Library Media Tech Talk

This was the first year for the Library Media Tech Talk Blog. The first post was in March 2014. The number of views per month have slowly increased. December 2014 went above 1000 views in one month! Thank you for these views! Top 5 most read blog posts of 2014 374 pageviews: The Great Gatsby Collaborative Project (11th Grade English) 301 pageviews: The Dust Bowl Collaborative Event (8th Grade) 294 pageviews: Building on the 8th Grade 9/11 Collaboration program in 2014 289 pageviews: September 11, 2001 8th Grade Common Core Project 268 pageviews: Morfo App for iOS - Animate Your Photos for Class Projects Please Subscribe  if you are enjoying this blog. Please, put your email address in the box on the right side of the page. You will receive notifications when I post new blog entries! Contact Me/ Follow Me Email:  stony_evans@lakesidesd.org Are you on Twitter? Follow me : @stony12270 Follow our library (LHS_Library): @LHS_Library1...

If you are interested in collaborating with colleagues across the country (and world), consider using Twitter more in 2015! I created a Twitter account in July 2011. I didn't really start using Twitter as an effective networking tool until the summer of 2014. I'm not an expert, but I do know more now than when I started.  What are the benefits? Skeptical about how you can use Twitter? In the short months that I have used Twitter as a Personal Learning Network (PLN) tool, I have connected with hundreds of teacher librarians, teachers, and administrators across the country. My Twitter followers have increased from around 140 back in the summer of 2014 to 841 as of December 2014. I have learned a lot about emerging technology (such as 3D Printing and how school libraries are starting to use it). Because I have an ever growing PLN on Twitter, more people are reading this blog since I use Twitter to tweet out my links to new blog posts. I see numerous excellent dai...

Now that most of us have visited our families and had at least a week off for the holidays, it's nearly time to start thinking about returning to school for the second semester. Before you do, remember to take some time to rest! It's crucial to disconnect from the stresses of work for a time. I'm learning this important task as I get older (and it is a challenge for me to separate myself from work... here I am writing a blog entry on December 28th). Take some time to turn off the devices that consume you, and spend time with your close family or friends. Sometimes it is good just to get by yourself and reflect. Whatever you need to do, now is the time! I hope each of you rest and are energized to make a difference in 2015! Happy New Year! We took this photo at Petit Jean State Park in March 2014 (a great place to rest and reflect!) How visiting Walt Disney World changed my thinking.  Two ways we brought music into the school library. Please Subscribe  if ...

This article was also published in the Fall 2014 edition of the AAIM Journal (Arkansas Association of Instructional Media). Many thanks to Dr. Michael Mills, Journal Editor, for giving us a voice in this issue!  By Stony Evans and Misti Bell The “Throwback Thursday” concept has become a popular way to post old photos to social media outlets.  Last year, one of our library media assistants began posting Throwback Thursday pictures of teachers; students would then guess who was in the photo.  Those guessing correctly were put in a drawing for a prize.  Students and teachers enjoyed seeing the photographs each week and then finding out if their guesses were correct.  This was fun for our students, but more importantly it led them into the library. This year, we have taken this concept a step further by building our Thursday library/media programs around “Throwback Thursday”.  On Thursdays, in both of the Lakeside High School Library/Media ...

Our latest Lakeside Squared Google Hangout with Lakeside Junior High in Springdale, Arkansas was a great success! LJHS Library Media Specialist, Mr. Brian Johnson had an idea for us to connect during lunch and have their choir perform via Google Hangouts. We decided this would be a great way to wind the semester down with some entertaining Christmas music. He asked if someone could perform from our school. I volunteered since I always play a few holiday favorites for students on my saxophone this time of year (I spent 12 years as a school band director, and I still love to play!). For a video sample (from 2010) of this on my YouTube channel click here . Brian said he could finish the program by reading  The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry. The students really enjoyed this! The audio quality was great on our end! It was like watching a video on YouTube the whole time. This was a lot of fun for our students. We will keep experimenting with new ways to use thi...