You Can Vote However You Like

As a Personal PDP opportunity, some SHS teachers are reading and discussing The Essential 55 by Ron Clark. Appropriate to Election Day, here is a video of students from the Ron Clark Academy performing "You Can Vote However You Like."

Blog the Vote

I vote because I feel lucky to be an American and have the right to vote (a right that was not awarded to women until 1920). I like to think that my vote counts. Some disagree, but read about these Americans who have gone to great lengths (and expense) to be able to vote in our election on Tuesday, November 4. Think about it!

Blogging Books

Dairy Queen

By Catherine Murdock

I am SO glad this is a series, because I did not want this book to end! You will love the main character D.J. Schwenk for her humor and determination. Your heart will ache for her as she gives up practically everything in her life to take on the enormous responsibility of running the family farm. You will cheer her on as she trains Brian, the rival high school's quarterback and decides to try out for her own high school’s football team. This is a book I think a lot of young women can relate to. The main character struggles with who she really is and where she fits in and I believe that is a battle few women escape.

Blogging Books

Three Little Words: A Memoir
By Ashley Rhodes-Courter

This was a very inspirational read. I experienced a roller coaster of emotions while reading this book, sadness, anger, pity, happiness, and triumph. This is the true story about a girl trapped and shuffled around in the foster care system for nine years. Between the agonizing memories of being taken her mother and the horrible experiences she goes through in some of her many foster homes, three little words is all it takes to change everything. You will have to read it to find out what they are… the “three little words” are not what you think!

Teen Read Week

Welcome to Teen Read Week, an initiative of the American Library Association.
"Why is it important to celebrate? For a lot of reasons! Teens have so many options for entertainment, so it's important to remind them to spend time reading for pleasure: it's free, fun, and can be done anywhere! Research shows that teens who read for fun have better test scores and are more likely to succeed in the workforce. Also, it’s a great chance to let your school or your public library communities know how important teen services are! Let teens know the possibilities that exist within your doors, and within the covers of books." (Source: http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/teenreading/trw/trw2008/index.cfm)

To celebrate Teen Read Week, we are creating a bulletin board in the library called "SHS Reads." Students are encouraged to stop by the library and have their photos taken with their favorite books. These photos will be the focus of the bulletin board. Staff are invited to participate as well. Please stop in to help us share the joy of reading with our students.

Top Ten Books

Here are the top ten books borrowed from the the SHS Library for last year:
1. A Child Called "It" (David Pelzer)
2. Twilight (Stephenie Meyer)
3. The Princess Diaries (Meg Cabot)
4. Speak (Laurie Halse Anderson)
5. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
6. New Moon (Stephenie Meyer)
7. Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul III
8. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (J. K. Rowling)
9. Catalyst (Laurie Halse Anderson)
10. Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging (Louise Rennison)

Google Docs

Google Docs Rocks!

Here's a brief intro from Lee LeFever/Common Craft about Google Docs.

If you are interested in using Google Docs either within your department for collaboration OR with your classes, let me know. I'd love to help you get started.

How to Embed a Youtube Video in PowerPoint

HOW TO EMBED A YOUTUBE VIDEO INTO POWERPOINT

• Open up PowerPoint and choose a slide that is appropriate for your presentation.
• Click on View>Toolbars> Control Toolbox>More Controls. Scroll down to "Shockwave Flash Object."
• Draw a box the size you want. (It will be a white box with an X through it.)
• Right click on the box and choose "Properties."
• Double-click “Loop” so it says “False” in the box next to it.
• Double-click “Playing” so it says “False” in the box next to it.
• Copy the URL of the YouTube video (located in the box, not the address line) and paste it in the blank box next to “Movie.”
• You will need to make a few changes to your URL to make it work: Delete "watch?" Replace the equal sign with a forward slash.
• Close the “Properties” box.
• Run the slide show, clicking on the play button in the YouTube video.
• Save your presentation to where you want it. Then open it and check to make sure the video is working properly.
• Make sure you cite your source for the video.


This is also available as a handout (with pictures) in GEAR. Let me know if you would like a copy.

Celebrating the Freedom to Read

Banned Books Week
September 27 - October 4, 2008

From the American Library Association web site:
Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read is observed during the last week of September each year. Observed since 1982, this annual ALA event reminds Americans not to take this precious democratic freedom for granted. This year, 2008, marks BBW's 27th anniversary (September 27 through October 4).

BBW celebrates the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one’s opinion even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular and stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of those unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints to all who wish to read them. After all, intellectual freedom can exist only where these two essential conditions are met.

BBW is sponsored by the American Booksellers Association, American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, American Library Association, American Society of Journalists and Authors, Association of American Publishers, National Association of College Stores, and is endorsed by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.

Website of the Week

Quizlet
Great web site for vocabulary.

Teachers can set up vocab lists for their classes. Students can "join" the class and practice vocabulary. Students can also create their own flashcard sets.

