Sunday, March 23, 2008

Thing # 23 The End??

This journey has not been easy for me. I am an digital illegal alien, and I spent quite a bit of time lost in the desert without water.

Some discoveries:

Google Tools. And it's free
Teacher tube. And it's cool, and useful.
Open Office. Why are we still paying for Microsoft?? Are there really pitfalls we didn't explore, or does the world enjoy financing Bill Gates' lifestyle?
There are some great places to go for othere views on librarianship.

Some thoughts.

For the next classes, please offer some face-to-face, or phone-to-phone time for those of us who are totatlly intimidated by the technology. Something along the lines of catalog camp would be helpful. Not all would need it, but it should be available.

I will take the next podcast/vidcast class offered, if I can get some gentle one-on-one help.

What doesn't kill us makes us stronger. Yeah, sure.

Had fun. Learned something.

Thing # 21 Podcasts and Vidcasts

Alrightty now! I can use this stuff. I finally find something where I can envision uses,I just don't understand how to do it. Due to technical problems (like not being able to spell technical problems) the podcast is not up yet. One of my hang-ups over new equipment (not new technology, but the equipment will be new) that will be coming, is a lack of vision as to how to use this stuff. A student-produced story should just about do this. Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy ride!

Friday, March 21, 2008

Thing # 22 Nings

Don'get too excited folks. I am skipping Pod casting until I can find my microphone. I know I had one here somewhere.

Nings. I went into the librarian sites. I can see that if I had a specific project that I didn't know where to start, like running a dog kennel out of the library, this might be the place to start. But, I am seeing an awful lot of groaning and moaning about how bad we have it, and I've kinda run out of time for that.

And I guess that is something to learn here. I saw it on TLC years ago. I am not the dumbest librarian out there. Nor, am I the smartest. Far from it. But as I went TLC, and tonight, the librarian NINGs, I absolutely know that I have it good. No, I have it great.

My principal drives me crazy, sometimes. I'm sure I drive her crazy most of the time. I would like more communication and more of an idea as to what is about to happen in my library and in my school.

On the other hand (the one with 6 fingers), I pretty much have control over my schedule. I have heard much about fixed vs flexible schedules, and how bad fixed schedules are. I always thought I had a fixed schedule because I try to see the same classes the same time each week. Well, with testing and all the other things going on, I, not anyone else, I change my schedule constantly.

I read lots of complaints about budgets. I have found a couple of things that work. I always have ideas as to what I could do with $500 or $1000. While talking with the boss, if I sense this is a good day for her, I kinda mention something I would love to do, if I had the money. Guess what? It works sometimes.

I also have built a reputation for being able to spend $600 well in a matter of minutes, so that when the boss gets told she can have money if she spends it NOW, she tells me. Give me a school subject, and I can put together a book order in a hurry.

My library is open. Literally. All hallways in the building empty into the library. The perimeter is a series of freeways with lots of traffic, all day long. The place is noisy, and nothing is sacred. On the other hand (the one with the webbing and fur on the palm of my hand) I get to see just about every teacher and staff member each day. This makes it very convenient for them to drop in with questions or requests. This also makes my work with the children very visible.

So, with the NING, I think it has a use. My next crazy idea will be paraded out there for comments and suggestions. Like answering the question "How much is a million?" by collecting pennies. Someone has done that, I know. Or how can I make my circulation desk more efficient without killing the fun?

Or, maybe, I can share how to run a model railroad over the non-fiction section. See, I told you I have it pretty good. Sometimes, I just have to stop the tedium, and get the little Santa Fe tank engine going.

Anyways, I am not through yet, Gotta make the podcast thing fly.

Monday, March 17, 2008

Thing # 20 WOW Factor

OK, Teacher Tube is worth everything.

The samples on the Library2Play site are wonderful. I think I can use all of them at school, now.

When I looked at the Texas History site from UNT, which promises a great time at that website, I found a fun little clip from a school group (high school) that shows me the possibilities of making UTube type projects from school.

So, here is my favorite. I hope to use it with a parent class to encourage literacy and reading to your child.

http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=952a85b8551ba726a122

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Thing # 19 Web 2.0 list

I really didn't find much that I was interested in. I found some lists I might have been interested in, but found discussions of porno right along with discussions of everything else. Next.

Ma.gnolia.com Social Bookmarking. I am looking for something like this, but not quite this much. They offer the ability to share and discuss my bookmarks. All I want to do is mark a couple of sites for my students. I am not looking for coffee and a danish with a guy in Sacramento!

But, the basic thing, I can use. I establish an account with ma.gnolia and proceed to bookmark sites for my classes and students. Then I have the kids help me bookmark ma.gnolia on student machines. Now when I find an interesting site, I bookmark it in one place, and every machine in my school can find it.

