Appy Friday - FLOWBOARD

Matt De La Pena at the Region One Spring Librarian's Conference

Matt De La Pena at the Region One Spring Librarian's Conference

Matt De La Pena spoke to about 160+ librarians at Region One on February 14th, an appropriate Valentine's gift for all of us.  Authors are always a joy to listen to, but when you have one that really moves you, then it just makes it that more special.

My biggest take away from his talk was this.  Teachers and librarians can make a difference.  His junior year, Matt had his 11th grade teacher encourage him by telling him that for the exam she had already given him an A, she just wanted him to write for 2 hours about anything he wanted to.  She knew it would be magic, Matt just didn't understand that yet.  Then, while in college, he had a librarian that paired him up with a book.  He had never had anyone do that before.  He wasn't really interested in the book at the beginning, but later found that he needed to finish it.  He couldn't understand why she felt this book would mean something to him.  Then, when he got to the end, he got teary eyed.  He stressed that no tears actually came out, but I have read the book he was talking about and I can't imagine that he didn't.  Ultimately, his message was loud and clear.  Make a difference, not just with kids that are always involved in the lessons, but seek out the kid in the back.  The one who isn't sure what his/her gift is.  Maybe, just maybe, you will see what they can't see just yet.

Loved his talk and can't wait to read his newest book, The Living.  You can learn a little bit about it right here:  https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/making-leap/

Library Check In Forms - Creating Pages within Google Forms

Customizing Google Forms for Library Check In Forms

When teachers and students come into the library, I like to keep track of class visits and student visits. Since I am going to be the new Elementary Librarian at Fields Elementary in McAllen, I wanted to create one form that both teachers and students could use to avoid two different spreadsheets.

Also - please note that I was able to customize my form by adding a picture (no HTML needed.)

When creating the form I made sure that the first name on the Check In was I am a student.  

That way students can immediately select that option and continue on to their questions.

Teachers would find their name and enter how many students visited the library with them.

And here is what the finished product looks like!  

I absolutely love Google Forms and all the wonderful options you have with them!  I also use Google Forms for my Resource Requests from teachers....




Any ideas on other forms you can use in the library?  If so - please share them in the comments below!

Interactive Calendars for Your Library using Thinglink and MoveNote

Cindy and I worked diligently on preparing calendars for our libraries that highlighted upcoming events like Teen Read Week or National Library Week.  I wanted to try to create an interactive calendar that would give students a heads up on what would be happening during the month.  I also wanted to incorporate a couple of great tools like ThingLink and MoveNote.

When you take a look at the Calendar below for October, notice that if you scroll over the calendar, there are links that will take to you sites and video.  We have blogged numerous times on ThingLink and that is what we used to make the calendar interactive.   Now, look specifically at October 14th and 15th.  You will see two MoveNote presentations on those dates.
 
MoveNote is a wonderful tool that allows you to upload PowerPoint presentations and create video to go along with it.

Move note is free and allows you to upload PDF's and JPG's.  I had to save my PPT presentation into JPEG files then upload them afterwards.  

Once you create an account, you can use MoveNote to enhance educational presentations.    Here is MoveNote's video on how easy it is to create a presentation.

Interactive Calendars for your library can be a lifesaver especially with events like Teen Read Week.  Tools like ThingLink and MoveNote make that calendar something that in the long run will make your life easier!  Can you see yourself making interactive calendars or what about interactive flyers for library events.  Share some of the ways you think you can use any of these tools; Cindy and I would love to hear from you!

The Connected Teacher and Librarian - Web 2.0 tools to stay connected

I saw this on twitter today and love it.  This visual is a great way for a new teacher or librarian to see what tools they can use to stay connected.  Thank you Kimberly Martin for sharing!  Make sure to scroll over this ThingLink resource to find the resources.







Also,  take a look at this end of the year portfolio a teacher created by Lisa Maples.....

Summer learning is right around the corner....

