Week Fourteen Reflections

LM_NET

            Amy Hertzberg writes on November 6^th about using Discovery Education Streaming videos.  My school has just recently started using this program and I think it is off to a slow start.  Teachers easily get overwhelmed when asked to try something new and then throw them all into a mass training for 30 minutes.  I can understand this.  Teachers need practice with something before they will feel comfortable enough to try something in their classroom.  I think if my staff gets some more training with Discovery Ed they will come around to it more easily.

            Sarles Patricia shares a great resource on October 8^th for our music teachers out there.  It is a link to a virtual piano.  Students can play chords or single notes and learn about different keys.  I like the idea of an online resource for the music student out there.  Pianos are a bit expensive but this would be a way to share the experience with the whole class.

BLOGS

            The question has been brought up time and time again about when media specialists are supposed to find time to play with everything that is available out there on the web then learn how to integrate it into lessons and share resources with others.  In a guest post from Mary Mehsikomer, on Doug Johnson’s Blue Skunk blog, was sharing her own complaints on this topic but also how she was told “You’ve no longer a choice.”  That’s one way of putting it I suppose. J Perhaps, that is what it has come to.  Media specialists will need to become more flexible and start re-thinking the way we do things so that we can adapt and change into our web 2.0 world.

            In another post from Doug Johnson, on November 16^th he writes in response to a NY Times article about teachers selling their lesson plans.  This bothers me a little bit.  In education, we have always shared our ideas freely and without charge.  Don’t enough things cost money already?  I know we don’t get paid much and teachers should be allowed to make something extra for all their hard work but I don’t want this to get out of hand.

Week Thirteen Reflections

LM_NET

            Shonda Brisco shared a great link on November 11^th that illustrated a great resource to help science out.  It was a link that showed the eye up close and personal and also a video of an eye dissection.  Overall, this was a great reminder that there are some amazing resources out there to help out those departments that don’t get as much love from the library and they are FREE!

            Anne-Marie Gordon replied to the discussion on November 11^th, about defining Fiction and Nonfiction in the library.  The discussion started because students were confused about why fairy tales were in the nonfiction section of the library.  Anne-Marie described how she explained it to students. She said that they had a discussion of how authors decide on what to write.  Those who come up with their own ideas belong in fiction and those who write about something that already exists go into nonfiction.  Since fair tales are passed down and not a brand new idea, they get a special place in nonfiction.

BLOGS

The Unquiet Librarian writes on November 18^th about “Information Literacy and Inquiry as Disruption to School Culture Oppressed by Testing”.  I was immediately drawn to this post because of my own struggles this year with authentic and meaningful learning vs. the all-powerful MAP test.  The Unquiet Librarian questions here in her post how librarians will play their role in literacy based on inquiry when students don’t have the drive for questions and original thought any longer.  I too am worried about students losing their drive for learning because we have tested it out of them. How much longer will the standardized testing craze go on?  How much longer can we let it go on?

Doug Johnson writes today, November 22, about the rewards and challenges that come with getting a big job done.  His school will be installing lots of new technology over the next two months and he already anticipating the struggles that will come along with it. True, you can’t give your staff new technology with out the complaints that will surely come along with it. There will have to be training sessions to support the different levels of abilities and support if for some reason something doesn’t end up working right.

Week Twelve Reflections

LM_NET

            Now that Barnes and Noble has presented its Nook the to world, the great debate has begun, what is the best electronic reader out there? Shonda Brisco writes on LM_NET on November 5^th about some of the research she has found about the Nook vs. the Kindle.  Some library media specialists are looking into the possibilities of using these readers in their collections and are trying to figure out ways of being able to check them out. I believe students would be very interested in electronic readers.  Some would truly benefit from Kindle’s ability to read books to the owner.  Other students would just appreciate the technology and that would be enough to inspire them to read.  I think we  as librarians are going to have to get creative and figure out way to use these in the future.

            Nicole Meintz posted some questions about the Pulitzer and Hugo awards on November 5^th.  Apparently, an 8^th grade teacher in her school has her advanced readers use novels from these categories to study.  The librarian was wondering how appropriate these novels were and if she should have them in the regular circulation.  I read many, many, many young adult novels being a reader teacher but I have to tell you that they are not all created equal.  To this day, The Giver by Lois Lowry is my all-time favorite story and it received the Newberry award but not all of the books that have won the same award are as good in my opinion.  I think with all books added to the collection, the media specialist will have to read reviews and check them out before adding them in.  Just because a book has an award doesn’t mean it must be added to the collection.

