741.6 Glogster: A Different Way to "Present"

741.6 Research Projects in the 2.0 World: Sharing the Learning

Typical 4th grade research project - learning about Texas cities.

Typically done? Not on your life!

One of the librarians in my circle who has embraced the 2.0 tools almost longer than anyone I know recently shared her school's version of the "typical" project.

Yes, each student researched a Texas city...each one used typical resources available to them...print and digital. So they had experience accumulating information and using research skills.

The 2.0 finished project - trading cards using the Big Huge Labs site.

The interaction experience - ACTUALLY trading the cards (and some treats courtesy of the librarian)

The assessment - the librarian developed a checklist activity and found out the students really did learn facts about Texas cities...and did it in a fun way!

I am so fortunate to work with librarians (and teachers and school leaders) who recognize that learning CAN be done in interesting and creating ways...with fun thrown in!

027.8 Librarians at Play: TLA Presentation about 2.0 Tools

A 23 Things friend asked me to visit her TLA presentation during TLA conference last week. I am glad because it was a great discussion of using things pre-K /12 and I saw some ideas that were new to me...and fun and exciting!

There was a group of private school librarians who were presenting 2.0  things that they had used with their students during the past year. Some of them work in schools where every student has access to a laptop and nothing on the internet is blocked. Others operate with similar roadblocks that the rest of us must endure. But everyone encouraged the audience to do what they could!

As a group, they realize that security, working within the context of existing tools, advertising issues on some sites, filters, and time are all things that have to be considered with learning new things and teaching them to students.

Some statements that stood out to me were:

"Try everything! Try a few things, but try something!"

"It is ok to fail."

"Joyce Valenza for real people" --paying homage to the queen of library 2.0 matters, while recognizing that not all of us can do it at her level!

My friend presented the project that her 2nd grade students did with Flat Stanley and tied it to a Google maps activity. They mailed Flat Stanley to long distance family members and asked them to take him along on an adventure and send pictures back. Here is a link to an Animoto about the project. 

Her 4th grade students studied about magazines and then created a magazine cover using animals and other science topics as the themes for their magazines. Here is an Animoto about them.

Another presenter uses Library Thing to advertise the new books that have been added to the school's collection. If my notes are correct, she scans the bar code on the back of the book and that pulls up a cover which she adds to other titles to make a collage. The collage is placed in emails to students and teachers and she also prints out a copy for reference when students come in. They often refer to the books by cover rather than title! I am not familiar with this procedure myself, but I'm sure it something for which there is more info. She also writes about books in her blog Print Matters.

Another librarian talked about the benefits of Google docs, especially with middle school students who can't drive themselves to collaboration opportunities. She told the group that her students come form 28 zip codes!!...and to do group projects is often impossible because the students live so far apart. But Google docs eliminated some the problems. She did mention that Google docs dow not support PPT 2007, but they found that Zoho docs does so when they need to, they use that resource as well.

A few more topics covered in the presentation included:

Creating a ning for historical people of importance. Group them according the time period. The students write profiles, etc. based on the individuals they are studying.

The Horizon Projects...a wiki with lots of things from the educational 2.0 world.

Pandora.com...radio and music for the library

LinkBunch.com...bunch links under one link to make sharing easier. 

Their TLA conference handout Get Busy: Unique Challenges in Private Schools and Web 2.0 is not active yet, but if it does become available, I will hot link it here.

027.8 TLA Week in Texas: LibrarySpeak 24/7

It's time for the annual conference for all the librarians in Texas to come together to learn, collaborate, and...yes, even play! Three and a half days of action packed sessions with experts on all levels about all kinds of things! Books, authors, reading incentives, everything technology-wise you can think of and everything in between that makes a library a library and THE place to be today...no matter its location or type!

Even though the event is in my hometown, I still moved downtown for the week. Why you ask? Have YOU ever driven to downtown Houston on a week day for an 8:00 a.m. anything? But more importantly, conference time has become an important time to catch up with friends and colleagues from across the state and to have lots of time and opportunities for some good old-fashioned visiting along with new fangled collaboration!

Just in my first day, I have caught up with about ten members of my Tall Texan class, had two in-depth conversations about the 2.0 library world and how to help technology and district leadership understand the importance of "open" resources, reviewed 23 Things staff development with some folks contemplating doing it in their community, and finalized details for an adminstrators' conference on the value of libraries to their schools' success! The FIRST DAY!

