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Curation is a critical tool that can be harnessed to leverage resources as pertinent information to specific target audiences. However, curation is a "living process" and is never fully complete. That said, managing curated information as it ages is necessary to keep it relevant and useful.

The process of weeding through curated websites was simple in nature because the information was organized effectively and took into consideration the user experience. However, the process would not have been approachable if the information had been more unorganized.

Paying attention to the smaller details was important to figure out the resource changes. Some of the changes that had occurred were not immediately apparent. It is one thing to look for dead links and another to sift through the changed information; this was the challenging part of this task.

I enjoyed being able to revisit resources that had left my immediate memory. Revisiting curated resources might be a great way to find inspiration for lesson planning!

A pathfinder is a tool that explores a topic in extreme depth; moreover, the usefulness of a pathfinder is the culmination of resources about resources for the subject at hand. I created a pathfinder about skincare for a beginner entering the world of skincare for the first time.

My first mistake was that the subject I chose needed to be narrower. Skincare is a large topic that can be broken down into several smaller categories. When I started collecting resources for a skincare pathfinder, I was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of information available. That said, I narrowed my topic to cleansers in skincare, and I had a much easier time filtering through all of the information. Pathfinders need to contain relevant information that extends the reader only a short distance from the discussed subject.

The platform I used to design my Pathfinder was Thinglink, and I was satisfied. Thinglink is a resource that allows a still image or visual file of choice to be embedded with information using their software with visual anchors. The design felt very natural for the purposes of a pathfinder. I was very excited to play around with a 3D file called a glb file. This allowed me to upload a 3D model of a human, which I used to create my pathfinder. From there, I linked and embedded all my resources on the 3D model in such a way as to lead my viewer through my project. This interactive component of the pathfinder provided flexibility in how the resource was used.

The task put before the school librarian group was to design a lesson plan centered around standards that taught technical skills through a collaborative instructional session. The thought process behind choosing this topic was to introduce students to diverse literature that expresses several essential literary elements through the lens of award-winning literature while integrating technology skills. The topic produced after a brainstorming session was not readily agreed upon at first and required more communal finesse an agreement to come to a final agreement. The group was comfortable with a younger age group and had to step out of members' comfort zones to design a lesson plan for freshmen in high school. The final decision driver was the age limitation of thinglink is 13, thus making the high school student the requisite age group for the assignment. This a perfect example of how technology can have limitations within school library settings.

Thinglink effectively conveyed to students different ways to create a multimedia object that can include linked, embedded, or uploaded information. Additionally, the literary topic paralleled alongside these skills acted as a conduit to further expand students' critical thinking and hands-on technical skills at the same time, which is often a more effective form of learning.

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe was the graphic novel our group selected for our book cover; however, the assignment required the students to come to class prepared with a screenshot of the cover of an award-winning book. From there, the school librarian group walked the students through navigating the technical aspects of thinglink while offering perspectives about the importance of award-winning literature and an analysis of the symbolism associated with the book cover.

Gender Queer proved to be an excellent resource to spark analysis of symbolism and award-winning books with our target audience. However, I did not expect in-the-moment technical difficulties from our students. This oversight was quickly attended to during the virtual session; however, in the future, it would be wise to expect this and have a strategy to alleviate the stress technical difficulties caused. For example, in a collaborative group situation, it would be wise to assign the role of dealing with technical difficulties to a specific individual.

The discussion about symbolism revolved around the concepts of color and contrast. The goal of this dialogue was to guide students to an analysis of their chosen book and to spark an inspiration to interpret what the book cover "says" about the text inside, a critical skill for budding freshmen. A critical lesson component was engaging the students through dialogue, which sometimes felt like pulling teeth. Constantly engaging your students is a great tactic to avoid static moments that can lessen your authority as an expert. The following article, What a Book Cover Can Do, by Peter Mendelsund and David J. Alworth, was a great resource to build the conversation about symbolism in book covers.

This was the final outline for our instructional group project.

School librarians have evolved and learned to be in two places simultaneously! Well, they wish... However, screencasting software has enabled it to leverage technology to record and produce video footage that can support distance learning or a flipped classroom learning style. This can be an effective tool for school librarians who need to be in two places at once and to support classroom curriculum with integrated library skills.

Initially, I decided to do some brief, informal research into what makes an excellent screencasting video, and I came across some great resources. The Techsmith Blog offered sound advice when creating a screencasting video:

Choose screen recording software

Prepare yourself and screen for recording

Record your screen

Make adjustments to your recording

Save and share your screencast

Following the advice from the blog, I decided to use awesomescreenshot.com software to record my video. I chose this software because it is user-friendly, familiar, and the free option for the software contains adequate tools to complete my how-to tutorial video.

I decided to record a brief how-to video on using two features of the advanced search option in Destiny Discover for an elementary school library. The ability to use the advanced search options in a library OPAC will empower students to find and access the information they need; moreover, a series of how-to Destiny Discover videos will benefit the unfamiliar library user when the school librarian is unavailable.

The process of creating the video tutorial required initial research, conceptualizing content, recording, and video editing. That said, the work required for a three-minute video tutorial is not represented within the time constraints of the video itself. It's a process. The Techsmith Blog also advises adding transitional elements and background music to elevate your production and provides a link to a great informational video on how to add these elements to your work.

With this in mind, after my recording had been accomplished, I used iMovie, an apple video editor, to import my recording. From there, I used iMovie to add background music which I obtained from the audio library on Youtube. The audio library on Youtube is convenient for virtual content creators and provides open-licensed music for video creation. Once satisfied, I added elements such as an introductory slide and transitions between slides to avoid jerky, misplaced video segments and promote a more natural watching experience.

