Stay Connected With Your Community: Volume II
Staff Feature: International Travel Mishaps
Explore the World
50 musicians from around the world, streaming solo from their homes, the played “Bolero,” together, sporting headphones and casual clothes during the at-home show. In the video, that has almost one million views, one musician beats a drum with the words “stay home” written on it and another drummer — who doesn’t have his drums — used kitchen utensils as his instrument.
Didier Benetti, who used a wooden spoon and ladle as drumsticks and two chairs instead of his kettle drum for the impromptu gig, told The Associated Press that, “For us, the public is essential. Without the public, we don’t really exist.”
“We are starting to realize that we really need each other… Music is sharing,” he added.
The orchestra received their sheet music over email and were given an audio track to listen to as they played their individual parts, according to The AP. And while the wire service noted “Bolero” is typically a 15 minute piece, it was condensed down to just under four minutes.
“Waiting to see you again,” the orchestra wrote in French in a post with the video. “In the delicate period that we are going through, the musicians of the National Orchestra of France wanted, despite the distance, to play together to offer and share with everyone what they can do best: music.”
The orchestra isn’t alone in bringing typically grand performances into the comfort of people’s living rooms as COVID-19 forces people to stay home. The Metropolitan Opera in New York, for example, is streaming encore performances for free while the Paris Opera is live streaming classic ballets and operas like Swan Lake and Carmen.
Educational Resources & Materials
My COVID-19 Time Capsule
So graphic designer and mother, Natalie Long, decided to find a fun yet educational way to help keep them busy. She designed “My 2020 COVID-19 Time Capsule” worksheets and has since shared them on her Facebook page, LONG Creations.
The worksheets consist of 11 pages and include all kinds of activities for children, like interviewing their parents, listing their favorite foods, and writing a letter to themselves.
Reading Tips and Tricks
Research has shown us that when an adult helps the child become the “teller” of the story the child can build her literacy skills. Asking open ended questions to your toddler or preschooler helps them become an active participant in the book and in effect creates a conversation about the story. When children become the storyteller they can improve their language abilities and increase their vocabulary. Children are better able to identify sounds and letters and even demonstrate emergent writing skills. Shared reading can also provide a window into what your child’ is thinking and feeling. Take some time today to become the listener, the questioner and the audience for your child!
Tips and Tricks:
- Read picture books that illustrate a sequence of activity that your child can easily follow.
- Pick books with colorful illustrations and minimal text.
- Actively involve your child in the book.
- Teach your child to become the story teller.
- Make comments about the pictures and wait for your child to respond.
- Respond to what she or he says about pictures by adding just a little more to her or his comments.
- Ask questions about the pictures and wait for your child to build upon the dialogue.
- Where is the ________?
- What noise does that animal make?
- What is that person doing?
- Why do you think he did that?
- How do you think she feels?
- Where do you think they are going?
- What do you think will happen next?
- What would you do if that happened to you?
Book Recommendations:
Social Emotional Development Skills
- The Story of Ferdinand- by Munro Leaf
- No David!- by David Shannon
- Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day- by Judith Viorst
- All Are Welcome- by Alexandra Penfold
- Are You Ready to Play Outside?- by Mo Willems
- The Giving Tree- by Shel Silverstein
- When Sophie Things She Can’t- by Molly Bang
- The Positive Ninja- by Mary Nhin
- Seeds and Trees- by Brandon Walden
Promote Health and Physical Well-Being
- We’re Going on a Bear Hunt- by Michael Rosen
- Fitness is Fun Outdoor- by Linda Keep
- Ivy the Very Determined Dog- by Chris & Maureen Harrington
- Why Should I Eat Well? – by Claire Llewellyn
- Move Your Body!- by Gina Bellisario
- Eat Your Colors- by Amanda Miller
General Knowledge
- Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?- by Bill Martin Jr.
