All posts by Michelle

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Struggling With Multitasking?

Image by UrbaneWomenMag. Retrieved from FlickR. Used under Creative Common's licensing.
Image by UrbaneWomenMag. Retrieved from FlickR. Used under Creative Common’s licensing.

Regardless of what type of library you work in, fall can be an extremely busy time of the year both professionally and personally. Also, as work environments become more collaborative, it introduces the possibility of additional interruptions. Ultimately, this has implications faculty/staff’s ability to focus on a singular task from start to finish.

If you are one of those can-do multitaskers, consider reading the following posts by Edudemic.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Virtual Town Hall on Ebooks

Are you interested in the possibility of eBook lending?

Image by melentia2012. Retrieved from FlickR. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by melentia2012. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

On October 23rd, American Library Association (ALA) President Barbara Stripling will be hosting an interactive, online session from 11:00-12:00 pm (CT) to enter an eBook library lending discussion.

Panelists include:

  • Barbara Stripling, ALA president;
  • Maureen Sullivan, ALA immediate past president;
  • Keith Michael Fiels, ALA executive director;
  • Sari Feldman, executive director of the Cuyahoga County Public Library and DCWG co-chair;
  • Robert Wolven, associate university librarian of Columbia University and DCWG co-chair;
  • Alan S. Inouye, director of ALA’s Office for Information Technology Policy.

To learn more about this discussion and for registration materials click here.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

STEM Programming Specific to Libraries

Image by Chase_Elliott. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Common's licensing.
Image by Chase_Elliott. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

Looking for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S.T.E.M.) content?

SimplySTEM has created a wiki for librarians interested in additional STEM related content. This resource provides a collection of completed program plans including activities, print materials, and suggested links. Click here to view this online resource.

To learn more about STEM, go to Why STEM Education Matters for a four page summary developed by the National Math + Science Initiative.

Tip: You can also highlight your library’s completed STEM programming by becoming a ciki contributor on this site.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Sinclair Lewis Writer’s Conference

Image by Nanagyei. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Common's licensing.
Image by Nanagyei. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Common’s licensing.

On Saturday, October 12th the Sinclair Lewis Foundation of Sauk Centre will be hosting the 2013 Writer’s Conference. This full day conference will feature keynote speaker Jim Klobuchar; poet Joyce Sutphen; story teller Anthony Bukoski; along with author and literary agent Kim Connor.

Registration costs will cover attendance at the keynote address, a catered lunch and the reception held at the historic Palmer House in Sauk Centre, MN.

Register online before October 9th.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

What Students Need From Reference Librarians

Image by Pascal Maramis. Retrieved from FlickR. Used under Creative Common's licensing.
Image by Pascal Maramis. Retrieved from FlickR. Used under Creative Common’s licensing.

Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL) released a post online pertaining to a recent study exploring the various interactions librarians have with students.  The article discusses what specific skills, knowledge and experience the librarian used to assist each individual student. This study evaluated the effectiveness of working with a librarian from the student’s perspective. General areas discussed included;

  • Understanding resources and procedures
  • Knowledge about subjects and terminology
  • Ability to development topics
  • Personal experience with research
  • Subject expert referrals
  • Synthesis of questions
  • Interview and active listening skills

A summary of the findings can be found online: http://tinyurl.com/okxowtn

“What students need from reference librarians: Exploring the complexity of the individual consultation,” College & Research Libraries, 74, no 6 (June 2013): 288-29;  full text article.