Lovin' Books & Libraries

Thing 23: Reflection

2009-08-14T22:57:00.002-05:00

Well, I made it! I feel much accomplished and great about my new-found knowledge about some amazing applications. I definitely have a most favorite app...Library Thing! I haven't yet paid for a complete membership, but it's something I want to do this year. I want to make my classroom library more accessible to students from home. They can certainly look through my books while at school, but it would be great if they could look closer at titles they're interested in. It would also help me to have an online record of the books I own so I do not overbuy...which has happened before believe me.

My least favorite Thing...Flickr. I've never been a big fan of Flickr because of the limits set up by the company. I also believe somewhere in their policy, they claim ownership of all pictures posted on the site. This may be an older statement, but that does not sit well with me. I enjoyed looking through the site for this Thing, but I can't see myself using it myself.

Thanks 23 Things!! I look forward to using some of old faves like YouTube and Facebook, but also try out some new things too like RSS Feeds and Google Docs. Great stuff!

Thing 22: Developing Your Own 23 Things

2009-08-14T22:49:00.002-05:00

I can't wait to share all the new technology available for libraries! I was planning to send my school librarian the link to my 23 Things blog so she could browse through the applications I was introduced to this summer. I am absolutely going to suggest that we create a Facebook page for the library and advertise it to the kids. I would be willing to help keep it updated with announcements about new books, links to websites we want the kids to know about and maybe even some book discussion. I'm also really hoping, along with my tech dept. member on campus, that students can all sign up for a Google account to begin using Google Docs. I'm already planning to speak to my principal about this. She is an advocate for technology integration and this would be one more skill the students can learn. I think it will be such an easy way to move documents between students and staff without messing with our network folders and such. And of course, in my own classroom, I want to push podcasts and perhaps wikis to get students creating and discussing and LEARNING in a Web 2.0 way that they will enjoy and gain so much from. I'm excited to share what I've learned this summer!

Thing 21: Podcasts

2009-08-14T22:41:00.002-05:00

Podcasts...it's like radio on the internet! I have enjoyed listening to podcasts myself and incorporating them into libraries is such an amazing idea! I really enjoy listening to This American Life, a podcast FREE through NPR. I also really like the game show format podcast Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me, again through NPR. With book trailers becoming more and more popular in libraries and classrooms, that same idea can easily blend into podcasting. Two of my students chose to create a podcast last year for their final research project and they turned out awesome! They researched the topic, wrote a script, added sound effects, and recorded it all at school. It was so fun to see them get excited about a project they designed. The other kids loved listening to it too. If I had had more students choose this project, I would have put the podcasts onto iPods and had the kids enjoy them that way.

I want to see libraries linking podcasts directly to their library webpages for patrons to access from home. Maybe they'll be podcasts created by authors or library specialists, but also using library staff, students in nearby schools, or students on the library's campus. The kids could do booktalks or book reviews for others to enjoy. A very Web 2.0 experience!

Thing 20: YouTube

2009-07-29T09:13:00.002-05:00

I love YouTube! I have found it so useful and was thankful when my school district unblocked it for teachers. It contains some amazing resources for teaching concepts and reinforcing learning. I have shown movie clips, teaching videos, commercials. It's fantastic! I recently uploaded my first YouTube video and it was very easy. Interested? Click here!

Funniest thing! I found the Austin Public Library's Bibliofiles book cart drill team! Great stuff! I had no idea this even existed. What a fun way to bring excitement to the library!

I now know what the Harvard Law Library looks like thanks to this video. Would have never known!

Very cool video from School Library Journal! They reviewed the Kindle 2 from Amazon and I enjoyed watching it because I'm very interested in buying one myself. Now that I know SLJ does these videos, I can look up more from them and get their reviews on different resources.

I will definitely continue to use YouTube to search for resources for students. As book trailers become more popular, I will use those to entice students into books. I would love to get students to make book trailers at some point as well. What a great way to utilize technology and creativity!

