Do some technical difficulties for which I couldn’t fix, I’ve had to move the Wagener-Salley HS podcast page to a new site.   Currently, the site contains podcasts for the 2009-2010 South Carolina Young Adult Book Award Nominees.  I hope to move last years podcast over  to the new site soon.

Wired: “Where Gadgets Go To Die: Facility Strips, Rips and Recycles” – interesting look at how a facility sorts and recycles old electronic equipment.

Library of Congress YouTube Channel – “Timeless treasures and contemporary presentations from the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. As the world’s preeminent reservoir of knowledge, we are the steward of millions of recordings dating from the earliest Edison films to the present…”

World Digital Library – looks interesting and will become active on April 21st.  “The World Digital Library will make available on the Internet, free of charge and in multilingual format, significant primary materials from cultures around the world, including manuscripts, maps, rare books, musical scores, recordings, films, prints, photographs, architectural drawings, and other significant cultural materials…”

New York Times: “A Story of a Teenager’s Suicide Becomes a Best Seller” – article about the origins of the book TH1RTEEN R3ASONS WHY by Jay Asher.  This title is on our South Carolina Young Adult Book Award Nominee list this year.  The article also mentioned the YouTube video campaign that shows someone listening to Hannah Baker’s tapes.

Chicago Tribune: “Annoying ‘mosquito’ noise keeps students moving” – the article shares how an Indiana high school uses the mosquito machine to deter students from socializing in an area of the hallway between classes and instead get to classes on time.  I’ve written previously about this machine here and the mosquito ringtone here.  I am opposed to this device being used, especially INSIDE a school, and not just because I can still hear the tone.  There are other ways to ensure students keep it moving in the hallways – HELLO, teachers, stand at your doors and don’t let the kids stop to chat.  When I stand at the library doors, the students don’t loiter between classes.  When I’m not there, the do – doesn’t take a genius to figure that one out.

The 2009-2010 South Carolina Young Adult Book Award Nominees have been announced.

For those of you unfamiliar with the program, each year the SC Young Adult Book Award committee chooses 20 titles from books published within the last three years.  Teens are encouraged to read as many of the titles as possible; however, they must read at least three title to be eligible to vote.  In February, students vote for which book they feel should win the award.  The winning nominee is announced each year at the annual SC Association of School Librarians Conference.  The ‘09-’10 nominees are:

• The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
• The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary Pearson
• Beanball by Gene Fehler
• Big Fat Manifesto by Susan Vaught
• Blood Brothers by S.A. Harazin
• The Circle of Blood: A Forensic Mystery by Alane Ferguson
• City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
• Enter Three Witches: a Story of Macbeth by Caroline B. Cooney
• Evolution, Me, & Other Freaks of Nature by Robin Brande
• Game by Walter Dean Myers
• Good Enough by Paula Yoo
• Gym Candy by Carl Deuker
• In the Name of God by Paula Jolin
• Mad Kestrel by Misty Massey
• Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin
• The Silenced by James DeVita
• Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
• Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson
• Wake by Lisa McMann
• Yellow Flag by Robert Lipsyte

Having served on the YA committee in the past, I know how difficult is is to choose among the many great titles submitted each year.  I am looking forward to reading this years nominees, many of which were already on my to be read list.

The 2008-09 SCYABA winner will be announced on Friday, March 13th and I will post it to the blog.