Obsession, Preteen Style: The Twilight Saga

Romance is a time-honored genre, from Wuthering Heights to Barbara Cartland. Though not a personal favorite, romance novels have provided us guilty pleasure from time to time --enough to recognize the standard of identity: the dangerous, anhedonic hero, the heroine who cannot believe her good luck, the heating of blood, and the bruising of lips. Typically, any serious bodice ripping is reserved for after the wedding, though the couples' troubles are rarely resolved by that event. Indeed, Miss Shelved suspects romance novel central relationships must border on the abusive in order to be worth reading about. Romance is a special form of fantasy, an escape in which no mature reader truly believes. Much as we adore them, we cannot imagine asking Heathcliff to pick up the dry-cleaning or Max DeWinter to carpool for soccer. Nor would we want to.

Escapism, even sublimation, is rife in children's literature as well. Just think of all the adventures made possible by the absence of parents (dead, kidnapped, or what-have-you) -- none of which make children yearn to be orphans. From time to time some pious infant will bring a book to Miss Shelved's attention for its bad words, violence, or depiction of naughtiness. We gently suggest that it is possible to read about misbehavior without running out and committing it. Reading about things one might never do is part of what makes a book exciting. The better part of children's fiction involves scrapes that would whiten a parent's hair, yet we see few budding Artemis Fowls, Alex Riders, or even George and Harolds amongst our young readers. So why are we suffering such qualms over Stephanie Meyer's Twilight books?

One supposes the first issue is how much romance is appropriate for the preteen reader? Much fine kid-lit includes the first fumbling attraction between a boy and girl, even a little gratuitous snogging (Lavender and Won-won, anyone?) But it is peripheral to the plot, not the center. The Twilight books, now being picked up by many 10-11 year olds, have all the standards of identity of adult romance novels. The setting is high school -- indeed there is far too much verbiage wasted on who sits with whom at lunch and other minutia. The vampire hero exudes all the self-loathing and sexual heat of an Anne Rice character. Yet nothing happens despite his regularly spending the night in the same bed with the 17-year-old heroine. It is a melange of High School Musical, The Vampire Lestat, and Fear of Flying. Much is made of the old-fashioned morality of the tale: no pre-nuptial congress (human or vampiric) will be countenanced by the gentlemanly Edward, no matter how much Bella wants it. Still, time and again the couple comes to the brink before Edward pulls back and makes the wise choice for the both of them. It is worth noting that the most overused adjective applied to Edward (other than gorgeous) is smug. The most overused adjectives applied to Bella, on the other hand, are sullen, glaring, and pouting. Indeed.

So, do these books belong in an elementary school library? Can they reasonably be viewed as escapism for 10-11 year old girls? Can girls at that age distinguish between the reality and the fantasy of the relationship? Do they see the abuse? Or will they learn to expect "true" romance to include 24/7 attention, stalking, emotional blackmail, not to mention lots of unsupervised private time in rooms with large beds? Miss Shelved does not have the answers -- but would prefer to defer the questions until at least junior high.

Latest from Terry Pratchett

It is tough on one's significant other to hear hysterical laughter and get no coherent explanation of its cause. Clearly there are times when one can easily read aloud a book's jokes and laugh together. This can be difficult with Terry Pratchett, who embeds his jokes so ingeniously that punch lines may hit
pages after the setup -- and are all the more hilarious for this patience and care.

Miss Shelved admits to enjoying the raucously silly DiscWorld series Pratchett writes for adults. However, there is something especially magical when Pratchett pulls onto the PG highway and writes for a younger audience. He remains at least as funny, but also becomes quite joyful, thoughtful, and astonishingly moral -- in a completely non-denominational, non-sectarian, non-political, non-judgmental sort of way. In other words, he asks great questions, and doesn't hit anyone over the head with the answers.

In his latest, Nation, Pratchett confronts the issue of why bad things happen to good people. We have a boy, Mau, who expects to paddle his canoe back to a triumphal coming-of-age celebration and instead runs straight into a tsunami which wipes out his entire island population. He meets Daphne, a European girl whose shipwreck on that island is only the latest in a string of personal disasters. Together they rail against the gods, remake the world, help the needy who continue to wash up on their shores, and try desperately to find some meaning in it all.

Bad things happen to good people, Mr. Pratchett knows. Less than a year ago he made a public announcement of his early-onset Alzheimers. He admits to his own railing against the gods, and to a certain level of desperation. So far he continues to write, continues to think outside the box and play delightful games with the English language. But clearly he, too, is trying to find the meaning of it all. In Nation, we see that Pratchett still finds considerable beauty and goodness. The sheer wonder and pleasure of thinking makes life worth living -- and makes us worthy of the gift. Terry Pratchett intends to use his gifts to the fullest, and we stand among many devoted readers who are pulling for him to continue to do so for many years to come.

MEMO Conference!

Thank you, organizers, for a lovely and highly informative conference (Oct. 3-4, 2008). The keynote speakers were two young, male, YA authors who couldn't have been more different. Jordan Sonnenblick looks like a nice Jewish boy any mother would be proud of. As for Patrick Jones, well, his School Library Journal cover portrait says it all: long hair, beard, proudly caricatured wearing trunks in a pro wrestling rink (note: we are sure his own mother loves him all the same). The straight and narrow vs. off-the-wall. Yet one suspects they would have immensely enjoyed meeting each other. Each has a nice, wry sense of humor, easily directed at himself. And each was preaching the gospel of "let the kids read what the kids want to read." One of the best take-aways from the whole weekend was the reminder that if we want students to see themselves as successful readers, we have to stop criticizing what they choose to read.