Thing 18: Wikis

2009-07-29T09:06:00.002-05:00

The only wiki I am familiar with, before this posting, was wikipedia. I have used it myself to look up general information on topics I wanted to know more about. I allowed my students to use it IF IF IF they used the original resource the information came from. One of the best parts of wikipedia is located at the bottom of the article. The primary resources are listed, many websites, that can be used to check the information is accurate. It's a great way to keep kids honest and to lessen the chance of finding bad information.

I had never thought of using wikis in the business world to replace that Intranet. What a great idea! It could become overwhelming if the information wasn't organized, but it would certainly be a great way to give everyone a chance to share information. Once everyone was trained, it would be fairly easy to use as long as comments stayed on track. I can see how it would become difficult to follow a single conversation if postings contained information about multiple topics.

I think it would also work to discuss books, projects, any student topics! A very cool way to engage students in discussion for sure!

Thing 19: Google Docs

2009-07-16T08:35:00.003-05:00

Google Docs can be VERY useful for schools, libraries, co-workers and just about anyone collaborating on a document. This is great! The IT person on my campus was sharing Google Docs with the staff last year. She is hoping that all students can have a Google account so that teachers can share documents with them in a new, safer, and much easier way. As of now, we have a Share drive on the network that students and teachers can use, but there are so many bad things about it. Documents can be deleted accidentally or purposefully by other students, it is a hassle to find the right folder, and it's just and old way of document sharing. Google Docs would really save us! It is definitely overwhelming receiving so many emails about the same document. This would help tremendously. When librarians and teachers are working together on a lesson, Google Docs would help keep everything straight and still allow for revisions. Students working in groups could also use this when assigned group work. And it gives kids another tool they will have for the future to help develop their technological skills.

This is definitely going to be used by me next year!

Thing 17: LibWorm

2009-07-09T20:00:00.003-05:00

July 9, 2009

What a time saver! LibWorm seems like it is THE place for the most current LIS news, reports, and information. Certainly because many of the resources are personal blog pages, so there is a certain amount of bias to consider, but still a great place to start when looking around in the LIS world.

I looked up my school's library with no returns. Hmmm...I figured I would get at least a few hits. I also looked around the "Challenged Books" sites. Very interesting! I also looked up "Web 2.0" and found some great info on e-books and climate consideration I had not even thought of.

I'm adding LibWorm to my Delicious account for sure. It'll be a great tool for me in the future.

PS....I just figured out how to fix a problem I was having with my blog. I went into the code and fixed it! Thanks Blogger Help Group!

Thing 16: Library Thing

2009-07-08T09:04:00.004-05:00

July 8, 2009

If someone wants to buy me a present, buy me a lifetime membership to LibraryThing.com! I love it! I have checked this site out before, and I still really love searching through it. This time, I set up an account and added a few books, but it would be great to get my whole library recorded here. I really like how it directs you to others with similar book tastes. Great conversation starter! When I do have it updated with the books I own, it would be a great tool to share with my students. They could go to my catalog and see what books I have and decide what they want to check out next! I do have to say that I'm tempted to buy the CueCat so I can easily scan in my books. That little gizmo is just cool! I wandered around in the "Groups" tab for quite a while, finding all different groups I'd love to join. There are some great conversations going about books...a beautiful thing!

Can you not tell I love this site!?

Technology Addict?

2009-06-26T14:46:00.007-05:00

June 26, 2009

So, I have had a revelation of sorts about technology and the complete control it has over my life. I was stupid enough to leave my phone next to a glass of tea I was enjoying yesterday. This is not something smart to do when you have a 10-month old puppy running around because as soon as I turned around, the drink was spilling all over my beautiful Blackberry Storm. My bad, but still erked at my dog. As most everyone knows, cell phones and liquid do not mix so I was off to the Verizon store, gimpy cellphone in tow. Thankfully, my husband and I have phone insurance, one thing that helped us make the ultimate decision, "Iphone or Blackberry?" $50 later, I was being shipped a new phone. All was well...but then I had to wait...and wait...and wait...until about 30 minutes ago when my pretty shiny BB arrived! Of course, I'll be making another trip to the Verizon store in a bit to finish up what my goober-of-a-dog started, but for the past 24 hours, I have been cellphoneless.

