As a middle school librarian, I see many, many students every day, but I don't have my own classes to teach. That's why it's so exciting for me when I get the chance to flex my teaching muscles and go into classrooms to do lessons. This past week I had the privilege of visiting all my eighth grade classes to help them out with a research project they're doing--mainly how to use the databases, do citations, and evaluate websites. Here's the Google Slides I made to go along with the lesson:
I always try to think, If I were a student, would I be bored? Would I actually remember and use this later? Did I accomplish anything in class? This last one is particularly important to me, because I know that any time I spend in another teacher's classroom is time taken away from their instruction time, so I better make it count. And as I had the ability to reserve school laptop carts for this lesson, I was able to make everything very hands-on, and the students had something to show for their work during class that they could use in their project. Now I'm looking forward to age-modifying this same lesson for my seventh grade classes these next two weeks!
Other library happenings: The Library Advisory Board club started up last week. They're a fun group, and I'm interested to see where they'll take the club this year. It's my goal to make it something useful and not just a socializing hour. I'd love to depend on them for library displays and getting some student book reviews/recommendations out there--some things I'm not particularly good at doing myself. Yay for library nerds!
I also had my first experience being out all day with a substitute here in my place. I do feel for the sub, and more for my AV Tech who kind of functions as the library para. Unlike classroom teaching, I do a lot of this and that throughout my days, and this job really requires a huge bank of knowledge and skills (which I wouldn't expect a run-of-the-mill substitute to have) plus initiative to think of "stuff" to do (which is extremely hard to do as a fill-in).
A program I'm excited to be involved with getting off the ground is the "Digital Learning Program" (DLP)--our school's version of BYOD--which is debuting in 7th grade for second semester this year. I was able to attend a mini-workshop last week, and I now have a few things on my to-do list for that, including getting a website and book study up and running.
Checkouts for the past 2 weeks: over 311.
What I'm NERDing right now: DLP. A program fraught with obstacles...but I believe one-to-one in schools is the future!
Monday, September 26, 2016
Tuesday, September 13, 2016
Up and Running
I feel that I finally have my feet under me and things are running as they should be in the day-to-day workings of the library. After a few weeks of running hither and thither doing orientations (I think I can now say that I have at least talked to every student in the school), I had some down time last week to catch up on some library function essentials.
As a recent graduate from library school, my mind is all full of great ideas for being a school leader, bringing innovative programs and ideas to the library, and crafting lessons and materials for information literacy and digital citizenship. One thing is assumed, though--circulation. It's the bare bones of librarianship, an area that usually falls to a library aide and really shouldn't waste the time of a Master's degree Teacher-Librarian like me. (Sarcasm intended, because I have to say, circulation is one of my favorite parts of the job--strangely, I love the repetitiveness of handling books and keeping up on records. I know--NERD, right?) However, not having an aide dedicated to circulation tasks, and still being the "boss" of the library, I have found that I have decisions to make when it comes to circulation. And being completely new to being a librarian, at the start of the year I wasn't quite sure exactly what materials I would need to make circulation run smoothly. So I had been getting by with a massive pile of disorganized notes scrawled on scraps of paper...until last week.
Happily, I had time last week to put together some documents to keep on hand that will make circulation run more smoothly. I have them linked up here. (I'm sure to add more and modify as time goes on.)
For students...
Other news for the past two weeks: In addition to finishing with 6th grade and 7th/8th grade library orientations, I have partnered with the 6th grade L&L and I&S teachers to support an interdisciplinary unit they are doing. It was exciting seeing all the 6th graders again and teaching them about finding public domain photos and giving proper credit (or citations) for them. I found that my plans were not quite structured enough for all the tech skills involved, but after the first day I was able to change things up into a smooth and fun lesson. I linked up my presentation here.
I'm currently working on planning another collaboration lesson and was able to schedule a whole bunch of times to teach in 7th and 8th grade L&L classes. After sitting in on TLC meetings last week, I was able to get a good idea of what the teachers want out of the lesson, and I'll be preparing to begin teaching about evaluating resources next week.
Some other odds and ends that have been filling my time: a very helpful meeting with an awesome district techie about iPads and purchasing apps; finding the right people to ask various website, ILL, and school/district questions; and taking care of some random matters that have been pending for a couple weeks (library club, purchase forms, public library card applications, etc.). I have also had the pleasure several times of welcoming two pairs of students who seem to enjoy eating lunch in the quiet of the library, plus 5 Bridges classes and more than 232 students in the past two weeks visiting for checkouts. I spent my entire afternoon Friday putting together overdue and missing book notices for Bridges teachers to hand out. The first round of the year turned out to be quite time-consuming! I'm also running through my mind possibilities for where to put the 20 computers I'm told we're getting hand-me-down from the computer classroom second semester. This library space needs a makeover, but it's probably a project for the next few years!
