BIG NEWS ABOUT BC BOOKS FOR VANCOUVER KIDS -- check your email on Monday.
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Let's practice visual literacy skills again! Do you know some or all of these people? Do you recognize where they are meeting? How about a little reflection now: Are you looking for a retirement project?
Here in the picture are most of the members of the UBC Infolit group, a group of specially-recruited retired TLs and others who work collaboratively with elementary teacher-candidates to prepare an extended resource-based inquiry unit that features specific instruction for information literacy. The group gathered on Thursday to celebrate another successful year with the project.
You will see Marlene Asselin in the picture. She showed us this cool "mashup" project submitted for a recent class in Web 2.0: Our School Libraries
Marlene presented with Ray Doiron at AERA in New York in March. Their presentation is captured in this wiki entitled New Literacies, New Libraries, New Learners. Sit down with a cup of coffee ... you'll have lots to ponder here as did the many who attended this noteworthy session.
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Alan Zisman sends this interesting 5-minute video clip: Internet Dangers for Kids ... and speaking of Alan, the Google for Educators workshop that David and Alan are co-presenting at Chief Maquinna is rapidly filling up. Sign up online for this Wednesday opportunity to build more tech tools into your teaching.
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According to my little blog-counter, last Friday there were 80 unique visitors to this blog; on Monday, there were 108 unique visitors. While not much happens in between, it is really fun to see the how the bar graph jumps on the day I post and on the first day back from a weekend. I find it all so fascinating ... especially the fact that many of the "hits" are not from Vancouver.
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Quotes from Kit Kreiger at his talk with John Young at the University Women's Club on Thursday evening in the first of a series of four talks entitled Access to Public Education:
Today we have teachers who know more [because of all the research that's available to inform their teaching] but who have less ability to teach [because of the accountability agenda that drives what happens in classrooms].
How astounding that the state of Texas should act for children before the province of BC!
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If you worked with student teachers in your school library, you are entitled to a UBC tuition waiver. Make sure you let your administrator know to request one in your name. The tuition waiver pays for you to take one undergraduate or graduate-level course. There are several of interest this summer, especially the one with James Henri and Sandra Lee. You cannot transfer the waiver. If you are still working at completing the TL diploma, don't miss out on this -- and they are worth twice as much when you are completing a masters.
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This week's TL Studio was probably the most fun one to date, thanks to Michele working with Lana from Tupper. We all donned headphones with mikes and began making jings about the five ways one can cut-and-paste with a computer. Jings allow creators to use "thinkaloud" descriptions to make little videos with sound about what they are demonstrating on the desktop. Ever the keener, I jumped ahead to create a jing about how to read an electronic newspaper, as well as how to print the Sudoko. Now what I didn't fully register is where I will find my cut-and-paste and electronic newspaper jings when I need to show them again ... Lana? Michele?
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Who Dared To Enter the Dragon’s Lair?
from Peggy Bochun
Dangling spiders, slithering snakes and bloodcurdling bats and rats were all part of the imaginative Dragon’s Lair in the Education Centre lobby during the month of February and beginning of March. The display, complete with a fire water breathing dragon, a goblet of dragon’s blood and an fountain full of dragon’s eggs was created by Chris Foxon from the Nursery and his grounds crew to celebrate literacy and the theme of dragon’s in literature. One of the dragons in the display, guarding a treasure chest filled with jewels, was even a celebrity that had starred alongside Ben Stiller in the movie “Night at the Museum”. Moira Ekdahl, library consultant for the VSB, assisted by collecting books from school libraries featuring magical dragons and created a bibliography for young readers. Staff and students viewing the display were invited to weave their way amongst creepy twisted boughs of dragon’s bain and enter the Dragon’s Lair Writing Challenge. The goal was to create a 250 word story using elements of the display in order to win a dragon T-shirt.
Thanks to TL Jan A for bringing Rosemarie and her class here for the display.
Pictured above are contest winner Rosemarie
with Peggy and Chief Dragonslayer Kelly!
Congratulations, Rosemarie.
