Eclectech Librarian

Resolve To Make A Difference

2012-01-08T15:58:00.009-06:00

With the new year comes the urge to accomplish all the things that were meant to be done the year before and set new unrealistic goals, and it often starts with long to-do lists.

Perhaps we need to keep it simple, such as Johnny Cash's hand written to-do list by, which was sold for $6400 by Julien's Auctions in Beverly Hills, California.

Rather than a create a set of dreams and wishes, I have compiled a list of quotes from writers and speakers who have caused pause and influenced my dispositional stance on teaching, learning, and living. The list is a guide for my mind-set and functioning in 2012 - a way to move ahead and to improve leadership by focusing on a small number of key dimensions.

1. Act with a moral purpose by making a positive difference in the lives of students, educators, and society as a whole (Fullan, 2010). Confront problems that have never yet been fully addressed by ensuring work involves powerful change rather than an efficient completion of tasks. Leadership and management overlap, but are not synonymous. Leaders challenge educators to face complex problems, paradoxes, and dilemmas for which there are no simple, painless solutions, and require us to learn in new ways.

2. Continue to wonder. Matthew Fox writes that we are in need of "wisdom schools, " as opposed to "knowledge factories". " A wisdom school would honour the heart and body, the right brain of awe and wonder...We must educate about awe - awe of our universe, awe of our planet, and its eighteen-billion-year story, awe of the creatures with whom we share this planet" (1995, 170, 173).

3. Think critically and creatively. Cultivate the restless mind and spirit by creating conditions where students and teachers embody powers of innovation to navigate their complex learning environment. "Creativity is the process of having original ideas that have value. To realize our true creative creative potential - in our organizations, in our schools and in our communities - we need to think differently about ourselves and to act differently towards each other. We must learn to be creative."(Sir Ken Robinson, 2011).

4. Listen intently. Silence is as revealing as chatter. There are different approaches and stances learners take when confronted with dissonance or the novel, we must students and teacher to clamor to express oneself and then be afforded the attention of the answer. "It is the province of knowledge to speak And it is the privilege of wisdom to listen" (Oliver Wendell Holmes). Take a deliberate stance toward engaging affectively and cognitively. Experience and understand things from another lens by inquiring, pondering, discussing, and loving.

5. Prune dead wood in your social and professional life (Christakis and Fowler, 2011) Behaviour is contagious, including being happy, thinking positively, and even risk taking. Limit time and energy expended on people whose behaviour and values are contrary to what you are striving to accomplish.

6. Celebrate the enthusiasm and joy of others embracing new strategies for engaging their students. "You learn at your best when you have something you care about and can get pleasure in being engaged in" (Gardner, 2010).

7. Revel in the complete joy of being lost in a great book. "My proper education consisted of the liberty to read whatever I cared to. I read indiscriminately and all the time with my eyes handing out..." (Dylan Thomas). The art of reading involves an engagement with literature that shapes our essence - to feel things, know things, imagine things, hope for things, become people they never would have dreamed without the transforming power of books (Atwell, 2007).

8. Think of learning as verb rather than a noun (Prensky, 2008). Instead of teaching content or technology in terms of "things" (Twitter, Riel Rebellion) and instead think in terms of verbs (presenting, sharing, and communicating). Teach lifelong skills and habits rather than the trivial.

9. Learn more, work less. Do not lose yourself in the myriad of tasks.

10. Kiss my family everyday - a nugget stolen from Johnny Cash's to-do-list.

Crap Detection

2011-11-13T23:07:00.000-06:00

“Every man should have a built-in automatic crap detector operating inside him.”
Ernest Hemingway, 1954

"Crap detection” as dubbed by Howard Rheingold, is the learner's ability to determine if presented information has merit. Learning to be a critical consumer of information involves determining the information's relevance, authenticity, currency, and bias. In Wired magazine, Clive Thompson discusses Why Kids Can’t Search. Thompson strewed that critical search inability stems from lack of missed opportunities to judge information.

The good news? Teacher-librarians are ready to help students become information literate. Google searching tips, curation of relevant, authentic sources, strategies for evaluating information, and detecting crap will help develop critical thinkers and learners.

School Libraries: What’s Now? What’s Next? What’s Yet to Come?

2011-10-30T22:56:00.002-06:00

"Libraries. Librarians. Text. All in flux, reminding us of the apocryphal (but untrue) story that the Chinese symbol for crisis is made up of the symbols for danger and opportunity. How we interpret that apocryphal character depends on our context and our mindsets".

This is a quote from Kristin Fontichiaro and Buffy Hamilton's recently released crowdsourced ebook: School Libraries: What’s Now, What’s Next, What’s Yet to Come?.

This exciting groundbreaking ebook can be downloaded for FREE in various formats and features contributors such as Violet H. Harada, Joyce Valenza, Howard Rheingold, and Nikki D. Robertson.

Fall Bounty

2011-10-07T23:11:00.003-06:00

There is a definite chill in the air; the leaves are turning; it is definitely autumn. Fall is the season of the harvest and, in Canada, a time to share nature's bounty and life's gifts.

Curating the best of "things" that will benefit the learner by helping managing the informational environment is a blessed gift. Curation involves culling by experienced experts, often by a teacher-librarian, to determine what learning objects, sites, tweets, multimedia, blog posts, resources, etc. will best suit the learner's needs and then organzing and sharing the information.

Curation comes up when search stops working. But it’s more than a human-powered filter. Curation comes up when people realize that it isn’t just about information seeking, it’s also about synchronizing a community.

Part of the reason that human curation is so critical is simply the vast number of people who are now making and sharing media. Everyone is a media outlet.

Clay Shirky (NYU Professor, blogger, author)

http://mashable.com/2010/05/03/content-curation-creation/

Joyce Valenza, the author of the NeverEndingSearch blog, was the keynote speaker for the Saskatchewan School Library Association's online learning event. According to Joyce, "curation tools present an exciting new genre of search tool, a tool for scanning the real-time environment, as well as opportunities for evaluating quality and relevance in emerging information landscapes". She listed tools to help teacher-librarians move beyond collectors and become effective curators:

Is curation the new search tool? The art of locating, aggregating, filtering, selecting, and organzing for a very specific topic, or for a particular audience interest, problem, passion is needed to help student manage an overabundent flow of information. And teacher-librarians are situated to be the ideal curators!

Communication, Collaboration, Critical Thinking, Creativity, (And Collection)

2011-08-21T23:59:00.001-06:00

The Partnership for 21st Century Skills' four Cs (critical thinking and problem solving, communication, collaboration, and creativity and innovation), ISTE’s NETS, and ALA’s Standards for the 21st Century Learner and Saskatchewan's Evergreen Curriculum were used as the guide for planning and facilitating three one-day summer workshops for teacher-librarians.

The first workshop was designed for beginning teacher-librarians. The focus was on the workings of a school library; from the basics of facilities management, organization, collaboration, collection development, to investigations on promoting information literacy, effective technology use, inquiry, reading and pedagogical strategies.