A presenter from the U of M quoted Stuart Brand on the impact of new technology: "...if you're not part of the steamroller, you're part of the road." Who of us has not felt part of the road from time to time? Well, thanks to "23Thingsonastick" we personally are feeling much more confident of a seat on the steamroller -- and said as much on the 23 Things panel on Saturday. Thank you, Patricia Post, for inviting Miss Shelved to participate. Thanks, too, to our generous and colleagial co-panelists, Zomo and Scott. One suspects the audience was at least as impressed by the fact that the three of us continued to share brand new ideas amongst ourselves as they were with the "things" we had planned to present to begin with. Ah, love of learning is so infectious.

Kindly friends, when apprised of the fact that Miss Shelved was attending a librarians convention, tended to respond with a sardonic "wheeee!" They don't know the half of it.

Read to your class

What classroom teacher wouldn’t like to start off the year with a sure-fire, glue ‘em to their chairs read-aloud? Most experienced teachers have a shelf full of old favorites – and we rely on them to keep each new generation of readers going back to those great old titles (more on this anon). But still, everyone likes a little novelty now and then. So here are some newer titles that have been well-accepted by the squirreliest of audiences.

No Talking by Andrew Clements tells what happens when the yakkiest class in the school pits the girls against the boys in a no-talking contest. To be respectful, of course, one can respond to an adult – but only using 4 words. So how does brevity (and thinking before you speak!) impact class communication, learning, and relationships? There are some surprising, funny, and sometimes enlightening outcomes. Optimal Audience: grades 4-5

Drita My Homegirl by Jenny Lombard is another school story. This time an unlikely friendship develops between Drita, a new immigrant from Bosnia, and Maxie, the 4th grader most infamous for speaking first and thinking later. You may be as surprised as Maxie to learn that Bosnian kids play some pretty competitive basketball. O.A. grades 3-4

Peak by Roland Smith starts with a literal cliff-hanger. Our hero (actually named Peak – it’s a long story…) is hanging by his fingertips to solid rock as the March wind threatens to send him flying to certain death. Then we discover that he is actually on the side of the Woolworth Building and heading right into serious trouble with the police. His deus ex machina is his famous (and notably absent) mountain climbing father – who has an interesting proposition for Peak. O.A grades 5-6

Toys Go Out by Emily Jenkins is a charming set of interconnected episodes about a child’s favorite stuffed toys. They have interesting personalities: the know-it-all, the worrier, even one toy who isn’t quite sure what she is (the students love figuring THAT out!). The toys bicker and negotiate, have adventures in the washer and in the backpack, and annoy and love one another in ways students will recognize. O. A. grades 2-3

Clementine by Sara Pennypacker offers similar but somewhat more sophisticated humor than Junie B. Jones. Clementine’s daily talks with her principal are indescribably funny. But at heart we have a little girl all too aware that she is a “difficult” child having “not so good of a day” and desperate to find her niche. A unique voice! O.A. grades 2-3.

The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex is a wild sci-fi alien invasion story. Our heroine, Gratuity Tucci (nickname Tip) is on the run from the aliens, driving her mom’s car down the deserted highways with a can of creamed corn strapped to her foot to reach the pedal. She meets the alien “J Lo” (alien names being unpronounceable) at a convenience store and soon they are on the run together, finding Tip’s missing Mom, discovering why Disneyland is so clean, and generally saving the universe. Silliness was never so smart. O. A. grades 5-6

Please don’t ignore the old warhorses, however. Our students don’t need to know the book you’re reading is older than you are! Some of the books still getting excellent responses (thank you to every teacher I’ve ever met…) include:

Otis Spofford by Beverly Cleary
The Wheel on the School by Meinert DeJong
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
Island of Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell
George’s Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl
Soup by Robert Newton Peck
Homer Price by Robert McCloskey
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

And if you have never read Charlotte’s Web aloud to a class, you are missing out. Miss Shelved cannot think how many times it has been, but we still always tear up when Charlotte dies ("No one was with her . . ."). No child should get through elementary school without it.

Genres for Elementary Grades

For a full screen version, visit http://voicethread.com/#u134853.b178661.i949765

Asperger Lit: Is Mr. Darcy on the Spectrum?

Diagnosis in retrospect is all the rage in ASD circles. Was Einstein autistic? Isaac Newton? Thomas Jefferson? If one can attempt to label historical figures, why not try literary characters? In many cases there is at least as much evidence. Mr. Darcy comes to mind with his foot-in-mouth people skills. Bartleby the Scrivener and Sherlock Holmes are, without a doubt, classic examples. Could this become a new parlor game? Join in the fun and send us your candidates!

All this, however, is merely a headline grabbing intro to a discussion of the growing trend toward Asperger's characters in children's literature. Mark Haddon's adult best-seller The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night quickly made the crossover into YA territory. Now there are a number of new children's novels that offer peeks inside the ASD brain. These are not didactic picture books aimed at developing clasmates' tolerance (though there are some fine examples out there: Ian's Walk comes to mind). These are three intermediate level novels with strong voices and highly readable stories.

