Gaming in School Libraries

Chris Harris & Scott Nicholson have me really excited. If you’re not familiar with their research I highly suggest you check it out. It’s funny that these two guys have finally crossed paths. Scott was my professor (one of the best) at the iSchool at Syracuse in the early 2000’s and Chris heads up the neighboring School Library Systems at GV BOCES.

Chris and Scott are heading up an initiative to introduce and study the concept of gaming and its place in libraries. Naturally, as a school librarian I am interested. If libraries are true to form and they exist to serve their users, then gaming in school libraries is a fit. Now I’m not going to get too carried away, saying that a large percentage of a school libraries function should be to serve gamers, that’s why arcades and home platforms exist, but what if 25% of the budget, the facility, and the schedule including personnel for a school library were geared towards the gaming experience?

In listening to Scott’s presentation at the Bird Library on Gaming in Libraries, I find it alarming that we are losing our teens as library users at such an important age. Gaming as a part of a user-rich experience might help bring some of our YA’s back.

Chris Harris has taken AASL’s Standards for the 21st Century Learner and aligned them with the basic ideas and skills that make up gaming. This is brilliant. And to take this idea a step further, what if on the front cover of every game, right next to the ESRB label sat another label. An even BIGGER label. On that label would be the top learning standards that the game aligns with as a user or users engage in that particular gaming experience.

I could go on further but I’m just starting to dive into this area of research. As I move forward with my career and my highly anticipated tenure review, gaming in school libraries is an avenue in the future that I would love to pursue.

Computer Lab Management Strategy

Tired of the shirt tugging? Hate hearing your last name when you’re instructing in the computer lab?

I’ve got your solution.

I’ll let the picture do the talking on this one.

The red/green card is an ingenious idea for management of an elementary computer lab. If a student has a question or concern they turn their card from green to red. So, in five year old terminology, green=good red=stuck.

To assemble your very own red/green cards take index cards and tape green construction paper on one side, and red construction paper on the back. If you want them to last a few years, I highly suggest you get them laminated. When the come back from laminating, take wooden squeeze clothspins from the dollar store and affix them with an adhesive to the corner of your computers. I ended up using the leftover adhesive strips from the plastic 3M hooks for students headphones.

Voilà! An easy elementary school computer lab management strategy.

Observations…Check, Portfolio….Check, Tenure…..?

I’m back from a long, long absence. The three months away from my blog have seemed like an eternity and I am sure that all readers have probably abandoned School Libraryland. I’m not worried, I’ll eventually get you back

I’m in my third year as a school librarian in upstate New York. I can honestly say that it has been a positive experience, having three years of being in trenches under my belt. To think of where I was when I started as a greenhorn to the point that I’m at now, I know I am exponentially better at my craft. But, I simply cannot type to my bosses and the Board of Education the two sentences that I just typed to you. There are formalities you see, and hurdles that must be hurdled. Oh yes, the hurdles…the many, many hurdles.

I’ve been observed in an instructional setting nine times: six by my Principal and another three by upper Administration. I’ve completed a three year in-house course in mentoring and hundreds of hours of professional development. Then there’s the published writings, professional work in the community, unwritten scholarship, and on and on.

For the last month I’ve been working on my professional portfolio and I’ve found it to be an intensive exercise in self-reflection and growth. By leveraging my training at Syracuse at the elementary ed. and library media specializations, I feel that I’ve put together a product that is not only a doorway to my beliefs and pedagogy but a product that is a combination of theory and emerging best practices.

This week I am submitting my portfolio and documentation to the Board of Education for their review and consideration for tenure. Have I distinguished myself from my peers as an educator and librarian? Have I demonstrated excellence in teaching and promise for future intellectual and professional development? I’ll let you know in a about two weeks.

Best Cities To Educate Your Child

It’s been awhile since I’ve blogged. OK, a REALLY long while. But the tenure process, new homeownership, coaching high school hockey, and the 4:45pm EST sunset has been sapping every last ounce of my energy.

I have a bunch of ideas for future blog posts, I’ll eventually get to them. I’ll get there, if you’ll hang in there with me….a tough thing to do in an on-demand world.

I was compelled to blog after reading a Forbes magazine op-ed piece on the best metro areas to educate your child. The number 3 factor in their consideration was the popularity of local public libraries. The inclusion of library usage into the author’s study is a sign of the value and virtue of libraries, especially in the public sector.  But, we also must never neglect the value of libraries in school settings either.

The Circ Files - May 2007

In keeping with my recently stated pledge of posting the most circulated book in my library, I need to go back about fifteen days and tell you all about May.

May is a busy month. It’s the homestretch when it comes to circulating books in the library. June usually ends up being preempted by inventory, field trips, and closing procedures.

