Hanging on For Dear Life

Hanging on For Dear Life
Originally uploaded by sails4fun

Someone couldn't wait to step onto dry land.

Feeders, Bookmarks, and Library Sites……OH MY!

Bloglines versus Google Reader wasn’t even a contest for me.  I found Google Reader much more maneuverable and user friendly.  I liked how I could “star” items that I wanted to come back to later on Google reader.  I didn’t find a similar feature on Bloglines.  The only pro that I could find for Bloglines was the mosaic representation of images associated with the feed, when there was one.  Visually it did set the different postings apart and after looking at so much text, a change was nice.  The cons that I found for Bloglines were that it was extremely hard to navigate!  When I wanted to delete a feed there was no help button on my screen.  After clicking on every imaginable button and praying, I finally realized that when I clicked on the “go to Bloglines.com” tag there was a small help tab.  This tab directed me to the tiny gray area next to the title that had edit written in white.  White text on a light gray background didn’t exactly jump out at me.   At one point while adding a feed to Bloglines I was told that I had an “unhandled error.”  I SOMEHOW managed to notice that the URL address did not start at the left of the box.  Apparently there were two spaces which caused this error.  Ugh!   I guess I was spoiled since I had first set up a Google Reader account and found my way around without bursting any major blood vessels.  I learned my lesson slowly that while bundles of similar feeds sounded nice I spent an incredible amount of time weeding through a large number of them that I ended up deleting.  Starting small is definitely the way to go.  I had a few solid days of digital overload and after a while of looking at the text I found comprehending it even more of a challenge.  Good news, I have recovered!

I chose 5 blogs to follow in my Google Reader.  The first blog is Will Richardson's Blog because since we are reading his book for the course I thought that this would keep me current with his views on technology in the school environment.  I discovered an interesting tool while reading a Google reader feed from Will Richardson titled The Choices We Make.  In an effort to try to cut down on information overload, he uses a tool called Proxlet to sift out only Tweets with links for his Twitter account.  With all of the information streaming towards us, good filters are going to make our lives much saner.  The second blog is Tech & Learning because I liked how they offer a grade appropriate "site of the day" that support topics such as The Boston Tea Party and Kids for Saving Earth.  This can be used to help supplement the curriculum.  I chose Read Roger at first because he is a Horn Book editor.  I found that I also enjoyed his sense of humor and the books he reviewed as well.  I liked The Children's Literature Book Club because she uses the blog to post children’s books that her club will discuss along with thought provoking questions for those that can’t attend so that they can still participate.  (That and I liked her April 19, 2008 post on her visit with Jon Scieszka.)  Finally, I chose Joyce Valenza’s blog Never Ending Search because in addition to reading posts by her, in this class and my last one, her entries discuss everything from books and vokis to the library as a multimedia center in a positive way.  She is a great example of the librarian of the 2st century.  I like how she manages to cover tough topics such as “5 Reasons Why Library Aides Should Not Be Cut” and she combines it with a pop culture figure such as David Letterman to make the plea more appealing and memorable.

First came Diigo and then came Delicious.  I think if I had to choose my favorite it would be Diigo.  I really liked the fact that any bookmarks listed were saved as a snapshot in HTML and as an image in the “Diigo cloud.”  (It sounds like a pretty cool place.)  The fact that there would never be an unsupported bookmark was a huge plus.  The use of multi-colored highlighters and the ability to leave annotations or notes on sticky notes was an extremely interactive feature.  The tutorial was great on Diigo as well.  Once I realized that I needed a toolbar, it was very easy to install.  I also loved their recommended tags because sometimes I just needed a little help coming up with different words.  While Diigo focused on preserving content, Delicious was more focused on sharing links.  With Delicious, I did have a little harder time navigating, especially when it came to finding the small button on the lower left part of the screen to manage subscriptions.  Overall the look of the Diigo page was much more uncluttered and appealing.  While I am using the Delicious account for my professional bookmarking, I chose to keep the Diigo account as a great family bookmarking site.  I found that with both sites they are only as good as your tags.

