AASL2019 - Part Four - Saturday Doings

Okay. I am officially running out of steam; but if I don't get this post written right now, I will never get back to it. My flight leaves tomorrow at 6AM, which means I need to be at the airport at 4, which means I'm rising between 3 and 3:30AM. 

I have bagged the closing session because I am on overload right now. AASL2019 was not the most memorable or successful one for me - partly my fault but also AASL's.

Three cancelled programs with no signage on the rooms to let folks know. Really? Was it that hard?

I ended with a totally incoherent session, which might color the tone of the rest of this post. I turned to a row-mate and asked, "Is it me or is this totally incoherent?" She agreed it was. Folks were leaving throughout. I was too darn tired to leave and, like the 26 disc disaster I am reading with my ears at present, I kept hoping that I could walk away with something to take back. Reader, I did not.

Exhibits seemed pretty small compared to other years. Perhaps the proximity in date to NCTE? I didn't grab as many arcs as in the past either. That's fine, my tbr pile is enormous. Just noticing. 

The morning kicked off beautifully with Jarrett Krosoczka's keynote. He's funny. He's humble and he writes and illustrates books that are damn good.

My first session was "Inclusive LGBTQIA+ Education: why it's important and how to be an advocate." Interesting. Lots of preaching to the choir. I took pictures of all her slides and will review them. I am happy that I have always tried to be inclusive in my collection. I am happy that I am now backed up by state law in NJ to have an inclusive collection and that LGBTQIA+ history and existence should be taught across the curriculum. Lots of notes, but one that pops out as a mantra: be prepared, not scared. 

I chose to attend "Best Websites for Teaching and Learning" even though I had the sneaking suspicion that I attended it at ALA Annual in DC. Once it got underway, I realized that I did. No matter. School was already out and I didn't review my conference notes once school started. My bad. Lots here to share with my colleagues. Good reminder.

The next session was another NO SHOW! 

So I jumped into another session, which I will not name because... see above. Incoherent. 

I suppose I should've done my due diligence and attended the closing session. I assume that's where feedback was requested, but I am conferenced-out and didn't want to finish in the dark for the third day in a row. 

All-in-all, glad I came. The next conference is in Salt Lake City in 2021. It's in October next time. Perhaps I will go once more. I do realize that an incredible amount of volunteer work goes into these conferences, but they are incredibly expensive. My district does not pay. I get the days as PD but use personal days if I have more than two conferences to attend in a school year. (And I always do!) I used to be able to deduct them, but no longer. So I guess I'm becoming a bit more demanding and less forgiving.

AASL2019 - Part Three

Yesterday (Friday) was the first full conference day. I woke early as usual, read in my room and lost track of the time. Scrambled to grab breakfast before the Morning Keynote. I went to the hotel restaurant and had so-o many delicious options, I had trouble choosing. Ended up with shrimp and grits and my, it was heavenly! And filling!

I had no idea what to expect from Dr. Adolph Brown but boy did he stir things up. After listening to a lengthy, adulatory introduction, a young man dressed in black received the mic. He barely said hello before music began blasting and he donned a sparkly jacket and danced his heart out.

Then another young man with dreads, an oversized hoodie and baggie pants and a backpack joined him. Turns out the man in black was Dr. Brown's godson. Dr. Brown turned up as his younger, needy self. 

He spoke about arriving at a superintendent's conference to speak dressed the way he was and the police were called within minutes. He commented that upon arrival at our conference, he received welcoming smiles. Yay librarians!

We all have implicit bias. We cannot deny this. Brown urged the audience to "Stop believing everything you think." This leads to confirmation bias, as the events at the super's conference confirm. Confirmation bias leads to micro-aggressions. 

He attended a Title I school, where he received a good education. "Title I describes how I eat, not how I learn." He had a school library with a librarian who helped him choose books. His favorite from childhood was John Henry.

