"Published on 29 Nov 2014. Part one of a Library Q&A - all about becoming a librarian and MLIS degrees. The list of questions were: 00:45 - What skills do you need to be a librarian? 02:40 - What lead me to become a librarian? 03:57 - Do I have a degree, and are MLIS degrees needed in other countries? 04:34 - What kind of coursework did I do for my degree? 06:05 - Did I do a thesis? 06:36 - Did I go to Dal, and if yes, what did I think of it? Also: What advice would I give to new/aspiring MLIS students? 09:15 - Considering an MLIS degree, but concerned about not being able to find a job afterward - what are my thoughts on this? 10:49 - Do librarians make a lot of money? 12:36 - How should someone go about getting a library job while at university? Do they hire non-MLIS students?"

This visual encyclopedia is created by the publisher DK. It is new, so somewhat limited but they have plans to grow. I see it as useful for younger students, ESL students and special education students. The site is easy to use and has clear categories. It also offers other sections: What's New?. Videos. Quizzes. Fun Facts. Galleries. Another section called My Space will also be added. Teachers may create an account and access a lesson planner. The DK Online World Desk Reference may also be of interest. You need to create an account to use it which takes seconds to do. This site "explores topics in physical and human geography for every country in the world, and practices critical-thinking skills

A useful list with links and small annotations on most.

"A new service for locating and reading newspapers from locations all around the world. Newspaper Map claims to have put placemarks for more 10,000 newspapers on one Google Map. To find a newspaper you can browse the map then click on a placemark to open the link within to read a newspaper."

"PBS LearningMedia now offers more than 100,000 digital resources, including common core-aligned videos, interactive learning games, and tools for teachers. The site is a partnership between PBS and WGBH Educational Foundation and includes tools to help teachers make storyboards, build lessons, and create quizzes using PBS's digital content. There's also a student view, which teachers can set up so that students can access class materials from their own devices. Many resources are also labeled with standards information so that teachers can determine how a potential lesson might line up with the common core. Though some parts of the site are available only to paid users, the majority are free."

The Crash Course videos are created by great YouTube advocates, John and Hank Green. They are intended as an overview of different subjects, from literature and history to chemistry, biology, and psychology.

Interesting ideas

Includes SLV

"10 activities to use with any nonfiction book or other informational text. The goal was to get kids more engaged in reading. They are simple but effective and could be adapted in a variety Of ways.

"Links to quite a few simple library-related, online games are in linked to this post.  They are primary level but might be useful for lower secondary as well. You simply click on the flower signs to go to the games.

An app that may be useful or parents or educators when they first come across a title. Level It Books is an app that tells you the DRA, gre, lexlile, and guided reading level just by scanning it!

"This SLV guide explains how to find and use information collected in censuses from 1788 to 1901. It also includes information about the history of censuses in Australia. A census counts and describes the population of a particular area. Census data is useful for researching places & people's lives over time, or at a point in time. Sometimes information about individuals is available too. The earliest systematic collection of information about Australia's residents occurred in 1788. The colonies and states regularly collected data in musters or censuses, up until the first Australian (national) census in 1911."

Another interesting way to use the technology with a good explanation about how the author did this.

The article discusses figures that seem to show that e-book sales have plateaued and the demand for hardcopy books remains steady. "There have been plenty of ideas on how to reinvigorate bookstores, but Waterstones and Barnes & Noble appear to have benefited from less radical moves. Waterstones has spent millions of pounds refurbishing its 290 stores, adding cafs and trying to emulate local bookstores by giving store managers more control. The growth of "click-and-collect" sales also benefits shops, which can encourage shoppers to browse when they come to pick up their orders. In the US, Barnes & Noble has put its faith in selling ancillary products alongside books, including vinyl records and craft beer kits. Some in the books industry suggest bricks-and-mortar stores may have benefit from resentment of Amazon among some consumers. However, globally, there is no guarantee that physical books will be sold through physical bookstores. "Online sales of physical books are likely to remain strong," Deloitte says, in its forthcoming 2015 predictions."

" Which children's do you find moving? The team at Quotery.com has created an infographic called "20 Inspiring Children's Book Quotes." The words come from a variety of titles including Roald Dahl's Matilda, J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan, and J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone. The the full infographic is embedded"

"From teaching coding to modelling texts for literature analysis, teachers share the inventive ways they use Lego in lessons"

A good glossary of literary terms on @genius. Images/video help explanation and include refs to contemporary examples

"Lit Genius is a community of scholars-and a crew of heroic hearts-devoted to annotating great literature. We host everything from the classics to recent fiction to spoken word."