tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69877909608977348952024-03-08T08:05:43.796-06:00RedOnReadA blog for reflection, questions, comments, etc. on books and the path to best practices and technology in the public school library.Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-88236729795884048372010-04-21T21:52:00.002-05:002010-04-21T23:10:02.678-05:00Thing #23 End of the BeginningWow! I made it! It really feels like an accomplishment! My favorite things were image generators (<a href="http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/">Big Huge Labs</a>, and <a href="http://www.imagechef.com/">Image Chef</a>), <a href="http://www.diigo.com/">Diigo</a> (ooh, I just love this!), <a href="http://library2play.blogspot.com/2007/11/thing-11-librarything.html">LibraryThing</a> (something for my husband and I to do together), and <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/photostory/default.mspx">Photo Story</a> (already loaded on my work computer!). I have to stop there - I could list more. This program has given me the confidence to try new things in the web world that I had avoided due to concerns for safety, or because I wasn't sure of a thing's purpose. Every day I try something, become familiar with new technology, and then use it in instruction in the library. I started out tentatively, but now I plow in, knowing that it is okay to mess up. You just 'X' out and try again! I am more confident that I can learn new technology as it comes along and not become overwhelmed (I have <a href="http://www.blogger.com/profile/14775809070210529168">Barry</a> and <a href="http://www.blogger.com/profile/02742473111971047393">VWB</a>'s email!). No, really, I have developed resources I can consult when there is a problem. I think what has surprised me the most with this program is how much I like most technology, not just the few pieces that I knew I would like. I am also surprised by how quickly I became a technology resource for the faculty and staff. The other outcome that is not a surprise, but a reminder, is how wonderful, caring and helpful members of the teaching profession are whether they are the instructors or the students. As to format and concept, this has worked very well for me. The instructions and details were easy to follow and there were very few times I had to ask for clarification. As to the next class: I'm ready for 11.5 - sign me up!<br /><br />One phrase: From 'Library Lady' to 'Web Woman' in 23 Steps: Take the Challenge!Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-61424608599543265442010-04-21T21:08:00.002-05:002010-04-21T21:50:12.702-05:00Thing #22 NingI really enjoyed taking a look at the different <a href="http://www.ning.com/">Nings</a>. I checked out <a href="http://txschoollibrarians.ning.com/profile/BarryBishop?xg_source=profiles_memberList">Barry</a>, <a href="http://txschoollibrarians.ning.com/profile/LibrarianSys">LKP</a> and <a href="http://txschoollibrarians.ning.com/profile/TanyaTullos?xg_source=profiles_memberList">TT</a>. I liked the book reviews in the <a href="http://txschoollibrarians.ning.com/">Texas School Librarians Ning</a>. (How do you make the crayon faces move with open mouths?) I also checked out the lesson plans in the <a href="http://teacherlingo.com/">Ning for Teachers</a> (Teacher Lingo). I really liked the calendar with upcoming events. I can see this being a great place to connect, plan upcoming events, and give feedback. The set up was different for each of these <a href="http://www.ning.com/">Nings</a>, but they all were pleasing to navigate. I did read the latest news that said that they will not support the free members in the future. I did not want to join if I have to pay. I would like to know where the groups listed in the <a href="http://library2play.blogspot.com/2007/11/thing-22-nings.html">Thing 22</a> post are going. Are they moving or are they staying and paying the fees?Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-59538837771213014022010-04-21T17:22:00.004-05:002010-04-21T21:05:49.658-05:00Thing #21 Photo Story<div>I really had fun with this. It was easy and interesting without taking too much time. A perfect project for our elementary students. We have been playing with the <a href="http://www.apple.com/macbook/">Macbooks</a> in the after-school program and making videocasts, podcasts, and slideshows. The kids really like turning on the camera and recording video or snapshots of themselves. (They also love to record the teachers talking in the background - Beware!) The students can use this for all sorts of assignments. Recording their voices for other students, shared reading, verbal information for students that need help, etc. Book reports, projects, and poetry mash ups also come to mind. My <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/photostory/default.mspx">Photo Story</a> covers a <a href="http://www.rif.org/">Reading is Fundamental </a>distribution from February. I have deliberately left out the school's name and other details, but I will be editing it for the school web page to include all that information. </div><br /><div> </div><br /><p align="center"><br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dx0-MgWhvlM30UtZgo8b6bt67egxWJNuMr1d78W8Tv2SlBUObY4ElYhXVVm9SI4NThufX56HYMmDRU92ehvfA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></p><br /><p align="left">I did have a little trouble with the headset I used. <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/photostory/default.mspx">Photo Story</a> wanted to 'change' the audio settings. Every time I said 'yes,' it would stop working. I finally gave up and clicked 'no' and it began recording. Seems to have worked well. I also had to load the file three times. It seems that the school district server was timing out. Once home, the file loaded up just fine. </p>Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-39841717904428385122010-04-20T22:18:00.006-05:002010-04-21T21:01:11.165-05:00Thing #20 Gotta Keep Reading<div>Okay, I've been waiting for this post. I am posting my favorite <a href="http://www.youtube.com/">You Tube</a> and <a href="http://teachertube.com/">Teacher Tube</a> video. We played this before our Read-a-thon day. The kids loved it and began singing, then holding their books, then dancing. So did the teachers!