Book Drops: "Three Black Swans" by Caroline B. Cooney

Cooney, Caroline B. Three Black Swans. New York: Delacorte Press, 2010. ISBN: 978-0-385-73867-5.

Why Did I Pick This Up: I really like the cover and also was intrigued by the Wall Street Journal quote at the beginning of the book.

But the future isn't a hat full of little shredded pieces of the past.

It is, instead, a whirlpool of uncertainty populated by what the

trader and philosopher Nassim Nicholas Taleb calls "black swans"

---events that are hugely important, rare and unpredictabl, and

explicable only after the fact.

Why I Didn't Put It Down: If I had to rate this book, I would give it 3 out of 5 stars. It was an interesting tale of 3 lost sisters, who happen to be identical triplets but it took a while to get started and then the story of the biological parents was too quickly dealt with. I liked reading about the 3 separate lives but it was strange that 2 of the sisters ended up being cousins. It also just ended too perfect for my tastes. Also, I think, with that strong quote at the beginning, it was a lot to try to portray in this book. The events were not so profound or that spectacular. 2 of the girls are cousins and 1 is from a "rich" family. I really was interested in the premise but the portrayal was just not as strong as it could be.

Who Would I Recommend This To: I would not put this on my list. Though, I know there are some girls who would enjoy this quick read.

Thoughts on "The Wave" by Susan Casey (Audiobook)

Audiobook: The Wave by Susan Casey. Read by Kirsten Potter.

I really wanted to enjoy this audiobook. I heard an interview with Susan Casey on NPR and thought it sounded interesting. Big waves, wave science, amazing surfers - are all topics I love reading about. I finished the audiobook because the subject is fascinating but it was a slog. I couldn't get past how Kirsten Potter narrated. I guess, I thought she would get read it with out any "acting" but she read more like it was a fiction novel. She would put on accents and change her tone when representing the men and women that Casey talked too. Also, it was more about how much Casey loves Laird Hamilton then about the waves and the science of the waves. Even the summary on the back plays up the science of rogue and giant waves but there really wasn't that much. The summary talk about the scientists but most of the tracks focused on Hamilton and his contemporaries. I think Laird Hamilton is incredible but this book shouldn't be titled "The Wave," it was more along the lines of swooning about Hamilton.

Overall, I was pretty disappointed.

Rent a book and a Textbook...bookswim.com

Have you seen Bookswim.com? Someone on LM-Net posted the link to it and was very enthusiastic about it. I guess, my question is, why not just support your public library? You can put books on hold, you can ILL (interlibrary loan) books (sometimes textbooks too) and yes, there are fees to put things on hold or ILL but it really is not that much and you are supporting your public library.

They do have a value section that asks "Why Not just go to the Library?" And there are some valid things like late fees and long holds and limited hours but still wouldn't you rather have your money go to an institution that helps the community?

I think it's also funny that there is a really tiny disclaimer that says the following:

"* That said, BookSwim is a terrific suppliment for avid library users, as BookSwim encourages members to use the library if/when possible.""

That's right..go use your library if you can...

Hello, libraries are being shut down and funding is being slashed. Libraries are being closed all over the place...I would rather give what little money I have to paying a small late fee and keeping my public library open then doing this. But that's just me.

By the way, if you didn't know, there are some libraries out there that does send books to patrons. It might not be publicized very well but there are libraries that do this too. You just need to call and ask.

Though, I guess, as a student, I would have rather rented a textbook than bought it but that's why I used interlibrary loans. :)

