Modeling Life Long Learning

You know how we encourage our students to be life long learners? How we worry about our students experiencing summer slide? This made me start thinking about whether we, the adults in the process, are walking the walk, or just talking the talk. How often do we as educators practice what we preach? Do we "take the summer off" from learning and growing as a professional, or do we seek opportunities to learn, beyond our required hours of staff development?

I would say that if you are a connected educator, active on Twitter and/or Google+, and participate in chats and webinars, then you are certainly modeling what we want for our students. Every single time I log on to Twitter, I learn something or am inspired to try something. Because of this, I share the power of Twitter as often as possible.

This summer I have had the opportunity to share about the impact Twitter can make on someone's professional life on several different occasions. During our district summer professional development, I taught four different sessions. Each time, I would see a few people who really got it! They could see what Twitter had to offer, and then they would begin to get excited about the potential. As I was walking out at the end of one of the sessions, I thought about this part of a song from my childhood...

It really does just take a spark. I've seen it happen just this summer with our school counselor. Lindsay Fuller followed a conference hashtag and saw what you can learn without ever leaving your home. She now has a professional Twitter account, follows hashtags specific to school counselors and is working on her online presence through her blog post at Curtis Counselor. Lindsay had to experience it to "get it" and is now learning each time she gets on Twitter or reads a blog. Being a connected educator = life long learning.

Last week, during one of my sessions, a high school biology teacher started to get it. We got her all signed up and the beginnings of a PLN formed. As we were going through all of this, the wheels started turning, and you could see that spark. During our conversation, she said, "You know, we always end the year with dissecting in biology and the kids love it. Then we send them home for the summer. Why can't I START the year with dissecting and get them all fired up?" I had an extra copy of Dave Burgess's Teach Like a Pirate in my bag, and quickly grabbed it and handed it to her. Being willing to change your thinking = life long learning.

Later that night, I saw this same teacher had posed a question on Twitter and was waiting for someone to offer help. I shared her tweet with people I thought would be able to help her, and boy did they help! Thanks to Charles Cooper and others, she saw the true benefit of Twitter, a support network ready to help out. 

During the summer, my assistant principal, Lorie Bratcher talked with me about started a blog. I shared with her two books I had read this summer by Austin Kleon. These books were recommended to me by a teacher-librarian friend, Andy Plemmons.   We talked about how a blog can be an ongoing resume, and that we should share our stories with others. Lorie was Teacher of the Year for our campus, district and even our region several years ago... She is passionate about what she does and has a lot that she can share about teaching and continuous improvement. With all that she has to offer, it is still scary to put that first blog post out there for others to read, but she did it! You can read her post here. Being a risk-taker = life long learning.



This week, I also had the opportunity to speak to our district administrators about the power of Twitter and developing a personal learning network (PLN). To say I was nervous would be an understatement. It felt like I was preparing closing arguments for a big trial... that I had one hour to convince them to try Twitter as a way to grow professionally. I have Twitter presentations for teacher-librarians and teachers, but I knew this one would have to be different. Thanks to insight and resources from my own PLN, I created a Smore that I thought would convey all I wanted to share with them.



Before I got there, my principal, Racheal Rife, had everyone create an account so they were ready to go. A hashtag had also been created for this group, which showed them a way to share information with each other. I was able to see tweets being posted before I even started the presentation, so that was exciting. As I looked out at the crowd of administrators, I saw a room full of educators, many with years and years of experience, who were still excited and willing to try a new way to learn and grow. Being willing to try something new = life-long learning.

And one more thought, a little unrelated... connected educators retweet things on Twitter about how being a connected educator makes a huge difference for people professionally. What I realize though is we still need to reach the non-tweeters. Every time we post a tweet or share a blog post on Twitter, we are preaching to the choir, so to speak. The people we want to see those tweets might not have discovered the benefit of Twitter yet, so they never see them. Instead,  we should share how developing a PLN on Twitter can make you a better teacher, librarian, counselor, principal or superintendent, and make sure we are reaching out to those people where they are, which often times isn't on Twitter yet. We need to meet them in the library, in the hallways or at a conference. And then  make sure that we support them on Twitter, so that they feel its power when they reach out.

