Adieu

As this inveterate Easterner heads west to start a new life in an ‘active adult’ community in northern Nevada,  I have also decided that it’s time for me to leave school-library-land and explore other interests and adventures.

Farewell, my friends!

Notable Children’s Books Nominees – Summer 2012 #ala12 | ALSC Blog

Notable Children’s Books Nominees – Summer 2012

from the ALSC Blog.

curators ǝpoɔ

Useful guidelines for attribution, including a handy-dandy bookmarklet with unicode symbols to use for different levels of citation: curators ǝpoɔ.

Wise advice on Job Qualifications

I’ve been cleaning out old files, and came across this gem:

Qualifications for the position of Media Specialist/Librarian, by Augie Beasley and Carolyn Palmer, originally published in The Book Report in January 1987.

• A great sense of humor for the times you’re kidded about ‘dusting shelves,’ ‘stamping books,’ or ‘needing a college degree’ for your job.
• A magic hat to turn limited library funds into quality programs.
• The ability to smile and bite your tongue at the same time.
• A thick skin, able to withstand critical comments from teachers and students.
• A strong foot for all those times you kick equipment when all else has failed.
• The willingness to find ways to meet requests rather than finding excuses.
• A crystal ball to assist you in reading minds while attempting to understand vague reference questions.
• A forgiving nature toward all those who find fault.
• The uncanny ability to change the lamp in a projector, answer a reference question, and schedule equipment while talking on the phone.
• Persistence to sustain yourself while you try to convince teachers to coordinate library skills instruction with classroom assignments.
• Plenty of patience in waiting for answers from teachers, looking for answers for students, and accepting answers from administrators.
• The ability to accept well-meaning advice and ignore unfounded criticism — and the common sense to know the difference.
• A personality that offers a lot of service with a smile.

Interesting how all of those qualifications are still relevant in 2012!

School Library or Learning Commons

Donna Alden explores the different semantic and conceptual implications of calling the facility a School Library or Learning Commons: What’s in a Name? | Connect!.

Howard Rheingold on web literacies as essential survival skills

Howard Rheingold on how the five web literacies are becoming essential survival skills:

1. attention,
2. participation,
3. collaboration,
4.  “crap detection,” and
5. network smarts.

“As we’ve become more sophisticated in the ways we use the web, we need to adjust how we use it, being able to tell fact from rumor and able to call on the skills and resources of a community to help answer our questions.”

 

from Nieman Journalism Lab.

20 Free Tools for Creating Awesome Presentations

A List of 20 Free Tools for Teachers to Create Awesome Presentations and Slideshows.

Wise words from Maria Shriver

The Power of the Pause:  Maria Shriver‘s Remarks delivered on Friday, May 11, 2012 at University of Southern California’s Annenberg School Commencement Ceremony.

Library of the Future … or already happening?

FWIW,  most of these  10 Changes to Expect from the Library of the Future

are ALREADY Standard Operating Procedures in many school libraries:

1. More technology
2. Sensory story times
3. Better outreach to ESOL and ESL adults and children
4. Automation
5. Emphasizing community space
6. More social media savvy
7. Digital media labs
8. Electronic outposts
9. Crowdsourcing
10. More active librarians

 

Twitter for Professional Learning

from Mark Anderson: “ A collection of my blog posts, CPD materials and screencasts on using Twitter as a place to learn, network and gain CPD from your peers.” How To Use Twitter If You’re A Teacher – MentorMob.