I have been thinking a lot about customer service lately. Two of my favorite places to eat and shop are Publix and Chick-Fil-A. If you're not in the south you may not be familiar with these two chains, but I love them. Publix's slogan is "Where shopping is a pleasure." And for me I can say it is. One of the only things I miss from my previous home is a nearby Publix grocery store. The employees are so nice and they do not act irritated if you ask a question. Chick-Fil-A is the same. The employees are friendly and go out of their way to help you. After ordering they usually say "It's my pleasure." There's that word again.
Pleasure
The way these two businesses treat their customers and the way they train their employees does make visiting a pleasure. How can I translate this into the library?
Do I help every student and teacher with a smile? Or do I act annoyed if I'm interrupted?
I consider myself a patient person, but I know there have been times when I've probably acted annoyed. I think I'm going to put a little Publix and Chick-Fil-A logo somewhere near my computer to remind me how much my attitude can affect those that come into the library.
Are my library helpers pleasant to visiting students? Do I need to spend more time training them to be helpful and friendly?
We should all ask ourselves these same questions. Is your library a pleasurable place to visit?
Another customer service experience I've noticed in my family's life has been a more personalized shopping experience. In the last few months we've signed up for three different personal shopping subscriptions. I purchased a Birchbox subscription for my husband, my husband purchased a Surprise Ride monthly activity kit for my son and I signed up for Stitch Fix personal shopping for myself.
You're probably wondering what all of this has to do with the library.
The appeal of these services is personalization, delivery, packaging, fun and whimsy. How can I incorporate more of these qualities into library services?
I want library visits and programs to be more personalized. I love Nikki Robertson's personal book shopping program. I'm already recruiting teachers that will let me give this a try with their class. If I can't find a willing teacher I may just leave out the surveys and tell the library visitors about it when they come in. I especially love the thought that went into the packaging with little tags that Cathy Jo Nelson created when she tried this idea.
We already have a frequently used holds process. My library helpers regularly check holds and deliver them to the students in class. I routinely put books on hold for students if I know they will love the book. They are usually pleasantly surprised when I deliver the book and tell them that I think they will like it. Maybe I can make the delivery even more special by including a book mark or a little note telling why I think they would like that book.
Another way to make the library more personalized is to have a way that students can request books then hold that book for them when it comes in. I usually keep this written on a sticky note on my desk, but I could find a more whimsical way to keep track of requests. I had a Google form on my website, but none of my students ever used it so I took it down. If we go 1:1 next year I have a feeling it would be utilized more often so I plan to put it back on the library site and have a QR code near the circulation desk so that they can go to the form easily and make a request. For those high demand books like the new Wimpy Kid I've seen librarians have a drawing or another fun way to chose the first person to check it out. I would like to try this.
I wish that I could add features to our catalog system. It would be so cool if a search came up with no results, the site would automatically link to the request form so that students could request the book right away.
If we go 1:1 I need to think of fun ways to deliver content to the students such as a recommended book lists based on different themes, holidays or events, links to book trailers, library program news, etc. I need to brainstorm ways that this would be possible with devices. From my conversations with 1:1 librarians it seems that I will need to work even harder at enticing students and classes into the library.
I would love to hear your ideas on how we can make the library more whimsical, fun, pleasurable, and personal.
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Sunday, December 15, 2013
Hour of Code and Mustang Makerspace
Last week we participated in the Hour of Code, sponsored by CSEdweek.org. We shared the introduction video on our morning news and invited everyone to try coding activities in the library during lunch. I had the free tutorials from the site pulled up on the computers in the library, Lightbot app on the library iPods and cups for the non-tech coding activity from the site.
I was pleasantly surprised at the turn out of students and enjoying seeing them explore the tutorials and activities.
I was pleasantly surprised at the turn out of students and enjoying seeing them explore the tutorials and activities.
One of my super smart tech genius students asked if he could stay and help through all three lunches. I made arrangements with his teachers and he proved to be a big help. I asked him to explore all the tutorials beforehand so that he could help the others. Now I know who to go to when I have computer questions.
