Bibliotherapy and its use in the classroom.

"Bibliotherapy is the process of using books to help children think about, understand, and work through social and emotional concerns. Reading with children can be therapeutic.... Adults can use reading to help children come to grips with issues that create emotional turmoil for them. Reading can also be...very effective in preventing and resolving behaviour problems."

(from Positive Child Guidance by Darla Ferris Miller)

I had never heard of the term 'Bibliotherapy' until it came up during a lecture today. This concept fascinates me, and yet it seems so obvious. It makes me wonder why I never though of using books in this way before. After hearing about this concept I did a quick google search and came across some really good research on the use of bibliotherapy in the classroom.

Check out the links below if you are interested in learning more. Using bibliotherapy with children.

I have since started to follow a bibliotherapy board on Pinterest to start building up my resources on this topic. I will be on the look out for more comprehensive bibliotherapy resources and will update when I find some great stuff.

This week I have been playing with the many different formats that can be used to present videos and pictures. My favourite so far is Animoto. However, the bank manager says I cannot upgrade my account and therefore I am limited to the trial version, which, as you will all be aware, is quite limited. The graphics this software offers are amazing. I have tried a few different websites which offer similar services, but these are clearly substandard compared to Animoto.

Who would have thought that the simple slideshow could evolve into so many different forms? Prezi is another site I have been playing with and I love the visual effects created by this site. I don't know how practical its application would be but I'm sure I can find an excuse to use it sometime in the future.

I have also peeped into the world of digital storybooks, they aren't just for children any more. Having said that though I really like the pop up version from Zooburst which is aimed at younger children. Storybird offers some beautiful graphics to use for a digital storybook. I have to admit that I am yet to master the technical part of this site and so far it has gotten the better of me. I will persevere though and make a book using those whimsical graphics. Why? Because I can.