This did not simply mean no one could call me. It also meant the end of my text messaging and mobile Facebook and Twitter updates. A sad day people...a sad day. So, the message in all this? Well, I can't believe how dependent I have become on my friggin' phone! Seriously Alicia! I used to roam around without a cellphone without a problem. When I finally did have a phone, no one texted me because it did not exist. Now that phones do so much, I rely heavily on this silly piece of plastic and fancy touch screen. It's crazy! Am I now encouraged to give it all up and go back to a life without a cell phone? Well, no. I will just take a moment to revel in my new-found insight. Sheesh...now excuse me. Have to get back to charging my Berry...

Old Blackberry...sad Alicia...

New Blackberry...Happy again!

Thing 15: Digg

2009-06-25T08:10:00.004-05:00

June 25, 2009

I think it will take me a while to get used to Digg.com. I did check out the news site, but did not make myself an account. It is a very cool idea, to have people vote on top news stories and share news from different places, but it felt disorganized to me. I won't give up on Digg totally though. I think I'll check back to the site occasionally and see how it has changed and see what news reports have surfaced. I will certainly be able to see news reports I would have otherwise missed out on. I'm so glad that I was able to learn about the "naked thief who stole french fries from Wendy's." :) My life is better for it.

Thing 14: Delicious

2009-06-25T07:36:00.004-05:00

June 25, 2009

Love Delicious!! I was first introduced to Delicious at a technology training a couple of years ago. The lady referred to her Delicious page where we could find some great links for classroom use. Well, I had no clue what she was talking about! Once I figured out what it was, and used her links because they were great, I didn't do much else with it. Finally, this school year, I broke down and created my own account. I wanted to have access to great sites at school that I found while I was at home.

This year, I'm going to encourage my colleagues to create Delicious accounts so we can all take advantage of the social side of the site. I didn't consider Delicious to be a social network, but after watching the Common Craft video, I understand it. I am hopeful that by using each other's resources, as good teachers and librarians do, it will be easy for us to all benefit.

I think Delicious will continue to be a great asset when I am a school librarian. As I find sites my teachers would use, I can tag them by subject and grade level. My teachers can access the Delicious site and use anything they find helpful! What a great way to use technology for the benefit of students!

Thing 13: Tagging

2009-06-23T08:23:00.003-05:00

June 23, 2009

I have used tagging through my Delicious page, but have not yet seen it being used in libraries. I can certainly see where that would be useful though. We all know there are rules that govern how libraries are organized, but if patrons were able to do it, wouldn't it make sense that it would be a better system? After all, they are the ones that are using the tags and organization. The only problem of course is that the way I would tag an item may not be the way you would. And now we have chaos.

Maybe I'm a little "old school" but I think there needs to be a standard way to organize a library. Books belong on the shelf in an order in my opinion. Maybe the OPAC could allow for tagging to help users find the materials in the database, but then point them in the direction of the book where it is always shelved. If the OPAC had a place where patrons could tag books they have checked out, and users could search by subject and tag, it would help patrons find what they are searching for.

Thing 12: Twitter

2009-06-16T16:38:00.003-05:00

June 16, 2009

Tweet Tweet! I am a fairly new user of Twitter, but I love it too! (I think I just love fun techy things really because so far, I'm a fan of all 23 Things!)

Twitter is great for those that do not want to keep up with all the things Facebook has to offer. Its simple format is great and easy-to-understand. Not as many of my friends use Twitter, but slowly more people are beginning to use it. I am proud of my principal who created an account this summer for our campus. She is using it to keep everyone updated with important info. It's also been a great way to "nudge" her staff to branch out and use something new. It's a personal choice, but I haven't chosen to completely block my account to others. For some reason, I feel a bit better about having my account accessible because I don't have as much on my Twitter account as I do on Facebook.

Besides using Twitter, the last time I heard about it was in an article about Twitter. I am trying to access my Twitter post where I shared the article with others, but Twitter is down right now. I will post the link later. It focused on how Twitter is changing the world really. Very interesting idea. It also explained some of the history of Twitter. When the idea of only having 140 characters with which to share ideas and thoughts was presented, many thought it was a crazy idea. Since then, there have been full out discussions and debates involving many people through Twitter. And of course there was the whole Ashton Kutcher-Twitter race. He was the first person to have 1 million Twitter friends. I think I have 23 so he had better watch out!