Summer Learning

As most librarians wrap up the year, the prospect of summer relaxation is exciting.  Cindy and I work diligently during the year to keep up with new technology, new books, and inspiring ideas.  Summer is a great time to refresh ourselves and see how we can improve libraries and ourselves for the upcoming year.  Here are things I have on my list of summer learning:

1.  Go through all of the 10 most popular TED Ed lessons.  

This will not only help me, but after seeing what is out there, I can support teachers and possibly share highlights during any trainings that may come up.  I have seen some of the 10, but not all.  See my favorite one below....

http://blog.ted.com/2013/03/14/the-10-most-popular-ted-ed-lessons-so-far/

Insults by Shakespeare - April Gudenrath

2.  Evaluate all of my social networking. 

According to Mashable, employees who use 5 or more social networks make better employees.  I want to see if that is my case by looking at all of my social networks and possibly downsizing.  I thing Blythe Woolston hit the nail on the head with this tweet:

I don't need any virtual junk drawers - I have enough real life ones.  See the article from Mashable here:
http://mashable.com/2013/04/02/social-networks-workplace-study/

3.  Learn how to make an award winning vine. 

 I have already been experimenting with vine, but I see achievable improvement.  Hopefully this article will help me.

http://mashable.com/2013/04/03/how-to-make-a-vine/

4.  Review this gallery of 10 YouTube channels that will make you and me smarter. 

http://mashable.com/2013/04/04/youtube-education/#gallery/12-youtube-channels-that-will-make-you-smarter/515cb05997b2f85fc30017be

5.  10 Tech Resources for Kids with autism.

http://mashable.com/2013/04/02/autism-resources/

Well - this is enough to get me through June - I will let you know what my July list will be next month..  Later this week I will be blogging about all the books I would like to get read this summer.

Do you have any resources you want to try out?  Websites?  Apps? Please share them with us!

THINGLINK has some new features!

Cindy and I have been using THINGLINK for a while now and I just realized that they have added some new features that they didn't have before.  It was always possible to include video and links to make your images interactive, but now you can add sound and even a polling option.  Scroll your mouse over the images below and see all the ways you can make your images interactive.




I would like to thank all the creators of these interactive images: Heather Hiser, Agustin, ThingLink front and J Kern.

27 things your Teacher Librarian does!

I saw this infographic on What Librarians Do and I absolutely love it.  With a little over a month left before school gets out and with the task of beginning an end of the year inventory - I challenge you to look at one box a day and reflect on that one thing.  For example: Day One :Teaches - how many students were you able to reach via classes or in the library setting to see that they could locate and share information.  Or, Day Two: Tweets - do you tweet and post events on twitter?

How many of these things can you honestly say you do?  If you find yourself saying,  "I want to do this more," take the time to make a calendar of those things.  I found that if I make year long plan, I can plug in new things with the old things and I won't forget.  (I have to give Cindy credit for getting me to make this year long calendar  - she was the perfect partner!)

 I would like to thank Mia MacMeekin for having it available under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.

A Look at Buffy Hamilton's - Librarianship of the People, For the People and By the People

I love twitter and follow the wonderful Buffy Hamilton.  She posted a link of her Iowa Association of School Librarians Spring Conference 2013 presentation and after reading it; I asked her if I could share it on my blog.  Her response: 

Her presentation makes you think about where you are as a librarian.  I fear there are librarians out there that are living the status quo and not working to keep up with technology and change.  Key words Buffy uses like: innovator, linchpin, partner, and mentor - this is the type of librarian all schools should be afforded.

She also addresses the building communities in our schools.  How do we do that?  We can target student and teacher passions and interests as a start.   I invite you to peruse through this inspiring presentation and to take it all in.

Culture: Librarianship of the People, For the People, By the People

People, Partnerships, and Participatory Culture: Librarianship of the People, For the People, By the People from Buffy Hamilton

So, to conclude this post, I am going to use one of Buffy's slides.  Think about it.  I think this is where all librarians are at, and if they aren't, maybe they should be.

How are you collaborating with teachers and students?  Are they part of the library or just a visitor?  How can you take some of these ideas and implement them where you are?  But, most importantly, how can you share what you are learning with other librarians that may not be where they need to be?

YAPP - App Yourself!

Yapp is an app that you can use to create events, then share with a group of people via web or tablet.  

