Kristin Fontichiaro's Blog About Learning, Teaching, Making Things, and Libraries

The School Library Media Specialist: Library Media Program: Introduction What is collection mapping? Collection mapping is the process of examining the quantity and quality of your collection and identifying its strengths and weaknesses. A number of authors have written about the process. The outcome of the process can serve as a guide during the collection development process. A collection map is a visual representation that graphically displays the breath and depth of the library collection. Makerspace Resources and Programming ideas Create Collaborate Innovate Posts on Making Sign up for this MOOC offered by Exploratorium: Tinkering FundamentalsSign up for Google’s Maker Camp and Google Science Camp.Follow and read the blog over at Exploratorium’s Tinkering Studio or sign up for their tinkering course!Find cool stuff and Make it at your Library!

The School Library Media Specialist: Information Access & Delivery The teacher librarian sustains a healthy collection through an effective maintenance program. I hate to throw things away. How do I know when something should be pitched? There's a really old video on first aid that the fifth grade teacher is still using. It's inaccurate in some sections. Makerspaces, Participatory Learning, and Libraries – The Unquiet Librarian The concept of libraries as makerspaces first hit my radar last November when I read about the Fayetteville Free Library’s FabLab. As I began hearing more buzz about libraries and makerspaces the first few months of this year, I decided that learning more about this concept and exploring how I might apply the elements of makerspaces to my library program would be a personal learning project for the summer. So what is a makerspace? Makerspace defines it as: Modeled after hackerspaces, a makerspace is a place where young people have an opportunity to explore their own interests, learn to use tools and materials, and develop creative projects. It could be embedded inside an existing organization or standalone on its own.

School Library Collection Development Resources for School Librarians - Index "It does not matter how many books you may have, but whether they are good or not." - Lucius Annaeus Seneca (3 B.C.-65 A.D.), Epistolae Morale Collection Development in General - Web Sites Information Access and Delivery - A guide for policy writing and collection maintenance by the Purdue University School of Library and Information Science. The Maker Space Difference: Amazing Inquiry, Shared Learning Students work with the new 3-D printer. “Is it true? Do we have a 3-D printer?” When I put our new 3-D printer in the window of the school library, not only were my own maker space students interested, but the rest of the school seemed to take note.

Collaborative Computing vs One to One This is a guest post from Tracy Dabbs, Coordinator of Technology and Innovation for the Burlington-Edison School District. I have been supporting Ed-Tech in classrooms for nearly 15 years and during this time we have all experienced some big changes in tools and ideas. There is always some new learning design that promises to transform education and be THE solution to reach all students. One trend that seems to keep surfacing is the idea of one to one computing. What do we see in these learning spaces? We see individual students with faces in screens for extended periods of time. Maker & DIY Programs Maker enthusiasts: anyone can edit this page. Please share your resources here! You may also be interested in our STEM Resources page and our Teen Programming Guidelines from YALSA (.pdf)

Reading Across a Dozen Literacies This article will define each literacy while giving examples of "reading" within each category. It takes special skills to read a swamp or a beach or a desert area. These skills also differ from region to region as the flora and fauna shift. Most of us have heard of swimmers caught in rip tides because they did not know how to read the signs or of visitors enjoying tidal flats suddenly swept up in an incoming tide much larger than anything they knew back home. Artistic Literacy Anyone can look at a painting, a photograph or a movie. Launching a Makerspace: Lessons Learned From a Transformed School Library Excitement about school makerspaces has been in the air, but many educators eager to create hands-on learning spaces in their schools still aren’t sure how to get started or why it’s worth the effort. New Canaan High School librarian Michelle Luhtala recently jumped headfirst into creating a makerspace in her library and documented what she learned, how her space changed and how it affected students along the way. Her experience was very different from elementary school librarian Andy Plemmons, whose makerspace started with a 3-D printer obtained through a grant and blossomed into a core teaching resource at his school. Luhtala is blessed with a big library, but for most of her career it has been dominated by large bookshelves. Over time, Luhtala has pared down her collection as she increased the digital reading material the library offers, but in order to make room for a makerspace she cleared out 7,000 books.

Addressing Implicit Bias Image from Manascan (2020) I must say that I have learned more about equity, diversity, bias, and inclusivity in the past year than I have during my entire adult education. Lately, students, faculty, and staff have been doing training sessions and reflective practice where I work. We are engaged in these activities because of our current national and global environment. I like that our entire school community has participated in these events.