- One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish- by Dr. Seuss
- Chicka Chicka ABC- by John Archambault & Bill Martin
- Eating the Alphabet- by Louis Ehlert
- Alphabet Under Construction- by Denise Fleming
- Alphabet House- by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace
Kentucky Virtual Library
Amid the challenges of COVID-19, the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) announced today that all K-12 students and teachers in Kentucky now have free access to an online portal of educational resources that can support learning and lessons at home.
The materials are available through the Kentucky Virtual Library, a consortium of nearly 300 institutions from across the state. Content includes academic journals, encyclopedias, magazines, e-books, research, and materials for building skills and preparing for tests.
“The Council is tapping every available resource to assist students, parents and educators during this time,” said CPE President Aaron Thompson. “It’s absolutely critical that we harness the power of digital content through remote learning opportunities.
Aaron Thompson
“I’m confident we will overcome these challenges, but it will require swift action and innovative thinking at every level.”While most K-12 and college students were already eligible to use the Virtual Library, today’s move will expand access to an additional 147,000 public school students and seven public libraries in Kentucky that have not previously benefited. In addition, private schools can contact KYVL to request login information for their students without charge.
These changes will remain in effect until the end of the academic year.
On the Virtual Library’s website, students can search for articles, research specific topics or browse well-known titles, such as Scholastic GO! and Encyclopedia Britannica. Materials are available for students at all levels – from elementary grades through college and beyond, including adult learners, those entering the job market and those studying in health care.
The site also offers an online chat feature, allowing users to request help with navigating the library and finding resources.
Students, parents and educators have two options to access the Virtual Library.
First option: (For users with a verifiable email address from a Kentucky school, college or university, library or government agency.)
-Users with an email address such as name@stu.fayette.kyschools.us, name@louisville.edu or name@uky.edu should visit KYVL.org to obtain a password. The homepage includes a section called “Quick Links.” In that section, users should click on the link called “Password Request.”
-A prompt will appear asking for the user’s email address. Users should enter their information, click “Request Password,” and wait for an automatic reply in their inbox. That reply will include a username and password if the user’s email address is verifiable.
-After receiving a password, users can browse the website, select databases and materials, or use the search box at the top of the homepage. When prompted, users can log in using the username and password.
Second option:
If users do not have an eligible email address, they may contact their local public library or private school librarian for assistance in obtaining a username and password.
Ilona Burdette, the program’s executive director, said expanded access is already driving positive feedback from librarians and educators – all of whom can help spread the word.
“The Kentucky Virtual Library is a rich resource for Kentuckians,” she said. “Our mission is to provide all Kentuckians a common foundation of high-quality resources, and support in their use, to enhance lifelong learning, working and living.”
Burdette said the expansion was prompted by a request from Shauna Burkeen, the library media specialist for Marshall County High School.
“I’ve used the Virtual Library in the past and was familiar with the incredible resources it provides,” Burkeen said. “Hopefully, by expanding access through the end of the academic year, more schools and teachers will learn about the system and its value to students and educators.”
The CPE launched the Virtual Library in 1999 as a consortium of Kentucky libraries and institutions, including colleges and universities, public libraries, K-12 schools, hospitals, U.S. Department of Defense libraries, the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives and more.
Before today’s announcement, 112 public libraries, 100 public school districts and a number of private schools already participated along with most all of Kentucky’s institutions of higher learning – both public and private.
“There has always been a wonderful spirit of collaboration among KYVL libraries,” Burdette said, “and we’re thankful for the partnerships that make it possible to serve the information needs of even more Kentuckians at this time.”
Stay Connected With Your Community
COVID-19 Resources in Every Language
COVID-19 Resources, in every language are now available from the Endangered Languages Project! The Endangered Languages Prroject is currently working on versions that are organized by region/country, for service providers who aren’t sure what language(s) their clients speak. If you work with speakers of Indigenous or low-resource languages, and need help determining their language needs, please contact the ELP!
Public Libraries’ Novel Response to a Novel Virus
America’s public libraries have led the ranks of “second responders,” stepping up for their communities in times of natural or manmade disasters, like hurricanes, floods, shootings, fires, and big downturns in individual lives.