The second workshop focused on developing and maintaining a relevant collection using physical and virtual methods. Digital tools and contemporary media were explored as presentation and display tools and opportunities to market reading and maximize usage and loans. Book trailers, digital storytelling, ebooks, QR codes, collection mapping, social media, and procedures and guidelines for selection and de-selection were discussed.

The third workshop focuses on developing deep, rich understanding and fostering the exchange of information through communication, collaboration and conversation. The participants examined ways the school library can enhance learning and deliver state-of-the-art service using current freely available technologies. Social media, such as micro-blogging, collaboration tools, social annotation, video production and hosting, image hosting, and presentation sharing were explored.

During the planning and facilitation of the three days, I was fortunate to have a co-facilitator for each workshop in order to accomodate the exceeded allotted number of registrants. As a different friend enlisted to provide assistance, I had to rethink and retool due to each of their strengths. The 4Cs were put into practice as we communicated (virtually), collaborated, and critically revisited how we could present a creative session that engaged participants in developing an effective school library programme. The 4Cs advocates for 21st century readiness for every student, but the skills do, and should, align with teaching.

Cool Tools Triad

2011-05-10T22:47:00.001-06:00

The following is a list of "cool tools" presented at the IT Summit by Alec Couros, Dean Shareski, and Hall Davidson:

Camstudio - screen capture video
Tineye - A reverse search engine; ideal for finding attribution of images
Class Tools - Create free educational games, quizzes, activities and diagrams. Dean Shareski demonstrated the random name generator.
WiTopia - While not free, this tool is a lifesaver when you need access to a denied or filtered site. For example, Google music is not available in Canada, but WiTopia allows the user to choose a location that is within the accepted geographic area. WiTopia's greatest strength is its ability to provide powerful data security when using free public Wi-Fi. For those who prefer not to pay.
HotSpot Shield is a free equivalent to WiTopia.
Google Search Stories
Mobile YouTube Uploads
Filmonthefly.org - a mobile phone video challenge
Squared5 - free video converter, player, editor. Great for exporting videos and converting video formats
DropMocks - Online creation and sharing of image galleries - just drag'n drop
Minus - Share photos, documents, videos and files online
Google Body Works - Explore the human body just like exploring the world in Google Earth.Functions only in Chrome and Firefox 4
Storify - Make stories using social media. Stream or use tags to timeline a story
Blabberize - Make images talk!
Let Me Google That For You - Creates a video of how to use Google as a search engine. The video is to be sent to someone who asks you a question that could easily by found on Google
synchtube - Create rooms where groups can watch synchronized videos!
Stumbleupon - Finds the best web video, recommended just for you. State your interests- other community members will share taga
Crocodoc - Upload a document and then mark it up; highlight text and add comments. Groups can be created to annotate documents
Aviary - Free online photo editor

Joanna Bobiash presents a more thorough list.

IT Summit Reflections

2011-05-10T11:55:00.004-06:00

These are uncertain times for educators in Saskatchewan. We are asking for stakeholders to value our contributions to teaching. IT Summit keynote speakers, Dean Shareski and Dr. Michael Wesch, ask us to value our students.

Neil Postman asked us to consider, why in a world punctuated by media, we have conversations marked with incompetence, irrelevance, and interruptions, in which we plan to do nothing to remedy the social situation. Why are many of students disengaged and fragmented?

Dr. Wesch spoke of the occurrence of a cultural inversion. We value community, but express interdependence. We value relationships, but express individuality. We value authenticity, but express superficiality.

However, there is something in the air. Literally, there is. Technological usage fosters the creation and publication of digital artifacts and varied communication formats. But it is deeper than that. Technology affords deeper connections, collegiality, and collaboration. It allows opportunities to students to engage and participate in the learning.

How do we change the message? How do we get to the deeper phases of knowing? How do we ignite passion? Let's get real, relevant, and harness synergistic collaboration. It is then that we value students.

Google Reading Levels

2011-03-20T21:00:00.006-06:00

Searching the web, particularly at the elementary level, has been difficult due to the complexity of text in the search results. Limiting search results to a specific reading level seemed an unreachable request. Until now. Google introduced a new advanced search filter named Reading Levels. In short, Google lets my students filter the search results based on how basic, intermediate or advanced the reading level of the web results.

Click on advanced search and select an option from the "reading level" dropdown menu. For my primary students, the basic reading level allows them to locate results that they can comprehend.

Select the "annotation" option to annotate each result with what Google believes is the reading level, and displays a distribution graph at the top of the results page that allows users to pivot between the levels.

At any time, users can click the X in the right corner of the blue bar beneath the search box to return to viewing all results.

How were the reading levels chosen? By teachers, of course!

Reaching Out

2011-02-26T00:17:00.004-06:00

Saskatchewan recently unveiled renewed curricula - documents describing not only new units of study,but also new methods of teaching and learning. Teacher librarians have been instrumental in helping teachers refocus their teaching to imbue current practices, adopt an inquiry stance, and plan new units. Backwards design, inquiry learning, and developing literacies (informational, technology, and reading) has become increasing important in ensuring student engagement and achievement.

This month, we will be tackling the new grade one unit Needs and Characteristics of Animals. Project Noah will be used to connect, converse, and collaborate. It is a tool to explore and document wildlife and a platform to harness the power of young scientists. As amateur naturalists, the students will be posting images of wildlife found in the schoolyard and see what others are discovering in their neighbourhoods and across the globe.

Students can upload “spottings,” or photographs of what they have witnessed. The project also features “field missions;” a call to action for grade two student stewardship. Please visit our field mission to view our ideas for sustainability and conservation of the air and water in our environment.

OnlyTwoClicks

2010-10-21T10:56:00.006-06:00

At the BLC Conference in Boston, David Jakes introduced OnlyTwoClicks, but I was slow to come on board. Joyce Valenza reintroduced me to this visual Web application during the eBook Summit. Both presenters showcased how OnlyTwoClicks could organize Web sites that my students (should) frequently visit in tabular format.

I created pages and then dragged and dropped the sites I wanted onto the page. Presto! All the sites are displayed as visual clickable thumbnails. Simple!

OnlyTwoClicks allows me to change the look using the skins feature. Users also have the choice to upload their own css file and create entire new skins to use.

Quick, simple, and visual.

ebooks: Libraries at the Tipping Point

2010-09-20T13:33:00.000-06:00

I am looking forward to the one day virtual SLJ conference ebooks: Libraries at the Tipping Point. The day includes "keynote presentations and panel discussions on the evolving concept of the book in a digital world and will keep participants future-focused".

What are current best practices for school library ebook collections? What are effective delivery practices? What format is optimal - handheld devices, audiobooks, etc.? How can ebooks become a seamless part of the current collection?

I eagerly anticipate discussion centred around tearing down the notion that school libraries have fixed hours, schedules, collection formats, and walls.

2010 SSLA Conference

2010-05-09T19:14:00.000-06:00

The Saskatchewan School Library Association (SSLA) Conference was held May 5, 2010 in Saskatoon. The theme was Blended School Library Practice: Integrating Your Virtual and Real Programs. Judith Comfort, teacher-librarian at Dr. Charles Best Secondary School in Coquitlam, B.C., blogger and advocate for the role of teacher-librarians shared with conference participants her journey of blending her bricks and mortar library with her virtual one.

