Saturday, February 23, 2008
Week 6-Thing 13
I love del.icio.us! It is the function that I have been looking for. I do intend to set up an account and spend sometime entering all of my "favorites". The ability to tag and sort will be so helpful as I spend time both at school and at home looking for appropriate sites for my students. I'm particularly interested in great primary source sites and sites that are specific to certain disciplines. The del.icio.us site will enable me to do this as well as benefiting from the experience of others. I may be exposed to many great sites that I have missed or that I have overlooked. I'm anxious to spend some time setting up my account and getting started. Perhaps the only negative will be the time that it will take to actually organize all of the bookmarks that I currently use. However, since I haven't done a very good job of keeping up with their organization, this should provide me with the perfect opportunity to end the chaos! To really do an effective job, I may have to wait until I have time
Friday, February 22, 2008
Week 5- Thing 12
Today I worked on Rollyo. I have to admit that given the name I wondered what type of tool this could be. After exploring some of the existing rolls, I began to understand the potential of this site as a teaching/reference tool. I explored several of the existing rolls, including those about "quotes". Often when I am writing grants or just want to highlight a particular theme in my writing I look for appropriate quotes that will elucidate my ideas the rollyo quotes site is an excellent place to start in looking for an appropriate quote. It will also be a place where I will send my high school students when they are trying to track down a quote or if they are looking for one to highlight a particular issue.
When I return to school next week I intend to create a couple of rolls dealing with some of the subjects that we most often research. This may help my students with their research and save me time in the long run.
When I return to school next week I intend to create a couple of rolls dealing with some of the subjects that we most often research. This may help my students with their research and save me time in the long run.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Week 5- Thing 11
Some of the sites from the Web 2.0 Award Winners were great! I particularly liked LibraryThing (http://www.librarything.com/). This is a site that allows you to create examples of your private "library" by posting a selection of your favorite books on-line. You can catalog on line, share your lists with other and connect with people who have similar reading tastes, a great place for bibliophiles! Regarding classroom/library use, I could imagine setting up something in LibraryThing that introduced students and others to reviews of newly acquired books and allowed them to comment.
Another site that I found useful for our health classes. The website is Medstory (http://www.medstory.com/) and it is a search engine for questions about health related issues. The researcher can find information about diseases, medications, diet, etc. I will use this search engine with my health teachers and their students. A great find!
Another site that I found useful for our health classes. The website is Medstory (http://www.medstory.com/) and it is a search engine for questions about health related issues. The researcher can find information about diseases, medications, diet, etc. I will use this search engine with my health teachers and their students. A great find!
Monday, February 11, 2008
Week 5- Thing 10
I just can't get over how many resources are out there! I've just spent some time looking over a variety of image generators. I can certainly see why our students might enjoy playing with them. They could also be very useful as advertising for clubs and other school related functions. They might also come in handy for students who might not possess artistic ability but were interested in creating a graphic novel for an English class or a political cartoon for social studies.
Of the generators I explored, I think my favorites were Image chef. and Comic strip generator
Of the generators I explored, I think my favorites were Image chef. and Comic strip generator
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Week 4- Thing 9
I guess I'm feeling a little overwhelmed by all that I am learning. I'm realizing that I could spend hours and hours just exploring all of the interesting blogs out there. It amazes me how diligent some of the bloggers are. They keep abreast of lots of blogs and are so enthusiastic about the whole technology.
This time I looked at some of the Edublog award winners (maybe that's why I'm feeling so inadequate.) In particular I enjoyed reading "The tempered radical" and learning how some of our new teachers are feeling about their jobs. I well remember how I felt first as a new teacher and then as a new librarian. So much to learn, so much to do!!
The blog really gave the young teachers a chance to share and to realize that they are not alone. These teachers may branch out to form their own learning community of new educators who can share their triumphs and their fears.
I also enjoyed looking at Technotuesday"" and A library by any other name" both of these blogs appear to be authored by very savvy web 2.0 users. They gave lots of ideas and referred to other technologies and other influential bloggers. It was after viewing these blogs that I began to feel that I have soo much to learn.
One concern I do have is the sheer amount of time that could be devoted to the blog quest. I guess when you find a "jewel" it's worth it but you may have to slog through a lot of dross before you ever find it.
Oh well, on to my next challenge. Until next time....
This time I looked at some of the Edublog award winners (maybe that's why I'm feeling so inadequate.) In particular I enjoyed reading "The tempered radical" and learning how some of our new teachers are feeling about their jobs. I well remember how I felt first as a new teacher and then as a new librarian. So much to learn, so much to do!!
The blog really gave the young teachers a chance to share and to realize that they are not alone. These teachers may branch out to form their own learning community of new educators who can share their triumphs and their fears.
I also enjoyed looking at Technotuesday"" and A library by any other name" both of these blogs appear to be authored by very savvy web 2.0 users. They gave lots of ideas and referred to other technologies and other influential bloggers. It was after viewing these blogs that I began to feel that I have soo much to learn.
One concern I do have is the sheer amount of time that could be devoted to the blog quest. I guess when you find a "jewel" it's worth it but you may have to slog through a lot of dross before you ever find it.
Oh well, on to my next challenge. Until next time....
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Week 4 - Thing 8
I have really enjoyed learning about RSS feeds and can see how valuable this resource might be. In this world of information overload, it is so hard to filter the wheat from the chaff but with the help of RSS feeds you can customize your access to information. As one of my feeds, I now have immediate access to any new postings on my son's literary blog. This will enable me to converse more intelligently with him about his endeavors.
In terms of my using this technology in our library, an RSS feed would be a great way of disseminating information from a library blog or our website. Patrons could subscribe to learn more about the services we provide, get tips on information access, or learn about new materials (if we ever get any since our budget is so severely limited!)
It was great discovering RSS feeds and will be a technology that I will use.
In terms of my using this technology in our library, an RSS feed would be a great way of disseminating information from a library blog or our website. Patrons could subscribe to learn more about the services we provide, get tips on information access, or learn about new materials (if we ever get any since our budget is so severely limited!)
It was great discovering RSS feeds and will be a technology that I will use.
Monday, February 4, 2008
Week 3 -Thing 7
Unfortunately, it's been a while since my last post. Life has been busy!
I have been thinking about technology and specifically the use of Flickr. Coincidentally, as I was scanning the newspaper, I saw an interesting article about the use of Flickr by the Library of Congress. This is an example of something called "crowd sourcing", a term introduced in 2006 by Jeff Howe of Wired magazine. Essentially crowd sourcing refers to a process of getting large numbers of people involved in a project, in this case electronically. As regards the Library of Congress, they have downloaded 3000 images onto the Flickr database and have asked ordinary citizens to add to the metadata to make the images more accessible to the general public. To view the images (and provide your input) go to flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress. The original article from which I got my information appeared in the January 27 edition of the Boston Globe, Brainiac or on-line at boston.com/ideas/brainiac.
I have been thinking about technology and specifically the use of Flickr. Coincidentally, as I was scanning the newspaper, I saw an interesting article about the use of Flickr by the Library of Congress. This is an example of something called "crowd sourcing", a term introduced in 2006 by Jeff Howe of Wired magazine. Essentially crowd sourcing refers to a process of getting large numbers of people involved in a project, in this case electronically. As regards the Library of Congress, they have downloaded 3000 images onto the Flickr database and have asked ordinary citizens to add to the metadata to make the images more accessible to the general public. To view the images (and provide your input) go to flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress. The original article from which I got my information appeared in the January 27 edition of the Boston Globe, Brainiac or on-line at boston.com/ideas/brainiac.
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