Thing 5: Curation Tools

"...the Internet means that people can find information more easily than ever before, but access to information is not equivalent to knowledge. In order to create knowledge, he argues that a person must know how to sift through the vast available information and judge the value of, organize, and connect that information." - Monica Fugeli.


The above quote aptly describes one of the main lessons that library media specialists teach our students today. We are faced with kids who are used to now having instant information at the fingertips, but don't always have the skills to evaluate what they are reading. (If I had a nickel for every time I told a student to either "click on a link" or go "beyond the first link" for a Google Search...). Fugeli states that content curation is an essential skill for students to help them organize the overwhelming amount of information, make connections, and create knowledge from what they are reading.

As Joyce Valenza points out in her article, these are all skills that librarians are naturals at! We are used to sifting through information and categorizing it into different sections to create a larger picture. The ways to use digital curation professionally are extensive, especially in a school setting! We can create lists of resources for particular projects, professional development articles for teachers, reading lists for our struggling readers, links to resources for ESL students, websites that support the curriculum, and the list goes on and on! Many of these are tasks we already complete in our daily lives, but may not have thought of as curation.

In her follow up article, Fugeli goes on to list many different tools to try curation skills with students. I myself am an avid Pinterest user in my personal life (to think people had to plan weddings before Pinterest!). I curate different recipes that I want to try, quotes that I love, decorative ideas for my house. It also helps me professionally, as I pin library lesson ideas, bulletin board ideas, lists of new books for my students....etc. etc. However, Fugeli does point out that Pinterest is not ideal for working with elementary students, as there is an age minimum of 13.

So for this task, I chose to work with LessonPaths. I chose the topic of Summer Reading to curate. I chose this because it is something I talk to my students a lot about, since unfortunately, many of them do not have access at home to new books and therefore may not read all summer long. Also, I work a summer reading program at the Clifton Park-Halfmoon Public Library during the summers, and can really see the impact in the kids there!

I really liked the tool! It was easy (and free!) to sign up for. I had no problem navigating the site, and found it simple to create a basic "playlist" on my topic. I am looking forward to brainstorming ways to use it with my students as well. I could see them making "playlists" on a variety of topics. We have an upcoming Summer Olympics project that all the "specials" area teachers are collaborating on- this may be a cool way to incorporate some curation skills into that project (make a "playlist" about one of the sports!)

Here is the link to my LessonPath list.

http://www.lessonpaths.com/learn/i/avoid-the-summer-reading-slide/what-is-summer-slide

It is very basic (for now) but I am looking forward to exploring this- and other curation tools- more!

Thing 4: Digital Storytelling & Presentation Tools

I was very excited to see this topic! This is something I have dabbled in with my students for the past few years and really enjoy doing digital storytelling with them! I am just starting a new project with my 6th graders in which they are going to make video booktrailers and I am interested to see what tools are out there that can enhance the project!

I was excited to see the list of websites that have the "free to use" images. I spend a lot of time explaining to my students why they can't just use anything they find on the internet for their projects. It will be easier to give them the explanation and then be able to give them options of different websites to choose images from.

One tool that I have used with my students that I did not see listed is "StoryJumper". It is free to use online, but you have to pay to get a printed version of your story. It allows you to create online picture books. I have used it 3 years now, and my 4th and 5th grade students really love it! I usually spend one class period explaining how to use it- and then they are usually able to go from there on their own! They have come up with some great stories. I usually use it with my Fractured FairyTale unit and have the students create their own. You do have to create a "classroom" account and add each of your students. Then they are able to work on it only when you are signed in, which can be a pain sometimes. There is an option for them to view and work on it at home, and they provide a code and a letter you can send home to parents. Check it out at www.storyjumper.com!

I have also used Animoto with my students before a few years ago. They made videos about the theme of "community" that turned out really nice. I would like to use it again sometime!



For this lesson, I decided to explore Exposure. I found it to be quite simple to navigate. I really liked the different options for adding photos and text. I didn't do a whole lot with the one I created, but am looking forward to exploring it more. I also liked that you could add videos, sound, and other links to it (which I also did not do in my very basic one.) I could see this being a great presentation tool for students and will soon be brainstorming ideas!

I made a very basic story on Exposure using my wedding photos. These were the ones I had on hand at the moment (I promise this isn't just a ploy to make everyone look at them!). Here it is: https://briwilliams.exposure.co/brianddsayido. Yes- we had some Harry Potter touches at our wedding. No- I am not ashamed! :)

I think personally, this would be a great way to share photos with family members as well! I really enjoyed using it!

