Kathy Ishizuka

Ever wonder about the closed-door workings of the Newbery committee? Now's your chance. Join the mock Newbery committee of “Heavy Medal” on January 22 and weigh in on the big decision.

Join the fun on January 13, as Betsy Bird and Travis Jonker face off in this friendly (mostly) and entertaining live competition, inspired by their SLJ feature story. 

From the pandemic and a presidential election, to school boards and systemic racism, SLJ's cover design and illustration helped tell the tale that was 2020.

Curricular bazaar Teachers Pay Teachers has never been more popular. But questions about quality, cultural insensitivity, and plagiarism beg expert guidance. Consider your librarian.  

Our most viewed stories reflect a significant, collective journey. 

In an unprecedented year, managing the pandemic dominated attention. SLJ covered the gamut, from publisher policies adjusted to accommodate remote learning, to tips on running a virtual book club for middle schoolers. Despite all, fostering literacy and celebrating great books persisted as key topics of interest for our readers.

Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster have extended permissions for online story time and classroom read-aloud videos to March 31, 2021. Publishers can submit their policies to SLJ for inclusion in our COVID-19 Publisher Information Directory.

Serving on the front lines, engaging with the public, libraries can be a critical asset to mental health.   

Here we are. Well into a new school year—sort of. The fall has brought no relief from uncertainty, and we have a ways to go. So we asked, and Jarrett Krosoczka and Jerry Craft were on board to illustrate our October 2020 issue.