Thing #2--Online Communities and Personal Learning Networks

Originally I had no desire to join Twitter.  Facebook keeps me busy enough and I thought who needs one more thing to check daily?  Plus, as my brother always said, "Twitter is like Facebook without the cool stuff".  Finally, because of this class (plus a contest from my favorite peanut butter maker, "The Peanut Principal") I decided to jump in.

I decided to start small so I wouldn't become overwhelmed.  I played around and decided to follow the following:  The Peanut Principal, Walt Disney World, Once Upon a Time (the TV show) and  Sue Kowalski (president of SSL/NYLA).  Slowly I added a few more people to follow, including a Bento box expert. I'm still keeping my list on the shorter side but am enjoying Twitter more than I thought I would.  It's a great way to find out quick tidbits of information although sometimes I do find myself wishing for longer more informative posts.

As far as using Twitter professionally, I haven't done it yet but could see uses for it.  One way would be to Tweet a book suggestion of the day or list new books through it.  Meetings in the library could also be announced this way or I could come up with a Trivia question or fact of the day to send out.

Thing 10--Future Trends

I believe libraries and librarians will be even more necessary in 2020 than they are today.  As a School Librarian, I'll look at the field from that perspective.

Someone will have to continue to teach the teachers and students how to use all of the new databases, searching tools, do research and use equipment--who better than a librarian?

As more and more literature is produced, who better than a librarian to match people with good reads?

Someone still needs to store all the equipment and keep track of it in a school--who better than a librarian, who can also teach everyone new uses for it?

Who better than the librarian to tie all aspects of Common Core standards to every facet of learning?

Obviously I am biased, but I believe we can continue to make a huge difference in the lives of all involved in a school community.  That said, we certainly can't rest on our laurels.  It is up to each librarian out there to keep learning, keep growing, and to keep up on all the latest trends.  Shame on any librarian that becomes stagnant--that only leads to our profession going the way of the dinosaur.

Right now, it's a tough time for school librarians.  More and more positions are being eliminated and more and more schools will be without a librarian or without enough librarians for the population.  My dearest hope is that school districts will very soon begin to understand the error of this position and the pendulum will swing the other way.

Thing 9--eBooks

A few months ago, I bought a Nook Color.  It took a lot of thought and research (both reading and asking around) before I decided what to buy.   Although I will always love an actual book printed on paper, there are a number of reasons I LOVE my Nook:

1.  It is so easy to carry around numerous books with me with very little weight.
2.  My Nook fits in my pocketbook, making it easy to transport.
3.  I can have access to thousands and thousands of books at any hour of the day and night (and yes, I have bought a book in the middle of the night).
4.  I can change the font type and size, numerous times, while reading a book.  Thus, as I get tired, I make the font bigger and can keep reading.
5.  It has a built in light.  I really hate using book lights that attach to a book because no matter what I do, the light falls off numerous times at a sitting.
6.  Love my hot pink cover!
7.  Love that the people at Barnes and Noble are around to help me.
8.  I also really enjoy using my Nook to surf the web and check e-mails.  Very few places (where I go) don't have Wi-Fi these days so I pretty much can get online anywhere.
9.  The colors are stunning.
10.  The Read to Me feature on many picture books.  My daughter loves it.
11.  Many more reasons that I can't think of right now.

Now for my embarrassing librarian confession.  To date, I have been unable to download books from the public library.  I try and try and somehow it doesn't work.  I tried to get lessons at my public library but the director recently quit and no one else seems to know what to do.  The other night I tried again for TWO HOURS as part of this assignment to do it and still am having trouble.  Help is in sight, however!  I found out the good people at the Voorheesville Library are offering a course on downloading to your eReader on June 13th and have signed up!   Soon my lack of knowledge will be a thing of the past.

Thing 8: Video

This video from You Tube is called "How to Suck an Egg into a Bottle".  I chose it as my embedded video because it has two things I love, an English accent and a cool science experiment.

I had a little trouble finding a video I would want to bother to post plus would allow itself to be embedded.  Once I found the actual video, however, the process seemed quite easy.  (We'll find out if I did it right as soon as I actually post this!)


I am fortunate enough to work in a school that does not block YouTube.  Therefore, we use it a lot for projects, showing informational videos, and to inspire students.

Thing 7

This week we had to look at sites that would make our lives easier.  I looked at many on the list but then focused on two.

One of the sites I concentrated on was "Instapaper/Read it later".  This site allows one to create a tab on their toolbar that reads, "Read Later".  Then, whenever one is searching the web and sees an article or blog entry they would like to see later, tap the read later tab and it is saved at the Instapaper/Read it Later site.   I love this tool!!  I feel like saying, "Where have you been all my life?"   Too often in the past, I would start to read something and then plan on going back later.  Then I would forget about the article/recipe/blog or would not be able to find it together.  This tool easily ensures that will never happen again. 

The other tool I looked at was delicious.  This tool acts like the bookmark tool on a computer, but since it is a website, one can use it to find your favorites from any computer.  I actually had created a delicious account a few years ago, but haven't been on it in over a year.  First I had to think about my username and password!   When I finally remembered, I started to explore.  I realized a few of my links were now broken so took the time to clean up my account.  I then added some sites.  Once again, I remembered why I really liked this site and realized I really need to use it more.

These are two tools I will definitely share with my students and colleagues.  They are simple to learn, easy to create accounts for, and make one's life so much easier.

Thing 6 : Online Meetings

This year, due to budget cuts, our school was unable to provide money for us to attend conferences and workshops.  Thus, I began really getting into the world of webinars.  I have attended about 10 of them since September.  They have been on topics as varied as the new SAVE legislation (Schools Against Violence in Education), Suicide prevention, and a number provided by the Career Cruising database.


I was very nervous for my first webinar.  Would I be able to connect to it?  Would I figure out how to ask questions?  Would I pay attention?    Well, I survived and actually enjoyed the process.  I always make sure I log in early to avoid any computer issues and I have learned a lot from each one.   For a few of the webinars I attended, I used the LCD projector and screen at school and watched with a number of co-workers.

One of my biggest complaints about some webinars is the timing.  A number of them are held during the school day and I can't just close the library to attend one. (I am the only one working in the library for most of the day).  I especially don't understand when webinars specifically geared towards school librarians are held during the school day.

Although I prefer to attend a "live" workshop with lots of living breathing people, I'm happy that I have access to so many webinars.

Thing 5--BLOG

I have to admit I have really been enjoying this course.  It has introduced me to some products and blogs that I never knew about.   I was worried about taking a course like this on the computer, but all of the directions and explanations have been written in clear English and are easy to understand.

It has also been nice to take a course with many types of libraries.  Usually, I am only in workshops or courses with school libraries, so it has been nice to get lots of different views on librarianship.

I do wish I had more time to look at everyone's blogs.  Time just seems to get away from me.  I'm wondering if I would have done better if each "Thing" took two weeks instead of one or if I had been able to take this over the summer.