Before I began this course, Digital Technology for the School Librarian, I thought that we would be learning about the physical hardware used within a school. The librarian at my school spends a large amount of her time setting up and fixing equipment. I've learned a lot from her, but this is not my area of interest or gifting; so I was a bit nervous about the class. When I discovered that the course focus was on utilizing digital technology to create, I was excited because I thought that it would be fun to "play" with various online tools. I was right! I had a lot of fun in this class learning new things.
As a final thought, I'd like to comment on the Food for Thought quote provided by my professor from J. Hatmaker. One of the most important things that we can do as teachers and librarians is to examine and listen to our learning community. Rather than jumping in with preconceived ideas based on what we think, we need to assess the situation to determine the needs of our community and progress from there. Librarians and teachers are in the service industry. We can't meet needs if we don't understand what they are. That is my goal as a soon-to-be fully certified librarian: listen, learn, then serve.
When I think of podcasts, I envision Ralphie in A Christmas Story intently listening to the Little Orphan Annie radio broadcast, which was an actual 15-minute serial show for children debuting in 1931. Nowadays, we don't have to sit close to the radio at a specific time awaiting a live recording. Instead, we can listen to podcasts at our convenience. Podcasts are voice recordings saved in an audio file which are regularly posted online...and kids love them (so do adults, by the way)! Effective podcasts are like periodicals. Recordings are regularly released so that the audience tunes in at predictable intervals. Episodes are relatively brief: 20 - 30 minutes long. In Prime Time for Podcasts, Linda Rodgers shares Jonathan Messinger's thoughts including that podcasts are immersive and engage the imagination since there is no visual. Podcasts can be used for multiple purposes. They can be academically informative, serve as a virtual book club, or solely entertain. They can be used to develop listening skills, build excitement about reading, or to spotlight someone in an interview. I hope to use podcasts in the library with students to record book reviews. I'd also love to interview teachers, administrators, and community members about their favorite reads. I can envision creating a series of podcasts for teachers, as well, to spotlight new technology tools or for training purposes.
Prime Time for Podcasts offers the following tips for igniting a passion for podcasts in kids:
I decided to check out a few of the tools mentioned in the articles I read. I was a bit surprised by my experience. Here are my thoughts on the tools I investigated:
SoundCloud
The initial SoundCloud webpage was a bit overwhelming. It had information about listening to music, monetizing, creating, developing, etc. It did not feel like a comfortable place for newbies. I wasn't sure if I needed to set up an account or not to create a podcast. I did, though, because I wanted to see why I might need one. When setting up the account, I had to enter an email address, password, user name, and specify my age and gender. Once I had an account, there were three tabs to choose from: Stream, Charts, and Discover. From what I could tell, the Stream page is like your home base. You can add podcasts to follow and create a playlist here. The Charts page allows you to see the top 50 tracks played on SoundCloud over the current week or to find recordings in specific categories. The Discover page displays various featured tracks. I, personally, felt like much of the items displayed would be inappropriate for school-aged children. I'd exercise caution here. Also, it seemed like the focus of SoundCloud was music -vs- podcasts. I did like that SoundCloud included copyright information. I think that this would be extremely helpful for anyone creating or downloading podcasts. Overall, I did not like SoundCloud, though. I was unable to find a help feature and still don't know how to create a podcast with it.
Audioboo(m)
OK, so here is where things get a bit confusing. I discovered that there is an Audioboom site AND an Audioboo site.
The Audioboom website was definitely geared towards podcasters. But, there was no free option. Whereas, the Audioboo site said it was a free web and mobile platform where you can record and share audio by using a computer or Apple device. As you know, I'm all about free, so my immediate reaction was to try Audioboo. The Audioboo webpage stated that recordings were limited to 5 minutes each; a good option for small amounts of information, but if you want to create regular podcasts of 20 - 30 minutes in length, this is not the tool for you. It was easy to tell that Audioboo was not created by a corporation, as the site was pretty simple and even had a few grammatical errors. It seemed really easy to figure out how to use, though, and the provided podcast examples created by kids were precious. I could see using this tool to create short book reviews, conduct brief interviews, and provide instructional clips. There was even a brief Intro to Audioboo video on the website that was extremely helpful. So, I decided to give it a try. I went to the app store to download Audioboo and...the app did not exist.
