Students at Dorsett Shoals Elementary read 500 new picture books this school year as part of a national program organized by the Children’s Book Council. DSES was selected as one of seventeen locations in the United States to participate in the Children’s Book Council K-2nd Favorites category, where students, teachers, and school library media specialists voted on picture books published in 2023.
Library media specialists from across the Douglas County School System participated and voted for their favorite picture books at one of their professional learning meetings in the fall. The Children’s Book Council collected and tallied votes from around the country and released the list of top favorites from students, teachers, and librarians on April 16, 2024.
By successfully completing this program, the DSES Media Center is adding 500 new picture books valued at approximately $10,000 to their library collection. DSES Media Specialist Tracy Scaglione says, “To see some of the books our students and teachers voted on make it to the top of the national favorites lists shows that our students' voices and choices count. It’s a bonus to have hundreds of new and diverse fiction and nonfiction picture books available for checkout in our library media center.”