Blacksburg Primary School Library Website

 

          As the librarian for Blacksburg Primary School, part of my job is to keep our school website up-to-date.  Our county uses Thrillshare software to create and upkeep our district and individual schools’ websites which in my opinion isn’t the easiest to operate.  I am so thankful that the previous librarian left extensive notes and instructions to help me navigate how to change and add new information to our school’s website.  Our Media Center has a page located on our website, but I wasn’t able to figure out how to integrate more pages onto the Media Center’s page by using the Thrillshare applications.  I decided to use Google Sites to produce a website solely centered around our school library.  I plan on adding a link to our BPS Thrillshare website that will allow viewers to access the more detailed library website I created through Google Sites.   

          After viewing a former student’s example our professor gave us access to, I really liked the design and simple layout of the site, so I modeled my website after hers.  On the homepage I used a picture I took of new books I had ordered with our infamous chicks that we got to incubate and watch hatch in the library this school year.  I included a virtual introduction to our library with pictures taken on a school iPad to create a video with Apple iMovie that I uploaded to my YouTube site.  I created my YouTube site this school year when I was livestreaming the chicks hatching so students could see their progress even when they weren’t physically in the library.  I used the library logo I created through Canva to bring attention to our library policies and used it in the top left corner of the menu bar which serves as a “return to the homepage” icon when you are on the other pages of the website.  To show upcoming events and happenings for our library, I embedded a Google Calendar I created especially for our library.  At the bottom of each page is our school’s name, address, my office phone number, my email address and a link to our Library Instagram page where I also create posts to showcase the fun things we are doing in the library.

          On the About page of the site I included two videos, linked through YouTube and produced the same way as my introduction video, to showcase the new books I have ordered this school year for the library.  Next, I included a video about the Bookmark Contest the library hosted for National Library Week which announces the winners for each grade level and our overall school winner.  All of these videos were included on our school’s morning announcements which are viewed in each classroom every day.  I also included a section about myself with a picture and information about me on this page.

          The next three pages on the website are the student, parent, and teacher pages.  All three pages have a link to our Follett Destiny webpage where viewers can access our school’s library catalog.  On the student’s page, I created an icon for reading and one for research using Canva.  When you click on the icons it takes you to separate Wakelets I created that house links to sites that students can use to access books or do research.  I added sites I knew of personally and sites that caught my eye on other library websites we viewed during the School Library Website Evaluation assignment earlier in the semester.  I embedded a Padlet on the students’ page to create a spot where students could access websites as a Virtual Makerspace.  Another Padlet can be found at the bottom of the students’ page that is interactive and allows viewers to add their favorite book.  I did not include any guidelines for citation of sources because the oldest students we serve at my school are second graders and just didn’t feel that concept was age appropriate.

On the parents’ page, I included our school’s weekly library schedule for the 2023-2024 school year so parents are aware of what day and time their child comes to library each week.  Resources are linked to our county public library, a site to get ideas to support literacy at home, and links to websites that provide information on digital citizenship and online safety.  I added a flyer giving information for Skooli which is an online tutoring service that is free to all students in our district.  At the bottom of the parents’ page, I added information about opportunities for volunteers to help out in our school library.

My goal for the teachers’ page was to provide them with classroom resources as well as give them a place to request materials from me.  I linked read aloud suggestions for them from several various award-winning lists and linked a site that houses a collection of resources that pertain to books and authors.  On this page I also linked my digital curation project on Virtual/Digital Makerspaces created through Pearltree.  I used Google forms to embed the material request form for teachers to fill out when they need something from the library to aid the curriculum taught in their classrooms. 

Overall, my goal for creating this website was to get information out about the library of the school in which I serve as well as to be a place our students, parents, and teachers can access useful links and resources.  I hope the simple design is aesthetically pleasing and easy to navigate.  I gave credit to Margaret Cook and her design of the MES Library website because it is what inspired me to use the tools and ideas I did in creating the Blacksburg Primary School Library website.

Blacksburg Primary School Website

Take it Away

         

        I am certainly not a digital native.  I have known a world before smartphones, apps, and the internet.  Although I am a digital immigrant, I would say I’m fairly tech savvy, I embrace technology, and I welcome the advances that it brings.  When I saw this course was named “Information Technologies in the School Library Program” I was excited about learning how to better incorporate technology into my curriculum.  I found each assignment this semester has better equipped me to successfully feel confident to integrate technology into our school, classrooms, and to serve our students as they become the leaders of tomorrow.  As the “Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education” states, “Students have a greater role and responsibility in creating new knowledge in understanding the contours and the changing dynamics of the world of information, and in using information, data, and scholarship ethnically” (ACRL, 2015). 

