Screencasts

Screencasts are a fun way for teachers and librarians to teach their students how to do something. Students can also create screencasts to teach other students how to use certain programs or to show their teachers that they have mastered skills that are being taught in class.

In a school library screencasts can be very useful and easy to incorporate. Librarians can create screencasts for students on various topics such as how to navigate databases, how to navigate the online catalog, how to conduct effective research, etc. Then librarians can take the videos they have created and post them on the school's website and all of the library's social media accounts. This is an effective way to provide instruction for students at all times even after official school hours when students are at home.

Some of the available options to create screencasts are Screencast-O-Matic, Screenr, and Jing. I was not able to test Screenr because I was having issues with Java permissions, but I did explore and create videos using Screencast-O-Matic and Jing. I will tell you that even though they are free both programs require you to download them into your computer. They were both easy to use and navigate, but I didn't like that Jing only limits a user to record 5 minute screencasts. So while Jing was easy to use I would not use it because of the time limit. When I was recording my Jing screencast I definitely felt rushed. I also did not like that since Jing is owned by Adobe Flash because when you save your file to your computer you can only view it if you have Flash installed into your computer. If you save the scrrencast to screencast.com which is Jing's storage site you are not given and embed code so you can only add a link to your video and I did not like that. I tried for a very long time to find an embed code, but I was not successful.

I would definitely use and recommend Screencast-O-Matic. It was so easy to use and there is no time limit on the length of your screencast. When saving your screencast using Screencast-O-Matic users are allowed to save the video to the Screencast-O-Matic website or upload them directly to a user's YouTube channel. Using Screencast-O-Matic was so easy that I am very satisfied with it.

Screencast-O-Matic

Using Screencast-O-Matic I created a screencast for students on how to create a comic strip using ToonDoo.

Jing

http://screencast.com/t/kvkNylEy 

Using Jing I created a screencast to show students how to create a blog using Blogger which is owned by Google.

Cartoons and Comics

ToonDoo

http://www.toondoo.com/

ToonDoo allows users to create a free account to create comics or books using an array of characters, backgrounds, and conversation bubbles. Opening an account is very easy, but with the free account a user does not have many choices. When creating my comic I had to use very basic characters and I couldn’t even get the backgrounds to work for me. Once I created the comic saving it was very easy because I was allowed to save it to my computer which was very convenient. Once comics are created users have the option of saving it to their computer or emailing it to their friends. Although using the site was easy I would not use this particular one with my students because it takes too long to load the images into the comic strip and my 6th grade students tend to be very impatient so for them this is not the adequate program.

Pixton
https://www.pixton.com/   Pixton also allows users to create a free account, but the drawback is that the free accounts only last a few days. A regular free account is only valid for 7 days and accounts for educators are only valid for 15 days. Since I created a free account I was very limited on the backgrounds and characters I could use and to be honest the characters and backgrounds available were not very visually appealing. From all the programs I used Pixton was the most difficult to use. It was definitely not user friendly and I would not recommend it for use with students. Another drawback to Pixton was that you are not allowed to download the comic that you create to your computer because that is a feature only available to paying customer accounts. I did not like this at all because the only way to share is to embed the comic or copy the URL link to the comic.

MakeBeliefsComix
http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/

My favorite by far was MakeBeliefComix! It was so easy to use and creating the comic was very fun. With MakesBeliefComix users are not required to create an account at all. All a user needs to do is simply go to the website and get started creating their comic. Users have different characters to choose from as well as various backgrounds, conversation bubbles, and additional props. After finishing the comic users are able to save it to their computer, print it, or email it to friends. This site was very user friendly and easy that it took away the stress of creating a comic. I had a really good time creating the comic strip and I know my students will too because the program is so easy to use. This website is perfect for students to use in the classroom and in the library because it does not require an account. I will definitely be using this program with my students and I recommend it to classroom teachers and librarians. Through this website students can create comic strips based on what they have been learning in class in a fun and creative way that is very quick to use.

Tellagami

The final program I want to highlight is an app called Tellagami. A user can download it for free on their iPad. This app lets users create a character, add a background, and add a voice recording for your character and the final product is called a gami. The possibilities for incorporating this app into the school library are endless. I for example, would create them to promote upcoming library activities, library announcements for parents, book talks, quick student presentations, etc. I definitely recommend that school librarians and teachers use this program especially because the kids would enjoy it. An added perk to this program is that it is very easy to use.

