This whole process is new to me, so please bare with me! I'm going to try to do this in the easiest format possible, that way I don't confuse myself-or anyone trying to read my blog. :)
Free Technology for Teachers- http://www.freetech4teachers.com/
Obviously the name drew me into to sign up for this one! As a teacher you put so much of your own money back into the classroom, finding good deals makes a big difference! The one thing that jumped out to me this week was a site called MyVocabulary.com, I love these interactive sites that get kids thinking about words and orgins. I currently use spellingcity.com (which is also free), but it would be a good idea to switch between the two!
Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day- http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/
More of an 'educators' site for today's link. He refers to an article that The New York Times published called 'Brain Calisthenics for Abstract Ideas'. The story itself is about how a new study revealed pattern recognition can deeply convey meaning for one to more clearly understand the concept. While this is great information to have, Ferlazzo doesn't let people forget that this is not a new secret, but rather something that has been proved time and time again. In fact, he personally has written 2 books that involve the same concept. I really enjoy how he writes- something I would call 'professional comedic'.
Social Networking Librarian- http://socialnetworkinglibrarian.com/
For another class of mine we had to read an article about making sure students are finding appropriate sites and resources when doing projects. They need to check the validity and see if they are biased, and if so, why/how? The one question I asked myself when reading the article was, how am I going to teach students the difference on a 'good' website vs a 'biased' site? Well, the Social Networking Librarian has the answer. Even thought the blog is about a month old, it's still very applicable. On the page there are three different videos that students can watch to understand the difference between sites that are appropriate to find information and ones that are not. (I have to admit the one I watched was the one with the puppets...) These would be great things to show your students before doing any kind of research project online.
The Daring School Library- http://daringlibrary.edublogs.org/ (which is ran by The Daring Librarian, quite the charcter with a blog of her own)
There's an awsome Library Media Scavenger Hunt, which ironically was originally created by Joyce Valena (author of the article 'A Revised Manifesto' that we read this week in class), and re-worked by the author of this site. The questions are based to get the students comfortable and familiar with their library. What I really liked about the site is that it provides a link for you to see the lesson plan as a whole and to adapt to fit your own classroom/library. I think this is a fabulous learning tool- because how do kids learn best- by finding information cooperatively. So much better then sending a kid into the stacks with a copy of an old worksheet!
School Library Montly- http://blog.schoollibrarymedia.com/
This has to be my personal favorite! It talks about how the program 'SYNC', something I'm not familiar with, is offering free books to teenagers weekly. (I'm pretty sure it's an audio program, maybe through an IPod or something.) However, the cool part for me was that they're sending them 2 books- one current YA read, and a 'classic' story that is similar to it. I'm just giddy with the idea that the kids are staying current with all the great reads, but also getting caught up on some really great stories they might have otherwise missed. Imagine: a student in LOVE with the Hunger Games series (I have a few), then imagine the same student picking up Lord of the Flies. Current: Matched- Classic: The Giver! There are so many opportunities here! It has a list all the way to August 17th of what's coming up for availability. Just looking at some of the long and forgotten titles on there makes me smile inside knowing there will be students out there reading those books soon!
Anyways- I really hope I did this assignment right! I guess it's always a stab in the dark your first go around! :)
Becky -- How did you run across the "Social Networking Librarian?" Those are great videos.
ReplyDeleteI forgot to mention that your reflections were perfect.
ReplyDeleteI went to Google and searched for 'Librarian Blogs' and it came up with a great list, of 'The 25 Best'. It was honestly hard to pick and choose which ones I wanted to follow, so I wouldn't overwhelm myself!
ReplyDeleteThank you!