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"The e5 Instructional Model was recently introduced in Victoria and Vermont Secondary College has been trialling it for the past 12 months. We are also on the first phase of a 1:1 iPad program beginning with Year 7 in 2013. As one of the Teacher Librarians I am keen to evaluate and recommend resources of any sort to support quality teaching and learning so last year I began reading blogs about apps for education."

"Need to create a poster for your classroom? There are a number of websites and mobile apps you can use to help you craft something beautiful and informative. You can thank Holly Whitt, librarian for Walnut Grove Elementary School, for curating this collection of proven resources."

"With the thousands of educational apps vying for the attention of busy teachers, it can be hard to sift for the gold. Michelle Luhtala, a savvy librarian from New Canaan High School in Connecticut has crowd-sourced the best, most extensive list of apps voted on by educators around the country. "I wanted to make sure we had some flexibility because there's no one app that's better than all the others," Luhtala said. Some apps are best for younger students, others are more complicated, better suited for high school students. Many apps do one thing really well, but aren't great at everything. Still others are bought, redesigned or just disappear - so it's always good to know about an array of tools to suit the need at hand."

"The district wide iPad committee that I served on was tasked with creating a list of core apps for the iPads. There was significant thought and care put into making the list. We wanted to stick with free apps, developmentally appropriate, focused on creation yet considering space limitations on the device. We liked this visual for sharing the apps so we tried to recreate our list in this style. http://www.teachthought.com/apps-2/47-core-teacher-apps-a-visual-library-of-apps-for-teachers/"

"I'm in the midst of teaching my STEM students how to use the iPad app "Explain Everything" to create short, narrated slideshows about the cantilever spans project we've been doing recently. My students share iPads on our STEM cart, and do not have their own Google logins to upload videos to YouTube. So, after they complete their narrated slideshows and export their finished videos to their iPad camera roll, the challenge is: How can we readily get these videos uploaded to YouTube? This situation is complicated further by the fact that YouTube uploads are blocked on our school network by our content filter, unless a teacher logs in in to bypass the filter. Here are two ways I've dealt with these constraints and requirements. I am sharing this post today because one of the librarians in our district ran into this same problem and asked for help!"

"Our school just unrolled the first phase of our 1:1 iPad program tonight.  In preparation of this big event, I spent some time this summer looking into how I could support and guide students through the research process using apps."

This looks like just the type of program a middle school librarian could love. CS, or Computer Science First is a free Google program designed to increase student exposure to computer science education through after-school, in-school, and summer programs in a club approach run by teachers and/or community volunteers. CS First works towards its goal of developing student courage, confidence and curiosity about computer science by providing a wealth of free training materials targeted at students grades 4 through 12. The resources may be tailored for nearly any schedule. Students learn how to build creative projects using Scratch, learn about the critical role computer science and coding play in today's world, and explore technology-based career options. There's something here every kid could love as well.

"Before becoming a librarian two Septembers ago I was a fourth grade teacher for seventeen years.  My favorite part of the day, the non-negotiable, the very best way to build classroom culture, was read aloud time.  My kids knew that no matter what our day looked like we would carve out 20 minutes every day for this sacred time of day.  Read aloud time gave everyone a level playing field to access text.  It gave us inside jokes. It gave us a shared experience we could refer to and I could use to model reading and writing strategies."

"We were recently gifted with a Makerbot Replicator (5th Gen) to pilot in our elementary school library. Our librarian, Angelique Lackey, and I knew that time was short before the end of the year, but we wanted students to experience the power of creating with this device. "

"We are about to launch our Maker Space in our school library media center - it is going to be what is referred to as a 'soft launch.' Our technology facilitator and one of our classroom teachers are really the driving force behind this initiative, and much more familiar with the items we have purchased. While I'm more than happy to house the materials and provide space for them to be used, I know almost nothing about them. So, I'm hopeful that I will be able to form a team of interested students to help manage the project. Tomorrow after school we will have our 'Maker Team Interest Meeting.' From the students who show up, we're planning on forming a team to rotate being on hand when the maker space is open. They'll be in charge of answering questions, helping students figure out directions, and keeping everything orderly.  Wish us luck!"