Year 3-Week 1: Applying some workshop lessons

The first days of school have come and gone and I have to admit that it was great! I applied a couple of the techniques discussed at the Fred Jones Workshop in Santa Cruz I attended in June and also tips from the First Days of School book.
I have been steadily working on the goals for the school year I had listed here. I am happy to say that I did learn all of my students names and also met some really great 7th graders, who are not in my class. My students are pretty eclectic mix of personalities like every class room and about a 1/3 of them went to the same school. I learned that this is the only class where they actually have more than 1 or 2 people from their old school in the room. How does this happen? And why does it happen to me? I swear, sometimes I think someone is plotting against me :) It is not so bad though I have been re-arranging my seating chart every class meeting. I actually like doing this because I can see who talks to who during the period and then I can adjust accordingly next class meeting.
Learning all of their names before hand has made a huge difference. Who would have thought? Ok, every person who has written a class management and first days of school book! But remember I am not from a education background, I'm a librarian/art history major! Whether they are conscious of it or not, I think, they are pretty happy when you see them and know who they are. I even greeted them at the door and have made it a point to be there when they walk through the door of my class. Last year, I would be rushing from lunch and the set up was not very conducive for greeting them because there were 2 entrances. When you are standing right there when they walk in and are not hovering in the back somewhere, it makes a huge difference.
I have also been "working the crowd" and it has changed the talking level of the room though I work in a computer lab with a strange L-shaped set up so it makes it difficult to keep the space between me and a student to a minimum. I have been picturing the red/yellow/green zones and it has helped me immensely with keeping on moving and checking my students.
I really should keep writing about my class managment progress and in the end, I will probably write a letter to Fred Jones thanking him for a great workshop.
Hope everyone else's beginning of the year is off to a fabulous start as well!

Author Visit: Cambria Gordon - "The Down-To-Earth Guide to Global Warming"

On Monday, Cambria Gordon, co-author of "The Down-To-Earth Guide to Global-Warming," came to the school to give a talk about how individuals (the kids) can reduce their carbon footprint as well as promoting her book.

The assembly was engaging and Ms. Gordon is extremely passionate about this cause. The kids seemed interested in what she was saying thought there were a couple of jokers' making comments that she handled with humor and tact. At one point, she asked the students suggestions for how to help stop global-warming and one student commented, "Stop having kids." I would have probably just looked at him and moved on but she pointed out that, that was a good point and "the elephant in the room" kind of suggestion. She made great points like her belief that one person can make a difference, that we are human and not perfect so we can only do what we can, and that one change may lead to one more change and then another and then it just becomes habit.

The Down-To-Earth Guide to Global Warming, published by Scholastic, is by Laurie David and Cambria Gordon. It is full of information and color photographs and illustrations that depict what global warming is and how it is affecting the planet. It is geared towards middle and elementary schoolers. It is also filled with informational side bars that go into depth about things like the dome C ice core, ideas that kids can try out at home, maps and other facts about being "green." There is even a section on "sustainable careers!" The final pages are filled with list of other books to read, good websites that students interested in the topic can check out and suggestions of what kids can do to lower their carbon imprint on the planet. Definitely worth checking out or adding to the collection.

I posted one step (that she mentioned) that I think lot of people would want to take - Stopping Junk Mail. There is a site you can join called 41pounds.org. If you want something free check out this link that Ambookgeek sent me from Smart Money.

Ambookgeek has his own take on the discussion here.

Thoughts on chaperoning: Northrop Grumman Symphonies For Schools

With the recent news coverage of Northrop Grumman and the military contract they recently won, I thought I would write about the other side of Northrop Grumman as sponsor for the education department of the LA Phil.

On February 28, I had the pleasure of chaperoning the middle school trip to see the LA Phil conducted by Joana Carneiro perform Dvorak's Symphony No. 9 "New World Symphony." The middle school symphony is amazing. We have one student who is a prodigy. I am not just saying this either. He's also one of the nicest and most focused and well-mannered students on campus but this goes for most of the students in symphony. I am pretty lucky in that I am asked to attend these things even though I have no real knowledge of classical music.

The performance of "New World Symphony" also coincided with a dramatic performance of Dvorak's contributions to American classical music /African-American History month. That was a little unexpected but it broke up the different parts of the symphony nicely (especially since the audience was made up of hundreds of L.A. middle schoolers). I learned about how Dvorak came to the United States to help create a style of classical music that was "America" and based it on folk music, African American spirituals and other American musical styles. The actors were interesting and one of them had the most amazing voice that just filled the concert hall. If I were a singer, I would want to sing in the concert hall. The acoustics are absolutely incredible.

