Tag Archives: Tech

School Media Specialist, Tech, Training

ITEM Member Looking for Tech Trainers!

Desktop computer clipart - Yellow theme

I am looking for trainers for 2-hour technology classes between June 5-8. Since so many districts are still in school, I am having trouble. If you are available between these dates, or know someone who might be, please let me know, or pass this email along.

Between June 5-8 we schedule 3 two-hour sessions each day (8 – 10AM, 10:15-12:15, 1:00 – 3:00 PM). All teachers in both the Park Rapids and Nevis School Districts are required to take 3 classes, although many take additional classes. Sessions are held in the Park Rapids Century School and in the Nevis High School. We do pay a stipend to teachers.

We are mostly looking for classes that help teachers integrate any type of technology into their classroom. Have an idea? Shoot me an email and we’ll discuss it. 🙂 If you’re interested, but June doesn’t work for you, please note that we have a similar setup in August, from the 21st through the 24th. I will again be looking for instructors for those classes, so if you are interested, please let me know.

Class sizes are typically quite small, typically 5 – 12 in each class, so it’s a great way to do some personalized training. Thanks! Laurie — Laurie Conzemius Park Rapids, Minnesota http://www.LaurieConzemius.com <http://www.laurieconzemius.com/> ISTE Board of Directors lconzemius@gmail.com

Research, Tech, Writing

Code4Lib Issue 37 Call for Papers

The Code4Lib Journal

The Code4Lib Journal (C4LJ) exists to foster community and share information among those interested in the intersection of libraries, technology, and the future.

We are now accepting proposals for publication in our 37th issue.  Don’t miss out on this opportunity to share your ideas and experiences. To be included in the 37th issue, which is scheduled for publication in mid July 2017, please submit articles, abstracts, or proposals at http://journal.code4lib.org/submit-proposal or to journal@code4lib.org by Friday,  April 14, 2017. When submitting, please include the title or subject of the proposal in the subject line of the email message and the acceptance of the Journal’s US CC-By 3.0 license in the body of the message. The editorial committee will review all proposals and notify those accepted by Friday, April 21, 2017.  Please note that submissions are subject to rejection or postponement at any point in the publication process as determined by the Code4Lib Journal’s editorial committee.

C4LJ encourages creativity and flexibility, and the editors welcome submissions across a broad variety of topics that support the mission of the journal. Possible topics include, but are not limited to:

* Practical applications of library technology (both actual and hypothetical)
* Technology projects (failed, successful, or proposed), including how they were done and challenges faced
* Case studies
* Best practices
* Reviews
* Comparisons of third party software or libraries
* Analyses of library metadata for use with technology
* Project management and communication within the library environment
* Assessment and user studies

C4LJ strives to promote professional communication by minimizing the barriers to publication. While articles should be of a high quality, they need not follow any formal structure. Writers should aim for the middle ground between blog posts and articles in traditional refereed journals. Where appropriate, we encourage authors to submit code samples, algorithms, and pseudo-code. For more information, visit C4LJ’s Article Guidelines or browse articles from the earlier issues published on our website: http://journal.code4lib.org.

Send in a submission. Your peers would like to hear what you are doing.

-Sara Amato, Coordinating Editor for Issue 37

-Code4Lib Journal Editorial Committee

Resources, School Media Specialist, Tech

Top Five Resources from February – Teaching4Tomorrow

It’s always helpful to have new and useful resources if you are an educator working with technology! Big Deal Media has started a blog called “Teaching 4 Tomorrow: Ed Tech Ideas and Strategies Worth Sharing” to discover new platforms and resources for tech educators.

This article shares the top five resources that educators used the most in the month of February. Some of these resources include:

Siemens STEM Day: For students grades K – 12, “STEM Day offers a variety of tools and resources that will help you reinvent your STEM curriculum. You’ll find new, original hands-on activities, a teacher support center, and our Possibility Grant Sweepstakes”

RobotBASIC: This platform incorporates programming language with a robot simulator. The program “enables users to simulate a robot with many types of sensors, control a real robot using the wireless protocol, create animated simulations and video games, handle complex engineering problems, motivate students to learn, and create contests for robotics clubs.”

