Final reflections...how did it go...what did I learn... Well, this whole endeavor was quite the challenge for me as I am not very computer savvy, or so I thought. I surprised myself at how much I already knew and how easy some of the things were to complete. However, with that said, I also had a couple of major challenges. I tried the digital storytelling thing and the presentation thing and couldn't seem to process the information well enough to make it work. I attempted on multiple occasions and just preceded to get myself more frustrated. I did finally get a slideshow put together on my computer but then for the life of me I couldn't figure out how to share it. I have to say...I finally gave up. Moved on. Decided that apparently that skill was beyond me at this point. I went back to the drawing board and tried a different "thing" hoping that maybe this was just something I had to work towards. Gain more experience and knowledge before I attempted. Maybe then, when I could navigate more confidently around my computer I could figure it out. The whole theory about "immerse yourself in the language" didn't seem to work. But then again maybe it was because I could easily "leave the country" and do something different. I will attempt again though because I believe it will be a great tool for me to use in my personal life and I will probably need it within the year. My thought is to try maybe over the summer to master these two things. So, that part to be continued... My other choices that I did succeed at were fun and enlightening. At times, when I would first start a project, it would be overwhelming but as I kept going and trying, I was surprised to find that sometimes it was just a matter of not knowing the terminology. Once I deciphered what they were talking about, it was like "oh, I know how to do that. Yeah" and then it would all fall into place. I think my favorite "thing" was the bitmoji exercise. That was completely new to me from start to finish and once I got the hang of it I was bitmoji'ing everywhere.
I am so glad that my friend got me started in this format to complete my PD as I had a lot of fun and it provided me with enough of a challenge that it kept me coming back (not just because I needed the hours). I enjoyed being able to pick and choose what I wanted to work on and if something proved to be just a little too much for me, I could file it back away to attempt another day. I look forward to being able to do this again next year and see if I can work my way through some harder tasks. Until then, I will bitmoji on!
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In our library we go at our annual reports from a joint effort. Sort of. I collect certain data for the librarians and my coworker collects certain data and then the librarians digest and annotate the information into the report. We collect stats on Interlibrary loans, circulation within our own library, database usage, patronage, teacher collaborations, classes taught, subject matters etc. We also include information on projects we are working on, different clubs associated with the library (i.e. book club) and their accomplishments, student's accomplishments etc. We run reports on the condition of the library & the books (stats on lost books, damaged books, replacement books). The information is collected at the end of the school year and put into a power point presentation which is then shared at a school board meeting. Having an annual report and being able to produce concrete evidence is very beneficial to support the work we do in our library. To say that we can "justify" our existence may seem a bit caustic but the reality of the beast is we need to have that capability working in a pubic school system. This also helps us keep track from year to year what's going on and things that have or may change. Using tools like graphs, pie charts, and pictures helps draw the readers eye to things that we want to highlight in our report. I found it interesting when researching this project that a lot of the suggestions where being completed by our librarians already. The idea of the types of information to include, connecting the dots with student learning, including graphics in the presentation show a clear indication that we are working in the right direction, It's nice to know that we can say "hey, I wonder how stats have changed with our interlibrary loans this year?" and be able to go back and see. It can also give us a clear indication of areas we may need to improve on or areas we are rockin' it! We all cringe as we approach the end of the year knowing that that annual report is looming over our head but being the geek that I am, I enjoy looking back over our numbers and seeing all that we have accomplished and once the data is collected my job is done so I guess I am speaking on behalf of myself...the librarians may not share my opinion as they ensconce themselves in a back room to decipher and assimilate the information and put it down paper.
I enjoyed doing this project as it has been a work in progress for a while. This is probably one project that is not really work related. This work in progress had started about a year ago or so when my old dinosaur of a computer finally died and I needed to get a new one. I was devastated because I thought I had lost all my photos. In comes my genius brother in law, who was able to pull them off my hard drive. He then uploaded them all to a one drive account for me. What a monstrous undertaking as I had thousands of photos. Needless to say, learning how to navigate around one drive was daunting but how much fun going back and being able to look at all my photos from the past 12-15 years. As I was reminiscing, I thought it would be great fun to share a few with family and friends for some good chuckles. In doing so, my own brother gave me a hard time because he did not like the format that I shared them in. He then introduced me to Dropbox. Dropbox initially gave me more GB's to store and was a much easier format to share stuff. Both accounts though posed some challenges for me as they are more Microsoft driven and I'm an Apple girl. Therefore, seeing as how I have a ton of pictures on my iPhone I decided to try iCloud. I really enjoy using iCloud as it makes more sense in my brain and the capabilities of transferring the pictures is so easy. For some reason, comprehending Microsoft is a challenge for me. The editing function in Dropbox is probably the easiest to use especially if you are doing just simple edits. The other 2 I think do a better job with the actual editing but is a little harder to understand. I currently have all 3 storage accounts going, which one would think would be a pain, but it is working for me as they all offer limited storage space (for free and I tend to be cheap) and I have successfully tapped out 2 of the 3 (whoops! I take a TON of pictures). I stay challenged trying to remember which family/friend likes to get photos with which account but I figure it keeps my brain young(LOL).
