Monday Medley: HS Summer Reading Program

 Photo by Link Hoang on Unsplash

The summer reading list for high school students has been published and posted on the Media Center Website. All students need to read at least 2 books over the summer. Students taking AP classes are expected to read additional titles. All of the required titles on the list are available for free through Sora, the student reading app. 

Haven't used Sora yet? Getting started is easy! Watch this short video and follow the print directions below.

Begin by going to soraapp.com 

Scroll to the bottom of the screen and click where it says I have a setup code: 

Enter your setup code and click on the green Get started! button:

Sign in to North Reading High School  (click on the expand more arrow and scroll until you find North Reading High School) then click on the green Sign in using North Reading High School button

Select Login with Google and sign in with your school email address. Once you are signed in click on the menu button on the top right hand side of the page and select the Add a library option (green plus sign) 

type merrimack valley library consortium into the search box labeled Find your library and click on the green This is my library button to add it to your profile. 

You have now added the Flint Memorial Library and all other libraries in the Merrimack Valley area to your Sora account. This enables you to borrow available eBooks and Audiobooks from any of those libraries without needing to have a public library card. 

For subsequent visits you can sign into Sora using Clever and do not have to go through any of the additional steps listed above. Just sign into Clever using the Login with Google option and click on the Sora icon 

To locate the required titles for summer reading be sure that you select the MLS Commonwealth eBook Collection on your profile OR click on the binoculars icon (Explore) at the bottom of the screen and select MLS Commonwealth eBook Collection at the top left hand side of the screen under the word Explore. 

Scroll past the Sora Sweet Reads Collection and find the collection titled NRHS Summer Reading 2021. Click on the title banner to view all of the titles. Many are available in both eBook and Audiobook format. 

Once you have located the required title for your course click borrow to begin reading or listening to your book: 

Summer Professional Development Opportunities

We all need a break after the last 14 months. We need fresh air, sunshine, and time away from the stress that has accompanied being an educator in the midst of a global crisis. At the same time, we should probably spend some time reflecting on what practices we would like to continue to implement in the classroom and/or what new skills we would like to have, moving forward. When you find yourself ready to engage in professional development  these are some opportunities to consider. 

• Matt Miller has put together an extensive Wakelet collection of free summer PD opportunities.

• Check out the two Global GEG free summer bootcamp opportunities if you have ever considered amping up your Google skills and becoming a Google Certified Educator. 

• EdWeb a free learning community with professional development opportunities for educators in all disciplines. Check out this post to read more.

• Log into Hoopla Digital using your BPL eCard and read one of these books from renowned educators: titles by Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc;  titles by ASCD; titles by International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE); and titles by Solution Tree Press. Read this post to learn how to sign up for your eCard and create a Hoopla account. 

• LinkedIn Learning (BPL) Be sure to log in through the Boston Public Portal to keep your data private!!  With courses in diversity and inclusion, creativity, skills building,  and more, there is something here for any educator who wants to learn.
(Please note that you MUST log in using the link provided by Boston Public Library using your BPL eCard in order to take advantage of learning opportunities for free.)

• KQED Media Academy for Teachers offers free hands-on professional learning opportunities focused on media literacy. The first upcoming course, Video Production for the Classroom starts June 7th. 

• Earn Badges, Certificates, and Accreditations from various EdTech companies. Rachel Coathup, a Global GEG leader and Google Certified Innovator, curated these BadgEdTech resources as part of her innovator project. 

• Not ready to engage in Educator PD yet? With a FREE BPL eCard and a Kanopy account you can check out The Great Courses and learn a new skill or explore one of your hobbies or passions! Some courses contain supplemental materials (available as a PDF download) See Course to locate supplemental resources (not available in individual videos. See Learning French as an example to view supplemental materials. 

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Photo by Nick Morrison on Unsplash

 

Monday Medley: Freely Licensed Images, Icons, and ClipArt

Let's talk for a minute about copyright, fair use, and using images from the internet. When creating a presentation for your students how often do you consider whether the images you have selected meet copyright guidelines? While it is unlikely that the "copyright police" will come looking for you if you use an image or images without permission or proper attribution, we really should try to be good role models for our students. An easy way to model good digital citizenship is to ensure that the images that you use are freely usable and do not violate any copyright rules. You might be wondering where to look for copyright free images. 

Here are a few good places to start: 

Unsplash has a collection of over 2 million free, high-resolution photographs that can be downloaded and used for free, even for commercial use. Attribution is not required although it is recommended as a best practice. You can search for images by topic, collection, and more. Unsplash even has a collection of images that can be downloaded and used as desktop wallpaper. This is my favorite place to find images! 

