This is really new to me. Most of the activities and applications we've done to date, I at least had some basic knowledge of what they were about, but I wasn't aware of how RSS Feeds worked.
I like it.
I've added some feeds that are personal and as a result I'll always be informed about what the latest happenings are in Cricket, which is of course very important.
A drawback I can see is that it may become overwhelming, with the amount of updates that happen each day.
How can I use this in a school environment? OK, this is where my imagination is limited. For me, I'll look for some sites that keep up-to-date information on the latest teen reads. I'm not sure what the students could use it for... I'll look forward to reading other posts to steal some ideas =)
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Friday, September 18, 2009
#14 - Facebook
This had to be the easiest task yet as I already have a Facebook account that I use quite a bit and it is already a part of my iGoogle page.
I have enjoyed taking the time to check out Twitter for the first time though. Time will tell if I become and addict or not =)
I have enjoyed taking the time to check out Twitter for the first time though. Time will tell if I become and addict or not =)
#13 - MySpace
I already have a personal MySpace page, which I admit I rarely use, Facebook being my preferred place to communicate with friends.
I had a look around and didn't find anything that really convinced me to create a page for my school library. I admit to being conservative (or at least not very brave) and I'd like to see some much more forward thinking (brave) school/teacher librarians create and maintain dynamic and useful pages before I go there.
At this stage to manage, moniter and maintain a page and constantly ensuring that the language and content is suitable for school is not something I'm prepared to tackle.
Not writing it off, just maintaining my distance from this for now.
I also looked at some of the public library MySpace pages, mostly in the U.S. I liked what some of them have done. Some of the styles were definitely targetting teens, the photos of events and activites were great and it looked like a great way to keep the community informed of what's happening and what's available at the local library.
I had a look around and didn't find anything that really convinced me to create a page for my school library. I admit to being conservative (or at least not very brave) and I'd like to see some much more forward thinking (brave) school/teacher librarians create and maintain dynamic and useful pages before I go there.
At this stage to manage, moniter and maintain a page and constantly ensuring that the language and content is suitable for school is not something I'm prepared to tackle.
Not writing it off, just maintaining my distance from this for now.
I also looked at some of the public library MySpace pages, mostly in the U.S. I liked what some of them have done. Some of the styles were definitely targetting teens, the photos of events and activites were great and it looked like a great way to keep the community informed of what's happening and what's available at the local library.
#11 - Library Thing
I'm enjoying getting to know my way around Library Thing. I've added a few of my old favourites as well as a few of my recent reads. This application will give me something to do in the school holidays, as I've just moved house and it will give me the motivation to sort and organise my library. I'm looking forward to it.
Some of my books were more popular than others, which is not surprising and again I can't wait to see how popular some of my other books are.
I like how the site gives us the section of conversation directly surrounding a particular book so you can make a more educated decision on whether or not you want to read more. However most of the conversations mentioning my books tended to be very brief or only mentioning my book in passing.
I would love to see this utilised in schools. I'm not sure how we could monitor the content of posts and avoid inappropriate information being accessed by students but it would be worth consideration.
For any interested there is a link to my catalogue below. (If you are interested, you might want to check back closer to the end of the school holidays.
http://www.librarything.com/catalog/Lyndall72
Some of my books were more popular than others, which is not surprising and again I can't wait to see how popular some of my other books are.
I like how the site gives us the section of conversation directly surrounding a particular book so you can make a more educated decision on whether or not you want to read more. However most of the conversations mentioning my books tended to be very brief or only mentioning my book in passing.
I would love to see this utilised in schools. I'm not sure how we could monitor the content of posts and avoid inappropriate information being accessed by students but it would be worth consideration.
For any interested there is a link to my catalogue below. (If you are interested, you might want to check back closer to the end of the school holidays.
http://www.librarything.com/catalog/Lyndall72
Saturday, September 12, 2009
#10 - Image Generators
I had fun playing around with these Image Generators. I can imagine that the students at school would enjoy playing with them too.
I really enjoyed Fotosketcher which makes some great images.
#9 - Virtual Life
After having a quick look at the resources for this activity I can see how it will be easy to become involved in a virtual reality.
This isn't something that I can see myself using at school for a number of reasons. The lack of control over the content that would be inappropriate for high school students as well as the lack of control over who the students are talking to are two obvious problems. However the educational benefits in economics, social skills, property management would be great.