On Wednesday of last week I tied our first Makerspace event in with Hour of Code. I promoted the activity with the Hour of Code kids. Our first Makerspace event was Legos. I created a Smore to explain the concept to my administration and teachers. I have lots more activities planned and I'll be sure to share here. The first event was great. I had many visitors that are not my normal crew, which was exciting. The hallways were abuzz with students talking about the events so it was well worth the time and energy. I have lots to learn about makerspaces and room to grow, but it was a successful start.
Aurasma Endangered Animal Projects
I had the pleasure of working with our gifted and talented students on endangered animal research. Students created a children's book in Book Creator after researching their South Carolina species. Upon completion of the book, students received a brown paper lunch bag and access to construction paper and other crafting items. Using only those items, they had to create their animal. I loved this mix of high and low tech creation and was so impressed with their animals.
The teacher and I had originally discussed using QR codes to record each student describing their animal, but after hearing about Aurasma I showed her the app. She was excited to give it a try.
I showed a few students in each class how to record the video and connect it to the image and they took over from there. They loved seeing their videos pop up when the animal was scanned. We used pictures of the paper bag animals to create a bulletin board near the front office to highlight and share their presentations. It was fun to see the reaction of other teachers, parents, and school visitors. We even had district administrators come to take a peek.
I plan to create a book cover bulletin board with student book reviews using Aurasma after our break. I have a few iPods in the library that I can loan out to students that would like to watch if they don't have their own device. I've heard others have success with the Layar app so I might look into that as well.
Have you tried any augmented reality apps yet?
The teacher and I had originally discussed using QR codes to record each student describing their animal, but after hearing about Aurasma I showed her the app. She was excited to give it a try.
I showed a few students in each class how to record the video and connect it to the image and they took over from there. They loved seeing their videos pop up when the animal was scanned. We used pictures of the paper bag animals to create a bulletin board near the front office to highlight and share their presentations. It was fun to see the reaction of other teachers, parents, and school visitors. We even had district administrators come to take a peek.
I plan to create a book cover bulletin board with student book reviews using Aurasma after our break. I have a few iPods in the library that I can loan out to students that would like to watch if they don't have their own device. I've heard others have success with the Layar app so I might look into that as well.
Have you tried any augmented reality apps yet?
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Making Ourselves Indispensable
Serving as member and chair of our state library association's advocacy committee the last few years has really opened my eyes about the importance of working advocacy into our daily lives. A few things that I've read lately have renewed my advocacy efforts this year. I've been thinking about how I can make sure the library program is indispensable, no matter what technology changes may come.
Just like other school districts, ours is investigating a 1:1 initiative. Everything is in the planning stages at this point, but I'm already thinking about how this will change our library programs. I'm reading blog posts and articles about it and considering proactive steps for me and all the librarians in my district. One post that really struck me was Doug Johnson's, The Librarian Bonus. I forwarded this post to all of our librarians and our district administrators. I feel like a 1:1 initiative is the perfect opportunity to discuss a change to the job description allowing for more instructional technology duties to be included. Many of us already fulfill this need for our schools. An updated job description would allow us to recruit librarians that are comfortable with technology and push all of us to step up our own efforts in this area. For our elementary librarians this could be a chance to revisit flexible scheduling.
A 1:1 initiative could be seen as threatening if you are an old school librarian, but I see this as an opportunity. We can make the library program more mobile. I'm envisioning an entire folder of library apps that would be standard on all devices. Students could have Follett's Destiny App, Enlighten ereader app, Easy Bib, Overdrive for public library ebooks, YALSA's Teen Book Finder, and many others. One of the AASL preconference sessions was on this topic, A Library in Every Pocket. I wish I could have attended, but I did check out their resources and recommend the same to you. I'm looking forward to more learning from those that are already in a 1:1 school.
We have a librarian meeting with our district administration next month so I'm sure these questions are on all of our minds. I am excited to discuss the possibilities as a group. We recently started a book study together. One of our high school librarians recommended the book, Being Indispensable, after attending a state library supervisor meeting. I ordered the book and as soon as I started reading and noticing the exercises included in the chapters I thought it would be helpful if we read this together. I asked the others if they were interested and after a few positive responses, Monique set up an Edmodo group. We've only just begun because a few are waiting on the book to arrive, but already I've crafted a mission statement, core values and a tag line for the library program. It has been great to hear the opinions of the group as we go through the assignments together.
