Blogging about Blogging

            “Blogging” has become a part of everyday speech.   I just can’t seem to stop reading them.  I read blogs about crafting, parenting, cooking, teaching, and fitness.  Everyone can read blogs and everyone can create them (counting on simple typing skills).  Despite this being the first blog I have created, the thought of starting my own blog has been floating around my brain for quite some time.  More specifically, I have wondered about the ramifications this could have towards my teaching practices.

            For my LIBE 467 class, part of my mark is to create a blog and use it as a self-reflecting tool, commenting about class discussions, material and how it reflects my teaching practice.  For one, I enjoy learning how to create and successfully use a blog.  As a teaching tool I am becoming more familiar about the ins and outs of how to update and maintain one.  Meanwhile, I keep thinking of ways how to incorporate this medium to be used as a learning tool in the classroom.  The article, Educational Blogging by Laurel A. Clyde has some practical ideas for incorporating blogs into elementary classrooms.  One student was quoted as saying “the blogs give us a chance to communicate between us and motivate us to write more” (Clyde, 2)  Hmmm, a classroom tool that motivates and builds community?- it seems like a no brainer.  As far as connecting blogs to the curriculum, they “are an information-related activity that requires and develops information skills in students; it is also a teaching and learning activity that should be supported by school libraries in the same way that other teaching and learning activities are supported” (Clyde, 2).  I have seen first-hand how blogs can be utilized with a Library focus in mind.  A colleague Librarian has created a “blog club” in her school where interested students attend as an extra-curricular activity and are shown how to create blogs that are then linked to the school Library webpage.  The student’s blogs are based on book reviews and can be accessed by other students.  The link is located here: http://coaltyee.mysd68.ca/pages/library/library-home-page.php.

            A big question weighing on my mind was “what kind of evaluation/parameters need to be in place to have successful blogs?”.  A good resource was located in Content Area Reading; Literacy and Learning Across the Curriculum by Richard Vacca.  In this book there is a wonderful sample of a “Blog Evaluation” (Vacca, 41) and an equally as useful “Blogging Guidelines” (Vacca, 42) where important issues of internet safety and etiquette are laid out.

            I have had an itch to start a blog club or have a class create a blog at my school.  I will be discussing my idea with teachers in the coming weeks and blog (Ha!) in the coming week about my trials and tribulations that I am sure will follow.

Clyde, L. (2005) Educational Blogging. Teacher Librarian. 32 (3). 43-45. Retrieved January 28, 2012 from http://ubc.summon.serialssolutions.com/search?s.q=educational+blogging

Vacca, R., Vacca, J., & Mraz, M. (2011) Content Area Reading: Literacy and Learning Across the Curriculum (10^th ed.). Boston: Pearson.

Research Skills- Making it less Snore-Worthy

                Upon starting my career as a Librarian, one main question has hung over my head and served as a constant subject of research: “how do I effectively teach elementary student life-long research skills”.  I feel as though I keep coming up short on up to date information.

                I teach “Research Skills” to a group of grade 5 and 6’s for 25 minutes once a week.  In this time, I feel as though 1) I never have enough time 2) It’s boring and 3) My Library is outdated.  I’m sure problems 1 and 2 are closely linked.  Students want to use the computer lab to search, and while I would LOVE to use the lab to teach critical searching skills to find information, it is not possible due to lab time conflicts.  Therefore, we are ‘stuck’ using the outdated Library to find information.

                I have quested to find useful and engaging lesson plans to use with this group to make the time we spend together meaningful.  I have found the article, “Teaching Research Skills; A Critical Thinking Approach” by JoAnne Vergona Krapp to be a promising addition to my teaching repertoire.  This article outlines practical ideas for research projects for intermediate students such as branching into the Science curriculum by researching constellations and making a bibliography and finding interesting facts about their chosen constellation (Krapp, 4).

                The framework that Knapp has outlined in the article is very similar to the “Reference Process: Five Basic Steps” from Ann Riedling where the central questions of “A Need for Information, a question, the search for information, an answer or response, and an evaluation” is very similar to Krapp’s “How, Where, What Approach”.  Whereas the ‘Reference Process’ is a larger framework for finding the information and evaluating the steps taken to find the information, the How, Where and What Approach seems to focus on the actual gathering of the information which could help flush out the “Search for Information” step in the Reference Process.  However, Krapp’s outlines the steps well as far as a systematic lesson sequence very well in a chart format that I will be incorporating into my lessons.

                My attempt on finding one research process that I absolutely love has still gone unresolved, as with any subject in teaching I am finding the quest for a quick cut-and-dry unit plan to be obsolete.  Therefore, I will continue to take bits and pieces to create a comprehensive research model.

Krapp, J. (1988) Teaching Research Skills; A Critical Thinking Approach. School Library Journal . 34(5). Retrieved January 28, 2012, from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=d060fb27-5934-4e9f-9afb-3a8a1a67abf4%40sessionmgr15&vid=2&hid=12

Riedling, A. (2005) Reference Skills for the School Library Media Specialist: Tool and Tips, 2^nd Edition. Ohio: Linworth Books.