DavisMichelle_VAASL

I attended several sessions at Friday’s Virginia Association of School Librarians Conference. The session with the most take-aways that apply across the board was the AASL’s best websites for teaching and learning.

 

I photocopied the bookmark for my colleagues and encourage you to visit www.ala.org/bestlist. Current and past winners are listed there, and the links are grouped into six categories: media sharing, digital storytelling, manage & organize, social networking & communication, curriculum collaboration and content resources. Every site listed should have some level of free access for educators, although an upgrade may have a price tag. You can visit the presenter’s website at http://www.techfifteen.com/tech-15.html.

 

Another favorite site that is being overhauled for spring is the Library of Virginia’s Virginia Memory page. I was able to see a Beta version, and it looks user-friendly for both teachers and students. The primary documents that will be featured will also include a transcription, making some of the previous undecipherable manuscripts more accessible for all. (And if you want to help with transcribing, the LOV is crowdsourcing that on their current site,http://virginiamemory.com/  )

 

It was a long, stressful drive in the rain on Thursday afternoon and evening, but the ride home Saturday was gorgeous. 81 is really breathtaking this time of year, and this episode of Car Talk kept me in stitches, http://www.cartalk.com/

 

In the words of the parking lot attendant at the Hotel Roanoke, “Have a great day and a better tomorrow.”