These are just some ways we model life long learning for our students. As we begin a new school year of encouraging our students to be life long learners, we must ask ourselves, " Am I walking the walk?" How do you model life long learning? 

Happy New Year!

Last week, while reading tweets from members of my PLN (Professional Learning Network) I could see that people were planning. Planning for a new school year, planning for a new challenge, even planning for new positions or new schools. For those of us in education, July feels a lot like January. It is a time for making goals and changes, for really looking at what you have been doing or where you have been, and then working to make sure that when August comes around, and the students walk in the door, you are right where you are suppose to be, ready to give your very best!

So today, I jumped on board the "Back to School" train! I bought my planner for the year! I've been thinking about the new school year all summer, as I participated in staff development, Twitter chats, Summer Learning challenges, brainstorming sessions with my #Wandoo5 +1 friends, and EdCamp Ft. Worth. But the purchasing of the planner says "I'm ready to focus & commit to ideas and goals for the new year."

Earlier this month, I watched with excitement as our school counselor, Lindsay Fuller started developing her own Twitter PLN and collaborated and connecting with other school counselors. I've shared how being a connected educator has helped me be a better librarian, and she experienced that this summer!  She wrote a fabulous blog post about her goals for this new school year that you can read HERE and sent out this sweet tweet!

This and a session at EdCamp FWTX helped bring to mind one of my goals for the new school year, which is to help teachers on our campus become connected educators. I can do this by providing opportunities for connections and supporting them while they develop their own PLNs on Twitter.  Joining and participating in conversations & chats on Twitter is a great way to become a connected educator.  During EdCamp FWTX, Todd Nesloney Skyped in to talk about his Summer Learning Series aimed at getting educators connected and comfortable with using various tools. He also spoke to the people in the room about creating a PLN on Twitter. Here some more tweets from that session.

Another goal I will have this year is having a MakerClub. Having had a Media MakerClub last school year, I know better than to name this club. The first thing the students did in the Media Maker Club was change the name to Digital Bookworms! :) #studentvoice

 If you've been reading this blog, you know we created a maker space in the library last spring. You can read the posts about it HERE and HERE.  My goal this year is to use this space not only during the school day, but also with an after school club. This club will change each six weeks, with a new collaborative project each six weeks. I have had several parents who are interested assisting with this club, so I will be calling upon them for help. The students have really enjoyed the time they have spent exploring the makerspace, but my goal is for it to be more product oriented, with a mini-makerfaire at the end of each session to showcase the creations of the students. 

The media maker club will also run similarly to this, so that students are learning a tool and then creating with that tool. This decision was based on feedback I got from the members of the Digital Bookworms at the end of last year.

Lastly, a goal I have this year is to collaborate even more with our campus teachers. Each year brings more opportunities for collaboration and more willing participants. These collaboration efforts, like other goals I have, need a specific focus so I will design collaborative projects for each grade level, with the help of the grade level teachers. With these collaborations, students will be taught a digital tool that they can use. While at AASL last November, I listened to Jennifer Reed talk about how she teaches each grade level a specific digital tool each year so that they build a tool box of digital tools. I did a little of this last year, but want to be more focused this year, planning ahead each grade level's tool. These tools will then be used for their collaborative project. 

I am excited about this new year! I'm ready to open my new planner, get focused and start working on these goals! What goals do you have for the new school year? 

#Wandoo5 in Indianapolis

What a whirlwind 24 hours I just spent in Indianapolis with some incredibly passionate people! Five librarians from across the country were invited by Evanced Solutions, a Demco company, to participate in a day of conversation centering around children and reading.  We already knew each other through Twitter, and have all met face to face before at AASL 13, but it was great to all be in the same space!

Matthew Winner, Sherry Gick, Andy Plemmons, Shannon Miller and myself  had all met Lindsey Hill during the Wandoo Planet Banish Boredom Tour. After this tour it was decided that we would all fly to Evanced headquarters in Indianapolis for a "think tank" session! We were excited about the opportunity for sharing ideas and having conversations about children & reading (two of our most favorite things!)

Before we arrived, a sign was created and our group was named the Wandoo 5! We LOVED this and it became our hashtag for the trip! You can search #Wandoo5 on Twitter to read about our day!