<br /><br /></div><br /><object width="400" height="280"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/GNpNfhpqDk4&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/GNpNfhpqDk4&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="400" height="280"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />Well, I copied and pasted the embed code and it worked!<br /><br />I did have trouble with the links for the <a href="http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=d29b62a286909165517b&page=1&viewtype=&category=tf">Three Steps</a> and <a href="http://teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=5658&title=Evaluating_Websites_Tutorial"><strong>Evaluating Websites Tutorial</strong></a>. They both linked to the same page. I found the <a href="http://teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=5658&title=Evaluating_Websites_Tutorial">Evaluating Website Tutorial</a> by typing the title in the search bar. However, I could not find the <a href="http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=d29b62a286909165517b&page=1&viewtype=&category=tf">Three Steps</a>. I liked the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlDx9n4wFb0">Portal to Texas History</a> with all the photos, drawings, maps, and prints. It looks like a good resource.<br /><br />I have used videos in the library. The second grade watched a short video on needs and wants for an economics, I put a couple of videos in a sample glogster for teaching purposes, and I have pulled author videocasts for use in lessons. Used judiciously, they are a great asset.Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-91279795212466281032010-04-18T19:30:00.002-05:002010-04-21T19:57:50.936-05:00Thing #19I really enjoyed looking at several of the websites that had won awards. I use <a href="http://www.kayak.com/">Kayak</a> all the time. It is my 'go to' for airline fare comparisons. I also really like <a href="http://www.pandora.com/">Pandora</a>. My husband is the one that got me started on listening to streamed music. I'm a little bit country and he's a little bit classical. I also looked at <a href="http://spanishpod.com/">SpanishPod</a>. My brother is a college Spanish professor so I thought I would check that out. It looks like something that might be fun. I could not get through to the pricing, so I tried reading some of the postings. I tried to find commentary on the product, but could not find actual amounts. So I played with <a href="http://maps.google.com/">Google Maps</a>. This is a lot of fun. You can put yourself on street level. I checked out most of my family's homes. We use this to print out quick directions for around town. I also really like the satellite feature. My students really like seeing the topography of a location. Lots of lessons could use <a href="http://maps.google.com/">Google Maps</a>. It might be interesting to check out historical sites with each of the views and you can look at locations from novels (I'm thinking of the Anita Shreve's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0316780375/ref=nosim?tag=sealarksgoodbook&link_code=as3&creative=373489&camp=211189"><em>Weight of Water</em></a><em>, </em> located on the Isle of Shoals<em>)</em> and of course, you can always use it with geography lessons. <a href="http://www.seomoz.org/web2.0/short">Web 2.0 Awards</a> is a great resource for locating highly rated websites in specific categories.Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-72362484985539411532010-04-18T19:00:00.006-05:002010-04-21T19:10:16.713-05:00Thing #12When I found out that we were going to have a blog, I was a little concerned. Privacy was an issue, as was deciding how much to share. I really like what <a href="http://www.bloggingbasics101.com/2008/05/when-commenting/">Blogging 101</a> had to say about using aliases. I feel much more comfortable with an alias. As time goes on I might change my mind, but for now it works for me. Unfortunately, I have not found a way to link when making a comment in <a href="http://www.blogger.com/">Blogger</a>. This was one of <a href="http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2006/08/how-to-comment-like-king-or-queen.html">Cool Cat Teacher's</a> suggestions and one I like. (You may notice that I have mastered the art of the hyperlink. :) Maybe it has to do with using the free version?<br /><br />After much trial and error (can't seem to use comments with <a href="http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/">Mozilla</a>), I was able to post comments using Internet Explorer. Visiting <a href="http://julesrules-tinkerbell.blogspot.com/">Tinkerbell</a>, <a href="http://lalala-lynali.blogspot.com/">Metaphors Be With You</a>, <a href="http://peaches-whatwasithinking.blogspot.com/">What was I Thinking?</a>, <a href="http://oneangryturtle.blogspot.com/">Rants and Raves and Other Cool Stuff</a>, and <a href="http://farmerdaughter.blogspot.com/">Thing One or Thing Two?</a> I was able to leave messages. It was fun, but I am not sure I could do that for every post if I had the traffic <a href="http://doug-johnson.squarespace.com/blue-skunk-blog/2008/5/3/your-comments.html">Blue Skunk</a> does. How would one manage the time?<br /><br />On the subject of posting to blogs outside of the class, I posted to a <a href="http://kimspapercrafts.blogspot.com/2010/04/got-lumps-even-if-you-dont-get.html">scrapbook blog</a> with a comment unrelated to scrapbooking, but current none the less. I also posted to a <a href="http://limegreenbogiegirl.blogspot.com/2010/04/treats-bumps-and-cards.html">UK scrapbook blog</a>.Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-57181833256081922642010-04-18T15:23:00.005-05:002010-04-18T21:10:56.331-05:00Thing #18: Office, Open, or Google?Okay, confession time. I am currently using 5 different computers, an <a href="http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/">iTouch</a> and a smartphone. Sounds glamorous, doesn't it? It's not. My wonderful pc computer on my desk at home does not have <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Office">Microsoft Office</a>, just <a href="http://www.openoffice.org/">Open Office</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Outlook">Outlook</a> (for the smartphone that has <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/en-us/meet/applications/software-office-mobile.mspx">Mobile Office</a>). My mini notebook (pc) also has <a href="http://www.openoffice.org/">Open Office</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Outlook">Outlook</a>, while my work laptop (pc) does have <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Office">Microsoft Office</a> and <a href="http://www.openoffice.org/">Open Office</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Outlook">Outlook</a>. My smartphone will not sync properly with any of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Outlook">Outlook</a> programs. Most of the information that comes in and out of work is on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Office">Microsoft Office</a>, so that is what I use. There may be a way to import and sync the 4 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Outlook">Outlook</a> calendars and contacts, but I have not found it yet. Now let's add in the new <a href="http://www.apple.com/mac/">Mac</a>, <a href="http://www.apple.com/mac/">Macbooks</a> and the <a href="http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/">iTouch</a> and you can see where the confusion comes in. With the two graduate classes and the different discussion questions and projects, you can see how difficult it is to know where you have put your documents, which version is which and which program is available on that computer.<br /><br />How do I do it? Here's how: use <a href="http://www.openoffice.org/">Open Office</a>. I constantly have to pull up the syllabus from one of my classes and I generally do it in <a href="http://www.openoffice.org/">Open Office</a>. I try to do everything for class on my work computer (and in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Office">Microsoft Office</a>) so that it is in one place, but that does not always happen. Unfortunately, <a href="http://www.openoffice.org/">Open Office</a> does not have a calendar function. I keep a paper calendar and try to transfer from one <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Outlook">Outlook</a> calendar to another through the paper calendar. I am currently looking at <a href="http://www.docs.google.com/">Google docs</a> as a possibility to bridge from the pc to the <a href="http://www.apple.com/mac/">Macbook</a>.<br /><br />So, to wrap up, <a href="http://www.openoffice.org/">Open Office</a> advantages: free, universal, <a href="http://www.apple.com/mac/">Mac</a> compatible, with minimal change in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Office">Microsoft Office</a> documents when saved; disadvantages: no calendar function, not the same 'look' as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Office">Microsoft Office</a> and not as many options. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Office">Microsoft Office</a> advantages: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Outlook">Outlook</a>, ability to produce a more polished document with more options, brand name support; disadvantages: expensive, proprietary, and have to buy <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Office">Microsoft Office</a> for the <a href="http://www.apple.com/mac/">Mac</a> while <a href="http://www.openoffice.org/">Open Office</a> for the <a href="http://www.apple.com/mac/">Mac</a> is free. For educational use in my opinion it is a no brainer: <a href="http://www.openoffice.org/">Open Office</a> wins.<br /><br />I promise to figure out the school/work/home computer situation and get it down to two computers and a phone that will function. I just need to finish the semester. . .Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-55869437338482223142010-04-18T13:30:00.004-05:002010-04-18T18:07:32.629-05:00Thing #17<a href="http://www.rollyo.com/">Rollyo</a> was interesting. Creating two <a href="http://rollyo.com/redonread/">searchrolls</a> was easy and fun. My first was for the <a href="http://rollyo.com/redonread/sherwood_endangered/">endangered species</a> mentioned in <a href="http://redonread.blogspot.com/2010/04/thing-16.html">Thing 16</a>. The second was of <a href="http://rollyo.com/redonread/my_library_orgs/">library organizations</a> that can be used for research. I can really see myself using these. After watching the <a href="http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=41776&title=Rollyo_for_Research_Teacher_Tutorial">video by Bruce Goodner</a>, I can see linking the <a href="http://rollyo.com/redonread/">searchrolls</a> to a wiki or web page. Searching <a href="http://www.google.com/">Google</a> has gotten to be a time waster for the students that have only twenty minutes to 'research' in the library. With the new <a href="http://www.apple.com/mac/">Mac</a> computers, I can see installing the <a href="http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/personal.html">Mozilla</a> add-in and having the link in the toolbar. I can also see the potential for use in my studies. Pulling together the websites that are regularly used for research, making a <a href="http://rollyo.com/redonread/">searchroll</a> for discussion questions, and bookmarking the results with <a href="http://www.diigo.com/">Diigo</a> will streamline the process of responding to assignments. Since I use <a href="http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/personal.html">Mozilla</a> on my home desktop, the toolbar will further speed things along. Hopefully, more of my time will be spent acquiring knowledge, and less acquiring information that requires so much time-consuming sifting.Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-10546509056566376032010-04-18T11:52:00.003-05:002010-04-18T16:06:23.357-05:00Thing #16Frankly, wikis scared me. I wasn't sure about their uses, and that creates fear in my world. Using the <a href="http://uhclbishopclasses.wikispaces.com/">class wiki</a> Dr. B set up helped start the learning process. Now I can see many uses for them. I liked the idea that when you contribute information to a wiki you become a participant. The students love that. In collaborative teaching, a wiki will be a great tool for information sharing. A librarian can set up a wiki for a class and provide links to the books needed for a specific research topic (endangered animals), the websites available with pertinent information (<a href="http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/">WWF</a>), and tools for reporting that information: <a href="http://www.glogster.com/">Glogster</a> and <a href="http://bighugelabs.com/">BigHugeLabs</a>, for example. I found a couple of wikis that I added to <a href="http://www.diigo.com">Diigo</a>: <a href="http://childrensbookreviews.pbworks.com/Middle+Grade+Non+Fiction">Childrens Book Reviews</a> and <a href="http://hubinfo.wordpress.com/">The Hub</a> (another country's point of view). I will most certainly be using wikis in the future.Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-68756574336382798952010-04-18T10:28:00.002-05:002010-04-18T13:29:59.399-05:00Thing #15 Caught in the web?<div>This one is going to be tough for me. I am the example of the conflict between the library of yesterday and the library 2.0 of today. First, let's get something straight. I love the technology! My husband works in the computer industry and I have been telling him for years that the way to access the amount of information and make it portable is . . . and then I would describe something akin to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smartphone"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">smartphone</span></a>, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tablet_PC">tablet <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">pc</span></a> or the new <a href="http://www.apple.com/ipad/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">iPad</span></a> (yeah, <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/">Windows 7</a> was my idea. . .). The people behind the changes in technology in my lifetime are geniuses. Ah, and there's the rub - my lifetime! The <a href="http://www.britannica.com/blogs/2008/10/a-vision-of-students-today-what-teachers-must-do/">video</a> in <a href="http://library2play.blogspot.com/2007/11/web-20-library-20-and-future-of.html">Thing #15</a> is correct - in order to really learn the information that we need, we spend most of our time online. As <a href="http://www.oclc.org/nextspace/002/2.htm">Rick Anderson</a> so eloquently put, when we have to learn how to use each of the programs, websites, and databases, then remember the accounts and passwords, we are wasting valuable time and energy. And then there is doing it while keeping you and your identity safe. I know that we are learning, we are just spending a great deal of time on details not related to the actual information. You see, I'm not just the librarian, I am also the student. One that has learned each evolution of the technological age. Now that there is so much information available, it needs to be easier to find, access, evaluate, and use.<br /><br />The library I see in my elementary students' eyes looks like this: a fun place to learn with accurate, up-to-date information that is easy to use so that they can focus on learning the reading, math, science, social studies, and global social skills that form the foundation of what they will use for the rest of their lives. It is a place that has the ability to connect with the global community using technology. It is a place to learn and practice basic skills with elementary components like books, magazines, and poster board. And it is a place that has the ability to adapt to all learning styles using all available resources. My job is to help them do this in a safe, but not confined, environment. Developing an information literate student with a love of learning is part of the public school 2.0 librarian's job description. That includes the skills necessary for students to do what I am doing: adapt and figure out how to use new technology as it comes along.<br /><br />Well, I'm about to sneeze from the dust of this soapbox, but I hope that what I have said will stimulate readers to put in their 'two cents worth' (and join the 2.0 library vision). I have a concern that we need to make it easier and quicker to understand and access the different programs and data. <a href="http://www.oclc.org/nextspace/002/5.htm">John <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Reiner's</span> article</a> covers accessing <a href="http://geology.usgs.gov/tools/metadata/tools/doc/faq.html"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">metadata</span></a>. Hopefully, we can incorporate those ideas into all aspects of a student's web needs. I'm on board, are you?<br /></div>Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-28652677930773098242010-04-18T08:37:00.003-05:002010-04-18T11:30:09.305-05:00Thing #14 TechnoratiMy first introduction to <a href="http://technorati.com/">Technorati</a> came about 18 months ago as I was following the <a href="http://noimpactman.typepad.com/">No Impact Man</a> blog. He mentions it in one of his <a href="http://noimpactman.typepad.com/blog/2007/08/the-unhappy-num.html">posts</a> and I had no clue what he was talking about. After taking a look and reading what changes have occurred, I can see how you would check your 'standing.' As to the 'new' <a href="http://technorati.com/">Technorati</a>, I was not able to find any posts or blogs with 'School Library Learning 2.0' in them but I was able to find some posts with 'librarians.' The <a href="http://www.resourceshelf.com/2010/03/25/young-learners-need-librarians-not-just-google/">first</a> defends the