"Your classroom probably has a bulletin board. It's the perfect spot to organize information and show off great work. Increasingly, learning is happening online, and so it's no surprise that the bulletin board has moved online. Enter Pinterest. Teachers of young students are using the online application to find lesson ideas and stay organized, while middle and high school teachers are getting their students to use the app themselves for planning projects or collecting materials for class discussions. And librarians are running reading programs and creating book lists with that handy little Pinterest button. If you're wondering whether you should join Pinterest, read on. We'll show you how to get your account set up, how other educators are using Pinterest, and where to find inspiration on the app."

"Your father's school library and school librarian are rapidly disappearing. In this segment we talk about the many ways that the school library is changing teaching and learning."

"One of the basic tenets and strengths of the maker movement is its emphasis on constructive and collaborative learning through hands-on, trial-and-error experimentation. While a live mentor demonstrating and leading activities is the gold standard, a growing number of titles offer inspiration, support, and clarification for a wide variety of maker topics. The following list of recommended books was crowdsourced by librarians running maker spaces and/or offering maker programming in their libraries or schools."

"The Makerspace Starter Kit includes: Makerspace Welcome Letter (pdf) Makerspace Starter Kit (pdf) Mini Maker Notebook (pdf) If the links above don't work , please try these alternate  Dropbox Download Links: Makerspace Welcome Letter, Makerspace Starter Kit, MiniMaker Notebook. Directions: Please read the Makerspace Welcome Letter then download and print the Makerspace Starter Kit (pdf) and the Mini Maker Notebook. The Makerspace Starter Kit (pdf) should be folded with a hamburger fold then a second hamburger fold so the words in bold are on the outside. Folding instructions for the Mini Maker Notebook can be found at http://www.pocketmod.com/howto. Find out more about the Mini Maker Notebook here. Why a Makerspace Starter Kit? I have spent much of the last year spreading the word about makerspaces in workshops, webinars, Twitter conversations and on this blog. Teachers and librarians often tell me that they are thinking about creating a makerspace. I leave these conversations wishing that I could help with the hardest part, getting started. In fact, one of my earliest blog posts was encouraging teachers to simply start MAKING in the classroom. The Makerspace Starter Kit is my solution.   Deluxe version of the Makerspace Starter Kit that includes designs for laser cutting and 3D printing a Makerspace sign is at http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:297759."

"On any given day at Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy, visitors to the Lower School library might be surprised to find it bears little resemblance to the school libraries of years past. Several 5th graders sit at computers, developing 3D luggage tags using Tinkercad to be printed on the nearby Makerbot 3D printer. On the central library tables, students are creating Rube Goldberg machines using physical manipulatives or the RubeWorks iPad app. The library is a buzz of activity and student engagement, punctuated with squeals of excitement. And overseeing the makerspace is librarian Judy Houser, a veteran educator who took the visionary step of transforming this once quiet library into a space where students not only learn to love reading, but learn to explore, create and innovate using a variety of tools"

"What is the best strategy for starting a makerspace in your school? How long should you take to plan your makerspace before you get started? Is flying by the seat of your pants a good idea or a bad one? What are the key features of an 8 foot tall DIY teeter totter? Stay tuned for the answers in today's podcast.  Our guest today is Laura Fleming.  Laura is a librarian and media specialist at New Milford High School in Jew Jersey.  A little over a year ago, she started a makerspace in her library, and the results have been unbelievable.  I'm not a big fan of spoilers, so let's get straight to the interview."

"If you're looking for some new books to read this summer, take a look at the Open Library which is a part of the Internet Archive. The Open Library is a collection of more than one million free ebook titles. The collection is cataloged by a community of volunteer online librarians. The ebooks in the Open Library can be read online, downloaded to your computer, read on Kindle and other ereader devices, and embedded into other sites. Some of the ebooks, like Treasure Island, can also be listened to through the Open Library."

"Makerspaces, sometimes also referred to as hackerspaces, hackspaces, and fablabs are creative, DIY spaces where people can gather to create, invent, and learn. In libraries they often have 3D printers, software, electronics, craft and hardware supplies and tools, and more. oedb.org/ilibrarian/a-librarians-guide-to-makerspaces/"