Kim Beeman, Teacher Librarian

Presentations, Projects, Articles &c. from Kim Beeman, Head of the Senior Library at Tanglin Trust School in Singapore

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I presented about the UX process we used to evaluate our new library website at the ECIS Triennial Library Conference in Chennai. 

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This presentation covers the beginning stages of a project to redesign and test a website for the Senior Library at Tanglin Trust School. It was presented at the Librarians Knowledge Sharing Workshop at the American International School in HCMC, Vietnam, November 2017.

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I talked about fake news at the Librarians Knowledge Sharing Workshop in Singapore in February 2017. I address both some very old problems about the nature of truth (especially in relation to politics) and some very new changes in the way we consume and understand information, especially “facts”.

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I wrote about the Bangkok Book Awards, a new program started by the international school librarians in Bangkok, for the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative blog. You can learn more about the awards and the shortlisted books by clicking on the image above. 

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Shrewsbury House Poetry Competition

This year the library, in conjunction with the English and Drama departments in the Senior School, is hosting the first-ever Shrewsbury House Poetry Competition. Inspired in part by the success of a slam poetry competition hosted by Sally Flint at Patana last year, and in part by the long-running Poetry by Heart competition in the UK, the Shrewsbury competition has two components: poetry recitation and performance poetry. 

In preparation for the competition, Chris Tomkins from English and I developed the 2016 Shrewsbury House Poetry Anthology. The list is a mixture of poems from the Poetry by Heart anthology, poems from the A-level and GCSE curriculum, and some of our personal favorites. We drew the marking criteria from Poetry by Heart and the competition at Patana. 

The finals are on Monday, 7 November--I am excited to see what our poets and performers will come up with! 

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LibGuides at Shrewsbury

My latest library project is the introduction of Shrewsbury LibGuides. Three weeks and 14 guides in, I am enjoying the opportunity to highlight library resources, share them easily with students and teachers, and most importantly, to take advantage of the wisdom of the vast LibGuides community. To that end, I am looking forward to attending Bradley Tyrrell’s workshop on LibGuides at the 2017 Librarians Knowledge Sharing Workshop at UWCSEA in February. 

A partial list of LibGuides that have inspired and motivated me:

Scotch College, Australia

The Wheeler School, United States

UWCSEA, Singapore

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100 Picture Books to Read and Share: Shrewsbury Pre-Prep Summer Reading

I am trying something new this year with our Pre-Prep (Early Years to Year 2) summer reading list. I compiled a list of some of my favorite picture books (”100 Picture Books to Read and Share”) and posted it on Padlet and Google Drive, to create both visual and textual options for parents and students to browse. The books are largely American and British, though I have included a variety of stories set all over the world, with a particular emphasis on Asia. 

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Library Design Thinking and Resources

I created a presentation for the Senior Management Team at Shrewsbury about library design, suggesting both a theoretical and practical approach. I also presented this at a BLISS (Bangkok Librarians in International SchoolS) meeting. 

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The 2016 sixth form summer reading list is out! You can access the list here, or see the highlights in this presentation. Feel free to use and share these titles. 

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2016 Bookmark Contest Winners

The results are in, and the entries above are the winners of our annual Fully Booked bookmark competition. Students from across the school entered; winners were chosen from (top to bottom) Early Years, Key Stage 1, Key Stage 2, and Key Stage 3. The winning entries will be printed and made available in the library next term. The form we used for entries is available here.

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LEGO Wall Tutorial

First, a note of thanks: This tutorial (and this wall) would not have been possible without the great post about LEGO walls over at Renovated Learning. 

This wall is the focal point of our new Junior Library makerspace. The completed wall measures 70″ x 70″ and comfortably accommodates five or six students at a time. The students also have access to regular baseplates for building LEGO projects off the wall. 

Supplies needed for this wall:

49 10″ x 10″ LEGO baseplates 

70.5″ x 70.5″ plywood sheet, mounted to the wall

construction adhesive (PL Premium or Liquid Nails)

caulking gun for the adhesive

6 medium LEGO classic creative boxes (or a similar assortment)

Click on the pictures above for more detailed instructions. Happy building!

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2016 Family Reading Challenge: Reading BINGO

Every year, the Junior Library runs a Family Reading Challenge. This year’s theme is Reading BINGO. Parents or carers are asked to check out books from at least five of the BINGO categories and read them to their child between 29 February and 1 April. Families who successfully complete the Challenge get a certificate of recognition at a special assembly.

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2016 Shrewsbury Reading Fair

Pictures from the second annual Shrewsbury International School Reading Fair. The Reading Fair was open to students in Year 3 to Year 6 and took place on the first day of Fully Booked week. The Reading Fair was run jointly by me and Jennie Otter, Humanities Coordinator in the Junior School. Students could work alone or in teams of up to three to create a board that explained the plot, characters, setting, and other key features of a book in a creative way. The application form they used is available here. More than 30 students participated this year. Parents and teachers were invited to a reception where the students could display their boards, talk about the books, and see the work done by their classmates. Please see some of my favorites above.

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Library Workshop for Nannies and Helpers

A library workshop for nannies and helpers, with information about using the library, reading aloud, and being read to by a child

Slides from a workshop I hosted for nannies and helpers at Shrewsbury International School. The workshop focused on using the library, strategies for reading aloud to a child, and how to be read to by a child. Many thanks to Pam Males at UWCSEA for the inspiration. 

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Windowpanes of Words

Inspired by this project honoring the work (and etching skills) of Scottish national poet Robert Burns, I asked Senior School students to share a poem by copying it on a transparency and placing it on the library windows. One week and 300 transparencies later, the library windows are covered in poems by Rossetti, Eliot, Dickinson, Cavafy, and others. A lovely Book Week (or any week) project--it sparked so many discussions about favorite poems and favorite poets. The poetry section of the library has never gotten so much traffic and interest. 

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Resources and pictures for a variety of low-tech, crafty makerspace projects from the library staff at Shrewsbury.

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Creating a (Nearly) No-Fuss Makerspace

This presentation (prepared for a meeting of our Bangkok library network) takes a look at the low-budget ($1000 USD), incredibly popular makerspace I put together for Shrewsbury’s Junior Library this year. The presentation includes photos, online resources, and a short bibliography for junior makers.