More Active Learning Strategies

 Picture Prompts- show students an image with out a caption or explanation.(For History use a primary resource from  your libraries webpage) . Ask students to identify , explain, and give evidence for their answers.  Ask students to use terms from a previous lecture or to name the processes or  show concepts ( think Science) This can be a whole group  activity, or small groups or pairs. Students can then share their ideas.

Think -Break-  Ask a  rhetorical question. Allow 20 to 30 seconds for students to think about the problem. Students can then write something down about the solution  or the problem. You can then go on to explain or expand the topic being covered.

Update Notes- Take a break for 2 to 3 minutes to allow students to compare  class notes ( with the other students)  and to allow students to fill in the gaps and develop questions.

Weekly Reading- The Lake House

     Kate Morton's  The Lake House was excellent! Although in the middle I was wondering where it all was going . But at the end I could not believe how it turned out.  The novel spans a time frame of 70 years , so it goes back and forth between the two story lines.

   Alice,in the 1930's, and her family in Cornwall- and their privileged life.  The family's country estate is well hidden  but the home of a proper English family.The tragedy of  what happened with her Father and her Mother is kept secret from the world.  ( Father's shell shocked/ disappearance of  11 month old baby Theo)

   Sara, nearly seventy years later when visiting her grandfather, stumbles upon the estate  .  As a Detective she is intrigued by the story of the missing  and adored baby, so she is determined to find the answers of happened all those years ago.

Middle School Lessons- Online Card Catalog

 Lesson for Online Card Catalog- Follett Destiny

 "Searching for a Book"


1) Review of Destiny- finding  library page, and where to find card catalog.
2) Discussion of ways to locate / or search the materials in the library.

Vocabulary: online catalog,author, title, subject, series, call numbers,  genres, keywords

 Resources needed:
   ( Students)Computers with internet access . Destiny worksheet
   ( LMS) whiteboard with internet access

Where the lesson takes place: in the library or computer lab

Student completes worksheet.

Weekly Reading/ Clockwork Angel

ClockWork Angel by Cassandra Clare is the first in a series called The Infernal Devices. Tessa is trying to find her brother and be reunited with him, He is all the family she has left, Her parents died when she was very young, and now her beloved Aunt who had taken care of her and Nate has passed. She is on a mission to find Nate.
    Tessa is doing what she needs to do to find Nate- she travels  to England. She  gets entwined with the Dark Sisters because they are the link to getting to brother - but then she is tapped. The sisters teach her how to' change' and are trying to get her ready for the Magister.

  To me this is fantasy and horror rolled into one. Will and Jem and the Institute  become Tessa's new "family". When the Dark sisters are partially eliminated, The Institute  helps Tessa find her brother- but that brings up a whole new set of problems for them. Slowly they begin to unravel  how the Shadow hunters can save Nate and the Institute.  This leads into the second book of the series so  you will want to keep reading.

 The novel is well written and riveting  until the end. And then you are wondering what will happen next?

Middle School Lessons- Library Orientation

 This is a brief outline of what I will do  when school resumes in September for my library orientation so that students will be familiar with the library.

  Orientation & Map
1) Introduction to library, personnel, policies( circulation)
2) "Tour " of Library- Like Vana  since it is so small
3)  Review of Destiny ( Online Card Catalog- shown on whiteboard)
4) Explain  how to do map, and library and card catalog activity

Vocabulary: overdues, circulation, fiction, non-fiction, biography, reference, dewey decimal system, fiction arrangement, genres.

  REsources :Worksheet- 2part- general  & card catalog activity

  Where do the lessons take place?
 Orientation- Library
Completion of map and general sheet- in library
Completion of Card Catalog activity: library or computer lab

Can you share what you do for your orientation? This will work for  grades 5-8.