The award for “Best Final Line in a Terms of Use Statement” goes to (insert long drum roll here)…..LibraryThing.com for posting the following:

BY USING LIBRARYTHING.COM DIRECTLY OR THROUGH A MEDIUM LIKE A COMPUTER WITH A KEYBOARD AND MAYBE A MOUSE ATTACHED YOU AGREE TO TAKE THESE IMPORTANT AND CONSEQUENTIAL TERMS OF USE SERIOUSLY EVEN THOUGH, OR EVEN BECAUSE, WE HAVE ONLY ONE SENTENCE AT THE END IN CAPITAL LETTERS.

That statement alone shows that these people that run this site are truly interested in the social aspect of cataloging and bookmarking and they are creative.  I thought that the Local feature was really neat.  Being able to find local events or even post local events takes the on-line social networking off-line as well, thereby creating the “face to face” interface.  I like how they allowed for various sorts and offered recommendations along with offers to receive free books in exchange for a review.  I was impressed with the large scope of this site.

Goodreads also had its appeal and therefore I opened an account there as well.  At first I was a little annoyed that I couldn’t immediately get started but instead had to take a “book compatibility test.”  I did like that they saved my responses and ratings and added them to my library.  Unlike the other two sites, I liked how within my library it was very easy to see, based on the shelf feature, which books I had read versus the to read or reading books.  I also liked that I could shelve a book under more than one shelf on Goodreads.  Under the Goodreads goups tab, I also liked that there were suggested book clubs that were also reading my book at the same time.    Like LibraryThing, Goodreads had giveaways and local events.  

Shelfari, in comparison, seemed lacking in its toolbar and choices.  While choices similar to those found on Goodreads and LibraryThing were available from dropdown menus, they weren’t as easily found.  I am sure Shelfari is as good as Goodreads and LibraryThing, but I found myself gravitating to the latter two just by visual ease.  The final reason that I found myself gravitating more towards Goodreads was that LibraryThing had a maximum of 200 books per year on their free account while there seemed to be no limit on Goodreads.  Overall, I was impressed at these 3 social bookmarking sites and can see why many people found them addictive.

Awesome Vimeo

This video is sung to Michael Jackson's Beat It.  I loved the lyrics and thought the message was great.  Some favorite lyrics were, "maybe your craving digital text." and, "research, share it, and tweet it."  Very current of them and it looked like they had fun too.  I know this isn't technically until week 6, but I just couldn't help myself.  Great way to make a library experience enjoyable and they mentioned a large amount of the technology needed in the lyrics.  Enjoy!

Read It! from Joyce Valenza on Vimeo.

Creating A Wiki!

This week playing with my NEW WIKI has been just as exciting as it sounds!  I first looked at PBWiki but it looked so “business like” that it didn’t seem very inviting or easy to navigate.  I liked the larger storage capacity and password protection on the free teacher wikis that were offered on Wikispaces in contrast to the basic page on PBWiki.  Wikispaces made me feel much more confident that this was a task that I could easily accomplish.  I enjoyed playing with my wiki this week and learned a great deal about what worked and what didn’t.  I also realized that sometimes you need to step back from it and approach it fresh at another time to solve a problem.  This was definitely the case with changing the fonts and centering.

My Wiki (http://readingatgloverisfun.wikispaces.com) is an attempt to bring a wiki to my school library.  I see this wiki as a place where students in addition to teachers can comment on books (K-3) that they liked in order to stimulate student interest in various books.  It is also a place where kids, parents, and teachers can request books that they would like to see in the library.  The parent resources page is meant to be an ongoing site for parents to reference various links and post new links that they wish to share with other parents in their community.   There is also a “meet the author” page by grade, a gift book program page, and a link to the Glover School library book catalog.  

I was surprised to find the school web site information page relating to the library resources so out-dated that a large number of the links no longer existed.   I spoke with the both the librarian and the principal to see if this Wikispace would be a helpful tool.  The principal was totally supportive (both financially and creatively) and the librarian was eager to hear more about it.  In the past, there had been a book club and when I mentioned this wiki to the principal she offered some money to buy additional books to fund a new book group!  Look out Oprah's book group, they'll just have to read about our success in the wiki.

A "HUGE" Exploration in Blogging

 The following rather lengthy post gives my observations while "playing" with various blog sites I visited.