EDUImages by All4Ed are free to use, share, and adapt with proper attribution as long as it's not for commercial use. There are more than 700 images in the collection, all revolving around education. You can do a general image search or filter your search by educational topic, grade level, or photo location. All images in the collection were taken in 7 schools across the United States. BIPOC are represented in these photos.

Pics4Learning has copyright friendly photos and illustrations that are safe and free for education. Images can be downloaded or saved to Google Drive. Citation information is included so that images can be properly attributed. 

Use CC Search to locate images that are available for reuse. You can filter your search to locate images that you are free to modify or adapt. Each image contains information about how the it can be reused. Citation information is available so that you can credit the creator. Some images can even be used for commercial purposes. 

Iconsmania has free, editable icons, illustrations, and clip art images. (The creator of this collection is the same person who created Slidesmania, the free Google Slides template website.) 

Google Fonts has an icon library that is free to use as long as you don't try to sell them. If you are trying to create a directions sheet for students or other educators and you need an image of an icon to accompany your text you can download the image as a PNG and insert it into your document. For example, this undo icon: 

Public Domain Clipart contains over 25,000 images that are free to use. However, the site does have a disclaimer stating, " As we would like to continue to offer this collection of images to the public, we require that users intending on utilizing images research the copyright and public domain status of the images for themselves prior to any use, such as commercial use." You have to contend with advertising on this site but with a huge library of images it's worth overlooking the ads if you want a lot of choices for clipart!

These are just a few options available if you are looking for freely licensed images, icons, and clipart. If you are interested in learning more about copyright, creative commons licensing, and fair use I would recommend checking out this extensive resource, posted in this Campus Press blog post: The Educator's Guide to Copyright, Fair Use, and Creative Commons.

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Photo by Umberto on Unsplash

Monday Medley: Bookmarking Tools (Wakelet)

How do you save all of the useful Articles, Websites, PDFs and Documents that you come across in your daily life as an educator? You may go "old school" and save scraps of paper with notes scribbled on them, or add a star to helpful emails that you receive. Unfortunately this can lead to forgetting about resources or having difficulty locating things when you need them. So, what's the solution? There are several free tools available that can help you to bookmark things and stay organized. 

Wakelet for Educators is a free tool that allows teachers to "save, organize and present multimedia content with students, teachers and learning communities." North Reading Public Schools already has a signed data privacy agreement with Wakelet, which means that you can feel comfortable using it with your students. The image below illustrates the versality of Wakelet as a curation tool.

Read this free Wakelet eBook to get started today!

Visit the Wakelet Help Center.

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Photo by pure julia on Unsplash

Monday Medley: AudioSync and Sora, the Student Reading App

Beginning on April 29, 2021 teens (and interested adults!) can download and listen to 2 free audiobooks each and every week until the program ends on August 4, 2021. That's a grand total of 28 free audiobooks! Learn more about all of the titles for 2021 by clicking here.

How does it work? It's easy! Sign up by visiting the Audiofile Sync Website and signing up with your school email address. You can also sign up to get email or text alerts so that you remember each week to download the titles that are available for that week. The titles will be available in Sora, the student reading app. In case you don't remember, Sora is one of our ebook and audiobook reading platforms.

Getting Started with Sora

What is Sora? 

Sora is OverDrive Education’s K–12 student reading app. You may have heard of OverDrive (or its simpler to use “cousin” Libby) because it is a widely used platform for borrowing eBooks and AudioBooks from the public library. 

How do I get started?

Getting started is easy! You don’t need to have a username, password, or a library card number. All you need is the ability to log into Clever with Google: 

 clever.com/in/nrpsd   

What do I do once I’m signed into Clever?

1. Look for Sora by Overdrive

   

2. Search for our school and sign in using North Reading High School 

3. For Mobile Devices, download the Sora app from the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, or soraapp.com

4. Browse the Explore tab and borrow an eBook or AudioBook. Your book will open so you can start reading right away. 

5. Read and listen from any device: Chromebooks, tablets, laptops, desktops, and phones.

6. Visit help.soraapp.com with questions

7. Have additional questions or need help locating something??

Email me: ksmith@nrpsk12.org

Text the NRHS Library/Media Center: 978-276-9002

To add SYNC titles (once you have signed up and starting April 29th) :

In Sora, open the menu (in the top-right corner).

Select Add a library.

Search for audiobooksync and select the library from the results.

Enter the email address you used to sign up for SYNC. (Be sure to use your SCHOOL EMAIL address!!) 

If you are having any trouble please email synchelp@audiofilemagazine.com

 

Monday Medley: NRHS Library Catalog Update

 Good Morning and Happy Monday!