He spoke for a long, long time. Yes, he was inspiring and provocative as well as entertaining as hell, but he did go overtime. Were it not for the spicy breakfast dish working on my insides, I probably wouldn't have minded. And, yes, he also had potty jokes in his presentation.

Exclusive Exhibit Hall time was next and I hopped on the line to receive Cassie Beasley's newest, Bootstrap Magician, a sequel to her beautiful debut, Circus Mirandus. 

Then, it was session time! My first session time started out with a bit of a dud. There were three sessions that I was interested in. The room was empty for one. No signage saying that it was cancelled or moved. I lost a bit of time finding the second room and missed the beginning of the session. It was interesting, not fascinating. But I did find a few new ideas to take away. 

There were seven sessions that I checked off for the second session. The one I ended up choosing was interesting but not something I would be able to implement at my library. 

Lunch was included but not a drink. Luckily, I only drink water and carry my own refillable water bottle, so I was fine, but there were quite a few grumbling about $4 sodas. Yikes! I strolled the exhibit aisles and sat and blogged. 

I had three things checked off for the post-lunch session but lost track of time and ended up arriving in the area late. ALL THE ROOMS WERE FULL TO CAPACITY! Gah! So I headed back to the exhibit hall. 

I checked off four possible sessions for the second afternoon slot and ended up choosing one called "Using Literature as a Spark for Social Justice." It was an author panel. I didn't notice the little red book logo next to the entry. The authors were all interesting. I had one of the books in my library already and noted the other titles to look up later. But, I was expecting a nitty-gritty, how-to session with ideas. Instead, it was a thoughtful conversation, which I appreciated and I took plenty of notes, but not what I was shopping for.

The afternoon session ended just in time to return to my hotel and attend SLJ's Evening of Dialog. That consisted of three panels: Graphically Speaking with Meg Cabot and Ridley Pearson: 

Tween Time: Must-Have Middle Grade Reads with Cassie Beasley, Rob Harrell and Jasmine Warga: 

Informed & Empowered: Notable Nonfiction with Chris Barton Holly Brochmann, Rafael Lopez and Jennifer Swanson:

Of course there was a signing afterward. I was glad I got Beasley's book at a morning signing because her line was long. I really wanted Chris Barton's newest picture book, All of a Sudden and Forever: help and healing after the Oklahoma City bombing. So I got on that line first. Then, I picked up Ridley Pearson's Super Sons: the Foxglove Mission and Meg Cabot's Black Canary: ignite. I was glad that I asked for Rob Harrell's book Wink at the booth because he ran out of books. 

All in all a fine day. Just as I was ready to curl up with the arc I'm reading to review in SLJ, I heard fireworks. I was only on the fourth floor, but I was able to catch the higher reaching fire works and the waning gibbous moon. I have no idea what the occasion was. Those girders are on the roof of the convention center. 

AASL2019 Continued

Well. my last post didn't include anything about the actual conference now, did it? Of course there were pre-conference workshops to attend for extra $$, but the conference itself began unofficially at 1PM with an idea lab in one of the ballrooms. Twenty or thirty tables were arrayed around the perimeter with a variety of displays. It was a lot to take in, but I was most taken with a portable, iPad-based studio. Our tricaster is a monster, difficult to learn and getting buggy, so it's good to know there are some more portable, user-friendly options out there for broadcasting.

The opening keynote was delivered by Ellen Oh, author, and one of the founders of WNDB - We Need Diverse Books. I have heard her speak before and never tire of listening to her patiently explain why everyone needs to see themselves in literature. She encouraged librarians to use their role as gatekeepers not to keep books out but to let them flow in. I have always been bothered by the term gatekeeper. It seemed negative to me. I like the idea of letting books flow in.

The exhibit hall opened at 5 and vendors were swarmed by school librarians eager for arcs, totes, food and other swag. I picked up a few arcs and said hi to a few reps I know. Then returned to my hotel to put my feet up and read. 