Throughout all these events, libraries have stayed open, filling in for the kids when their schools closed; offering therapeutic sessions in art or conversation or writing after losses of life; bringing in nurses or social workers when services were unavailable to people; and hiring life-counselors for the homeless, whom they offer shelter and safety during the day.
Today, interventions like those have a ring of simpler days. But libraries have learned from their experience and attention to these previous, pre-pandemic efforts. They are pivoting quickly to new ways of offering services to the public—the core of their mission. When libraries closed their doors abruptly, they immediately opened their digital communications, collaborations, and creative activity to reach their public in ways as novel as the virus that forced them into it.
You can be sure that this is just the beginning. Today libraries are already acting and improvising. Later, they’ll be figuring out what the experience means to their future operations and their role in American communities.
Here are some of the things libraries are doing now. These are a few examples of many:
Feeding the hungry: While schools have traditionally supplied lunches and breakfasts for American schoolchildren who economically qualify for them, libraries have always stepped in for after-school snacks and summertime food programs.
With schools now closed, more libraries have become drive-through or pick-up locations for grab-and-go meals. This is happening in St. Louis County, for example, which is collaborating with Operation Food Search, a nonprofit that distributes free drive-through food pickups in nine of their libraries.
In Columbus, Ohio, the Columbus Metropolitan Library closed so quickly that they were left with nearly 3,000 prepared meals on hand. They collaborated with the Children’s Hunger Alliance, which had supplied the meals, to recover, repurpose, and distribute the packets at three library locations.
In Ohio, the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, together with the United Methodist Church food ministry are offering ready-to-eat meals to all children 18 years old and under.
3-D printing of PPEs and PPE collections: Many libraries are putting the 3-D printers from their makerspaces into use.
In Maryland, the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System has sent two of its 3-D printers home with a staff person to soon begin printing shields for health workers’ masks. The library is donating labor and materials for this effort, and like other organizations around the state, is working with Open Works, Baltimore’s biggest makerspace community, to make sure everyone is compliant with specs for the production of the shields.
Internationally, the Milton Public Library in Ontario, Canada, has partnered with Inksmith, an education technology company, to print face shield headbands for PPE masks.
The Billings, Montana, public library is 3-D printing face masks for health care workers.
The McMillan Memorial Library in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, is 3-D printing masks for the community. The Cedarburg Public Library in Wisconsin is 3-D printing masks for the fire department.
The Oakland, California, library has repurposed bookdrops to collect new, packaged masks.
A Little Bit of Good News
As more and more global communities enforce stay-at-home orders and social restrictions, rates of air pollution have plummeted.
The most notable example of this phenomenon emerged on the horizon of Jalandhar in Punjab, India earlier this week.
For the last 30 years, the tops of the Himalayan mountains have been obscured by air pollution and smog. Now as the city streets are emptied of traffic and gas-guzzling vehicles, the mountaintops were clearly visible to the millions of local communities in quarantine.
Photographers living as far as 200 kilometers (124 miles) away from the mountain range have since posted awe-inspiring pictures of the snow-capped peaks to social media in celebration of the spectacular sight.
This is not the first time that people have taken notice of cleaner air amidst the COVID-19 shutdowns; following similar reports in China and the US, air pollution is continuing to plummet in countries with social restrictions, such as the UK and India. In New Delhi alone—which has some of the worst air pollution in the world—airborne particulates plunged by 71% in just one week.
Particle pollution in major UK cities have also dropped by as much as one-third—and the rates are expected to fall even further as lockdowns continue.
“These are big changes—pollution levels are the equivalent at the moment of a holiday, say an Easter Sunday,” Professor James Lee from York University and the National Centre for Atmospheric Science told The Guardian about the data.
“And I think we will see an even starker drop off when the weather changes.”
This is just one of many positive stories and updates that are coming out of the COVID-19 news coverage this week. For more uplifting coverage on the outbreaks, click here.