What I'm NERDing right now: Mundane circulation tasks.
As a recent graduate from library school, my mind is all full of great ideas for being a school leader, bringing innovative programs and ideas to the library, and crafting lessons and materials for information literacy and digital citizenship. One thing is assumed, though--circulation. It's the bare bones of librarianship, an area that usually falls to a library aide and really shouldn't waste the time of a Master's degree Teacher-Librarian like me. (Sarcasm intended, because I have to say, circulation is one of my favorite parts of the job--strangely, I love the repetitiveness of handling books and keeping up on records. I know--NERD, right?) However, not having an aide dedicated to circulation tasks, and still being the "boss" of the library, I have found that I have decisions to make when it comes to circulation. And being completely new to being a librarian, at the start of the year I wasn't quite sure exactly what materials I would need to make circulation run smoothly. So I had been getting by with a massive pile of disorganized notes scrawled on scraps of paper...until last week.
Happily, I had time last week to put together some documents to keep on hand that will make circulation run more smoothly. I have them linked up here. (I'm sure to add more and modify as time goes on.)
For students...
- who want a certain book (I use it for keeping track of holds, ILL, and books that might be good to add to collection)...Book Request
- whose book they put on hold is in...Book on Hold
- who have a book that is missing (over 2 weeks overdue)...Missing Book
For teachers to send with their student to the library...Library Pass
For me...
- to stick in books that are on the Hold shelf...Hold For
- to keep track of ILL requests, in and out...ILL Request Tracking
- to keep track of the myriad issues that arise in student account, including removing fines from their school account...Accounts that Need Attention
- to set out for students to write their magazine's info down if they want to check it out (instead of barcoding everything, I'll slap a barcode on them as they're wanted and enter info from this document later on)...Magazine Checkout
Other news for the past two weeks: In addition to finishing with 6th grade and 7th/8th grade library orientations, I have partnered with the 6th grade L&L and I&S teachers to support an interdisciplinary unit they are doing. It was exciting seeing all the 6th graders again and teaching them about finding public domain photos and giving proper credit (or citations) for them. I found that my plans were not quite structured enough for all the tech skills involved, but after the first day I was able to change things up into a smooth and fun lesson. I linked up my presentation here.
I'm currently working on planning another collaboration lesson and was able to schedule a whole bunch of times to teach in 7th and 8th grade L&L classes. After sitting in on TLC meetings last week, I was able to get a good idea of what the teachers want out of the lesson, and I'll be preparing to begin teaching about evaluating resources next week.
Some other odds and ends that have been filling my time: a very helpful meeting with an awesome district techie about iPads and purchasing apps; finding the right people to ask various website, ILL, and school/district questions; and taking care of some random matters that have been pending for a couple weeks (library club, purchase forms, public library card applications, etc.). I have also had the pleasure several times of welcoming two pairs of students who seem to enjoy eating lunch in the quiet of the library, plus 5 Bridges classes and more than 232 students in the past two weeks visiting for checkouts. I spent my entire afternoon Friday putting together overdue and missing book notices for Bridges teachers to hand out. The first round of the year turned out to be quite time-consuming! I'm also running through my mind possibilities for where to put the 20 computers I'm told we're getting hand-me-down from the computer classroom second semester. This library space needs a makeover, but it's probably a project for the next few years!
What I'm NERDing right now: Mundane circulation tasks.
Monday, August 29, 2016
Now we're talking.
Last week was 0 to 60. All the planning I fit in during the low-key first week of school paid off as I have begun introducing myself to teachers and students, as well as "orienting" everyone.
Library orientation is an exciting time for me, and so important during my first year in the school. It gives me a chance to get everyone on the same page, and to make sure every student at least knows who their new librarian is. (Whether I'll remember who they are is a different matter--how do you remember 900 kiddos in two weeks, or even a year? That's a mystery I'll still have to figure out.) Orientations are also a chance to show the students how exciting the library can be...which is why my lessons have been a little chaotic for my normal taste. But I'd like to break the SHHHHH library stereotype of last century and help be a part--not just a bystander--of the 21st century.
A very quick rundown of library orientations. For 7th and 8th graders, I rolled around to my Language and Literature teachers (who signed up for a time during my spiel at their Monday grade-level meetings) to do a mini-orientation. After a quick plug for the public library and handing out library card applications, we spent around 15 minutes doing a Kahoot quiz over our library policies. I discovered Kahoot during our new teacher trainings, and it has served me well for this activity. I just made up 9 questions covering policies ahead of time, then gave the teams iPads and let 'em go! The most difficult part of this turned out to be wi-fi issues; otherwise, the quiz format--with only the social pressure to get it "right"--was perfect for my common sense and conversation-starter questions.
