Weekly Message: January 14th, 2025

Happy Tuesday! It just so happens that this week’s message features multiple opportunities and ideas for marketing, which fits very nicely into January’s Flipped Classroom topic Marketing and Training. We’re sharing the compiled list of all of the new titles that were added into the shared collections last month (which you can share with your students in whatever way(s) you find work best); OverDrive has compiled a handy list of all of the super-helpful updates and new features that were added in 2024– which includes two shareable infographics attached to this week’s message; and a reminder that WEMTA’s Battle of the Books registration ends tomorrow, and the WSDLC has purchased extra copies of BoB titles to help support your contestants.

New Titles Added in December

In December, 501 all-new titles were added to the shared collections! Of those titles:

A complete list of all the new titles added in December along with their format and content access level(s), can be viewed as a Google Sheet here. (This Google Sheet also includes the new titles added each month, so if you ever miss a month, we’ve got you covered!)

Recommend a Title!
If you and/or your students are looking for a book in Sora that hasn’t been added yet, you can recommend the title to be purchased for the shared collection! The WSDLC website includes a Title Recommendation form that library media specialists, educators, and others at participating schools and districts can fill out to suggest a title for purchase for the shared collection.

Suggestions submitted through this form are collected by the WSDLC Project Managers and then reviewed against the WSDLC Selection Policy (Section C of the Collection Policy). If the suggested title matches this policy, and is available for purchase through OverDrive Marketplace, the title will be added to the collection. Recommended titles are added to a cart in Marketplace, and purchased once per month.

You can find more information, including the Collection Development policy and a Statement on the WSDLC Collections, on the Collection Information and Circulation Policies page on the WSDLC website.

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Flipped Classroom: Marketing & Training

This month’s Flipped Classroom is covering Marketing & Training, which we know this is a hot topic for many of you. We’ve given it a little refresh this year, and we hope that the ideas and resources we’ve pulled together here can work as a jumping point to implement your own marketing strategies. Included are:

  • Lists of marketing techniques and actions from other WSDLC members and from the OverDrive team;
  • Links to the OverDrive blog’s school library marketing spotlight and previous School Stars winners;
  • Downloadable/Printable flyers, bookmarks, social media images, a coloring page, and so much more that are free to use; and
  • Training Modules from OverDrive that you can send to your students, teachers, and caregivers!

You can find more information on WSDLC Training opportunities and materials here: https://wsdlc.org/training/
Find the full calendar of self-paced training topics here: https://wsdlc.org/training/wsdlc-training-schedule/

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From OverDrive: 2024 New Sora Features & Offerings Recap

2024 was HUGE year for OverDrive and Sora, with a whole host of new updates and features! On top of the highly-anticipated expanded Content Access Levels that went live in the WSDLC earlier this school year, OverDrive/Sora highlights from 2024 include:
  • Read to Me: An in-app text-to-speech feature to provide students with extra reading support. You’ll also find attached to this email two OverDrive “Did you Know” infographics that you can download and share on social media, printed posters, include in newsletters, and more!
    (Interested in more marketing materials? Head on over to this month’s Flipped Classroom, where you’ll find links to OverDrive’s resource center along with resources and ideas from other WSDLC members!)
  • Word pronunciation: An addition to the define functionality, this updated feature allows students to hear how a word is pronounced.
  • Sign in using another device: Easily sign in to Sora on a new device by scanning a QR code or entering an 8-character code from a device that is already logged in.
  • CPC budget options: You can now create multiple, mixed-format Cost Per Circ budgets in Marketplace.
  • Expanded Sora Subscription offerings:

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In the Community: WEMTA’s Battle of the Books Registration Ends Tomorrow

Registration for 2025’s Battle of the Books, hosted by WEMTA, closes on Wednesday, January 15th. (Credit Card only registration)
To help support students as they participate in WEMTA’s Battle of the Books, WSDLC Project Managers are purchasing additional ebook, audiobook, and Spanish-language (when available) copies of the titles on each reading list, and curated collections have been created for each division. You can find (and share!) the curated collections through the links below:
What is WEMTA’S Battle of the Books (BoB)? Simply put, the Battle of the Books is an online trivia competition for students across Wisconsin. There are three divisions for students to compete in: Elementary (grades 4-6), Middle (grades 6-8), and Senior (grades 8+). Students can form teams of 2-4 people and, between everyone in the team, they read from a list of 20 books. Starting in early February, students have the opportunity to participate in “practice battles”, and the official Battle of the Books competition runs the last full week of February.
You can learn more about the BoB on the Battle of the Books webpage.

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The WSDLC project managers and the team at OverDrive are always available if you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions.
Not sure who to contact? Check out this handy guide on the WSDLC website: https://wsdlc.org/who-to-contact-with-questions/.

WiLS Team