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A New Series on Literature and Film Adaptation

| By Elizabeth Ferguson |

In today’s rush to produce more and more content for the silver screen, there is no shortage of cinematic adaptations of literary works. This concept and process is not new, however—directors and screenwriters have long been retelling beloved classics in feature-film format. Take, for example, Francis Ford Coppola’s adaptation of Dracula. Or François Truffaut’s take on Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 and James Whale’s version of Frankenstein. Even current works, such as the Harry Potter and Hunger Games series, have found immense success in the film world. Books to Film: Cinematic Adaptations of Literary Works, a new annual series offered on Gale’s GVRL eBook platform, explores the vast world of film adaptation. Entries discuss basic plot summaries of featured books and films; examine critical reaction to each adaptation at the time of their respective releases; provide biographical information on authors, directors, and screenwriters; and explore the process by which the book is transformed into a film. Adaptations covered range “from the silent period (1895–1927) through to contemporary cinema, from studios major and minor as well as independents, from Hollywood and around the globe” as Editor in Chief Barry Keith Grant writes in his introduction to Volume 1. Literary works covered include fiction and nonfiction, canonical works and bestsellers, classic and contemporary works, and long and short writing.

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New Content Added to Smithsonian Primary Sources in U.S. History

Newly added to Smithsonian Primary Sources in U.S. History: 175 primary sources (text and images) with curriculum correlations for easy integration into the classroom workflow. Content has been added across the eras, but especially boosts coverage in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. New text items include: U.S. responses to the Holocaust during World … Read more

ELEMENTARY ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS

As the number of English Language Learners (ELLs) increases, accounting for varying levels of language proficiency is paramount in today’s classrooms. Spanish-language eBooks can help young learners gain more confidence as they grow in their ability to read and understand the English language. BY 2020, 1 IN 4 CHILDREN WILL BE AN ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNER. … Read more

Gale’s Digital Platforms Puts Vetted Resources Right at the User’s Fingertips

Current, authoritative, media-rich information—you’ll find it in Gale’s In Context family of online resources, which meets the needs of today’s learners with a user-friendly, mobile-responsive design. Eye-catching, engaging topical databases seamlessly integrate trusted content with curriculum-aligned materials that span core subjects. Users can easily access G Suite for Education and Microsoft Office 365 tools to … Read more

San Luis Obispo High School Improves College Readiness and More

San Luis Obispo High School (SLOHS) is one of the top-ranking academic high schools in California. According to the school’s website, beyond their core academic program, they provide elective classes to better prepare students for what’s next. Recently, they acquired Gale’s Biography In Context,  a user-friendly portal experience containing context on the world’s most influential people. Here’s … Read more

For Students to the Rescue! Fear Not the Required Readings for High School

| By Nicole Albrecht |

The look in my students’ eyes, when I would pass out the first set of novels for the school year, would convey an array of emotions from fear, apathy, excitement, genuine interest, and, my favorite, rebellion. Introducing a novel to a high school English class can be a teacher’s worst nightmare, but I enjoyed every minute of it because it was a challenge to me. A challenge to change their mind about not only reading in general, but how they see the world after they are finished reading a particular work. I didn’t always feel this way about introducing a novel to my students, in fact, in the beginning of my teaching career, I would lose sleep for several days prior to introducing a novel. I felt this way because I knew how it felt for students to “fear the novel” and I remembered how I felt when my own high school teachers would introduce one.

I grew up with a love for reading—it was a chance to experience life from another perspective, to walk in someone else’s shoes, and upon finishing the story, become a new person with a new way to look at the world. It wasn’t until I was in high school that I started to loathe reading novels and I actually stopped reading altogether during this time.

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Product Update: Exciting Video Additions and Increased Text Size to Kids InfoBits!

Recently, Gale partnered with Visual Learning Systems, an educational science publisher whose mission is to provide high quality, visual-based content that instructs, challenges, and inspires young learners. Nearly 600 high-quality educational videos on concepts essential to STEM learning have been added to Kids InfoBits. These recently added and powerful teaching tools are approximately 1-3 minutes … Read more

Keeping the Conversation Going

Malala Yousafzai, Svetlana Alexievich and Shakespeare

I think of literary criticism as a conversation: an author speaks to an audience, which responds with comments, questions, sometimes praise, and sometimes disparagement. The discussion can last for centuries. In the case of Shakespeare, for instance, in 1592, early in his career, he was dismissed by fellow writer Robert Greene as an “upstart crow beautified with our feathers” and mocked as a “Shake-scene” (whatever that is).

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Meet NGSS with Professional Development from NSTA

Start your school’s science programs off right with professional development titles from the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA). This complete collection of 52 titles engages students with real-world scenarios representing science in all its messy, thought-provoking glory. Many of the titles support Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and include: Lesson plans and experiments for incorporating … Read more

The Big Jump From High School To College

By Traci Cothran

Diamond is a recent high school graduate from a charter school in Detroit, heading off to college this fall. We’ve been together for four years in the Big Brothers Big Sisters Detroit program, and I recently demonstrated our Gale databases for her, and asked her a few questions to share here on our blog.

You’re a college freshman – congratulations!  What are you excited – and maybe anxious – about?

I’m excited to get away from home and be independent.  I’m nervous about the work load in comparison to high school – everyone says it’s much harder – but I’m confident I have the organizational skills for success.  However, my college has great tutoring resources that I know I can use – and they’re located right in my dorm.  I’m not planning on working or doing sports my first year to be sure I have a handle on academics.  But I am going to check out the various clubs and organizations and plan to join some.

Did you visit a library at your college during the tour? 

Yes, we toured the library.  The library not only had a floor with books, but I was surprised to find it had a study floor, and quiet floors, too.  There’s a tablet instead of a librarian to use to find resources and direct you to them.  I don’t recall online resources mentioned during the tour.

How much did you use print books and electronic resources during high school?

Once I switched schools after ninth grade, it was 100% digital and worksheets – no print textbooks.  We were a “Google school,” and we were provided with Google computers, with Google software and integration.  I’m comfortable with either digital or print, though sometimes I prefer print.  My teachers used all kinds of online resources, but we did not have a physical library or librarian.

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