For those who couldn’t make it to the summit, here is a Google doc for links.

The second day started with a keynote from Dr. Helen Barrett on ePortfolios.  Here website is http://electronicportfolios.org/.

Next I attended Wednesday’s keynote speaker, Jamie Casup’s session titled “Chromebook Classrooms.”  While I didn’t take many notes, I was once again very impressed with his presentation.  A lot was similar to the keynote, but focused on why the Chromebook and not just here is what it can do.  I am intrigued and inclined to recommend our school investigate these as our next cart purchase.  I think they will fit in much better with the direction we are planning to take (if we also go to Google Apps for Ed) than traditional laptop/netbook or even iPad carts.

The last session I attended, as I didn’t stick around for the demo slam or lunch, was titled “Visual Storytelling” and given by Ken Shelton.  This wasn’t the session I had originally planned to attend, but my friend Chris Craft introduced me to Mr. Shelton as a fellow photographer and Mr. Shelton “sold” his session to me!  I decided to make sure I caught it on the second day.  As a budding photographer, I’m looking for ways to incorporate my photography with the classroom.  Now this session I did take notes.  Here is my “outline” on his session on Photo 5 – tell a story with five images and NO text.  Can be:

• Journalistic (ex: use one image and crop into five separate images focusing on different elements that tells the whole story)
• Sequential – five images that shown in sequence tell a story (example shown was from a bike race)
• Photographic Poetry – think about an image abstractly (not literally) and tell the story of what you “see.”
• Narrative – images tell a story with a beginning, middle, & end
• Template for a Photo 5 is to establish:
• Setting/Location
• Situation “What might happen?”
• Character(s) involvement
• Probable Outcome(s)
• Logical or Surprise ending

Head itches. Bend, flick - ahhh, relief!

As you may know, the WSHS library has been sponsoring a blog for a over a year now.  Well, I was asked by our teacher cadet teacher to help her students create blogs to use for their reflections as part of their grades.  Since I am most familiar with Edublogs and because Edublogs isn’t blocked by our district, I’ve been working with the students off and on for the last two months to get their blogs up and running.

We started with a lesson on what is blogging and how to be safe online.  I used the worksheets and tools provided by Edublogs.  I also showed them the Common Craft video Protecting Reputations Online in Plain English.   Another lesson included the students writing their own blogging guidelines after reviewing guidelines from other schools they found online. While most of the students are 18, we still had them return a signed Blog Permission Form

Lastly, I helped them set up their blogs.  They had to come up with a unique blog title and usernames then we began building their blogs.  Yesterday I helped them add their fellow classmates blogs to their blogroll and made some suggestions on design.  They are still rough, but here are the student’s blogs:

Confessions of a Teacher Cadet

That’s SO-Nora

It Always Helps to Know

Keys of Wisdom From Teacher Cadet

Jhane’s WSHS Teacher Cadet Bloggings

Strive to Be the Best

As you can see, some are really into the process, and some are struggling a bit.  Mostly with what to write.  But this is true of everyone who tries something new – some take to it easily while others are more hesitant.  At least none are resistant to the task!

So, if it so moves you, please drop them a comment now and again!

I’ve shared with you guys before that every job I’ve every had has been customer service oriented.  That INCLUDES being a Library Media Specialist.   Our job is to SATISFY our customers: students, parents, teachers, administrators, district, etc.  Yes, we can’t always do that, but our job is to try.

What has bothered me lately has been all of the negativity being spewed everywhere I turn.  Blog posts, listservs, Twitter, articles, etc.  Yes, we need to know what’s happening (librarians loosing their jobs, libraries closing, the LA librarian “interrogations” etc.), but other than a SHORT description of outrage, do we honestly need to spread even more negativity?

Instead of perpetuating the negativity,  what can WE  do to counteract all of the bad that is happening in our profession?   The answer – to quote my good friend Cathy Nelson:

Use advocacy opportunities.  Talk to stakeholders, and share the current temperature of libraries truthfully.  Contact you legislators and engage them in conversations about how libraries impacted their lives, your life, the lives of your students, and more.  Compare libraries of long ago to what the reality is today. Share any and all success stories  from the library point of view.  Stop complaining at all. There is no room for complaining in our profession.

YES!  Stop complaining (or at least complaining in PUBLIC.)  Instead start ADVOCATING.  Remember, you get what you give.  It reminds me of a poem someone shared with me years ago about smiling.  I don’t remember it all, but it went something like:

Smiling is contagious, you catch it like the flu.
When someone smiled at me today, I started smiling too!
I passed around the corner, and someone saw my grin.
When he smiled I realized, I’d passed it on to him.

Why don’t we start spreading some good to counterbalance the bad?  You get what you give.  If we only “give” negativity and the doom and gloom without balancing that with some positives or at least suggestions for improving the situation, then whose gonna want to listen to us for long?

Now I just have to take my own advice!