The Very Ordered Existence of Merilee Marvelous, a first novel by Suzanne Crowley, focuses on its heroine's quirky world view. Merrilee has a schedule, totem possessions, ironic verbal quirks ("Stupid. Stupendous."), and well-developed cushions against human contact -- none of which stand in the way of (or stand in for) a full-blown characterization. Merrilee is perfectly aware of the level of harassment she faces but has her pains and pleasure well organized. The conflict Merrilee faces is the intrusion on her "very ordered existence" (VOE in her own parlance) of three potential allies. Nurse Veraleen intrudes at home. Wannabe boyfriend (!) Gideon makes school confusing. And tenacious Biswick follows her around just about everywhere else. Biswick has fetal alcohol syndrome. Friendship with him, from Merilee's point of view, is just another nail in her coffin when it comes to being defined as a "retard" -- and yes, the word is bandied about freely. Can she overcome her irritation at these intrusions? Will she have somewhere to turn when her 'VOE" is inevitably upset in a big way? Crowley offers a delightfully off-the-wall Southern Gothic setting (who knew that Pigglie Wigglie stores had "butt spiders"?) but keeps Merrilee on solid ground throughout. Truly -- "stupendous."

Rules by Cynthia Lord takes the point of view of an ASD sibling. Catherine is an intensely caring and supportive sibling. Like many "sibs" she's had to earn her mensch-hood early in life. From hard experience, she's learned to be very specific about the "rules" she lays down for her younger brother: toys do not go in the fishtank, when outside you can take off your shirt but not pants, etc. Still, she longs for normalcy and embarrassment-free friendships. She shares the usual adolescent fears of being viewed as an oddball. A developing friendship with a young paraplegic, however, has the effect of putting a lot of self-consciousness into perspective.

The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd skews a little closer to The Curious Incident in that its ASD character is intent on solving an actual mystery. Ted takes a clear-eyed analytical approach to the disappearance of his cousin Salim after a holiday ride on the London Eye. Stressed-out family members shunt Ted aside to keep him from upsetting Salim's mom with what they are sure will be inappropriate comments. Older sister Kat has a particularly short-fuse where Ted is concerned, and takes pain to coach him in important people skills (aka, lying). Later she comes to recognize the value of his unique perspective. The mystery is a good one, with many clues a young reader can reason through, but enough twists to keep the pages turning.

With ASDs appearing in something like one in every 150 births, the ASD character is bound to turn up with increasing regularity in our classrooms and in children's literature. Get used to it. Better yet, appreciate it.

We're baaaaaack . . .

It isn't over! Blogging is fun -- and gives one an excuse for a "virtual high-five." We have been at our district tech camp for the past couple of days. This is an oasis of tech support with mini-lessons offered on demand but mostly the gift of time to get a handle on all one's onerous little tech projects.

This year we have managed to get all the critical documents (for which we are responsible) onto our website. Instead of sacrificing trees we will direct all our school staff to appropriate links for district policies on internet use, selection/retention policy, etc. Even better we have set up multiple accounts on Library Thing and placed links on the website: one is for students and parents, the other for staff, with appropriate tags for each. This way we can regularly update our new book offerings and alert teachers about new holdings in their curriculum areas, recommend new read-alouds, and let the community know that their tax dollars are being well spent.

We also took an hour or so and cleaned up the old bookmark bar -- and sorted everything neatly into MyDelicious. What a wonderful tool -- and frankly easier to navigate than the browser bookmark lists as well as accessible from any computer.

Next time: Voice Thread!

Thing 23: Say Au revoir and not good-bye (or is it neither?)

The prompts:

What has changed as a result of this experience?  We are much more comfortable navigating multiple windows, bookmarking, sharing, feeding, gathering (and dispersing) lots of informational screens quickly and comfortably.  Confidence has been gained, vocabulary has been expanded (do you speak 1337?) and fun has been had.

What were our favorites?  We love mashups and image generators (and hadn't even heard the words before).  We have enjoyed linking to fellow book lovers and librarians through Facebook, Ning, and The Library Thing.

Connecting with other 23 "thing-ers"?  Not so much.  The best connection was when we saw each others' work on the Declaration of Independence.  We hope that once the push to finish "things" is past, we can share more relaxed camaraderie hanging around the old Ning site.

Unexpected outcomes?  Goodness, our keyboarding has improved! Mousing, too, and the ability to juggle multiple open windows, links, tabs, etc.  But in all seriousness, it has opened the door to some amazing discussions with the teens in our life.

What to do differently?  Is there a format that would allow the personal responsibility of blogging to connect with a more social format so there would, indeed, be more built-in connection with fellow "thing-ers"?  We had hoped (and expected) greater opportunity to actually JOIN an online community!

23 More Things?  Why, yes, I would!

One sentence?    "No, I'm not goofing around on the web, I'm working on my online course!" 

Thing 22 -- Keep Going!

How to work blogging into one's day and make it meaningful...? Hmmm. As one responsible for staff training in technology, we find it rarely goes over well when one tries to impose additional responsibilities on already overwhelmed staff. So the question is, what job that already exists can be improved or made redundant by the new technology.

Can hardcopies be replaced by posting online? Think about library information, appropriate internet usage guidelines for staff, new book lists or reviews, class schedules, calendars, "tip of the week" -- if the habit has been to plop copies in staff mailboxes, how about putting a link in an e-mail instead? Now that's a document that can't be lost on a messy desk, can be accessed from anywhere, and months later will still be there when, inevitably, someone calls to say they've lost their copy.

