Week 13 Pulling Together the Vision

I think being a librarian, SLMS, teacher librarian is all about the first amendment- and keeping that in the frontal lobes of your brain is important. You need to make sure students are able to express themselves with what the read, expressing themselves in their writing print and online, giving them space and opportunity in the library. If children don't feel you believe in freedom of speech they will never open up to you, share their inner thoughts, tell you about abuse, ask you about a book concerning a topic that is difficult to deal with. The old adage, about the more you listen the more you'll hear is great advice for the SLMS.
Helping students express themselves with more multimedia presentations will now come with a better understanding of correctly citing sources and following (now understandable) fair use guidelines, more accurately. Not many of our teachers are using many Web 2.0 tools and I have the confidence to introduce, and encourage them to use them with working together on projects that assimilate these tools easily. Our fifth graders are going to debate online with their Famous Americans projects almost complete. Using moodle, students will debate Rosa Parks vs Harriet Tubman, Thomas Edison vs Alexander Graham Bell, trying to use their research to prove their Famous American has contributed more to history than the other.
With a great collection of PlayAways we are going to order some ebooks through BOCES to try a new format for our reluctant readers. With the excitement generated with PlayAways, I think many of our students will jump at this new option.
I have learned much this semester and feel connected by blogs, RSS feeds, del.isio.us to some of the 'spokespeople' of our time., and following their thoughts and views will be much more convienent with web 2.0 tools.
Starting an Internet safety program can not begin fast enough and with iSafe and its ready, relevant videos, action lesson plans and student involvement, it couldn't be easier. Its been a long 4 months that have flown by! Continuing to learn and this time in a new format using Web 2.0 tools has brought real relevancy to the subject. Strong connections to SLMS new to the field. Great.

Week 12 Participating in a Professional Community

Well -Spring break certainly is not a 'break'. As SLMS Knickerbocker Chair, my job is to take all nominations for the 2011 winner, have the membership status of the nominators checked and then the nominations must be vetted for NYS residency and a body of work that aligns with the NYS curriculum. Thank goodness for a wiki I set up a year ago as our committee is located all over the state. We'll be done in a week and ready to post them to the SLMS listserv for member vote throughout May. At the same time, I am the new Scholarship chair for my union, and received all hard copies of all PR and applications/information. The previous chair thought she was being generous but I asked for the electronic files (she refused) I have retyped all 11 forms and they now have my own 'spin' and are on a flash drive for posterity. All information will be rolled out the Monday we get back....two large responsibilities almost resolved....all part of the participation in our professional community that is critical for growth and continued competencies. (But a few days off would have been nice!)

Week 11 eBooks and Copyright

The videos on some of the Cyber Stalker/Bullying sessions were unnerving, and gut wrenching to view. I had to get up and move away at times as the outcome was so painfully obvious. I worried that blogging would be held up as a dangerous venue for children but was relieved to see the more obvious chat rooms and bullying done from web pages was more emphasized. There was a fair amount of repitition in many of the videos, as if we didn't get it the first time. I am anxious to talk this over with my superintendant. I wish we had known that we would be encouraged to begin implementaion with a plan of action but I for one cannot until I get clearance from her.

There were so many great quotes in the readings this week from the time line of many of the tools we now can't live without!. One aspect I didn't hear was this....IM took off from the moment it hit the ground, so did Facebook, downloading from iTunes, and they alluded to the success of the iPod because of the success of iTunes, a commodity that young people desired. If eBooks were going to be a web sensation, it would have happened. They will have a following for sure, but for a new tech tool to be an overnight success, it has to be something kids can't live without....and what will that be? tune in tomorrow!

Week 10 Professional Development

One would hope when faculty sign up for Professional Development that they sincerely wish to take a class or session that interests them, that will motivate them, bring awareness and add to their classroom environment to the benefit of students But we know that isn't always the case. Teachers, aides often choose what fits into their schedule for the day something that is light, not too taxing. I think that by doing a flyer, I might promote my sessions a little better, not saying my sessions would be better, just that I might reach more of an audience.

I'd like to get something accomplished that I haven't so far, and that is to do a 5 minute tech info session each faculty meeting on just about any topic or something that a lot of teachers are asking about. New websites, change of passwords, adding a new database, etc., hoping to get all the librarians involved from around the district. I think this class has given me a stronger voice, and I'm liking that.

Week 9 Field Trip

Again, so much to read/learn, once I went to the first presentation I kept listening, choosing another one and listening. What a wonderful format, as it allowed me to do some other chores with my hands while listening and jotting notes from time to time. Doing what we like, or what interests us, or what we're good at increases the chance that you'll learn more thoroughly. This week, I had a student that was unable to stay engaged with reading his biography about Henry Ford. He was becoming angry with me, frustrated and distracted when in the SLMC. My principal and I sat down with him and asked him several questions and discovered he really hated his choice of Famous Americans and ended up changing to Jeff Gordon. We also learned he has 8 brothers and brother #5 is in prison with a young girlfriend and child. My student is anxious to move to California to live with his brother when he gets out of prison. We talked with him about choices and life and speaking up for himself and not using behaviors to speak for him. I hope we made a difference in his life (no matter how small) and he can move on to reading and learning about Gordon, a really focused young man.
Learning....there's soooo much more to it than most of us know. The field trip had some good examples of what makes a great presentation and what does not.