value of librarians, and the <a href="http://www.resourceshelf.com/2010/03/31/map-a-nation-without-school-librarians/">second</a> shows where librarians have been cut. They are from <a href="http://www.resourceshelf.com/">ResourceShelf</a> and I liked them so much I bookmarked them in <a href="http://www.diigo.com">Diigo</a>! I can see using this to find posts with relevant information. The<span style="text-decoration: underline;"> </span><a href="http://technorati.com/pop">Popular</a> and Widgets sections of <a href="http://technorati.com/">Technorati</a> are not available at the moment. I was able to find <a href="http://technorati.com/search?return=sites&authority=all&q=Library2play&x=0&y=0">references</a> to <a href="http://library2play.blogspot.com/">Library2play</a> using the search feature. Tagging definitely has its benefits and I must say that <a href="http://www.flickr.com/">Flickr</a> and <a href="http://www.diigo.com/">Diigo</a> rank higher for me than <a href="http://technorati.com/">Technorati</a>. It doesn't mean that I won't use it, it just did not seem that user friendly.Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-76286534522115163092010-04-17T17:39:00.007-05:002010-04-18T08:37:20.046-05:00Thing #13 Did ya go to Diigo?Okay, the title is not my best work, but the site blew me away! After watching both videos, I tried <a href="http://delicious.com/">Delicious</a>, and it had some great finds, but for what I am doing at the moment, <a href="http://www.diigo.com/">Diigo</a> is the way to go (sorry for the rhyme). First things first. I took a serious look around <a href="http://delicious.com/">Delicious</a> by searching for collaborative teaching. I found a bookmark titled <a href="http://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dhn2vcv5_436f8kscmdc">15 different ways to use Wallwisher in the Classroom</a> (now 19 different ways) and that was great. Something I can use. I also found a website, <a href="http://www.citeulike.org/">Citeulike</a> that is an online bibliography manager. I looked up a couple of the topics we have discussed in class but struggled to find current articles. I then tried <a href="http://ma.gnolia.com/">Ma.gnolia</a> and was able to get to some information, but not the amount that I would like to have for the topics I want. This community seems to be in the process of being revamped and seems to be limiting access by using an invitation only format. I did however find <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/passive-aggressive-library-signs/">Passive Aggressive Library Signs</a> (in honor of Library Week) when I typed in Libraries. I have linked it just for grins.<br /><br />On <a href="http://www.diigo.com/">Diigo</a> (actually I clicked on the <a href="http://www.furl.net/">Furl</a> link, but it must now be <a href="http://www.diigo.com/">Diigo</a>), I found the same information on <a href="http://www.diigo.com/bookmark/http%3A%2F%2Fdocs.google.com%2Fpresent%2Fview%3Fid%3Ddhn2vcv5_436f8kscmdc?tab=people">Wallwisher</a>, but with a sticky note that had comments. I also found an article on <span style="font-size:85%;"><a href="http://www.diigo.com/bookmark/http%3A%2F%2Fwww.educause.edu%2FResources%2F7ThingsYouShouldKnowAboutColla%2F182641?tab=people"><span style="font-size:100%;">7 Things You Should Know About Collaborative Annotation</span></a></span> that also had a sticky. This site has the ability to highlight images and text in the articles. You can also take a snapshot of a page and save it - a feature that I find very useful with online research. The site is easy to use and looks uncluttered, both attractive characteristics. I can see using this with teachers in the building and with other librarians. I joined the 'Teaching and Learning with Web 2.0.' and it has some really great stuff. <a href="http://www.diigo.com/">Diigo</a> (pronounced dee-go) stands for: <i><b>D</b>igest of <b>I</b>nternet <b>I</b>nformation, <b>G</b>roups and <b>O</b>ther stuff</i> and its focus is on the social networking that goes with research and collaboration. That suits me, especially when I searched for several of the topics from our classes and found lots of information.<br /><span style="TEXT-DECORATION: underline"></span><a href="http://ma.gnolia.com/"><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"></span><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"></span></span></a>Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-11268101422132090352010-04-14T20:11:00.002-05:002010-04-14T21:46:42.401-05:00Thing #11I am really enjoying this part of the project. And I was able to get my husband involved. He loves history, particularly political history of the U.S. and naval history. We have a large library and have had to develop a rule: we can buy new books and read them, but if we want to keep them we must part with another book on the shelves. My husband's aunt, who just died a few weeks ago, was a retired public school librarian from Ann Arbor, MI. She also had a rule: once a book was read, it should be passed on. The ultimate philosophy of a lending librarian! We have adopted some of that same philosophy and the books we choose to pass on go to the public library, family or friends.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.librarything.com/">LibraryThing</a> was easy to use and fun. We set up a <a href="http://www.librarything.com/catalog/Redonread">library</a> and put in a few of our books. This will be a great way to keep up with what you have, what you want, and what you want to share. Our families are scattered across the U.S and also have extensive libraries. This would be a great way to see each of our libraries and make plans for sharing as we visit each other. I can see using this with students in middle school (maybe 5th grade) or high school. They can keep track of the books they have read and interact with other students with similar interests.