I made a small order to Follett’s in April and ordered a bunch of high interest picture books. When I book-talked them in early May the one that garnered the most attention was Pinkalicious by Elizabeth Kann.

Pinkalicious is about a girl who loves the color, well you probably guessed it by now, PINK!!! She’s obsessed with pink so much that one day she eats one too many pink cupcakes and they turn her body pink. The doctor prescribes a diet of all green’s to counteract her pink-ititis. Eventually she adheres to the all green diet and returns her body back to its normal state.

The First and Second Graders went crazy for Pinkalicious…. and you’d be surprised how many boys are into it too. Order it this summer for your library, it will be a hit when the 07/08 school year rolls around.

Faces in the Crowd

I’m sitting in the Harbour Ballroom at the Doubletree in Syracuse, NY at SLMS. As I look around the room I’m seeing lots of famous faces from the field, a menage of sorts. Sitting to my right is my main man Chris Harris. Chris is on his laptop, blogging I’m sure, to the millions that read Infomancy and Digital Reshift. Welcome to Syracuse, Chris. I see Alice Yucht to my left, and it looks like she’s plugged in as well. I look forward to your presentation at lunch, Alice. Hey look, there are my cronies from library school at Syracuse U. Haven’t seen you ladies in a long time, nice to see you in person rather than on the message boards. And, I see Toni Buzzeo up near the podium about to give the keynote. Better get a new text file open.

More to come….

Operating Instructions

For the first time in my life, I’ve been published. And its not just in the hometown local. We’re talking about some national ‘run’ here.

Props to Brian Kenney and the fine folks at SLJ for their help throughout the entire process. Without their mentoring, this wouldn’t have been possible. I’m pretty sure that I’d still be stuck on the 2nd paragraph. I learned a great deal along the way and hope to be published again in the not so distant future.

I proudly present “Operating Instructions” in the September 2006 issue of School Library Journal.

Check it out: http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6367047.html

My Summer Reading List

I’ve been telling everyone that my plan for summer is ironically to not have any plans at all. Really, that statement is just a cover up. I do have a few plans, but none that merit announcing to friends or colleagues.

What is great about being a teacher in the summertime is having the ability to read whatever strikes you as interesting. I have two books on my summer reading list, and I’m hoping I can get through both of them before Labor Day.

The two books that I currently have on loan from the public library are:

1. Teacher Man by Frank McCourt

2. The World is Flat by Thomas Friedman

I’ll have full book reports up on my blog in September.

The Shirt and Tie

OK, so not everything I post on my blog will be about school libraries BUT most of what I post will be somehow related to teaching in a school.

I often get needled by my colleagues about dressing nicely at work so I am going to address it in my blog.

Growing up I was never exposed to the likes of Gucci, Prada or Louis Vuitton. But, you need not have fashion sense in order to know when it matters to dress nicely. And I think dressing up as teacher is a significant part of the job. Many administrators in education reject the notion of a dress code and often allow a lax dress policy for teachers and students at their school. Another popular idea in some circles is to allow jean wearing on every Friday or at least every other (payday) Friday. I’m not a fan of this.

What we wear speaks volumes of what we think of ourselves, but even more so, what we think of the world around us. As educators we’re role models for all of our students. We’re not repairing highway or changing the motor oil in a car, so let’s not dress like it.  We’re educating impressionable young minds. Our dress, as teachers clearly conveys a message of respect and seriousness that should be at the top of every school’s character education and curriculum programs. When teachers dress up they’re honoring education. We lose so much respect in education when teachers wear the same outfit they would wear to school as they would when going to the mall.

I’ve always made an attempt to wear a shirt and tie to work, no matter what the occasion. Without failure, in every school I’ve taught at, I have been met with astonishment from at least one student or one faculty member saying that I am way too overdressed for the job. It’s occurred to me that maybe I’m an anomaly. Maybe children and adults in schools have come to expect slovenly dress. Maybe it’s why students think that they too can get away with the F word on their favorite t-shirt. Maybe they haven’t seen enough teachers dress nicely. We should buck the trend and start respecting the process of education.

As someone new in education, I’d like to lead a revolution. Let’s be leaders and role models in our workplace and in schools with our attitudes, with our actions, and more than ever, our dress. Let’s make an effort, especially for the children.

Merry Christmas- My gift to all bloggers

OK, OK, so I am starting my New Year’s resolution a little early. Aside from the litany of things I need to work on in 2006, one of them is to do a better job of getting my thoughts and ideas on paper. Since, I hate putting the pen to paper, blogging on my laptop seems like a better strategy.

I’d like to use this as a forum to talk about all things library, especially school libraries. I am looking to have a little place on the Web to post my ideas or get something out of my head or possibly vent.

Let’s see if I can make this last…