Happy Tuesday! This will be the final weekly message for 2023, and do we have a variety of tidbits to share with you! This week’s message is sharing out all of the completely new titles that were added in to the WSDLC’s shared collections during November; we have a reminder on OverDrive’s annual End of Year Sale and the easy order form that allows you to purchase those high-demand titles included in the sale; an overview of all of 2023’s updates from OverDrive; and we’re sharing out the registration information for today’s Intellectual Freedom Forum hosted by WEMTA.
As you all prepare for a well-deserved break, the WSDLC Project Managers wish everyone a peaceful and rejuvenating end to 2023. See you again in 2024!
New Titles Added in November (+ More Magazines on December 20)
Last month, 240 completely new titles were added in to the WSDLC shared collections!
Of these titles:
- 4 are Audiobooks; 186 are Ebooks; 50 are Magazines
- 47 are in the Juvenile (K-5) collection; 47 are in the Young Adult (6-8) collection; 146 are in the Adult (9-12) collection
- 57 total subject areas. The top 10 subject areas last month were:
- Juvenile Nonfiction: 79 titles
- Comics and Graphic Books: 75 titles
- Fiction: 65 titles
- Language Arts: 49 titles
- Juvenile Fiction: 29 titles
- Juvenile Literature: 16 titles
- Young Adult Fiction: 16 titles
- Science: 12 titles
- Crafts: 11 titles
- Humor (Fiction): 11 titles
A complete list of all the new titles added in November, along with their format and content access level(s) can be viewed as a Google Sheet here.
And since we’re on the topic of new titles…
More Magazines Coming Tomorrow!
On Wednesday, December 20th, new titles from National Geographic Federation Magazines will become available to all WSDLC members! Beginning tomorrow, students will be able to check out and read:
- Ranger Rick Zootles
- Ranger Rick Zoobooks
- National Wildlife
- Ranger Rick
- Ranger Rick Adventures
- Ranger Rick Dinosaurs
The WSDLC Magazines collection is made up of all Simultaneous Use titles, which means they are always available for immediate use- no holds or wit times- and includes popular titles such as National Geographic Kids and National Geographic Little Kids, MiniMag, Minecraft World Magazine, It GiRL, Rolling Stone, and so many more!
It’s always worth the reminder- if you’re in a position where you need to make the difficult decision to trim your budget, take a peek at what’s available with your WSDLC membership; you may find some resources here that could fill the place of other, pricier subscriptions.
⸻ ● ● ● ⸻
OverDrive’s End of Year Sale is Happening Now + Easier Purchasing Options!
OverDrive’s biggest sale of the year is on through the end of the year, with up to 50% off on over 100,000 titles! The End of Year Sale includes both eBooks and Audiobooks, and the staff at OverDrive has created helpful lists so you can browse sale titles by format, reading level, genre, and more! Easily find 2023 Releases, Audiobooks under $30, Biographies & Autobiographies, Diverse Reads, and so many more!
Log in to your Marketplace Account for more information, to view sale titles, and to expand your local collections with titles only your students will be able to access.
Reduce your students’ wait times and take advantage of End-of-Year Sale carts for high-demand titles today!
If finding the time to go through lists of sale titles and figuring out what your students need/use the most is not in the cards for you right now, take a look at Premade Carts of Sale Items for WSDLC Members!
The WSDLC’s Digital Content Specialist Librarian at OverDrive has pinpointed all of the most popular titles in the shared collection (most circulated titles and titles with the highest holds) that are currently in OverDrive’s annual End of Year Sale, and placed them all in one of three carts based on titles’ content access levels.
You can view the title lists for each of these carts as a Google Sheet here.
When you’re ready to purchase one-, two-, or all three of these carts, you can submit your order through the 2024 End of Year Sale Cart(s) Order Form (Google Form). Districts/Schools can choose to have their End of Year Sale cart purchase(s) billed by invoice, issuing a PO, or by content credit that they already have deposited in their Advantage Account(s).
⸻ ● ● ● ⸻
Flipped Classrooms: Curation
December is Curation month for the WSDLC’s Flipped Classroom training series! In this Flipped Classroom, you can learn all about Curation in OverDrive/Sora and how you can create and post your very own curated collections to support your students’ needs and interests.
What are the WSDLC’s Flipped Classrooms?
The WSDLC offers a self-paced training series to help new members get oriented (and as a refresher for returning members) with their membership and the Sora collections. Every month, a different topic and set of materials are highlighted to help guide members throughout the school year. The content of these Flipped Classrooms is intended for Library Media Specialists and anyone else that may help to manage school/district library resources, OverDrive Advantage purchasing, and digital classroom materials. Materials are available for members to review independently, and OverDrive staff are ready to schedule one-on-one 20-minute sessions to answer members’ questions.
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/
⸻ ● ● ● ⸻
Updates from OverDrive: 2023 Sora Updates You May Have Missed
Amanda Izuka-Lawman, WSDLC’s own Product Support Specialist at OverDrive, has compiled a list of all the cool updates from OverDrive this past year, and it’s quite an impressive list to read through all at once!
For students
- ❗Holds notifications:
Receive a notification when a title put on hold is available to borrow, even when not using Sora. These notifications can be enabled on Sora supported devices and browsers. - 🎧 Audiobook Duration Filter:
Sort and filter audiobook titles in Sora by length from “30 minutes or less” to “More than 10 hours.” - 🗨️ New languages in Sora:
App navigation is now available in Portuguese, Korean, and Māori.
For admins
- 📚 Shelf Talkers:
Add shelf talkers to titles to spotlight recommendations, share trivia, quotes, and more. - 📅 Student dashboard enhancements:
Set up the dashboard to show reading data for both the current year and the previous year. - ✏️ Premium Reviews:
Book reviews from trusted industry sources – like Booklist, Kirkus, Library Journal, School Library Journal, PW, and more – have always been available in Marketplace, but they’re now more easily found right in search results, title details, and advanced search. - 🔠 Phonics and Decodables:
Give early readers unlimited, simultaneous use access to over 200 titles. (Available for purchase until June 2024, access ends August 2024.) - 🛒 Metered Access (MA) Manager:
Track expiring and expired Metered Access (MA) titles in your collection with customized plans. You can set criteria for which MA titles should be included, and optionally create carts for repurchasing.
Please reach out (wsdlc@overdrive.com) if you have any questions about the updates!
⸻ ● ● ● ⸻
In the Community: Today! WEMTA Intellectual Freedom Forum
Join WEMTA for the December 2023 edition of the Intellectual Freedom Forum, which will be held this evening, Tuesday, December 19th t at 5PM. The Intellectual Freedom Forum will last for 45 minutes and is free to all WEMTA members. Members must register for the event ahead of time.
View more information and register for this event here!
Not a WEMTA member? It’s free if you want to participate in certain events. Learn more about membership here.
⸻ ● ● ● ⸻
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/.