">

Online Book Communities

Online book communities are a great way to keep books organized. You can create shelves of books you have read, books you want to read, and books you are currently reading. Librarians can share with their students shelves that have been created for the school library with book recommendations. I think an effective way to use book communities is for the students to add books to the library’s shelf on any of the book communities and rate the books as they read them. This will give students the opportunity to showcase the books that they are reading and other students will be able to see what other students their age and at their school are reading. I had never joined any book communities until now, but I am glad that I did and I am honestly surprised it took me this long. In this blog I will discuss several book communities available and I will recommend the ones that I feel are best for the students.

Goodreads

www.goodreads.com

Goodreads allows users to create a free account. Once an account is created the user is prompted to select a favorite genre so that the program can recommend books to you based on your preferred genre. The user is then prompted to rate at least 20 books after which the program will begin recommending books based on what you have read. I thought this was a cool feature because the other book communities that I joined did not recommend books to me that I might like. I also really liked this feature because the books that are being suggested are based on what I have previously enjoyed reading. The basic shelf categories provided are books I have read, currently reading, and books I want to read. Goodreads allows users to add other shelf categories which is a great option because it gives readers other ways to categorize their books in addition to the categories already provided by the program. Although I liked that books were automatically recommended to me I would not use Goodreads with my students. It is not as easy to navigate as the other programs and therefore would not be appealing to my students.

LibraryThing

https://www.librarything.com/

LibraryThing also allows users to create a free account. By far LibraryThing was my favorite book community and it was really easy to use. I also liked that it allows users to create additional shelf categories. The categories that are premade are my library, want to read, read, and currently reading. When users login all they need to do is click on the tab that says add books. Users then search for the books from sites such as Amazon, The Library of Congress, or Overcat. When users find the book they want they click on the shelf category that pertains to their book and then a book is saved on the specific shelf. For this assignment I added additional shelves which were lower grade, middle grade, and upper grade which were book levels. Visually LibraryThing is not appealing it is actually very simple, but the simplicity of the program is what makes it so great especially for students. I also like that it allows users to shelf books under more than one category. I would highly recommend using LibraryThing with your students because it is very user friendly and it serves its purpose effectively.

Shelfari

http://www.shelfari.com/

Another great free book community option is Shelfari. Shelfari is brought to users by Amazon and if users have an Amazon account they can automatically sign in to Shelfari. If users do not have an Amazon account it is free to open an account and it is very easy.  Shelfari was easy to use and very visually appealing. Users search for a book in the search bar and when their book of choice appears they simply click to add the book to their shelf. The shelf options on Shelfari are I plan to read, I’m reading now, and I’ve read it. Another benefit to using Shelfari is it allows users to rate the books they have read. The only drawback I found with Shelfari is I was not able to figure out how to create my personal shelf categories like I was able to do with the other book communities. Students would really enjoy using Shelfari because it is visually appealing and very user friendly. I would definitely recommend this book community.

Booklikes

http://booklikes.com/

Another easy to use free book community is Booklikes. Although I personally did not like it and would not use it with my students it is easy to use and worth exploring. Users simply search for their books and once they appear they can add them to their respective shelves of read, planning to read, or currently reading. This book community also allows readers to create their own book shelf category which is an advantage as well as allow users to rate the books they have read. A disadvantage that I found was that I did not find all of the books I wanted to add to my shelf which was odd because I was able to find all the books in the other book communities. Visually the book shelf was very appealing and to visual learners that would be a great aspect of the program.

Biblionasium

https://www.biblionasium.com/#tab/content-back-to-school-mix

The final free book community that I explored was Biblionasium. Biblionasium is perfect for teachers to use in the classroom with their students and the parents. The reason I say it is for classroom use is because in order to create virtual book shelves teachers need to create groups and add their students into the program and a librarian would most likely not have enough time to manually input the names of every single student they service at their respective campus. This allows teachers to recommend books to their students. Students and parents have access and view the book recommendations as well as the teacher’s wish list so parents can help by donating books on the teacher’s wish list. Students have the capability to create book reviews to post for the entire class to see. This site is very interactive, user friendly and visually appealing and would be a great resource for students to have and to use. I would recommend teachers to create an account and share it with their students and their parents. The only disadvantage that I saw to this book community is that it only has books geared for students in grades K-8 so high school teachers would not be able to share this resource with their students.

Overall all, after actively exploring all the different free book communities I will continue to use LibraryThing. It is so easy to use the students will quickly understand it which is exactly the type of program needed for students who come to the library with a limited amount of time. For classroom teachers though I will recommend that they create an account with Biblionasium so they can recommend books to their students and the parents.