I am pleased to announce that the HS Media Center Library catalog has recently been updated and now includes cover images for books. In addition, everyone can now see recently added titles as well as popular titles. A section titled learning links, located at the bottom of the page, contains links to frequently used resources including the Media Center Website, all of the Media Center databases, and links to Boston Public Library online resources. Please encourage students to explore this new interface. The link is available on each page of the Media Center Website. Users can also navigate directly to the catalog by going to destinydiscover.com. Follow the steps to select MA and North Reading High School Media Center as your location. 

Click on the blue Go! button to get started. 

Search for a book using the Search box at the top of the page. Click on the Search Options and select Keyword, Title, Author, Subject, Series, Note, or ISBN to narrow your search. You can also explore Recently Added Books and Popular Titles. 

To learn more about a specific title click on the cover image. 

Click on the explore tab to find similar titles. Click on any of the subjects or the name of the author to see more books like the one you have selected. 

Use the filter tool on the left hand side to further refine your results by subject, genre, etc. (Not every book will have the filter tool available)

Interested in having the ability to put books on hold directly from the catalog? Email me at ksmith@nrpsk12.org and I'll help you set up a username and password. As an alternative you can go to the learning links at the bottom of the page to get to the NRHSBookForm.

Interested in a live demo of the library catalog? Watch this 4 minute long video:

Monday Medley: National Geographic Education Resource Library

 

Good Morning and Happy Monday. Did you know that there a wealth of resources available from the National Geographic Society Resource Library that can support instruction in the following areas:

• Geography 
• Physical Geography 
• Human Geography 
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS) 
• Earth Science 
• Earth Science 
• Geology 
• Oceanography 
• Meteorology 
• Astronomy 
• Climatology 
• Biology 
• Ecology 
• Health 
• Genetics 
• Social Studies 
• World History 
• U.S. History
• Economics 
• Civics 
• Ancient Civilizations 
• Arts and Music 
• Anthropology 
• Archaeology 
• Sociology 
• Engineering 
• Experiential Learning 
• Conservation 
• Storytelling 
• Photography 
• Filmmaking 
• Physics 
• English Language Arts 
• Religion
• Chemistry 
• Mathematics 
• Professional Learning 
• English as a Second Language

Materials include:

• Activities
• Articles
• Leveled Articles 
• Collections 
• Infographics
• Lessons 
• Maps 
• Photographs 
• Units 
• Videos 

Create a free educator account in order to save resources for later. In addition, educators can sign up for free professional development opportunities to learn how to encourage students to have a "National Geographic Explorer" mindset. 

Need ideas to liven up your lessons? You can follow National Geographic Education on Twitter or read the National Geographic Education Blog to get inspired. 

Photo by Alexander Andrews on Unsplash

Monday Medley: Very Short Introductions

 

Recently while browsing through some of the online resources that are available through Boston Public Library, I stumbled upon something that I hadn't noticed before.  The Very Short Introductions (or VSI for short) series, published by Oxford University Press, provides users with an introduction to a wide variety of topics, all  written by experts within that particular discipline. 

665 VSI eBook titles are currently available online through BPL.  Topics include Applied Mathematics, Architecture, Computer Science,  Contemporary Art (December 2020),  Music (February 2021), Renewable Energy (February 2020), Theater,  and The US Supreme Court (published in July 2020).  Sign in using your Boston Public Library eCard and PIN to start exploring this resource. Don't have a BPL eCard yet? No problem, it's easy to sign up! Anyone who is age 13 or older and lives, works, goes to school, or owns property in Massachusetts can sign up for a card. Here is the link to sign up.

 New titles are added on a monthly basis. Browse or search by entering keywords to find books or information on a topic. Entries will contain diagrams, political cartoons, and photographs to accompany the text when appropriate for the subject matter .  Toggle between full books and chapters with information related to your topic. You can email book and chapter links to others but they must also have a BPL eCard in order to view the title. Create a personal profile to save annotations, links to chapters, and lists of search results. Below is a short video that explains the most helpful features of the resource. 

Here is a slidedeck that also explains the resource: Very Short Introductions Tour

New books: March 2021

 

See something you'd like to borrow? Fill out the Media Ctr Bookform to request a title: bit.ly/NRHSBookForm

Not sure what you'd like to read? Fill out the form and get book recommendations customized for you, based on your personal interests! Please encourage students to take advantage of the book form to request titles as well. 

Monday Medley: Social Media as a PLN

 Good Morning and Happy Monday!

