Thing 21: Podcasts

For some reason I am having trouble listening to the podcasts. Am I missing something? However, I did take a workshop on podcasting last year. I have recorded a few of my students making their American landmarks reports. The kids loved doing it and the parents enjoyed hearing them. A couple of them were posted on our school website, but for security we did not post names with them.

Thing 12: Twitter

I set up my account with Twitter and found our satellite church and several church members. I can also follow the Texas Rangers on Twitter as I hear Josh and Tom talking about Twitter a lot during the games. This was probably the last time I heard someone talking about Twitter.

Thing 20: YouTube

YouTube has some interesting and some amazing videos. However, the ones that I chose when I searched for school library were not very good. The first one was interesting as it showed a library that had been donated in Africa. However, the next one was an amateur recording of a high school student walking through a library. It was very boring and actually kind of stupid. The last video I watched was by School Library Journal and was a review of Amazon's Kindle2. It discusses the pros and cons of the Kindle2 and compares it to the first model. It was useful but not too exciting.

Thing 14: Delicious

This has become one of my favorite resources, even though I keep forgetting about it. I was introduced to Delicious in the spring while taking 5720 from UNT. I have used it several times and like the fact that I can retrieve my favorite sites from any computer. My Delicious login is Cherylb310.

I am not sure if we can access Delicious from the school computer, but I need to check. I believe it should be accessible, so if it is not I will inquire about it.

Thing 13: Tagging

Tagging can be similar to subject headings, but tagging is more personalized. It should not take the place of official subject headings in cataloging. However, it is excellent source to help individuals categorize websites and resources to easier retrieval.

I have used tagging several times since being introduced to it in one of my UNT classes.

Thing 9: More Facebook

I had previously joined our church and our satellite pages: Brookhaven Church and LifeBridge Church. However, for more experience finding groups I also joined ALA and UNT SLIS Unite. I was reminded how important it is to be careful how or what you type as a friend request. When I typed ALA there were about 500 entries, so I had to go back and try American Library Association.

This is a convenient way to keep up with organization news. I know I get reminders from my church regularly.

Thing 8: Facebook

Facebook can be addicting. I set up an account several months ago. Although I do not post much, I do enjoy seeing what others post. It is amazing how much time some people spend on Facebook.

For me, I am still concerned about the security of the information. Therefore, I do tend not to put much information on Facebook. As teachers, we were warned not to friend students and to be vague with our employment.

Thing 7: RSS Feeds

This seems like the same thing as we did in Thing 6, but just adding more blogs. Did I miss something? If not, then my previous fear of RSS feeds has been relieved with a new understanding.

Thing 6: Blog Readers

Google Reader is a great device to help keep blogs organized. It will come in handy as I add more blogs to follow. I know I have had problems finding a blog the second time, so this will help.

I plan on adding a folder to follow the blogs of the teachers from my school.

Thing 4: Flickr

This is fun! However, it took me much longer to get it than I wanted to spend. I did not realize I had to register to save it. Then when I tried to insert the picture in this blog, I had trouble. Finally, I realized the simple mistake was that I had not accepted the terms. DUH! Oh well, I will know better next time.

Thing 3: Flickr

I have created a Flickr account and uploaded my first pictures. I chose a few of my Yellowstone pictures. The link is http://www.flickr.com/photos/38917529@N03/. I only chose a few pictures because I am still unsure of how secure the pictures are. I do not mind others looking at my pictures, but I do not want others downloading or printing them.

I need to do more research on the purpose of Flickr. It sounds like an easy way to share pictures with family & friends, but is this the most secure way?

Thing 2 - Learning 2.0

First, I watched Stephen Abram's video on 23 Things. I particularly liked his comment that librarians can make a difference in the progress of libraries by learning and using the technologies by immersing themselves in the technologies. Just like learning a new language, one can truly learn a new technology by immersing himself/herself in it.

I also watched Professor Wesch video "Web 2.0 . . . The Machine is Us/Using Us." In my Instructional Materials class this semester, we discussed why the video was given this title. My response was: "I believe Professor Wesch used the term because it is an accurate statement of how we use the Web. Through the Web we can reference many sites. However, it goes much farther than that. We can actually join information from different sites and use it in new sites. Web 2.0 has made collaboration of information easily utilized. Through blogs and wikis we can add or change information we find on the internet. With HTML and XML we are teaching or telling the computer what to do, where to go, etc. Therefore, by using others' information and linking from their sites, we are using the computer to build the information that we need. Also, we can create sites, such as Facebook, that give information about us. Thus, making the term "The Machine is Us/Using Us" accurate because the computer does become a part of us. Many have found that we cannot do without the Web. The more we use it, the more we become dependent on it."

Getting Started with 23 Things

I am a second grade teacher and working on my Masters in Library Science at University of North Texas. I love technology, but unfortunately have not had time to keep up with the fast pace that technology is changing. In order to be a successful librarian, I know I must learn and stay current with technology. Therefore, I am creating my first blog.