 

BLOGS

            On October 22^nd, the Unquiet Librarian wrote about AASL using GoAnimate to advertise the Blogger’s Café.  It seems similar to Animoto but with more animation effects.  I think students could really see value in learning how to use these free applications on the web for school projects. GoAnimate is more advanced than Animoto but I could see students learning about this after-school and creating some amazing stuff!

            Doug Johnson always has some interesting thoughts posted on his blog, Blue Skunk Blog.  Today he wrote about how signs in libraries are too restrictive and how if they were written in a positive tone then more people might be willing to use the resources we have available.  I agree with Johnson.  I think that if students don’t feel comfortable using the libraries then they will continue to avoid them.  It needs to be a place of social learning as well if we are to hook students.

Week Eleven Reflections

LM_NET

            I first learned of Skype when I went to study abroad my senior year of undergraduate school.  It was how I kept in contact with my family and friends while I was away for 5 months.  I started using it again in grad school for one of my online classes. I love the many potential uses it provides and it was no shock to read about it on LM_NET.  Denise Perkins brought it up on October 30^th to see if anyone had used it for a book discussion.  I think this would be a great idea for the library.  Students could have book talks with people from other states or even countries.  It would be a great way to expand our learners into more global thinkers.

            On the subject of book talks, Karen McLachlan wrote on October 30^th about using Animoto.  She was looking for some ideas for student projects.  I know some people have mentioned using it for book reports, which I absolutely love, but I can see how this too might have endless opportunities in the learning environment.  I remember using publisher one year to get kids interested in sharing what they have read. We created brochures and printed them in color.  The students loved the project and loved being able to share.  I think Animoto has the same potential.

BLOGS

            Yesterday, November 7^th, the Unquiet Librarian wrote about an experience she had with PollEverywhere.  Apparently, during a conference she had audience members participating during her presentation but sending in their votes through Twitter or by texting.  She said it was an amazing way to engage members through 21^st century technology.  I went and checked out the web site and you can sign up for a free account.  The technology is advanced enough to update the information sent in automatically and can handle thousands of people texting at once. I think this would be awesome to use to get students involved in lectures. I can’t wait to see about using this at school!

            On October 30^th, the Unquiet Librarian writes about being more transparent in his/her monthly reports about the happenings in the library. This caught my attention because I just read an article about this recently for grad class.  The Unquiet Librarian has tried using Animoto to show more detail with the reports and has had a great response.  He/she has also put videos and lesson plans on the web page.  The whole idea of making the library business transparent is really taking off.

Week Ten Reflections

LM_NET

Elizabeth Van Pate media specialist  from Mancelona Public Schools  in Mancelona, MI writes on October 12 about her concerns with weeding books from the library.  She wanted to know if it was possible to sell some of the books at a very low price so that the library could raise some money.  There was much concern with this because of the books being purchased with taxpayer’s money. Most libraries often either donate or just throw away their unwanted, weeded books.  It seems like such a waste to just throw away books. I like the idea of donating books to places like Salvation Army but if the library could have a “garage sale” it would mean the library would have a little extra money to purchase newer books or technology.

Chris Hales, M. Ed. a media specialist from Andersen Junior High School in Chandler, AZ writes on October 20 about the new e reader from Barnes and Noble called “Nook”.  I have become very intrigued by the idea of an e reader, especially since I heard about the Kindle last year.  The Kindle sounded amazing to me but I knew it wouldn’t be as successful as it could until the price came down. Well, Barnes and Noble has beaten them to the punch.  “Nook” is only $260, it comes with a color touch screen and it has the ability to lend books to other people.  You can even lend books to people who don’t have a “Nook”.  This could mean something really interesting for libraries.  I believe generating interest in books for young adults means using technology.  It is an easy way to get their attention.

 

BLOGS

            In a related blog, The Unquiet Librarian writes on October 16^th about students gaining interest in ebooks after a project at school where they researched short stories.  Students began searching online for short stories and found some inexpensive and sometimes free apps for stories.  What a great way to interest students in some amazing literature!

            In a post on October 11^th, The Unquiet Librarian writes about an interesting project where students have the opportunity to combine literature circles and research.  Students are reading books about issues in Africa and then taking their ideas and researching topics.  I think this is a great way to using books and teaching together.  It’s the kind of authentic learning where students actually get something really meaningful from their reading.