And when new ideas are needed, we now have a new and exciting way to find out how others in our field have already succeeded. Of course, we can share as well. Everyone saves time when we're not busy reinventing the wheel.

In short, don't do Web 2.0 too, do it instead!

As to some specific and immediate ideas, Miss Shelved hopes that if she takes a moment to record a book just read she will be less likely to forget that she's read it.

Thing 21 -- even MORE social networking

Visit 23 Things on a Stick

This was fun. We had jumped the gun and joined the 23 Things Ning from Facebook (not even realizing that it was "Ning"-based) so it was surprising to be greeted by name and have a message waiting (thank you, Gale). Had fun adding an old Media Center logo to the photo collection and proudly added our badge.

Gather was less interesting. It seemed rather too self-centered: too many aspiring authors begging for attention rather than a true sharing of the love of literature. Professional review journals are still important even if anyone can chime in with an online opinion -- and an ethical "reader advisor" does not review on demand. Claques and trolls are presented with an open season here.

WebJunction is terrific: we immediately signed up for a Webinar on creating a technology "Petting Zoo" -- that is to say, how to create online "play" that teaches online skill. Nifty idea for elementary media?

We also joined the Teacher/Librarian network and its Elementary subnetwork and entered a discussion of what are the most important things to do on reopening each fall. Lots of excellent ideas and reminders. Time does fly and we'll be back in our buildings in a couple of weeks.

We did enjoy the PC Magazine satire comparing social networks to more physical hangouts, from the undergraduate trashy to the expense account fabulous. Once again it confirms our initial impression that any social opportunity, real or virtual, can be grand if one is there with the right people.

Thing 20 -- or "My Face", er, "Spacebook", er, whatever...

Well, we are in (Facebook) and our significant other (as feared) already has the page tagged, photo-filled, wallpapered and, in general, filled to the brim.  Clearly, this is an activity prone to addiction.  By the time Miss Shelved checks in later in the week she is likely to have potential "friends" in the hundreds.  One supposes this is flattering as well as time consuming.

Groups joined?  23 Things on a Stick, of course, plus Librarians on Facebook and a couple of international Gilbert & Sullivan groups.  Even the deepest dyed Victorians have a web presence it seems.  

As the the "fastest growing" claim, the web is fickle.  There will be a new hot presence soon if not already.  One suspects that if the old-fogy librarians are joining, Facebook is already passe. Not far off the topic, for example,  teens of our acquaintance tell us that Second Life is already fading due to too much corporate and institutional presence as well as attacks from Trolls (sociopathic hackers).  Keeping alert is never the same as blazing the trail.

We did poke about in MySpace (and not for the first time, as it has been a bone of contention at our district middle school/high school level in recent years).  We looked at library pages.  One can only agree with the blogger (see resources) who wondered if teen patrons really wanted to "friend" their libraries on line.  On the other hand, libraries who actually offered services (as opposed to a theoretically hip presence) online were making an impact.  Readers' advisories, catalog links, venues for recommending new materials and/or  services all allowed users to connect better and ask for what they need. Can't argue with that.  This does, however, require that someone is actually  listening.  Too often (and Miss Shelved will not deny that the shoe fits...) web pages are created in a joyous frenzy of newly acquired skill -- and then left to languish, out of sight and out of mind. 

 

Trolls, lulz, and Web 2.0

"Technology, apparently, does more than harness the wisdom of the crowd. It can intensify its hatred as well." Mattathias Schwartz, The Trolls Among Us, NYT Magazine, Aug 3, 2008.

Watch for this Sunday's New York Times Magazine for an article on the anarchic downside of Web 2.0.  It is unfortunate that, for some people,  open access encourages anonymous cruelty and destruction, made all the more fun when those in on the joke can gang up on the rest of us. 

Surely this kind of behavior makes it all the more necessary that those of us who are responsible adults (of whatever age) keep up to date.  Online "cool" must not be the privilege of only the irresponsible.  Maybe if teacher/librarians are always able to know at least a little something that our kids do not, they will be better able to accept our guidance about online safety and civility. In becoming part of the interactive web, we lead by example.  We may not be the bleeding edge in tech savvy, but we can set a standard for civil discourse, common sense and decency.  Don't let the Trolls win.      

Thing 19 - Pod People

We have played this game and are fans, indeed.  As soon as we discovered that "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" was available, podcasting was a done deal. How else to get through long car drives?

We have since added several other news and humor podcasts to our RSS feed. We added "Mugglecast" directly to our iTunes just to try something new.  Granted, we don't always have time to listen to all these things, but they're there when the fancy (or the need for a roadtrip) strikes.

The content websites were all quite easy to navigate, and we wasted nearly a hour (but an enjoyable one) catching 3 episodes of "Dr. Horrible." But we were particularly intrigued by the Educational Broadcast site.  We have been creating student works in Garage Band and iMovie for several years now and have always wondered if there was a next step.  The issue is always security.  One does worry that identifying the school and even the 1st names of the adorable children who are there every day is not too much information, not to mention showing their faces on video. How do these schools manage the issue of parental permission and security? Would love to hear some comments on this.   

Thing 18 - You Tube

You Tube has been on our radar for a long time, and it's not just for viral videos.  It is excellent research when one is trying to learn something that's not easily shared verbally. We have used You Tube to research period dance steps, to compare operatic performances, and (of course) to check out Harry Potter Pocket Pals.  