          One of the biggest takeaways from this semester is just how important the school librarian is in his/her building and how many roles he/she fills.  Becoming a leader of technology and forming alliances with others in the school that work closely with technology is crucial.  Together the integration of technology and its success in equipping students with the critical thinking skills to be the inventors of tomorrow is possible.  “Becoming effective technology leaders involves shifting the focus of our efforts from promoting technology tolls and usage to supporting teachers in designing technology-enabled learning experiences” (Green, 2014, p. 42).  The world of technology is ever changing and evolving.  It is not an area that is static nor can you get complacent in your knowledge of it.  I look forward to continuing to learn how to better serve the students and staff at Blacksburg Primary School.

 

REFERENCES

Framework for information literacy for higher education. (2015) Retrieved April 

        19, 2024 from http://www.ala.org/arcl.files/issues/infolit/framework.pdf

 

Green, L.S. (2014, September/October).  Through the looking glass: Examining 

        technology integration in school librarianship.  Knowledge Quest, 43(1), 36-

        43.

AR and the Library

         Augmented reality is a new concept for me.  I think most people have heard about virtual reality with the increased recent popularity of VR headsets and artificial intelligence has begun to make a name for itself recently as well, but what is augmented reality?  According to the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, “Augmented reality (AR) is the integration of digital information with the user’s environment in real time.  Unlike virtual reality (VR), which creates an artificial environment, AR users experience a real-world environment with generated perceptual information overlaid on top of it” (IFLA, 2023).   

          After spending some time researching AR and how it can be used in the classroom, I came across an article from Edutopia entitled, “7 Augmented Reality Tools for the Classroom”.  Listed in the article was an AR tool called Quiver Vision.  Watch this short 90 second video to discover how Quiver can be used to “transform the learning experience for everyone” (quivervision.com). 

Educational subscriptions come with a range of plans to choose from and cost anywhere from $60 to $450 depending on how many students you serve and the company even let’s you sign up for a free 7-day trial.  To find out more information about how to access and use this tool, visit their website at https://quivervision.com/

As you can see after visiting their website, educational resources are available for science, social science, social emotional learning, arts, mathematics, English literature, different grade bands (K-2, 3-5, 6-8) and international.  One of the lessons I could see using in the library is one for International Dot Day which is held on September 15 and is a special day our primary school participates in by celebrating.

 

I can’t wait to dive more into the world of augmented reality and discover the plethora of opportunities that are available for our students to benefit from.

 

REFERENCES

Augmented reality in libraries.  IFLA. (2023). 

        https://www.ifla.org/news/augmented-reality-in-libraries/

 

Danhoff, C. (2021).  7 augmented reality tools for the classroom. 

        Edutopia.  https://www.edutopia.org/article/7-augmented-reality-

        tools-classroom/

 

Gonzalez, J. [IT WORKED].  (2018, September 12).  IT WORKED: 

        International Dot Day-Quiver AR [Video].  YouTube. 

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fn0tjJlG6yM&t=9s

 

QuiverVision 3D augmented reality coloring apps.  QuiverVision. (n.d.). 

        https://quivervision.com/

Makerspaces and Old Technology

 

“Student needs, interests, talents, and attentions continually evolve.  Because of these constantly evolving needs, school librarians have to be adept at creating new ways to connect to students” (Preddy, 2013, p. 41).  One of these new ways of connecting is through makerspaces housed within the library setting. 

Mark Shilitoe, a Maker Educator with the MakEY project, shared a Light Play Makerspace he hosted at the Sheffield Children’s Library back in 2017.  “These experiments with light, featured a range of DIY approaches to building light boxes and exploring light in playful ways” (Shilitoe, 2017).  What really caught my eye were that “overhead projectors were dusted out of retirement and repurposed…leaving lots of space for participants to make their own meaning out of the materials through tactile exploration” (Shilitoe, 2017). 

https://makeyproject.wordpress.com/2017/11/24/light-play-at-a-pop-up-makerspace-sheffield-childrens-library/

According to Liz Smith, a K-5 librarian and mental health advocate, she “believes it’s all about giving kids time to use their imagination.  ‘It’s important to tap into the creative parts of their brain, to take a break from all of the testing, and meeting the state’s standards,’ Smith said.  She sees her students exhibiting greater focus and fewer discipline problems and ‘becoming better versions of themselves’” (Murphy, 2023).  Although the experiments Shilitoe suggests in the MakEY blog are fantastic and would tie well into science standards, I believe students would also enjoy the aspect of free-play/creating that the overhead projectors would bring to a makerspace.  What better way to put these old-timey machines that are just lying around your school to good use? 

 

REFERENCES

Murphy, P.J.  (2023, March 13).  Making a difference with makerspaces.  

        Publisher’s Weekly.

 

Preddy, L. (2013, February).  Creating school library “Makerspace”.  

        School Library Monthly, 29(5), 41-42. 

 

Shilitoe, M. (2017, November 24).  Light play at a pop-up makerspace, 

        Sheffield Children’s Library.  MakEY.    

         https://makeyproject.wordpress.com/2017/11/24/light-play-at-a

        -pop-up-makerspace-sheffield-childrens-library/