Donna DesRoches and I facilitated an Inquiry Tools Smackdown - a look at social media tools that promote and enhance inquiry.

View the Flick photostream of the 2010 SSLA Conference -

Chanda's Secrets

2010-05-01T23:00:00.002-06:00

2005 Snow Willow Award winner Chanda's Secrets , which was adapted into a movie, will now be premiering as an official selection at the Cannes International Film Festival! The author, Allan Stratton, blogged about the making of the film on set outside Elandsdoorn, South Africa, throughout December 2009.

Quill and Quire's blog details the news.

Saskatoon Preschool Foundation

2010-04-12T18:56:00.001-06:00

I have been notified that I have been nominated as a "Champion of Children" - a person who make a positive difference in the lives of children. I am so moved, so honoured, so humbled!

Please visit the Saskatoon Preschool Foundation to see the great work that this organization does for ensuring that children have opportunities for a better future.

View Flickr photostream of the event!

Best Reads of 2009

2009-12-05T21:00:00.000-06:00

What constitutes "the best"? Brooding over this question surfaced as SLJ released their Best Books 2009. Criteria of "the best", in my opinion, challenges my current philosophical beliefs about teaching and learning. The texts cause me to reflect, ponder, and grapple at what are ideal teaching practices and methods for engaging students in intellectual rigour. As an addendum, I am adding my favourite professional resources of 2009:
-Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out: Kids Living and Learning with New Media
-Empowering Learners: Guidelines for School Library Media Programs
-Powerful Learning: What We Know About Teaching for Understanding
-Comprehension & Collaboration: Inquiry Circles in Action

Investigating Inquiry

2009-11-02T20:35:00.000-06:00

Dr. Sharon Friesen, founding partner and president of the Galileo Educational Network, was the keynote speaker for Investigating Inquiry: A Workshop for Teacher-Librarians on October 30th. Dr. Friesen spoke about the discipline-based inquiry apporaches, the implications of inquiry for the work of teacher-librarians, and strategies for assisting teachers in the design of inquiry-based studies.

Banned Book Week

2009-09-27T20:13:00.002-06:00

Every burned book or house enlightens the world; every suppressed or expunged word reverberates through the earth from side to side.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read is observed during the last week of September each year. It celebrates "the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one’s opinion even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular and stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of those unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints to all who wish to read them. After all, intellectual freedom can exist only where these two essential conditions are met" (ALA).

Getting ready to promote Banned Book Week. Visit my wiki, Eclection, for details.

Engagement And AR

2009-08-29T09:26:00.003-06:00

An interesting article in the New York Times focused on Accelerated Reader, Reading by the Numbers , caused me to reflect on our school division's strategic plan regarding literacy. If engagement involves the dimensions are competence, relevance, belonging, and potency. we must reflect upon our targeted actions and evidence of progress within these dimensions to ensure that we are actually engendering literacy and not promoting "readicide" (Gallager). The proliferation of book contests and reliance on circulation statistics as measures of success are not indicators of a culture of literacy - students who are not proficient readers will not regard these as worthwhile activities and quickly disengage. In agreement with Keene (2008) , we need to students to be Renaissance learners - to stimulate the curiousity and wonder, engage more deeply with texts, and to discover a passion for reading and learning.

Self-Censorship

2009-07-26T09:47:00.007-06:00

During the recent facilitation of a summer short course about the roles of the teacher-librarian, a discussion of methods for building a choice collection spurned a debate about books with sensitive topics.

The teacher-librarians in the audience reported that they dealt with resources deemed objectionable by parents, the staff, or themselves in many alarming ways. The books were not purchased, hidden from view and could only surface with a parent request letter, or labelled with warning stickers. The threat of controversy seemed to facilitate forgoing the concept of intellectual freedom.

Fear should not dictate collection acquisitions. I recall the controversy that surrounded the 2007 Newbery Award winner, The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron. The inclusion of the word “scrotum” (in reference to the location in which a dog was bit) was sufficient to ban the book from many of the library shelves' in our school division. A recent book challenge in the public library sector reported by CNN, Library fight riles up city, leads to book-burning demand, has embroiled the community in a large-scale dispute. My professional experience involved a group of parents who expressed concerns with the inclusion of Halloween books in the school collection. After a denial of their request, a parent-volunteer entered the school library when I was facilitating a classroom visit, gathered the questionable holiday books and drove away with the resources. Although I applaud the group's tenacity but not their method, I became aware of the teacher-librarian's role in developing a collection that reflects not only the curriculum, but the varying interests and values found within the community it serves.

In her article, Debra Lou Whelan reports self-censorship is difficult, if not impossible, to quantify due to the lack of open discussion and available data. The American Library Association’s (ALA) Office for Intellectual Freedom only documents written challenges to library books and materials, and even then, it estimates that only one out of five cases are reported. The only available statistics of self-censorship stem from a recent survey conducted by The School Library Journal . It found that 70% of librarians will not purchase controversial titles due to fear of parent response. Personal objection and possible backlash from administration and/or students were cited as other common reasons for avoiding possible troublemakers.

While purchasing materials, teacher-librarians must be cognizant of the three C's (source unknown) - curriculum, clientele, and currency. However, the selection of resources is the managerial role of the teacher-librarian. The teacher-librarian also encompasses the role of a literacy liaison - engendering and strenghtening students' passion for reading. Book selection strategies, book talks, and staffed book exchanges help students select reading material that meets their needs and interests.

Self-censorship denies students information and insight into relevant topics. Debra Lou Whelan insists that teacher-librarians embrace a proactive stance to collection development by “building the collection you feel you need and dealing [with the controversy] later.” Personal objections to material should not influence purchase.

To derail possible self-censorship, educate yourself. Complete the Self-Censorship Checklist from The New York Library Association to analyze your selection practices and possible bias! Talk with others regarding your fears and how this may be barrier in materials selection Reviewing it is one way to start thinking more critically about your own work and your library’s practices. (Re)acquaint yourself with your school division's collection development and book-challenge policies, support your selections with good reviews, and highlight the book's adherence to curricular concepts.

As a final touch of irony, we concluded the workshop with a reading of And Tango Makes Three. The response - teacher-librarians were scrambling to include the title on their "Must Purchase" lists and the threat of controversy never did not rear its ugly head.

Summer Read

2009-07-03T19:39:00.002-06:00

I just preordered The Innovative School Librarian: thinking outside the box. According to the back cover summary, the author team, Sharon Markless (editor), Elizabeth Bentley, Sarah Pavey, Sue Shaper, Sally Todd, and Carol Webb present a strategic look at some of the issues currently of concern to school librarians. It is not a "how to run a school library" guide. Instead it raises important questions about the role of the school librarian and the push-pull struggle to be innovative.

Terry Blacker, in his piece entitled Independent, points out that that prisoners have a statutory right to a library, but not school children. In order to survive, teacher-librarians need to critically examine their philosophy and its effects upon professional practice and student learning. Visionary leadership and action is needed to develop effective practitioners in schools librarianship.

