Spotting Fake News for Kids

Photo by Hartono Creative Studio on Unsplash

What are libraries and schools doing to teach kids media literacy? It's a tough topic to even know where to start, but starting early seems to be an important part of that lesson. Finland leads the way in media literacy for kids, and starts teaching students about fake news in preschool. 

PBS Learning Media provides a number of lesson plans and resources for teaching kids about fake news and fact checking your sources. As AI technology improves, this topic will become even more important. What have you found success with?

For a brief news story on Finland's efforts click here.

For PBS Learning Media's free resources look here.

[Schools teaching kids to spot fake news and AI misinformation. CBS News. January 6, 2026] https://www.cbsnews.com/texas/video/schools-teaching-kids-to-spot-fake-news-and-ai-misinform
ation/

Become a PBS KIDS Library Cohort!

 Calling Wisconsin library staff!

🤩 Applications are OPEN for the PBS KIDS Library Cohort!

This exciting virtual experience connects libraries across the state of Wisconsin, blending professional development, hands-on learning, collaboration, and program implementation into one dynamic series.

Why participate?

• SUPPORT early literacy and learning capacity with research-backed resources that encourage playful language development, spark a love of stories, and cultivate compassion.
• DISCOVER resources that  support the process of learning with high-quality, ready-to-use, educational media from PBS KIDS. Gain confidence implementing these ideas in your programs.
• BUILD media literacy skills that integrate digital resources in hands-on programming, that support children in how to think, rather than what to think.
• DEVELOP friendships and connections to library staff and communities across Wisconsin through peer partnerships and collaboration opportunities with local organizations. 

 Learn more about the program and apply here!

⭐ Libraries will receive a $350 stipend to support youth-focused program implementation.
📣 Apply by November 14, 2025. Spots are limited!

PBS Kids for Parents

 In case no one has said it lately, PBS Kids is one of the best resources out there for families and librarians. The information available for free is creative, educational, and fun for kids of all ages. And, it doesn't stop there. PBS Kids has incredible resources for parents as well on their PBS Kids for Parents website. From literacy to math, social skills to art and everything in between, PBS has found a way to help kids learn through play and fun. 

It's difficult to even choose a resource to share from their site because there are so many great ones. Since so many kids are starting school tomorrow, I took a bit of time to browse through their going to school section. There were articles about afterschool snacks, transitioning back to school, creating a supportive classroom for a child with autism, and so much more! If you haven't taken the time yet to look through all that PBS has to offer, here is your reminder! 

Resilient Minds PBS KIDS EdCamp in Eau Claire

 

 

Saturday May 18

9:30 am-1:30 pm

L.E.Phillips Memorial Public Library

Join PBS Wisconsin Education at the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library in Eau Claire for a free fun-filled day of sharing, collaborating, and learning. Share and learn about resources that help children work through challenges with resilience and perseverance. Network and collaborate with other PreK-3 educators and providers in participant-driven sessions on SEL and resilience, and explore free PBS KIDS bilingual learning resources. Early childhood providers will receive 3 hours of FREE Wisconsin Registry credit!

To register, please stop here.

Join Free PBS EdCamp in Sheboygan

The Joy of Learning PBS KIDS Edcamp

Wednesday, April 10 3:00-7:30 pm

The Early Learning Center, 1227 Wilson Ave, Sheboygan

Join PBS Wisconsin Education at the Early Learning Center in Sheboygan for a fun-filled evening of sharing, collaborating, and learning.

Connect with others facing similar challenges, learn new tips, and discover PBS KIDS resources that integrate playful learning into all aspects of your learning environment.

This free PBS KIDS Edcamp values experience over expertise! Share, network, and collaborate with other PreK-3 educators and providers.

• Participant-driven sessions cover topics you choose around joyful learning.
• Share your experience and learn from other professionals.
• Explore free, engaging bilingual PBS learning resources.
• Open to all educators.
• Earn 3 hours of credit from the Wisconsin Registry

Watch Alison Loewen's (Mead Public Library, Sheboygan) special video invitation.

