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Yay it’s National Gaming Day!

Nov 13th, 2009
by pollyalida.
1 comment


Woo hoo! It’s National Gaming Day this Saturday!

On November 14, 2009, libraries across the country will participate in the largest, simultaneous national video game tournament ever held! Kids will be able to compete against players at other libraries and track their scores while playing at their local library. In addition, libraries will be offering a variety of board games for all ages to play together. (ILoveLibraries.org)

Is your local library participating? Check out the map of participating libraries and get your game on!


View 2009 National Gaming Day participating libraries in a larger map

Technology Competencies: Can Your Staff Do This Stuff?

Jun 26th, 2009
by pollyalida.
4 comments
A Clovis point, made via pressure flaking
Need to update your tech skills?  Image via Wikipedia

WebJunction has published a wonderful new document that details the basic skills that library staff should have – from management skills to tech skills to public service skills and everything in between. Of course,  I was particularly interested in the Core technology skills section.

I think most of us are doing great with the basics of using our computers, email, word processing and getting on the Internet. I remember the days when every trouble shooting call had to begin with “is it plugged in and turned on”!  When I’m teaching classes these days, participants rarely have basic skills issues any more. Indeed over the last year I’ve been adding more content to my classes because people aren’t getting bogged down with basic computer skills issues and are getting through the class content much faster. Yay for that!

Where I think many of us aren’t all doing so great is with the competencies in the Core Web Tools section. (more…)

Free Rice – Feed the World, Exercise Your Brain

Jun 26th, 2009
by pollyalida.
3 comments

I’d forgotten about the Free Rice website until a friend mentioned it on Facebook today.  For every right answer to their online quizzes, they donate free rice to the UN World Food Program. And now they have quizzes not only for vocabulary, but also math, foreign languages, geography, art and even chemistry.

I though I’d put my summertime procrastinating mood to some good use and have been refreshing my math skills and German vocabulary. I would have loved these when I was a kid (ok, I was a geeky kid!). Maybe your kids will too? Ok, it’s back to work for me. Or maybe it’s time to see if I know anything about chemistry?

Scratch Day: May 16, 2009

Apr 29th, 2009
by pollyalida.
No comments yet

scratch

Do you know kids who would like to create their own online games, stories, animations and more? Who doesn’t!

Then take a look at Scratch – a wonderful free programming tool “designed to help young people (ages 8 and up) develop 21st century learning skills. As they create Scratch projects, young people learn important mathematical and computational ideas, while also gaining a deeper understanding of the process of design.”

Get a bunch of kids together and join in Scratch Day – “a worldwide network of gatherings, where people will come together to meet other Scratchers, share projects and experiences, and learn more about Scratch.”

I heard about Scratch Day through the March 2009 Games in Libraries podcast.

For some examples, see my earlier post on Scratch.

Teacher Training Videos

Apr 27th, 2009
by pollyalida.
4 comments

I love it when I find a great new resource, only to realize that I bookmarked it in delicious account months ago! So much for my memory. In any case, here’s one of those resources that I re-learned about today. :-)

Teacher Training Videos “were created for teachers to help them to incorporate technology into their teaching.” These screencasts step you through how to use a wide range of desktop & web based tools and include ideas for using them in educational settings.

Tools covered include: delicious, Bubblr, YouTube, RSS, SecondLife, iTunes, Twitter, BlackBoard, Photoshop, PowerPoint and many many more. And there’s a special section of screencast for ELT/ESL. I could spend all day watching these and learning about new tools and new tips for ones I’m already familiar with.

Can’t Keep Up? We’re not alone!

Apr 13th, 2009
by pollyalida.
6 comments
(flickr image by spine)

I always feel overwhelmed with everything that I want to keep up with and I bet you do too. So it made me relax and smile to read Joyce Valenza’s post “In my network confession . . . On being PLNtrenched” If Joyce feels like this, I know I’m not alone.  And even though that doesn’t solve the problem, it’s good to know we’re not alone.

But lately, when I wake up in the middle of the night, I find that I am thinking about my PLN (that is, my professional–or personal–learning network).

I confess.  I am hyperconnected.  And being hyperconnected is both a blessing and a curse.
..
What is it exactly that keeps me up?

Largely, what keeps me up is not keeping up.
..

The pace of growth and change can be stimulating, and stunning, and staggering.

That doesn’t mean I don’t believe. That doesn’t mean I will change my approach to networking.

I cannot remember a two-year period of my professional life in which I have learned or shared more.  Opting out of this chaos is not an option.

How do you keep up to date without going out of your mind?

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