Twitter

Day 1 on Twitter had me realize many things.  First, getting an account was easy, finding the real Stephenie Meyer’s Twitter was a bit harder.  (I am still not sure if the one I looked at was real.)  Second, by the end of my first day on Twitter, I had one follower, but after being initially happy that she found me, I think she realized that she didn’t know me and chose to ” unfollow” me.  Second, I chose to follow stores I knew, authors, librarians, libraries, a few friends, some food sites, my college, and a humor site.  (Who doesn’t like a good laugh?)  Third I observed that while most people don’t use complete sentences (which I am ok with), I really can’t stand the lack of use of punctuation, capital letters, and uncommon slang.  Lastly, I was not sure what the “#priorities” meant, but I am thinking it is some sort of ongoing list.  It only took me until day 3 to figure out that # is a hashtag and a way to categorize your post and make it easier to find for people looking for related material.

I am still playing around with the security settings, background colors and design, finding people to follow, linking it to my blog, and reading tweets.   (I still think it should be “twits,” but understand that that would just be bad PR.)  It is easy to lose a few hours trying to follow several people, let alone my mere 30, and all of the links that these tweets lead me to discover.  

My initial thoughts were that this is great for written “sound bites.”  Like many others, I envision a teen using their Iphone or Blackberry to post their latest epiphany to the world.  I never realized that this could have business and school uses.  I currently do not have access to a computer during the school day on a regular basis and my cell phone doesn’t have all of the bells and whistles, so I don’t know how practical this would be for me as a school tool right now. 

Blogger

While I had a blog from my previous course I tried to do something different with it.  I couldn’t bring myself to change the book backdrop because it is so “schoolish” so I spent a few hours navigating a possible connection between Twitter and my Blog.  After a while of this, I finally went to Google for some answers. 

A positive for me is that I can write as little or as much as I want on my blog.  I am not limited to a short one sentence blurb, as in the case with Twitter.  I like how I could link my Blog to my Twitter account along with listing those that I could find of other classmates and Barb, of course.  I like how this helped me organize all of the Twitter accounts a little better.

Edublogs

I loved the home page of this site.  It was uncluttered and colorful.  Somehow, it put me immediately at ease.  I liked how the 1^st thing that I saw at the top of the page was “Why Edublogs?” and next to it “Help & Support.”   I liked how the edublogs are broken down further  into students, teachers, and campuses. They seemed to address some of the most common concerns in blogging and schools on that page.  From the layout I knew exactly where I wanted to go to have my questions answered.  The word FREE jumped out at me as well.  I liked that it was allowed by most school filters because it was an all education site.  The privacy settings took a little digging to figure out.  While the free option blog has privacy to search engines, only the paid options offer full privacy with security.  I found the Top 10 Ways to use Edublog to Teach very interesting.  I realized that my alma mater also is offers a campus blog through Edublog.

LiveJournal

In contrast to Edublog, LiveJournal immediately seemed cluttered and too commercial.  The prominent add for Ideeli designer boots along with the virtual gift shop, with its animated gifts below it, drew my initial attention.  The site was very drab and cluttered.  The help options were a little less obvious as was maneuvering the site.  LiveJournal claims to be a global community where you can customize your own personal journal along with imbedding multimedia options or social networking with friends or those with similar interests.  They make it easy to stay connected while on the go with options for email notification, text messaging, and IM.  Again, I found that my alma mater was part of this as well.

WordPress

On first glance, WordPress seemed to offer diversity with samples of different types of blogs on their home page.  I loved that they have a 10 step walk-through guide for the nervous and technically challenged.  (They definitely market to real people like me.)  I like how they step-by-step walk you through the set up steps with actual screen visuals.  Their words of wisdom, “Blogs need a focus.” make so much sense while their approach to it was very humorous.  

Some blogs were related to national news, humor, cooking, and technology.  One blog that caught my eye was titled The Future of Texbooks in a Digitized World.  I was amazed to find out that there is a California Law requiring the use of electronic textbooks by 2020 in all primary and secondary schools.  (After further clicking, I found that the law requires access to all textbooks on line that are used in print form.)  The post talks about how newspapers were slow to react and nearly went under financially as a result.  The post states that the financially feasible thing to do is for textbook companies to jump on this ereader bandwagon early and make their etextbooks be non-transferrable and charge the user a per-use-fee.  

