The Library is My Happy Place

For my Module six learning curation, I started a Symbaloo account and created my first webmix . I started with the MediaSmarts website and the resources found in module six and branched out from there. I curated twenty-five links and categorized them into Images, Videos, Websites, Lesson Plans, Articles & Blog Posts, Books, Workshops, and Tools. I found the Symbaloo platform easy to use and I enjoy the visual element of the webmix. It reminds me of Pinterest, which I use frequently. I liked the fact that I was able to upload a photo of my choice for each tile and I tried to use the logos from the websites that I found or screenshots from videos. I have been interested in the topic of media literacy for years, so I added links to "Made You Look", a revised version of a Canadian book about advertising. I also remembered a Vancouver-based organization called Check Your Head and linked to two of their workshops on media literacy and gender in advertising. I feel that I...

I find that Module 3’s topic of cultivating life-long reading habits gets to the heart of why I want to become a teacher librarian. I look upon this as almost a sacred duty to support readers as they discover their interest and enthusiasm for reading. Knowing that being a reader is correlated with success in school and future careers, I don’t take it lightly when I student’s interest in reading is quashed. In the elementary school scenario in Module 3, a Grade 2 reader is sad when he is told he must restrict his reading to level 2.4 fiction rather than the nonfiction books about animals that he enjoys. I would help this student by defending his right to select his own books for recreational reading.  Gaiman states that “libraries are about freedom. Freedom to read, freedom of ideas, freedom of communication,” (Gaiman, 2014) and the AASL’s policy on labeling is that “School library collections are not merely extensions of classroom book collections or classroom teaching methods, b...

I have chosen to create a two-minute-long Powtoon animation showing my recipe for a school library for my Module 2 learning curation. I wanted to build on my learning from two weeks ago by creating my second Powtoon and I felt that the animated format lent itself well to a recipe. I am pleased that I was able to record a voiceover for this movie and time it to match the slides. I see a connection between my essential question (“How can I build relationships with students, teachers, administrators, parents, and other teacher librarians?”) and the goal of school libraries as a hub of literacy and learning. As I mentioned in my animation, I believe that strong relationships are an essential part of the recipe. You can have the newest technology, amazing resources, and flexible seating, but if no one feels welcome in the library, it won’t be successful. I think that time, another important factor in the school library recipe, contributes to relationships, as the teacher librarian get...