<br /><br />I checked out some of the groups. The one I was surprised to find, and really liked, was <a href="http://www.librarything.com/groups/navalhistoryandfict">Naval History and Fiction</a> and under that, <a href="http://www.librarything.com/topic/40094">Young Adult Naval Fiction</a>. They mentioned several books from our school library and the <a href="http://www.librarything.com/search_works.php?q=Hornblower">Horatio Hornblower</a> books by <a href="http://www.librarything.com/author/forestercs&norefer=1">C. S. Forester</a>. I just love sailing and the sea!Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-57556928439741342422010-04-11T19:05:00.019-05:002010-04-11T22:22:31.787-05:00Thing #10<div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;">Okay, something I have done before! I am a scrapbooker and have used digital scrapbook page templates that have drop-ins for photos. This was very similar to that. I tried <a href="http://www.comicstripgenerator.com/">Comic St</a><a href="http://www.comicstripgenerator.com/">rip Generator</a> but didn't like it. So I moved on to <a href="http://www.imagechef.com/">Image Chef</a> and loved it! I had made 3 things before I could come up for air! The first was just like a scrapbook page using <a href="http://www.imagechef.com/ic/sketchpad/">Sketchpad</a> and a picture of George (monkey that travels with me - he is the center of stories I make for my nieces and nephew).<br /><div style="text-align: right;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S8KRBX195hI/AAAAAAAAAFY/pnNiNtWZYWE/s1600/samp9452d9eecc797b8a.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 166px; height: 166px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S8KRBX195hI/AAAAAAAAAFY/pnNiNtWZYWE/s320/samp9452d9eecc797b8a.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459085151092729362" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S8JmjRQQ3eI/AAAAAAAAAEc/ftm1Usu7a3U/s1600/c322cfa19fc00059.gif"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 166px; height: 166px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S8JmjRQQ3eI/AAAAAAAAAEc/ftm1Usu7a3U/s320/c322cfa19fc00059.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459038454439534050" border="0" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The second was a <a href="http://www.imagechef.com/ic/word_mosaic/">Word M</a><a href="http://www.imagechef.com/ic/word_mosaic/">osaic</a> and the third was a <a href="http://www.imagechef.com/ic/make.jsp?tid=Bookend">Bookend</a> from the <a href="http://www.imagechef.com/ic/product.jsp?cat=work">Work</a> category.</div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div></div></div><div style="text-align: left;">The last place I tried was <a href="http://www.dumpr.net/">Dumpr</a>. There I took one of my favorite pictures (from a trip to Bonaire) and made it into a <a href="http://www.dumpr.net/puzzle.php">jigsaw puzz</a><a href="http://www.dumpr.net/puzzle.php">le</a>.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S8JmjtpaTdI/AAAAAAAAAEk/9VXhnhYLQ1o/s1600/samp9297eac518763ddb.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 157px; height: 157px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S8JmjtpaTdI/AAAAAAAAAEk/9VXhnhYLQ1o/s320/samp9297eac518763ddb.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459038462061202898" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S8Jp2sm093I/AAAAAAAAAEs/uWek-4nRUD8/s1600/af2584d3274128b0_m.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 115px; height: 154px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S8Jp2sm093I/AAAAAAAAAEs/uWek-4nRUD8/s320/af2584d3274128b0_m.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459042086734329714" border="0" /></a><br />This is a great way to have students document activities (scrapbook-type pages), create poetry for the reluctant student (<a href="http://www.imagechef.com/ic/word_mosaic/">Word Mosaic</a>), make components for slide shows, presentations, or <a href="http://animoto.com/">Animotos</a>. These can be used in research projects and book reviews, as extensions of technology lessons, and as enrichment in the classroom. The possibilities are endless!<br /><br /></div>Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-55302227728988565192010-04-11T16:50:00.007-05:002010-04-11T18:13:02.834-05:00Thing #9For this activity, I took a look at <a href="http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/">Cool Cat Teacher Blog</a> and checked out her criteria for a good blog: <a href="http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2006/12/how-to-create-your-circle-of-wise-how.html">How to Create Your Circle of the Wise</a>. I like that she says that you should start by looking to those you find to be wise and follow the ones they follow. Hooray for <a href="http://librarianphilosopher.edublogs.org/">Dr.B</a>, <a href="http://alibraryisalibrary.blogspot.com/">VWB</a>, and <a href="http://librarybytebybyte.blogspot.com/">LKP</a>! I also liked that she spoke of responsible bloggers realizing that what they write may be read many years in the future. <a href="http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2006/12/how-to-create-your-circle-of-wise-how.html">How to Create Your Circle of the Wise</a> was written in 2006! In addition, there is also an article entitled <a href="http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2006/03/ten-habits-of-bloggers-that-win.html">Ten habits of bloggers that win!</a> that has great dos and don'ts for blogging!<br /><br />I tried all the search tools and <a href="http://blogsearch.google.com/">Google Blog Search</a> was the easiest for me to use. An article on teaching about <a href="http://creativecommons.org/">Creative Commons</a> caught my eye and I found <a href="http://karenthelibrarian.wordpress.com/2010/04/10/creative-commons-reaching-beyond-google-images/">karen.the.librarian</a>. I could not get <a href="http://libraryblogs.suprglu.com/">School Library Blogs on Suprglu</a> to work. <a href="http://www.topix.net/">Topix.net</a> found too much irrelevant information even when I changed the criteria. <a href="http://www.technorati.com/">Technorati</a> was okay (I found <a href="http://theunquietlibrarian.wordpress.com/">The Unquiet Librarian</a> and added her blog to my <a href="http://www.blogger.com/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RSS">RSS</a> feeds), but <a href="http://blogsearch.google.com/">Google Blog Search</a> was easier. <a href="http://www.syndic8.com/">Syndic8.com</a> kept locking up and not loading - I tried to drill down to education and then libraries and then to web logs, but it would not load the web log it had listed. I could not hot link because the pages would not load a second time.