All posts by Theresa

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Congratulations to the 2015 Movers and Shakers!

Library Journal (LJ) has been recognizing 50 Movers & Shakers each year since 2002, and this year’s 50 have been announced!  Library Journal says that Movers & Shakers “are passionate about what they do, … and they are committed to the mission of the library as an engine of democracy.”  After you’ve taken a look at this year’s lineup, check out the map of Movers & Shakers to see how each state – and country – stacks up.

Image credit: http://www.gratisography.com/, licensed under CC0 1.0
Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Your Guide to Flipped Classrooms

Many schools are switching to flipped classrooms as an alternative to the traditional teaching methods we grew up with.  In a flipped environment, students listen to lectures at home, then work through assignments with their teacher in person the next day – they do their learning at home, and their homework at school.  If you’re considering a flipped classroom, you’re not alone.  Edudemic’s Guide to Flipped Classrooms for 2015 is an excellent resource for you to check out!  It goes through the pros and cons of using flipped classrooms and provides you with tips to implement one.  For a quick glance, here are a couple of the pros and cons they outline:

PROS

  • Students can learn at their own pace, whether they need to listen just once, or pause and rewind
  • Schools can reduce their paper use, which is also a benefit for middle- and high-school students, whose backpacks often get too heavy

CONS

  • Not all students have access to the internet outside of school
  • Teachers may not have enough time to help all students with their questions individually

Check out this recent SCTimes article about flipped classrooms in Sartell-St. Stephen Middle School.

Need more? check out CMLE’s Libguide on flipped classrooms.

Have you tried a flipped classroom?  What do you think?

Image credit: http://www.gratisography.com/, licensed under CC0 1.0
Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Summer Plans? Check out the MN eLearning Summit

TeamWorkThe Minnesota eLearning Summit is scheduled for July 29 & 30 at the Minneapolis Community and Technical College!  The Summit is “the premiere event of the Minnesota Learning Commons and is a gathering place for K-12, college, and university educators and innovators in the Midwest…”  Some of the things you can expect are:

  • Keynote speakers discussing the needs of 21st century educators
  • Sessions designed for all skill levels, on topics like: elearning tools, best practices, resources, and services; blended learning, flipped learning, and digital learning
  • The latest resources and tech solutions, showcased just for you
  • Certificate of attendance for CEUs
  • Over 400 participants!

But that’s not all – go to the Minnesota eLearning Summit website to learn more about this opportunity – including logistics and an opportunity to submit proposals.

Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/mz4uy5a, licensed under CC BY 2.0
General

Game of Thrones. . . “literally”

With season 5 of Game of Thrones (finally) premiering next month, many fans are re-watching seasons 1-4.  But have you seen the Literal Trailer for the hit show’s fourth season?  If not, here it is:

Tobuscus posts a variety of videos to YouTube, including many of these Literal Trailers.  You can find them for Harry Potter, The Hobbit, The Hunger Games, Iron Man, Pirates of the Caribbean, and X-Men!

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist

A Scavenger Hunt in Your Library

magnifyHave you ever considered offering a scavenger hunt in your library? Do you need tools to help you create a scavenger hunt, or do you want ready-made hunts?  Either way, Julie Greller of A Media Specialist’s Guide to the Internet has something for you!  Check out her post from early last month for all things scavenger – from ready-made hunts to all the resources you’ll need to create your own.

Here’s an informational video about Klikaklu, one of the resources Greller highlights in her post:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzka1EI3g-o

Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/ovgtb34, licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0