Thing 6

I have really enjoyed playing in flikr, but it is a time bandit. I can see many uses of the word mashups, and the jigsaw puzzle maker in the Media Centers for creating attractive signage. The more unique it is the more they may stop and look. It will enable me to change and vary signs quickly and often. I would like to try the jigsaw puzzle maker with some of the Florida Teen Reads book covers as a promotional tool.

mash up

xmas vacation 2008 070

xmas vacation 2008 070
Originally uploaded by booksmith11

This is a new and exciting tool for me. I'm trying this from home because I couldn't create a Flickr account at school. So I'm using personal family vacation pictures. We were sking in Gaitlinburg, TN the week after Christmas. Not much snow, but plenty of good family time.

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Thing 5

I had fun looking at flickr, but it was very time consuming. There is so much out there. Looking for a good beach picture was like taking a little mini Spring Break. I am having trouble getting it to post the picture, so I may need to work on this post again at home, away from all the firewalls.

Thing 4

I love RSS feeds. I have several on my blog and on my igoogle. It is a great way to quickly read the highlights. I really need to spend some time searching through all the RSS to find the ones that I want. Word of caution: Be careful how you search for teen reading lists-- don't use the term "young adult books". It brings up some very ADULT material! Good thing I was carefully previewing.

Thing 3

I did some searching on technorati for "teen reads" and got about 5 pages of hits. Then I searched on google blogs with the same terms and netted twice the hits. The hits with google blogs were more on terget with the type of information I was expecting. I prefer google blog search over technorati.

Thing 2

Web 2.0 is so huge. I did the reading and now I'm at FETC and it is all the rage. I have attended atleast 5 sessions dealing with blogs, voicethreads, wikis, and online videos. It is a great way for all to learn because we all have plenty to share. Great stuff, but overwhelming. I'm on overload.

Today we met to discuss Boot Camp. Most everyone felt the book was good but most did not care for the content. It was so sad and depressing that there really are places like this that parents send their children. We are tring to select a new book for Febuary- one with romance!!The group suggested, Howl's Moving Castle. I'm not familar with the book, but it appears to have more fantasy than romance. Any suggestions?

Next meeting

Next meeting - Tuesday 1/13/09, 8:15 in the Main Media Center. Discuss Boot Camp

Boot Camp

I read Boot Camp by Todd Strasser over the Winter Holiday. While I enjoyed Garrett's spirit and struggles I was very upset over the fact his parents could send him to this boot camp just because they did not like his behavior. No one ever questioned his parents' reasoning. It is scary to think that children under the age 18 can be imprisoned in this way.