Thing #20 Google Docs

I had fun with this one!  I wrote my blog post in the Google Doc. 

Google Doc

LibraryThing Thing #16

LibraryThing is a cataloging site for book lovers.  It allows people to catalog books for various purposes.  To add a book, all you need is the title of the book, the author, or the ISBN. 
It provides a means to read book reviews or write them, get book recommendations, and read forum posts about various books. 
The forums have groups that users can join about topics or specific books.  You can also find information about local book events from the LibraryThingLocal tab. 
I signed up for a LibraryThing account and began adding some of my favorite books and books I've recently read.  I found the site rather addicting.  There are so many articles and things to read throughout the site.  There is even a place to request free books to review. 
A site like this is great for personal use as well as in school or professional.  In my classroom I could set up a LibraryThing account and specify each class I have.  I can make a book list for each class. 
In the media center, a LibraryThing account would be great for teachers and students to generate book lists as suggestions for students.  Listing the books by genre based on peer input might be more powerful than having the librarian recommend books.  I'd like to see teen selected lists for popular books for students who dislike reading, or books for teenage boys. 
LibraryThing provides a means for these things to be possible. 

The link to my very short list of books is here:  http://www.librarything.com/catalog/MaryGirl

Wiki Wonderful- Thing 8

Before I begin I really want to say that the "In Plain English" videos are really funny and easy to read and understand.  
I've used Wikipedia plenty of times while conducting simple research or looking for quick facts about something when my students ask me questions.  Sometimes I don't have the time to go find an authentic source nor do I want to risk Google Images in front of the students because often questionable material pops up.  


A Wiki is "a website developed collaboratively by a community of users, allowing any user to add and edit content."  The level of access to the wiki can be set by the creator so that people can edit only certain things.  


The first Wiki was made by Ward Cunningham and the started name "wiki" was taken from the Hawaiian word "wiki-wiki" which me quickly.  


I have never made my own Wiki but I plan on doing so in the near future.  Some of my friends and I have a little book club and I made a message board for the club.  I'm finding that a message board is just too "much" for my little group.  I think a Wiki would be much easier for the members of my bookclub to add and change information. 


Smartteaching.org has an intersting article describing 50 ways to use Wikis in the classroom. 


Students can post information about a topic or a book and other students can add to the information to make it richer and increase understanding.  I know from my own students that often times I get the minimum and most simplistic answers from them, while other students add information to make it richer.  Wikis can allow all students to participate at their own level of understanding of the topic to be discussed or edited.  


For teachers and staff at school Wikis are great for sharing information.  If I create an awesome reading log that works well for my students, instead of sending it to everyone through email, I can post it on the wiki.  If other teachers have good ideas to make my reading log even more successful, they can edit my file and save it.  


If I had my own computers in my classroom or more of my students had internet at home, I would love to start a classroom wiki. 

Thing 2: What is Web 2.0 and Why Does it Matter?

    

 Web 2.0 is the next generation Internet.  With the increases in technology and social networking, the Internet needed a refocusing.  Web 2.0 is the result.  On a basic level, Web 2.0 allows users to interact with the information they seek.   Information is no longer "read-only" and only in limited formats.  In Web 2.0 information is interactive and in multiple formats. 
     Web 2.0 uses Rich Internet Applications (RIA) to improve the users experiences with the text or information.  These applications often need the user to install plug-ins or download the application.  Some examples of RIA's are Adobe Flash, Java, and Microsoft Silverlight.  
     Web 1.0 was mainly written in HTML.  Web 2.0 however is being written in other language such as XML, which allows for less formatting problems. 
    Socialization is the key to Web 2.0. Applications vary in types.  Some examples of Web 2.0 applications are "blogs, wikis, podcasts, social networking and social bookmarking sites, tagging, photo- and video-sharing, and RSS." 

    

  This exploration of Web 2.0 should have been completed at the beginning of my 23 Things investigation.  The 23 things all fit into Web 2.0.  Media specialists need to be aware of what is out there and why it is important.  Understanding the vast resources on the Internet would help a media specialist or librarian better serve their patrons.  A media specialist who is comfortable with Web 2.0 components would be able to mesh the modern technology into the media website.  Social media definitely has its place in the school media center.  What better way to reach the students than this?  Something their interested in, something catchy and vibrant, fast, and ever changing.   The world is changing and so should school media centers.   

      

Skinned

Searching for something to read last week I came across this book on a colleagues shelf waiting to be put into her classroom.  What drew me to the book was the cover art.  The girl has such a close resemblance to Anna Torv from Fringe, one of my favorite shows.  The preview on the back of the book was interesting so I gave it a try.  I normally don't read too many Sci/Fi type books but I really enjoyed this one.  Though I have some reservations about my friend putting it on her middle school classroom shelf.  I think her 8th graders could handle the sexual content and a few instances of foul language.  

There were so many themes in this book that were relevant to my students and teenagers growing up in the technology age.  The main character is in a horrible car accident.  When she wakes up she discovers that her body has died, but her memories, thoughts and her personality has been preserved in a Skinner or Meca. The journey begins from a popular, self-centered, genetically idea girl's perspective and shifts to a Skinner's perspective.  She becomes an undesirable copy of a human being, an outcast. She must learn to control her new body with her computer brain while her friends and family struggle with the realization that their "real" daughter or friend is dead and Lia is just a copy. 

I'm waiting patiently for the 2nd book (Crashed) to arrive in my mailbox at school so I can find out what the next step is for Lia and what new challenges she will be faced with in her struggle to survive.