Today's topic is using social media as a PLN (Personal/Professional/Personalized Learning Network). If you are someone who isn't big on using technology then you may think that you have no use for social media tools such as Twitter.  Or perhaps you feel overwhelmed due to the current hybrid teaching model that is in place and think that you cannot possibly add another thing to your already overflowing plate. What if I told you that spending 10-15 minutes a day scrolling through your twitter feed could actually reduce some of your planning time and help inspire you to try new things in the classroom? It all comes down to being very calculated about who you choose to follow on Twitter. If you follow global edtech leaders in your specific discipline it is highly likely that you will find high quality lesson ideas and support resources. 

Google educators from across the globe came together to help support the world's classroom teachers navigate new territory back in April of 2020 . I learned that a Global GEG (Google Educator Group) account had been created on Twitter and started following the group. Soon I was signed up for a free, virtual Google Educator Level 1 Bootcamp, with all of the sessions being presented by Global GEG members. This led to participation in a second, free Google Educator Level 2 Bootcamp in July. These boot camp sessions inspired me to become a certified Google Educator (both levels 1 & 2). Currently I am working on completing the Google Certified Coach curriculum.

So, why I am telling you about all of this? At least 3-4 times a week I stumble across something shared on Twitter that helps improve my professional practice. These ideas come from librarians, instructional coaches, teachers, principals, superintendents, and Global GEG leaders whose personal accounts I follow on Twitter. 

Here is a starting point if you don't know where to begin. Edublogs has a free self-directed course Building Your PLN aimed at helping you to use Twitter to develop your PLN. You don't need to sign up for anything to access the materials. Simply click on the steps, read the content, complete the suggested tasks, and build your PLN at your own pace.  

If you want to start "lurking" on Twitter, here are some suggested accounts to start following:

NRPS Superintendent, NRHS, NRHSVirtualMediaCenter, GlobalGEG, Matt Miller, Alice Keeler

Photo by Sara Kurfeß on Unsplash

Monday Medley: Graphic Novels and Comics in the Classroom

Good Morning and Happy Monday! 

Today's topic is...Graphic novels and/or comics and why they can be a valuable tool in delivering classroom instruction. Merriam Webster Dictionary defines a graphic novel as, "a story that is presented in comic-strip format and published as a book." While the terms graphic novel and comic are sometimes used interchangeably, most often a graphic novel is longer in length and has a more complex plot than a comic. 

Why would someone want to use a graphic novel in the classroom? Consider the following, "Graphic novels are an engaging and popular form, and undoubtedly this has made the learning process that much more meaningful for the students. Graphic novelist Svetlana Chmakova explains the power of the graphic novel to resonate with readers by using the example of an author "render[ing] a charged silent moment that speaks volumes about the character's inner state just through their movements. If done right, a scene like that can hit home deeper than a text paragraph ever could." With categories ranging from biography and memoir,  business and career, history, how-to, inspired by myth, philosophy, politics, STEAM and more, there is literally something for everyone.  

Are you wondering how you can get started with graphic novels in your classroom? Look no further than the student reading app Sora, and the popular streaming media service Hoopla. If you are not interested in assigning a class text then your students can use Sora to borrow popular graphic novels without the need to remember a user name or password. High School teachers and students can sign in using CLEVER and easily add access to the Merrimack Valley Library Consortium, which the Flint Memorial Library is a part of. Use Hoopla if you want all of your students to have the ability to read the same graphic novel at the same time. If you need directions for setting up an account for Hoopla or Sora click on this link to the Media Center Website to get started. 

If  you are interested in reading reviews of graphic novels for teens then check out the Website No Flying No Tights. (The creator and Editor-in-chief of this Website works at the Brookline MA public library as a teen librarian!) When exploring the site, use the drop down menus below the search bar to filter results to titles for teens. Select genres or nonfiction categories to further filter your results. *Note that not all listed titles will be available from Sora or Hoopla. 

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Website has a page Using Graphic Novels in Education that contains some sample lessons using popular graphic novels. The Media Center has print copies of some of these titles. In addition, many are available through Sora or Hoopla. 

This photo shows some of the nonfiction graphic novels available through Hoopla. 

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Hughes, Janette, and Laura Morrison. "The evolution of teaching with graphic novels." Jeunesse: Young People, Texts, Cultures, vol. 6, no. 2, 2014, p. 116+. Gale OneFile: Educator's Reference Complete, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A425349584/PROF?u=mlin_n_northhs&sid=PROF&xid=eb9b4d62. Accessed 26 Feb. 2021.

Merriam Webster. “Definition of GRAPHIC NOVEL.” Merriam-Webster.com, 2018, www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/graphic%20novel. Accessed 26 Feb. 2021.

