Christian high School libraries

Via Tom D'Amico (@TDOttawa)

In a growing number of schools, educators are echoing Papert's assertion that engaging students by starting with the concrete and solving hands-on, real-world problems is a great motivator.

 

Students conduct research using a variety of sources, from the Internet to interviews with experts. They work on the project over an extended period of time -- six weeks or more -- because of the in-depth nature of the investigation.

Via Karen Bonanno

InstaGrok perspective on how it will help your students become better researchers.

Via Karen Bonanno

There's a new way to teach using wordle. It involves actually withholding a bit of information and making students think a bit harder. What fun!
Via Tom D'Amico (@TDOttawa)

A teacher librarian's story......I explain to him that it is vital that librarians shout about all the wonderful activities happening in their library. I do just that with this blog, the library website, twitter, email blasts, discussions with my principal, notices in the daily memo and articles in the school monthly newsletter. Since I became a librarian, I have used whatever media was available to advertise the library. I had to.

Via Karen Bonanno

Evernote, 10 apps that work great with this app.

Via Tom D'Amico (@TDOttawa)

Pinterest is about a lot more than fashion and food when it comes to teachers. Here's a few simple ways teachers can use Pinterest.

Via Tom D'Amico (@TDOttawa)

Via Tom D'Amico (@TDOttawa)

The topic of BYOD continues to be a hot topic in schools, with many schools looking at investing in wireless technologies to support students (and staff) bringing their own device to school. While there appears to be agreement that the notion of BYOD is something to be pursued, there isn't a shared understanding of what that might mean in a school context.

Via Karen Bonanno

Tim O’Reilly, Karen Cator and Shelly Blake-Plock weigh in on why K–12 leaders should care about it and other (r)evolutions in technology.

Project-based learning (PBL) is a method used to cultivate learning and teach students 21st century skills. The idea is “built upon authentic learning activities that engage student interest and motivation,” and “generally reflect the types of learning and work people do in everyday world outside the classroom”

Via Karen Bonanno

At the Elizabeth Forward High School library in Elizabeth, PA, beanbag chairs have replaced study carrels, computers are everywhere, and instead of a cranky librarian telling kids to be quiet, there's a new music studio.

Via Nell Ududec, Kent Wallén, Karen Bonanno

Education must move with the times. What can be done to reach a technology-savvy generation that relies on media every free second of their time? BYOD-Bring Your Own Device, a trend that is catching on quickly. Bring Your Own Device has transformed the classroom by creating new opportunities for learning. Studies find that Generation Y is highly reliant on wireless devices and phones. And rather than fight it, educators can use this to their advantage.

Via Karen Bonanno

Building a digital footprint is an issue I believe doesn’t garner enough attention in our personal and professional lives.

Via Tom D'Amico (@TDOttawa)

Studies have proven that when implemented well, project-based learning (PBL) can increase retention of content and improve students' attitudes towards learning, among other benefits....and it is a perfect fit with the Learning Commons approach!

 

Via Carol Koechlin

“Projects” can represent a range of tasks that can be done at home or in the classroom, by parents or groups of students, quickly or over time.

While project-based learning (PBL) also features projects, in PBL the focus is more on the process of learning and learner-peer-content interaction that the end-product itself.

The learning process is also personalized in a progressive PBL environment by students asking important questions, and making changes to products and ideas based on individual and collective response to those questions. In PBL, the projects only serve as an infrastructure to allow users to play, experiment, use simulations, address authentic issues, and work with relevant peers and community members in pursuit of knowledge.

Via Karen Bonanno

This project’s aim is to explore ways in which school librarians can use DL open content to expand and enrich the school library’s resource base and instructional support. This project uses the newest web-based technologies to help school librarians identify DL open content, integrate open content metadata into their OPACs, and help use open content for learning.

Via Karen Bonanno