Give it a try – search everything!

Interested in how we create the above video?

Xtranormal.

Type in text and it will create a movie.  Super easy.

Posterous

Simple way to post everything—articles, files, videos, photos— to one site.

Email post@posterous.com and they push your information to a website/blog.

Now sure what to think?  Click here for an example.

Need more information?  Click the FAQ here.

“Posterous makes blogging easier than ever.”  Andy Ihnatko, Chicago Sun-Times

No time to come to the Library – let us come to you!

You do not have to sign up with us to use and benefit from the library resources.  Students use and love Google and Wikipedia, but there is so much more out there!  It is important for students understand the importance of using more than one source and to learn how to use credible and complete sources such as our databases.

Students struggle with:

• Effective search strategies/techniques
• Creating interesting/logical/effective powerpoints
• Correctly paraphrasing
• Creating works cited pages

Students LOVE our new LibGuides! These allow us to create a webpage to organize all the resources you need for topics and/or projects you are covering in your classroom.  We can post your handouts, videos, widgets (search box), and links for students to easily access from school or home!  We then send you the link to post on your website and we can post on the library webpage.

We can:

• Come to your classroom to talk to students – we accommodate your schedule and timeframe
• Provide a link to a libguide.  You tell us what information to include and we’ll post all the resources your students will need.

Contact us if you are interested in finding out more.

Terry Lindberg and Carolyn Zeligman used the library for a collaborative project for the first time!  After attending the district-wide staff development day, Terry and Carolyn learned about Global Issues, a new database that provides a ton of up-to-date information.  Carolyn was able to determine how to locate actual articles in Spanish from foreign newspapers.

Working with Amanda Davis, they took an existing lesson and integrated Global Issues.  Amanda created a libguide for the students including handouts, note-taking guides, and links to the databases.

“Describe an ecological problem, propose solutions (education to promote a solution), write a slogan, make a poster, and name the organization.”

At the end of the project, Carolyn replied to Amanda that these final projects are the best she has seen with this project yet.

See more examples here…

iGoogle:  personalized home page with immediate access to your favorite resources

Ninth grade students in all social studies classes have set up iGoogle pages.  They can add:

Þ Teacher calendars (if RSS feed available)

Þ Resource widgets (search boxes to credible sources)

Þ Current Events

Þ Personalized themes and other gadgets

Þ Calendar

Þ Task/To-Do Widget

iGoogle is a great tool to organize and locate important information.  No longer are students interested in visiting a bunch of different websites to find one piece of information.  Students prefer technology customized to fit their needs.  iGoogle allows students to customize their needs and integrate teacher calendars, library resources, and other organizational tools.

To see a list of available widgets so far, click here for the libguide page.

Want to know how students can add your teacher calendar?

See Stacey’s Video:  How to set up your calendar so students can add to their iGoogle pages

How can students add the calendar?

Learn more about our new database.  It is AMAZING!!

Global Issues from Becca Munson on Vimeo.

Look what’s new and helpful for you!  To help students readily access credible sources, we are creating libguides (research pathfinders) for your classes.  If you sign up in the library, assign an outside project, or utilize the computer lab, we can create guides that are specific to your assignment.

Examples:

Culture & Food of China http://libguides.bvwlmc.com/culinary_arts

Systems/Utopia http://libguides.bvwlmc.com/utopia

AP U.S. History http://libguides.bvwlmc.com/orlowski

For more libguides that the librarians created, go to libguides.bvwlmc.com.  Please send us an email or stop by to let us know if you would like a libguide created for your classes.

ProQuest

ProQuest, an online resources through the library web page, offers over 5,000 magazines and newspapers.  These resources can be accessed anytime, anywhere with the correct password (available in the library).  Need to buy a washer and dryer? Search Consumer Reports for the most recent review.  Fan of Sports Illustrated, but don’t want to pay the high price for a subscription?  Set up to have ProQuest deliver the newest articles to your email. 

Want to incorporate Youtube videos into your classroom?  As of 2008, over 200,000 videos are published on Youtube – each day (Digital Ethnography).  Although Youtube is blocked in our school district, there are many ways to utilize appropriate content in our classrooms.

1.  Teachertube:  Similar to youtube, an online portal for educational type videos.  Teachers are posting their lessons and student work on Teachertube. 

How you can use?

àSearch for videos by content

àPost student work on Teachertube
(What a great way to engage students in the digital world!)

àPost lessons for students and others to access making yourself a part of the educational video dialogue that is occurring right now!

Teacher Tube released the Top 5 videos (see newsletter)

The #1 video viewed on Teachertube – click here.  It has been used to encourage teachers to use digital content in their classrooms.  The video was created by a teacher to show how students use technology daily.  

2.  Utilize Zamzar.com to convert your youtube videos to a windows media file that can be downloaded to your computer.  See the following link for a demonstration of how-to.  

3.  Unitedstreaming.com – Don’t forget the district subscribes to online content through Discovery Education.  If you do not have a log on, see Amanda or Becca for information.

Ebooks (Gale Virtual Reference) - print materials available online, anytime!

“Databases are reservoirs of valuable information – not just destinations to conduct research” Gale

With our ebooks collection, students can access thousands of articles from print reference works.  The resource also provides citations in MLA and APA format.  Notably, students can easily find an article that fits their reading level.

For more information, see this quick video.