12 Apps for School Librarians

As a school librarian… I’ve realized that a lot of us have trouble resisting shiny, new objects. (Case in point…ME!  I just signed up for an “educator’s digital photography class” to be held during the FIRST weekend in JUNE! Am I nuts?? Yes, probably. I’m worn out after a busy year … but still… oddly excited about this class. Go figure.) 

The thing is…as the school year takes off — and starts alternately crawling and flying by — school librarians often HEAR about all of these cool apps that we’d LOVE to try. Unfortunately, there’s not much time from bell to bell to actually dig into the apps and find out if they might work for our library programs.

 

So, this pre-summer blog post describes twelve apps that were helpful to me as a school librarian. Once your teacher brain has rested and starts thinking school thoughts again, carve out a sliver of summer and use it to find a fun, new gizmo for your librarian tool box.

This PDF holds links for websites, blogs, YouTube videos, and social media sites as jumpstart fodder to learn the basics of each app. If you see one or two choices here that really spark a genuine interest… jump in and start clicking away. (All links were tested and working as of May 2023.) Enjoy a little exploration and hopefully… begin to re-kindle some of that educator joy.

 

BUT…(and it’s a big but…) IF you’re not ready…please just bookmark this post. It will be right here when your brain starts thinking “back to school” thoughts at the end of summer. This freebie source of professional development is for you when you’re ready… and not a minute before then! Many of these apps provide easy (and FREE) educator training. I am hoping that this training could possibly count as part of your required professional development credit for next year, depending on your school district. BUT… it’s essential for you to get some rest this summer first. My list isn’t going anywhere!

When you do get to it… since we all need an “atta girl” now and then… I think it’s awesome that some of the apps even present you with a digital certification badge upon completion.  (Some of them are really cute, too!)

Earning one of these little badges is a total bragging point, in my book. After all, it represents YOUR initiative in acquiring new skills for your school — during. the. summer. Um… toot that horn please! Plus, cute badges can be kind of impressive when trailing along on the bottom of your email signature!) I have a TPT resource for that, if you need help!

I hope that a few of these twelve apps for school librarians will fuel your interest enough to try something new for next year — or better yet – open up an opportunity to have a little fun being creative this summer!

 

Take care!