Thing #23

This Library2Play course has been so much fun!

REFLECTIONS OF MY LEARNING JOURNEY . . .

Favorite Discoveries:
* Blogs are easy to set up!
* Blog names should be much catchier than the one I chose.
* Social bookmarking lets you discover everybody else's favorite websites.
* A lot of the Library2Play bloggers are people I know!
* Common Craft videos make concepts easy to understand.
* Gadgets are fun, fun, fun!
* Google Alerts are like having your own special messengers.
* There's such a thing as "Accidentally-Delete-the-Whole-Blog-a-Phobia."
* You can put Reader's Theater on a vodcast.
* Wordles are fun!
* Receiving reader comments makes you feel important!

Lifelong Learning Goals:
This learning experience covered all of the habits discussed way back in Thing #2. Talk about creating a learning toolbox (Habit 5)! I plan to revisit this blog a lot to locate helpful links and to remind myself about the things I've learned. Library2Play did a super job teaching me how to use technology to make my life easier (Habit 6). I loved learning about all of the organizational tools that Google and other services have to offer.

Unexpected take-aways, outcomes, and surprises:
* Nings - I am now a member of a collaborative international group of elementary school teachers!
* Confidence - I've learned how to do so many new things!
* Awareness - Wow! There are so many teachers/librarians out there who can do so much more, and so much better!
* Respect for Librarians - not only do they have to stay well-versed in technology, but they also have to be extremely flexible in our ever-changing technological society.
* Respect for Teachers - ditto!

Suggested Program Improvements:
* Keep links up-to-date. Error 404's are, and I quote: "Gnarly, Dude!" (See posts on Things #12 and 13.)
* I'm still confused about the Creative Commons rules for Flickr. Are the children supposed to give credit to photographers on their trading cards and magazine covers? Maybe this could have been made a little more clear.
* That's all. I thought the program was GREAT!

YES! YES! YES! I would participate if you offered another discovery program like this in the future.

Learning experience in one word: Informative!

Learning experience in one sentence: Library2Play transformed me from someone who was desperately clinging onto the coattails of technology, to someone who is familiar with and comfortable with Web 2.0's current trends and terminology.

Yes, I will add more comments on other people's blogs! I plan to read them throughout the summer. The best ideas come from other teachers (and librarians)!