AASL2019 - Louisville, Kentucky

I only started attending AASL conferences in 2015. I would've in 2013, when it was in Connecticut, but I was undergoing chemotherapy at the time. Though I managed to work full-time and only miss a half day for my treatments, my energy level was definitely low and wouldn't have been able to support going to a conference. So 2015 in Columbus was my first. It happened to coincide with NJ's Teacher Convention weekend, which made going easier. It is VERY hard to get PD time in November in NJ! I went to 2017 in Phoenix as well thanks to the timing. When the dates came out last May with early bird registration, I didn't look at the calendar carefully enough. It didn't coincide with Teacher's Convention. That was last week. Oops. I thankfully got the days to attend and, here I am!

I flew in on Wednesday evening. I kind of white-knuckled it because I chose to book a 6PM flight as opposed to an 8PM flight. I thought I would leave school early as the last period is my prep; only I forgot the kids had a half day for parent-teacher conferences! Yikes!

The 8PM flight would've gotten me in a bit after ten if there were no delays. By the time I got a ride to the hotel and checked in, who knows what time it would be? So I opted for the earlier flight. As it was, I got to the airport with time to spare and then, my flight was delayed - in fifteen minute increments until we left over an hour late. Sigh. It was also a small plane with very little room for carry-on bags. I didn't bring any for this leg because I packed it inside of my checked bag. I have taken to doing that for these larger conferences to save on shipping boxes home. The cost of checking a bag is the same or less than shipping books home and I don't have to wait for the book mail. I just have to lug the bag. 

Thank goodness for rolling luggage!

I may not be able to stow my carry-on bag even though I paid extra to bring it on. The gate agent explained that I will be able to check it at the gate and pick it up at the gate in Newark.

Oh! I nearly forgot. I chose to drive myself and parked in the Economy Lot. I had a bit of anxiety about this since it wasn't on the monorail and I had to take a shuttle bus. I just missed one as I found a space. Luckily, there was another in ten minutes. While I waited, I noticed this:

That red is my coat reflecting off the metal. I picked up the receiver but there was no dial tone. So, there's that. Funnily enough, I spied another pay phone, this one a booth at the restaurant where I ate breakfast on Thursday.

 

Hilarious!

Flying in Wednesday saved me from waking extra early for a flight out on Thursday and allowed me to take in a few Louisville sights before the conference began in the afternoon. 

I visited the Muhammad Ali Center, the Louisville Slugger Factory and Museum and then took the Evan Williams Bourbon Tour, which was very interesting and informative. Louisville has a fascinating history!

ALAAC19 - Saturday

Saturday morning I had a dilemma as often happens during these big conferences. Justice Sotomayor was speaking at the same time I had a panel by some authors whose work I enjoy. it was a panel called The Urgency of History: how librarians can prepare kids for their time. The panel was a mix of fiction and non-fiction authors - Gennifer Choldenko, Varian Johnson, Elizabeth Partridge, Marissa Moss and Sharon Robinson. They answered questions like, How do we bring kids and history together? What are some of the challenges? How do you deal with context? Whose past told in whose voice? Do you soften the ugly aspects? Interesting questions with fascinating answers. What was great about this particular panel was the chemistry. They really connected and had a great conversation.

After spending some time on the exhibit floor, I went to Best websites for teaching and learning. It's the last year of this committee as it stands. It is merging with Best Apps, which makes sense. Each site they chose seems to be something either I or one of my colleagues could use. 

Then I went to the always fun Disney preview. I grabbed a few arcs from a rapidly disappearing pile and sat down to enjoy the authors read from their upcoming books.

For the last few years, I have been privileged to be invited to the Penguin cocktail party. Last year, it was in this amazing space called the Art Garage. This year, it was in Culture House. The authors featured were Laurie Halse Anderson, Ruta Sepetys, Gabby Rivera, David Yoon and Renée Ahdieh. I have already read SHOUT with my eyes and with my ears and really cannot wait to dive into the other four.