Teacher-librarians continue to strive for recognition although they are constantly under threat. They are a mainstay on the endangered list and battle identify theft as the budget encourages non-qualified employees to manage the library. To move forward, teacher-librarians must shed the binding models that interfere with student learning. The book presents three models and the models are reminiscent of a Joan Frye Williams' podcasts for the Arizona State University:

The Managerial Model - The role of the teacher-librarian is to catalogue and deploy resources. The effectiveness of the teacher-librarian is measured quantitatively - circulation statistics, size of collection, and number of class visits. The quality of student learning is not a factor.
The Technical-Rationalism Model - "Emphasis on the mechanics of the role: cataloguing, issuing books, display work, sending lists of new books to teachers, organizing author talks and providing user education on how to use the library systems to locate items." The priority and sole responsibility is to place the "right resource in contact with the right person".
The Social Democracy Model - This model is characterized by the attempt to provide equitable access to information through the design and market of services that appeal to all the school library's users. Developing relationships is a priority
parts of the school community.

Where does this leave school librarianship in the 21st century?
Teacher-librarians must develop a professional sense of identity to avoid confusion, disempowerment, and de-professionalization. Professional identity is a complex entity that cannot be explained by one model. However, teacher-librarians must raise a critical lens to develop a clear sense of self, vision, and ethics. It is then that teacher-librarians can impact student achievement.

Mike Eisenberg on Information Literacy

2009-06-17T23:10:00.004-06:00

I had the great fortune to watch Mike Eisenberg, of the Big 6 fame, present Information Literacy.
He provides an interesting twist to the parable of the man and the fish. In an information literate environment, teacher-librarians should provide assistance for finding, using, and evaluating resources about fishing. By providing students with the skills for obtaining information relevant to their search, rather than a teacher-direct introduction to the content, students can then teach themselves how to fish...and to solve similar, but novel, inquiries.

Google Forms

2009-06-14T20:53:00.004-06:00

Here is another great thing to add to your wiki! Elicit book suggestions from your students by using Google Forms. Google spreadsheet now lets users create web-based forms. This is useful for conducting school library surveys and soliciting students' opinions and input on resource acquisitions, promotions, etc.

Create the spreadsheet and upload to your wiki. Users do not have to be signed into or even have a Google account to key-in their answers to the forms. Visit Monarch Library's wiki for an example of how to make your wiki interactive using Google Forms!

School Libraries 21C

2009-06-01T14:30:00.004-06:00

Dr. Ross Todd has extended an invitation to teacher-librarians via Twitter to join his new moderated discussion blog, School libraries 21C. hosted by School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit. Todd and Lyn Hay, will guide discussion of:

The future of school libraries
The school library of the future
What will it take to get there? Supporting continuous improvement and capacity building in school libraries.

Discussion starts 1 June 2009, and concludes 26 June 2009. Todd and Hay invite contributions and engagement in a diverse range of perspectives.

To gain background knowledge, consider reading:

School libraries building capacity for student learning 21C - Hay, L. and Foley, C.
School Libraries and Continuous Improvement - Todd, Dr. R.

Scholastic's Summer Reading Challenge

2009-05-05T09:15:00.000-06:00

Keep students turning the pages all summer long. In support of summer reading, Scholastic is encouraging you to get students excited about reading with the Scholastic Summer Challenge, a free summer-long literacy program designed to motivate all children to read four or more books.

Hero Pilot Offers You Library Book Amnesty

2009-05-04T20:26:00.003-06:00

Remember Chesley Sullenberger, the hero-pilot who skillfully landed his plane in the Hudson River, saving the lives of all 155 passengers and crew on board? Not only was he renowned for his superior aviation skills, but his genuine concern for the overdue library books trapped on board in his luggage. To further make teacher-librarian swoon, he is featured in a public service announcement for the San Francisco Public Library's "fine amnesty" program".

2009-04-26T20:43:00.006-06:00

As I was deviating from work to explore new image generators, I came across Be Funky Photo Effects. It allows one to easily create photographically rich and artistic results from digital images without the need for any technical knowledge. Apply special photo effects such as Stencillizer, Cartooner, and Warholizer with "one-click". Not quite what you wanted? Simply adjust the results of the effect.

Add Goodies, such as sunglasses and a hat, to further customize your image

I especially like that you can save the images!

Your School Library Online Conference

2009-04-19T22:47:00.002-06:00

Your School Library is hosting a second online conference in June/July of 2009. The conference will focus on Information Literacy in a Web 2.0 World. I will be co-presenting a session with Donna DesRoches.

Once again, the conference will be “held” on the collaboration website Sosius.com. Delegates will use this as a base camp to explore the Web 2.0 world. The conference fee is US$90 for new members and US$75 for returning delegates.

Please join the Your School Library Conference in its effort to work towards a transformation of school libraries.

Earth Day - FREE Resources

2009-04-14T18:03:00.002-06:00

Earth Day is April 22nd!
To help celebrate, obtain free units/kits for the middle level students. FREE mini Science Symposium kit on the topics of The Rainforest and/or African Elephants are available at the Earth's Birthday Store. Unfortunately, the Sea Turtle kit is no longer available, but the kit can be downloaded at the Earth Science Symposium . A slideshow is also available.

Teaching With TED

2009-04-07T21:48:00.003-06:00

TED, which stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design, features the world's leading thinkers and doers. Now, the wiki Teaching with TED addresses how the TED talks be used as springboards for further discourse, exploration, reflection, and action. Check it out!

Earth Day

2009-04-05T20:21:00.004-06:00

The Walt Disney Studios will celebrate Earth Day 2009 with the debut of Earth, the first feature-length nature documentary from its new production banner, Disneynature. Narrated by James Earl Jones, Earth takes moviegoers on an extraordinary tour of our home planet as its never been seen before. For educators, there are lesson plans to go with the movie.

National Poetry Month

2009-03-29T12:50:00.008-06:00

April is National Poetry Month!
I have compiled some ideas for celebrating poetry in the school library - Call 811! Poetry Emergency!

The word cloud of Langston Hughes' poem Dreams was created using Wordle.

Disruptive Thoughts @ IT Summit

2009-03-25T09:20:00.007-06:00

The IT Summit/SSLA Joint Conference was held March 23-24, 2009 in Saskatoon. As a member of the IT Summit Conference Committee and President-Elect of the SSLA Executive, I was interested in how we can harness collective intelligence to form collegial partnerships.

David Warlick, author of the 2¢ Worth blog, in his keynote addressed literacy and its need for redefinition to address our changing information landscape and its effect upon the 3Rs. Warlick defined contemporary literacy as:

Exposing what’s true
Employing the information
Expressing the ideas compellingly
…Within an Ethical context

Warlick ended the keynote by stating "Redefine literacy, so that it reflects today’s information environment and integrate that".

