So what did I read during Icky Ike?

Well, let's start with Barry Lyga's newest one Hero Type. OMG. I wish I could write like Barry Lyga...I'd so be a millionaire. Anyway, Hero Type is a story about a boy who saves this girl's life and well, becomes the town hero. But then, with the flash of one photographer's camera, he goes from hero to ZERO. But the book is so much more...it's about stalking and divorce and if you had to choose between your mom and dad, could you pick? This is my new fave (well, for today). Lyga also wrote the amazing book, The Astonishing Adventures of Fan Boy and Goth Girl, a story about two opposites who come together as one plans to destroy his school (YIKES!).

Another book I read was Ellen Hopkins new one, Identical. As most of you know, all of Ellen Hopkins' books are on the back shelf, but she is one of our Teen Lit Fest authors this year, and if you want to grab ahold of this new one, you'll definitely need a parent permission slip. I can tell you, though, you won't be able to put it down.

I also started reading the Doll People by Martin and Godwin (illustrated by Brian Selznick...the same guy who Illustrated the Invention of Hugo Cabret), but my sixth grader stole it. Hmmmm...I wonder if they ever did find Aunt Sarah? Don't tell me ! I'll finish it!

I also read two more, but I'll have to post on them later because the titles are escaping me for the moment...that will happen when the wind was moaning through the windows at 110mph and the house was hotter than heck. I am currently, however, reading a FANTASIC book which I NEVER would have picked up because yes, I unfortunately DO judge books by their covers...this one is called Ways to Live Forever by Sally Nicholls and it starts out like this:

List No. 1: Five Facts About Me

1. My name is Sam.

2. I am eleven years old

3. I collect stories and fantastic facts.

4. I have leukemia.

5. By the time you read this, I will probably be dead.

So that's it for now. I've missed you guys...celebrate reading! Gladden out...

***********I remembered the other two books! The reason I couldn't remember was because they were books that I had picked up a long time ago. I really don't read a whole lot of nonfiction, but I'll share these with you because so many of you always ask me what I am reading right now or have read lately...

The first one was a book by Eckhart Tolle called A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose. This book was probably harder than any college text book I had ever read, but I was glad I had finished it. It gave me a new insight into people and friendships and relationships and what my responsibility is as a human being to other human beings. It also gave me some perspective on why people (including myself) act the way we do.

The other book I finished is called Blue Like Jazz which is a about a guy who is talking about his life story and how he finds spirituality...not religion (to me, the two are very different). It is an excellent story about being WHO you are WHEN you are right in the moment, and I believe the quote is something like when you find that out about yourself it's "blue like jazz." The book is easy to read and best of all, ineteresting.

Gladden out on Icky Ike's Books. :0)

Celebrate Banned Books Week!

So here we are again bringing attention to all of the infamous books that have gone down and are continuing to go down in history during Banned Books Week 2008! From J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye to the Koran to What my Mother Doesn't Know by Sonya Sones to the Bible itself, you throw out a title and somewhere someone has probably challenged that book based on religious or political ideals, racism, sexuality, language...the list goes on. So celebrate the elimination of censorship by reading a banned book! Know your rights...and DON'T BE HELD HOSTAGE! READ WHAT YOU WANT!

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaack!

So what am I reading? Well, of course, Breaking Dawn...

I couldn't let you guys down. But don't tell me what happens! I'm not done yet!

And I'm almost finished with Evernight by Claudia Gray. OMG. Another yummy vampire novel with a twist to die for. Speaking of to die for, if you haven't signed up yet, make sure you bug your RELA teacher to tears to sign up to purchase Michael Scott's new book The Magician ($15) or The Alchemyst ($8) in paperback . He'll be here on the 22nd of September, and you don't want to be the only one stuck in class because you forgot to sign up. DUH. So, what else?

That's it for now. Get your copies or get gone. Gladden out.

Thing #23--WooHOO!

Well.. here it is...the final blog for this assignment, but since this blog is now on my library home page www.humbleisd.net/smslibrary , this will not be my last post! Here are the answers to the questions:

What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey?

I loved the flickr tools, learning how to mess with and convert videos on Teacher Tube, and generally learning how to manipulate Library Thing to get it to do what I want for the purposes of my library. I'm still trying to figure out the best way to use Twitter for www.hoboteacher.com/blog and when I do, I'm sure it will be one of my faves.

How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals?

I am hoping there is another one next summer. I have heard a lot about Web 2.o, but I never really "got it" until now. I am always looking for workshops or whatever to stay one step ahead of the game, and this did it for me.

Were there any take-a-ways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you?

I loved Shelfari..I had never seen that before. I made a blog for my husband...who still remains in the 19th century when it comes to computers (sorry, honey), so I love to share new things with people. I think the whole idea of this has spread like wildfire and that excites me. Oh, I also loved those tutorial guys (Common Craft?) and their videos. They were awesome.

What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept?

Well, since I didn't have a time crunch like everyone else (except Aug. 5th), nothing really.

If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you choose to participate?

Without a doubt.

How would you describe your learning experience in ONE WORD or in ONE SENTENCE, so we could use your words to promote 23 Things learning activities?

23 Things is the best free online interactive tutorial I have ever used.

Okay...I'm off to comment on other blogs! Ciao for now!

Thing #22

I am not super-big on listservs. Although they can be very helpful and informative (and sometimes racy and controversial), I think that often times, they are mostly overwhelming...which brings me to Nings. I never really knew anything about Nings, but I certainly like the idea about a social networking space with a focus. I really liked the Teacher Librarian Ning and the group that focused on YA literature in middle schools. It had some great threads going, as well as some specific discussions that were pertinent to my needs. I certainly can see myself using this in the future. I will also show this tool to my teachers, assuming it is not filtered in my district.

Thing #21

I really love using video/audio tools, especially Photostory. Here is the library orientation that I made that I plan on using for the kids this year. Since I also work at an academic college, we also link many instructional pieces to podcasts (click on the "click to listen" button). Enjoy!

Thing #20

If you have read my earlier blogs, then you know that I already fell in love with Teacher Tube in Thing something-or-ther way back there and decided to show the following video on the first day back with my teachers. Enjoy if you haven't already seen it.


Teacher Tube is my new BFF. Again, I must be the only human on the planet who doesn't know about the good stuff.

p.s. The search engine Blinkx is definitely one that I have bookmarked--um, tagged, in del.icio.us. It is highly useful. People will think I am the smartest librarian on Google Earth.