Link to my library orientation Kahoot: https://play.kahoot.it/#/k/f1bc00f8-8fa7-44d4-bfe0-8e3ef209eb16
For the 6th grade classes, I requested they come to the library for a half-block of time (around 45 minutes). We did the same exact Kahoot quiz at the end, but to start off I did a 10-minute split and switch--one group doing a scavenger hunt of the library spaces while I walked the other group through the Library Catalog and accessing our eBooks. The scavenger hunt was the most fun to plan, because I drew from the Pokémon Go craze that hit the digital universe less than a month ago. Thanks, Karissa Fast and Pinterest, for the great idea! (https://karissamlis.wordpress.com/2016/07/14/pokemon-scavenger-hunt-in-the-library/) Best idea to go along with these activities--setting up a 10-minute timer on the screen. Otherwise I'd go way over time, for sure!
As I said, it's been 0 to 60--I was bouncing around to all four grade-level meetings on Monday and finally met all the teachers (just as important as letting all the kids know who you are), and I did ten 7th and 8th grade orientations plus eight 6th grade orientations. I also had the pleasure of starting some collaboration with a teaching team of Language and Literature/Individuals and Society on an interdisciplinary project they're doing. I'll be beginning that the next week, and starting to plan a lesson on finding good photos and citing them properly.
I'm loving being busy--this is what I feel my job is all about! I still have a lot to learn, though, especially getting the boring processes of the library (circulation, displays, etc.) down pat. But I can't say enough how positive an environment this is and how blessed I am to be here.
What I'm NERDing right now: Information Literacy lessons. Get those 21st century skills, man!
Library orientation is an exciting time for me, and so important during my first year in the school. It gives me a chance to get everyone on the same page, and to make sure every student at least knows who their new librarian is. (Whether I'll remember who they are is a different matter--how do you remember 900 kiddos in two weeks, or even a year? That's a mystery I'll still have to figure out.) Orientations are also a chance to show the students how exciting the library can be...which is why my lessons have been a little chaotic for my normal taste. But I'd like to break the SHHHHH library stereotype of last century and help be a part--not just a bystander--of the 21st century.
A very quick rundown of library orientations. For 7th and 8th graders, I rolled around to my Language and Literature teachers (who signed up for a time during my spiel at their Monday grade-level meetings) to do a mini-orientation. After a quick plug for the public library and handing out library card applications, we spent around 15 minutes doing a Kahoot quiz over our library policies. I discovered Kahoot during our new teacher trainings, and it has served me well for this activity. I just made up 9 questions covering policies ahead of time, then gave the teams iPads and let 'em go! The most difficult part of this turned out to be wi-fi issues; otherwise, the quiz format--with only the social pressure to get it "right"--was perfect for my common sense and conversation-starter questions.
Link to my library orientation Kahoot: https://play.kahoot.it/#/k/f1bc00f8-8fa7-44d4-bfe0-8e3ef209eb16
For the 6th grade classes, I requested they come to the library for a half-block of time (around 45 minutes). We did the same exact Kahoot quiz at the end, but to start off I did a 10-minute split and switch--one group doing a scavenger hunt of the library spaces while I walked the other group through the Library Catalog and accessing our eBooks. The scavenger hunt was the most fun to plan, because I drew from the Pokémon Go craze that hit the digital universe less than a month ago. Thanks, Karissa Fast and Pinterest, for the great idea! (https://karissamlis.wordpress.com/2016/07/14/pokemon-scavenger-hunt-in-the-library/) Best idea to go along with these activities--setting up a 10-minute timer on the screen. Otherwise I'd go way over time, for sure!
As I said, it's been 0 to 60--I was bouncing around to all four grade-level meetings on Monday and finally met all the teachers (just as important as letting all the kids know who you are), and I did ten 7th and 8th grade orientations plus eight 6th grade orientations. I also had the pleasure of starting some collaboration with a teaching team of Language and Literature/Individuals and Society on an interdisciplinary project they're doing. I'll be beginning that the next week, and starting to plan a lesson on finding good photos and citing them properly.
I'm loving being busy--this is what I feel my job is all about! I still have a lot to learn, though, especially getting the boring processes of the library (circulation, displays, etc.) down pat. But I can't say enough how positive an environment this is and how blessed I am to be here.
What I'm NERDing right now: Information Literacy lessons. Get those 21st century skills, man!
Monday, August 22, 2016
One week down.
One week down.