Weekly Reading- Summer Time! Victoria/ Goodwin

  This is my weekly reading series again! It is so nice to have time to read! ( That is what I do best!)
I just finished reading Victoria/ Goodwin and it was excellent. We had seen the PBS special in the winter and when I saw the book  ,I grabbed it.
 Goodwin follows the life of Queen Victoria in great detail. In the end papers , she notes that she wrote the novel while they were filming the shows. She had done extensive research  and brought Victoria to life.
 Victoria is the young queen who had a hard time being taken seriously , but it was a role she was meant to do. The descriptions of the 1830's and how life was for Victoria and her family are outstanding and interesting. If you saw the series ,and loved it , I would definitely recommend this book. I Only wish there was a second book-who knows maybe there will be. I would love to read more about Victoria and Albert !

Middle school Lessons

 I am trying to devise a online curriculum for my 7th and 8th grade students. So I am searching what others have available as lessons and online tutorials.  So Far, I have found a few that look good and will als match up with my student needs.

  What is needed first is an overview of elementary lessons because when the students get to middle school, they forget what they have learned or they do not remember learning the basics ( like online card cat, arrangement, genres, dewey decimal system, ect.)

  Also I want to focus on internet safety, digital citizenship, and evaluation of websites, and also databases.
The reference process is I will do in collaboration with classroom teachers  when they are doing research/ inquiry. This will also include Easy Bib directions .

  As I search I will look for additions and adapt them to my students, This will go on my google classroom  for student use.

Summer Vacation

 Yes! It is finally here! Summer! Although for several days now it has been cool and spring like!  I will get back in the groove. I put all my school stuff away except my pile of books that I want to read ( YA 's from school) and some lessons that I want to look over , and my journals with articles marked that I want to read.
  Of course today I went to my public library and got a pile of  magazines and the book Victoria ( from the PBS special)so I will read that first.  ( I will probably do a review too)  My flowers are growing like crazy, and I will soon have to harvest some of my herbs  I Love Summer!

Active Learning Strategies

 Here are some examples of active learning strategies:

 1)Round Robin is a small group activity. Have students in groups of 3 or 4 . Students pass around a paper and each will write a fact, opinion or piece of information on the topic. Time is called at a predetermined time ( say 10 to 15 minutes) This allows students to share knowledge of a topic and discuss what they know about a topic.

2 ) Discussion  . When you have a general discussion as a whole group, have students jot down what they have heard. Do they agree or disagree, or did it give them a new idea or piece of information.

3) Flash cards- Have students make flash cards for use of study for tests or quizzes. Flash cards can also have drawings or words.

4) When students work in pairs, give them a time limit. Students will be more focused when given a limited amount of time.

Fiction Arrangement by Genres

  I was trying to figure out if I had written about this before . I even did a search but did not come up with anything so I am not sure if I am repeating or not. Maybe someone will let me know if I did??

  In both our Middle and High school, the fiction books are arranged my genres and then in alphabetical order.  When I first got there , I said to myself  that It would never work and I would have to change it back to regular  arrangement.
  But now I am sort of glad that we did not. Each genre  has a different color label that goes over the call number , signifying the genre. (example purple for Historical fiction) What this does is that when a student knows he  or she prefers  science fiction, fantasy , or sports books, they can go right to that section to look for another book to read. They don't have to go the card catalog ( on line) to get books in the same genre, This also makes it easy for the library staff to recommend  other titles  in say the same genre or series
  What we did also was assign another prefix to the call letters. So for a Historical fiction book, the call letters look like this in the on line catalog   HF_Fic And.  So if students find it on the catalog , they know where to look.

Toonbooks.com

 Toon.books.com

      Although Toon.books.com  is  a site that is selling  their books , there is a lot of content that can be used by teachers who want to incorporate cartoons  or graphic novels into their classroom. Under the Educators tab, you can find a Comic Genre study, an article on Why Comics? And also CCSS-aligned Teachers' Guides which includes common core standards, lesson plans, and activity sheets.  There are also guides to some of their books.

        Under the Just for Kids tab, you will find cartoon makers,  read along videos, toon craft activities, and tips for parents. So I think this would be a good site for teachers who want to use cartoon and graphic novels  in their classroom.

Active learning - Why do it?