This is my final product.

References

Audio library—YouTube Studio. (n.d.). Retrieved November 29, 2022, from https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UC-Smxhxtin1ERD3w5kchiSg/music

Camtasia (Director). (2020, October 2). How To Make Your Screencasts Look Better (and Easier To Edit). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsIf7r6mAEc

Gamification and game-based learning is the answer to engaging reluctant learners.

Designing a breakout-style activity encompassing several puzzle activities was an excellent way to introduce gamification and game-based learning instructional strategies. The school librarian group decided to use the Questioneers series by Andrea Beaty once again as our literary anchor for this project. Creating several connections to the same literature can create a relationship that can be used as a learning tool.

Google sites was a relatively straightforward application to create our breakout activity. I was glad for the experience because several school libraries use the application for their school library website, and I can see myself using the platform.

Collaboration with the school librarian group members was also not an obstacle. Our collaborative initiative started with a brainstorming process that led us to our familiar theme, and a democratic vote on the types of puzzles being completed finalized our plan. Google workspace creates a collaborative work environment that leaves project contributors free to work at their own pace and on their own time.

This is our end result:

This learning activity has so much promise inside and outside the library; moreover, this activity can be leveraged in a digital environment when in-person physical learning is impossible.

The puzzle-making process was a blast to explore! Creating your own work using digital tools is empowering and gives the librarian more decision-making power over their lesson. I used superteacherworksheets.com to generate the cryptogram I provided to the breakout room. I used the character Aaron Douglas Slater mentioned in the author's notes as the main character's inspiration as the critical component of the puzzle. The tricky part of the process was modifying it to the correct amount of characters for what you were designing. The design process was made easy by using automated technology; however, the technology has limitations; for example, the word renaissance would not fit onto one page correctly. that said, I had to reword my original puzzle.

Creating a book trailer was a complex process to begin. The problem was that I didn't know exactly where to start. Initially, I pondered several novels I had read as a young adult to create a book trailer; however, I decided to use a comic book! X-Men was the first choice for me because I am a childhood fan and because of several parallels that have been drawn between the X-Men universe and the civil rights movements in the United States. In the future, I would love to create a unit that uses Marvel's X-Men to navigate and explore what it means to be "other" in society. I created a book trailer highlighting X-Men: First Class Vol. 1.

First, I am an Apple user outside of work, so I decided to explore iMovie, and I can tell you that I was not disappointed. The layout and design of the iMovie software felt intuitive to use.

Additionally, I use extensions more often to complete design tasks. For example, remove.bg is a website that can remove image backgrounds, and I used the website to produce the isolated image of Professor X with a black background. Super helpful!

I selected several images from a digital copy of the comic that conveyed character meaning, identification, and action highlights to entice viewers. I took these images and inserted them into my digital storyboard. This process was not as easy as it sounds! It took several prototypes of the trailer before the image sequence matched the selected music's tempo. From there, it was just fine-tuning the video until everything flowed right. This will help promote books and reading materials to students and staff when a physical presence may not be possible.

The challenge was introducing the plot line and characters concisely in a memorable way without giving away the story. Or why read it right? A compelling book trailer uses minimal text, fast-moving images, and a sensible music selection. I hope you enjoyed the book trailer as much as I enjoyed making it.

Task 1: Create a hypothetical paper promotional flyer (from scratch) for a school library event using design theory and digital tools.

The process:

I started with the print flyer and I decided to use Canva, a free to use graphic design tool, as my medium to complete the design task at hand. The instruction for the printed flyer indicated that a template could not be used. First things first, Robin Williams, in her design book, The Non-Designer's Design Book, suggests to, "Experiment with the graphic image or photograph at least twice the size you originally planned." That said, I used a minimalist approach with a large graphic to create a strong focal point in order to more easily draw attention to my promotional flyer. The text I used was minimal and meant to guide you visually through the design. For example, I used the acronym SLM (School Library Month) as my header and then expanded the acronym on the lower half of the flyer. Additionally, I took inspiration from the original manifesto for SLM from the ALA website dedicated to SLM as a way to brand the event as well as the library space. From a color standpoint, I chose to maintain my minimalistic approach with minimal color and keep the large center graphic as the star of the show. I built the design from the center out.

From there, I used a familiar "table of content" layout to display the series of fictitious events being held by my school library. I chose to do this because I felt it reiterated a visual theme of literacy and reading from familiar visual schemas. The final touches included personalizing the flyer with a bitmoji graphic (teacher branding at its finest), a Twitter handle, and fine print directions for further questions. Can I see this flyer on a bulletin board in my school? Yes. Do I see student's and staff stopping after glancing at the flyer? Yes.

Task 2: Create a hypothetical DIGITAL promotional flyer for the same school library event using design theory and digital tools.

The process:

The digital promotional flyer that I designed was also created using Canva. Canva is a great tool that is user friendly, easy to use, and intuitive. For this segment of the design process I used a free template that was available from a stock selection on Canva and chose to use a template with deeper, richer colors. Being that this flyer is digital, I felt that it was a wise move to use a bold color story that draws attention to the content, but also gave me the opportunity to create negative space with my text. This was effective at creating contrast and helped draw attention to the written content of my flyer. In doing this, a harmony between graphics and text was created. Furthermore, the ALA website dedicated to SLM also provides graphics, a PowerPoint template, and a poster that can be used to design in-house SLM celebrations provided that no alterations are made and that the posting is for education, noncommercial purposes only; moreover, these free resources shaped the official "tone" of my flyer and provided further effective event branding.

Additionally, the use of shapes (squares and circles) provided further contrast and supported the additional graphics used (bitmoji & Twitter handle).