Dean Shareski, in his session on Disruptive Technologies, further exemplified how today's learning environment is constantly changing and we need to prepare students not for the Industrial Age of long ago, but as a critical thinker of an unknown future. Shareski identified "disruptions" that could transform the classroom:

Smart Phones
Low Cost Computing
Cloud Computing
Live Streaming
Microblogging (Love my Twitter!)
Interactive Immersive Learning Environments (Love my Second Life!)

and three "disruptions" related to pedagogy:

Privacy and Digital Footprint (including AUPs that let students communicate!)
Shift of Time and Space (24/7 classroom)
Open Space (Check out Academic Earth)
Outsourced Information (Gain info from a global audience, but creativity cannot be outsourced to Bangalore!)

David Warlick and Dean Shareski both challenged us not only to look into the future, but to examine our practices today. Are we focusing our efforts on integrating technology, or integrating literacy? Are we placing barriers of time, space, and distance on learning? Are we preparing our students to use digital content, or how to use paper? Are we teaching our students to prosper in a future we cannot clearly describe?

Transforming School Libraries Online Conference

2009-02-18T15:04:00.006-06:00

Donna DesRoches just sent me this link - A week in the Life of a 'New Media' Teacher Librarian.. The author, Judy O'Connell, details the "To Do" tasks of a socially networked teacher-librarian.

FYI - Judy will be part of this week's Transforming School Libraries online conference. The professional development event is facilitated by Information Literacy guru James Henri and Sandra Lee, a librarian with multi-library experience.

The list of international presenters is available at www.yourschoollibrary.org. Sosius, an online groupwork system, will be used to provide space for presentations, and asynchronous discussions about the various topics.

Cost is $70 for individual registration. Groups of more than 10 people can register for $60 each.

I look forward to the conference and moderating Arlene Lipkewich's presentation: Hardware, Software and "Webware": Technologies for Learning. How can they be used in teacher and student learning?

The Future Of Reading

2009-02-17T16:29:00.004-06:00

The NY Times has published an article and video entitled In Web Age, Library Job Gets Update.

Ms. Rosalia, a school librarian in Brooklyn, urged caution. “Don’t answer your questions with the first piece of information that you find,” she warned. The students did not heed her warning and accepted the erroneous online information as factual. Copying the digital text at a furious pace without evaluation was the norm until one student noticed a strong disconnect with read text. Evidently, reading that Columbus communicated using a cellphone was cause for suspension of belief.

A cadre of problems faced these students - the inability to evaluate located information, the incapacity to determine the credibility of the site, the inefficiency to determine importance of expository text, and the presentation of an assignment that does not promote understanding or personal inquiry, but fill-in-the-blanks.

Ms. Rosalia, as well as many teacher-librarians, realize that the 21st century student needs assistance with wading through the glut of information presented on the web. Literacy 2.0 now exceeds print and fluency - it involves deep understanding and the monitoring of comprehension of information in a variety of formats - print, online, human, etc.

Yet, awareness that students require assistance to define their search, locate information, and determine its credibility and applicability to their quest appears insufficient to absolving teacher-librarians from the causalities of school budget crunches.

Couples, Courtship, Cooing and Cuddling

2009-02-08T23:12:00.007-06:00

February, a month devoted to love, is an invitation to explore the genre of teen romance. The light-hearted, often fluffy, novels depict the bumpy path of true love. Granted the genre tugs at your heartstrings rather than the brain, romantic relationship between two people and how they overcome obstacles to come together still deserve a place among the weightier novels. As anyone who teaches or has a teenager in the house can attribute, teens are preoccupied with crushes, flirting, infatuation, and all its angst.

From classic young adult love stories to modern fairy tale romances, from laugh-out-loud funny to vampire blood-lust, there is a love story for every teen reader. Donna Freitas, in an article with the School Library Journal, provides a Shameless Guide to Sweet, Sexy Romance Novels for Teens and Tweens. My article submitted to the Saskatchewan School Library Association, Library Lovers, details methods for school libraries to share the love.

ALA Youth Media Webcast

2009-01-26T10:23:00.004-06:00

From the ALA Youth Media Webcast:

Newbery Medal
The Graveyard Book (Gaiman)

Caldecott Medal
The House in the Night (Krommes)

Coretta Scott King Award Winner
Illustrator - The Blacker the Berry (Cooper)
Author - We are the Ship: the Story of the Negro Baseball League (Nelson)

Pura Belpre Medal
Illustrator - Just in Case (Morales)
Author - The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom (Engle)

Sibert Medal
We are the Ship: the story of the Negro Baseball League (Nelson)

An Honour!

2009-01-16T11:22:00.006-06:00

I was recently honoured to be mentioned in Doug Johnson's Blue Skunk Blog. My article, 50 Ways To Love Your Library, was initially written to commerate the 50th anniversary of the Saskatchewan School Library Association, in which I am an executive member.

The article details the paradigm shift that teacher-librarians must embrace in order to create a physical and virtual space tailored to the 21st century learners' needs. Categorized into months, there are suggested learning experiences meant to transform the library learning space and revitalize the "school library 1.0" into a manageable pace.

Teacher-librarians are well posed in meeeting the learning imperative of the 21st century learner and are eager in designing deep meaningful experiences that connect to the students' needs. However, the ability to facilitate meaningful learning embued by emerging technology is often hampered by many barriers. These eager teacher-librarians are often told "we are not ready for this right now", "let's not focus on cool tools", "for safety, that site is blocked". David Loertscher, in his post Flip This Library: School Libraries Need A Revolution, boldly proposes the paradigm flip needed by school libraries to be relevant and to remain connected with the latest generation of learners and teachers.

The question remains "Are teacher-librarans bold enough to begin a grassroots revolution in an effort to show that emerging technologies SHOULD and MUST be integrated into learning experiences in order for students to remain engaged in their school environment?"

My Year's Picks

2008-12-27T23:48:00.002-06:00

Amazon.com Widgets

Another year...so many great books! The widget displays ten of my favourite reads.
As a voracious reader and a participant in many fellow bibliophiles' conversations, new book releases are quickly purchased and discussed in length. For those who have other interests besides reading, published book reviews are an invaluable source. It is surprising however that the trade journals that influence our reading are often unknown by those in the school library field. Reviews written by School Library Journal, Booklist, Kirkus, and Publishers Weekly can be read when searching online for a desired book with Amazon or Barnes and Noble. Will the formal judgment of an underpaid reviewer continue to have bearing in a world where "here comes everybody" (Shirky)?

Reading Comprehension 2.0

2008-12-18T23:02:00.005-06:00

The title Reading Comprehension 2.0 may reawaken the semantic battle of the term L2; however to indulge in this dialogue would circumvent the intention of this post. In demonstrating the integration of the reading comprehension strategy instruction as outlined by Ellin Oliver Keene in To Understand and cultivated in a school library environment, I was interested in Web 2.0 tools that would foster engagement in an intensive learning experience. Captured in an article submitted to the SSLA are a myriad of tools to engender the use of talk to visualize meaning and extend thinking.

BTW - After a disastrous incident in which a bevy of sticky notes detailing "text-to-world" connections became affixed to my posterior, the online Post-its became a life line!