Made it to one formal session where two school leaders from Mesquite and Spring Branch discussed the 23 Things program in detail...and got to meet f2f some players from last summer's adventure. Lots of us got to share how we all are incorporating the 2.0 tools into our teaching and learning as we visited after the program. So much enthusiasm and excitement in the air!

I think that is one reason I enjoy conference so much. For one week at least, all things are possible...roadblocks disappear, be they the people or financial type...new ideas emerge and old ones get refreshed. All books are new and full of promise. And the day ended with the best hot-fudge sundae (complete with brownie pieces AND cherries) high up in a hotel where the view of the city lights and the lingering clouds made for a magnificent close to a very good day indeed!

Stick around this week...I have made a promise to myself to try and blog about some parts of the conference that come my way!

953.63 Qatar or Bust: Community Effort

Since the inception of our Library2Play 23 Things professional development almost a year ago, there have been many players who have embraced the 2.0 world and given their students new keys to learning.

One such player is Estie Cuellar, a CATE teacher in our district in Houston, TX. From her culminating comments about the 23 Things adventures:
"I have become proactive in seeking out and learning new technologies that will help me grow as a teacher professional and affect positively the lives of my students."

She has done this thru many things:
"Kids today are in sync with technology...it's practically in their DNA. They are proficient multi-taskers. They cannot be reached in a one-dimensional classroom. I understand this.... The vast majority of my lessons are interactive. I play music in my classroom everyday. I make sure that my students conduct Internet research and complete online activities. This year, I will incorporate blogging to replace notebook journals as the students' reflection piece after completing lessons."

She also created a TeacherTube video about her teaching:



Estie has a group of students who have been particpating in the Flat Classroom Project this Fall. In this adventure the students have been working with students around the world on various topics. It is now time for these students to come together with their global peers. The meeting is to be held in Qatar in January.

These nine students need YOUR help. It is going to cost $20,000 for the students and their teacher to make the trip. These students can not do it alone. The Spring Branch Foundation has set up an account for donations towards this life-changing trip for these students.

If you would like to see more that Estie has done, please go to her wiki and blog.

Here is the Qatar Conference blog she and the students have created to talk about the summit and their plans...and needs! The students rap:

[converted from a YouTube video to a wmv file by ZamZar]

On the blog page is a form for contributing to their trip. You can contribute by check made out to the Spring Branch ISD Foundation or use a credit card as well. I chose to write a check.

This is a tough time of year to be asking for funds...especially this year in our community. Many folks are recovering from IKE in our area and are facing the national financial crisis in many ways. Plus the holidays are fast approaching and we all have obligations in that area as well. But please, if you can, help these kids. They deserve to go as much as any other member of the project.

Please consider leaving off that extra fancy coffee or two...take peanut butter and jelly sandwiches a couple of times for lunch rather than doing take out. Reach down in the sofa cushions or shake some coins outta that change jar on your dresser. Please.

Bloggers are known for creating community. Please widen the circle a little today and include Estie and her students. Please put a little money where your keyboard is. 'Tis the season!

371.33 Blog Anniversary: Two Years and Counting...

This blog is two years old this holiday weekend. I am fast running out of time to meet the anny deadline, but I am getting it started and will write on it a bit all day as I shoe-horn it in between life in general and the list I set for myself over this long weekend!

I am proud that it exists and that it is two years and counting. In the past I was not comfortable with my writing and very little exits, but this does...mostly because I could write down thoughts to be "used" by others. In my mind that makes it possible to accomplish because it is (hopefully) for the benefit of others.

There is very little original thought here. I simply report what I find or that others share with me (and thousands of others.) One of the BEST things about the online world...the possibility of sharing!

This second year has been a busy one. My team and I came across the 23 Things phenomena that has been making the rounds so we created our own version and have conducted it twice...so far! The first go-round of Library2Play included about half of our campus librarians, a few district teachers, an administrator, and a few brave souls from around the state who heard about it thru the Internet grapevine. THEN we repeated it in the summer...where we were joined by 300 district librarians, teachers, and several administrators along with educators from a wider state circle and 3 other states! What a terrific experience these encounters were and continue to be...several participants have kept their blogs active and share their online adventures with all of us.