After a bit more investigation online, I discovered that Audioboo was relaunched as Audioboom in 2014. Ugghh! So, back to square one. As stated previously, there is no free option of Audioboom. So, my search for an easy-to-use, free podcast utility continued.
Podomatic
When I viewed the Podomatic website, I was cautiously optimistic. The homepage stated that Podomatic was "the easiest way to create your own podcast" and advertised 500 MB of storage for free (and not as a trial!). It listed 4 steps in a humorous way (I liked it already!): record, upload, publish, and promote. Could it be that easy?
I decided to give it a shot. The "Create a FREE podcast" button was easy to locate and led me to create an account by entering my name, email address, and a password. Next, I was led to a page stating 3 simple steps to get started: setup, record, publish. I proceeded.
Podomatic was soooo user-friendly. It walked me through the process step-by-step and provided helpful tips along the way. Title...check! Tagline...check! Description...check! Cover art...yep! Categories...OK! Tagline...sure! URL...setup done!
Next came the scary part, recording. Have no fear with Podomatic! It will lead you through the entire process including how to set up and check your microphone, tips for preparing and setting up the environment, and it even links you to easy-to-use free recording software. With Podomatic, I was able to record, save, and even embed a podcast with NO problems.
My Verdict
I 100% recommend Podomatic for recording podcasts. It was up-to-date, straightforward, and included step-by-step instructions with a bit of humor sprinkled throughout. And, the free option has everything you need to produce periodic podcasts.
Here is my first podcast. I certainly have room for growth; but, I am pleased that I took the plunge and I hope you will too. Enjoy!
I loved to read comics when I was a kid! Archie comic books were my favorite. I still see them displayed in the checkout line at the grocery store. And how about the Sunday comics in the newspaper? It was the only day of the week that the comics were printed in color...and there was a whole section, not just a page or two! Nothing beat reading Peanuts after church.
Comics are a medium used to express ideas using still images. Sometimes they contain text and sometimes they don't. When they do contain text, it is often contained in a speech bubble or caption. Comics can appear as a standalone cell or within interrelated panels. They can contain anything from a political message to a funny thought. The most current spin on comics is the graphic novel, which contains an entire narrative, fiction or nonfiction, shared in sequential comic form. Graphic novels are one of the most popular items checked out by students at my school. So, how can comics be used in the classroom or library? According to Jabari Sellars in the article Comics in the Classroom, they serve three primary academic roles:
Facilitating an understanding of complex required texts
Extending the analysis of classic literature
Replacing less-accessible works while conveying the same message
An additional ten reasons are shared on the Pixton Blog for Educators. I especially like these fun reasons to use comics: interest, variation, conciseness, willingness, understanding, discussion, ability, empowerment, community, and participation. I think you will find that you can create them to use with your students and that your students can make them as well.
Are you convinced yet? I am. In fact, I recently tried out a few utilities to create my own comics for use in the library. Here are my comics and thoughts related to each tool...
One of the great things about ToonDoo is the option of private Toondoospaces for schools and educational institutions. This option allows multiple users to register without having to enter email addresses. There is a fee for this option, but if you are going to have your students create ToonDoo comics, this is the way to go because it prevents privacy issues.
It was easy to create a comic in ToonDoo. After choosing to create a comic, I selected how many panels I wanted it to have. Then, I was able to choose and place characters, backgrounds, props, and speech bubbles from a menu bar. A tool bar is available at the bottom of the screen which provides the ability to adjust the size, position, and color of items. Even the position and facial expressions of the characters can be altered. There is plenty of variety in backgrounds and characters to make an interesting comic. However, the choices are not exhaustive. As you can see in my comic, the librarian is quite curvy and wearing high heels, but the student is kind of plain. Characters can be chosen or created from scratch, but I did not attempt to make my own character. Saving the completed comic was simple; all I had to do was choose Save from the main menu. ToonDoo is easy enough for students to use themselves, too. In fact, my daughter had to create a comic for a class assignment when she was in junior high using ToonDoo and didn't have any trouble with it. Overall, I found ToonDoo pretty simple in style, easy to use, and quick to come up with a finished product.