My favorite quote was by Mark Twain “The secret of getting ahead is getting started.  The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.”  When it comes to exploring technology, this quote is even more appropriate.  This site couldn’t be MORE user friendly, even for a novice like me.

Twiducate

While the home page states it is a social networking for schools site, the background color makes it hard to see the purpose.  It looked promising but then clicked on the YouTube video and my computer monitor went black and made a not very nice grinding sound.  After having my husband, bring it back up and check for errors I was a little leery to hit play button again.  With that said there really wasn’t much more information offered on their home page.  You could log in, play the video, read the 6 bullet points about their site, or sign up.  It left me wanting a little more info before I even would think about signing up.

TodaysMeet

This on-line “room” allows users to meet and participate in a two-way presentation.  There is a time length that you chose for the room.  While you don’t have to be on Twitter, the use of hashtags on TodaysMeet pulls in anything from Twitter that comes after the hashtag.  This is beneficial when trying to talk to multiple people without your meeting being totally public.  When I read the feedback of the “TodaysMeet meets Twitter” News, out of 13 posts there were 10 that expressed some problems.  Hopefully since the last post was from June 2010, TodaysMeet has worked out the bugs.  I also learned that backchanneling allows for sidebar communication.

Edmodo

The name sounds like some sort of modern Japanese anime, but it is, in actuality, a social learning site for classrooms.  On this site you can customize you connections, manage support and monitor activity.  In Edmodo communities, you find what other teachers recommend in content areas such as math, social studies, language arts, and science.  The introductory video gave a nice overview of the applications of Edmodo.  It likened Edmodo to a membrane functioning in osmosis which allows the flow of information into the classroom.  Other digital content publishers, such as Quizlet, are part of the Edmodo learning community.  It makes learning and sharing seem like a breeze.

Supportblogging.com/Links+to+School+Bloggers

This page is quite a resource of information.  I was like a kid in a candy store, not knowing what to try first. I found myself on a link to a page about Web 2.0 and The 21^st Century Learner.  This person spoke of the divergent learner and the need for the right half of the brain to become more involved with how we learn.  I also saw an interesting blog site on Smartboards.

Edublogawards.com

I found this link off of this year’s winner “Free Tehnologies for Teachers” http://grade1ad.litcircuits.com/2010/03/27/backchanneling-in-grade-1/

It showed how 1^st graders could interact in a chat room.  I liked how the teacher felt that the quieter students didn’t feel awkward about joining in for this virtual conversation.  She also posted the comments in real time on the Smartboard along with teacher comments.  I know kids love to use a computer and can image the excitement that this exercise would have brought.

I also loved the links to edays instead of snow days post.  It talked about the merits of having a virtual learning environment allowing more time for students that didn’t have access to a computer.  All of this technology is really making me think of learning in ways I never thought possible.

Edtechpost.ca/gems/matrix2.gif

The breakdown and groupings of the writing versus reading blogs for students and for instructors was visually easy to understand.  It was similar to a road map for blogging.


I know that I have much more to learn, but I am taking some advice from Mark Twain.  Breaking the technology down into more manageable pieces is a good first step.  This was an incredible journey and in some cases I felt that I barely scratched the surface.  I am much more aware of the many sites available and the applications they can have in a school environment. 

What's HOT!!! (Popular Teen Picks) - Week 14

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Peeta and Katniss are back in this sequel to The Hunger Games trying to play their familiar roles as District 12’s dream couple while the Capitol tries to manipulate them even more.  Gale finally lets Katniss know how he feels about her just as word and signs of a revolt start to surface.  In honor of the 75^th running of the Games, the Capitol has decided that their Quarter Quell Games (the 25 special anniversary edition game) are to have a special twist.  This time the tributes will be former winners.  Rather than see Katniss and Peeta as the sweet and endearing couple that the districts fell in love with, the two symbolize the very beginnings of a district wide revolt and the hope of freedom.  Katniss and Peeta are not going to go down without a fight.