I got to attend NECC this year, basically because it was right down I-10 in San Antonio and I went to the EduBloggers' thing the Saturday before the official conference began. I got to be in the same room with SO many of the bloggers who I have admired from afar...it was a BLAST!! It was THE highpoint of this two-year experience. And the rest of the conference was an adventure itself!

And yes, I do consider myself a part (a tiny part, but a part nevertheless) of the revolution in learning!

And of course, there was that little event in December which gave me an opportunity to visit a bit in Second Life...all of it... from the "surprise" beginning to the virtual world visit was so surreal.

I have gotten to meet so many wonderful people thru the blog...first establishing a relationship online and then thru events like TLA Conference, NECC and staff development trainings, I have had opportunities for face-to-face encounters. Several have become long-distance friends now. The blog will also be the vehicle to keep up with one special friend who been transplanted east...WAY east. I will get to see her sing and dance and watch her grow! O, yeah and keep up with her mom, too! :-)

Animoto remains my favorite tool...not necessarily the most effective or efficient tool in my toolbox, but it is so fun...and gets better and better! I couldn't live without my Reader, my various wikis that I have created to park various bits of info and Google Docs. Most of it all relates back to my blogging experiences in some form or fashion.

Now we are trying to experience FAceBook from an educator's point of view and how we can help students use it properly and safely. I'm a bit behind the circle with this particular social networking tool because it's just a tad too much for me...tends to be too "up close and personal," but I have put it on my list...and yes, that includes going thru the long list of friends-in-waiting!

And games... we are trying to show how games of all kinds belong in the library and the educational plans of our kids today. I love the Wii...bowling is my favorite right now, but gosh, every time I turn around TV shows us something new! I spent a fun afternoon recently watching kids fool around with Guitar Hero...how fun it was! Card games, board games, online games...they all belong. Watch...I'll be writing about some as time goes by.

Both personal and professional things took time away from my blogging fun. I hope to get things back on track and keep up a little better and a little more regularly. Looking forward to what awaits. Hope you will continue to check in and keep the conversation going.

Here's to Three!

006.6 Photostory: Inquiring MAC Minds Wanna Know!

We have been talking a lot about PhotoStory in my circle recently with all of the work we have been doing with the 23 Things adventures and our 21st Century Student Products workshops. Every once and awhile, the question comes up...what about MAC users? What do they use?

iMovie seems to be the answer. I can not speak to it personally, but the wise ones around me do and the Internet says so as well. Here is a great post about the ins and outs along with some screen shot help and a sample iMovie that has been uploaded to TeacherTube. And the President's riddle idea looks fun...in any format!


Thanks to Tech4Teachers for providing this nice overview!

Apple has iMovie help and tutorial videos as well.

The stuff on the net is great, isn't it?
I just wish we all talked the same language! O, well, as they say, variety is the spice of life and wouldn't the world be a boring place if we did everything just alike! hope this helps the MAC users out there "translate" Photostory expereinces.

027.8 Libraries: Creating Community

Two months since I have blogged here! Whew! Feels like forever and yet, I haven't been very far away actually...just haven't had time to write any posts.

My district's Library Information Services Dept. (of which I am one-third of the team) conducted a second session of 23 Things this summer. In the Spring, we had about 75 folks participate, mostly librarians from our district and around the state, but also some interested teachers.

This summer we had about 250 participants!! The majority were teachers this go-round. Loads from the district, but also teachers from around the state and the country. Librarians in the local area participated as well as some around the state and nation. In addition to Texas, we had players from Oklahoma, Arkansas, Alabama, and Alaska! Talk about the power of the Internet in creating community. What a great way for teachers and librarians to learn from each other and together.

In reading the posts of the participants and attempting to help them understand activities, answer their questions, or simply enjoy their productions or their outlooks on learning and life, I have lots of new colleagues to call upon in getting thru this thing we call teaching and learning in the library setting. But more important I made a few friends along the way as well. Friends I have never met in the conventional way, but friends nevertheless. An unexpected outcome!

It was great fun running into players thorough all the events around back-to-school. In workshops and meetings, we would identify ourselves and share a moment or two in reflection about our adventure. I was privy to many plans various folks have in using some of the "Things" they have learned with their students or to change the way they work with team or department members.