Week Nine Reflections

LM_NET

In a posting from Jacquie Henry, from Macedon, NY she writes on Oct. 8^th about a video.  In this video, a poet reads a poem titled “I’ll Fight You for the Library.”  If you want to laugh out loud and see someone who enthusiastically appreciates the LMC and all that it provides I suggest you take a look at the video as well. The poem is written from the perspective of a teacher who becomes aggravated over being booted out of his spot at the library due to an administrative meeting.  It illustrates perfectly feelings that many of us have as educators and reminds us to “fight” for our library.

The post “If You Like…You Should Read…” on Oct 6^th from Susan Solo who teaches in Grass Lake, MI gave me some very useful links that I can pass on to my students.  The links are places students can go to help them figure out what to read next after they have read a good book.  I went to a couple of the links and they do a great job of providing similar authors and subjects areas that a student might be interested in after having read a “good book”.  I get students asking me frequently for book suggestions so these links can help to fulfill their requests.

 

BLOGS

The blog entry titled “Research Pathfinder” from Unquiet Librarian on Oct 18^th struck my attention having just attempted to create my own pathfinder (not so successfully I might add).  I am really interested by this idea of a pathfinder but I am going to need a lot more training to be able to create one successfully.  I would love to involve students more on the web, especially to give them ideas for research.  We struggle with this piece so much at my school.  I will definitely be bringing this idea back to my LMS and see what she and I can come up with.

The Unquiet Librarian writes also on Oct 18^th about ‘My Response to “Where are the Others?”’ The original post in the whole mess had to do with an article from Johnson and Valenza that was basically encouraging LMS to take more action and become more Web 2.0.  It seems that some librarians took offense (of course) and the Unquiet Librarian was defending the original article.  All throughout this course, I have been studying ways to become more literate in the 21^st century.  I am constantly overwhelmed by it all but I do not doubt the importance of the subject.  I just can’t understand why any library media specialist would argue against these points.  Isn’t it obvious that we can all improve?  Aren’t we as librarians the heart of the life-long learners?

Week Eight Reflections

LM_NET

            There has been a big discussion on LM_NET this past week (10-02 to 10-05) about whether or not to teach students about Wikipedia during the research process.  On the one hand, traditional researchers don’t think teaching students about Wikipedia is worth anything.  They claim it is an unreliable source and if we teach students about it then that will only encourage them to use it.  On the other hand, some teachers believe in teaching it since they know students will use it no matter what so they might as well be informed on how to use it.  If a student knows how to get what they need from Wikipedia then they can move on to a reliable resource. I for one believe in this approach.  Students need to be informed on all methods of research.

            Jaclyn Adler, a 7-12 Teacher Librarian from Salem CSD, writes to the netters about kids wanting books from displays that she has created.  She is frustrated by taking the books down, since then there wouldn’t be a display left. Many encouraged her to go ahead and let students check out the books since that is what the display is for.  Some came up with some excellent solutions like creating dummy display books by scanning the covers and setting those up in the display.  I really enjoyed this idea and I think I will use it to advertise books in my own classroom.

 

Blogs

            In his blog, “Two Cents Worth”, David Warlick writes on August 30^th, 2009 about how little students now value history or geography.  He makes some very valid points about how students now don’t learn because “we tell them” or even if we threaten that it “will be on the test”.  He instead claims that they learn out of necessity and they view learning as a tool.  Just like in their video games, they obtain information to use it for something they need.  By presenting education this way, students will be more receptive to the learning process.  I completely agree.  Students need learning to be authentic and they need to understand the purpose behind it.  It has to be valuable to them or it won’t stick with them. Further proof that teaching solely from a textbook is useless to students.

            Doug Johnson wrote on September 16^th in his “Blue Skunk” blog about the different options for sharing and collaborative editing.  He points out that sometime too many options can be overwhelming and it’s important to know your options and chose the best one to fit your needs.  He covers some of the pros and cons of different applications including: email, Lodestar, rSchools today, Google Apps, and even wikis.  The list gives different ideas for how to use these applications.  Some of them I haven’t even heard of before! 

Week Seven Reflections

LM_NET

            The last week of September celebrates “Banned Book Week”.  Many librarians are discussing possible activities to do with students to celebrate the classics.  As a reading teacher, I feel it is important to show students and make them aware of the books that are challenged and the reasons for wanting a book banned.  I also want my students to know that they have a right to read what they want and that the library can offer them access to that freedom.  I think the library should help celebrate this week of September and encourage students to check out the books that cause lots of discussions.  This should definitely be cleared with the principal first and the books that are highlighted should be the classics that are challenged.