<br /><br />I had a great time with <a href="http://edublogawards.com/2008/">Edublog's award winners</a>, but the most fun was <a href="http://libetiquette.blogspot.com/">A Librarian's Guide to Etiquette</a>. I will slowly be adding more feeds to <a href="http://www.google.com/reader">Google Reader</a>.Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-31468551319179543622010-04-11T13:24:00.006-05:002010-04-11T18:07:40.589-05:00Thing #8Very early on in this project I had set up <a href="http://www.google.com/reader">Google Reader</a> for the blogs associated with our <a href="http://library2play.blogspot.com/">Library2play</a> project. I have gone back in and played with the organization features and grouped my feeds into folders. It is much easier to pull up one page and read the new postings to the blogs than going to each one individually. It saves time and effort in both the personal and professional aspects of my life and is necessary at this point in the school year. With all the research that is involved with running a library: collection development, trends in libraries and education, reading research and book reviewing (just to name a few), economy of time is essential. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RSS">RSS</a> feeds are one tool to consolidate and facilitate general information and research. Now that I have had time to play with them, I will be using them even more.Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-49775514745985949792010-04-11T12:58:00.003-05:002010-04-11T18:06:19.408-05:00Thing #7Ah, <a href="http://google.com/">Google</a> . . . What is there to say? They think of everything and make it available to to the web world. I have been using <a href="http://docs.google.com/">Google Docs</a> in our work at school, creating a central place (document) to list all the free websites for Social Studies support. I created a library with <a href="http://books.google.com/">Google Books</a> that has books that I have read, want to read, and the ones I am reading now. It is a quick and easy way to document the scope and volume of a librarian's collection development research. <a href="http://www.google.com/calendar">Google Calendar</a> is another tool that I have employed. With 3 different <a href="http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/default.aspx">Outlook</a> accounts that cannot be synced as one, this is a way to merge all my different calendars into one. Since this is going to take some time to set up (importing, exporting the minor Outlook calendars, setting up a main calendar, etc.) at this point I have just set up the basic <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.google.com/calendar">Google Calendar</a>.<br /><br />I have run into a problem with making some of these things public. It seems that I have connected several things together and some of those things do not need to be made public. So for now everything stays private. Once I get my accounts untangled, I will share with all!Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-36556878319947908712010-03-20T16:44:00.005-05:002010-03-20T17:56:17.239-05:00Thing #6: Mashups and 3rd Party Sites<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S6VP5AIdb2I/AAAAAAAAADA/a2kGF2cGfbs/s1600-h/decka9d337491dbed5c08d3d0f7f24d928078acc7735.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 280px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S6VP5AIdb2I/AAAAAAAAADA/a2kGF2cGfbs/s400/decka9d337491dbed5c08d3d0f7f24d928078acc7735.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5450850764708474722" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S6VPRJ2TZQI/AAAAAAAAAC4/uu_8yVcqd6o/s1600-h/motivator60385a7e602ca5ab400ddcc2a03ba4a44507688b.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S6VPRJ2TZQI/AAAAAAAAAC4/uu_8yVcqd6o/s400/motivator60385a7e602ca5ab400ddcc2a03ba4a44507688b.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5450850080121906434" border="0" /></a><br />Well, I tried visiting several of the sites mentioned on the <a href="http://library2play.blogspot.com/2007/11/thing-6-mashups-and-3rd-party-sites.html">Library2play</a> blog. I visited <a href="http://stamen.com/projects/mappr">Mappr</a> and enjoyed playing with <a href="http://stamen.com/projects/splatter">Splatter</a> but had trouble with <a href="http://tiledrawer.com/">Tile Drawer</a>. I did not understand the instructions - they looked very technical and complicated. So I switched to <a href="http://www.krazydad.com/colrpickr/index.php?group=colorfields" target="_blank">Flickr Color Pickr</a> and viewed the color wheel with <a href="http://www.krazydad.com/colrpickr/index.php?group=flickrcentra">Flickr Central</a> and all the photos from the central pool. There did not seem to be a connection to <a href="http://www.flickr.com/creativecommons/">Creative Commons</a> photos.<br /><br />I liked <a href="http://www.pimpampum.net/bookr/">Bookr</a>, but was a little confused on how I would create a book with photos from <a href="http://www.flickr.com/creativecommons/">Creative Commons</a>. Maybe I missed some instruction somewhere - how do you pick the photos and give credit as you make the book? <a href="http://bighugelabs.com/mosaic.php">Mosaic Maker</a> looked like fun - you had to link your <a href="http://www.flickr.com/">Flickr</a> account and again, I could not figure out how to credit the pictures so I did not finish the book.