(Photo by Miika Laaksonen on Unsplash)

Monday Medley: Rebranding of GSuite for Education and Updates

Good Morning, Hopefully everyone was able to spend at least part of February vacation relaxing. You may have heard that last week there was a Learning With Google 2021 global virtual summit that took place where many updates were announced. One thing that Google announced is that GSuite for Education has been renamed Google Workspace for Education. Over the next several months Google is adding more than 50 new features to the education products we frequently use. You can expect to see some of those rollouts and changes in the next few weeks. One feature you will see soon in Google Meet is the ability for teachers to "mute all" and end the call for all to ensure that students don't remain after the teacher has left the call. in addition, teachers will be able to have co-teachers as co-moderators within Meet. A student engagement tracking feature will be coming to Google Classroom so you will have the ability to see at a glance which of your students may be falling behind in their classwork. Some enhanced security features will also be available for Google Admins and will happen behind the scenes. Do you want to keep up with what's happening in the Google world? Sign up to receive updates from the Google for Education official blog, Follow Google for Education on Twitter @GoogleForEdu and subscribe to the Google for Education YouTube Channel I hope you have a magnificent Monday! (Photo by Mitchell Luo on Unsplash)

New Books: February 2021

See something you'd like to borrow? Fill out the Media Ctr Bookform to request a title: bit.ly/NRHSBookForm* Not sure what you'd like to read? Fill out the form and get book recommendations customized for you, based on your personal interests! Please encourage students to take advantage of the book form to request titles as well. *Note that the BookForm only works for NRHS students and teachers.

 

Monday Medley: Virtual Explorations

 

Good Morning,

Are you looking to enhance your instruction by adding some virtual explorations to your lesson plans? 

Here are a few options: 

• Google Earth Voyager "Google Earth's Voyager is a showcase of interactive guided tours, quizzes, and layers that aim to help educate everyone about the world, locations near and far."

• "Teachers use HistoryView VR as an online tool to bring historical sites and museums to the classroom. VR headsets are not required to experience this program. It is available on Chromebooks and tablets." (Scroll down on the page past the map to see the different types of virtual environments available)

• Arizona State University Virtual Fieldtrips: "VFT's are topic based interactive and educationally rich experiences captured during real expeditions with scientists doing current research. Some are built with adaptive feedback and adaptive pathways. (Look for the designated icons). This adaptivity allows for non-linear experiences with varying pathways, as well as individual feedback, that is tailored to the users input and responses. These VFTs are being used in high school and college classrooms to supplement a wide variety of topics and are actively in development with new VFTs continually coming online."

• Google Arts & Culture 360 degree videos Explore art, space, natural history and more

• 20 Virtual Field Trips for your Classroom: Ditch That Textbook "Virtual field trips allow us to take our students where the bus can’t. Students can make connections with locations, concepts or people through the power of virtual field trips. What are the best virtual field trips out there? And how can we take the learning even further? Here are 20 field trips and 10 activities to do while you're on one!"                                        *Note that not all of the resources suggested here are free. However, there are some good suggestions for companion activities for any virtual exploration. 

(Photo by Tobias on Unsplash)

Monday Medley: PressReader Digital Magazines and Newspapers

Hey all,

Happy Monday!

Did you know that you and your students have the ability to view full text newspapers and magazines from around the world with a free BPL eCard and an account with Pressreader? 

Sometimes when discussing a current news event it's helpful to see how the world is reporting the event. For example, here is a look at some of the newspapers from across the United States and the world from last Wednesday, January 20, 2021, the inauguration day for our 46th president.  

Titles in some of the available categories for magazines include: 

• Business & Current Affairs (Newsweek, Inc., and  the Christian Science Monitor Weekly) 

• Computers & Technology (PC World, Popular Science, Science Illustrated, Macworld, BBC Science Focus, Linux Format, and Popular Mechanics)

• Health & Fitness (Yoga Journal, Runner's World, andYouth Runner Magazine)

• History & Science (Smithsonian Magazine, Popular Mechanics, BBC History, BBC History Revealed, All About History)

• Travel & Culture (Backpacker, Lonely Planet Magazine, Foreword Reviews, and Kirkus Reviews)

All magazines and newspapers included in PressReader are an exact, full color, digital replica of the print edition. PressReader works on a laptop, Chromebook, tablet, and Apple or Android mobile device. 

New Books: January 2021

See something you'd like to borrow? Fill out the Media Ctr Bookform to request a title: bit.ly/NRHSBookForm* Not sure what you'd like to read? Fill out the form and get book recommendations customized for you, based on your personal interests! Please encourage students to take advantage of the book form to request titles as well. *Note that the BookForm only works for NRHS students and teachers.