A reading resolution

Is anybody else a tad depressed with all the resolutions this time of year? Honestly, I am probably not going to lose that five pounds around my middle, lower my cholesterol, or get up an hour earlier to exercise.

What I can do is resolve to read.

As librarians, I think it's our responsibility to read. Yes, we want to be experts in many areas, but we're likely the best and only reader's advisor in our schools. And a reader's advisor can't just talk about reading, we need to read.

So I propose a resolution that's fairly realistic. Resolve to read 100 books in 2012.

How can we reach this goal? Read a book a week and listen to a book a week.

At two books per week that's about 98 books per year. During holidays and long weekends we can likely read a couple extra books to put us at the 100 mark.

If you always have a book on your smartphone and soak up those wasted minutes in the grocery store line and at soccer practice, a book a week is pretty attainable. Listen to a book while you commute, fold clothes, and walk the dog. Two books a week--done!

Remember to keep a reader's list (see previous post), and at the end of the year it will be great to have actually kept a resolution, and especially one that helps kids by helping you be a great reader's advisor.

People are our brand

You've seen the discussions swirling around.

Books are our brand, says one. No, this limits libraries, says another. Ebooks, 24/7 access, social media, and information are what we're about.

While I agree with both, I think they're incomplete. The best brand for libraries? People!

By meeting the immediate needs of our users, anticipating their future needs, and reaching out to new users, we're living our mission statements.

This means we'll want to provide books in all formats, help our patrons use and produce information, and meet the needs of people no matter when or where they occur.

Are things our brand? Nope. Service is our brand. People are our brand.

Why Twitter? A collaborative project

One of our terrific government teachers is doing an excellent project with his students using Twitter. Kids set up an academic Twitter feed, follow each other and the teacher, and then recommend other credible people/organizations to follow in regard to politics.

This would be a valuable experience in itself, but the teacher has required that the kids balance perspectives in who they follow and give an "elevator speech" to classmates to justify their choices.

This requires kids to evaluate the credibility and authority of their sources and to look for bias, perspective, and point of view. I think this project will have great transfer to their research skills.

This super teacher asked me to collaborate with him on the project, and the following is a mini-lesson I did with his kids to introduce the value of Twitter and how to judge its information credibility. Feel free to use it if you like.
Image from Twitter Tips Central.com

Cool tool... ifttt

I am crazy about ifttt (If This, Then That), a cool new tool shared with me by my tech pal, David Ashby.

This great tool allows you to set up automated "if, then" tasks using Twitter, Facebook, text, email, Diigo, and scores of other services you already use every day. [Note to the folks at ifttt if you're out there: How about Blogger?]

You can set up replies when someone follows you on Twitter, have favorite Tweets emailed to you, and send your RSS feeds to Diigo, to name a few of thousands of possibilities.

Recipes are ifttt tasks that you can make to share with others, and hundreds of recipes are posted for your use on the ifttt site.

Here's a demo video of how ifft works.

For more ideas and tools from David, check out his blog, Tech Tools for Schools.

Changing formats and collection development

Years ago our library collections were in good shape if they were balanced, diverse, and current. Now the issues of formats and access have complicated these tenets in some ways and simplified them in others.

The following are suggestions that feel right for our library, and I’d love to hear from you as to decisions you’re making.

AV to weed now:
VHS tapes
Cassette tapes
Filmstrips (Surely we don’t still have these?)

AV to no longer purchase and weed when they are dated or unused:
DVDs
CDs

Print to weed now:
Reference materials older than five years
Books that meet the MUSTY criteria

Print to no longer purchase and to weed when MUSTY:
Most reference materials (Keep one copy of the most-used ready reference)
Nonfiction “report” books

Materials to purchase as funds allow:
Online databases
Access to streaming video
Fiction and nonfiction downloadable ebooks and audiobooks
Fiction and nonfiction print books of high quality (award winners, starred reviews, etc.)
Fiction and nonfiction print books that are in popular demand

Basically, I see our physical collections getting somewhat smaller (but not disappearing) while our digital collections grow. Our virtual collections provide ubiquitous, 24/7 access, which is something we can’t say for our print volumes that sit behind locked library doors nights, weekends, and holidays.

But because not all our students have digital devices, because our libraries have limited numbers of devices, and because some of our patrons prefer print for a variety of reasons, we should continue to provide vibrant print collections for now, at least.

Formats and access will absolutely continue to change rapidly and challenge our notions of traditional collection development. What do you see around the corner for libraries?

Research in the Digital Age

Below is a one-hour presentation on research that you're welcome to use with your faculty if you'd like. Questions are welcome!



