Thing #11 LibraryThing: What's Not to Like?

". . . especially for a grown-up little girl who used to play library all the time! How cool is it to catalog all your books on a website (no, not by Dewey -- or at least I didn't get that far into it! All mine would've fallen into fiction anyway!) and find out how many others had also cataloged the same book (not so many for The Christmas Pearl, maybe because it was a recent release). Also you can read what the reviewers have written about the books, which is valuable for purchasing books in the library. I think this would be very cool for students to partake of, particularly older students who wanted to see what others were reading. Also readers can make their own reviews, which would be great for students.

#12 Social Butterfly: To Be or Not to Be?

For a few years now I've watched over their shoulders while my girls have carried on with their friends through MySpace and Facebook. They convinced me it was for their generation only. They were the only hip ones who could carry on through the medium of cyberspace. Well, watch out, girls! I'm right on your heels! After all, what better way to carry on a conversation with multiple people at one time than to post a bulletin on MySpace? With MySpace, a person can message people instantly, design a page that reflects their personality, post music (either original or popular music), show multiple friends in order of their importance in your life, and even post silly quizzes.

However, notice that I did not choose MySpace as my link! Are you kidding? Please -- this Digital Immigrant considers Facebook a much user friendlier option! I like the abundance of white space, therefore allowing me to feel comfortable looking at the screen. There are still plenty of options with Facebook, like privately messaging a friend or writing a bulletin to be broadcast (via RSS feed). If I were going to use something in a school setting, I would definitely go with Ning, which allows for a more closely controlled network shaped around a commonality.

#10 Sign Generators: Cool + Pretty = Nice!

This was fun. I was most successful with the first generator that I chose to use, ImageChef. I liked it best because it offered a lot of images, but not too many (too many options for this woman equals stimulation overload!) It was extremely user friendly (a plus if you're working with elementary kids). It was so easy to choose images, type in your message, upload to blog, and wa-la (btw, that's the Teresa's Americanized spelling of the word) it was on your blog! Quick, easy, painless. No pulling out hair or anything! And that's the only way that teachers/librarians who are on the squeamish side of technology will branch out into new ground is if it will work every time, guaranteed. The seven hours, and much less in reality (after transitional times), that we spend in school is packed full of academic expectations from every aspect, and we're all feeling the crunch. Teachers especially feel pressed for time these days. I think I would show ImageChef as a generator that students could use on their blogs before I would show others, to built confidence. However, with fourth graders who are working so hard on perfecting their writing skills, I think the cartoon generators are great to work towards. Sadly, I had no success in loading my Jack Bauer cartoon onto my blog, on my Mac, but had I been on my PC, I think it would've been easy sailing (a right click save issue).

Always more to get

'Tis the Holiday Season

A Chair-itable Cause

Click on the link on the left (article from Austin American Statesman) to read about how my sister-in-law is raising funds for hospital chairs that will not only accommodate sitting beside family members during the day but will accomplish the purpose of spending the night beside loved ones: they're special pull-out chairs. If you've ever had anyone you've loved in the hospital, you know what a drain it is, physically and emotionally. I'm very proud!

#9 I guess I'm just a Google Girl

. . . because everything else just seems visually complicated in comparison, including Technorati et al. Suffice it to say that I liked the Google feed best of all. I tinkered with this at least a week, and I'm almost embarrassed at my conclusion. I wish I was a little more tech sophisticated, but no. Just keep it simple. Plus, I found myself looking at the blogs I liked to get ideas for other blogs I might look at, and jumping off from there. I've got quite an assortment! From Appalachian history to Library concerns to Writing techniques to my 15 year old cousin's blog as she travels the country, it's a plethora of blogfeeds!

#8 + Making a Public Google Reader

. . . and there it is! Just click "Teresa's Shared Readings" and you should link into the page.

#8 RSS Feeds!

