17/10/11

HOSSANA - a poem from MIGUEL TORGA: a shout of hope in future

HOSSANA!

Junquem de flores o chão do velho mundo:
Vem aí o futuro
Desejado por todos os poetas
E profetas da vida
Deixou a sua ermida
E meteu-se a caminho.
Ninguém ainda o viu, mas é belo.
É o futuro…
Ponham mais rosmaninho
Em cada rua,
Em cada porta,
Em cada muro,
E tenham confiança nos milagres
Desse Messias que renova o tempo.
O passado passou
O presente agoniza
Cubram de flores a única verdade
Que se eterniza.


Miguel Torga, Cântico do Homem
 HOSSANA!

Overlay flowers on the floor of the old world:
Here comes the future!
Desired by all poets
And prophets of life
he left his hermitage
And put himself on the journey.
No one has yet seen it, but it is beautiful.
It's the future .
Put more rosemary
In every street,
In each port,
On each wall,
And have faith in miracles
of this Messiah who is renewing this time.
The past has passed
The present is  agony
Cover of flowers the only truth
Which is eternal


Miguel Torga, Cântico do Homem

STORY OF A SEAGULL AND A CAT WHO TAUGHT HOW TO FLY -LUIS SEPULVEDA


MY CHOICE  : 12 years or more ( a love dtory and a survuval story)


 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vl60ggCL1KA&feature=related





It's migration time and as a mother gull dives into the water to catch a herring she's caught in an oil slick! Thinking of the egg she is about to lay she manages to extract herself and fly to the nearest port. Exhausted, she lands on a balcony where Zorba the cat is sunning himself. Zorba wants to get help, but the gull knows it's too late and she extracts three promises from him: 1) That he won't eat the egg, 2) that he'll take care of the chick until it hatches, and 3) that he'll teach it to fly. The first two are hard enough, but the third one is surely impossible. Isn't it?



ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Luis Sepúlveda is a Chilean writer, film director, journalist and political activist. 

He studied theatre production at the National University. In 1969, Sepúlveda was given a five-year scholarship to continue his drama studies at the Moscow University, but it was withdrawn after five months on account of 'misconduct' (he attended a party with a Politburo Officer's Wife, which was considered high ofense).
 

Luis Sepúlveda was politically active first as a leader of the student movement and in the Salvador Allende administration in the department of cultural affairs where he was in charge of a series of cheap editions of classics for the general public. He also acted as a mediator between the government and Chilean company

Constantinos Cavafis, Ithaka, in Greek

Constantinos Cavafis, Ithaka

16/10/11

FORUM main conclusions


Main conclusions:
- SL are considered important in all education systems
- SL are not mandatory in all countries
- not all countries have specific legislation concerning SL and teacher librarians career(diferent numbers of hours per week, different opening and closing timetable)
-  Most SLare run by qualified teachers
- SL are no longer only ' book stores'; they are open spaces where students and teachers can find all kind of resources (paper, eletronic and digital). However they are not what we can call hybrid libraries and I mean they incorporate few digital resources and e-reading is not a main concerning yet (Germany has showed a great concern + Ireland mentioning data bases)
- promoting reading competences, ICT and information literacies are main goals
- SL promote partnerships with parents and local associations
- SL play an important role in promoting students academic success
- SL must have a budget which allows the gowth of the colection and digital equipment/  mixed funding is a solution in many countries
- evaluation is a fact but it differs from country to country

Last but not least important conclusion:
Maybe we have much in common than we tought. These presentations should enable us to do better in our SL

23/09/11

Reading Revolution: 14 Marvelous Modern Libraries by Steph in Architecture & Design

The jaw-dropping intricacy of the libraries of old, with their leaded glass windows and tiers of dark wood shelves, is being replaced in favor of clean lines, open spaces and a focus on new technology in library architecture of the late 20th century and beyond. These 14 modern libraries are just as beautiful, boasting dramatic shapes and volumes, high ceilings, transparent walls and, of course, impressive stacks of books.

