her 6th grade classroom, they end up reading an average of 40 to 50 books a year. She shares her teaching methods and includes a dynamite list of recommended “kid lit” that helps parents and teachers find the books that students really like to read.

Link to our catalogue

Secrets to Success for Science Teachers

From successfully setting up a classroom to achieving meaningful instruction, science teachers face a variety of challenges unique to their practice every day.  This easy-to-read guide provides new and seasoned teachers with practical ideas, strategies, and insights to help address essential topics in effective science teaching, including emphasizing inquiry, building literacy, implementing technology, using a wide variety of science resources, and maintaining student safety.

Link to our catalogue

Substitute Teacher Success

The Terry James Resource Library recognizes the needs of our occassional teaching staff.  All of our resources are available to every member of the Upper Grand District School Board’s teaching family.  We have recently added a guide for substitute teaching, to our library.

How to Succeed as a Substitute Teacher: Everything You Need From Start to Finish

Includes school and classroom procedures ; eight key tips for classroom management ; “what would you do? practice scenarios with multiple solutions ; information on professional topics such as permits, pay, networking ; a checklist of things to do before, during, and after class.

Link to our catalogue

Effective Teaching Resources

The Terry James Resource Library has many texts on effective teaching.  Some of our newest items are:

Becoming a Legendary Teacher

Includes techniques that all teachers can use: convey high expectations for students ; create a well-organized and positive classroom environment ; motivate students to excel in an era of high-stakes testing ; communicate successfully with students, families, and colleagues ; stay passionate and motivated.

Everything but Teaching

Gives indispensable tips for managing professional priorities outside the classroom and saving energy for the most essential part of the work: teaching students.

Link to our catalogue

OWA: Ontario Writing Assesment K-8

Provides a common writing assessment tool for teachers, schools or districts. Supports identification of student strengths, needs, interests and attitudes in writing. Includes task-specific rubrics and  levelled anchors to ensure consistent assessment of writing skills (based on the Ontario curriculum). Provides valuable “next steps” for targeting instruction. Supports tracking student progress over time with tracking sheets.

Link to our catalogue

Simply Beautiful: Middle School Edition (DVD)

In Simply Beautiful: Middle School Edition, Gail Boushey and Joan Moser (better known as “The Sisters”) bring their innovative and fun design ideas to a middle school library and a seventh grade classroom. In the library makeover, tweens and teens work with the librarian and principal to help organize books, move furniture, and put a personal stamp on the environment with their art and reading interests. In the classroom makeover, Gail and Joan help young teacher Erinn deal with the challenges of a cramped classroom which has no storage cabinets.  This dvd is available through the Terry James Video Library.

Link to our catalogue

The Black Book of Colors

This black on black book invites readers to imagine living without sight through illustrations done with raised lines, and descriptions of colours based on imagery. Braille letters accompany the illustrations, and a full Braille alphabet offers sighted readers help reading along with their fingers.

Link to our catalogue

Autism Spectrum Disorders

The Terry James Resource Library has recently added to our collection of resources on autism.  New titles include:

The Official Autism 101 Manual — Ten Things Every Child With Autism Wishes You Knew — Ten Things Your Student With Autism Wishes You Knew — 1001 Great Ideas For Teaching and Raising Children With Autism.

Link to our catalogue

Link to the Autism Society Canada