Pixton allows educators to use a scaled-down version for free. I set up an account by entering my name, email address, and a password. When given the choice as to how I wanted to use Pixton, I chose the "By myself" option in order to try it out. I was then provided with a comic tutorial on how to use Pixton's comic maker. I thought it was clever that the tutorial was a series of comics. The tutorial walked me through in a step-by-step process and was helpful. Beware of the characters, though. I typed in "librarian" as a search term and two old, dated, frumpy characters were displayed! Definitely not the look of a 21st century librarian! I was amazed by the level of customization and choice available with Pixton. There are tons of characters and props to choose from. Each can be customized in size and color. They can be rotated or flipped. The position of a character's arms, legs, hands, and even head can be adjusted by the click and drag option. After choosing a background, the individual items in the scene can be broken up and individually adjusted or removed. The color, size, and font of the text can be modified, too. I especially liked that I could add panels whenever I wanted to rather than having to choose the number I wanted at the beginning. Saving the end product was simple and intuitive. Honestly, it did take me a while to get used to how to navigate all of the options, but I was able to use the Help option at the bottom of the screen whenever I had a question about how to do something. I think that students would be able to figure Pixton out quickly and easily create interesting, unique comics.
The nice thing about Make Beliefs Comix is that you do not have to sign in to be able to create a comic. This online tool was very easy to use... and a comic can be made in a matter of minutes. However, there is very little variety in the characters, backgrounds, and objects available. In fact, there were no library background options and the only school one was not in color. Customization or creating an item from scratch is not possible at all. I think that this would be a good option for young students who are making their first comic because choices are limited and saving is easy. But, there is not enough complexity or choice for older students or adults to create interesting comics.
The Verdict
My top choice for creating an interesting, innovative comic is Pixton. Although it takes a bit of getting used to, the customization options cannot be beat!
As a librarian, I plan to use comics with the teachers and students in my school as quick, fun reminders (as I did in the three comics I created above).
Try ToonDoo, Pixton, and Make Beliefs Comix out for yourself to determine which one you like the best. Happy cartooning! 🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮🕮 One more thing... I discovered an amazing iPad app called Tellagami. Unfortunately, it has not been updated to work on the newest iOS update, but I have an old iPad and a new iPad. So, I was able to make a gami using the older model. Check out my book summary of Bridge to Terabithia.
YouTube is an online video-sharing service that can be accessed from a personal computer, laptop, tablet, or mobile phone. Videos can be uploaded, watched, liked, shared, or commented on. YouTube videos are a great way for teachers and librarians to share information with students. With the simple search feature, it's quite likely that you can find an already-made video to use; if not, it is easy to make and upload one yourself. In addition, students can make videos of their own in order to demonstrate learning. Group projects provide social interaction and collaboration opportunities as well as exposure to technical utilities; not to mention, they are fun! Before using YouTube with students, be sure to check your district's policy and ensure that students/parents have signed the Acceptable Use Policy. If the videos are going to be available for viewing by the public, you might consider disabling the comments option. I plan to use instructional videos in my library for students and for teachers. I will definitely hold in-service training in person, but including videos on the library Canvas page will allow teachers to refresh their memories at the point of need. In addition, if someone is absent during a training, they will be able to access the information when they return. When collaborating and co-teaching with teachers, videos can be made for students to help them along the way with assignments and research projects as well. Also, a library orientation video that can be shown in classrooms and viewed from home is a must. I already include numerous videos on this blog, so I will continue to do so to promote books and the library. Here are some example videos from various YouTube channels which demonstrate video types that might be helpful to your students or that they might really like. Hopefully, this will get your creative juices flowing with ideas of videos that you might create!
Most helpful video for students: How to Use EBSCOHost Students can watch this video to learn how to find accurate and reliable information for research projects.
Video students would like the best: Tiger Visits The Norman High Library Hee hee! Who wouldn't love watching the mascot tour the library and interact with friends.
