Stamping The Books

Making a screen recording was suspiciously simple to do with Screencast-o-matic. Just a few clicks and I was recording what I was seeing on screen and narrating. So simple, so brilliant. I have tried instruction videos before but this involved propping up ipads, positioning of monitors, sitting in strange places so I wasn't seen on screen, then recording the voice over separately. It did the job though it was so time consuming and awkward. This system is so much simpler, straightforward and will be a boon for recording instructions for using the library catalogue or guides for using specific software etc. I'll certainly be sharing this with my librarian and teacher colleagues. This also has got me thinking about how I could have used this in my previous life in the public sector with providing on line guides to using our catalogue and website, and simple commuting guides. These would be especially useful for people accessing the service remotely, and indeed would be a usefu...

Last night I linked into a webinar not expecting much from it, perhaps some information to share with the English Department. But how wrong was I!  The webinar from the New York Times Education section entitled   ' Write to Change the World: Crafting Persuasive Pieces With Help from Nicholas Kristof and the Times Op-Ed Page' , proved to a fascinating hour of information and explanation around the perennial High School essay - the discursive essay. As a school librarian I sometimes get the job of highlighting sources the pupils can use to look for ideas, sometimes with  a class, other times with pupils one to one if they are really struggling.  This webinar though has given me a real insight into how I can not just promote sources of information to the pupils, but also encourage them to look at other ways of approaching their essay - choose an argument or pick a fight with something. Start it with a real bang! It also highlig...

I encourage the kids at work to tell me about the books they have read and to do a review, and rarely do myself. So I relished the chance to do a review for the latest Sally Prue novel for Reading Zone which they have published. I actually found the process quite challenging especially as I struggled to engage with the novel at times, and I had to remind myself that this is a novel aimed at 8-11 year old children not adults. Also putting in negative comments  was a challenge to me as what i see as a negative other folk may not have an issue with, and is it just me not engaging with the book properly rather than a flaw in the writing! So I have a new appreciation for pupils at work who are tasked to do book reviews, and having struggled with this one, I think I need to get a few more done to hone my reviewer style! Sally Prue review