I would love to hear from you if you are in a 1:1 school. How did it change your library program? What advice do you have for us if our district decides to implement 1:1? Have you updated your job description to include more technology responsibilities? How do you make yourself indispensable?
Just like other school districts, ours is investigating a 1:1 initiative. Everything is in the planning stages at this point, but I'm already thinking about how this will change our library programs. I'm reading blog posts and articles about it and considering proactive steps for me and all the librarians in my district. One post that really struck me was Doug Johnson's, The Librarian Bonus. I forwarded this post to all of our librarians and our district administrators. I feel like a 1:1 initiative is the perfect opportunity to discuss a change to the job description allowing for more instructional technology duties to be included. Many of us already fulfill this need for our schools. An updated job description would allow us to recruit librarians that are comfortable with technology and push all of us to step up our own efforts in this area. For our elementary librarians this could be a chance to revisit flexible scheduling.
A 1:1 initiative could be seen as threatening if you are an old school librarian, but I see this as an opportunity. We can make the library program more mobile. I'm envisioning an entire folder of library apps that would be standard on all devices. Students could have Follett's Destiny App, Enlighten ereader app, Easy Bib, Overdrive for public library ebooks, YALSA's Teen Book Finder, and many others. One of the AASL preconference sessions was on this topic, A Library in Every Pocket. I wish I could have attended, but I did check out their resources and recommend the same to you. I'm looking forward to more learning from those that are already in a 1:1 school.
We have a librarian meeting with our district administration next month so I'm sure these questions are on all of our minds. I am excited to discuss the possibilities as a group. We recently started a book study together. One of our high school librarians recommended the book, Being Indispensable, after attending a state library supervisor meeting. I ordered the book and as soon as I started reading and noticing the exercises included in the chapters I thought it would be helpful if we read this together. I asked the others if they were interested and after a few positive responses, Monique set up an Edmodo group. We've only just begun because a few are waiting on the book to arrive, but already I've crafted a mission statement, core values and a tag line for the library program. It has been great to hear the opinions of the group as we go through the assignments together.
I would love to hear from you if you are in a 1:1 school. How did it change your library program? What advice do you have for us if our district decides to implement 1:1? Have you updated your job description to include more technology responsibilities? How do you make yourself indispensable?
Comics Corner Grand Opening
Today was the grand opening party for our new Comics Corner. You can read all about the plans in my previous post.
The kids had a great time exploring the new comic collection, eating popcorn, taking a few free comics and trying for prizes. I should have printed more Minecraft Steve and Creeper Cubees.
The kids had a great time exploring the new comic collection, eating popcorn, taking a few free comics and trying for prizes. I should have printed more Minecraft Steve and Creeper Cubees.
Here are a few shots with the photo props and my bulletin board city backdrop. I love the Superman stare.
This is the table of free comics and Marvel themed candy I found at the dollar store. On the right is the prize table and homemade scratch off tickets. On the left is one of the students enjoying the comics. That's me popping popcorn and sporting my sister's pop art Boom shirt from Target.
We had a great time celebrating reading. I have already had one teacher approach me about using Comics Corner time as a motivator for one of her math students. Yay! I love my job.
Sunday, November 3, 2013
Creating A Comic Book Corner
Our graphic novels and manga are so popular that I decided to expand our offerings even more this year. Very soon we will have our very own Comics Corner.
In preparation for this I cleaned out an area in one of my office/closet areas. I heavily weeded the professional books that were housed there to make room for the comics. I knew that my students would be an easy sell, but not the teachers. In preparation for those that might question my sanity I put together this Smore flyer with lots of research about the benefits of comics. ABDO publishing has many excellent resources including a downloadable flyer and links to research if you're interested.
The comic book bins were very tempting from ABDO, but we have a local comic book store, Borderlands, that I wanted to support. The owner's son is even a student in my district. He put together a list for me using his comic expertise and discerning judgement as a dad. I highly recommend visiting a comic book store near you so that they can help you chose comics if you're not familiar with them yourself. I ordered Star Wars, Avengers, My Little Pony, and Archie, to name a few.
I wanted to generate a lot of excitement with the kids so I purchased a cardboard cut out of Iron Man and put up a sign that read, "Comics Corner Coming Soon." Needless to say, that worked!