Podcasts

So for today’s blog I will be discussing podcasts. Now podcasts are awesome because you can record your message or lesson and you do not have to show your face if you do not want to! YouTube is an awesome tool, but sometimes shy individuals like me prefer to be heard rather than to be seen. A great element of podcasts is that you can listen to them whenever and wherever you want because they are portable. You can subscribe to a podcast series and when new podcasts in that series are posted they will automatically download or you can store podcasts in your mp3 player.

Whatever the case may be there are many benefits of using podcasts in classrooms and libraries. We all know that students do not always learn in the same way. Podcasts are perfect for auditory learners. Podcasts also allow teachers and librarians to differentiate lessons for students. For example, modifications for Special Education students and Limited English Learners dictate that the education system needs to differentiate classroom and library instruction. Podcasts can meet these needs by allowing students to have extended support. If they do not understand the lesson the first time they can have access to it as many times as they need because it is a podcast.

Podcasts also allow librarians to train teachers and students in a cost effective way. Librarians can offer for teachers staff development. Staff development through podcasts is perfect because a lot of times finding the time to schedule these training sessions can be very difficult. If librarians offer staff development with podcasts teachers have the convenience of listening whenever they have the chance thus making it more likely those teachers will react positively to the training because they do not feel like something is being forced upon them. When training students using podcasts librarians can record podcasts about different topics such as library orientation, how to find books using the online catalog, or how to use databases. Really the trainings librarians can offer teachers and students using podcasts are endless.

 The best part of podcasts is that they do not necessarily need to be created exclusively by the teacher or librarian. Podcasts can be created by students as well. For example students can create podcasts that promote the library and the services the library offers, book talks, or research findings.

 When creating a podcast there are many free options available to users. Today I will be discussing Audioboom, Podomatic, Soundcloud, and Audacity. I created a free account for all of the programs mentioned and I explored each one individually. First I will start with Audioboom. What I liked about Audioboom is that it allows you to upload an audio file that you already recorded or it allows you to record audio. Unfortunately every time I tried recording audio when I played it back the sound was warped and in slow motion. For some reason my microphone headset did not work with Audioboom and for a while I thought maybe something was wrong with my headset, but when I used the same microphone headset with the other programs it worked perfectly. I have to caution users that if you create a free account with Audioboom your podcasts can only last up to 10 minutes each which can be a deal breaker for someone who needs to record a longer podcast. So for me personally Audioboom was not for me and I would not highly recommend it to users. The next program I tried was Podomatic and I did not like it at all. I created a free account and after several attempts and an hour later I was never really able to use it. The page would not load properly and the program kept kicking me off the account I had created. Every time I tried to click on something so that I could navigate the site it would ask me to login again. I was not even able to try recording any audio therefore I found that the site was not user friendly and I also would not recommend it. The next podcast site I tried was Soundcloud and it was great. It was easy to use and navigate. I found it to be user friendly. Soundcloud allows you to upload an audio file previously recorded or the site allows you to record and save a file to upload. After uploading a previously recorded file or one that was just recorded, Soundcloud gives you access to the link or the embed code so you can share you podcast. The only drawback I found in Soundcloud is that when I uploaded my podcast file it did take a while to upload and process the clip. I would definitely recommend Soundcloud to users who are interested in creating podcasts because it is very user friendly. The last program I want to talk about is Audacity. For me personally Audacity is very easy to use, but I must caution you that Audacity does require users to download an additional piece of free software so that the audio clip can be converted to an mp3 file. I must warn you that the additional software needed has a really unique name, but it works really well. The software that works in conjunction with Audacity is called LAME, and it is an mp3 encoder. I have to be truly honest what took me a few hours to record with the other three programs only took me about 10 minutes to do with Audacity. After recording and saving the audio to your computer users will need to upload it to a host site such as Podbean. Although Audacity requires an additional piece of software and a host site I would still recommend it to users because it works and it is user friendly. Ultimately the two best podcasts that I recorded were the ones done using Soundcloud and Audacity. For this blog I will share the podcast that I recorded using Audacity because it is my tool of preference and because when I was recording the podcast using Soundcloud my cell phone started buzzing and you can hear the buzzing in the background.

With this assignment I was able to explore other options in podcasting. I also learned the wonderful ways that teachers and librarians can use podcasts in their lessons. The important bit of information that we must always remember is that we must find different ways to try to reach our students. Podcasts can offer different learning experiences for students as well as they are a creative way to keep students engaged in the lesson.

To access my podcast click on the link below:
The Gypsy Librarian Podcast for Narrative Essay Hooks