Social+Networks

=**Social Netwo****rks**=

Libraries using Twitter [] At this site you will find the examples of how libraries all over the country are using twitter. This site is interesting because it highlights all types of libraries school, public, corporate, medical and they all use Twitter. Librarians use Twitter to alert patrons of new book arrivials, books due, preview and recomendations of titles, following authors or artists etc.

[] This Ning is for practicing school librarians. It features lesson plans and other best practice suggestions for librarians.

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 * This site is for librarians who want to teach teachers how to use video and other technology in the classroom with best practice in mind. Professional development for the librarian and teacher, you could use this in any level school library and help teachers get educated, up dated and informed about all manner of different technology. I t also helps teachers new to technology connect with teachers who are technology pros, who have real world experience and have tried and refined the suggested lessons.**
 * Libraries**
 * Using Emerging Technology to Advance Your School Library Program Social webinar series designed to help librarians develop a toolbox of emerging technologies that will help them and their faculties embed 21st century and right-brained learning into their programs and core content curriculum.
 * [|Library 2.0]
 * [|TeacherLibrarianNing] - A community for teacher-librarians and other educators

Edna Moore Sawey

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Shelfari [] I came across this website when researching another social networking site focusing on books. A high school librarian in Kansas wrote that she likes Shelfari better than others of the same genre, so I checked it out. I like how she incorporates Shelfari into her high school's library web page ( []). That was a feature she mentioned liking- being able to embed a Shelfari shelf into a web page. I don't know if bookstores still do this, but they used to have a few shelves in their stores dedicated to the book picks of the staff that would change periodically, and would include a note as to why it was chosen. Shelfari makes it possible to do this virtually.  Shelfari, according to Wikipedia, is a [|social cataloging] website for books. Shelfari users build virtual bookshelves of the titles they own or have read, and can rate, review, [|tag], and discuss their books. Users can also create groups that other members may join, create discussions, and talk about books, or other topics. Recommendations can be sent to friends on the site for what books to read. I think this is a great tool for librarians. As mentioned before, a Shelfari shelf can be added to a school library web site to promote new or recommended books. Book clubs could be formed through the use of Shelfari also. Teachers could set up a Shelfari shelf on a class web page, and have students add a book to the virtual shelf on a particular subject instead of writing a full book report. Be aware that most of the books in the Shelfari catalog come from the owner, Amazon. A feature that links the books back to sites where recommended books can be purchased can be disabled if not desired.

Lori Irvin

The Teacher Librarian Ning [|http://teacherlibrarian.ning.com]. This is a social network which specifically aims at librarians that are working in schools. As its main page states it is “ For those of us who connect, teach, share, and lead in new information landscapes .” This is a resource that puts librarian teachers in touch with each other and each other’s ideas. It has a plethora of information, daily blogs, videos, Web 2.0 ideas, etc., that enlighten, encourage, and instruct. My favorite part on this Ning so far is the wiki for Elementary Teachers titled Elementary Teaching Routines. You click on this and you find amazing ideas. The daily routines are ideas from all over the country covering such topics as how to use Attention Signals, Bathroom Procedures, Book Care, Check in and Checkout, how to handle Discussion Times. The Administration section has ideas about AV Equipment Management, Budgeting, Beginning of the Year setups, Procedural Manuals and how to work with Parents. The Curriculum section shares a variety of K – 6 curriculum and Scope and Sequences for library media classes from various school districts. Teachers have also shared specific lesson plans. This section gives story time tips and Reader’s Theater ideas. This wiki is amazing and chock full of ideas we can use and, since it is a wiki, we can join and give our input, as well. This ning is a resource that I will return to over and over.

Elizabeth Jane Rader

Making Curriculum Pop Ning http://mcpopmb.ning.com/ Making Curriculum Pop is a social network where curriculum coordinators, librarians and teachers may share or create resources that use “Pop Culture” to teach the core curriculum. The inspiration for this came from hit TV shows which educated children, such as “Sesame Street and School House Rock”. These shows engaged students in learning through elements of pop culture. It takes a lot of time for teachers to research or create lessons for every subject using popular video clips or websites, so the goal of Making Curriculum Pop is to serve as forum where everyone can share and use ideas, without having to reinvent the wheel. A suggested use of this Ning for librarians is to provide resources to teachers who may be looking for content to help them teach the core curriculum.Currently, I would use this Ning to find popular video clips or songs to help teach hard to grasp concepts or to beef up a boring lesson. If I were a librarian, I would direct teachers to this Ning when they consult with me on materials they can use to teach a lesson from the core curriculum.