My dinner event was cancelled so my conference pal, Barb Langridge of abookandahug and I invited another conference pal of mine, Mary Ann Scheuer of Great Kid Books and after finding our top choices of restaurants full and our energy flagging, grabbed dinner at a pasta place near my hotel. It was pricey but superb and the conversation was invigorating. 

ALAAC19 - Friday

Friday was a long, eventful day and I was too tired to process and write about it last night. I should've because today was even more packed and I need to talk about both days. It's 8:30 PM and I am beat but in a good way. 

I spent Friday morning walking. After I registered, I headed to the Mall. I got there at the Museum of Natural History, which, I thought, maybe I will pop in. But the line was quite long. I mean, dinosaurs! So I turned right and walked. It was a gorgeous, breezy day with tons of interesting clouds. As I approached the Museum of American History, I considered going in, but it was so gorgeous, I decided to walk as much of the Mall as possible before my lunch date with Greystone Kids. 

I ended up walking clear down to the Lincoln Memorial. Saw Constitution Gardens, the Vietnam War Memorial, the Female Vietnam Memorial, Korean Memorial and WWII Memorial before wondering if I should hoof it 1.8 miles to Le Mirch. 

I wonder what the story is behind that downed tree!

Google Maps app is a curious thing. I thought I was headed in the right direction, then realized I was walking the wrong way. I grabbed a cab. 

Lunch was intimate and fascinating. Greystone Kids is an imprint of Greystone publishing house based in Canada. Patrice Aldana runs the imprint and is a woman with a mission. She is committed to publishing books from around the world. 

Holiday House hosted a cocktail hour at The Press Club and wow! What an event. Great authors in a storied venue. Fitting that Barry Wittenstein and Jerry Pinkney's book, A Place to Land, was featured at The Press Club as it is right across the street from the Willard, which is where MLK stayed the night before his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. I got to hold the finished copy of the book in my hands and it is GORGEOUS! I got to talk to Christian Robinson, Eric Velasquez, Matt Cordell, and Jerry Pinkney himself!

 

I had hoped to stop at my hotel to freshen up but walked the wrong way. Again. Then found my way to Simon & Schuster's Night of Novels at Bobby Van's Grille. Five authors were featured. They all spoke briefly about their books, then speed-dated. I had to leave a bit early to cab to the Library of Congress because I somehow lucked into snagging a ticket to the Coretta Scott King 50th anniversary gala!

It was magical! There was a program first, followed by a reception in the gallery. I was so stuffed from all the food all day, I could not partake. I also got really tired and left a bit early. I just could not process another conversation. 

 

I left a bit after sunset and was able to see this before grabbing a cab.

ALAAC2019

So far, I am not impressed. Writing this at 12:25 AM. I left school at 3 PM and left home at 4:30. Hit traffic on the parkway immediately, then took a suggested route from Google Maps. Wrong choice!

My trip to DC was punctuated by horrendous stop and go traffic and pelting downpours. 

Once I got into Delaware...Shall I tell you about my bridge phobias? Not yet. Google Maps took me away from I95 to another route, which I followed. 310(?)/ 50. It was scenic. But, I had to drive across a bridge, which basically caused me to panic/white knuckle/ remember to breathe experience that totally freaked me out.

I learned from my ophthalmologist recently, that I am starting to have cataracts. This means that night driving can be challenging. Yeah. 

My four hour drive to DC turned into a six hour drive.

I  chose my hotel based upon availability and proximity to the convention center. Little did I know that it is a "no frills" hotel. Meaning, off site parking (a whole nother blog post) and very little, read, no amenities.  I truly hope its proximity redeems itself. 

I received a drink chit, which I truly needed after getting lost trying to find the parking, which is not well marked and has truly horrendous directions. When I settled my bill, there was a surcharge of $4, which was as "food" charge. Bogus. Not impressed so far. 