Slideshow Of Best Professional Books For Teacher-Librarians

2008-11-29T20:03:00.002-06:00

Amazon.com Widgets

Wow! Amazon widgets certainly add pizzazz! In less than five minutes, I created this slideshow of books handpicked from the Amazon catalogue. Instead of going to LibraryThing to view my latest reads, visitors can view my choices without leaving my blog. The ability to produce a slideshow of books relevant to your readers has enormous potential for school library blogs or Web sites!

Release The Books!

2008-11-29T19:28:00.000-06:00

Stephanie Myers' Twilight Series continues to endure a controversial reputation in school libraries. In support of the viewpoint of the narrow-minded and an insistence upon maintaining their stellar reputation, some major book sellers have refused to sell the series or warn potential buyers of the series "mature content". For school libraries to support the banning of books is appalling. The premise that tweens would be corrupted and pressured to engage in acts of sexualization due to the reading of the series is insidious. Rather than shy away from controversial content and endorse the scare tactics of the uninformed, please at least read the books and preview ReelzChannel's 10 Things Parents Should Know About Twilight

Words

2008-10-25T19:50:00.009-06:00

"Listening to hear, not listening to speak" - a phrase that resonated during the Cognitive CoachingSM session I recently attended. The axiom resurfaced during Arthur Slade's keynote speech at the Saskatchewan Young Readers’ Choice Awards' Willows Awards Fundraiser.

Words are powerful - they can bring one to tears, cause intense reflection, infuriate, evoke passion, and stimulate the imagination.
Words - they are the window to a person's thinking and the vocalization of one's behaviour.

Are we listening? Do we really listen to the evocative words of an author and delight in the way their writing embarks the reader on a journey?
Do we really listen to the words of a speaker, be it a colleague, friend, or child?
Do we listen to hear what they are trying to communicate by giving the speaker our undivided attention, providing sufficient wait time, and paraphrase their words in a way to invite the development of deeper meaning?

The video featuring Arthur Slade echoed at the Willow Award Fundraiser illustrates the magic of words and their ability to transport us to discovered places and emotions.

K12 Online Conference - Spoiler Video

2008-10-14T07:08:00.002-06:00

The video is a teaser of Donna DesRoches' and Carlene Walter's, collectively known as the Disruptive Innovators, upcoming learning opportunity for teacher-librarians, Beyond The Stacks. The video is a finale for their K12 Online Conference presentation.

The K-12 Online Conference is a FREE conference that presents innovative ways Web 2.0 tools and technologies can be used to improve learning. This pre-conference keynote, Stephen Heppell, spoke on October 13, 2008. During October 20-24 and October 27-31, forty presentations will be posted online to the conference blog.

Quill And Swill Booktalk

2008-10-10T13:44:00.006-06:00

Quill And Swill - October08

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: booktalk quillandswill)

For those not projecting the slideshare, the text may seem rather small. The .pdf version may alleviate eye strain.

K12 Video Teaser

2008-10-02T09:15:00.008-06:00

As the pace of technology change accelerates, many teacher-librarians risk being overwhelmed to meet the needs of 21st Century learners. Donna DesRoches and I, collectively known as the Disruptive Innovators, are presenting a session at the K12 Online Conference in which we describe emerging technologies and outline its potential in today's school library environment. Donna and I, in our learning opportunity Meet The Stars, encouraged teacher-librarians to go beyond the stacks to encompass "Web 2.0" tools in order to create a robust library program that engenders the love of reading and information fluency. This video clip is a (poor) glimpse of our upcoming presentation.

Elton John Concert

2008-09-20T20:04:00.001-06:00

Intimate Engagement

2008-09-15T12:08:00.003-06:00

As a newly appointed Learning Support Facilitator, I am exploring new terrain in ways to provide meaningful professional development to educators who I have had no previous relationship with. What is a meaningful learning opportunity? How do you build a congenial, rather than a collegial, relationship with a stranger?

Joan Frye Williams, a speaker at the ALA, and Keith Walker, an Educational Administration professor at the University of Saskatchewan, both indicate ineffective presentation modes that do not initiate an intimate engagement:
1. I Know What's Best - Presuming what the other needs.
2. Paul Revere Presentation - Cite imminent disaster and the rise of something horrible.
3. Buzzword Barrage - Fill the presentation with the latest jargon without context or meaning.
4. Star Trek - Restate what it already occurring, but wear a smashing stretchy outfit.

Williams and Walker may have presented at two different events and probably have never met, but their message was unanimous. Creating an environment of hospitality, community, and trust involves "walking across the room" (Walker). Take initiative to build relationships with others, find common interest in the unlikely or unknown person, and interact in innovative ways.

Ewan McIntosh

2008-08-25T22:24:00.006-06:00

Ewan McIntosh, a teacher and social media specialist from Scotland, was the featured speaker at a session hosted by Prairie South School Division. Ewan discussed how Scotland's curriculum utilizes social media and gaming to promote learning. In the video clip, Ewan discusses game-based learning.

My Summer

2008-08-25T22:13:00.005-06:00

It is the first day back to work and colleagues regaled stories of exotic trips and attendance at great conferences. Not to be outdone, I tried to brag about spending sweltering summer days at a hockey rink.

K12 Online Conference 2008

2008-08-09T18:57:00.007-06:00

The K12 Online Conference provides outstanding opportunities for free, collaborative, accessible professional learning for educators around the globe. The K12 Online Learning Conference 2008 will begin with a pre-conference keynote during the week of October 13, 2008. During the following two weeks, October 20-24 and October 27-31, forty presentations will be posted online for participants to download and view.

Donna DesRoches and I, collectively known as the Disruptive Innovators, will be presenting Beyond the Stacks: Using Emerging Technologies to Strengthen Teacher-librarian Leadership. Due to the explosive transformation in how information in created, organized, and accessed, we hope to stimulate proactive conversations focused on teacher-librarians meeting the learning imperative for the 21st century. As we face continual obsolesce, the misguided supposition that it is the SPACE, rather than the TEACHER-LIBRARIAN that is required for 21st century learning must be eradicated (Harada).

Wordle

2008-07-13T20:48:00.004-06:00

Flip Video

2008-07-04T13:08:00.006-06:00

I am really enjoying my new Flip Video.Its sleek look, affordability, compatibility, and simplicity of use (shooting, editing, saving and uploading videos) makes the Flip Video one of my new favourite gadgets!

The editing facilities are limited, but since I am not attempting to be the next Steven Spielburg, its capabilities are suitable for my purposes. The sound quality is acceptable, but remain close to your subject to ensure audibility.

I plan to use the Flip Video to record anecdotal notes, note moments of excitement of learning from students, and capture reflections of educational staff and students whom I have provided PD to.

For more educational ideas, view Bob Spankle's Caught on Video and Joyce Valenza's blog.

Angela Thacker Memorial Award

2008-06-10T11:20:00.004-06:00

Donna DesRoches and I were honoured to receive the Canadian Library Association's Angela Thacker Memorial Award. The Angela Thacker Memorial Award honours teacher-librarians who have made contributions to the profession through publications, productions or professional development activities that deal with topics relevant to teacher-librarianship and or/information literacy. We attended the award ceremony as well as the CLA conference in Vancouver. Thank you to all who nominated us!