Yes, our school blocks it due to bandwidth demand as well as security issues, but there are so many ways to get around it.  We also subscribe to Discovery Streaming as a source for educational videos. The huge downside is how quickly one can eat up great blocks of time idly viewing. As we did, searching for various library and librarian videos. The student librarians singing "I Want to Be A Librarian" (apologies to the "The Producers") was very dear -- obviously an assignment.  But ultimately Cookie Monster called to me.

Thing 17: ELM Tools

It is good to be redirected to the many services ELM provides us. We are indeed blessed to have this service provided for our state. Miss Shelved sings the praises to staff and families, but rarely do we get to see if there are results. Now we have a few more goodies to share. It's easy to e-mail a useful article to a colleague. We were especially delighted to find a terrific book (E-Parenting) available in full text through the eBook library. We will highly recommend it at our next family internet night. Quick tip: have children sort the mail as a great way to teach what's junk and what isn't. What a terrific pre-research activity!

The various ways to gather information (e-mailing, RSS feeds, copying to flashdrive, saving in a folder) are lovely ideas to help staff use their time well. At the elementary level, however, we tend to ask students to do their research in a more immediate manner (and we give them the time to do so), else the "chase" becomes more important than actually absorbing the information. For the unsophisticated, an article copied or otherwise manipulated becomes a report written. We urge students to find it, read it, add the citation to your list, and take notes immediately. Touch it once and make it go away -- and remove the urge to plagiarize. Our students, at least so far, don't need more ways to rearrange the information they access. They need guidance to find the right material and then, despite sometimes amazing reluctance, they have to read it. Not bookmark it, print it, e-mail it home, or any of the other things they would dearly love to do to avoid actually interfacing with the text. Sad to say, we remain Luddites on this front: we say, "Dear, just read it and take notes, since that's what you're going to have to do anyway." That is one part of the research process technology will never change, and it's the part that is the hardest.

Thing 16: Assignment Calculator

Funny how some people are naturally organized and love to check off the steps on their planning calendars. However, those who are not naturally organized are usually the most resistant to preparing and following plans. Miss Shelved fears that assignment planners wind up being the same kind of tool as diagramming sentences: those who understand love doing it; those who really need the exercise usually avoid it at all cost.

On the other hand, the planner (or even the simplified version: the what to do when you're running out of time) would be EXCELLENT for use by Special Ed. staff for use with students with IEPs. Rarely do classroom teachers really break up assignments in a way that special learners require, and many special learners have particular difficulty seeing both the "big picture" and the steps involved at the same time. Thus, a "map" with this kind of specificity is incredibly useful. Having the steps set up by date is a huge boon: one would love to see more teachers require students to report in at various stages. This might help avoid the "all-nighter" and the resulting temptation of plagiarizing. Of course, at the college level, such babysitting is unlikely -- which makes it all the more desirable that research coaching occur before that time.

In sum, Miss Shelved feels there is little here that we don't already know and try very hard to practice (now it's just in an on-line version). Will this give us and our colleagues the time to teach and model all these steps for each of the gazillion students who pass through our hands in any given academic year? For, really, it will not do simply to hand students the URL. Nothing will replace the time required to sit and work with a student who needs support.

Thing 15 - In need of a 1st life, let alone a 2nd

If Miss Shelved wanted to spend time being ignored by people much cooler (not to mention younger) than herself, and with a deeper appreciation of the ambience and available activities, she could frequent a local singles bar. At least there, she might get a drink. . . 

We have tried MMORPM's before.  In teaching a research unit (oh, the typical elementary animal report!) we introduced students to the WolfQuest game co-sponsored by the Minnesota Zoo. In that game, too, Miss Shelved wandered for hours, desperately looking for something to do, and never caught a rabbit (and you ain't no friend of mine)!

Young people of our acquaintance tell us that they log on with friends to play such games, which might make it much more fun.  High school chums now scattered across the country at various colleges reunite to kick necromancer butt (or whatever).  We spent a dull hour riding the rides at the Prim Heart Amusement Park, poked around Info Island, and never felt comfortable in our avatar. Moving around felt much like being in an Imax movie:  faintly seasick-making. 

Again, we would suggest that all these online activities are more enjoyable as part of a group. Probably the most fun so far has been co-editing the Declaration of Independence because everyone was involved (even if it was at different times).  If all the 23 Things participants were able to meet at a site on Info Island and interact, that would be more useful. Logging in blind at 9:30 am was a lonely experience.

As to library usage, we did note that there were scheduled activities like book clubs and author appearances that sounded much more like it. (We may try crash the party sometime in the future to see if scheduled activities make the scene is any more exciting.)  An institutional (premium, that is $$) membership with a resident geek to create activities would be a delightful interface for a teen library. Were Miss Shelved a YA author she would want a presence -- and doubtless her publisher would spend big bucks to create a sensational interface in her name. 

Thing 14: Book LIsts

This one took more time that expected because we wanted to stay and play. Add 5 books? In no time at all we'd added 18 and the titles keep coming to mind. (Miss Shelved will have to log off to tend to some of those dust bunnies...)

It was interesting to note which titles had huge followings (the edge has to go to best sellers as well as titles of most interest to heavy computer users) and which didn't (one of my favorites had only 82 hits). YA tends to outclass juvenile, understandably.

Would love to link this to the library's Moodle page -- an easy way to highlight new purchases. We will have to keep searching to see if there is a way to display LibraryThing selections on our search stations. Any ideas?