So this blog ties into the previous blog where I learned how to create a widget. I started the widget project by signing up for GoodReads. I love this site and how easy it is to keep track of what I am reading, have read and want to read. In the past, when we received new books into our library I would constantly lose track of them and forget what I wanted to read. Also, while I'm shelving I would come across books and think "oh, this looks good, I need to read this". The problem came in when I would think I would leave the book on the shelf until I finished what I was currently reading and by the time I finished the current book I would forget the one I saw (its that awful old age thing again - lol) Initially, my solution was to just check the books out and then I would have like 10 at home sitting waiting for me. Now???? All I have to do is put them on my "want to read" list and boom! mission accomplished! This is so awesome! No longer do I forget, lose track or think "have I read this?" I just go into my account and check. Not that I ever mind re-reading if it's a good book. I like being able to write my own reviews as it helps me refresh my memory when chatting with students and recommending books to them. I like being able to look up a book and checking other peoples reviews to determine if it is something that might interest me especially if I'm a little on the fence. I also find it very valuable for non-fiction. I don't usually read non-fiction so this has been a huge help. All in all, this has been a fabulous addition to my knowledge tank.
I learned how to and created a widget for our library website. My widget is a link to my Good Reads account and lets student see what I am currently reading. They can also click on the link and go to my Good Reads account and see everything I have read, see my book reviews and hopefully get inspired to pick up a good book and start reading. I loved learning how to do this and I have already had a couple of my avid students checking out my reads. How thrilling is that? This project also introduced me to Good Reads which I am loving. What a great way to keep track of all that I have read, what I'm looking forward to reading and getting suggestions that I may not have picked up otherwise. I truly wish I had know about this site so much earlier but...water under the bridge, right? This is soooo cool! I learned how to do this about a month ago and just haven't had the time to update my blog so it's nice to see that I really did learn how to do this because I just repeated the process and it worked here. So very satisfying!
Click to set custom HTML
I tried Duckduckgo and really liked this search engine. I absolutely loved the fact that it didn't track what you search. I was having a brain cramp and couldn't think of anything to search regarding school, however I did search for things regarding golf. It was very useful in searching for tournament schedules, golf programs, college programs and more. I loved that it kept it all in one place and I didn't constantly have ad's popping up every time I turned around. Just the mere fact that there were no ad's was awesome. The information it did find for me was very accurate compared to my normal google searches that I have always used. I also think that it appeared to do a better job at search for specific tournaments in specific areas. In the past, using a google search for a specific tournament didn't always get me results and this engine seemed to not have any trouble locating the information I was looking for. The other plus was it seemed to located information based upon my location. So searches came up in the state I live in first and not say California, those came later. I will be very interested to try searching for information regarding school stuff when I can engage my brain and come up with a topic.
We also did a display for Black History Month. My coworker was able to make QR codes and incorporate them into the display. If you look at the photo, in the center, left of the bust, there is a paper with links for more information on Black History with accompanying QR codes. So, just a quick photo and wallah, it takes you directly to the website. Thought that was so cool!
We have been patiently awaiting the ALA Youth Media Awards all school year and they were finally announced today. We put up a display, recognizing the Newbery, Caldecott and the Michael L. Printz awards. We had a section with possible nominees for the kids to weigh in on. Now that the winners have been announced, we updated the display to show the winners.
Part of my job in the library is helping the Science Research students do their research. Once the student finds a particular journal article, book, published research paper etc that they need for their own research, they come to me to help them find a copy that we can borrow. Once they submit their request to me, I then go about checking multiple databases, attempting to locate. If I am unable to locate what the student is looking for, I then attempt to borrow from other libraries (sometimes even across the country). I have been doing this for the past three years and it is one of my favorite things about my day. I find that I am constantly challenged in so many ways, from learning new vocabulary to finding new resources, to learning new ways to search and even figuring out new search words (that has been huge!). Searching for new databases, in the hopes of locating free information to help my students, has added a new level to my abilities as a teaching assistant not only in school but at home as well. Being able to help my own kids has been invaluable. Learning to navigate through the plethora of information out there has been a challenge but a challenge well worth the brain cramps!
I read a comment from Ms. Farrington about my previous blog entry and per her suggestion I looked into a social community for Librarians. It was interesting even if it did take me forever to figure out how to navigate around. Ughhh, learning new things can be so slow and daunting. Once I was a little more comfortable, it did provide some great ideas that will probably be helpful in the future...provided I can remember the site. lol!
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