Week 8 Staff Developement

Two successful things happened this week. We have a conference day coming up, there was a lot of individualized grade level learning offered, and I was at a loss for something to do with staff I generally don't come into contact with. My final project, Famous Americans with our 5th graders (my Seniors!) is just in the beginning stages. This class is challenging (reading well below grade level) and I have made some slight modifications to the project ,adding some Web 2.0 items. I brought my principal in on the topic and is solidly behind it. So I invited all the reading teachers, blended aides and computer/library aide to work on the project for half a day. Our proposal includes, giving time for the Reading teachers to see each facet of the multi-layered project, creating better rubrics for each section that increase writing parameters, and practising with my new Blue Snowball USB microphone with Audacity. (finally got Audacity on each computer) This will be exciting (and new)for the reading teachers so they can each try it out. I thought their rooms would be great for the recording as they are small and isolated in the school. I have added a PP this year and it will be after they have finished their typed report so I don't get a PP lengthened into a paper. The last slide will be each student recording their thoughts on "why is this person important to the world? and why are they important to me individually?" New this year will be handing in a word cloud, (sadly everytime I go to Wordle someone has posted some trash talk) and I will be showing them Obama's innaugural speach and Lincoln's done this way. Finally they will debate one other student via a blog on why their person has contributed more to the world. I'm hoping for collaboration this day and not me taking the teaching role as I usually do.
Secondly, the blended teachers came down to the SLMC to tell me that every spare moment the 5th graders are asking to take out their biographies (all new, right on target for their reading levels) to read and take notes..YEAH

Week 7 Collaboration

Google docs, certainly satisfies the problems plaguing colleagues, classmates, business people, or collaborators who live a distance apart, who must produce a product with everyone's cooperation and input. It provided the vehicle to produce exactly what we wanted/needed to accomplish. Just when I thought, 'hmm I wonder if it can do this?" I found the link easily and it performed the task exactly as I wanted.
“Necessity is the Mother of invention” (Plato); I wonder if someone saw a need to find a vehicle that would bring together people from different worlds who needed to work together . As more companies are cutting back on travel expenses the need to communicate face-to-face still exists. Or did someone come up with the idea and then ‘sell’ it to those of us who didn’t realize we needed it, until we were told??
The websites we looked at were amazing and very inspirational! I hope to make some major changes to my site very soon. I want our databases on the first page, citation information right next to that and our OPAC more visible. I want a more PR look also, promoting classroom blogs, Moodle projects, and podcasting.

Week 6 Halfway, SLMC websites, Access

This week's discussion thread, "Where are we all at Week 6" jarred me as I hadn't looked at the calendar to even check where we stood. With so much more to read, so many new things to learn and master, then so many websites to investigate, and projects to complete, I truthfully did not focus on an ending point. As I have talked about before....I need to turn that corner where I stop being the learner and start being the "teacher" and learn on my own....but I am really enjoying the way we are learning and then 'doing' at the same time!! Using a new tool in an appropriate way helps me learn...and hopefully I can quickly turn it around and use it in my library, and just as importantly, teach others to feel comfortable with these new tools.
My district librarians and I need to get working on our HS library website, for function, content and usability. Making a website that invites students in to use it is as important as inviting them into the library. Many of the websites we searched really welcomed me in to explore and check out every link.
I am anxious to get started on my iSafe certification and bring an excellent program to Batavia. Week 6 and still so much more to learn!!!

Week 5 Catalog Searching

Not to simplify library catalogs but I think they fall into two types. Those that use three search areas; subject, title, author and those that are more colorful, interactive but ask a child to know more about a book/resource than they might possibly know? If they want to find the book from The Animal Ark series or the wonderful classic Lassie, a child has to decide Animals or Adventure to start their search. Sometimes kids don't understand categorizing as older people do. So cute or engaging won’t speed up their success at finding the book they want.

What I always worry about are the many displays I set up to try to get the “Right book, in the Right hands at the Right time. But the moment you do that your catalog become obsolete, sending the child on a frustrating wild goose chase. I wanted to post this as a Wiki thread to ask students what they would do in their library? Keep books where they belong on the shelf or get them into a child’s hands? Perhaps after my library is renovated and I have many permanent display areas I can site that in my OPAC.