We the People

Here is SHS's "We the People" bookshelf display:

"We the People" Grant

The Elmira City School District's Library Media Centers were the recipients of the "We the People" grant for the 2008-2009 school year. More information on the grant can be found at http://www.wethepeople.gov/

The “Created Equal” Bookshelf provides opportunities for young people to explore what the Revolutionary generation meant when it declared that “all men are created equal.” What challenges has America faced, and where has it shown progress, in its efforts to live up to the ideal of universal human equality? How did Abraham Lincoln, whose bicentennial we celebrate in 2009, contribute to the idea and the reality of human equality in America?

Three thousand libraries received the the “Created Equal” Bookshelf—a collection of seventeen classic hardcover books for young readers, all related to the “Created Equal” theme. In addition, libraries received four of these books in Spanish translation, a bonus “History in a Box” resource kit created by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, and supplementary materials for programming, including bookplates, boomarks, and posters.

Books included in the “Created Equal” Bookshelf are:

Kindergarten to Grade 3
The Ugly Duckling by Hans Christian Andersen
The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln
Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco
Pink Y Say by Patricia Polacco (translated by Alejandra Lopez Varela)
Grades 4 to 6
Saturnalia by Paul Fleischman
Give Me Liberty! The Story of the Declaration of Independence by Russell Freedman
Lincoln: A Photobiography by Russell Freedman
Many Thousand Gone: African Americans from Slavery to Freedom by Virginia Hamilton
Lyddie by Katherine Paterson
Lyddie by Katherine Paterson (translated by Rosa Benavides)
Grades 7 to 8
Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis
Freedom Walkers: The Story of the Montgomery Bus Boycott by Russell Freedman
Abraham Lincoln the Writer: A Treasury of His Greatest Speeches and Letters ed. by Harold Holzer
Breaking Through by Francisco Jiménez
Senderos Fronterizos: Breaking Through Spanish Edition by Francisco Jiménez
Grades 9 to 12
Abigail Adams: Witness to a Revolution by Natalie S. Bober
That All People May Be One People, Send Rain to Wash the Face of the Earth by Nez Perce Chief Joseph
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Flores Para Algernon by Daniel Keyes (translated by Paz Barroso)
Lincoln's Virtues: An Ethical Biography by William Lee Miller
Amistad: A Novel by David Pesc
Bonus:
History in a Box resource materials on Abraham Lincoln developed by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, including a resource book, CD, interactive CD-ROM, and posters featuring primary source documents, photographs, artwork, maps, songs, and other teaching resources.

NEH selected these books in consultation with members of the ALA and members of the Association for Library Services to Children (ALSC), a division of the ALA.

The "We the People" books are displayed in the SHS Library in a special area. They may be borrowed by students and staff.

Another Inspiration Trick

Exporting from Inspiration

You can export Inspiration graphic organizers and insert them into Word documents, PowerPoints, etc.
• Here's how:
• File>Export
• Graphics File
• The next screen will ask you to choose the file format in which you would like to save the file.
• Choose the appropriate file location.
• Save.

To add to a Word or PowerPoint document, follow these steps:
• Insert
• Picture
• From file
• Find the file’s location and click on the file.
• Insert.

What I Learned Today

Adding Custom Graphics to Inspiration

 Right click on Inspiration screen.
 click Insert graphic. Find the file’s location.
 Click Open.

To add the graphic to your symbol library:
 Right click on the graphic you just imported.
 Click “Install User Symbol.”
 Choose either “Standard Symbol Size” or “Actual Size.”

The next time you use Inspiration, the graphic will be located in your Personal Library of symbols.

Interactive Map Created Using Atlas

www.fmatlas.com
Interactive Map Based on Paul Farmer's Life (inspired by Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder

Summer Reading

Looking for something to do this summer? Read a book!

The Elmira City School District Elmira Free Academy and Southside High School Reading List is now available.

Never a Dull Moment

Today we were graced with the presence of "Chicken Patty," grandchicken of Mrs. Austen, our crazy animal-loving science teacher. Chicken Patty is owned by Mrs. Austen's daughter but comes to visit SHS on a regular basis.

Today Mrs. Austen's first period class was working on Castlelearning.com assignments in GEAR so Chicken Patty wanted to join in.

Bloom's Taxonomy

I just received the April issue of Tech Learning. I found a reference to an article online called "Bloom's Taxonomy Blooms Digitally." This is a great article that applies Bloom's Taxonomy to digital skills--something that I had not really thought about. I think every educator using technology in their classroom should read this article and take a fresh look at Bloom's Taxonomy as it applies to the curriculum and assignments/projects using computers.
There are many other great resources in the Tech Learning journal every month. If you would like to read the current issue, let me know or take a look at the web site.

Here are some pictures of our library, including a picture of our library mascot, Edgar. We have a collection of busts in the library depicting famous authors. The bust of Edgar Allan Poe has become our library mascot. He has a variety of seasonal hats and is always up for having some fun in the library. He doesn't even get upset when he is mistaken for Mark Twain!

What's New in the Library

This blog is intended to be the venue for finding out what's new in the Library @ SHS. I will be posting reading lists, book reviews, lists of new materials, as well as any book-related links of interest. Check it out!