This book was such an obvious choice for this week.  After becoming engrossed in The Hunger Games and how it ended, I needed to know what became of the characters.  When asked by my daughter which book I liked better, I had a hard time deciding.  While I appreciated The Hunger Games for its unique storyline and characters, I found that there were more twists and turns in Catching Fire.  It is easy to see why both Catching Fire and the third book, Mockingjay, are listed by Barnes and Noble as the Best of 2010 Top Teen Picks.  The books combine action, drama, hidden agendas, friendship, humanity, and romance.  The popularity of the series is obvious with the waiting list at the library.  Had I been able to get my hands on a library copy of Mockingjay, I would have definitely included this book as well.    

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks

John Tyree recognized Savannah Lynn Curtis was the girl for him when he first saw her while on military leave at a beach in North Carolina with her friends.  She was naïve and special to him.  He found himself professing his love before his two week leave had ended.  They both decided to wait for each other and corresponded through letters.  A second visit a year later intensified their physical relationship while revealing changes in their lives.  After 9/11 John decided to reenlist for 2 more years, Savannah understood but missed him.  One dark day, he received a Dear John letter from Savannah.  She had moved on.  Too bad he couldn’t get her out of his mind.  His own personal tragedies brought him home and he decided to seek out Savannah for some unknown reason.  John finds her caring for a husband that is going through cancer treatment.  Savannah is hurting but makes her feelings known to John.  John finds himself in a moral dilemma, caught between following his heart and doing what is right.

I asked my own teen what books she felt were popular and she handed me this book.  I found myself liking this book at times and then, for the same reasons, finding it challenging.  As an adult, I have had to deal with most of the heart-wrenching issues that befell John and Savannah; I do not want to seek this out for my reading enjoyment.  It just hits too close to home.  It certainly is an emotional book that does a nice job of portraying one’s youth as carefree along with the adult choices and challenges that one faces.

hush, hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Sometimes in life it is hard to tell good from evil.  That is what Nora faces when her new high school lab partner, Patch, walks into her life.  With all of his innuendos and bad boy looks, Nora is torn between being drawn to him and running from him while trying to figure out the mystery that surrounds him.  Another new student, Elliot, catches Nora’s eye and vies for her attention.   Nora can’t shake the chilling feeling that someone is watching her.  Her house is broken into, her best friend, Vee, is beaten up badly, a homeless woman wearing her former coat was shot to death and now she must confront this evil since he has threatened to kill Vee.  Nora is caught between a battle that has been brewing for centuries and she must decide who she trusts with her life.  

I chose this book because it was prominently featured at Barnes and Noble as well under the heading Dark Top Teen Picks.  The cover art is beautiful and somewhat painful with an angel falling downward from the light and into the darkness as if hit by some unseen force.  This dark fairy tale complete with fallen angels, guardian angels, half-breed nephilims and sacrifices is similar to Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight but much darker with a great deal more drama.

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Making choices in high school is common.  Deciding to live or die as a result of a tragic accident that took the life of the rest of your family is unimaginable.  Mia is a seventeen year old talented cellist, with amazing parents, a younger brother that idolizes her, a best friend that “gets” her, a boyfriend that adores her, and a promising chance of getting accepted to the prestigious Julliard.  One snowy day on a family trip changes all of that when a truck hits her car at 60mph.  Mia somehow separates from her earthly body and is aware of everything that is being done to her.  She watches and listens to the family and friends that visit with her.  Something a nurse tells her grandparents sticks with Mia.  “She needs to decide.”  Mia realizes that she must ultimately make the decision to join her family in death or live.  Her grandfather’s reluctant permission for her to leave comforts Mia until her boyfriend, Adam, begs her to stay.  Weak and tired, Mia knows what her choice must be. 

  

I chose this book because it was listed as one of Barnes and Noble’s Top Teen Picks in the category of Tough Stuff.   This book received starred reviews from School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly and Booklist.  I thought that the depiction of one teen’s love, loss, family and friendships was so beautifully done.  I found it both heartbreaking and hopeful.  I really liked how the author gave us glimpses into Mia as a person through the memories that she shared as each loved one sat with her.  It makes you really appreciate all of the little moments in your life because you never know what fate has planned next.   

Nutritious Books (Good for the Body & Soul) - Week 13

Initially, I found this to be a difficult week due to the subject matter I chose.  I was saddened to think of the issues that some young adults face.  In all of the darkness I did however find a glimmer of hope and managed to make it through to the other side with a few lessons learned along with my literary friends.  I feel that having these resources available opens up potential discussion and exposure to these hidden issues.