“Oversharing” Rap Video: This video is all about social media, and about responsibly posting and sharing content. The site has quizzes and activities to help students learn about appropriate social media behavior.

 

Academic, Check this out:, CMLE, Communication, General, Public, Resources, School Media Specialist, Services, Special, Tech

Do you need some pep? Check out these library advocacy videos!

Videos can be a great way to demonstrate your services, and to advocate for your library!  Check out these library videos, to see what kinds of things other libraries are trying.

Does your library make videos? Would you like to?? At CMLE Headquarters, we want to encourage video creation and sharing, so tell us about your work!

2016 Livonia Public Library Summer Reading Program … Parkour!

“Do you need a book recommendation? Have you ever seen a librarian stunt double? Check out our 2016 Livonia Library Summer Reading video featuring Phoenix Freerunning Academy and our very limber librarians. Jump into action on June 4, 2016 by grabbing a reading log at any of the Livonia Public Libraries! Visit our website for more info: http://livoniapubliclibrary.org. And for the Children’s summer reading log, visit our Children’s Programs page: http://livoniapubliclibrary.org/kids/…. Library Parkour!”

Save the Troy Library “Adventures In Reverse Psychology”

“The city of Troy, Michigan was facing a budget shortfall, and was considering closing the Troy Public Library for lack of funds. Even though the necessary revenues could be raised through a miniscule tax increase, powerful anti-tax groups in the area were organized against it. A vote was scheduled amongst the city’s residents, to shut the library or accept the tax increase, and Leo Burnett Detroit decided to support the library by creating a reverse psychology campaign. Yard signs began appearing that read: “Vote to Close Troy Library on August 2nd – Book Burning Party on August 5th.” No one wants to be a part of a town that burns books, and the outraged citizens of Troy pushed back against the “idiotic book burners” and ultimately supported the tax increase, thus ensuring the library’s survival.”

 

 

A Vision Shared: School Board/District Planning for

School Library Advocacy

 

“This short film provides pointers for creating a school board/district wide vision statement for school libraries and emphasizes the importance of advocating for school libraries.”

Librarians Do Gaga

“Students and faculty from the University of Washington’s Information School get their groove on.”

 

Librarian Rhapsody- Shoalhaven Library Staff

This is the most unusual annual report from a library that I’ve ever seen – but combining telling their community about the things they have been doing over the past year with a strong message advocating for the library is a great touch! (Keep watching to the end for the final couple of sentences!)

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

Check out some fun library apps: Boopsie, Gabbie, and Remind

Technology is even better when it can help you and your library! We are investigating three apps that are supposed to support communication with patrons, promote your library, and connect your services with the community.

boopsieBoopsie for Libraries is probably the most well-known library app, and is useful for all types of libraries, from K-12 to Special Libraries. According to their site, the app has been downloaded 3.4 million times, with 500,000 app users per month. The app enables libraries to provide patrons with constant access to digital and print collections and services. It also features a “Library locator” to help users find a location close to them. The app can connect patrons with their library’s social media and event calendar. Click here for more information on Boopsie.

gabbie-redNext up is Gabbie, which is a two-way texting app with auto-commands. Some of the features are providing patrons with free texts for overdues and reserves, the ability to add an “Ask a Librarian” link to your website or newsletters, and a console to communicate with patrons with visual and audio alerts. For some examples, check out these libraries in Iowa that have taken advantage of the Gabbie app: the Wilton Public Library and the Earlham Public Library. For more information on how to get Gabbie for your library, click here.

remindFinally, Remind is an app that was included in the 2015 AASL Best Apps for Teaching & Learning. It’s a messaging app that allows schools or libraries to communicate with large groups or just an individual. It also allows you to set reminders. To see how it can be helpful for libraries, check out this free webinar from AASL. If you don’t want to watch a whole webinar, the presentation slides are also available.

Do you use any of these apps in your libraries, or do you have other ones that you have found helpful? Share your experience with us!