     Active learning breaks up the  lesson into shorter segments. This helps students pay attention longer ad remember more of what is covered.  Active learning encourages integrating of previous knowledge with new information gained.

     Higher level thinking skills are required  in active learning.  Students develop questions  and may be required to find solutions and information, Independent activities give student the ability to incorporate their own learning styles into the activity.

    One of the Library Media ( Information Literacy) skills that go hand in hand with active learning is  questioning. Students need to learn about what makes a good question.

Active Learning- What is it?

     In  Education. Active Learning (engaging students in activities/ projects/ problems) is the way to provide students with an interesting and effective way  to learn.

     Active learning is the practice of doing, practicing investigating the material during each class session. It is not having student’s listening to the teacher and taking notes.

    So what is it?  Active learning is designing activities around learning outcomes of each lesson or session. The students are ‘doing’ something with the topic at hand. They are reading, hearing, seeing/ viewing, investigating the topic, or, discussing materials.

       Active learning can be done singly, with a partner or in a small group.

Inventory Time at My school library.

     I am getting  the scanning for my inventory all done. There are just a couple of sections yet to do. MY non-fiction has not been done for at least 8 years! My Reference section probably even longer~! So we will see how that all comes out.
      The next  step is going back  to look for copies that were either missing or did not scan into the scanner, It is a new scanner so we do not have the ability to punch in the number if the barcode does not go in. Then we input the number into the report section if the item is  found. ( This is a step in the Destiny/ Follett system which is something new for me)
     The third step is to finalize. I am not sure if this is done though the reports , book by book, or we can d o it a section at a time.
      The inventory has gone pretty good  so far. But I also need to remember that my collection is very small and we did weed out books that were terrible shape. This collection has not been weeded in two years at least.
     But by doing the inventory I was able to learn more about my collection and what is exactly in it. This is will help me in future orders and also in helping  teachers and students when they are looking for something specific.

TeenReads

Teen Reads.com

   Teenreads  is a part of Book Report Network.  BookReport Network aim/ goal is to provide book reviews, articles, author profiles & interviews & excerpts news releases.

  Teen reads is aimed at students from 12 to 18. On the main page you will find ways to connect /interact with the providers by voting in their current poll, answering the current question, giving your reading recommendations or writing to the editor. This is aimed for the teens to interact with the providers and other teen readers.

Tabs at the top of the page are: reviews, authors, features, reading list, contests, teen board, blog and newsletter just to name a few. 

I plan on diving into the reviews and what’s coming soon. This site is well planned out and easy to use.

Library /reading bulletin boards for June

   Some ideas for you for your June Bulletin Boards::  It's the end of the year so get ready for lots to do!

  Summer Read- Feature covers of student favorites . Use names and say" Jeanne recommends"

  Get Carried away with Books- Balloons or hot air balloons. If you want - add titles to balloons.

   Hot Days- Cool Books- summer scene-  reading on the beach

  Photos of students  reading their favorite books in their favorite places.

  Dive Deep  Into Reading- under the ocean, fish, sharks, water plants.


Special Days:
Fathers Day
Flag Day
Summer

Awesomelibrary.org- geat site

    Awesomelibrary .org is both awesome and amazing!  The tag line on the main page is that Amazing library organizes the internet with about 37, 000 sources.

    There are 30 tabs in block form in the center of the main pages. There is also a search box. The top tabs are Teachers, Kids, Teens, Parents, librarians and College. Each of those links takes the viewer to the next level where you can find specific sites for additional topics.

   Example: Under teens, there are school subjects( Math, Language arts,  Science, Technology ,English,  Social  Studies, the arts, health & PE ) and then there are also links for activities and more( Games, projects, Friends, questions, .authors, ) Each  link takes you to a page that has links .

      My focus is to find what they offer for librarians, teachers, and student’s. I feel that this will be a valuable site for librarians, educators, and students.

Organizing Your Day Using To Do lists!