Optional networking and free dinner 6:00 - 7:30pm.    Register here. Registration ends April 3. 

Wisconsin First Nations Booklists

There are a number of booklists for children and teens that are available for free on the Wisconsin First Nations American Indian Studies in WI website. These recently updated booklists are divided into books for Grades K-2; 3-5; 6-8 and 9-12. These booklists are authored and made available collaboratively between DPI, PBS Wisconsin, UW-Madison School on Information with the CCBC and Teachingbooks.

You can find them here.

"Discover books for teaching and learning about the American Indian Nations of Wisconsin. Consult the Tribal Lands Map to explore whose tribal lands and which nations are located closest to your school. Contact your school or local public library to check out any of the books. For more information, book titles are linked to either the Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC), the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education examination, study, and research library; or TeachingBooks, a resource provided to Wisconsin educators through Badgerlink, Wisconsin’s online library."

There are additional great resources on this website including informational books for educators, teaching about WI First Nations, tribal maps, tribal histories, print and media on First Nation customs and biographies and much more.

Thanks to PBS Wisconsin for alerting us to these resources.

Connecting WI Libraries Program/Meeting

The Connecting Wisconsin Libraries group consists of representatives from DPI, WLA YSS and WEMTA. They meet bi-monthly to plan projects that support and benefit cooperation and collaboration among school and public youth librarians. This month, they are offering a panel discussion program with both school and public youth librarians exploring their respective responsibilities and services. It's a "don't miss opportunity for any interested WI youth librarian to join this free and open meeting/program!

The next Connecting Wisconsin Libraries meeting will take place on Thursday January 18th at 3:00 p.m. Please see below for the Teams meeting invite. 

Have you ever wondered what your school or public library peer does in their day-to-day work? Curious about crossover opportunities for collaboration and mutual problem-solving with library peers in your community? Join us for a panel discussion on "A day in the life of..." with school media specialists Anne Smith and Emily Zorea, and youth services public librarians Laci Sheldon and Tiffany Helgerson. Panelists will talk about programming, lesson planning, collection development, how workplace policies and procedures inform their decision making, and much more. There will be time for Q&A and we hope to have a robust conversation around how school and public librarians can support each other.

Please feel free to share this email message with your school and library colleagues. 

Microsoft Teams meeting

Join on your computer, mobile app or room device

Click here to join the meeting

Meeting ID: 257 874 254 167
Passcode: 3JL4yy

Download Teams | Join on the web

Or call in (audio only)

+1 608-620-9781,,276812922#   United States, Madison

Phone Conference ID: 276 812 922#

Find a local number | Reset PIN

Learn More | Meeting options

 ~ Chris, Monica, and Jeni

Jeni Schomber 

Public Library Consultant 

Library Services Team 

Division for Libraries and Technology 

Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction 

608-266-2749 

jennifer.schomber@dpi.wi.gov 

Web Resources for Supporting Children's Literacy

This resource from our neighboring state of Iowa has some excellent options for supporting children's literacy development. You can view the list of web resources, which even has a filtered search tool to refine the results, at the Iowa's Reading Research Center's Web Resources for Families and Educators page. These resources are intended for parents and other caring adults, as well as those of us serving youth and families in libraries. 

Enjoy having resources on social media to browse and to share? The center also posts resources weekly on Facebook and on Twitter.

Digital Storytime, Screen Time and Intentionality - Oh My

Today's guest post is from Sue Abrahamson, Head of Youth Services at the Waupaca (WI) Area Public Library. In reply to someone hesitant to do digital storytimes because of recommendations on limiting screen time for young children in Storytime Underground on Facebook, Sue wrote : "There is a tsunami of digital resources pressuring families right now. It is not developmentally appropriate for a young child to be expected to sit in front of a screen for a 25-45 minute storytime! The best app at this age is a lap! My staff is concentrating on short poems, rhymes. Less than a minute. To remind parents of ways to engage." We asked Sue to tell us more:

I've been thinking a lot of late about the pressures parents are feeling now during this pandemic.  We are hoping not to add to their stress levels, but still meaning to provide encouragement and support. This leaves librarians in an important position.  