My room is weird. Just weird. 

Oh dear. I hope this is not a harbinger of ALAAC19!

SLJ Day of Dialog - 2019

I attended my third DoD on Wednesday. My first two were downtown at NYU, which was an easy commute - bus to the Port Authority, then a trot downstairs to catch the A train to the W4th station, followed by a short walk. The venue itself was not without its challenges though - only one elevator and the need to move between many floors. This year's venue at Fifth Ave and 103rd added a wrinkle to my commute. I was ready to take a bus as early as 6:30 having awakened at 4:15 but chose not to. That was a mistake as the line for the Metro Card machines was long, long, long. Then, I had to walk, walk, walk to take the Shuttle to Grand Central Station. Once there, I had a longish hike to the #6 train platform. Got to 103rd street, got turned around and walked in the wrong direction. Phew!

Arrived too late for a bite to eat but in time to listen to the announcements of the Horn Book/ Boston Globe Awards. Nice bunch of books these. 

The opening keynote speech was given by the venerable Jerry Pinkney.

He spoke eloquently about the highs and lows of illustrating A Place to Land, written by Barry Wittenstein.

Next up was a Middle Grade Author Panel featuring Rob Buyea, Nicole Melleby, Celia Pérez, Tim Tingle and Ibi Zoboi. They all have books coming out and discussed things like whether they develop plot or characters first and why middle grade. 

In between sessions, groups of publishers got on the stage to deliver rapid fire book talks of five or so upcoming titles. I always try to be selective grabbing arcs but when the publishers book talk, they all sound so good! Of course, there's also time to browse the tables, where other titles are displayed. This graphic novel adaptation of I Dissent by Debbie Levy was happy-making! I use the picture book as a mentor text in my sixth grade picture book biography unit. 

SLJ editor Mahnaz Dar moderated the graphic novel panel where Jerry Craft, Faith Erin Hicks, Kyo Maclear, Emma Steinkellner and Jen Wang spoke about their recent and upcoming graphic novels. 

At some point, I began noticing the beautiful details of this auditorium. 

After a second publisher pitch, we settled in for a pre-lunch keynote delivered by Sharon Robinson, who spoke about her upcoming memoir, Child of a Dream.

Lunch was picked up across the street at the Museum of the City of New York, where we had passes to view the exhibits as well. Unfortunately, lunch was brief and there was no time. I texted one of my sons, who is a rabid fan of baseball and its history and who also lives in the city. We will meet there one day soon. Lunch was delicious, by the way.

A third round of Publisher Pitches kicked off the afternoon, followed by a YA Panel in which Sharon Attia, Alison Gervais, Thanhha Lai, Kim Liggett and Tochi Anyebuchi discussed their upcoming books. Thanhha Lai is so funny!

The Editor's Panel was a fascinating mix of powerhouses who discussed their "vision" sometimes irreverently.

I thought Kwame Alexander was tall! Christopher Myers is huge!

The DoD ended with an author signing. I got a sampler of A Place to Land signed by Jerry Pinkney and Barry Wittenstein. I whispered to Mr. Wittenstein that I recently reviewed Sonny's Bridge on the blog. 

I got a copy of New Kid signed by Jerry Craft. This is being sent to e. E. Charlton-Trujillo's non-profit, Never Counted Out. I told Jerry that his book has already been hidden by a student in the library. I couldn't find it one day and marked it lost. Several weeks later, I was cleaning up a corner and straightening books and I found it hidden. At least it wasn't outright stolen! I also got the arc of Just Because by Mac Barnett signed for my husbands nephews and niece. 

My day was not yet over. I needed to hoof it to the subway and downtown to the Princeton Club for a publisher dinner. I thought my rolling backpack was waterproof:-/ I had a waterproof rain jacket on but the hood kept blowing off. And there were mammoth puddles that were unavoidable so my sneaks got very squishy wet. I arrived late looking like a drowned rat. My packed books were slightly damp to wet. Sigh.