Wintergirls by Lauri Halse Anderson

We meet Lia as her stepmother tells Lia of the death of her estranged childhood friend, Cassie, alone in a motel room.  Lia and Cassie both have had histories of eating disorders.  Lia realizes that Cassie, on the last day of her life, called Lia 33 times.  Lia struggles emotionally and physically to deal with this loss, the nightmares, and the hallucinations that continue to haunt her every moment of the day.  Her life and weight steadily spiral out of control along with her other destructive habits.

I found this book in my youngest daughters’ backpack.  She had used this book for a health project that focused on either social, emotional or physical issues that teens face.   After reading Speak by this author last week, I was intrigued to read this one as well.  The cover accurately portrays the meaning of “wintergirls.”  These fragile girls are frozen and afraid to be alone, caught between the world of the living and the world of the dead.  I don’t think that they are fully aware of how close to the edge that they come each day until they can’t go back.  This book helped me to further understand a college friend and roommate that I had long ago that epitomized Cassie and her struggles.  Thankfully my friend’s outcome was a much brighter one than Cassie’s.

Cut by Patricia McCormick

Callie is a 15 year old “guest” at Sea Pines, a residential treatment facility.  She cuts herself to feel and to punish herself for the incredible guilt she feels over the night her brother Sam had to be hospitalized.  While at Sea Pines, also known as Sick Minds by its guests, Callie shuts down and chooses not to talk.  Her daily road to recovery is bumpy and she must confront her fears while finding some supportive friends.

After mentioning to a friend that I was reading Wintergirls, she recommended reading this book.  The cutting and eating disorders are so scary to me.  I know of a girl now that is currently receiving inpatient treatment for repeatedly cutting herself.  My heart goes out to the girl and her family.  This is unfortunately not her 1^st time undergoing treatment.  Initially I had a hard time connecting with Callie because of her lack of verbalization.  I found that I could see her character through her eyes, but it wasn’t until she started to speak in therapy and with her friends that I could see into her soul as well.

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares

This book follows four 15 year old friends, Bridget, Carmen, Lena, & Tibby, as their summer’s lead them on different paths.  A pair of “magical jeans,” one’s that fit and flatter each girl’s shape, are sent from friend to friend during the summer.  The book nicely weaves each of the separate stories together along with letters to one another in between.  Two friends experience loss and two friends find love, but no matter what, they realize that they all have each other and the trust that goes along with their sisterhood.

After reading the previous dark and somewhat depressing books, I sought out this book because I just needed to read about something a little bit more upbeat.  I remember seeing this coming of age movie a few years ago and liking it.  Hoping that I would have a similar experience with the book, I was definitely not disappointed.  I liked this book because even at its darkest spots there was a lesson that you need to find away to deal with the bad because life goes on and in doing so, it’s okay to rely on your friends for support. 

Stick Figure by Lori Gottlieb

Lori is an eleven year old girl that is extremely intelligent, a tomboy, and tends to question authority.  That is until she let all of her mother’s rules and actions reform her beliefs of her own self-image.  Her mother and father only looked at how these changes impacted them; they never stopped to see how Lori felt.  Lori was eventually hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai for anorexia, but continued to lose weight.  Still no one listened and she felt that there was no one to trust.  The only control Lori had in her life was her eating, or lack thereof.  She even believed that she could gain weight from smelling the food.  It wasn’t until she was threatened with The Tube, that she tried to cut herself.  The list that she made to die greatly outnumbered the list to live.  Thankfully, a compassionate nurse saw her cut herself and made a big impact in Lori’s life.

While the subject matter is very dark, this “diary of my former self” was written with humor and heart.  The author found her actual diary from 1978 that chronicled her life during this period.  I found this book different than the other books on anorexia that I read.  I could understand what Lori was going through and seriously wanted to have her parents seek intense counseling.  I thought that the unknowing messages that the parents, mainly the mother, gave Lori were so destructive it was a wonder that there was a happy outcome.  I found this book at my library while looking for other books on the subject.  Having a kept a diary at that age myself, I found that I could appreciate the honest insight into how her eleven year old self viewed herself and the world around her.  I found myself rooting for Lori along her journey of self-discovery.