   So you have your  To Do List  and you eliminated or delegated  tasks (See   post on 5/2/17 )

A good idea to make you more efficient is grouping or batching tasks or jobs.(See The Organized Librarian- my book - offered at this blog)  This works well  with small tasks or routine items. You can batch  small tasks like filing, shelving, budget work, or items that require the same mind or time frame. 

  Some Examples: 1) Take all papers, mail, handouts, budget sheets  to needed locations in one trip, 2) Do one project ( or section of a project) at a time . Work on it until completed or the task is completed before starting another task/ project, 3) Set aside certain times for checking emails, making phone calls, 4) phone contacts  to confirm meeting times and places.

Work from your To Do list with  3 to 5 items per day. Focus on getting those items done. At the end of the day, you will see  and feel accomplished .

Wing & Claw: Forest of Wonders- Weekly Reading

  A new series by Linda Sue Park is Wing and Claw: Forest of Wonders  really caught my attention. Raffa, a young apothecary is learning to use the woods gatherings  of leaves and herbs from his Father. He finds a special vine with strong powers. With it he saves a small bat, but the vine leaves the bat with extraordinary powers.
    Raffa continues to experiment with the vine,  but he also wants to warn his cousin  of its power. The cousin and his family have moved to the big city to be apothecaries there.
     Something Raffa discovers  is very upsetting and he needs to  find out the truth about his relatives. This puts him in some danger, This a new series - I can't  wait to read the next one to see what happens!

Using post –it’ notes to organize

   When working on projects, I collect papers and printouts.  If it is a large project with multi pages ( like 7 or more) I will label a file folder  and place the papers inside the file to keep them all together.

 But if the project is small or has just a couple of papers, and it is one I will do relatively quickly 

( within day or two), then this is what I do. I will paper clip the items together and then mark them with a small post it note.  ( On large  post -it notes  I cut them in half- the right way so they will stick.) Then I mark what they papers refer to or what I need to do with them.

   This way I can put them in  my  work basket,  and  then complete them quickly the next several days. (See small and large projects in my book The Organized Librarian!)  

  The post its help me organize and remind me what to do, and this  keeps me going in the right direction of being organized and getting stuff done,

Symbaloo- Tech tool

Symbaloo  is an exciting tool to use - either with students or as an organizing tool for much used items It helps you organized the internet so you can find  and share resources!

   You build a webpage by first creating the title and then you can personalize with colors of your choice.You can add new sources- even articles  I think and radio stations. You chose a title , pick a color , and then up load a link I am just learning , but if you haven't seen this  it really is cool. And it is not to hard to learn.

This become a webmix. You can also search in the gallery for other webmixes that have already been done. Theses are very helpful and you can find lots of interesting links that way'

To Do lists

In the morning ( or at night before you go home) ,whichever works best for you, you write your to do list- right?  You might want to divide your list into three columns:
Today's Priorities                       This week to do's                                            Would be nice to do


I keep this limit to 5 items in each column. Then I go back and see if there is anything  that can be avoided or delegated. Look at the tasks that are really worth you time and energy. Get rid of anything that is not necessary. This way you can focus your day on doing what is most important and will make the most impact for you students . teachers, or patrons,. I make my list before I go home. Then in the morning, I look at my list again  and cross off items if I feel it is not worth my time.

 Then I focus on what is most important  and even get some 'nice to do  " items which is very nice feeling! 

May Bulletin Boards

  It  is the end of April , so I am thinking of what to do about those bulletin boards.
 Here are some ideas of what I have used in the past.

Sneaking around with a good book- copies of sneakers , students will put on their favorite spring books  and put them on the board.

-"When we read we Grow.'May flowers-  Blue Back ground
  Battle of the Books - groups. scores , announcements.

"We're wild about Books!"- Jungle theme ( animals , trees) around slogan, maybe even titles on tree leaves, or book jackets if you have more room.

"Read, Return, Repeat"  Make slogan like the Recycle, Reduce, Reuse green arrows- put book jackets around that.

"Don't be angry -Read a Good Book"   Angry birds and book jackets or titles