Donna and I look forward to offering another professional development opportunity in the fall of 2008. For more information, view our article The 21st Century Teacher-Librarian.

WYSIWYG versus WYTIWYT

2008-05-29T10:38:00.001-06:00

The invention of WYSIWYG revolutionized Web design. The visual control was liberating. However, WYSIWIG does not infer, summarize, or synthesize. WYTIWYTU, a term coined by Rowland Lorimer at the CLA Conference in Vancouver, is a response to the maelstrom of change occurring in information sharing and engulfing the revolution is open access. WYTIWYTU, or What You Tag Is What You Transform, allows the designer and the client to go beyond text to an expended palette of representations of knowledge through the allowance of accumulated wisdom. Web design is no longer uploaded content, but facilitating and augmenting communication on a mass scale.

The Notables - CLA 2008 Book Awards

2008-05-27T21:05:00.001-06:00

The Notables CLA Awards

From: guest33e15b, 6 minutes ago

| View | Upload your own

2008 CLA Awards

SlideShare Link

2008-05-18T16:14:00.000-06:00

Artrageous Art Gala

2008-05-06T11:35:00.001-06:00

Quill and Swill Book Talk

2008-04-26T09:24:00.001-06:00

Being Engaging

2008-04-20T20:24:00.003-06:00

The YASLA blog features a Teacher Tube called Pay Attention. It focuses on why educators need to actively engage students through the effective use of technology into teaching..

Artrageous Book Club

2008-04-19T17:23:00.002-06:00

Designed to foster artistic expression and promote visual literacy, The Artrageous Book Club involves the use of digital communication and authoring tools to study Caldecott winning artists’ pictorial interpretation of story.

I invited several artists to be our Artists In Residence. Lisa Hildebrant introduced students to acrylics; Karen Campbell demonstrated creating a silhouette using watercolours, and Rebecca Grambo exposed students to digital photography. Caldecott winning books and a description of their technique are displayed throughout the library. During Art Club meetings, students are encouraged to create art inspired by their favourite books.

Resembling a museum, the library walls feature students’ masterpieces, complete with wall text. As the curator of the Artrageous Gallery, I will be hosting an evening exhibition in which the students will showcase their work and local artists will judge the entries. The artists are busy finalizing their works and preparing for their gallery tour using Web tools that help photographers display their photos on the Web in slideshows.

We hope you will visit soon to see our artrageous work!

Online Program With Doug Johnson

2008-04-11T06:58:00.002-06:00

I just received this information from Joyce Valenza:

In celebration of National Library Week, join the American Associationof School Librarians for a very special online program in the virtual reality environment Second Life (SL) on Monday, April 14th at 9pm ET/8pm CT/ 7pm MT/ 6pm PT.Doug Johnson (http://doug-johnson.squarespace.com) will bring us apresentation and discussion entitled:"Beating the No U-Turn Syndrome: A New Approach to Teaching andEnforcing Copyright Compliance."For too long librarians have been seen as "copyright cops," impedingthe use of copyrighted materials by students and staff. This presentation suggests we redefine our roles, helping those we serve take maximum advantage of fair use provisions, finding authoritieswith a "user-centric" view of copyright enforcement, and teachingothers to consider not just the legal, but moral side of intellectualproperty acquisition, use and re-use. Heated discussion to follow.

To attend this event:
1. Go to www.secondlife.com and click on the orange button to create afree avatar account
2. Verify that you will be using a computer that meets SL systemsrequirements found at http://secondlife.com/corporate/sysreqs.php.
3. Download the client software at http://secondlife.com/support/downloads.php.
4. Install the software on your computer and log onto SL using youravatar name and password
5. If this is your first time in SL, log on well in advance of this program to go through the orientation activities that are provided bySL for new avatars.
6. Then, on the day of the event, log on at least fifteen minutes inadvance. Use the SLURLhttp://slurl.com/secondlife/ALA%20Island/127/106/29 to teleport to theevent.
7. When you arrive, take a seat and then touch the notecard giver forfurther information.8. In this program, Doug Johnson will be using voice to communicate.Make sure you are enabled for voice by clicking Editl -> Preferences-> Voice Chat -> Enable Voice Chat. To hear the presentation, makesure that your sound is unmated and volume turned up. Do NOT touchthe talk button to avoid extraneous background noises during thepresentation.

This program is brought to you by the AASL Web 2.0 Taskforce and theChicago Public Schools Dept of Libraries. See you in-world!

Teacher-Librarians Hurt By Minstry's Cuts

2008-03-30T22:12:00.002-06:00

To my astonishment, the Instructional Resources Branch of the Ministry of Saskatchewan Education has just been eliminated. As school libraries fall under the purview of this department, concerns arise as to the future of school library programs in the province.

Teacher-librarians are best positioned to help students become information managers in the 21st century. Ken Haycock, Joyce Valenza, and Doug Johnson provide ample evidence of the impact of teacher-librarians on improving student achievement. Why, then, are there ongoing problems of support?

Book Trailers

2008-03-19T17:22:00.003-06:00

Seen any good books lately? To pique the interest of my school library patrons, the students and I create shelf talkers and book trailers —also known as a book videos, book teasers, or book presenters. The book trailers communicate distinct and unique interpretations of text to a global audience and allow students to view a peer's review, rather than a teacher summary, of an exciting read.

We have been creating book trailers for a few years using Photostory,Toufee, and Voice Thread. Their popularity is evident as the students are finding that more videos are now available. UCF Digital Booktalk provides a written paragraph of the book with a Quicktime video about the book. A VoiceThread created by third graders about a traditional Japanese craft illustrates that varied uses of digital storytelling. Most appropriate for middle years and high school. For teacher-librarians, check out Nancy Keane’s Booktalks gone podcast!

The students and I will be trying a new (to-us) Web tool Glogster, which lets us create an online poster complete with images, sound, video clips, text, and hyperlinks.

Google Vs Zoho

2008-03-10T19:18:00.005-06:00

I have been experimenting with two desktop applications - Google Apps and Zoho's Office Suite. Business-oriented Zoho and the consumer-oriented Google applications offer many of same services.

As I am a fan of many of the Google apps, including Gmail, Google Notebook, Google Calendar, I was confident that I would like Google Docs. As a user of Writely, I was overjoyed when the horrible green interface disappeared when it was purchased by Google and folded along with Google Spreadsheets into Google Docs & Spreadsheets. However, importing documents from Word Processing software results in a formatting nightmare!

Zoho maintains formatting in imported documents, making it a preferable choice.

However, I am willing to try Springnote.

Tuesday is "Library Night"

2008-03-02T18:48:00.003-06:00

Women of the Web2 or WOW2, organized by Cheryl Oakes, Jennifer Wagner, Sharon Peters, & Vicki Davis, have scheduled Joyce Valenza and Doug Johnson as a scheduled this coming Tuesday night! Please join the show at http://www.edtechtalk.com/chat at 8PM CST.
For more information:
Visit Cathy Nelson of the South Carolina Association of Teacher-Librarians
To join the Live Chat, visit http://womenofwebchats.wikispaces.com/
For comments about the upcoming show visit Joyce's blog and Doug's blog
Thanks Donna for sending the reminder!