Thing 11: IMing

2009-06-16T16:26:00.003-05:00

June 16, 2009

Ah yes...IMing. A wonderful invention! I remember in college my roommate and I would IM each other through AIM....from across the room! And for some reason, it was a blast. IMing is still a blast and I think it's so fantastic that libraries are beginning to use it. I have heard that some of the larger libraries have the option from their site to chat with a librarian. What a terrific way to reach a wider audience.

I like using Google's IMing service through my Gmail account. I usually have Gmail open while I'm online and my friends also online at the same time have a chance to chat. I also use the same feature through Facebook too. That is great too and I have more Facebook friends then I do Gmail friends. On Gmail, my username is Alicia Montgomery. Or you can find me using my Gmail address.

I would love to see more libraries use this great feature then I do now. None of the libraries I frequent have the feature, but they could. The great part about the IM software? FREE! It would be easy to set up an account for a public or school library. Even special libraries could use it! I can see how it would become difficult in a school library to facilitate and keep strictly for library business, but having it available sure would open up the library to kids not comfortable being there.

FZS Ning

2009-06-12T18:33:00.003-05:00

June 12, 2009

How funny! The day after I work on my Ning posting for 23 Things, I find (through Facebook) a link to a Ning for my alma mader! My high school alumni now has a Ning for all the Fort Zumwalt South grads. May have to check that out!

Thing 10: Ning

2009-06-11T20:06:00.003-05:00

I have seen this site used for a large number of people to access different documents and discussion. When I attended the NCTE conference this year, all of the session leaders were posting their documents and materials on the Ning and referred to it in their classes. Participants were encouraged to check the Ning frequently to keep up with all of the great things made available. I do appreciate the fact that you do not need a log-in and an account to search around through the Ning pages. I took some time to browse some of the library-type and YA lit-type sites. Some of them looked pretty fun! Great conversations were going on among people of a common interest. I am choosing not to sign up with Ning simply because I do not think I will participate. I may be back to look through some of the discussion about different novels though...those were great!

Extra Thing: Twitter

2009-06-05T18:35:00.004-05:00

I just added my Twitter account updates to my blog! I'm very proud of my campus as well. My principal has created a Twitter account (with a nudge or two from our amazing iTeam gal!) to keep us updated during the summer. Now my colleagues will be joining Twitter and maybe my blog will get a little added attention.

Thing 9: More Facebook

2009-06-03T16:57:00.002-05:00

Groups in Facebook are fun! Not only does it show your interests to others, but it also shows support for you find to be important. There isn't much of a commitment and you can easily check on updates the group posts. It is fun to see that there are others out there interested in the same things you are!

The groups I belong to certainly do show my nerdy interest!

I don't check my groups often, but it's a cool feature offered by Facebook. I would like to join some more "professional" groups as it would afford me more contacts I could certainly use. I'll have to keep looking!

Thing 8: Facebook

2009-06-03T16:33:00.002-05:00

Can I just start this blog by saying that I heart Facebook! I have been using it for over a year I guess, and it is a constant source of update for me. Facebook has put me into contact with high school friends I haven't seen since graduation and I may never have the chance to see again, but I know what they're up to and we can easily and quickly communicate. It is fun to read the status updates of my friends each day too...a fun little highlight for me.

Facebook is easy to use and can be customized as little or as much as you want. I have chosen to keep mine private except for friends. Most of my friends have done the same. I feel comfortable with the privacy I have on Facebook. I choose to not "friend" people I don't actually know. Facebook gives the option to block anyone you need to. I have heard less about the privacy issues regarding Facebook then I have about MySpace.

As I stated earlier...I heart Facebook!!

Thing 7: RSS Feeds

2009-05-30T09:23:00.003-05:00

Wow...once again I realize how far behind the times I really am. The Common Craft video, from 2007, did such a great job of explaining RSS feeds and at the same time, making me feel very tech-defunct. The video was made 2 years ago and I'm just now using RSS feeds and a reader. I guess better now then never, but still...everything happens so quickly in Technology Land.