Lindsey, the lead for Reading Engagement Innovation for Evanced, picked us up from the airport and then became our tour guide and hostess for the evening. We all were able to visit and catch up with each other, and then enjoyed dinner with president and co-founder of Evanced, Rob Cullin and his wife, Kim Bolan Cullin. A fun fact is that BOTH of them have been named to Library Journal's "Movers & Shakers" list. Add Matthew & Shannon, and half the table had made this list!

 

The next day was eye-opening and inspiring! The day had been well planned to maximize our time together.

 

 

We talked about issues that stand in the way of progress and accomplishing goals. An issue that was shared by several was the lack of technology, whether it be on the campus or in the students' homes. We also talked about librarianship and different mindsets. This was a very interesting topic as we broke it down by combinations of growth mindsets and available support.

A common mindset for most of us in the room seemed to be that we aren't afraid of failure. We might not like to fail, but the fear of failure generally doesn't keep us from attempting something new. We talked about how we could influence others to try new things, and as Andy says, "Expect the miraculous!"

Matt Sheley, Vice-President of Evanced, shared with us the focus and vision of Evanced and their products. The five of us are all familiar with Wandoo Planet, a reading engagement tool that we have Beta tested and enjoyed, but we also learned about Wandoo Reader, a  reading tracker in a gaming format that is being marketed to public libraries to enhance their summer reading programs. As kiddos log their reading, they will have the opportunity to build robots, even earning game codes that allow them to unlock additional parts. An added bonus to this new product is the data collecting capabilities that can possibly connect the school and public libraries. And guess what is right in the center of this new idea... you guessed it! Children and reading, of course! :) These two reading engagement tools are interest driven and geared to readers 6-14 years of age, although due to the gaming aspect, it could be something even adults could enjoy with their children.

 

 

 

During a break, we were able to tour the building that houses Evanced. It was so interesting to see the development department at work. This floor was VERY QUIET!

The marketing department was also on this floor.

 
Notice the variety of seating! This was an unexpected "take-away" from the day. I noticed the different areas for collaboration and conversation. I thought about how I could implement these types of spaces more in our library. I was fortunate to have even had a few minutes to talk with Kim Cullin the night before about library design, something I think about often due to our changing needs in the library, and something that she is an expert on.

During our working lunch, we learned even more about Wandoo Reader. It was obvious that they really wanted our thoughts and feedback to ensure that the product they had created was a viable resource for librarians and even teachers and an engaging tool for readers. We talked about components that teachers might want and ways to make it fun for kids. They listened as the #Wandoo5 shared their thoughts of this game. You could tell who the real gamers were in the room as they discussed different gaming aspects.



On a side note, it was very interesting to watch the young lady from Evanced sitting next to me who drew some incredible sketches during our day. I just wish I had snapped a picture of one of her sketches. She is very talented!

This was another take away from the day: everyone in that room was passionate about what they were doing. Whether they were a teacher-librarian, a game creator, or a leader of the company, people were doing what they loved! A quote that was mentioned during the day was

I felt this during our day together! Even if we experience failures or frustrations from time to time, we are passionate about what we do and this is what brings us happiness!

Here is a prime example of passion and doing what you love. These are Matt's notes about Wandoo Planet!

After lunch, we saw some possible improvements/changes that were being looked at in Wandoo Planet. I was so happy that my students had been Beta testers, and the company listened and improved the program based on feedback. One thing I really liked was how the interests the students really loved were placed in a hole and a tree grew from it. Students could really see how their trees grew from their loves & interests. My students have enjoyed using Wandoo Planet to find books and movies based on their interests. It is a tool that I have reminded them of this summer as I am sure parents are already hearing, "I'm bored!" :)

The day ended with each of us sharing our "Why" and this was probably the most moving and inspiring part of the day for me. I already knew that the librarians in the room with me are incredible, and this just reinforced it.  Matthew explained how his why is the children, it always will be. Shannon shared about how we have the power to change a life when we listen to our students and provide opportunities for them to feel success. Sherry expressed how her why is making sure that the library belongs to her students, that each of them finds a home there. Andy talked about creating a participatory environment, with all kinds of activities, so that every student can find their interest or passion. After listening to each of their heartfelt explanations about their "Why" I was reminded of why I follow each of them on their professional journey, and learn from them every time I connect with them. They are my mentors and I want to be just like them when I grow up! ;)

And just as important as our "Why" is Evanced's Why. Rob, Matt, Lindsey and everyone else with Evanced, showed us that day that WE are their "Why." Rob said he can't do what we do, but he can solve problems. That's his "Why".  Their passion is supporting libraries and librarians and creating programs that encourage students to read. They know that reading is a key to future success, and that by creating programs such as Wandoo Planet and Wandoo Reader, they are helping students connect reading with their interests.