Week 5 EBSCO and other losses

Is it coincidence? Each week, no matter the subject or thematic readings, this class parallels my job as a SLMS. When I returned from the SLMS board meeting we were just getting information about NOVEL and the loss of databases, and Susan posts that as a thread for this week! We face cuts to SLS, possible loss of jobs and many librarians being asked by districts to write up descriptions and show evidence of collaborations, projects completed with grade levels, circulation stats, weeding reports, and options for temporary reductions in funding for books, magazines, online databases, AV and supply budgets. Throughout the week I worked on two disquieting committees. The first was to create a list of potential strategies to cut back workstations, and provide a list of locations for workstation retraction, where possible. As my principal and I inventoried the building you could see the panic in everyone’s eyes as we walked through their classrooms with clipboards. We will evaluate usage and possible redistribution of classroom PCs. I.T. wants to cut $135,000 in software and hardware and is looking to cut 10-20 workstations per building. The other committee is reviewing usage of software and will make recommendations for switching to possible free Internet options to replace costly software that benefits fewer users. Again, there is strong identification for a department who does not want to give up software they lobbied hard to procure. There were some easy choices; we subscribe to Quia for 600.00 a year when we can replace it with Survey Monkey, a free online resource. The biggest drain is KidBiz at $38,000.00, but with a faithful following of 8 teachers who feel its easy to prove higher test scores in their classes , this will get personal real fast. The principals will make all final decisions on PC retractions but I am on the I.T. committee and my cooperation will be a concern.

Week 4 Webquest and SLMS

I got lost this week-seriously lost. The Webquest was intense, overflowing with information, bursting at the seams, and yet energizing. I got lost in Bernie Dodge's Webquest site, plowing through webquest ideas never thinking my second graders could be up for the challenge of a webquest, why hadn't I thought of that?
I should never have checked on David Warlick, I get lost just following his reasoning...he's worried for all of us, for ideas about educational change that few are on board with, not even realizing what we need to fear. "Will we ever prepare our students in time?" And are we sure what we are preparing them for? He is not sure we know! I heard this quote that sums DW up (although he might disagree) "Prepare the child for the path, not the path for the child"
I spent the weekend at a 2 day 10 hour board meeting, listening to Sara Kelly Johns, past AASL president and her work on summits, and telephone conference braintrust meetings with Barbara Stripling, Rosina Alaimo, past NYLA president. Fran Roselli and our State Ed representative John Brock laboriously nudging us through the complex layers of NYS government that moves top down in a bloated, self serving quagmire. (I fear we are all lost somewhere in the jargon) We lobby to get Librarians named in the NCLB legislation, we struggle to have our adminsitrators incorparate the AASL standards for the 21st-Century Learner in the school curriculum. Yet, what did we work on well into the night? revisions to the SLMS Crisis toolkit -for if all our work fails and fellow librarians are released in this economic chaos, students will be the losers. As Arne Duncan (new Education Secretary) just said "It is to no one's advantage if class size skyrockets or librarians get eliminated or school counselors disappear." I am putting my trust in this man, that we librarians, who every day help children find their way- never get lost.

Week 3 Student Technology Skills

This week did not go as planned, I was sick, then sicker, then missed more work, which never is a good thing. The week ended with union issues, then out of town for a Teacher's Union Conference. Copious notes and new legal updates and loads of issues to take in and understand....I came home exhausted, and realized my homework was on my desktop of my computer at work. As librarians, our plates are always full, and you never work down those piles on your desk. I won't tell the students. A teacher at UB once told us, "You are expected to be an expert on every issue, the day you start working in your LMC" Truer words, never spoken!
Often, when we are learning "new" technologies, we are merely catching up to what our students already now about and easily use daily. Once we get a handle on it all, they are off to a new version of what we adults have just mastered. Theories abound that if we teach students using the format they enjoy for other facets of their lives, then they will certainly enjoy learning the more challenging curriculum....hmmmm. Will Richardson has me convinced..can I convince my fellow teachers? and will students stand still long enough until I can?? :)

Week 2 Innaguration of a new President ushers in a new way of connecting the world

What a wonderful week, with the Inaguration of our new 44th president Barack Obama. Check out these pictures from a blog that captured the glory and the pagentry of the day that millions of people peacefully assembled to be a witness to history.
http://blogs.denverpost.com/captured/2009/01/21/inauguration-day-in-dc/
The contributions of worldwide bloggers, podcasts, FaceBook entries, YouTube videos captured the sights and sounds immediately before, during and after the ceremonies. Millions of global viewers were active in the moment, with capturing, creating and publishing the journal of information that made up the day. Streaming video stretched at the seams, slowing slightly as the moment of 12:00 p.m. noon arrived. Never before in history had this important and historic day been reported collaboratively by the average citizen in such a way with each of our own voices heard! The new web now delivers the new word.

How has Week 1 gone so far?

As you get to know me, you'll hear the same mantra....I like clear instructions, directions that are accurate and concise, where misinterpretations and doubts are cast aside. If you work in a group with me...I hope you don't find this unsettling but know that in the end this will bring clarity and vision to our projects.
I find Web 2.0, not as intuitive as others may, which is why I am taking this class....I need to get up my speed and assuredness when working with my students. I set up a blog for my school that put together many ideas for our school's Health Initiative but (sadly) no one uses it (not enough time) and I have a wiki to ease the workload and inter connectivity of a group of librarians from around NYS working for SLMS.
I had some issues finding the 'dumb' SAVE button on the first Profile page, but finally SUCCESS!
I had a delicious account so I put that on the wiki...and this blog was simple to set up! My computer is having issues trying to 'accept' an iTunes account but I am going to force it down its throat if need be....I'll take the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly....next week will look easier....especially if we have a SNOWDAY friday!!