            Katie Farrington of New jersey, writes about books that would appeal to boys. I find boys to be more reluctant readers than girls on average.  They often struggle with identifying what kinds of subjects that they are interested in.  Helping them to get to that point is the first step, then the librarian needs to advertise titles that match up to their likes.  Pulling books from the shelves to advertise is a great way to help students search for books to read. She provided a list of all the hits she received and she had lots of great responses. Some of the best were:

1. Graphic novels

2. Gross history books

3. Anything to do with crime solving, forensic evidence gathering, ect.

4. Almanacs, trivia books

5. Mike Lupica, John Feinstein, Tim Green, Mal Peet, and Anthony Horowitz

6. Cirque Du Freak

 

BLOGS

            David Warlick wrote on his blog “2 Cents Worth” about “Reasoning Our Way” and how there is a difference between how youth of the more recent generations reason their way through problems differently than older generations.  He gave examples of technology and video games where kids figure out what they need to do.  I do agree that kids are great at this kind of stuff. They can get online or figure out how to do complicated but I rarely see students transferring their problem solving skills into practical uses.  If they could do this, then they could really make something of themselves.

            Doug Johnson on his blog, “Blue Skunk” wrote on September 27^th about how teachers and coaches need to be “guides”.  He defined a “guide” as “Guide a : one that leads or directs another's way b : a person who exhibits and explains points of interest  ... e : a person who directs another's conduct or course of life. M-W.COM.”  He applied this idea of a guide to his experience of  hiking through the Grand Canyon.  Some of his thoughtful connections included: 1. A guide pushes us to do things we wouldn’t normally of done. 2. Models difficult things. 3. Shows us things we might not have found. 4. Demonstrate best practices and smoothes the way.  These are excellent examples of the day-to-day life of a teacher and how we interact with students. Pushing ourselves as educators to be these things for students is definitely best for students.

Thoughts for Week Six

LM_NET

Cynthia Lutz from Byfield, MA writes to the LM_netters on September 18^th about DVD/movie policies.  Having read the article this week about using instructional videos, this topic was on my mind as well.  She wanted to know what policies others had out there and whether or not anyone used Netflix as a part of their circulation. The article I read had many concerns with copyright issues and how important it is to know these laws. Being very unfamiliar with any of this, I am curious as to what the copyright laws are with movies and schools and what the best method is for obtaining and showing movies.  This topic comes up at my school a lot and I still don’t have a clear answer.

I always get a little downhearted when I hear about other schools and their amazing teacher’s union. From North Bergen, New Jersey Diana Lawsky writes on September 20^th about how every teacher in her school is guaranteed a 40-minute prep and a 40-minute lunch, both without students. Sometimes there are special circumstances but this beats the 20-minute lunch I have WITH students.  I wonder what it would take to start a union in my school district.

 

BLOGS

            The Unquiet Librarian wrote on September 25^th about his/her experience using Google tools with students. The class reflected on the experience and here are some of their comments:

·       Loved the ease and organizational features (as well as chat) of Gmail and Google Docs—many stated they liked it better than Word and loved how easy it was to use.  

·       Most also are feeling the love for Google Sites for hosting and creating professional looking work.

·       Most also love and are proud of the fact that they can blog!

·       Learning how social media can be used for research and educational uses, not just personal networking.

Every time I read about students getting to collaborate and use more tools available to them online I get excited about trying these things out with my own students.  It can be hard to change much because of the short-sighted focus on testing but I will still try to find ways to use technology to increase student learning.

            JHURL from the AASL’s blog posts information about teacher tools from Google on September 23^rd. Apparently, teachers have access to something called search curricular which helps to search better searching on the web.  Teachers have access to lesson plans, PowerPoint’s, and a webinar to help explain.  The lessons are tied to ISTE technology standards and relate everything to Google. Though it is soley focused on Google, students will still be able to relate to this common search engine and find ways to make it work better for themselves.

Week Five Reflections

LM_NET

Jaclyn Adler a teacher librarian in Salem school district wrote to the LM_netters this week asking for advise on how to make the library more instruction focused and also to turn it into a resource center. She was mostly just looking for anyone who had some background knowledge on this process.  This is a change I would like to see in my own library at my school I work at. Frequently I have students who need to get out of the classroom to work on something, not because they are in trouble, but because they can’t focus in the classroom.  Granted, the library would need more staff available to handle the extra students coming in.  I still think it would make my library more useful to the students.

