Miscellaneous

White background (if your bulletin board is a neutral color you don't even have to hang paper!) with big black letters saying "GENERIC BULLETIN BOARD". Underneath that put a barcode (cut a black sheet of construction paper into strips of varying widths and look at one of the ISBN barcodes on the back of a book for the format). If you want, use a black marker to write the numbers underneath the barcode. Stressed out teachers laugh when they see this one and understand that you are sometimes too busy to spend hours on a bulletin board.

Read More Books" was painted in black paint like the cows in the Chic-Fil-A ads. It had black "cow" spots cut out of black construction paper all over a white bulletin board. This would work for any size bulletin board... if it's a big board, just put tons more cow spots all over it. Book jackets of any kind can be put all around the outside of the bulletin board. (The best kind would be about chickens, though!)

I cut out red hearts. Each person (teacher, student) put their name on one, and the name of their favorite book or author. I took 2 photos of some of the faculty and students. The first photo shows the person "reading/hiding" behind the cover of a book that dealt with one of their interests. I'm going to put it up (with a catchy phrase I haven't thought of yet), and have the students try and guess who is reading the book..........The second photo has them posing with the book.....I'll put those up later--at the end of the week? 2 weeks?

1. Name the 5 wealthiest people in the world.

2. Name the last 5 Heisman trophy winners.

3. Name the last 5 winners of the Miss America contest.

4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer prize.

5. Name the last 6 Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.

6. Name the World Series winners for the past 10 years.

The point is, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. These are no second rate achievers. They are the best in their fields. But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners.

Here's another quiz. See how you do:

1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.

2. Name 3 friends who have helped you through a difficult time.

3. Name 5 people who have taught you something worthwhile.

4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.

5. Think of 5 people who enjoy spending time with.

The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones who care.

From The City of Jonesboro (Ga.) newsletter

I covered the bulletin board with the want ads from the newspaper. A red border gives the black and white background a little pizzazz. The title of bulletin board is "Wanted: Readers" . Underneath, the board reads "Apply Within" (my bulletin board is outside of the media center). Last year I added qualifications for the job. "Must like to read, must return materials in a timely manner, etc." You can think up your own qualifications.

Judy Serritella, Lovejoy High School , Lovejoy, Georgia

A Great Student....A Great Teacher

For this bulletin board you will need to survey both the students and the faculty. The question...what makes a good student and what makes a good teacher. Post the answers on different sides of the bulletin board. All the quotes could be anonymous. On the student quotes you could include their grade level. I am sure you will receive some interesting comments.

Felicia Spicer, Henry County, Georgia

Read and Succeed

Our county had a month designated as Read and Succeed Month. I made a form 8x11 with the headline Read and Succeed. The form had a place for a school wallet size photo. Teachers completed sections on their favorite author, all time favorite book, details on why that was their favorite book and author and most important- why they felt you needed to read to succeed. These were laminated and put up on a board with a banner with Read and Succeed printed on it. Students and visitors enjoyed seeing the teacher’s pictures and reading their choices.

Yvonne Stuart, Southeast High School, Bibb County - Macon, Georgia

Readers are Leaders (with a little twist)

I made a bulletin board for our Deaf Heritage week....we laminated the front page of Silent News about the 'revolution' at Gallaudet University and adapted the Readers are Leaders slogan to fit our population. It was also used by the school in an outreach flyer.

Roselle Weiner, LRC/Library Services Coordinator, American School for the Deaf, 139 North Main Street, West Hartford, CT 06107

Dust Jackets Come In Handy

I have found that a computer, scanner and color printer make good bulletin board. I leave the book's dust jackets on the books, so I scan the jacket's picture and the blurb, print them in color, mount them on colorful papers and laminate. These placed on a bulletin board look great. Save them in folders according to genre or season and can be reused. When I mount them, I try to use unusual papers - brown paper bags, comic strips, wrapping paper, wallpaper, etc. If I am doing biographies, I try to find magazine or newspaper ads or pages that match the person -sports figures on sports pages or the front of Sports Illustrated, business people on the business pages, etc. You can also scan the fronts of books which have nice pictures. Having the blurb or info about the author with the picture also helps students become interested in reading the book.

Frances Robson, Lowndes High School

Match the Teacher with Their Pet

I ran a contest for National Library Week: match the teachers with their pets. As the week wore on more and more teachers asked if it was too late to add their little pride and joy. After the contest was over I gladly added new pets!