MRS. RENNALLS I'M BORED!

Inoreader is the One For Me

After much deliberation , I decided to subscribe to Inoreader as my RSS provider. Many of the reader services were attractive, but I chose Inoreader for the following reasons:

It was rated best for longterm content archiving.
The display was in the mosaic ( Pinterest) format that I love.
The $1.25 a month price tag was very competitive with other RSS services.

So, I signed up. I have to admit the feed took 2 hours of my time as I could have stayed on there forever following to my hearts content.

Next, I created a Tumblr account: http://lovelylibrariantx.tumblr.com/ . I filled it with all of my myriad of interests and personal preferences. Finally, I ttyped in School library and began to peruse all the library sites. Having so many resources at hand was daunting at first, but I soon realized that I had specific needs for my position as an elementary school librarian. Everything presented was not for me. The five top blogs I chose to follow are:

I chose the School Library Journal blog for its comprehensive nature. The sheer breadth of mterial and special interests presented on this blog covered most of my issues as a new librarian. I chosethe black children’s books and author’s blog because of the demographics of my school. We have a 52% Caucasian, 26%African- American, and 24% Hispanic students. Being a busy school librarian, I need a blog to help me keep up with what is trending in library for children of color. I do a lot of work with the Scholastic book company. I host two book fairs a year to fund my summer reading program. Despite being a commercial company, they offer a range of helpful insights into the library/class rooms. The Brooklyn Public library is a place I got my first library card from. Their programs arevery expansive as they have a dynamic and ever changing population. I also just like to see what they are up to. Finally, I chose Library Journal because when I searched library Maker Spaces they had a few blogs on a pivitol part of my school library.

This was a great assignment for me as it helped to stream line a lot of the content that I search through on a professional level. I love Pinterest,but it is sometimes limited. These RSS’s organized my professional search inquiry.

Embracing Social Media

Social Media is now an established way of doing business and let’s face it we are in the business of enrolling clients in using our library services. Having an internet presence is no longer an “if” prospect. It is a must do.

FACEBOOK

After creating a Facebook page for my school library, I was plagued by doubts and emboldened by the possible outreach this page could create.

https://www.facebook.com/NewportElementarySchoolLibrary/

Therein lies the rub. I questioned how do I use this medium to its best advantage, protect the privacy of my students, and follow policy set down by my district. I also don’t want to create a monster. My schedule is so packed with student activities, curriculum, and collection management. I questioned whether I want to add more administration to my plate. Also, will increased scrutiny mean a loss in power in the projects and programs I want to pursue. I immediately ran into problems creating a page. I ended up deactivating my first attempt and added a page to my current account.

I began purusing other library sites and almost sank into the surfing worm hole that accompanies any internet search on a subject you like/love. I ran into sites that were dear to me as I raised my children in these libraries:

https://www.facebook.com/sewickleypl/

https://www.facebook.com/Moon-Township-Public-Library-139027627585/

https://www.facebook.com/pages/George-Memorial-Library/114864401865456?fref=ts

I loved how these sites gave me access to what their libraries were working on and the vision they are working toward. I got some great ideas from many sites about some great programs and what features they have in their Makerspaces. I loved being able to see what everyone is doing internationally. I am cautious about the fact that when you open a page on the internet, you also open a door to your facility. In this time of all access security is a fact of life and it must be handled responsibly. Many of the pages I looked through had few comments and some of the posts were not current. I wondered if the upkeep of these pages and their promotion fell by the wayside with the all the demands on the page managers duties. I believe there will be great advantages to using the facebook page I created because many of my co-workers and friends care about libraries and reading. This is also a great way to shine a window on sponsored activities and their donors. They can see the implementation of the programs they helped initiate and continue to support. Having direct contact to them is a great boon when organizing and showcasing events. It should be a great time saver.

TWITTER

I love Twitter for it’s brevity. I also like being able to scroll through my feed and get a glimpse of something I might find relevant to me and the library. Finally, I enjoy where the Tweets can take me. While following :

The Daring Librarian : https://twitter.com/GwynethJones ,

‏@GwynethJones

The Way of the Lego feat. FREE Printable #Makerspace Posters! http://goo.gl/bweiQh #Makered https://flic.kr/p/D5fiko

I found some great information on Lego’s in the Makerspace. I had just attended a district library meeting where we were stumped about what to buy and how to use them in our Makerspaces. Gwneth provided a great blog showcasing the evolution of Legos in her library. This was a great time savr for me. I enjoyed following Dr. Rosemary Chance because we share some tastes in literature while others are so different than mine.

https://twitter.com/texaspageturner .

‏@texaspageturner

Listening to Tammy Pierce talk about her remarkably inventive novels. She’s a champion of girls’ abilities! #SLJST

I went down several wormholes and made a list of books that I will request from my local public library.

Following John Schu through: https://twitter.com/MrSchuReads is a joy because he features books that target my grade levels. I enjoyed his featured authors as well as the information he passes along in his retweets. His blog post at http://mrschureads.blogspot.com/2016/01/caldecott-medalist-kevin-henkes.html featured one of my favorite authors, Kevin Henkes. I love finding out about books I might have missed for the library’s collection. These blog posts help me access new sources with reviews.

‏@MrSchuReads

I’m reading…

I am committed to using social media to help manage my libraries duties. There is currently no instrument that can reach as many students, staff, and community members with my limited time budget. Social media must be handled wisely.

Going Native

Ann Marie Rennalls
LSSL 5391

Bloom‘s Evergreen

In this digital era of unlimited information, students demand much more than traditional book learning to succeed in their academic school life. Prensky advocates that while the Digital Native is the present in today’s classrooms, we teachers can be hampered by our educational experience.
In the past rote memorization played a pivotal role in classroom instruction. That worked in the 1950’s model, but technology made that skill benign. We are educating managers, not calculators. I dare say that with today’s advances in the tech world, we will soon not check out our own groceries but be scanned as we walk out the door. What our students now need as far as Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy is concerned is expertise in implementation using the digital tools that are available.
In my library I find that I am often a few steps behind my students in knowing the hot apps and new educational computer programs. Yesterday, in fact, several students requested access to a program that I had not heard of. I had to investigate and review quickly. I run a makerspace rotation in the library. Through the use of Google +, Pinterest, various podcasts, Vlogs, and my favorite: YouTube, I have been able to engage my students on their digital plane. They believe that computer access is their right, not a privilege. I am in my 50’s and my children were raised with in house computers, so I was brought into the digital age whether I wanted to come or not. I am amazed at how readily students take to technology and I am excited by the creativity that ensues. The struggle today is to construct lessons that fully incorporate technology to enhance student progress.
Digital Native’s challenge and inform our decisions as librarians on how we spend our schools resources. Books are now just a part of the library experience. The Library Commons can be used for so many things now. Makerspaces have added and additional arena in which students can: design, critique, implement, infer, and identity. The message is the same, but the tools are different.
In conclusion, the body of information that we call education is evolving at an exponential rate. Our job is to attempt to keep up and occasionally leap ahead. I know I have been changed due to my love of YouTube instruction. Mark Prensky’s presentation was the most readily absorbed lesson due to my ease with YouTube platform. This old dog likes her new tricks.