I can see that this would be a wonderful resource for students who are studying at a higher level. For example, I completed one of my Bachelor Degrees as an external student, through a university located in a different state. To be able to communicate in a more persoanl online setting such as Second Life and being able to connect in a casual setting in real time would have been a much more enjoyable experience for me.
You must excuse me now as my other life calls =)
This isn't something that I can see myself using at school for a number of reasons. The lack of control over the content that would be inappropriate for high school students as well as the lack of control over who the students are talking to are two obvious problems. However the educational benefits in economics, social skills, property management would be great.
I can see that this would be a wonderful resource for students who are studying at a higher level. For example, I completed one of my Bachelor Degrees as an external student, through a university located in a different state. To be able to communicate in a more persoanl online setting such as Second Life and being able to connect in a casual setting in real time would have been a much more enjoyable experience for me.
You must excuse me now as my other life calls =)
#8 - iGoogle
I love iGoogle - and I love the searchable gadgets that are available. With these gadgets I can have quick access to things that are relevant to me. I think that iGoogle will continue to change and improve with the times so that I will always have information that I use on a regular basis at my fingertips.
Would I like to work at Google? Hell yeah! Unfortunately I don't think that I'm dynamic enough, creative enough or forward thinking enough to meet their requirements.
What changes would I suggest? Introduce an ice-cream stand =)
Would I like to work at Google? Hell yeah! Unfortunately I don't think that I'm dynamic enough, creative enough or forward thinking enough to meet their requirements.
What changes would I suggest? Introduce an ice-cream stand =)
#7 - Google Books
OK before I go too far, I'll admit that I only had a very quick play with Google Books.
I searched for a few books from series that I'm currently reading and was disappointed. Trying title, author and series titles there were no hits for my book, which is from a popular series. It did however bring up some similar titles. Although they seemed a bit dated. For now I'll probably stick with other sources when searching for books, but I will come back in the not-too-distant future and have a better look to see if I missed something here.
I searched for a few books from series that I'm currently reading and was disappointed. Trying title, author and series titles there were no hits for my book, which is from a popular series. It did however bring up some similar titles. Although they seemed a bit dated. For now I'll probably stick with other sources when searching for books, but I will come back in the not-too-distant future and have a better look to see if I missed something here.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
#6 - Google Maps
The timing could not have been more perfect. Tomorrow, instead of doing the usual day-to-day at school, I'm off to watch some of my students compete at trampolining (which I'm very excited about). Of course, I've left it to the last minute to find out exactly where the venue is located so it has been very useful to not only get written instructions on which exits to take, which roads to turn off on and how many round-abouts I'll be going through but to also have a clear blue line marked on a map =)
Now I've got no excuse to not find my destination and be on time tomorrow.
Now I've got no excuse to not find my destination and be on time tomorrow.
#5 - Google Docs
Hi there,
I found the Google docs utility relatively straight forward and easy to use. It is a great alternative to creating and storing information that you can take with you wherever you go - so long as you have online access that hasn't blocked the Google applications.
If you are comfortable with other applications such as Microsoft Publisher, Word, Powerpoint etc. you will find that you have few problems using Google docs.
Another application that I'm excited to have at my fingertips.
I found the Google docs utility relatively straight forward and easy to use. It is a great alternative to creating and storing information that you can take with you wherever you go - so long as you have online access that hasn't blocked the Google applications.
If you are comfortable with other applications such as Microsoft Publisher, Word, Powerpoint etc. you will find that you have few problems using Google docs.
Another application that I'm excited to have at my fingertips.
#4 Web 2.0
Well, through reading over the past week I've learnt that there are more applications for the the Web 2.0 'movement' than I'll ever begin to imagine.
It is not about new technologoes so much as a new way of using the already available technologoes with it's foundations in end-user participation. The more people who use it, the better it becomes. Apparently the idea of subsribing to pages (for example blogs) is relatively new and significant in the development of Web 2.0. In the past, traditionally web pages were static and viewed by the end- user where they are increasingly dynamic and interractive with 'subscribers' and 'participants'.
As a librarian, I need to embrace and become comfortable with the interactive nature of Web 2.0.
It is not about new technologoes so much as a new way of using the already available technologoes with it's foundations in end-user participation. The more people who use it, the better it becomes. Apparently the idea of subsribing to pages (for example blogs) is relatively new and significant in the development of Web 2.0. In the past, traditionally web pages were static and viewed by the end- user where they are increasingly dynamic and interractive with 'subscribers' and 'participants'.
As a librarian, I need to embrace and become comfortable with the interactive nature of Web 2.0.
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