It was an experience I won't soon forget! Thank you everyone at Evanced for an AWESOME day!! Maybe we should make it an annual event!

 

Why a Librarian, You Ask?

As you can see, April is School Library Month, and so I am joining other librarians in my Twitter Professional Learning Network (PLN) to share stories on how we ended up as librarians. Funny how a tweet can quickly turn into a hashtag. You can read Andy Plemmon's story HERE and Sherry Gick's story HERE, and follow #whylib on Twitter to read more stories.


Here is my story...
I have loved to read as long as I can remember, but I honestly never thought I would be a librarian. When I was young, I really wanted to go to law school and become a lawyer and then  a judge. When I went to college, I studied criminal justice and received a degree in Criminology & Corrections. I toyed with the idea of going into law enforcement, but ended up as a parole officer in Houston, Texas during a time when the state prison system was letting out inmates by the hundreds each day. I had over 300 parolees on my caseload, with home visits being required for most of them. For those who haven't seen me in person, I am about 5'3"... you can probably guess that this was probably not the best fit job for me. I lasted a year, and fortunately we were moving out of Houston, so a new job was needed. I decided maybe criminal justice wasn't the right field for me, but I also knew I definitely wanted to make a difference in the world. 

For about 2 years, I worked in the business world, and then had the opportunity to begin a Alternative Teacher Certification program that our local education service center was beginning. With criminal justice, I felt like I was getting to people too late to make a difference, but surely as a teacher, I could have a positive impact. The program required you to attend four weeks of training during the summer, eight hours a day. Nervous about leaving a job without having another one, I started interviewing for teaching positions. Luckily, I was hired before I started the program, so although I would go a couple of months without a paycheck, there was a teaching job in my near future. Let me say, I LOVED teaching. I began teaching 3rd grade in 1992, when my oldest child was a little over one. It was a perfect fit- I felt like I could make a difference and I had time to spend with my young daughter. I continued to teach at this school for the next six years, changing grades from time to time, even looping up with a class from 4th to 5th grade.  Then there were a few relocations that required new positions, all still in 4th.

In Texas, 4th grade is kind of a stressful year because the students take three state exams, writing, math, & reading. The standardized testing system had changed a lot since I first began teaching, and I was getting frustrated and feeling ineffective as a teacher. 

During all of this time, I knew I wanted to go back to school to get my master's degree, but could not decide what I wanted to study. Some days, I wanted to be a counselor, other times I thought maybe I would try for diagnostician, but I was never 100% certain on anything. Part of it was that I was always looking at what degree would increase my salary, not what degree would increase my satisfaction. Thankfully, there is always someone else watching over me. I waited, and doors opened. 

By the time I thought about a library science degree, my oldest was 20 years old. It just so happened that I was still teaching 4th grade, just in a different school. I had always said that when teaching stopped being fun, I would do something else because the kiddos don't care how long you've been teaching.  It is, hopefully their only year in that grade. The joy of teaching was definitely dwindling by this time.  One day, I got a phone call from a librarian friend at my previous school. She asked if I had heard about our Education Service Center's meeting for a MLS cohort in the area. No, I hadn't, but I looked it up and went to the meeting. Ironically, the same university, Sam Houston State University, where I had received my BS degree, was offering the MLS program and it was mostly an online program. 

I signed up and began the program, even convincing my friend Nitza Campos to join me. That was in January of 2011. Fortunately,  the librarian job on my campus became available for the next school year- doors opening....  I started in that position while completing my degree and within 18 months, I graduated with my MLS. That was just three short years ago, and every single day that I walk into the library, I am thankful for the opportunity to be there and to make a difference. 

