The Desk

The Desk
So many projects . . . so little time!

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Safe Blog Sites For Students



This isn't one of the "things" but as I delve into this process I am trying to find ways to use what I'm learning at my school site. I would like to set up a blog site for my schools library. My dilema is that, even though I really like the ease of blogger.com, the "Next Blog" feature makes it inappropriate for student access. One suggestion from a trusted district tech guru was www.imbee.com . I would love suggestions of any others.
(The photo is our school mascot on a visit to NYC and the library!)

Thursday, June 7, 2007

Week 6 #15

Before this year I don't think I had thought too much about 2.0 and what it meant for libraries. However, this entire school year has changed that for me. I began hearing it associated with school libraries at the CSLA conference in November and continued through this adventure. I like the idea that the library changes with the times. It isn't just a recepticle for what is past, but reinvents itself as new ideas come along.

In the OCLC article by Dr. Wendy Schultz (To A Temporary Place In Time) there is a quote I love. "Libraries are not merely in communities, they are communities: they preserve and promote community memories; they provide mentors not only for the exploration of stored memory, but also for the creation of new artifacts of memory."

Our students are definately digital natives. We need to provide libraries that speak their language and materials that appeal to them while, at the same time meeting the needs of curriculum and learning styles. But we can't throw the baby out with the bathwater. So the task for school library staff is to embrace the features of 2.0 while continuing to encourage (and sometimes even coax) books into the hands of children.

What will my school library look like ten years from now? My hope is that it will still be filled with children eagerly reading...delighted faces discovering exciting new worlds on the printed page AND the computer screen.

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Week 6, Thing 14 Technorati

I looked up School Library Learning 2.0 on Technorati and saw my desk photo there. That was pretty cool considering that they are looking at billions of posts a day. I feel a bit honored to be included.
I am attempting the "claim your blog process" so here goes:
Technorati Profile

I peeked and saw that I was able to successfully add the favorite button. Whoo-Hoo! I finished the process, created my bio and added a new photo.

Tagging was new to me and I certainly like the aspect of being able to set them up to meet my individual needs. I have used del.i.cio.us quite a bit and have already told others about it. I am planning one of the inservice sessions for the teaching staff when they return in July and tagging is at the top of my list of things to share with them.