Most helpful video for students: Creative Commons Licensing: What Is It & Why Should I Care This video helps students understand Creative Commons licenses. Such a great resource when students need to use images in projects.
Video students would like the best: Spring 2011 Art Show Preview @ The Unquiet Library Students always love seeing their work displayed. How exciting!
Most helpful video for students: 2014-15 Course Advisement I think students would watch an advisement video repeatedly through their years of high school as they choose classes.
Video students would like the best: Senior Party in Library This video is FUN! The students will never forget making it and can always watch it to reminisce.
Most helpful video for students: 6th Media Orientation An orientation video explaining the library policies and procedures is extremely helpful to the entire school community, especially to 6th graders who are new to upper school
Video students would like the best: Swish Swish by Katy Perry Overdue Library Book Parody Students enjoy seeing themselves and their friends in fun videos. Awesome, right?! So, what if you work at a school that does not allow access to YouTube? Thankfully, there are other options for educational videos such as School Tube, Teacher Tube, and Next Vista. Richard Byrne's blog post, Alternatives to YouTube, provides additional information about each of these resources as well as some tips for preventing inappropriate advertisements from popping up while using YouTube.
Wondering how to create a video that you can post to YouTube or share in another way? Animoto is a cloud-based video creation service. It allows you to use photos, video clips, and music to create video slideshows. It is an amazing way to create book trailers for the library! I was able to get a free trial of the utility by going to the Animoto website and entering my email address, name, and a password. Teachers and librarians can apply for an Educator's Account in order to create videos that are longer than 30 seconds, but they must renew the account twice a year to keep it active. Otherwise, in order to make unlimited videos and remove the trial watermark, you must upgrade to a paid account. The cheapest plan is $8 per month. So, apply for the Educator's Account. ; ) Animoto was very easy to use. The utility walks you through the process step-by-step. Simply choose a style, then add blocks which are like individual slides in PowerPoint or Google Slides. Each block can contain photos, video, or text. You can change the background color and font or adjust the size of the text. Choose some background music from Animoto's library and, voilá, you have a video! Here is my book trailer created with the trial version of Animoto:
QR Codes
Quick Response Codes, otherwise known as QR codes, are machine-readable codes that appear as an arrangement of black and white squares. They are digitally linked to URLs or other information such as text, videos, or files. When scanned by a QR reader, the information magically appears. Since QR readers are available for free on mobile phones, it is very easy to utilize QR codes in education. I use QR Reader from the Apple App Store on my phone.
The good news is that QR codes are perfectly safe to use in the classroom. Teachers can use them in scavenger hunts at school, on homework assignments to provide a way for students to access helpful information, at stations for self-directed learning, and more. They can also be used in the library on books to link to book trailers, around the library for directions on accessing eBooks, and on Chromecarts so that teachers can view helpful information. You are only limited by your imagination when it comes to using QR codes!
QR codes are extremely simple to make, too. I use QR Code Generator to make mine on the computer. All you have to do is select the data type (URL, YouTube Video, PDF file, etc), add the content (URL, file, etc), and click on the Download QR Code button. You can then download the code, print it, or even email it. Fun!
Here is a QR code for the booktrailer I created with Animoto. Scan the QR code to view the trailer.
Synopsis:
Thirteen-year-old Bee realizes that she is a fairy who has been switched at birth with another girl who now wants her life back.
Instagram is a social networking app which allows photos and videos to be easily shared with followers or with a specific group of friends from a smartphone.Viewers can comment and like posts that are shared with them. The app is free and is available on Apple iOS, Android, and Windows phones. A screencast is a video recording of the actions taking place on your computer screen which often includes audio narration. Screencast software can be used to record tutorials or video lessons. Teachers and students love screencasts because they allow the viewer to watch them anytime at school or at home. In addition, screencasts can be paused or reviewed as often as necessary to meet the needs of individual learners. They are also a wonderful way for librarians to share information with small groups or even the entire school community. Here is my experience with Instagram and a screencast utility...