What a perfect follow-up to my own experience in sharing that I had at NECC this summer in San Antonio. I got to meet "up close and personal" EVERY blogger I consider my blogging mentors and a handful of others who I now follow as a result having a great conversation or encounter. No, don't look at my blogroll for any changes...yet! I haven't had time! Arrgghh! But soon...

Anyway, it was an action-packed summer...one I deemed not exciting enough...so I purchased a home to add a cherry to the top of the pile of fun I have had. [3rd time I have chosen to move at the beginning of school...you would think I would learn or have my head examined.]

So I have fulfilled my goal. I got this post written. I promise more to come that have a little more substance, I hope!

025.1 TASLA Day 2, Afternoon

The SBISD team showed Student Products for the 21st Century and talked about Library2Play 23 Things. Despite the slow Internet, a fun time was had by all...we think!

Comments and ah-ha moments...stay tuned! here you go!
Thanks Dr. T T for handling this for us!

• ooh, I have to show my librarians this!
• I’ll be ready for the first of school now!
• Give kids cameras and let them go out and take pictures to use for this.
• This is way too cool.
• Where are you trying to go? Can I go there, too? How did you get there?
• Let’s GO! I figured it all out.
• It takes awhile loading, but is worth it.
• I’ve seen this before.
• SAVE IT FAST!
• This would be great for beginning of the year library orientation…If we take pictures of every point of interest, you can go back and narrate it all in this Photo Story. I begin to say less and less because I get tired.
• I could add to this every year.

Ideas you would have your students use? Things you are doing with technology in your district?

• Our senior English kids do Renaissance magazine covers. I framed some and put in the library. When Dr. Alan November did recording of kid who never would talk, they posted it on itunes and shared it with friends.
• 
  Research Vietnam War, do citations, videocast themselves as newscasters.
• I use Photostory and sent out questions and got librarians to speak and put it on google so new librarians can meet everyone.
• Best practices from veteran librarians.
• We have 5 year technology switchout and teach teachers the new downloads so they can use these in classes.
• Creating your own 23 Things
• Place in Florida has how to use and why you would use these.
• If teachers need 12 hours, we could copy and paste and create our own? YES
• This is a big, huge opportunity for those teachers who have dragged their feet.
• Christine McNew says we can offer credit in the fall. Barry will work out the details.
  

The book that Liz showed on podcasting
Podcasting at School by Kristin Fontichiaro
ISBN: 1-59158-587-2
ISBN-13: 978-1-59158-587-9
$30

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

David talked about TEKSLink
It will be a community effort. We need to share our knowledge. "No one has time to do this all anymore."--a quote from David!
It is in the form a wiki making updating easy and an easy way to see who is working on what!

Then we went into the business meeting...and it was just that...business!

Of course, our day will end with a nice dinner and lots more bonding, discussions, and wonderful story-telling moments. Life is good!

333.7 It's Isn't Easy Going Green...

...or using technology inside our district many days! A presentation I was part of today to a very influential group of educators in my circle turned into a nerve-wracking mess because the internet, the intranet, the network, the tides, the sunspots, the WHATEVER that affected everything decided to have a major meltdown...it was SO F-R-U-S-T-R-A-T-I-N-G! And mostly because we had such GREAT stuff to show to folks who are hungry for great...quick...fun, yet important school stuff technology-wise!

For those of you in the know...Read: 23 things-type fun with educational purpose and value! As Lucy in Peanuts often says...arrrggghhhh!!!!!

So...because the intended audience did not get to see the timely Earth Day Animoto that I had prepared in order to demo the simple process of creation and the fun of the results...I will share it with you, my loyal and fun-loving blog readers! Found the great pictures on Flickr Creative Commons (another thing we were going to share--a copyright-friendly photo source.)

I was thinking back to the first Earth Day...38 years ago! My senior year in high school and the environment and all the issues related to it were in the news and on people's minds WAY BACK when! I try to do the best I can to save, reuse, reclaim, and not waste...growing up in the desert you understand the need to turn the water off when brushing teeth and how to conserve it as best you can elsewhere!