<br /><br />I visited the <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/librariantradingcard/">Librarian Trading Cards</a> and was surprised to find few recent posts. But I really like the idea of trading cards so I visited <a href="http://bighugelabs.com/deck.php">Trading Card Maker</a> and made the card you see at left. I avoided the credit/citing issue by using one of my own. I really like the idea that the students can make something in a relatively short period of time and show what they have learned. If reviewing a book, they can put the title and author and 3 to 4 points to list in the description: character, brief plot, likes, dislikes, overall rating, etc. As they master this and other 2.0 skills they can put them together in a slide show or podcast to show the books they have read or states they have researched, or people they have studied, etc.<br /><br />I also took a look at some of the other products available on <a href="http://bighugelabs.com/">BigHugheLabs</a>. They have lots of great stuff - I used another picture from my trip to make this motivational poster. And they have a place to credit the photo when making a poster!Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-51302724728699213762010-03-16T11:58:00.002-05:002010-03-18T16:05:17.355-05:00Thing #5 Flickr<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S6KO-YJQgOI/AAAAAAAAACo/eqbXOlB5lao/s1600-h/3286143308_4905b7e6a8.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S6KO-YJQgOI/AAAAAAAAACo/eqbXOlB5lao/s320/3286143308_4905b7e6a8.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5450075701356036322" border="0" /></a>I uploaded this photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbts/">bry105063</a> from <a href="http://flickr.com">Flickr</a>. We have a dog that looks very similar to the one in the forefront. I have spent several days roaming around the website, playing with different aspects. This photo is from <a href="http://www.flickr.com/creativecommons/">Creative Commons</a>. I chose it from the section labeled: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/creativecommons/by-nc-2.0/">Attribution-NonCommercial License</a>. Once I had practiced downloading and inserting the picture, I decided to check out one of the groups, the <a href="http://www.flickr.com/groups/43653028@N00">Caffineated Librarians</a> group. This is a small group with pictures, but no discussion. I guess they are too busy to talk! I really liked the map with locations of the members - nice visual. We have been using photos with the students in the after-school program as we are discovering the <a href="http://www.apple.com/macbook/">MacBook</a> laptops. The photos are chosen, loaded on a stick drive, and then downloaded onto the laptops for the students to practice with <a href="http://www.apple.com/ilife/iphoto/">iPhoto</a>, <a href="http://www.apple.com/ilife/imovie/">iMovie</a>, and <a href="http://www.apple.com/ilife/garageband/">Garageband</a>. I can see that there are many different ways you can use this website.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/creativecommons/by-nc-2.0/"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><br /></span></a><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_s55XnhRITAQ/S5-48BW33LI/AAAAAAAAACg/v4imHOMvDTA/s1600-h/3685527014_3ee963b351.jpg"><br /></a><br /><br /></div>Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-26296609604509432592010-01-25T00:02:00.001-06:002010-01-25T00:16:12.807-06:00Thing #3<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As I mentioned in <a href="http://redonread.blogspot.com/2010/01/thing-1.html">Thing #1</a>, I hope that the blog is pleasant to view and read. I really enjoyed making the avatar. She is probably why it has taken so long. I know that I need to tweak some things, but it is now up and running. I have wanted to do this for a while, but wasn't sure about all the specifics. The idea that I have a place to connect with a large number of people is a little sobering. I will need to be sure that I do not let the accessibility keep me from finding my voice.<br /></span></span>Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-84940541074559900372010-01-24T23:23:00.002-06:002010-01-24T23:54:59.327-06:00Thing #2<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In looking into the <a href="http://www.plcmc.org/public/learning/player.html">7 1/2 Habits of Highly Successful Lifelong Learners</a></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="http://www.plcmc.org/public/learning/player.html"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span></a></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;"> I realized that my parents had taught me using a similar philosophy. Learning was always my responsibility. My father believed that you had to have certain skills to survive in the world and if you had not learned those skills, you had to know how or where to access them. Challenges were not problems, but puzzles to be worked and solved. So for me, being a lifelong learner is not the challenge, it will be creating my own learning toolbox and competently learning to use technology so that I can teach and mentor others. I know that I do that now, but the challenge is keeping up with the constant change and updating the toolbox and the skills.<br /><br />But the most difficult part will be to make room for play. I can become so focused on the process and the outcome that I forget to have fun along the way. Having students has always helped me to remember that more is learned and retained when learning is fun.<br /></span></span></span>Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6987790960897734895.post-65404503974333564292010-01-24T23:00:00.002-06:002010-01-24T23:15:29.459-06:00Thing #1<span style="font-family: verdana;">Well, I am off! I'm not sure I haven't just stepped off a cliff, but I'm game for anything. Beginning the <a href="http://library2play.blogspot.com">23 Things</a> with the blog has taken me several hours and I hope that I have produced something that is pleasant, enjoyable, and informative.<br /></span>Elizabeth Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14715865403481623201noreply@blogger.com1