Using Padlet for Collaboration

This week I had a class assignment to gather quotes from Twitter contacts about the importance of using social media in education. I think that this assignment demonstrates the value of social media perfectly -- building a professional learning network on a global scale. While a lot of these quotes focus on educators and their own learning networks, building global connections is just as important for our students.

This ability to instantly connect internationally with people you would never have a chance to talk with in person is one of the many benefits of social media and connected education. I chose to use Padlet to collect responses and this would also be a great tool to use with students completing a similar assignment, to collect feedback, or to reflect on learning. Other possible uses would be to brainstorm or collaborate on projects, either in your classroom or with another class in a different location.

Below the Padlet is a word cloud to emphasize the common threads in the comments below. Using a word cloud, like Taxedo, is a great way for students to quickly see the common themes in text and can provide them with a different perspective than they may get from reading the text.

Take a look at what education leaders are saying about social media in education.

If you prefer, you can also view the padlet by clicking here.
 

Created with Padlet

Using Memes with Students

Get that creativity flowing with memes.

I've worked in libraries with signs everywhere, "do this", "don't do this". I don't think signs should replace having a conversation with students and colleagues. However, there are times when reminders are helpful and we can use memes with our students to make these more fun. I got the idea when reading Five Ways to Connect With Students by Tracee Orman. I love her idea of having students close out the year by creating memes with suggestions for incoming students. She also talks about using memes to post classroom expectations,

I also think these can add some fun to the library website. 

I created these in a few minutes using imgflip. A library of images are offered for you to caption or you can upload your own image. I'm going to be thinking of lots of ways to engage students with memes!

Some 2015-16 Books to Movies

Do you like to read the book before seeing the movie?

Here are some of the books which are being made into movies which you will want to read.

The 5th Wave by Richard Yancey

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Legend by Marie Lu

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

More movie trailers added as I find them!

A little about me. 

I have two roles at my school: High School Librarian and Professional Development Representative. I envision this blog as a place to connect with community, teachers, students, and other library professionals in the areas of current library and education best practices, technology integration, as well as PD. I am passionate about the benefits of the library for students and how I can support student learning. As professional educators, we can all model lifelong learning for our students through meaningful experiences and Professional Development. I envision this blog as a space to discuss these ideas.