Thing 13 -- and we're over the hump!

How appropriate that Thing 13 (the "now you're past the half-way mark" activity) should be productivity enhancers.  It also served as a reminder to me to be grateful to my school district (Hopkins, west of MPLS) for already providing its staff with many useful online tools.  Some of which it would behoove Miss Shelved to get to know better.  Well, what better time than the present?

To respond to the prompts:

***Start page?We have had a Google start page for some time, but this was a good time to refurbish and add some of the services the 23 Things folks have introduced.  Useful to have widgets like weather and local gas prices available . . . both of which are behaving immoderately in recent days. It is the #2 page on this computer, since the internet startup is a district page (about which we have no complaints!)

***Useful tool?  Miss Shelved has long been a fan of stickies.  These tend to serve as to-do lists as well as reminders.  Doubtless there would be times when it would be useful to access this information online, or form a different computer.  However, it is at least as likely that the information will be needed when offline.  Miss Shelved will stick (hmmm) with her local stickies for the nonce.  However, MyStickies was a big hit (see below).

***Calendars are a resource for which Miss Shelved must be deeply endebted to her district. We share Entourage calendars with capabilities to schedule, invite, sync, etc.  Upon touring the list of recommended online calendar sites, we decided instead to take an hour (2 as it turned out) to explore our current tool and become a better user.  Adding tags, finally sync-ing in holidays, changing preferences to make better use of invitations -- all should add considerably to one's productivity.  Sometime the best way to learn something new is revisit what you already started.

***To-dos?  We'll stick to stickies.

***Backpack:  What a terrific resource for an ad hoc group. However, for professional groups that supply their staff with computing capability, one would think that such resources would already be shared.  But one could see a group coming together to organize a fundraiser, or a performance, or a slate of PTO meetings using this to link users from many different home or corporate systems.

***What else is good?  Loved Gliffy -- easy creation of flowcharts and floorplans.  See Miss Shelved's "Dream Office"   with grand piano and hot tub.  Ooops:  this was supposed to be productivity enhancement, not time-wasters.  Still, one can dream.  And MyStickies is a neat way to remind oneself why a particular website raised one's interest in the first place. 

Thing 12

Digg and its ilk make one happy to a an elementary librarian. One supposes that a public reference librarian might need to keep up with what the world is reading/viewing/thinking and would find the socially edited "news" sites useful. Admittedly, Miss Shelved does take a periodic peek at Disney, Nickolodeon, and movie trailer sites, for example, to keep up with what the little darlings are talking about. However, one would never confuse keeping a finger on the pulse of mass publicity with being truly informed.

The most worrisome part was the amazing uniformity of the sites , with the same soundbites and images topping the charts. The ease of voting also leads to fears of manipulation -- does ubiquity start to equate to plausibility? What an excellent reminder to get one's real news from a variety of sources. The BBC never headlines the same news as the New York Times -- or the Wall Street Journal, for that matter. And don't simply read those of similar political persuasion. Lowest common denominator news is not likely to expand one's mind.

Thing 11

Oooooh are we loving Del.icio.us! What a terrific way to overcome the limitations of our bookmark bar and the annoyance of perusing "history." Loved the BUTTONS, which will now supercede all new additions on Miss Shelved's button bar. We especially liked (and will introduce to our classroom teachers at summer's end during workshop week) Pagekeeper. At the elementary level, teachers are urged to provide hotlinks rather than have students attempt to type in URLs (with uncontrollable, unintentional and sometimes unfortunate results). At the Media Center, we facilitate this by maintaining a school "links" page which shows up upon internet login. However, teachers fail to request that sites be added, neglect to request that sites be deleted, and often find that the lists have gotten too long to be particularly useful. Pagekeeper is the ideal solution to individualize and quickly update for classroom use.

Thing 10

Point of etiquette: does one place an edit at the beginning or at the end of the page? In the case of an actual wiki article, one assumes there would be a logical organizational outline that would dictate exactly where one would stick in one's oar, as it were. In this case, Miss Shelved has to agree with MysteryLvr (SEE above) that this particular page is less a wiki than a practice page with no real organization to the contributor's comments.

As to the utility of wikis in general, there are situations in which the sharing of knowledge among peers and/or practitioners is pure gold: educational best practices, etymological research, folklore, pop culture, technological troubleshooting, for example. In other cases, say medical research, one might need to be rather more careful in checking the antecedents of shared information. Wikipedia, one gathers, relies on a dedicated cadre of self-appointed citizen editors who work arond the clock to keep the site cleared of misinformation, at least some of which is supplied by well-meaning librarians (a few well-known to Miss Shelved!) who plant articles to prove to their students the unreliability of the source. As in any social network, the key is getting a quorum of authentic contributors and keeping the riff-raff out. (Miss Shelved 7-16-08)

NOTE: This is the edit added to the 23 Things Wiki page

Thing 9

This was somewhat frustrating. Having successfully leapt the hurdles of invitation, there is little instruction to help one to actually open the document in editing mode. Google Doc was fine. Zoho,on the other hand, would allow me to post a comment, or copy the document into a personal file and edit it. But the document would open (from the 23 things link) with no editing and few options. Following a link to "sign in now" (again . . .) allows one to search for a document, but "23-things-practice-document" was not to be found.