Well, I am definitely a fan of RSS feeds as well as Google reader. I've been spending the morning finding blogs and setting up folders to manage them through my reader. I searched through some of the blogs suggested by North Texas 23 and subscribed to a couple. Yay!! AND just my luck, yesterday I received an email suggesting I check out DailyLit.com. I am in LOVE! This site, which you can arrange to read through your reader as I did, sends short installments of classic books right to you. The selections take about 5 minutes to read and you can set up delivery times and frequency to work for you! It's great! I started reading The Curious Case of Benjamin Button today. My friends....this is a great way to keep up with books none of us have time to read. Enjoy!

I have come to the conclusion that if I ever have to choose between Internet and cable TV, the choice is easy!

Thing 6: Blog Readers

2009-05-30T08:44:00.002-05:00

The IT pro on my campus just shared with us the beauty of blog readers, and now I can say that I too use one! In the spirit of Google, the Google reader is super easy to navigate and I feel comfortable with the format already. What a terrific way to follow along and organize blogs. I have not been an avid blog reader, but maybe I will feel more inspired to do so since it is easier than I thought it would be. Now I want to search around and find some more great blogs!

Thing 5: Image Generators

2009-05-19T18:53:00.003-05:00

"Sisters...Sisters...There Were Never Such Devoted Sisters"

(a bit hard to read from street-level!)

I have tons of pictures to use for this! I used Big Huge Labs "Billboard" maker. Very fun! My sister will love it! :) And I'll love using it in my classroom and someday...library! What a fun way to feature students.

Now, the text-only generators are great too. I thought to use them with upcoming book titles, great book lines and quotes, jokes, and plenty of other things. Without a doubt, the kids would love them too.

You know, after doing 5 posts and seeing how easy it is to upload text and now pictures, there's no reason I shouldn't keep my blog up even after 23 Things is complete.

Thing 4: Flickr Mashup

2009-05-19T17:40:00.007-05:00

Pondering Flickr mashups...and the beauty of an iMac built-in camera...

How fun! I love playing with fonts and fun pictures...this may be right up my alley!

Fun! Flickr mashups would be a fun way to make signs for the library and really get kids' attention. I know if I saw Warhol-type pictures, or photos with funny captions, I'd take a second look. And making those motivational posters with teachers and students would be great! What a creative way to have kids analyze a character or book too. The possibilities are endless!

Thing 3: Flickr

2009-05-19T17:03:00.003-05:00

Lucky me! I already have a Flickr account! Doesn't actually mean I know all about it though. I think I made an account when I kept hearing people talk about Flickr Flickr Flickr and I thought, "what is all this Flickr business?" So, I have an account, but haven't done much with it. Here is my chance! I loaded up a bunch of pictures of my sweet niece Emma when I first opened my account thinking it would be a terrific way to get my family the pictures. Well, I didn't know there was a space limit...grrr....I have used sites such as snapfish where there is no limit (at least not that I've reached yet), so I was a little disappointed.

My Flickr Photostream

I uploaded a few more pictures and searched around; made a comment on a great picture I found of a labradoodle that looks just like mine. Flickr is a great tool for some beautiful pictures. Just wish it offered larger storage for free.

Thing 2: Learning 2.0

2009-05-19T16:53:00.002-05:00

Wowza! I am behind! The Stephen Abram's video was posted in 2007, and I'm only now figuring out the importance of Web 2.0 and Learning 2.0 pieces and he was talking about it 2 years ago. I'm excited that I have a chance to dig into the programs. I'm also glad that he explained the importance of not simply reading about these great on-line applications, but the need to use them. It's what I try to pass on to my students all year!

The video clip on Shifted Librarian was amazing! Again, it reiterates what Abram's was explaining. What is that famous quote? Something about "if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem." Makes me think that if I'm not moving ahead, meeting the needs of my students, then I'm holding them back in a way.

Howdy!

2009-05-09T17:36:00.004-05:00

May 9, 2009

I'm pretty excited about learning some great new techniques and strategies in the North Texas 23! I'm looking forward to meeting some great classmates that love libraries as much as I do too!

Alicia M.