At ISTE 2023, educators can learn how a digital book standing order service, powered by degreed librarians, frees staff time and sustains a strong reading culture

 

PHILADELPHIA – June 22, 2023 – OverDrive Education announced today a new, free monthly service that supplies professional digital book selection to schools where staffing and time are in short supply. With the new “Sora Bookshelf Service,” educators can create a customized service plan based on preferences and budget to efficiently add in-demand ebooks, audiobooks, read-alongs and more each month to their Sora student reading platform. The Sora app serves more than 60,000 schools worldwide with the industry’s best ebook and audiobook catalog and award-winning user experience.

“We went from one bulk order a year to monthly purchases, and now our collection is always current and meeting student demand,” said Angela Anthony at Castro Valley Unified School District (California). Ms. Anthony serves as both a high school and district librarian and owns responsibility for the entire district’s Sora collection. “Each month, my amazing Sora librarian takes my requests and builds personalized carts by age band with both new and expiring titles. Then, all I have to do is take a look at the cart and purchase. I’d highly recommend using this standing order plan with other school libraries.”

Attendees of the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) conference in Philadelphia from June 26-28 can learn more by visiting OverDrive Education’s Booth #1504.

Many schools using Sora have qualified school librarians or media specialists who keep their Sora digital collections current, merchandized and aligned with the evolving reading needs of their students. Now, districts without professional book selectors or those whose staff are stretched thin can leverage the Sora Bookshelf Service. This new offering is ideal for those scenarios and others, such as:

  • Shortages or absence of qualified library and media staff
  • New school construction
  • Schools that want an easy way to begin with digital books

To begin service, a school must have an active Sora platform, choose their book selections and set up a budget. At monthly check-ins, schools confirm proposed purchases and usage statistics with their Sora team. The monthly cadence is an ideal interval to ensure new bestsellers are frequently purchased, and that student wait times are addressed. This increases productivity for school staff, while ensuring every student has access to the right books. Schools may reject any title they don’t wish to purchase and can modify preferences at any time.

Sora Bookshelf Service book selections can be customized based on tiers starting at $250 per month per grade banded list, up to larger amounts for additional copies. Grade band purchases rely on popular, never-miss, OverDrive Education curated lists that include new release essentials and award winners.

Browse list selection options and grade band pricing during the ISTE conference at Booth #1504. Attend presentations in the booth to hear educators from around the country share how they are implementing digital content and Sora to engage their students and staff. All times in EST:

  • Sora-ing to New Heights with TeachingBooks: Connecting Readers to the Digital Books they LOVE (Montgomery County Public Schools, MD) – Monday at 12pm
  • How North Penn used Grant Funding to Set their Digital Library up for Success (North Penn SD, PA) – at 1pm
  • Combine the Powers of TeachingBooks and Sora to Make Resources Discoverable in your School Library (Columbia Public Schools, MO) – at 3pm
  • Access for Every Reader: How Sora Serves Every Student (Parkway Schools, MO) – Tuesday at 10am
  • Tips for Managing Shared Collection Access at the School Level (WSWHE BOCES, NY) – at 12pm
  • Keys to Managing a Large Shared Digital Collection across Districts (Lancaster-Lebanon IU13, PA) – at 1pm
  • Say Goodbye to the Summer Slide with Sora (Lindenhurst Union Free School District, NY) – Wednesday at 11am
  • Tips to Ensure your District- and School-Level Collections Work Hand-in-Hand (Harford County Public Schools, MD) – at 1pm

For more information about the Sora app for schools, visit https://discoversora.com and ISTE Booth #1504.

For more information about TeachingBooks, visit TeachingBooks.net/OverDrive and ISTE Booth #1504.

 

About OverDrive Education and the Sora student reading app

The Sora student reading app, created by OverDrive Education, provides access to the right books for every student. Available in more than 59,000 K-12 schools worldwide, Sora offers the industry’s largest catalog of ebooks, audiobooks, digital magazines and other content to support the need for required curriculum titles, class sets and pleasure reading. Sora was named one of TIME’s Best Inventions. TeachingBooks.net (acquired in 2021) complements Sora with one of the largest catalogs of supplemental resources that “bring books to life.” OverDrive – which also provides digital content to public, academic and corporate libraries – is based in Cleveland, Ohio USA. www.overdrive.com/schools

Contact:
David Burleigh
Director of Brand Marketing & Communications
dburleigh@overdrive.com

 

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