Thing 3: Online Communities and Personal Learning Networks

I heard about the importance Personal Learning Networks a lot during grad school and one of my professors actually had us start to create our own. We explored different blogs and websites dedicated to school librarianship. Through this, I discovered Jennifer La Garde, AKA Library Girl, Buffy Hamilton, the Unquiet Librarian, Tiffany Whitehead, the Mighty Little Librarian, and many others. I also make sure to maintain a network of local librarians as well, especially my friends from grad school who are new to this game just like me! I find the input from my mentors to be invaluable, and it is nice to know that they are there if I have any questions or need to bounce some ideas off of.

During our exploration in class though, I never thought to look at Twitter. To be honest, Twitter always has confused me. I have other social media accounts but have steered clear of Twitter. So I figured I should start with learning a bit more about it before jumping in full steam. I started by looking at Jennifer La Garde's "Twitter: A 140 Day Love Story". She provides many good resources for people who are just getting started! I really liked her idea of doing a 20-day Twitter Challenge. It looks like a great way to get started and in the habit of using Twitter!

I then went to Twitter itself to explore some of the hashtags that were suggested in the CoolTools post. I liked seeing how others were using it to collect ideas and get advice from others in the field. I also found that there were many interesting links and articles shared. I also think it's a great place to get updates from people in your personal network quickly!


I can see using Twitter as a way to stay connected to a PLN. It seems like a great way to share information, and also get advice from around the world. I am not sure that using it as a means of communication with our school community would be as successful. While many of my students have digital devices, they are a bit young for most means of social media (although I am sure they use it more than I know!). I also am unsure about how many of our parents would be on Twitter. A few of them do use our Facebook page as a way of getting information... I would like to see that increase first! I did ask the board for permission to create a library Facebook page and never heard back. I think my next step will be to follow up on that first!! Then perhaps I will explore the world of Twitter a bit more... :)

Thing 2: Photo Fun

Hello Again!

For this lesson, I have decided to explore using Instagram further. I downloaded the app on my phone, but have not really explored using it much beyond just posting photos (most of which are of my cat, Matilda. I'm afraid I might be one of "those" pet owners haha!)

I picked on of the photos on my phone and started playing around with the filters, as well as the brightness, structure, warmth, vignette, highlights…and more! I had no idea there were so many editing tools right in Instagram! I usually just pick a filter and post. Here was my end result:

I also enjoyed looking at the different tags on Instagram. I usually use the same ones (yes…#blackcatsofinstagram is my most used one!), but I liked exploring it as a search feature too! I think it would be a neat way to search for new display ideas! I also like the #macgyverlibrarianship tags from the Library Girl presentation I attended in November. So many cool ideas for my library!!

I think that our school could benefit from having an Instagram account. We already have a Facebook page, but the posts on there are minimum. I know some of our older students have smart phones and probably Instagram accounts. How neat would it be for them to see some of their work posted?

I also really liked some of the ideas shared in the "10 Ways to Use Instagram In Your Classroom" article. I just did a biography project with my 6th graders… how cool it would have been to have them make an "Instagram Page" for their chosen people! (I might still do that! I'd be interested to see what the kids who did Donald Trump, George Lucas, and Coco Chanel came up with!). I also liked the idea of letting the students be the ones behind the camera.  "A Day in the Life of" would be an awesome school wide project, with each classroom taking pictures throughout the day! I would also love to do a project that somehow incorporated the students and their favorite books. Maybe challenge them to take an artistic photo of their favorite book? Hmm….

I am looking forward to learning about some of the other photo tools and coming up with ideas on how to use them in the classroom!

Thing 1: Blogging

Hello Everyone!

I am getting a bit of a late start on all of this. Life has been a bit crazy- but here I am now! My name is Brianna Williams and I am a library media specialist at Abraham Wing School in Glens Fall, NY. I also am a part-time youth services librarian at the Clifton Park-Halfmoon Public Library. I have worked in the library field for about 15 years now, starting as a page then as a circulation clerk, and now a librarian! I was recently married in August, and live in Porter Corners with my husband and our cat, Matilda.

I am taking part in this program for two reasons. One, while I love books, my technology skills are not what I believe they should be. I can do a lot- but I know there is a lot for me still to learn! Also, my school is lacking in the technology department and I am hoping that I will learn new tools and skills that I can teach to our students and our faculty to help bring them up to speed with the other schools in the area. Our students switch districts after 6th grade (we have a very unique set up here) and I have heard through the grapevine that they are behind when it comes to technology when they arrive there. I am hoping to help bridge that gap!

I have done some blogging before- so this tool is pretty familiar for me. I have not been very good about keeping up with my previous blogging- so hopefully this time around I will be much better!

I am looking forward to learning all of these cool tools and expanding my knowledge! Let's do this! :)