Still, it was a particularly fine exercise -- on this beautiful day after the 4th of July -- to work at editing the Declaration of Independence. One must note, however, the limitations of team efforts. Having had the privilege (?) of working on several committees responsible for "mission statements," one acknowledges that through two or more heads may be better than none, such efforts do not lend themselves to felicity of expression. One suspects Thomas Jefferson would have been horrified to have had the rest of the "team" offering their emendations and suggestions. Having Adams and Franklin breathing down his neck was probably annoyance enough on the day.

If one may also comment on the level of glee evinced by some of the editors (and the disapproval of others), Time Magazine offers a wonderful article on Mark Twain this week, and includes a telling quotation that is most apropos: "A discriminating irreverence is the creator and protector of human liberty." Lets keep the giggles coming, shall we?

More Thing 8 -- Everglades Slideshow (Picturetrail)

Thing 8

This is a work in progress.

My slideshow (on Thumbstacks) is available at:

My 23 Things Show

My photo slideshow is above (Thing 8 continued)

My database (all of three entries to start) is at:

Books I Have Read

Perusing this assignment left Miss Shelved with the smug feeling that, to a great extent, we had "been there, done that." Our districtwide server's capacity for sharing is extensively used to share photos, slideshows, databases, and documents among colleagues. Then, when attempting to pull up some archived photos it came to our attention that the district server is down --and likely to be so for much of the summer--for upgrades. Ah, yes, there is a great deal to be said for saving to the web. Necessity is the mother of invention. To the prompts:

• Use for these tools? Photo slideshows are fast becoming a tradition for graduations, retirements, etc. Indeed, such products as PictureTrail raise the bar for the poor Media Specialist who can surely (in her ample free time) womp up several of these imaginative little entertainments each spring. One supposes if it must be done, these tools make it easier. The slide sharer used (Thumbstacks) was somewhat balky. Sharing presentations is often a necessity -- but it would be preferable to be able to share ones already created with more user friendly software. Surely, presentations are rarely prepared (at least at this presenter's level) with the forethought of sharing. As for databases, the same would hold true: one creates a database for personal or team use rather than assuming it needs to be public. Lazybase does allow one to upload an existing database, but Miss Shelved could not try that method since her district server (where such things reside) is down.
• Ease of navigation? Thumbstacks lacked basic instructions and relies heavily on right clicks -- an initial stumble and ongoing annoyance for the Apple user. Also, items carefully and artistically laid out on a slide do not stay in place and look sloppy in presentation. Picturetrail, on the other hand, was very easy (though adding pictures was time-consuming). Lazybase was okay. The ePortfolio site was the most interesting: clearly on-line resumes and portfolios will be the norm.
• Would you recommend? Maybe Picturetrail. Certainly ePortfolio.
• DO you use other sharing tools? Yes: our district has had Moodle pages for a few years now. These are designed for on-line courses, but different teachers use them in different ways to share information, photos, blogs, calendars, etc. with students, colleagues and parents. Moodle is useful, but could also be more flexible and easy to use. Adding a photo, for example, requires a good few too many steps, IMHO!
  

Thing 7

Lots of new information in this one "thing" -- more than can be properly digested in one sitting. But this is definitely a case where one is moved to revisit applications in the near future.  The OPAL and ELM webinars had some interesting offerings (though somewhat sparse at present -- summer downtime, perhaps?)  Come fall (when Miss Shelved has pots of free time  ;>) we shall try to join in.  Once again, we shall respond to the prompts:

• How do we use e-mail?  It has revolutionized school district communication on so many levels.  We use it for a brief weekly newsletter (Friday Media Moment) that offers information on services available, new materials, training sessions, and all-around problem solving. On a more basic level,  teachers can be sitting at home, remember that an appointment must be made or books requested, and put out the message at their own convenience.  In fact, Miss Shelved has been know to ask colleagues to put a request in an e-mail even after having a casual encounter.  Short-term memory being what it is, it's nice to have it in writing.
• Online reference (via IM or texting) will change the face of college libraries, where research goes on round the clock and libraries have extended hours. Until public school libraries are open during non-school hours --
• IM is wonderful for people most likely to be near a laptop for most of the day.  Our district's tech staff, for example, stay connected and can offer excellent, immediate  support to one another as they troubleshoot in their various buildings. This is less of an option for elementary teaching staff (including teaching librarians) who are less likely to be "on" while students are present. Though the school secretary also stays "on" all day -- so she is able to send and receive sensitive information privately. 
• Minitex had a recorded session on advanced search strategies.  It was a tad annoying in that none of the "live" action -- the actual searches -- were recorded.  Only the canned PowerPoint slides (also available as a PDF) and the voiceover are available.  But there was still good information offered -- if only the URL for "Search Engine Showdown" -- which in this case was the basis of most of the presentation anyway.  Frankly, it was more interesting to peruse the site at leisure than to fade in and out of paying attention to the seminar.  Don't most of us loath seminars, anyway?   However, we have experienced software training via webinar and believe this will be the wave of the future: no travel, real world conditions, no chit-chat, and completely personalized.  

Thing 6

This is an area in which we have had a little more experience (not to mention a lot of fun).  The trading card came from HugeLab (with pic from Simpsonize.com), as did the pixellated bookshelf.  The biker is from The Generator Blog.  A little imagination in Media Center signage, decor, web postings, etc., can be very inspiring, especially for reluctant readers.

Thing 5, continued

warholizer
Originally uploaded by lesley_hendrickson

As suggested, it is possible to have way too much fun with this application. One can think of all kinds of signage opportunities (Flickr Spell)

Thing 5

Aren't we all?