Yapp gives you a variety of options to choose from when choosing themes....

Once you have chosen a theme - you can personalize your YAPP with a photo like below:

Then you add invitation information and twitter feed hashtags like: #clockworkprincessbookclub

Then you can add group photos, book cover photos or any other photos you choose:

And last, but not least - you have the ability to add personalized pages:

Once you publish your YAPP -  you can share with other via email or URL.  If you want to customize your URL - you can do so for $5.00.  There might be benefits for that but I am not willing to pay $5.00!

I see so many uses for this app - don't you? Think about it - group meetings, book clubs, vacations, hangouts, and sports events - a lot of ways you can utilize YAPP.  Let me know what you use it for!

#adivineday - A Vine Daily Challenge

I posted this on my personal blog, but I am excited to get started using Vine - so I am going to post it here on our Librarians on the Fly Blog!

I am a social media nut - I use  Instragram, Twitter, and Facebook daily and I am convinced that it is what keeps me abreast on what is new in the world of technology.  One of the things I love  about Instagram is the daily #fmsphotoaday using the iPhone Instagram App.  With the daily #fmsphotoaday I find myself planning ahead and really being on the lookout during the day for the perfect shot. And now, I have just started using the new #VINE app.  VINE is like twitter in that you really have to think about what you are posting because it has a limit.  Twitter challenges you to get your point across in 140 characters or less, Vine challenges you to create a video post in just 6 seconds.  When I joined Vine this week, I looked around at what people were using it for.  One of my favorite librarians ever, Jon Schu, already has 44 followers and 85 posts.  He is sharing books that his students are reading, author visit preparations, and displays.  Because I have just started using Vine yesterday, I am looking for innovative ways to video.  I think using social media can be powerful for librarians, teachers, students and really anyone who enjoys learning, but having a prompt makes it more purposeful.  On the daily prompt I have set for myself (and anyone else who might want to try it) I have chosen words that work for anyone.  Take Day 1 for example - fooling around - (it is April Fools Day) can apply to a student, a teacher, a mother, a librarian, an attorney - anyone.  How a person interprets the word and finds a way to photograph it or explain it with a 6 second video can be insightful.  Can you think of ways to use Vine?  If you don't have an account yet - you should.  I think it is going to be big - it is after all owned by Twitter.  If you do get a Vine account - you can follow me at @annvega.

My beginning Vine posts with no purpose – but I am excited to start the challenge above!

#Kool - My Crazy Dog and First Subject

Cruising with my husband

For the Love of Poetry

For the Love of Poetry.....

I had the pleasure of listening to Sylvia Vardell speak at Region One's Spring Librarian Meeting today.  Vardell and her co-author, Janet Wong, compiled a treasury of poems for the whole school year.  They took wonderful works, connected them to the TEKS and prepared lessons for librarians and teachers to use every Friday for one whole year.    What an inspiration to librarians and educators to share the love of poetry!   Scroll over her book cover below and read about some of the phenomenal author's who shared their works in this anthology.

MYTH #5 - POLL RESULTS

A Hot Potato

Based on some of the comments we received in the poll for Myth #5, this topic of titles and certification touched a nerve among our readers.  I see this as a positive, because it leads to discussion, and discussion can lead to greater understanding among individuals... If we all keep an open mind.  

So before we look at the poll results, let's talk about who we (all of us) are.

Who We Are

People who work in libraries love books or students or reading or teaching or technology or organizing or some of the above and sometimes all of the above.  We are a passionate group.  We come to the library from different walks of life and specialize in different aspects of librarianship.  We begin our role of librarian before, during, or after becoming certified.  Some of us are assigned to the role, some of us volunteer.  Some of us take two or three or more years to complete our degree; others take the fast-track and complete it faster.  We are learners and we are teachers.
  
In the case of these Flying Librarians, Ann and I were both certified teachers who moved into the library and started working as our schools' librarians before we were certified.   Personally, I found this to be invaluable and enriching.  EVERYTHING I was learning was immediately applied.  I had a group of peers and an expert (the professor) with whom I could bounce new ideas and improve them before trying them out with students. One vivid memory during my LMS classes is of analyzing the materials in my reference section (back in the day when we had large reference sections), and discovering materials I would never have seen until it was time to weed them.  It was eye-opening to the classroom teacher in me who would have used said materials if I had known they existed.  