SSLA Web Site

2008-02-28T07:23:00.002-06:00

I attended Dean Shareski's presentation entitled “Are you Published?” for Showcase 2008. He reminded me that if you are doing something interesting - make it public - share it. I lamented that my blog posts had been lacking and I was working in isolation.

What have I been doing? I completed my Masters of Education with U of C in the fall. Currently, I am taking my sixth course with Harvard University. As part of the SSLA (Saskatchewan School Library Association) executive and conference committee, I redesigned the Web site and am still uploading information. Please check out the site and offer feedback!

2008 SSLA Conference

2008-02-28T07:20:00.002-06:00

The Saskatchewan School Library (SSLA) invites school library personnel to attend our 2008 Conference on May 14th in Saskatoon, SK at the Saskatoon Club.

Carol Koechlin and Sandi Zwaan will be presenting a one-day session entitled Building A Culture of Inquiry In The Library. In this information age, educators must empower students to become critical thinkers and users of information. Koechlin and Zwaan will explore the benefits ofbuilding a culture of inquiry and introduce strategies for teaching questioning to students.

To register, please visit the SSLA Web site at http://ssla.ca/conference_ssla.htm.

Shark Girl By Rachel

2007-11-27T10:36:00.001-06:00

Meet The Stars Mentioned In Wiki Presentation

2007-11-09T06:54:00.000-06:00

Donna DesRoches and I, the Disruptive Innovators, were honoured to have our online professional development opportunity for teacher-librarians mentioned in Julie Lindsay's slideshow presentation.

Meet The Stars is mentioned on slide #25!

View Upload your own

Morning Perks

2007-11-06T13:57:00.000-06:00

Need a jolt in the morning? Pending funding, I am considering opening a cafe in the school library to entice parents and students to read together. Doug Johnson, in his Blue Skunk Blog, highlights responses from other media specialists who have introduced library coffee shops.

Not intending to replicate Barnes and Noble, the coffee house is an innovative solution to an existing problem - cultivating time to foster community ties when I am a commuting teacher-librarian. As students' needs shape the programs and services available through the school library media center, the morning offer of a "leisurely atmosphere, warm aromatic drinks, prominently displayed books and other materials by genre", and the snuggle of a loving parent may engender a passion for reading.

As I picked up my daily dose of caffeine this morning, the barista valiantly tried to sell a particular CD. Could the offer of books be far behind?

Literacies

2007-10-14T16:15:00.001-06:00

New Literacies

2007-10-12T14:06:00.000-06:00

Involved in some new projects in the general area of literacy and new technologies, I have been examining the area of new literacies research and the impact of media upon the reconceptualization of the role of the teacher-librarian. No longer just curators of bounded collections, teacher-librarians have emerged as information facilitators who assist learners in finding needed material (online, print, or human) and cultivators of literacy and searching strategies.

In the same vein as constructivist theories and brain-based research, new literacies involve "human production, distribution, exchange, refinement, negotiation, and contestation of meanings" (Lankshear and Knobel; Penrod; and Jenkins). Reading and writing is, therefore, not encoding and decoding text, but rather imbuing meaning through immersion in social practices.

K12 Online Virtual Conference

2007-09-21T07:48:00.000-06:00

The free K12 Online virtual conference coming soon! The conference strands: Classroom 2.0, Web Tools, Professional Learning Networks, and Obstacles to Opportunities provide teacher-librarians and technology educators with a wealth of opportunities to learn, communicate, and reflect on existing practices. A keynote is scheduled for the week of October 8. Many presentations to be published during the weeks of October 15 and 22.

The site features teasers–short, online videos provided by the presenters that give a brief overview of their presentation. To sample a teaser, view Dean Shareski's teaser “Design Matters” (another Saskatchewan educator).

See you there!

Cool Cat Award

2007-09-21T07:43:00.000-06:00

Donna DesRoches and I, the Disruptive Innovators, are so pleased that our online professional development workshop has earned the Cool Cat Teacher Award. Aimed at teacher-librarians, the workshop was designed to engender a passion for reading and exploit the potential of a range of emerging technologies.

Vicki, thank you for your recognition!

Teacher-Librarian PD Opportunity

2007-09-12T17:45:00.000-06:00

Donna DesRoches, a very creative person who is the Learning Resources Consultant for Living Sky School Division, and I met over the summer to discuss - what do teacher-libratians need to know, believe, and be able to do in order to effectively integrate technology into their professional practices. Responses to this question lie at the intersection of knowledge about pedagogy, meaningful learning, professional development opportunities, and the management of technology.

As the conversation ensued, the outline of a professional development opportunity for teacher-librarians was formulated. Dressed in a glitzy theme of Hollywood and beginning with a cultivation of literacy, we anchored the professional development in inquiry, conversation, and collaboration of Web 2.0 tools and how they can be used to facilitate and enhance the roles of the teacher-librarian as manager, teacher and instructional leader.

Meet The Stars debuted on the SSLA wiki. We were overwhelmed with registrations. Intending to cap the participant limit at 20, we finally closed it at 36 and to date have received over 80 registration requests.

Meet The Stars

2007-09-02T16:59:00.000-06:00

The vicarious star-studded glamour of the Hollywood era provides a backdrop for an opening display. Designed to engender a passion for reading and exploit the potential of a range of emerging technologies, Meet The Stars explores all facets of the school library program - information literacy and the reading and literature programs. Meet The Stars is poised to become an overnight sensation!

SearchCrystal

2007-07-19T08:33:00.000-06:00

George Siemen's blog alerted me to a new alternative search engine - SearchCrystal. This visualization tool "lets you search and compare multiple engines in one place. It enables you to compare, remix, and share results from the best web image, video, blog, tagging, news engines, Flickr images, or RSS feeds".

The resulting circular image is a striking visual that compares a lot of information in a concise and simplistic manner. Easy to use and great results!

The Disposible Librarian

2007-07-10T19:13:00.000-06:00

Sykes, in Brain Friendly School Libraries, states that there are three major areas that make teacher-librarians invaluable

On-site Staff Developer

Information Literacy Agent

Cultural Emissary

Sykes' research and a recent post on the AASL Blog caused me to rethink my pedagogical beliefs. The Blogtator, in The Disposable Librarian, lists criteria of teacher-librarians who do not embrace twenty-first learning. I am continually re-evaluating my role and practices to ensure that I am providing a brain friendly school library program. Although I believe I have transformed my role as a teacher-librarian focused on collection and accessing materials to one concentrated on building a centre of information exploration and creation, I realize that I need to continually revisit and revision aspects of my practice.

Welcome to Eclectech Librarian!

2007-06-17T16:24:00.000-06:00

The purpose of this blog, as opposed to my classroom and course blogs, is to not to teach or showcase my students' acquired skills and abilities, but rather:

A platform for reflections of articles, blogs, and discussions centred on librarianship, particularily information literacy.
A forum to discuss new Web tools and its possibilities for integration into teaching and learning practices.
A framework for teacher-librarians in my school division to develop and implement evidence-based practices in order sustain our role.