Jose Vasconcelos Library, Mexico City
                                                                                               (images via: lwy)
Dedicated to Jose Vasconcelos, a philosopher and former president of the National LIbrary of Mexico, this 409,000-square-foot library was built in 2005 and 2006 for $98 million, but had to be closed for 22 months due to construction defects. Row after row of gleaming steel form abstracted geometric patterns and impress upon visitors just how many books are contained within the shelves.
Idea Store Whitechapel, London, UK
                                                                                     (images via: architizer, archrecord)
A traditional library is combined with space for classes inside a diaphanous blue and green glass volume in Adjaye Associates’ Idea Store Whitechapel. The flagship building of a program that aims to push libraries into the 21st century, including the latest digital technology, Idea Store includes a five-story atrium.
Yale University Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library
                                                                                  (images via: lauren manning)
Yale’s Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library is housed in an unusual modern structure built in 1963; it’s the largest building in the world reserved just for the preservation of rare writings. Inside, the books are stacked six stories high. The walls are made of translucent marble to let in minimal light, a tactic that preserves the delicate books and papers.
Black Diamond at the Royal Library Copenhagen, Denmark
                                                                                         (images via: e-architect.co.uk)
SHL Architects gave Copenhagen an incredible new landmark with the Black Diamond extension to the historic Royal Danish Library. This monolithic design is surprisingly airy and open on the inside, encouraging not just the study of books but also the exploration of new types of media. “We are drawn to these projects for their potential to engage the public and not only to give cultural and social life to their cities and towns but also for their ability to work as a accelerator for learning and knowledge,” says Bjarne Hammer, an SHL founding partner.
Villanueva Public Library, Colombia
                                                                                            (images via: archdaily)
Local materials and a local workforce help make the Villanueva Public Library in Colombia a sustainable structure. The collaboration between four young architects places two volumes, one made of solid stone and the other an airy latticed pine structure, right beside each other in a visually engaging contrast.
Parque Biblioteca Espana
                                                                                   (images via: architectural record)
Located on a hillside in the neighborhood of La Ladera in Medellin, Colombia, the Parque Biblioteca Espana is a stark trio of monolithic modern buildings looking down on what was once among the most dangerous neighborhoods in Latin America. Designed by Giancarlo Mazzanti as a symbol of hope, the library, auditorium and community center buildings were inspired by the shape of boulders.
National Library of Belarus
                                                                                        (images via: mondoarc)
The entire facade of the geometric National Library of Belarus is an LED dispay; during the day, the glass panels glimmer in the sun, and at night, they’re illuminated from within to put on a constantly shifting light show. The library is an incredible 23 stories tall and contains the third largest collection of books in Russian.
TU Delft Library, The Netherlands
                                                                                     (images via: galinsky.com)
A striking conical volume emerges from what appears to be a green hill, but is actually a subterranean library with a living roof. The library at Delft’s University of Technology was designed by Mecanoo and completed in 1997. The cone shape descends into the main room of the library and contains spiral staircases leading to reading rooms.
Halmstad Library, Sweden
                                                                                (images via: e-architect.co.uk, archidose)
Designed by SHL Architects, the sweeping Halmstad Library in Halmstad, Sweden overlooks the River Nissan and curves around a pre-existing mature chestnut tree. The library, completed in 2007, is comprised of one large open space in the interior which is made to feel all the larger by floor-to-ceiling windows.
Vancouver Public Library, Canada
                                                                          (images via: greenroofs.com, wikimedia commons)
With beams and arches towering into the air, the Vancouver Public Library resembles, from the outside, an ancient Roman aqueduct. Designed by Moshe Safdie and built in 1995, this unusual structure includes an attached office high-rise, retail shops, restaurants and parking in addition to the public library system. It is topped by a rooftop garden that is not open to the public.
Baton Rouge Downtown Library Concept, Trahan Architects
                                                                                              (images via: archdaily)
A controversial $19m proposal may land Baton Rouge a new downtown library designed by Trahan Architects. The project is on hold while the city works out budget concerns. The library draws upward like an extended accordion, and inside, concrete platforms supporting subsequent floors seem to hover in midair. A stairway coils around the inside of the striking glass envelope.
Ann Arbor District Library, Michigan
                                                                                       (images via: archdaily)
Ann Arbor, Michigan boasts a beautiful modern library designed by InFORM Studio. Replacing a 4,000-square-foot library located in a strip mall, the new structure, completed in 2008, is long, low and geometric. Rustic natural tree trunk columns echo the woods outside while high ceilings, pale ash and white paint make it feel even more spacious.
UCSD Giesel, A.K.A. Doctor Seuss Library, San Diego
                                                                                  (images via: libraries.ucsd.edu)
UC San Diego’s University Library Building was renamed Geisel Library in 1995 after an author who’s made a major contribution to children’s literature: Dr. Seuss. This unusually shaped, eight-story library was designed in the 1960s by William Pereira and is sited at the head of a canyon.
Tana Art University Library, Tokyo, Japan
                                                                                                 (images via: dezeen)
Completed in 2007, the Tama Art University Library in Tokyo was designed by Toyo Ito. Cold, unyielding concrete is engineered in soft swooping arches, both in the shapes of the windows and the ceilings of the interior. Says Ito, “The spatial diversity one experiences when walking through the arches different in span and height changes seamlessly from a cloister-like space filled with natural light, to the impression of a tunnel that cannot be penetrated visually.”

26/08/11

Eurydice - Information on Education Systems and Policies in Europe


The Eurydice Network provides information on and analyses of European education systems and policies. As from 2011 it consists of 37 national units based in all 33 countries participating in the EU's Lifelong Learning programme (EU Member States, EFTA countries, Croatia and Turkey). It is co-ordinated and managed by the EU Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency in Brussels, which drafts its studies and provides a range of online resources.

Structure of European education systems 2010/11: schematic diagrams:

en

The study Teaching Reading in Europe: Contexts, Policies and Practices, published on July 11 2011, shows what countries are doing to improve reading literacy – and where they are falling short.
Full version: en
Highlights: de en es fr  it

More about Eurydice here.

Vila do Conde

Land of sea and light, light and haze, tradition and future.Monuments and museums.Squares and gardens.Popular festivities and thematic festivals.Shipbuilding and bobbin lace work.Fish, shellfish and conventual sweets.Cultural animation.VILA DO CONDE is a ship of light and stone navigated by people made of sea.

For Ruy Belo, Vila do Conde is “the place where heart hides”,
José Régio sang it “spread among pine-woods, river and sea”
And Antero wrote “it is beautiful here, with its noble and rural air, and leaves us in a placid and soft disposition”.
Millennial land, full of traditions and rich in natural beauty; a notable collection of monuments representing the various époques, with its outstanding sixteenth-century nucleus;
river and sea with 18 km of peaceful and fine sand beaches;
the delicate bobbin lace work;
a vast array of museums and prestigious events like the International Festival of Short Films, Courses of Musical Improvement, the National Handicraft Fair or the Gastronomy Fair.
That’s Vila do Conde, noble, hospitable and beautiful!

For more information, please click here.

    

09/08/11

Welcome to the Sudy Visit "School Libraries - Reading and Literacies"!

Dear all!

We would like to invite you to participate in this blog about the work of some European school libraries. Here you can share good practices, useful links and general knowledge about school libraries.
We are looking forward to meeting you next Autumn in Vila do Conde, Portugal!
Até breve,
Rosa e Maria