My primary use right now will be game sites, many of which are blocked by the powers that be, wherever and whoever they are. A very free, and effective incentive for my students is the offer of 30 minutes free time on a computer. Good, free, un-blocked sites are not easy to find. My 5th graders can find them, but many of my 2nd graders are getting un structured access to the Internet for the first time. They don't have a clue where they want to go, and waste a lot of their (and my) time just typing the urls.

If I can show them one bookmark with many sites, without having to type it 12 times, I will be happy.

And free time does have educational value. Some of my kids are motivated by the offer of free time. Several have been perfectly happy in pure education sites like Odyssey and Kid Pics. The favorite right now is Scholastic, because of Goosebumps. And that, my friends, is reading.

Aren't I having enough trouble with English and Spanish? Ma.gnolia offers "bookmarklets" These made up words slay me.

By the way, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I just started singing: There's a light...... over at the Frankenstein place. Rocky Horror ruined my brain.

So, yes, this is useful.

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Why do we do this???

OK, so I am taking a break from the technology Things.

I had lunch with "Eileen" this week. She earned the priviledge because she has earned more than 20 points in Accelerated Reader. Someone forgot to tell her that she could bring a friend (most of her class has long since had lunch with the librarian), so there she was, by herself, grinning at me in the library. I grabbed my lunch box and sat down with her.

You need to know that "Eileen" is a second grader. She will be 10 years old this summer. When Eileen came to Ms B's class in August (from a sister school district), it quickly became obvious that the girl did not yet know her ABCs! And guess what? There is no evidence in her record that any of a number of schools ever tested her for any learning disabilities. Ms B. has had an interesting 6 months, especially since she herself is fairly new to this teaching game (and by the way, the teacher is herself dyslexic). And we have seen remarkable progress. We probably broke several inane laws in September because Ms B. asked everyone in the school to help her with Eileen, while the incredibly slow process of needs identification crawled along. No one at my school shunted her off to the side because she was so far behind. No one told Ms B. she couldn't do anything until the entire process was done.

So anyways, here I am talking about reading to this dark haired angel, when she looks at me and announces: "Ms B. doesn't read to me anymore."

Whereupon, I, the librarian, immediately somewhat concerned, ask, "Why not??"

She smiled this smile that melted my heart and declared, "Because I can do it myself!!" There is intelligence in those eyes. There is determination in that face. And one of my teachers put it there!! So, Texas, you can keep your TAKS tests. My school is not going to leave anyone behind!!

Thing # 18 Microsoft Who??

Looked around the website for awhile before downloading Open Office. They do make it possible to pay for this, but this is the last thing they mention. Open Office really would like everyone to contribute time to improving the program.

So far the only downside I can see is how long it took me to download. At one point, on my desktop, I seemed to be in a loop.

The product looks enough like MS Word that I could easily create a document. Some features that I looked at, like envelopes, are in a different place, but seem better than MS Word.

Can I gather that if the district were to adopt this, our Geeks would be able to load it much quicker than I did?

A question I would have, is how much is our school district spending now on site licensing from Microsoft, and how much would we be willing to donate to Open Office for what could be a better product?

I really liked several places in the final download where they did not force themselves into my life as my one and only software. This may change when it is time for my next computer.

What a concept. I am impressed.

Thing #17 Play in the sandbox, WIKI

SoIwenttotheplaygroundandgotinthesandboxandstartedplayingandwashavinglotsoffununtilalittlegirlstartedthrowingsandandigotupsetandsaidi'mtellingandanywaystheyaskedmenottocomeback.

OK, been there, done that, find my comments in the sandbox cause that's all I have to say about that.

Thing # 16 WIKIs

Before I talk a bit about WIKIs, I finially found my avatar! It is on a sample page for a school WIKI. I never got into any of the avatars that I found while doing that project. Maybe I am just paranoid, but I don't want to ever give anyone on the Internet the impression that I am anything but a grumpy, 55 year old elementary librarian. The furry creature to my right not only bears a resemblance to me, but I think it conveys my mood at least once in the last week.

Anyways, I need to get on with WIKIs. I really can't see using them with my elementary school students anytime soon, unless it were as a way to write a policies and procedures handbook for the library, and the kids were to get input.

However, I can really see WIKIs as a great way for committees, and small working groups of teachers, to create grant proposals, projects, almost anything. Instead of having to come to one spot at one time to plan, I could put out a WIKI and tell my group how to get in.

This might also be a good way to improve on the "one-person-does-all-the-work current methodology of many of our campus projects, such as the carnival.

As my campus becomes better at keyboarding, it might be fun to create a story in a WIKI.

(For some reason, every time I type WIKI, it starts as WIKE. Is this the new footwear created by a committee?)

So, off I go.

Monday, March 10, 2008

Thing # 15 Web 2.0, Library 2.0 and Why am I so tired?

I found some useful ideas here.

Away From Icebergs was interesting.

Into a New World of Librarianship. Breaking down barriers. I don't know Vern, what barriers are in my library? There are no doors. My circulation is way up there, because we do not limit our patrons to 2 books a week. Heck, I have 2nd graders that we don't limit to 2 books an hour! Last week, in preparation for closing the library on Monday (laptop rollout) and Wednesday (TAKS) we pretty well let all students check out as many books as they could carry, without regard to age or current standing. And we survived!