I have only heard 1 part of the "New World Symphony" and it was just amazing listening to it live and in all it's 3 part glory. Also, one of the actors pointed out the influences of a section and it was great knowing where a beat or progression came from. We also had incredible seats where we had an excellent view of Joana Carniero. She is absolutely fascinating to watch. One student pointed out that she conducts ahead of the beat, which kind of blew my mind. She also uses every bit of her body to conduct. I have never seen anyone conduct with so much style and mannerisms. I was in awe of her.

Another great moment was listening to the pieces composed by 6 middle/high school students. 2 of the students are from the school. They were asked to represent America in the pieces they created. These are 14 - 18 year olds! Another mind blowing inspirational moment. If you let kids take off and nurture certain talents they can go so far.

Will Richardson's "Finish this sentence..."

I follow Will Richardson on Twitter. Today he twittered:

"Finish this sentence: "The world has changed, content is cheap and collaboration is easy. As educators, we must..."

I am going to think about it and post something later. But what do you want to say about this? What would you contribute to this discussion?

PT 1 - Reaction Post - Blogs and educational uses

I am currently reading Will Richardson's Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and other powerful web tools for the classroom. I am a proponent for using more (excuse the buzzword) Web 2.0 tools in the library and the classroom. I am part of a team that teaches are course with the word "technology" in the title. However, I find it challenging to even incorporate a small about of new technology in the curriculum. There is a lot of talk about implementing the use of these tools but for all the talk and support, there is also a large number of individuals who oppose it.

"What is the point?" they ask.

That is a great question. Why should we use these new tools? What good would it be to expose students to weblogs? podcasts? wikis? When is it age appropriate? Will it add more to my workload? These are all valid questions but if we are going to prepare our students for "the future" educators/instructors/librarians need to find a way to incorporate these tools to enhance their instruction.

I have just finished the chapters related to blogging and one quote that struck me is on page 40. Richardson writes, "There is no better way to understand the impact of the Read/Write Web than by becoming a part of it."

It took me a long time to start blogging. Actually, the first blogger I knew was Jason Toney . He blogged about everything even things I would have found too private to post. What my first impression of blogs were "open diaries" where you expressed practically every thing. I was fearful of them. I did not want to be so public with my thoughts or emotions and then, I started blogging. I started blogging about music and movies and food. Then when I started looking for a job after graduate school, I started blogging about my job search. I became more and more invested in writing and then people started commenting. I started a dialogue with fellow librarians, friends I met at SXSW and then one day, one of my favorite author's wife's emailed me. When would that have ever happened in my day to day life? For a person who is shy and pretty quiet, NEVER!

Now, the challenge is how to engage students in the process. We have a unit on internet safety where we discuss how things on the web are not necessarily deleted, that you need to be careful about what you post. If students have blogs, I think they will be more aware of the content they are creating, maybe it will help them be better digital citizens.

Feeling a little overwhelmed

I have not been able to post at all. I wanted to post more often and also write a bit about the IL conference but I just keep running out of time. I think I need a secret hour, like in Westerfeld's Midnighters series, so I can just catch up on reading and writing.

Some cool things I am checking out:

• Flock - social web browser
  
• My Pop Studio - for digital literacy and critical thinking skills amongst middle school girls
• reading SLJ about Twitter & Libraries

That's about it for now. One day I will catch-up. Hopefully.

Grades and Comments

After IL2007, I had to work on grades and comments so I have not been able to post about the conference. I need to spend an evening just writing about all the different panels. It has been a very hectic couple of weeks so I will get to it at some point. Once all the madness dies down and I can have a moment to sit and write. I have been doing a lot of thinking about Social Network Sites and their use in education. There were so many cool things that I learned about and that I would like to implement in some way into the curriculum or into the library that I am feeling a bit overwhelmed.

But I am also beginning to question my own privacy online. How private do I need to do? Should my comfort level change?

There were so many wonderful bloggers that presented that I feel like I would like to be just that open and accessible.

SNS & Education - Thoughts?

I am currently researching the use of social networking sites in the classroom. Does anyone out there have any thoughts on the topic.

I am reading about Ning, Elgg, and Imbee. I think it is best to stay away from MySpace and Facebook.

It would be good if I got some feed back from people out there.

Thanks!