Dinner was tasty and so was the chardonnay. I met some new librarian friends so dinner conversation was interesting. Then we all quieted down to listen to five authors talk about their upcoming titles. I can't wait to read each one! Deborah Heiligman spoke passionately about her research for Torpedoed! and ran out of time. Tim Tingle told a story as he often does and scared the bejeezus out of us. His upcoming book is called Doc and the Detective. Morgan Parker got personal about her debut, Who Put This Song On? David Yoon's debut had some personal roots as well. I can't wait to read Frankly in Love. And finally, Julie Murphy kept us laughing and thinking as she spoke of her middle grade debut, Sweet Pea.

Thankfully, the rain had stopped by the time I left so it was a dry trot to the Port Authority, where I was third in line for the bus which arrived within ten minutes. I got a seat near the front, plugged in to listen to Internment on my phone and settle back, exhausted but happy, for the trip home. 

PD: SLJ Summit 2018 Continued

Registration and breakfast started at 8:30. I am an early riser even on my days off, so I had a good three and a half hours to read, catch up on news and blog before heading downstairs. 

George Takei was the morning keynote, which pleased me but sent my conference buddy, Linda, into geek heaven. She had a Sulu doll, which she has been posing all over the place during her trip to NYC. I took a pic of him at the Abrams preview. 

Takei has a graphic novel, They Called Us the Enemy, coming out in the spring that looks to be a must-purchase addition. He spoke eloquently and powerfully about his experience being rounded up and shipped out to an American internment camp with his family at age five. So much of what he said resonated with me that I couldn't keep up with my notes. I tweeted out an early quote, "Lessons of the past are so easily forgotten." Most of his life has been devoted to activism and he still seems optimistic. His mission is to raise awareness of the fallibility of America. It is great but also dark.

The next session featured two teachers from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. They spoke about the before and after of February 14, 2017. They spoke passionately about their admiration for their students. They made clear that these students were thoughtful activists before the shooting. They discussed their book, We Say #neveragain: reporting by the Parkland journalists.

After that emotional start to the day, it was time for breakout sessions. I didn't take pictures from my first session, Owning the Power of Primary Sources in Student Learning by Tom Bober but I took tons of notes.

My second session was Teaching Tolerance Stand Up! Empowering LGBTQ Youth. It's always nice to attend a session and be reminded of a resource that is free and sometimes forgotten, Teaching Tolerance. 

Lunch was a nice buffet of salads and sandwich makings.

The afternoon sessions started with three librarians who started a library sustainability movement in New York State. That made me reflect on my own practice.

We we then entertained by Dan Zanes and Claudia Eliaza, who put on sensory-friendly performances for young people. 

After the break was the final panel moderated by Daryl Grabarek: Read Woke: a Movement Takes Hold. The authors who were able to attend were Ibi Zoboi, Renee Watson and her co-author Ellen Hagen. Cecily Lewis, founder of the Read Woke movement also spoke. 

 

Then there were free books and author signings followed by a cocktail party and more author signings! 

Nina Crews talking about Seeing into Tomorrow. This is a biography and twelve of Richard Wright's haiku illustrated with beautiful photo collages. 

 Charles Waters talking about Can I Touch Your Hair? Poems of race, mistakes and friendship that he co-wrote with Irene Latham and I reviewed here. 

Duchess Harris talking about her biography of her grandmother, 

Then, I had the opportunity to have an extended conversation with Melissa Falkowski and Eric Garner!

I was able to tag along with Monty Quehl from Abdo books to a cool little restaurant called Chez Moi where I got to talk to Duchess and some other librarians from around the country. I got home way too late and, of course, could not fall asleep. Then I slept very poorly, awakening frequently. 

Looking forward to our half-day of sessions before I train into Manhattan to take son #3 out for lunch!