Final Reflection

As always, Cool Tools was a great source of motivation and meaningful application of learning this year.  I developed lessons, digital content, programs, and assessments to enrich our library program.  I love the practical application aspect, coupled with a rich collection of resources.  This year, it was particularly helpful to find ideas and tools to expand opportunities for Diversity, as this is one of our Strategic goals in my district.  This was a theme that I was able weave into many of the topics that I explored and applied. 

I will sorely miss this learning opportunity in the future.  I am excited that our SLS is utilizing a similar format for a book study next year with Maximizing School Librarian Leadership, because this will afford me continued opportunities to participate in a learning community.  I find that the accountability and encouragement of the learning community greatly increases my engagement. 

Thank you for all of the passion and expertise you have poured into this course over the years Polly!!

Thing 15: Breakout

I have had a lot of fun and very successful lessons and events using our Breakout boxes and supplies, but I am always looking to expand my resources for these.  While I have created several games, including a Hamilton themed one and Library Orientation, and will continue to do so, this can be very time consuming.  I appreciate pre-made games and resources, and I have found them more difficult to locate, as BreakoutEdu now has a subscription fee for their games.  I often start with a pre-made game or resources and then modify it to fit my students' needs as well as our time and resource constraints.  We had a great Harry Potter Escape room this year built on Breakout supplies, and I want to start the year with a library program like this.  I found an "Escape the Library" game in the resources shared, and am going to use this as a base.  I am excited about the potential to engage students right away and encourage them to explore the library as they solve the clues.  To maximize this potential I will modify the clues in this game to fit our space and incorporate both literature and MakerSpace materials. 
I am also planning to use a BreakOut game to launch the content of Sustainable Development Goals to our Research Seminar students next year.  I want to better utilize BreakOut games to both start instructional units and tie together content concepts, as well as build engaging programs outside of the classroom.  If I plan ahead and build these games before the busyness of the school year hits I am hoping to be more consistent.
I will also use these opportunities to highlight their potential, so that teachers better utilize them for instructional purposes.  In fact, I want to connect with specific teachers to encourage their use. 

Thing 23: AASL Standards

I have been working throughout the year to incorporate the AASL Standards into our library program, and the tools and resources provided through "Thing 23" were very helpful.  I started my integration of the new AASL standards by diving into their meaning and looking at how I incorporate them into instruction and library programs.  I used small post-it notes to color code what I am doing where, and then identify where I have gaps.  I have been working this year to better address the "Grow" domain, which works well with our Districts goal to focus on Diversity and Leadership as well.  Through this work I have utilized the UN's Sustainable Development Goals to broaden student perspective and provide authentic Global experiences and opportunities to engage as Global Citizens.  I really like the resources I found on the "Tech Tools - AASL Standards for the Learner (PETE&C 2018)" document that addressed these goals.  In particular I would like to incorporate the SDGs in Action App next year with the seniors to implement action steps more effectively. 
I also focused on developing my assessments to better reflect the objectives and vocabulary of the standards.  Some of the areas that I have developed are my book project grading criteria, as seen in this example, and my long term research rubrics.  I have also been working toward my ISTE Certification this season, and am working to incorporate those standards as well, as you can see reflected in this Research Seminar Rubric.

Finally, I wanted to bring together the AASL Standards and our Districts Innovation Standards (based on ISTE Standards) under the Inquiry model that we utilize at Lake George, WISER, to have a crosswalk for myself to see how I can consolidate some of this work to maximize the impact I can have through our library.  That work is gathered here in our WISER Crosswalk with Standards.
My next steps will be in rolling out a more consistent approach to addressing these Standards at those grade levels where I spend less time.  Over the summer I will be developing my strategy of where to make these in roads to better build student experience. 

Thing 22: Teaching with Primary Sources

The timing for this topic was perfect, as I was preparing for our final 8th grade English book project.  Each month students select an independent read, and then do a project, developing communication and creation skills throughout the year.  Our final project each year is focused on Historical Fiction and adds an inquiry element designed to prompt students to explore a time period through multiple perspectives.  Based on their book selection they write a research question to drive their exploration of primary sources.  This year I expanded their options for research based on the resources I found through Cool Tools.  The document sets available, particularly through the Digital Public library and the Library of Congress, helped some students narrow their focus, so these collections didn't feel so overwhelming. 
I really like the potential of Eagle Eye Citizen, and can see this being used by our Social Studies 7 teacher who presents her students with a primary document each week connected to their learning objectives.  I created a challenge related to amendments to experiment with the creation and usage, and think it would have a smooth application. 
To encourage teacher use of primary sources I used Wakelet to curate a collection, which I then incorporated into a Destiny Collection to share out with our social studies teachers.  Because of the push to use primary sources in evidence base writing I knew this would be a good place to share.  Now that it is created I can easily modify and re-share when it will be pertinent.