What is in a Name?

I worked in the library.  I was in charge of the library.  I taught students in the library.  I called myself the librarian.  I will not apologize for taking on the title before the certification... What else would I have called myself?    But herein lies the conundrum we face... Because we do not have clear titles, the definition of a librarian is muddied.  The public has developed their own understanding of who we are and what we do based on their prior experiences.  And some of those experiences are 20+ years old!

Most people would never walk into a doctor's office and call everyone in there a doctor.  And doctor could get away with calling herself one before she has completed her certification.   But in the medical world has provided a number of titles to identify at what level a doctor is: intern, resident, board certified.  Librarians do not spend time as interns or residents, but perhaps we should.  

I have worked with certified librarians.  Some were amazing, some were less so.

I have worked with library staff who were certified teachers who have taken classes but not finished their library degree.  Their years of experience give them an edge over those with LMS degrees just starting out in the library. 

I have worked with library staff who were not certified teachers, not taking LMS classes, but worked magic with their students on a daily basis. 

Currently, I work with some of the finest library assistants who receive minimal guidance from certified librarians, and do a fine job of keeping the doors open and the books circulating while they juggle non-library related duties.   

ANYONE Can Do It

As school library positions are cut, it seems that our job has been boiled down to book circulation, and the common belief is that ANYONE can circulate books.  Anyone can.  But can ANYONE assess a students interests and reading ability through a casual conversation?  Can ANYONE teach a student how and why to access a database rather than "do a Google" search?  Can ANYONE convince teachers that graphic novels are really books with merit?  Does ANYONE know what to do when a parent comes in to request a book is removed from the shelves?  Does ANYONE know why we do not arrange a library by reading level and restrict students to the books that an automated reading program has identified at their "instructional level", but allow them free access to information so they can satisfy their curiosity and information needs? 

So what is the difference between certified school librarian and ANYONE?  The #1 difference is that we are teachers, and we need the public and our supervisors to know that. How are you spreading that message?

Poll Results:

Myth #4 How much Time Librarians Actually Read and How They Decide What To Read

I forgot to include book club information, so here you go! 

52% Host Book Clubs in the Library
40% Don't Belong in a Book Club and Don't Host a Book Club
5% Host a Book Club and Belong to an Adult Book Club
2% Teachers Host a Book Club
1% Belong to an Adult Book Club

 ONCE AGAIN, THANKS FOR RESPONDING!

Myth #4 Librarians must have a lot of time to read...

Myth #3 - With Everything Becoming Available Electronically, We Will No Longer Need Librarians

There have been many articles and blog posts lately debating the future of libraries. It is hard to imagine a school without one of these learning centers (where else would faculty meetings, testing, and baby showers take place?), but this post focuses on busting the myth that librarians will become obsolete.

With the threat of Kindles, Nooks, and Google taking over the world of research and reading, do students need to be taught Information Literacy skills, or are they doing fine without librarians? I believe that as our access to information grows, the need for teachers of Information Literacy will only become more crucial.

In searching for data to back up my claim, I read three articles that highlight the good, the bad, and the ugly in the world of librarians and research:

THE GOOD

In the March/April 2012 issue of Knowledge Quest, published by the American Association of School Librarians, three teachers shared their co-teaching project at Prosper High school. The librarian (Stacy Cameron), the English teacher (Adria Butcher), and the instructional technology coach (Christine Haight) collaborated and co-taught a multimedia project in which student created their own public-service announcements that included evidence of ethos, pathos, and logos, contained correctly selected and cited copyright-friendly music and images, and used a variety of technology for the final product. After the initial collaboration meeting, Stacy and Christine created web pages together, with the links and tools students would need. 