I am also thankful for the inspiration and encouragement I get from my PLN on Twitter. When I was in grad school, one of the professors had us create a Twitter account. This was probably one of the best things that happened to me as a library student. I discovered two awe-inspiring librarians named John Schumacher  and Shannon Miller and began following them. Then I checked out who they followed and found others who equally inspired me. Eventually, there would be many, many people I would add to my PLN, like Andy & Sherry, Matthew Winner, Jennifer Reed, Margie (aka: @loveofxena), authors, illustrators, technology tools, and I would even find my #TLBFF's (Nancy Jo Lambert, Cynthia Alaniz & Tina Berumen) who encourage & inspire me a little closer to home (they are also in Texas!) There are truly so many inspiring librarians!

So from parole officer to teacher to librarian... not exactly the route I would have guessed, but maybe you have to travel the path to wind up exactly where you are meant to be...Being  a teacher-librarian is rewarding and the PERFECT job for me! Books & kiddos, with some technology mixed in... what's not to love?? And the icing on the cake- receiving emails like this from a student just this past Friday night.

That's #whylib! :) Happy School Library Month! Lives Change @ Your Library!

Kate Klise Author Visit

Curtis students were treated to a "real-live, in person" author visit this week, and it was an AWESOME experience! Back in the fall, PTA came to me to see if there was a program or author we would like to have for the students that they could help provide. I had not hosted an author before, and it had been many years since one had visited Curtis, so I wasn't sure where to begin.  As usual, I went to my Twitter PLN and the name Kate Klise came up more than once. I checked out HER WEBSITE  and then emailed her. Klise was able to add us to an already planned trip to Texas, so the planning began!  

To get ready for her visit, we read books by Klise, we listened to audio of her reading books, we made signs to welcome her and we even ordered a super fun cake with the covers of some of her books!

                                      

AND THEN SHE ARRIVED!!

Ms. Klise started off the day with 5th & 6th graders. She shared about her childhood and the beginning of her life as a writer. We loved the stories of how her mom did not believe in sugar, potato chips, Barbies or children having money! Gasps could be heard from the audience! She had us laughing out loud as she told us about wanting a haircut like Farrah Fawcett! And then she showed us the haircut she ended up with! As if on cue, one student said, "Oh, I'm so sorry!" :)

Next up were 3rd & 4th graders, and they were so entertained and engaged by her presentation. Students learned about how "writing is messy" and were even able to see some of the drafts of Ms. Klise's writing. As she explained the elements that a good story needs and the writing process she uses, she drew a clock to help students visualize. She wanted students to understand how to make their writing more interesting. This made the writing process easy for even the youngest writer to understand!

With each presentation, she would have volunteers come up to help create a story. Students would come up with the main character, the problem and what the main character wanted. They would then have to come up with a problem and solution. They LOVED this part and it was fun to watch as Ms. Klise guided them into creating some very interesting stories! 

Students enjoyed being able to visit with Klise before and after the presentations, and she made sure to talk to them and answer questions as they were leaving or as they were waiting. The smiles were priceless as she interacted with our students!

Curtis students had the opportunity to pre-order different titles by Kate Klise and were then invited to the library to meet her in person and have them signed. They were in awe of her and so polite as they introduced themselves! Hopefully it will be a special memory for them!

One of the parts of Klise's visit was a writing workshop with 30 students. Classes were invited to write persuasive letters to me, telling me why their class should be chosen to have this opportunity. Mrs. Palmatier's class won, and since there were only 17 students here that day, 13 students from Mrs. Shaw's class joined them. It was an incredible experience for them to get writing advice from a published author! 

                                     

Students began working on stories immediately and were so anxious to share their writing with Klise and the teachers in the room! There was so much energy in the room!

 There was even time for some volunteers to share their story with the whole group! It was awesome to watch students who were usually reluctant to write come up with creative stories AND volunteer to share! 

Kate Klise ended the day with our K-2nd grade students. If you have ever spent much time with this age group, you know that traditionally it is hard to keep them engaged at 2:00 PM, especially since most had already been to PE/Music/Art class! Well, this was not a problem for our visitor! These students were so engaged and attentive! 

AND they couldn't wait to write books!! I got this one FIRST thing this morning from a KINDERGARTEN student! 

I would definitely call this a success! We are already thinking about next year and who we can invite to visit Curtis. Have you had an author visit your school that you have really enjoyed? Any suggestions for our next author? I'd love to hear about successes you have had with author visits!