Michael Stephens coins a term I could hang on someone who shall remain nameless - technolust. Going after technology because you can. In the same article he admonishes us to keep moving forward.

But the article I will talk to you about tonight is The Path to Becoming a Literate Educator (Barry is always pinging on me to technolofy!) here is a plan that seems to suggest starting with just a couple of teachers with drive and vision to move forward. They should include the librarian (That's Me!) and hopefully someone from the school or district who can help with the technobabble (Media Services, prepare to be boarded!). We will learn together. Blog (got that).

I see some good ideas for building a core of several classes with which to get technology learning kicked into high gear at my school.

Back to the district help, Yes, need that. I will need one-on-one help face-to-face.

Now, if I can just convince my principal that the TAKS is way too overrated.........

By the way, apparently I was numbering these posts wrong. This is Thing 15, and with some work, I got # 13 numbered right.

Sunday, March 9, 2008

Thing #14 Technorati and other things I don't understand.

OK. The video of the Technorati people was, to me, more of a thing about blogging in general, and less about tagging. I tried looking at "School Library Learning 2.0" through Technorati but felt as if I was an univited guest listening in on random conversations that had been going on for months. I guess I don't get it, as usual.

While we are here, let's look at Dan's understanding of Blogs. A bunch of people, either semi-annyomious, or blatently out for a buck (newspaper columnists) post a stream of consciousness, 24/7. There is little citing, less proof that what they are saying is anything but drunken musings. Our own people in my school district (God bless them, they are the most knowlegeable people I know!) post constantly without giving their names.

It seems, from what I gathered from Technorati, that blogging is now what the Internet was 15 years ago. Anarchy. Anyone says anything they want, sharing their opinions, but not having to back anything up with facts.

Yet, in my reasearch classes in college, and in what I teach my students, we must have some sense that the source is legitimate and not just another student who could be making it up as they go (like me).

If blogging, and its close cousin, Wikipedia, are so wonderful, why is my school district spending so much money on dull, corporate databases that can back up everything they publish with citations?? A 5th grader who writes a paper about the presidential election based on what the other 5th graders in his class tell him, is probably going to write an interesting paper, but I doubt much of it will be relevant.

I get that I am supposed to be sampling blogs for new ideas and procedures, but I'm kinda busy working with my students right now. What I am doing in my library seems to work. The teachers respect me (they don't understand me, but they depend on me), my students love me, and I have some evidence that I am effective.

Using facts from Texas Education Agency, I can prove my effectiveness.

I was the Sterling City ISD librarian for 6 years. The high school was exemplary all six years, but not before I got there, or after I left. In fact, now, after 3 years, they are just acceptable. They also do not have a certified librarian anymore!

I have been at Treasure Forest Elementary for 3 years. before I arrived the school had never risen above acceptable, and at one point was almost unacceptable. In my three years, the school was "recognized" for 2 years and is currently "exemplary".

See, I made the difference!


See, what I have been seeing just these past few days reminds me an awful lot of what we used to do in the Army. Listen in on other people's converstations (Ever read The Puzzle Palace ?). But there was so much stuff out there, and you didn't always know who was talking, and it was just as easy for the other side to salt the airwaves with garbage and send us looking for boogie men while the real bad guys laughed themselves silly over how much trouble they were causing us. The National Security Agency can probably record every telephone call in the world, and store it on the biggest computers in history, but it takes a whole lot of analysis to find what is truly important. Most of it is not.

And the above paragraph is one of the reasons why I wear hearing aids today, too much listing to static in the hopes of hearing a really good morsel, like Gorbachev wears lace underwear! That's all my wife wanted to know.

Maybe this summer I will come into the Media Center and sit at the feet of my mentors and make sense of the blogosphere, but I will worry about that tomorrow, at Tara, after all..........

Thing # 13 Tagging and Del.icios or something like that

OK, now I'm really getting lost. Tag is a game I played as a child. Delicious is what I say about my wife's potato salad.

But I digress. I was unable to fully view the video due to audio problems that I do not believe are at my end.

Tagging really looks like more work than I want to do. When I tried to look at the examples of sweets, I could not see the point. I found myself in websites in every language except the one I understand.

And from my experience with cataloging materials, and the 650 marc line, there needs to be standardization of the tags, or it just will not work. I cannot remember my work login half the time, how am I to remember the tag system I made up for stuff I find just as easily by google?

Now, once I get rid of all my library books and quit reading to my children, maybe I'll have time to tag the Internet. Until then - Next!

Saturday, March 8, 2008

Thing # 12 Rollyo

So far I am less than impressed. You can't spend 20 minutes creating something unless you know where you want to search. If I know which websites I want to search, why do I need Rollyo??


Powered by Rollyo


Anyways, I tried.