I couldn't wait to get to this one! There is a world of opportunity just waiting behind that little orange icon! I have been dying to know how to incorporate it into my world! And now that I do I feel very smug! (Okay, more jubilant than smug. . .) Anyway, there's so much I can do with this, personally -- news updates are a given. This is even better than the Google alerts, because with that tool, I had to know what key word to alert Google to. With RSS, it feeds me updates, regardless of key words. Some of the info I'll disregard -- just like reading a regular newspaper. Other bits I'll hone in on. But I can do RSS feeds on fun stuff, too: hobbies, words of the day, weather in faraway places, pictures from Flickr from photographers I think are cool . . . it's endless. And then there are professional considerations. Wow. It's like taking staff development, practically. (Okay, maybe that's an exaggeration.) However, it's a great way to stay on top of what people are talking about in terms of technology usage, the how-to's of the library world, etc. The RSS feed is a great way to provide encouragement to people professionally, because we read what other real librarians are doing out there in the world through their updates in blogs. I know when I read Doug Johnson saying he's discouraged because he's not seen such and such being used widely, I feel a tiny bit better about my own little world. I mean, come on -- if a big hitter like Doug Johnson goes through hi's and low's like I do, I must be on the right path.

#7 Google Alerts and More!

I explored all the things Google offers and was pretty impressed. I wracked my brain for what I could set up an alert for -- surely I could have some fun with this! Finally, after seeing a very pregnant, but very mum's-the-word-on-that-subject Jennifer Lopez on Dancing with the Stars, I set my Google Alert to tell me everything about her. I thought, Surely she is about to announce that she is expecting-- I mean, how can she keep denying that belly? And sure enough, a few days later, my Google alerts ALERTED me that indeed, she had made the big announcement! Surprise, surprise. I had a chuckle. But I thought of a more urgent need: my daughter loves Avril Lavigne, and she's coming to Dallas in the spring. I think Google needs to keep me informed on ticket prices! In the library/literary world, we could use this to alert us to new book releases, or authors coming to our area.

I also experimented with the calendar in this very busy holiday season. If need be, I can let family and friends view this online. This is pretty cool! (As long as others don't have add-on rights!)

I'm looking forward to working with the Google Notebook for researching online for the book that I'm writing. That's really interesting! A great idea, one that I'm going to put to good use! I can see this being used to the hilt for research purposes at school, too. Once again, though, it's Google -- and we have the filter to deal with. But the idea of an online notebook to keep notes, pictures, web addresses, etc, in a central location is super cool. I wonder if Yahoo puts out a resource like this?

A great sunrise

hello beautiful
Originally uploaded by teresasbookbuzz

#6 Flickr Toys

I liked playing with all the toys! There's so much here! I love the mosaic, and explored with my school's theme with wild animals aka the zebras, jaguars, tigers, et al. With the flash option, this would be great to put on the school website, so fun for the kids to see and easy to change periodically. Also, this would be great to do with students' photos after an event like Children's Book Week, and posting it to the library website. I look forward to doing just that after our annual Fishing for a Good Book.
Zebra mosaic courtesy of Mosaic Maker
http:bighugelabs.com

DSCN4968

DSCN4968,
originally uploaded by zappowbang.

Curious George!

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Thing #5 Flickr!

This was what I did almost all Saturday. What can I say -- I'm a slow learner. Actually, I got bogged down in looking at all the cool pictures that were posted for public viewing; then I worried that I would post somebody else's pics incorrectly, so I browsed through the images that had specified ok to share if credit was given to the owner. Then I thought, wouldn't it just be easier if I downloaded my own photos? I think once I've done this whole thing a time or two, it will go much more quickly. I can see using this for library purposes, because you can save your photos to Flickr and not to the school server, therefore making them easily accessible at home, when you're working on the website from there. And I like the privacy options Flickr offers, so my fears have been put to rest about inappropriate viewing of my family pictures!

Thing #4 How Can I Use a Blog Educationally?

. . . let me count the ways! No kidding, just about anything that you can do in the classroom can be done on a blog, except face to face contact (and if you had a webcam, then maybe. . .) At my school, I'm about to start a reading club, with the help of two awesome 5th grade teachers. It's aimed at 4th and 5th grade avid readers (and maybe some reluctant readers will be excited enough to join in, too!), and they will be reading individually between our twice a month meetings. While they're reading, they'll be expected to journal. How cool it would be if they journaled onto a blog! The down side of that is, not everyone has access to a computer at home. However, maybe they could blog while in computer lab.