So I have to comment on a post from Juliann T. Moskowitz, a teacher librarian at Seymour, CT. This is from last week, September 14^th.  She writes to describe an incident that occurred in her library one day, when a sub was filling in for a teacher.  At her school, subs spend their plan time in the library helping to shelve books since they don’t have paras. When Juliann explained this to the sub, he claimed that men don’t shelve books and that women were librarians and that it was their job to take care of those things.  She of course was a little taken back by this comment but politely reminded him that there were plenty of make librarians out there doing the very same job she was doing.

I just can’t believe some times how ignorant people really are.  It’s hard to believe people think that way let alone actually speak to another professional that way. I doubt I would have been able to keep my cool in that situation. I probably would have told him to go do what men always do, sit on their lazy butts!

 

BLOGS

             The “Unquiet Librarian” wrote on September 12^th about their “wish list”.  A list of what the library would be able to offer in a perfect world. Many of the items on list centered around being able to access more things for their students that current filters won’t allow.  It is so frustrating to know amazing technology or information is out there but not be able to access it due to filtering problems or outdated materials.  The wish list also included items that would make the library more web 2.0.  The “Unquiet Librarian” wishes to communicate with patrons through text messages and also be able to embed videos or even have access to UTube. These things may be unrealistic now but maybe in the future we can move forward in our schools and have more current offerings to our students.

            Doug Johnson on September 17^th wrote in response to a post from Rod at Edging Ahead, which was about being crazy concerned about technology when there are so many other pressing issues to deal with in schools.  Johnson reflected that critical thinking skills would be the key. I have to say I couldn’t agree more.  Students who learn to think for themselves and who learn to problem solve are the ones who are going to be better equipped for the 21^st century.  We can go crazy trying to learn every cool new piece of technology and trying to implement it into curriculum, but students will benefit more from becoming independent learners.

Week Four Reflections

LM_NET

During our assignment this week, we looked at an archived discussion on LM_NET about electronic devices used in current libraries.  I was interested in learning more about the Playaways that many libraries seem to be using.  I would love for my students to be able to use a Playway.  I have several students who are not interested in reading but are more than willing to listen to a story.  If we had devices available for checkout we could solve this problem.

            Other discussions on LM_NET were about updating foreign language books.  Our library’s foreign language section is practically nonexistent. I think more students would be interested in learning a new language if there were more resources available to them to learn.  I would love to see different kinds of phrase books, picture books, and even audio resources available for checkout.

 

Blogs

            The debate continues on printed text vs. online resources.  Donald Mills complains on his blog about how young people never crack a book.  It’s true.  Students now prefer to look up information online and most don’t even know how to use a reference resource.  One of my friends was giving a lecture for a pharmacy class and in her assignment she specifically had students use some printed resources to look up drug information.  In her opinion, she will continue to have the students learn how to use the actual books until the web resources offer the same quality information.  I feel this debate will continue for a long while.  Some people are not going to be convinced that the web resources are what’s best for research.

            Doug Johnson comments on his blog about the 6 phases of a group project.

The six phases are:

1.     Enthusiasm

2.     Disillusionment

3.     Panic

4.     Search for the guilty

5.     Punishment of the innocent

6.     Praise and honors for the nonparticipants

I’m in the same boat with my school here at the beginning of school and I smiled when I read this in Doug’s blog.  It couldn’t be more true of an example of the way more projects go. 

Week Three

Student databases:

Librarians on LM_NET have been discussing different student databases that would be available to them online.  I really like this idea, especially for researching. Every year at my school we struggle with how to handle our research unit.  Pulling books off the shelves and making them available is great but I would rather see them researching online using credible resources.  We use databases so much at the advanced level, why not encourage it when they are younger? 

References on shelf or online?

LM_NETers have also been discussing whether to take some books out of the library permanently. For example, some librarians are considering removing some of the resource materials like encyclopedias and instead offering these materials online.  I’m usually the cheerleader for keeping print copies of all things but on this issue I have to say I think digital is the way to go.  Students can’t use these nonfiction resources as well in print as they can online. I think it would be easier for them to navigate through the materials online.

 

The Unquiet Librarian

On this blog, I read about a teacher who has a class website.  They use it post upcoming events, the daily agenda, and sometimes assignments.  I would love to have enough computers in my room for my students to be able to have a web component to our class.  They are more engaged on the computer and I could individualize my curriculum more if it were online.