Despite the library itself feeling big and empty much of the time this week, I have definitely kept myself busy. Since every day seems to be different, I have started keeping track in a notebook of the various tasks that have been keeping me occupied each day. Our checkouts have picked up: three Bridges classes and about 50 students with passes visited the library last week. Friday during Bridges I could hardly leave the circulation desk, and I feel as if I'm learning circulation through trial by fire. Which is good, because since I'm hoping I'll be doing less circulation and more teaching and so on, I'd rather have it down to a reflex. Happily, I have many different people to ask when I'm unsure of the way various things are handled--error messages, damaged books, missing books and fines, ordering new materials, book displays, and so on. I really lucked out in that I have the elementary library just downstairs and the high school just across the plaza. Thank goodness for DCC's K-12 campus!
I still feel a little disconnected from teachers and students, so last week I made sure to rectify that by planning a way to meet everyone in the school--attending grade level meetings and leading library orientations. I hope that my preparations pay off in the coming week. And of course, I consulted Pinterest for neat library orientation ideas, and I can't wait to try it out--more to come on that!
The technology aspect of the job is also a learning curve, but I feel that I am climbing it adequately. I have had no problem making some simple website fixes, and I was able to sit in on a tech meeting about how the school uses OneNote for keeping track of MTSS (special ed.) accommodations. I also had a teacher approach me for my first collaboration opportunity--having to do with technology, of course--so I have some more tech research to do!
All in all, it's great to be back in business. I still feel overwhelmed with people (I mean, 900 students and dozens of staff members, just in the middle school), but I know that becomes easy as time goes on. I already know the names of a dozen kids, even if only from when they've come to check out books--some of the awesome nerd kids, like me. :^D
What I'm NERDing now: Pokémon. (Just you wait!)
Despite the library itself feeling big and empty much of the time this week, I have definitely kept myself busy. Since every day seems to be different, I have started keeping track in a notebook of the various tasks that have been keeping me occupied each day. Our checkouts have picked up: three Bridges classes and about 50 students with passes visited the library last week. Friday during Bridges I could hardly leave the circulation desk, and I feel as if I'm learning circulation through trial by fire. Which is good, because since I'm hoping I'll be doing less circulation and more teaching and so on, I'd rather have it down to a reflex. Happily, I have many different people to ask when I'm unsure of the way various things are handled--error messages, damaged books, missing books and fines, ordering new materials, book displays, and so on. I really lucked out in that I have the elementary library just downstairs and the high school just across the plaza. Thank goodness for DCC's K-12 campus!
I still feel a little disconnected from teachers and students, so last week I made sure to rectify that by planning a way to meet everyone in the school--attending grade level meetings and leading library orientations. I hope that my preparations pay off in the coming week. And of course, I consulted Pinterest for neat library orientation ideas, and I can't wait to try it out--more to come on that!
The technology aspect of the job is also a learning curve, but I feel that I am climbing it adequately. I have had no problem making some simple website fixes, and I was able to sit in on a tech meeting about how the school uses OneNote for keeping track of MTSS (special ed.) accommodations. I also had a teacher approach me for my first collaboration opportunity--having to do with technology, of course--so I have some more tech research to do!
All in all, it's great to be back in business. I still feel overwhelmed with people (I mean, 900 students and dozens of staff members, just in the middle school), but I know that becomes easy as time goes on. I already know the names of a dozen kids, even if only from when they've come to check out books--some of the awesome nerd kids, like me. :^D
What I'm NERDing now: Pokémon. (Just you wait!)
Monday, August 15, 2016
Day of Days
Four years for the first degree, three and a half for the
second, lots of job applications, one interview, and here I am at last, a
middle school Teacher-Librarian on the first day of school! Since the first day
of new teacher orientation over a week ago, I have been bright-eyed and
bushy-tailed, drinking up all the boring trainings and squeezing productivity
out of every last minute of “in your classroom” time.
In the days leading up to this, the day of days, the day when
we finally welcome our students, I have been eagerly soaking up trainings on
website management, library programs, district policies, and schoolwide
procedures. I have met dozens of colleagues, noting who will be good resources
for what, who I can look forward to providing support for over the school year, and
generally fostering professional relationships with everyone from our
custodians to our district leaders. I have prepared our library space: hanging
posters, taking down old student work to make way for the new, arranging
tables, and placing books in displays. Perhaps most importantly, I have begun
planning for the upcoming school year: 6th grade library orientations,
teacher collaboration meetings, collection development, book fairs, national library
events, Library Advisory Board club, and the list goes on. And on and on.
First week of school—not for the faint-hearted. But what an
exciting opportunity to set the stage for the entire rest of the year!
...
What I’m NERDing right now: OneNote lists. Providing the
perfect degree of organized chaos for my scattered brain.
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