This  article brilliantly outlines the power of co-teaching. Each teacher focused on her area of expertise while supporting the others, modeling for the students what a group project should look like. With three experts in the room, students were charged with taking responsibility for their learning, seeking out the support they needed for their personal areas of weakness.  By bringing in the technology coordinator to instruct students at the beginning, much of the chaos that comes with technology productions was avoided.  And throughout the project, Adria was able to focus on teaching the elements of english, rather than simultaneously become a resource and technology expert, to ensure all students learned the targeted objectives.  


This is the ideal of teacher-librarian collaboration.  Who would not want this type of instruction and learning for their students? 

THE BAD  

Moving from the ideal to the reality, at too many school libraries, is the article What Happens When Media Positions Are Cut? from the May/June 2011 issue of Library Media Connection. In her article, Mary Alice Anderson notes that librarians are often cut when budgets are tight, and then itemizes the cost to students when Certified Librarians are cut.

• Less research takes place in the school.  Teachers become frustrated by the growing burden of finding resources alone
• Staff development provided by the librarian is cut or may not occur, leaving teachers without the knowledge to share online resources
• Collaboration occurs by e-mail only 
• Library hours are reduced
• Collection development suffers with less time for librarians to read reviews, seek suggestions, weed, browse, and perform collection analysis. This results in duplicates or holes in the collection.
• Para-professionals, who may lack the necessary content knowledge to do so effectively, are left to locate resources and fill requests
• Loss and theft of resources increases, costing precious dollars
• Priorities shift... MARC records may or may not be accurate, making it difficult to locate materials
• Websites and databases fall into disrepair, with dead links or unused subscriptions
• Advocacy diminishes.  "How do you spread the word when you are spread thin?
• And worst of all, as one librarian said, "We have lost students and teachers seeing us as partners."

Ann and I have faced each of the consequences above as we moved from being responsible for one library then four libraries then six and now we each face the task of overseeing eight libraries for the upcoming school year.  Yet, as the article concludes, librarians continue to make the best of their situations. In our district, we continue to work to build relationships and strive to fill all requests, but it is not the same.

THE UGLY

So what is the long-term effect of cutting librarians? What happens when students in grades K-12 are not being taught information literacy?  Students enter college without the skills they need to be successful. Professors must teach skills that were once introduced in elementary school.

In her 2004 article for College Teaching, It's the Information Age, So Where's the Information? Why Our Students Can't Find It and What We Can Do to Help, Jill D. Jenson addresses students' inability to distinguish between types of materials for research.  Unlike the differences between print journals versus print magazines, which can be seen and felt, distinguishing between online resources is difficult for students because one computer screen looks much like the next. Students lack the experiential background in a real library with real, print materials to make the jump from traditional research to electronic research without instruction. 


Students rate themselves computer literate, but they are unaware of how much they do not know.  Current teaching objectives need to include what students must learn to simply begin their research. Jenson explains that "Whereas students could previously get by with learning terms such as "periodical," "journal," "index," "bibliography," "citation," "card catalog," "Library of Congress Subject Headings," and "call number," they now must learn a whole new language in addition to that previously required: "Boolean operator," "meta search," "general database," "specialized database," "text image," "verbatim image," "full-text image," "access date," "marked list," "search wizard"the list certainly could go on."




I am happy to note that part of Ms. Jensen's suggested solution included collaboration with a librarian as well as taking students to the physical library building.  As someone who sends high school graduates off to college, I feel it is my role to teach many of these terms and skills. Teaching freshmen or graduate students these skills so late in their education robs them of learning opportunities along the way. Information literacy includes skills a life-long learner needs to sate their appetite for knowledge.

What does the future hold for librarians?  I wish I could predict.  With so much more for students to learn, who is going to teach it, if not a librarian?  

What do you think?

Works Cited

Anderson, Mary A. "What Happens When Media Positions Are Cut?" Library Media Connection 29.6 (2011): 16-19. Print.

Cameron, Stacy, Adria Butcher, and Christine Haight. "In Their Own Words." Knowledge Quest 40.4 (2012): 28-33. Print.

Jenson, Jill D. "It's the Information Age, so Where's the Information? Why Our Students Can't Find It and What We Can Do to Help." College Teaching 52.3 (2004): 107-12. Web.