There has been uproar over the Obama speech this week that it is not surprising to find people posting their viewpoints online. The Unquiet Librarian had an interesting thought on the subject.  While he or she doesn’t agree with the president on most issues and didn’t even vote for him, the unquiet librarian whole-heartedly disagrees with this slam on intellectual freedom.  I couldn’t agree more.  It is unbelievable that we can’t allow our students the freedom to form their own opinions.

Week Two Part Two

On the AASL blog I found an interesting entry about removing all print materials from a library.  I feel like in the future many librarians are going to be faced with the idea that we may be removing what has always been a crucial element to our profession. I can't believe that after thousands of years we might be looking at removing books altogether. I know eBooks have a place in this world but so do print materials. Just taking into account different learning styles show us that we need to hold on to our physical materials. Students learn in all ways and the internet or electronic materials will not completely change that.

It seems like everyone is talking about the upcoming Obama speech. It started last Thursday at my school, it's been on the LM_NET, so of course I've seen it on blogs this week.  Thankfully, I have seen more outrage over schools not being allowed to watch it than those who agree.  First I didn't really understand why people were making such a big deal over the issue. Why can't we let our students watch the news during school? Is it not important to let them form their own opinions anymore? Our school has gone back and forth over the issue so many time that I doubt any teacher feels comfortable showing the speech now even though it would technically be allowed.  It just goes to show you how terribly alive censorship is and how little faith or trust we put in those who are meant to lead us.

Week Two Part One

This week on LM_NET I found a couple of interesting posts concerning library administration.  The first one was about using blogging for educational purposes. Since I'm new to the blogging world, I have been recently been considering how to use more technology in my own classroom. The concern with blogging though is how to monitor the students use of it and making sure it is used as an educational tool and not to hurt other students.  I think blogging would be an interesting tool to use for middle schoolers because of their entirely social nature. It would give them a chance to share their ideas on the web (which they would love) and perhaps interact with others outside of the school which could broaden their horizons. I do agree that the teacher would have to monitor the blogs religiously in order to make sure all was well.

Another post on LM_NET caught my attention. Someone was asking about bringing in an author for discussions and maybe a mini lesson.  I think bringing in an author would be the best way to maximize a somewhat tight budget (since most schools are in that predicament). The author could see many students or teams at once and students could get one-on-one time with someone who they have read. I see it done a couple of times and even reluctant readers seem to always get something positive out of the experience. 

Thoughts for Week One

I have started reviewing other library blogs and LM_Net to get a feel for what is being discussed in the world of libraries. I checked out the Blue Skunk Blog as well as The Unquiet Librarian.  On 8-19-09 the Blue Skunk Blog, Doug Johnson had a post discussing the characteristics of library past. He focused on how librarians now were going to miss out on things like using a typewriter, the card catalog, and of course the days without computers. I forget how much the library has changed since I am going to be a librarian who has done without these items. It makes me think about how much more the media center could change in the next 25 years.  I wonder if eBooks will show up more or if shelves themselves will slowly disappear. 

Yesterday, The Unquiet Librarian- Danah Boyd was sharing thoughts on using social networks like Facebook for students to use in class. She had read an article cautioning teachers not to let students use these communication tools because of the harmful affects.  She argued that it would be more harmful to continue to keep students from accessing these tools. She backed up her argument pretty clearly using a standard from the 21st Century Learning “Use social networks and information tools to gather and share information” (Skill 4.1.7).  I admit as a teacher I struggle trying to decide how to best use technology with my students but I agree that they need to be taught how to correctly use the tools at their hands. Students, especially middle school students, are social creatures and they can benefit from communicating and sharing ideas with one another. 

Finally, I was searching through the archives on LM_NET to see what issues librarians were dealing with.  I found two I was interested in. The first came from Lisa Weinstein on 6-01-09. She was looking for suggestions on religious material for her library. I can imagine that stcking religious material could be treading on thin ice in some schools. She made sure to purchase books from all religions though and I think that this is the only way to deal with religious books in the library. Keep the selection broad and have something for everyone. The other topic I found was from Jane Dodson on 6-02-09 on using Skype.  She was looking for another class willing to communicate with another class using Skype. I think this is a brilliant idea. I think it could be used in the library for researching or for book clubs. I think students could get a lot out of communicating in this way.

Here goes nothing...

I want to first warn you all that I am a newbie to the blogging craze. :) 

I will be using this blog to address my concerns/thoughts/opinions on the subject of library administration. I will also reflect on other blogs each week. So here goes nothing!