Originally uploaded by Roadsidepictures

Thing 4

One can certainly spend a lot of time perusing others' holiday snaps.  Miss Shelved finds it more useful to already have something to look for (the URL of a cousin's wedding, or the snaps of little Lilly's dance recital, for example).  Otherwise, the tags seem awfully broad.  What some of those pictures had to do with librarians is anybody's guess.

One would not feel comfortable recommending such a site for research purposes.  Some of the content is questionable for elementary eyes, and one cannot assume that all holiday snaps were correctly labeled (how many whale watchers could correctly identify the species weeks after the cruise, for example?) 

No photo service is currently on Miss Shelved's bookmark bar, but the offer of a safe haven is not to be scoffed at.  This is something she will need to rectify, and soon.

As to the public availability, choose wisely, or never run for public office.

We did check out the Picnik feature, and it was useful, though it did not offer much more than one might have already applied in iPhoto before uploading.  

Thing 3 -- and a jolly good time was had by all

This assignment certainly got the juices flowing!  Miss Shelved spent many hours and  visited some fascinating sites.  Who knew librarians were warriors?  or avengers?  or "shifted"?  It seems everyone has a good deal to say.  Again, the prompts are as good a way as any to get one's thoughts in order.

• What does Miss Shelved like about RSS and newsreaders?  The Vienna newsreader has been on our dock for a while now, but little effort had been made to personal the datastream -- which makes it rather useless.  This assignment was a nice little push.  We tried Google Reader to make a change (though Vienna is rather easy to update as well). Time will tell how essential it may become, but the key is finding the right inputs.
• How might we use this? Once anyone finds the right sources for news, views, tips & tricks -- which is to say, finds the right community (what Web 2.0 is about, after all?) RSS feeds have to be the way to go.  In fact, during her peregrinations, Miss Shelved found a wonderful site for children's book bloggers, called "Jacketflap" -- and was most annoyed to find that it did not offer an RSS feed.  We may need to put a bee in that webmaster's bonnet.
• Which search tool was easiest?  Familiarity is always soothing.  Google searches certainly provide that.  Clearly there are some drawbacks to accessing all one's services at one point, but there are navigational advantages as well.
• Other ways to locate feeds?  One's fellow 23 thing bloggers had some lovely ideas.
•  With all the postings from ALA going on at the moment, it is difficult to tell which sites have ongoing substance.  One of the worldwide websites that looked intriguing turned out to be defunct, no new posts for over a year.  Miss Shelved will try to nod in frequently on her current selections and comment again in a few weeks. 

Thing 2

Fascinating reading/viewing.  The times they are a-changing, indeed.  To sort her thoughts, Miss Shelved will respond to prompt questions as offered.

• Where will one find the time?  Miss Shelved is among those lucky creatures (finally) to be in a position to take summers off. A perfect time  . . . yet it has taken until late June to complete Thing 2.  Hmmm.
• Why participate?  Even elementary students are rapidly becoming involved in on-line communal activities.  The elementary Media Specialist is frequently called upon to be the guardian of security, voice of reason, and academic arbiter of web activity. One has to keep up just to keep the little darlings out of trouble.  And just maybe we would actually like to be in on the fun sometimes.
• The web has revolutionized the way this reader uses public libraries.  Online catalogs and reservation allows one to do all the browsing over morning coffee.  Browsing can include checking new titles lists, readers' blogs, and librarian recommendations.  **It has also made book ordering a breeze:  vender on-line catalogs connect to the same reviews, allow one to see the cover (and often contents) before purchase. **This Media Specialist has a true appreciation for Wikipedia:  it is the finest source for "common knowledge" that is often anything but common.  Where else can one find the meaning of an obscure reference like "Jenny Hanniver" (see Philip Reeves's "Darkling Plain" series) or check the history behind the new film "Mongol"?  As a reference maven, one must still urge students to use it as an overview and introduction --and to exploit its bibliographies--rather than rely on Wikipedia as holy writ.  Miss Shelved is aware that she treads on dangerous ground here. **As an avocational  theatre artist, web research has been an huge boon.  One used to hunt fruitlessly for costume plates in public libraries, often to find the books gone or the pictures razored out. Now amazing visual materials are all on-line.  And don't even ask about the sea change now that musical scores can be accessed digitally.  ** Lastly, while hardly putting a dent in the long list of digital resources Miss Shelved has enjoyed in recent years, there is Sudoku, which has probably had the greatest impact on use of time...
• Where is Miss Shelved in terms of Web 2.0 knowledge?  Baby steps!  But toddling as fast as she can, and definitely well ahead of the typical user of her library.  Some staff are still getting used to on-line catalogs. Shared staff calendars were the big breakthrough this academic year. As for students, most have deep experience but only in a narrow area, say an MMPRG or two, and honestly haven't a clue how to find actual information on line.
•  What are we looking forward to?  Having audibly sniffed at one's younger relatives' time-wasting in on-line fantasy role-playing, Miss Shelved has her own fantasies of kicking necromancer butt as a buff young avatar.  All in the name of research, of course.

The First Post

Miss Shelved finds herself amazed at the variety of informative websites now available at the click of a few tiny buttons.  She is interested in learning more about this phenomenon by participating in 23ThingsonaStick -- a delightful name.  She eagerly awaits confirmation of said participation as well as further instructions.