Instagram
Although Instagram is extremely popular, I had never used it. After reading 10 Surprising Ways to Use Instagram in the Classroom, I decided that I should try it out to see why children and adults love it so much. I have an iPhone, so all I had to do was find the Instagram app in the App Store for iOS devices and download it. I viewed a helpful Prezi called Using Instagram in the Classroom by Amy Moore to help me get started. Although I felt intimidated and nervous that I'd do something wrong, I got the hang of using it pretty quickly by clicking on the various screen options to see what they would do. I discovered some amazing filter options, how to enter text on a picture, and how to add a description to my pictures/videos. Before I knew it, I had two followers and I was checking out the pictures of some of my friends (Instragram can check your contact list for registered users if you grant permission)! I can see why Instagram is addicting. It is so easy to post pictures and videos that you already have saved on your phone and to add a quick blurb. You can also take pictures/video from within the app, but I prefer using what I have in my camera roll. It's like scrapbooking was in the early 2000's, except it doesn't require hours to accomplish or any supplies. I can see many applications for the classroom and library such as scavenger hunts, documentation of research, escape room activities, and recording science experiment results. But, here's the rub. In order to use Instagram, you have to enter an email address, username, password, and phone number. So, there are privacy issues for students to consider. I would not be comfortable using Instagram with students under the age of 13 due to the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act which prohibits websites that gather user information from granting access to anyone under 13 years of age. However, with parental permission, I think Instagram would be fun and motivating to use with high school students. Be sure to check your district guidelines before using Instagram with your students. Here is a picture I posted to spotlight our audiobook collection:
I'd seen videos that my librarian created and thought that it would be difficult. So, I was surprised at how easy it was to create a screencast of my own using Screencast-o-matic. This utility is amazing!! And it's free! Screencast-o-matic is available for use on Chromebook, Mac, and Windows. As with most online apps, there are both free and upgraded options. The free option allows recordings of up to 15 minutes each -- plenty of time for short instructional and informative videos. If you prefer, you can upgrade to gain additional features such as zooming into details and live writing for only $1.50 a month. This is quite affordable for teachers and librarians. As always, I suggest starting with the free version to see if it meets your needs. Launching the free version was easy. I was able to simply and quickly download the software to my computer. I tested the microphone and webcam prior to recording by following the provided prompts. Various recorder preferences are offered in a simple pop-up menu. You can choose to record the screen or webcam only, or a combination of the two. A really cool feature is that you can move the webcam window around. So, if you like it in the bottom corner, put it there. If you want it somewhere else, go for it! You can also select the size of your recording space, which is awesome. I had a bit of trouble getting my picture to appear in the webcam area, but I think this was an issue with my webcam, not with Screencast-o-matic. I fixed the issue by doing what I often tell the teachers and students at my school: shut down and restart. : ) Here is a Screencast-o-Matic video that I created:
Have fun creating tutorials and instructional videos for your students or library patrons!
Snagit is another amazing screen capture and recording utility. This is the product that the librarian at my school uses to create our library map. TechSmith's companion product, Camtasia (screen recorder and video editor), is what she uses to create a library orientation video that all students watch each year. Both have advanced image editing and screen recording functions. Also, you can add cool written comments, arrows, and callouts over your screenshots. Unfortunately, there is no free version of Snagit. You can try it out for free for 7 days, but then you must purchase a license if you want to continue to use it. The license is an affordable, one-time price of $49.95 and you can install it on 2 machines (compatible with Windows and Mac).
Recommended
I highly recommend using Screencast-o-matic for creating screencasts. It's versatility and affordability (free and paid versions) make it a great choice for teachers and librarians. Instagram is recommended for personal use and for classroom use with older students. Beware that it is addicting! 😄
Infographics are tools for understanding and for providing a visual representation of quantitative and/or qualitative information. They should take into account what the reader's mind will attempt to do with data and be formatted accordingly. They are an exciting way to tell a data-driven story in a visually appealing and easy-to-understand format. There are multiple online resources that can be utilized to create infographics. I recently explored three of them: easelly, piktochart, and infogram.
