Explore a dozen winning technologies including blogging, multimedia creation and sharing, wikis, webcomics, and social technologies. Address important issues and effective techniques for their use.

Blogs, podcasts, wikis, web comics, and social technologies are a few tools of today's technology-rich library programs. This workshop explores a dozen winning technologies along with important issues and effective techniques for their use. Learn to combine traditional resources with new technologies for effective inquiry-based learning environments. Pit Stops throughout the workshop will help you explore the options, make effective choices, and integrate the best resources to address the needs of today’s 21st century learners. Avoid program wrecks through a series of practical strategies for collaboration and project planning. How will you "rev up" your program with emerging technology?

Start Your Engines!

Empower students by moving them from consumers of the Internet to creators of web-based content.

Explore the following resources that can be used in student projects. Consider designing a project around a visual resources so students don't get bogged down in trying to locate resources. Also, remember that you can do an advanced search in tools such as Flickr and Google Images for public domain images and Creative Commons licenses.

The easiest place to start your search is at Wikimedia Commons and Open Clip Art Library.

Clip Art Sources

• Clipart for Kids
• Discovery Learning Clip Art Gallery
• DK Clip Art
• Free Teacher Clip Art
• Open Clip Art Library
• Oxford Education
• Royalty-Free Clip Art Collection
• Wise Gorilla

Photograph Sources

• USDA Image Gallery
• Cal Photos
• Free Photo
• GRIN from NASA
• Library of Congress Popular Topics
• NARA
• NOAA Photo Library
• Smithsonian Images
• US Fish and Wildlife

View the Tesellations project. Go to Education Glogster. Click on TRY TO CREATE YOURS. Go to Wikimedia Commons and look for images. Create a travel poster or a poster on the topic of your choice.

Key Ideas

Reading, writing, information, and technology can rev up learning across the curriculum. Learn to integrate standards-based, technology-enhanced learning experiences; incorporate authentic, online primary source materials; and connect reading with web-based resources and activities including literature circles, wikis, collaborative projects, and blogs. Explore practical strategies to address essential skills, differentiate instruction to meet individual needs, and promote a love of learning through a dozen project ideas for collaborating with teachers across grade levels and subject areas. If you’re ready to energize your collaborative partnerships and promote inquiry-based learning across the curriculum, it’s time to “rev up” your classrooms, libraries and technology programs.

What's a social technology?

• Profiles and identities used in establishing contacts
  
• Posting tools such as blogs, forums, and wikis
  
• Communication tools such as internal email for sharing
  
• Collaborative areas for building, creating, interacting
  
• Navigation tools for moving around the network or world
  
• Options for sending and receiving feedback from others
  
• Search tools for identifying those with similar interests

Why is virtual collaboration important?

• Develops essential life skills
• Allows for differentiation and cross grade assignments
• Promotes synthesis, creation, and evaluation skills
• Encourages synergy
• Enables access to work 24/7

Why is sharing and syndication important?

• Encourages non-traditional assignments
• Provides an authentic audience
• Promotes polished products
• Allows feedback beyond the teacher
• Enable parent and community involvement