Gabrielle Brown

Pageflakes []

This website is similar to Netvibes and Protopage. Pageflakes is a social network that allows the user to create their own space. These could include a personal space and/or a collaborative space. You can also add wikis, mail, blogs, calendars, Facebook, and so much more. There can even be a page specifically for searching particular items such as images, books, podcasts, blogs, and information. Library catalogs and databases can be linked here as well. The librarian can use Pageflakes to set up useful RSS feeds for the students over various topics. The feed could be for top selling novels or reader input over various titles. Users can also have access to YouTube videos, blogs, and podcasts for various subjects and assignments. Students could share their PowerPoint presentations, word documents, and videos.

This website, [], discusses many uses for Pageflakes in their library. They added delicious to help with social bookmarking. Author interviews and book trailers can be viewed on YouTube videos that have been linked directly to their page. They even created a space for teen author blogs and a rant blog to share thoughts over books. I think these are great places to be able to put everything in one spot. Students should be able to create their own space and tailor it to their needs and interests. The library should have a central Pageflakes site to allow all students to collaborate, share, chat, and stay updated on new tools and resources. A website like Pageflakes would be very useful to teachers as well. It would allow more ease and flexibility with student and teacher collaboration. I have only been teaching for 4 years now and I always hear people talking about how "we all need to get on the same page". Well, this is the place to do it!

Erin Ellis

eBook Educators Group [] This Ning is full of information for people who intend to use eBooks in a library setting. I've found people who have posted questions about how to manage the devices, what books to purchase, and how to get refunded the tax that Amazon charges on their eBook downloads. These are people who are embracing eBook technology, working through the kinks, and sharing their experiences. There's information about Nooks, Kindles, and Sony eReaders. People can post questions, and other people can answer. I found a lot of great information on there as a starting point for our eBook proposal, and it seems like a great resource for anyone interested in integrating eReaders into the library setting. Julie Walton

Classroom 2.0 [] I actually learned about this website from a librarian in my school district. Within in her library, she uses it as a research tool when a teacher approaches her with a question about a certain technology if she does not know the information right away. This Ning offers groups and forums on countless technology topics, they even offer live webinars for people who are not familiar with certain technologies. I found discussions about everything from collaborative documents to videoconferencing for all levels of education. For librarians, I would think this would be a great venue to interact with people who have the same interests and goals and to discover some new ideas to offer in the library to make it even more appealing to students and teachers. I also think it would be a great tool librarians could recommend to teachers to offer up some notions as to new innovative technology and lessons. Jennifer Lewis

http://www.qlubb.com/ Features include event calendaring, sign-up sheets, group invites and RSVPs, photo sharing, member rosters, file sharing, event and task reminder service, create a poll, and bulletin boards. Participants can easily and actively participate within a group; members have equal access to the page and can add anything (comments, events, sign-up sheets, etc.) It is secure and private; one secure password per group. It’s very easy to create a qlubb and easy for interested people to join the qlubb; no individual account, members use email to sign in. For a school or library this would be a great way to organize volunteers, club members, school events. Librarians could use them for book fairs, a book club, a group that wants to learn more about the newest technologies available [maybe-the Library Tech Qlubb]. Within a classroom the Qlubb could be used for events such as organizing a science fair or for group projects- to help with organization, strategies for long- term planning, job assignments, sharing photos/ videos or creating polls. There are a lot of possibilities for this type of social network.
 * Qlubb**- a cross between a social network and a wikki.

Laura Holz

21st Century Teacher-Librarians [] This website is loaded with ideas for the educational setting by offering grade specific lesson plans using technology. For example, under level K-6 there is plan for the teacher librarian to educate students on the use of podcasts or videos. After the students learn how to use these items they can extend this by creating a play of a time in history and videotaping it. Other plans discuss ways to use Blabberize.com (a website that you download a picture on and then are able to make the picture talk. This would be a great way to teach summarization where the students could retell main points of the story by making each character talk!), Wordle.com, (a fun way to look at words and enriching vocabulary development) and great articles for the teacher librarian under the “forum” tab. This was a fun website to explore because it offered many ideas for the school setting. Sandra Stewart