Here's the Buzz . . .

Last week I read I'm the Biggest Thing in the Ocean by Kevin Sherry to the younger crowd at Thompson. They loved it, especially when we defined the word "brag" and gave Mr. Giant Squid a giant attitude,complete with a snap, a head cock, and arched eyebrows. Of course, like every braggert, he gets his come-uppence when he faces his day at Ninevah (so to speak!), and we learned the meaning of the word "humble". But you can't keep a good giant squid down, and of course, he has the last word, and the kids leave laughing. I heartily recommend it!

#3 Creating an Avatar

Wow! This was fun. A little frustrating at times, but fun. Like playing paper dolls when I was little. Now I've just got to figure out how to change the background, clothes, and accessories once I have them in place. I've spent the last hour and a half trying to do it, to no avail! Ouch! I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong. Oh, well, we learn through mistakes, right? I guess that will make me a master!

I sure do want that girl to look more casual. She needs to relax in the Carolina mountains. With her trusty black Lab. And some good books. In the fall . . . .

I'm sure it will happen for her very soon.

Thing #2 The Easiest and Hardest Things . . .

The 7 1/2 Habits of Learning were very informative . . . and one of those things I wish I'd come up with. The easiest thing for me was "Begin with the end in mind". I think I do this as second nature. I'm a global thinker (as opposed to an analytical thinker), so it's much easier for me to think "big picture". It's in analyzing just how I'm going to work my way to the end that gets tricky for me!

The hardest part was first in choosing which of the remaining six habits were going to be the hardest for me to do! I finally settled on "View problems as challenges", for the simple reason that at times, my problems in the library can mount up to be more than just challenges, but as looming monsters! At least in my perception. That will be the hardest thing to consistently overcome, I think.

Some of the challenges that tend to mount and loom over me are clerical in nature, because they accumulate and wait for me, drumming their long dirty fingernails on the library counter while I try to do the important things, like discuss books with students, help students locate books, talk with teachers about how we will work together on future research units, and conduct those research units in the library and computer lab. That incessant drumming on the counter gets louder and louder, and I keep nervously looking over my shoulder at those clerical tasks that, as time passes, seem to take on an uncanny likeness to the Grim Reaper. Soon, I'm giving in to the Reaper's intimidation, and I'm shelving those books, or I'm caught behind the checkout desk during research, or I'm stressing about how many books are not where they should be on the shelf.

What's a librarian to do?

One thing I did recently was to send a Volunteer Wanted letter to parents, for the first time. I was pleasantly surprised at the great response I received!

Now I just have to figure out how to train them all in the most time efficient way! A challenge, not a problem!

Thing #1 What I Want to Learn (from doing all this fun stuff)

I'd like to get more comfortable writing online, and make it habitual, for one thing. Actually, it seems kind of narcissistic. I find myself thinking, who's really going to care about what I think about books, or anything else for that matter? I'm just one person in the great big cyber-universe. I have a few more credentials than the average joe in terms of literature, but . . . who cares? But maybe that's my "digital immigrant" persona speaking out. I know my twenty-one year old lives and breathes on the internet, as does my eighteen year old. They wouldn't think about going on a trip without a laptop -- forbid the thought! How else would they be connected with their friends? In that respect, I've been introduced to the 2.0 world, through looking over their shoulders (before they shriek, "Mom!"). However, I don't understand WHY you would want to SHARE your precious photos with the world through something like flickr.com. That's private, for Pete's sake! But, maybe I'm thinking too broadly. Maybe it's only certain people that you can share these things with, people you designate. That would be okay -- like family or friends who you would want to share with, and not use the snail mail to actually physically send photos to. That's certainly a more reasonable thought than posting photos of your beautiful daughter for every molester to ogle online.

Okay, I'm ready to fly with this thing now!