Wordle for the Media Center

This is my last posting for the 23 things in media. I have decided to try wordle. net. This is a fun and interactive site that can be used by both students and teachers. I thought I could add it to my website for readers to preview books. I could highlight the Sunshine State Readers for my 4th graders as they are reading the 15 books on that list. I thought I would do it by each book at and character traits, settings, and words that describe the book to help get them excited about reading it or as a review to those that had read it. I absolutely love this site and have had fun using it. I could also use it to show titles of new books arriving in the media center. Students could even create their own wordles that I could post to share with others. This is a great media tool for everyone!

Schooltube vs. Youtube

I was trying to think of what to try next in the 23 things list. I thought about youtube since that is so popular for every age group. I have never spent much time on it but my 14 year son watches it all the time. I had heard from a colleague that there was something called schooltube for educators. The youtube site is blocked on my school computers so I thought I would try schooltube. I think I am addicted. What a great tool for educators and one that I can definitely use in my library. I thought a good way to utilize it would be for trainings. I can video myself giving different trainings, orientations, and tours of the library. It would be a great way to share new books or to just show students how to use the library. I could even use it to train students on how to use the card catalog system on the computer. The ways this site could be used are endless. I can even link it to my own website for people to view. It also would be available for others to view and get ideas as I have done the same with their videos on schooltube. This was definitely a tool that excited me almost more then any of the others. I am very anxious to continue using it and finding more ways to utilize it.

Flickr for the Media Center

I have always heard about Flickr and found it when searching for photos online. However, I had never used it nor considered using it especially with my media center. I decided to go on and create an account to see what it was all about. I discovered that it is an amazing tool that can be used to share pictures of what is happening in my media center. I was concerned about who would be able to view this pictures for the safety of my students. However, I happily learned that it can be closed to be viewed only by specific friends of the site.

It was so easy to use. I was able to download pictures to Flickr and then have them sent to my media facebook page. Wow, I am really coming along in the world of technology! The photos could also be sent to Twitter or to any blogging pages. I haven't tried that out yet. I was really excited to see that a slideshow could be created with the photos and then uploaded to a website. That is my next project. I thought that would be a great way to share photos with families too.

I think this is another great tool that can be used to communicate and stay in contact with my media community. It is important for them to know what is going on in my media center and to feel in touch. I think Flickr is a great way to accomplish that goal.

Facebook for Media Centers

I have always enjoyed having a facebook account. It allows me to stay in touch with friends I have known for many years and get back in touch with some. When I first got the account I was absolutely addicted to it! Funny, that I never considered having a facebook account for my media center. I have seen other people have accounts for their businesses and there is even an account put together by parents to complain about decisions the school board is making! I have been leary about creating an account for my media center. But the more I thought about it, what a great way to let parents know what is happening on a daily basis. It is a way of keeping my school community informed of what is going on. Interestingly, the parents don't tend to check my school website but they go onto facebook. I created my facebook account for my media center. It was pretty easy to do since I already had a personal account. I advirtised it and am starting to get friends onto it. I am posting on a weekly basis what I am doing in the media center for each grade level. It is a great way to advirtise projects, activities, and fundraisers. I am enjoying watching it grow. It is just another extension of reaching out to my school parents to keep them informed.