So with only a few hours of the special day (did you check out the Google artwork) left, I hope it was a good one for you...green or not! And I promise to let the technology "mess" go and live to "fight" another day!

005.3 Widgets: Banned Fun, Bummer!

In working on my 23 Things assignments, I came across a nice widget collection called SpringWidgets and added one to this blog to count down the days to TLA...the annual conference being held in Dallas this year.


But don't count on it in district...same song, forgotten which verse...it's blocked! Guess it's too cute and clever!
Couldn't stand it that you could not see it so I took a screen shot so you could get the picture, if not the real fun. You can see the "hole" for it on the side bar to the right.

But if you are looking for some fun things to add to your webpages or blogs or whatever, go see what you can find. You can adapt many to meet your needs or even create something new and the site will host it for you. I can see this being used to count down to a special event like an author visit, the 100th Day of School, or everyone's favorite Spring thought...how days before summer! The ideas are endless.

Have fun...at home!

976.4 Speaking of License Plates: More than One Winner!

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDoT) took advantage of the interactive nature of the Web this month when it held an online vote for the next car license plate. Several choices (including the one released in 2000) were available and 1.2 million "voters" cast their choice.

I voted for the winner!! Although the bluebonnet one was pretty, this one got me in the heart. The media describes it as the one with the big white star or Lone Star. I suspect that many, many of the 400,000 + voters that selected this one saw what I saw...the beautiful mountain range and powerful cloud formation...yup, a west Texas scene won!

O, by the way, changing the design was not the only reason for the change. Seems we have used up all the alpha-numeric combinations possible with the 6 character format. Took us 33 years to do so. TxDot needed to add a 7th character so they decided that it was also a good time for a design change as well. Personally, I'm glad...never cared for the tiny hodge-podge symbols on the current one.

As part of the 23 Things program that the SBISD Library Information Services Department is sponsoring, Players get to mess around with lots of image generators. One in particular is Image Chef that has a license plate (and yes, other states ARE available!) on which you can create messages. My "practice" plate for the 23 Things advertises the program.

Then I just played around a bit more to show you some other ideas for this fun Thing! Maybe the other states could be incorporated into the traditional states' reports we all have our kids do at some point?

Go see what kind of fun you can make!

005.2 Image Generators: An Explosion of FUN

Been away a tad too long because am going full-steam over at our district's Library2Play 23 Things! Over 60 participants and some more to come! Anyway...that is for another post.

Among the many Things is image generators and we are having terrific fun with all of them and the ways we can all use them. In an attempt at doing some "serious" work this morning, I came across one that stopped me in my tracks -- Build Your Wild Self...a kid-friendly avatar maker!!

Just had to share right now! It is too fun! (and a great way to "play" a little with science maybe?)

P.S. If you go to my 23 Things blog, you probably will understand my Wild Self a little better...or maybe you're thinking...no explanation need!

378.1 DKG Meeting: Being With & Sharing With Friends

My Delta Kappa Gamma chapter met today and I was able to attend for the first time in quite awhile. The ladies above represent many of the founding and long-time members with whom I have had the privilege to share some interesting professional and personal moments. Aren't they lovely looking? And even more amazing...there is around 150 years of teaching represented by these five women!

I was asked to talk about Web 2.0 and specifically some about blogging. Many members are retired teachers and some of this was new information to them. We had a light-hearted discussion about blogs and how they represent the "new" interactive sharing of information and learning. We discussed how every one of us in the room qualified as a digital immigrant...how long has it been since you could say that!...and that the students, children and grandchildren we teach, raised, and enjoy are digital natives!

My Library Department is sponsoring a 23 Things professional development and I invited the members present to join us in the fun if they so desired...or at the very least, experience at their leisure, the various 2.0 tools represented. I think I got a few takers and they will enliven the experiences of all involved.

On a more personal level, part of our meeting today was a Remembrance Ceremony held to honor the memory of one of our founding members who passed away in late 2007. Several members who lived with, taught with, laughed with, and loved this person spoke beautiful words about their personal and professional times together. It was very moving to hear their thoughts and feelings. I know I have "school" friendships that have gone way past the "someone I worked with" level and I was thinking about those terrific memories today. I can only hope my friends...both in & outside of DKG feel the same way!

Enjoy your friends...do something soon that makes a fond memory!