Easelly is a free infographic maker. You may customize provided templates including timelines, reports, processes, resumes, and comparisons without creating an account or register to create a free account in order to start with a blank template. Free access has some limitations in the number of templates, images, fonts, and charts available for use. But, of course, there is the option to update to a Pro account for $4 per month if you'd like. For teachers and librarians, I'd suggest beginning with the free account and then upgrading if necessary. Using easelly was extremely easy and very intuitive. After choosing a template to begin with, you simply double click on the text in order to change and format it (change font, size, color, alignment) as you would in a word processing document. When starting with a blank template, you are able to customize the size of the infographic. The menu bar at the top of the screen is user-friendly and enables you to drag-and-drop objects into the document. The only difficulty I encountered was removing a line after I'd placed it and moved on to something else. I wasn't able to figure out how to remove it retroactively. There is an online chat feature, though, to help you if you run into complications while creating your masterpiece.
Piktochart also has the choice of creating a free or paid account. Educators can gain access to additional templates and features for $39.99 per year. There is also a Pro Team option for $199.95 per year which includes a collaboration feature. I suggest starting with the free option and adding the additional features only if necessary. Once you set up an account by entering your name, email address, and creating a password, you must activate the account by clicking on the link sent to your email address. After you sign in for the first time, you will be asked a few questions so that Piktochart can provide tips and templates that are most applicable to you. I love that you can specify that you are a teacher, student, or librarian! You can also decide if you want tips sent to your email address or not. Teachers and librarians receive a plethora of email regularly, so I appreciate having the choice and ability to say, "No, thank you." Piktochart provides three steps for creation: pick a template, design your infographic using the drag-and-drop editor, and share your work. Carrying out these steps was extremely easy and very intuitive. I did not feel as though there were a large number of useful templates to begin with in the free option. However, there were tons of ways to customize a template or create one from scratch. Color schemes can be easily changed and there are some really cool photographs, shapes, and icons offered. Some of the unique features I was drawn to include the ability to adjust the opacity of a picture/photo and the line spacing as well as height of text. If you find that you are having difficulty while creating, there is a Need Help? feature at the bottom of the screen. I found it easy to use when I encountered a question. A search bar opens up and you can type in a term to access frequently asked questions and answers.
Infogram offers both free and paid accounts. The Pro version is $19 per month, Business level is $67 per month, and a Team account is $149 per month if you pay on an annual basis. The price is higher if you want to pay monthly. Yikes! Special prices are available for educators and students, but an online form must be submitted before the price is revealed. Definitely try the free version to see if it meets your needs before upgrading. Only an email address and password are required to set up an account. Afterwards, you will be prompted to enter your name and role (educator and student are options). You may then choose a template to start with including eight infographic options. Overall, I found infogram pretty simple to use. However, the options offered with the free plan were very limited and basic. In addition, instead of using the drag-and-drop method, items are added by clicking. The object then appears randomly on the page which I found a bit irritating.
My verdict: Piktochart
By Chris Potter (Flickr: 3D Judges Gavel) [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Infogram was my least favorite tool. It wasn't hard to use, but it required a bit more work to get the desired effect. Its free account was the most restricted and frustrating. Upgrading to a paid account may offer better options, but I prefer free stuff and I expect that you do too! Easelly would be my second choice because it offers some amazing templates. In fact, if one of the templates fit my need, I would use it. I recommend that you do as well because it would be quick to customize and would provide an excellent result. Piktochart is my top choice for creating custom infographics. In my opinion, the templates are more limited than easelly's. However, Piktochart's free account offers the most shape, icon, color, font, and photo options. The drag-and-drop feature is extremely easy to use and has some unique features. Of the three utilities that I tried, it was the simplest to navigate. Piktochart will enable teachers and librarians to quickly create custom colorful and unique infograms for presenting information in a visually appealing way to students, parents, and the learning community.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Silver, L., & Johnson, C. (2018, October 09). Internet seen as having positive impact in Sub-Saharan Africa. Pew Research Center. Retrieved from http://www.pewglobal.org/2018/10/09/internet-connectivity-seen-as-having-positive-impact-on-life-in-sub-saharan-africa/
