Skip to main content

South Dakota State Library Services

A list of services provided by the South Dakota State Library.

School Library Resources (COVID-19 Pandemic)

SD State Library Databases & Digital Resources

ALL 50+ databases and digital resources offered by the SD State Library are FREE and accessible 24/7 WITHOUT a library card if within the geographical borders of South Dakota.
 

Three Ways to Access

  1. Instant, click-and-go access through GeoIP if you’re anywhere within the state’s geographical borders. No login needed.
  2. Instant, click-and-go access through IP authentication with your school district. Think of it as a back-up to GeoIP. No login needed at school and public libraries.
  3. Through your school’s SDSL ecard. This barcode and password SHOULD NOT be posted anywhere online but can be given out to patrons as a back-up. Think of this route as a back-up to the back-up OR if you’re traveling out of state. Visit with your librarian or contact Alissa Adams for your school's ecard credentials.

 

Student Research Lists

Use our age-appropriate Student Research Lists when linking on your library or school websites, blogs, digital newsletters, etc. These lists are curated just for these age groups and they provide quicker and more customized access for students. For more information and for direct URL's to these lists visit this post on Collect+Connect blog.

Alissa’s Recs of SDSL databases for K-12 -  Share and print as desired.

eBooks via SDSL Databases

  • Book Flix: talking books for Pre-K -3 and Special Education w/ lesson plans and activities
  • True Flix: videos and paired non-fiction books w/ lesson plans and activities
  • Gale Virtual Reference Library: sets of specialized reference books
  • SIRS Discoverer: non-fiction eBooks for elementary/MS, pdf format
  • World Book Advanced: links from some articles to full-text eBooks in Project Gutenberg (Shakespeare, as an example)
  • Learning Express: eBooks on career & academic success, pdf
  • EBSCO Ebooks Collection: 10,000+ books in arts, humanities, social sciences, sciences, business, computers

Local Options

Please wait while the widget below loads.  :) Here's the link to go directly to our Digital Books List.

Digital Books, by alissamadams

Fair Use During COVID-19 Pandemic

Ready-to-go Read Alouds

Recording a Read Aloud

Tech tools abound, but this small, but mighty list consists of those with a lower learning curve. They allows users to record, edit, and share video read-alouds. They also allow for live or recorded video communication.

Best Practices for Recording and Sharing Digital Read-Alouds

We are seeing more flexibility from publishers. Know that each publisher has different guidelines. But, by and large, here are some best practices for recording and sharing digital read-alouds:

  • Make sure your district OWNS a print or digital copy of the book.

  • Make it clear in writing on your website or school management system that the recording is for school use only.

  • Cite the author, title, publisher, and date at the beginning of the recorded read-aloud.

  • Keep it local by posting the recording internally. Meaning link it only in your management system like Google Classroom, Moodle, Schoology, etc.  or via school email system. You can post to a classroom website as long as the website is only accessible to those you provided the link to (such as students, parents, co-workers). If the website is public as many library websites are, it’s not a good idea to post read-aloud videos to it.

  • If you upload the video to YouTube so that that you can then share it, make sure you choose UNLISTED for the visibility. This means the person with the link can view but the entire world can’t publicly view it.

  • Avoid posting videos to social media. Keep recordings internal for school use only.

  • Use good judgment. Think small scale – you are providing for your classroom or library audience not providing for the entire Internet.

Note: The SD State Library doesn’t encourage or endorse this practice under typical circumstances.

Please wait while the widget below loads.  :) Here's the link to go directly to our Tools and Resources for Digital Learning List.

Tools and Resources for Digital Learning, by alissamadams

This curated list will continue to expand and contract. Check back.

  • amazingeducationalresources.com - a huge, crowd-sourced list of tools for a variety of educational experiences
  • Audible Stories (7-12) Instantly stream for free an incredible collection of stories, including titles across six different languages.
  • GALE - support materials to help find and optimize existing resources already available to you through the SD State Library as well as content and tools to help you enhance instruction, go virtual, share credible health information, and more.

  • Junior Library Guild (K-12) Unlimited access to everything they have online, consisting of approximately 40 books and some audiobooks, and with an unlimited number of users per title.

    • High School: Username: JLGHI  /  Password: JLGFREE

    • Middle School: Username: JLGMID  /  Password: JLGFREE

    • Elementary School: Username: JLGELM  /  Password: JLGFREE

  • MackinVia (K-12) MackinVia is offering 400+ free elementary, 400+ free middle school, and 700+ free high school classic ebook titles at no charge to schools until the end of 2020.
  • PebbleGo - (K-3) A curricular content hub with informational articles, ready-made activities, and literacy supports for students of all abilities.

  • Scholastic ScienceFlix - (5th+) Exciting articles, videos, and projects. Username: Learning20  /  Password: Clifford

  • Scholastic Book Flix - (PreK-3). Highly engaging literacy-based read-aloud experience for young children learning to read. The thematically-aligned fiction and nonfiction pairs help children grow their oral vocabulary while providing academic and content vocabulary in context. Freely available to all South Dakotans via the SD State Library.

  • Scholastic TrueFlix - (3-8th) 50+ subject-area topics in science and social studies, and includes videos and accompanying ebooks. Freely available to all South Dakotans via the SD State Library.

  • Scholastic Watch & Learn Library - Real-world videos in English and Spanish. Username: Learning20  / Password: Clifford

  • Scholastic Learn at Home - Supports students with approximately three hours of learning opportunities per day, including projects, articles and stories, virtual field trips, reading and geography challenges, and more. These daily learning opportunities were carefully curated by our editors to reduce the burden on teachers and families needing to create meaningful learning experiences. Username: Learning20  /  Password:  Clifford

  • Tumblebooks - (PreK-6)  Animated talking picture books, chapter books, videos, non-fiction titles, graphic novels, playlists, and books in French and Spanish.  Email info@tumblebooks.com with subject line Free TumbleBooks in order to receive free links to all five of its databases.

Virtual Field Trips

Interactive Activities

Go-to Learning Videos

Educational Podcasts

 

School librarians and library staff may have to account for professional time in different ways than classroom teachers. Here are some suggestions:

  • Support curriculum by curating resource lists especially for teachers.
  • Support teachers by creating print or video instructions for accessing SDSL or district-owned databases.
  • Assist with teacher and student technology needs.
  • Create read-alouds for library use and classroom use.
  • Create digital book talks.
  • Offer “office hours” for students and parents trying to navigate distance learning.
  • Work on district-level library planning.
  • Update and enrich your virtual library (webpage, blog, social media, etc.).
  • Clean up records in your library catalog.
  • Create summer reading lists.
  • Access your circulation system from afar. Study trends. Audit collections. Make future plans based on reports.
  • Plan for summer reading programming on your own or in conjunction with your public library.
  • Develop book orders for summer or fall purchases (here's the new Prairie List!).
  • Start or expand or expand your digital book collection.
  • Take requests from teachers and order those materials to support their curriculum.
  • Learn new technology to use in the library next year.
  • Study or refresh on library policies.
  • Make a plan for your library's social media use. Will you highlight each Prairie Book like this? Will you post book talks?
  • Develop a template for your school library newsletter that you can reuse each month. 
  • Weed the collection if available to you.
Loading ...