I used some of my Scholastic book fair money to order a few bean bag chairs and I found some really colorful bins at the dollar store for storage. Monique used Comic Life to make a Word Wall and Graffiti Board poster for the area. Students can use the handy dictionary, sentence strips and markers to share words they learn and quotes they like as they are reading.
I wanted the grand opening to be an event so I bought Marvel themed candy to give out and the comic book store donated some comics and a few sketches from local artists to give as prizes. I'm enlisting my assistant principal to pop popcorn that day with our PTSO's popcorn machine. Monique was kind enough to give me some of her left over scratch off tickets so that I can determine the winners of the prizes. I printed several comic book Cubees from Cubeecraft for more prizes. Finally I made several photo props for the students to use during the celebration. There are masks, word bubbles and superhero logos.
I've spoken with our self contained special education teachers about using this space as an academic reward for their students. I believe this will be a big motivator for them and the reward is something that will help them enjoy reading. The space will be available any time the library is open.
I am looking forward to our grand opening. I will share pictures soon.
Do you have comics in your library? I would love to hear how you use them with your students.
In preparation for this I cleaned out an area in one of my office/closet areas. I heavily weeded the professional books that were housed there to make room for the comics. I knew that my students would be an easy sell, but not the teachers. In preparation for those that might question my sanity I put together this Smore flyer with lots of research about the benefits of comics. ABDO publishing has many excellent resources including a downloadable flyer and links to research if you're interested.
The comic book bins were very tempting from ABDO, but we have a local comic book store, Borderlands, that I wanted to support. The owner's son is even a student in my district. He put together a list for me using his comic expertise and discerning judgement as a dad. I highly recommend visiting a comic book store near you so that they can help you chose comics if you're not familiar with them yourself. I ordered Star Wars, Avengers, My Little Pony, and Archie, to name a few.
I wanted to generate a lot of excitement with the kids so I purchased a cardboard cut out of Iron Man and put up a sign that read, "Comics Corner Coming Soon." Needless to say, that worked!
I used some of my Scholastic book fair money to order a few bean bag chairs and I found some really colorful bins at the dollar store for storage. Monique used Comic Life to make a Word Wall and Graffiti Board poster for the area. Students can use the handy dictionary, sentence strips and markers to share words they learn and quotes they like as they are reading.
I wanted the grand opening to be an event so I bought Marvel themed candy to give out and the comic book store donated some comics and a few sketches from local artists to give as prizes. I'm enlisting my assistant principal to pop popcorn that day with our PTSO's popcorn machine. Monique was kind enough to give me some of her left over scratch off tickets so that I can determine the winners of the prizes. I printed several comic book Cubees from Cubeecraft for more prizes. Finally I made several photo props for the students to use during the celebration. There are masks, word bubbles and superhero logos.
I've spoken with our self contained special education teachers about using this space as an academic reward for their students. I believe this will be a big motivator for them and the reward is something that will help them enjoy reading. The space will be available any time the library is open.
I am looking forward to our grand opening. I will share pictures soon.
Do you have comics in your library? I would love to hear how you use them with your students.
Virtual Book Club: See You At Harry's
Last week my little book club had the chance to do something really big. We participated in a virtual book club chat with other middle schools and the author of See You at Harry's, Jo Knowles. All of the middle schools and the author's home state of Vermont are on this map. This was so much fun for me and my students.
View Middle School Virtual Book Club in a larger map
View Middle School Virtual Book Club in a larger map
Tiffany Whitehead put together this Padlet so that our students could discuss the book.
We started our meeting off with ice cream, of course, and Padlet discussion questions. We also made a list of potential questions to ask Jo Knowles. Then it was time for our Google Hangout to begin.
I was very nervous that our network would block the chat, but I tested it twice a few days before and everything went well.
Jo Knowles was so gracious and sweet. I loved hearing about the experiences in her life that inspired the story. She ended the chat with excellent advice for our students to read as much as they could and never give up because it took her ten years to publish her first novel.
Our next book is The Wig in the Window, one of my favorites this year. We have a few more chats planned so that our students can discuss the book before our author chat in January. My group will be all sixth grade girls so I anticipate lots of giggling and fun.
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