Year 9 Food reviews meant trying different snacks! I modelled the process in front of the students as they did it (trying to stop them from eating the snacks was not on my teaching Bingo card that day!) and it went off with a bang. They all enjoyed it and some of the reviews were pretty good and others were "Mars Bars are trash. I won't eat them."
​
It was a great end of day fun treat during Week 10 but they were incredibly disappointed to know that I wasn't going to put off the assignment until next term.

I bought this a year ago from Melbourne with the idea that I would add it to my senior years (Year 10-12) library. I started reading and immediately thought "this is good, but not suitable for high school students." There a plenty of R-rated and graphic descriptions, particularly of a sexual nature that while I didn't mind, I could not in good conscience have in my classroom. I would, however, keep this as a teacher resource and use excerpts from it in my classes where appropriate.
​
Towards the end of the book, I was craving a solid full length story that was more than 5-10 pages so finishing this was rather painful. I'm glad I read it, not sure I would read it again in a hurry.

In writing this review, I fully acknowledge my privilege as a white woman living in Australia. Learning more and as much as I can about First Nations people is a priority, especially as I teach so many incredible young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. I selected "My Tidda, My Sister" because, honestly, I loved the cover, and I also found it so interesting from the blurb on the back.

Having said that, I did find an issue with my reading of the book. I felt that Maree Silva spoke a lot of her own story (which she is 100% entitled to!), but I really wanted to know the stories of the women that we wrote about. I wanted to get in-depth into the stories these women wanted to tell.
​
My intention is to put it in my classroom library for my students to read and - hopefully - enjoy!

This is indeed the question! Why become a Teacher Librarian? For me, it was a combination of things.

In Year Ten I undertook the Personal Learning Plan subject within SACE and I underwent a  one week Work Experience Placement at Tea Tree Gully Library. I loved it, I really did but I felt it was lacking something in terms of a career. Most of the work was becoming automated or happened behind the scenes with very little contact with the public. Outside of the Work Experience Placement, I frequented that library often. I loved going through the shelves, looking for something new to read but felt that the workers didn’t really have the time for young adults. This feeling was magnified during my Work Experience Placement, most of the contact was with young children or adults. Now, as a twenty-two-year-old, I feel that this feeling of disconnect with a public library makes Teacher Librarians even more important.

During my time in high school, I lived in the school library, especially during Stage One and Two. I was a regular library monitor and I loved helping the Teacher Librarians with either restocking shelves, finding books for other students, processing new books or whatever else they needed to be done. Here, I felt that young adults were welcomed and valued.

When I was looking to commence post-high school study, I decided upon Bachelor of Education (Middle and Secondary Schooling)/Bachelor of Arts as my undergraduate degrees and then made the choice to continue straight into my postgraduate degree rather than take a break. During my undergraduate study, I loved the connection that we were able to form with the campus librarians. It is a very similar feeling to that of the secondary Teacher Librarian.

Teacher Librarians are vital to schools and students. They are not just the people who know where that obscure book on science is, or the ones who can sprout quotes from books at the drop of a hat. They’re the ones who encourage discovery. The ones who suggest a book not just for an assignment but to read in their own time. They’re the ones who can bail you out of a referencing disaster in the Research Project.

But they’re also the ones who can lend an ear when you need it. They’re the ones who give you a chance to contribute to your school community. They’re the ones who’ll put the new book you’ve been nagging them about to the side so you can borrow it first. They’re the ones who have a stash of gummy snakes or Freddo Frogs hidden in a drawer – and look to the side when you pinch one as you leave to go back to class.
​
Teacher Librarians are amazing people – and I hope I can be one of those amazing people for my future students.