Credits:
PIL InfoLit Dialog, No. 3: Frustrations
Eli Pariser: Beware online "filter bubbles"
7 Billion, National Geographic Magazine

Get your read on, y'all!

It's a great time of year in Texas for finding good books. Over the past year, committees of librarians across the state have been reading the best in newly-published books in order to form the Texas 2 x 2, Bluebonnet, Lone Star, Tayshas, and Maverick reading lists.

Here's a short guide to these lists designed to promote pleasure reading:

Texas 2 x 2 list: 2 year-olds through second grade
(new list not released at the time of this post)

Bluebonnet: third through sixth grades

Lone Star: sixth through eighth grades

Tayshas: ninth through twelfth grades

Maverick: graphic novels for grades sixth through twelve.

Happy reading, y'all.

You can't make this stuff up

Last week eighth graders were in the library looking for biographies for an upcoming project.

"Do you have a book about Anne Frank," one girl asked? "You know, the girl who couldn't see or hear or talk?"

Another student wanted help finding a biography "about someone in World War II." I showed him several, but not finding any he liked, he asked, "What about World War III?"

Deconstructing research

For the first time in several years, I'm a practicing librarian again, which is great. One thing it's done is allow me to see how things are from a student's perspective.

I've realized that kids, even smart, tech-savvy high schoolers, need the research process broken down into steps. It's not enough to throw out a six-step process, show them how to access the databases, and walk around to see if they need help.

Below is a work in progress called Deconstructing the Research Process that I've used with good success for the last couple of classes who have researched in the library. I gave every student a copy with the home use database passwords on the back and very briefly walked the kids through the process, giving examples that applied to their research.

In a perfect world, kids would choose their own topics and this handout would reflect that ownership. It would also be better for the kids for this overview to be chunked into smaller sections and presented at the point of need.

Your comments, questions, and suggestions are welcome! Because the format doesn't hold well here, I'd be happy to email this to you in a Word doc to use with your students.

Deconstructing the Research Process
1. Understand your task—how do I get started?
a. Set deadlines for yourself. When is the project due?
b. Find out what product you will create. Is there a rubric or project sheet to consult?
c. Find out how you will cite your sources.
d. Know what your responsibility is if you are working with a partner or group.
e. Ask how much detail will be needed. What is the scope of the project?
2. Plan for your topic—what do I need/want to learn?
a. Have a clear understanding of who/what your topic is.
b. Gain an overview by reading about your topic in your textbook or on Wikipedia, for example.
c. Look up unfamiliar words while reading the overview.
d. Jot down keywords while you read.
e. Realize why your topic is important.
3. Search for information—where do I find information? (Ask your librarian for tips!)
a. Know the number and type of sources required.
i. Reference or informational books vs. encyclopedia
ii. Database vs. internet
iii. Journal vs. magazine
b. Ask if a specific organizational tool (notecards, graphic organizer, etc.) is required for note taking.
c. Plan search terms by looking at the keywords you jotted down earlier.
d. Search multiple sources of information.
4. Use the information you find—what do I do with the information?
a. Take notes as you search, finishing with one source before moving to the next one.
b. Organize your notes by subtopic, not by source.
c. Write down words and phrases only—this is key to avoiding plagiarism.
d. Collect necessary information to cite your sources.
e. Keep checking what you’ve been asked to find—are you on track?
f. Consider all possible sources of information.
g. Try other keywords and/or other sources until you find all you need.
5. Create a product using the information—how do I present the information?
a. Consult your project sheet again.
i. Who is your audience? What is your purpose?
ii. Double check the requirements for your project.
b. Organize and sequence pertinent information.
i. Discard information that is not relevant.
ii. Set aside information that may not be needed.
c. Cite sources correctly using required format.
d. Use high standards of quality to create your product.
6. Reflect on your process and product—what can I improve?
a. Revise and edit.
b. Get input as needed.
c. Proofread.
d. Finish your product and then publish, present, and share.

For next time, what would you do differently? What have you learned?

In praise of student email

Do your students have school-issued email accounts? If not, are they allowed to access their personal email accounts at school?

Do you encourage students to contact you via your school email if needed?

I hope so on all counts because email can be a powerful tool to help students at the point of need.

Last week I received several emails from students, and all were at night, over the weekend, or on a holiday. These industrious high school kids needed help with database logins, assistance in finding a particular news article, and clarification about when we'd scheduled our book club meeting. One awesome middle schooler emailed to recommend several books she recently read and loved for our new library blog.

If your school doesn't allow student email, I would encourage you to use these and other examples to campaign for this useful tool to expand the reach of your library. It's one more way that you can create a community of readers and learners at your campus.