As we sometimes are prone to doing, we take the things we love to do the most and concentrate on that.  I've seen many examples of online story times posted around the Internet.  Seeing your beloved librarian can offer comfort to kiddos who might be struggling with the topsy-turvy world right now. 

Image by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay

Our library's strategic plan focuses on three main areas: access, partnerships, and inclusivity.  Does the work we do from home still help meet those outcomes? 

• Access - to information, to books, to ideas.  We have curated a list of the little free libraries in our community, put it up on our website with safety tips on using LFLs, and added great new paperback books that are popular with young readers.  We are sharing out rhyme and song sheets from our Babygarten fun with links to short video clips so parents can see and hear the actions and tunes,  We are challenging our patrons to get outside and spread hope and kindness.
• Partnerships - I think because we had so many strong partnerships in place before the virus hit, we were able to really rely on our collaborators to work together, spread the word, and make our work more meaningful.  We had a quick turn around in making face shield frames using our 3D printer and knew others in the community who could help.  We found our school partners, teachers and media specialists, in daily communication about ways to help families use our digital collections and established, very quickly, a way for them to get a library card to do so. 
• Inclusiveness - When you take the time to remember the faces of the folks you saw every day at the library, remembered their names, and remembered how they used the library, it became very easy to imagine ways they might be missing what you provided for them.  Bringing our puzzles, honor books, games to low income housing areas serves this population well.  Laundromats, food pantries, meal sites, are needed more than ever.  Asking how we could partner brought forth a flood of crowd sourced problem solving from our staff.

The caution to take is not to make it about the librarian, but to make it about the patron.  

Developmentally, what is appropriate for you to share and how?  Knowing your audience is the key here.  If your story time crowd is like mine -  lots of 3 year olds - a 30-minute story time online is not appropriate.  My sharing a poem, or a puppet, or a quick fingerplay, might be a better choice.   

The more we throw at parents with the message of "do this...it's good for your kids," the greater the stress and risk of shame we lay on families who are all just trying to do the best they can.  Remove our sense of privilege and try to see the situation from their perspective.  Some parents are still working and having to homeschool their children.  For some, access to the internet isn't a sure thing.  How are we supporting those families?

The other thing to consider is that we are just at the beginning of what could be a very long period of providing virtual library service to children and families.  What plans are we considering to sustain our services well into the summer?  It might require throwing all previously made plans right out the window, and that's okay.  

We need to give ourselves permission to be flexible and take this opportunity to make something new and exciting.  Doing so with those library missions, outcomes and goals in mind will be invigorating for you, your staff and your patrons.

Virtual Storytimes YSS blog COVID-19 series:

• Online Storytime Creation Tools  11/18/20
• Flipgard, Fanfare and Friends: Celebrity Storytime  9/23/20
• ALSC Virtual Storytime Guide is Out!  6/11/20
• Getting Started with Virtual Storytimes  5/27/20
• “How to Do a Virtual Storytime” Webinars 4/13/20
• Tips on Doing Online Storytimes During COVID-19 Closures 3/16/20; updated 3/20/20
• Storytime Goes Digital 3/20/20
• Digital Storytimes- You Do You! 3/31/20
• Digital Storytime, Screen Time and Intentionality – Oh My 4/6/20
• Facebook Live Online Storytime Tips 3/24/20
• Fixing "My Book is Backwards in Online Storytime!" on iPhone 3/22/20

Permissions (Books, Authors and Music) YSS blog COVID-19 series:

• Many Children’s Books COVID-19 Publisher Permissions Extended  6/24/20
• Virtual Storytime – Tips on Fair Use & Kids’ Privacy 5/4/20
• Want Permission? Current Info on Publishers and Authors 3/22/20; updated 4/23/20
•       Music Permissions? Look No Further  3/27/20; updated 3/31/20