Story Time

As educators we are faced with making important decisions every day that will affect student learning. Educators need to keep in mind that we need to make learning accessible and accommodate to diverse learning styles. Each student brings their own knowledge, experiences, talents, and needs to the table. Educators should have a plan in place that will fit all students into the teaching and learning experience. That is were Universal Design for Learning comes into play.  Universal Design for Learning  is a curriculum system that provides unique and equal learning opportunities for all individuals.  As a teacher myself, I had heard of different theories similar to UDL before. After researching further into this designed system, I realized I have been using some of these methods in my classroom already. UDL is lead by three main principles that activate a learning in the brain: 1. Engagement: the WHY? Recruiting Interest Sustaining Effor...

Podcasts are an excellent source of information for learning and sharing. Educators and librarians are looking into podcasts now more than ever. Podcasts have a wide range of usage which make them even more popular. Listeners can tune in at home, in their car, at the office, park, or even while shopping for groceries. The possibilities are endless when you can stream or play podcasts through almost any electronic device that has a connection. There are tons of ways that you can access podcasts; Blogs, websites, radio stations, apps, and more. Whether you are looking for a good podcast to listen to, or wish to create one yourself, read below to find out my top picks. My top picks for podcast creators: Podbean Podbean is a free website/app. It is accessible through website or a downloadable app. Creating an account and registering is simple and free, you can also sign up through a Google account which is great. There is a free basic account, or you can upgrade for more featu...

The history of cartoons and comics in the United States wasn't always fun and exciting. They were labeled as "bad" and having negative effects on young children and teens. They were frowned upon by the church and went against good family values.  Over the years, cartoons and comics have proved otherwise. Now, cartoons and comics have definitely flourished in the book world. They give children and young adults a different perspective on various subjects and genres. The following are different programs that educators can use to encourage students to learn as they read for fun.  Pixton https://www.pixton.com/ Types of Conflict in "The Book Thief" To begin with, the website is very inviting. It's colorful and easy to navigate through the home page, and you can register for free. Before you register, there is an option for educators, students, parents, or business. You can create an account using your Gmail (which is great for me because I lik...

As educators and librarians, sometimes we need inspiration and examples to follow when creating helpful and interesting videos for our students and staff. The following YouTube channels provide a variety of videos from school libraries that are great examples to follow. YouTube (Channel):  Calypso Gilstrap https://www.youtube.com/user/TheNHSLibrary/videos (Most Helpful) How to Use EBSCOHost https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BezObVKkqOo&t=51s I found this video to be the most helpful for students since it teaches the process of how to navigate through EBSCOHost. This video gives students (middle to high school) a step-by-step guide on how to use the database, EBSCOHost, for research. (Student Favorite) Tiger Visits The Norman High Library https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeUhXLvFAi4 I found this video to most likely be a student favorite since it teaches students how to navigate through the library starring the school's mascot in full costume. The video gu...

The digital world is taking over businesses, entertainment, and education. Guiding people through a series of steps online just got easier with screencasts. With its booming popularity and effectiveness, it can be difficult to choose from various softwares. I recently tried Screencast-O-Matic and Screencastify. Although they both got the job done, one was more simple to navigate through, and another offered more features. Both have its advantages and disadvantages. I will give you a run-down on both screencasts down below. https://screencast-o-matic.com/ : Screencast-O-Meter is super simple to navigate through. It gives you the option to create a free account or sign in through gmail. There is a Free Plan, Solo Deluxe ($1.65/month), or Solo Premier ($4.00/month). They allow for a free 30-day trial for video editting. You have to launch a screen video recorder. For the free plan, it only gives you the option to record the computer screen with narration. It will not record through yo...

Infographics serve as visual tools to enhance data, reports, and present innovative ideas aside from the conventional Power Point, Excel, and Word presentations. As an educator, graduate student, and future librarian, I found infographics to be an extremely effective method for transmitting important information in a quicker and much clearer format. Although infographics are an excellent resource for show-casting significant material, choosing the perfect infographic web application is key. I will be reviewing the following infographic webpages: piktochart.com infogram.com easel.ly The first webpage I used was piktochart.com . Free accounts are available, and Gmail or Facebook login is an option for convenience. The webpage asks you a series of questions before getting started to better set you up with relatable content. The site is easy to nagivate through, it has a dashboard with options like inforgraphs, presentations, posters, reports, flyers, and templates for inspiration. Y...

In this new age of technology, social media is one of the biggest influences on pop culture, politics, and news around the world. Educational innovations are now being shared in numerous ways through the internet every single second of the day! In my opinion, this is probably the best thing that ever happened to the education world.Within the past five years of my teaching experience, I've seen an explosion of social media sites being used as progressive outlets for sharing resources, ideas, news, and announcements to communicate with students, teachers, staff, and parents. Ideas are circulating the world and helping educators become better at their jobs. Some of the most popular social media sites are Facebook , Twitter , and Instagram . Created in 2004, Facebook is considered a veteran in the internet world. It has survived through the years despite the popularity of newer sites. According to Our World in Data, Facebook has 2.4 billion users, making it the largest social medi...