Geoff Herbach Visit, New Dr. Seuss, and More...

Remember that this Thursday, Feb. 26th, author Geoff Herbach will be visiting the Marshall - Lyon County Library beginning at 6:00 pm.  This is a wonderful opportunity to meet and talk with an outstanding author of young adult literature. This visit might just inspire the next great author!

New Seuss book set for release this summer!  Put this one on your reading list for young, and old alike!  "What Pet Should I Get?" will be released in July of 2015.  Remember that the late Dr. Seuss' birthday is fast approaching, Monday, March 2nd.


Remember to make it a point to read books that your child, young or old, is reading.  This affords you a wonderful opportunity to make connections with him/her about the things that are important in his/her life.  The article, "My Booklist Can Wait: Why I'll Keep Reading What My Kids Are Reading" describes how one mom's experience changed her relationship with her children.

Copyright Morsel by Diane Konjura

While reading the article 2 Live Crew, Weird Al Yankovic, and the Supreme Court on Parody I think about MAD Magazine from when I was young as well as the years of entertainment with Saturday Night Live.  Two most important aspects of this article to keep in mind is the first sentence under the heading Use that clearly is not fair stating, “One action under any test is using an entire original work in the creation of another,” and the final paragraph under the heading The Limits of the Law.  How might parodies or satires be used in the classroom?  This is a great way to integrate creativity and learning.  

Join the MPS YALSA Hub Reading Challenge, and learn tips on how to cite social media.

Looking for a reason to read, and a way to stay motivated?  Join me in the YALSA (Young Adult Library Services Association) 2015 Hub Reading Challenge.  Read at least 25 of the titles from the list of eligible books.  The competition officially started on February 9th, and closes on June 21st. Read/listen to some of the best titles in YA (young adult) literature, along with many adult books.  Get in sync with your students or teen-aged children, and challenge them to the same feat.  Win a tote bag full of 2014 and 2015 YA books!  If you decide to join, share your intentions and progress by tweeting #hubchallengemps . The first MPS staff, student, or community member to join the challenge, and tweet to the MPS hashtag above will receive a prize!  I look forward to tweeting with you.  Let's see how many participants we can gather for Marshall Public Schools!  Check for these books at the MPS senior high/middle school media centers, and the Marshall - Lyon County Public Library.

Copyright Morsel by Diane Konjura

I found this chart providing a Social Media Citation Guide.  Citing social media information is an area where limited information has been available.  This chart shows how to cite a blog post, a YouTube video, a tweet, a Facebook post and an email in MLA format.  

Award Winners Announced, Author Visit, Copyright Morsel and More...

On Monday, February 2nd, the ALA (American Library Association) announced this year's award winning books.  The Newbery, Caldecott, Printz, Coretta Scott King, and several other notable award winners are highlighted in this CNN post.  Let this be your guide when selecting new books for your child and yourself.  Marshall Public School media centers are quickly getting their orders in, and these books should be on the shelves in no time!

Author Geoff Herbach is coming to Marshall!  Diane worked with the Marshall-Lyon County Library to secure a SAMMIE (Southwest Area Multicounty Multitype Interlibrary Exchange) grant to help bring him to Marshall High School and the Lyon County Library on Thursday, February 26th.   The public is invited to attend the 6:00 p.m. presentation on that date at the Marshall-Lyon County Library.  Information on books by this author can be found at Geoff Herbach's website.  Students at both the high school and the middle school have the opportunity to pre-purchase the author's books through Friday, February 13th.  Geoff Herbach will be signing copies the day of his visit.

I Love to Read Month activities are in full swing at each school, and the media centers are busy helping with the celebration.  Students and staff are submitting guesses on the candy count in the  M&M jars, and there are reading trivia contests in each building.  As well, parents, community members, and senior high students are visiting the elementary schools and reading with the younger children.  Students at Park Side are working on art projects relating to Dr. Seuss book characters.  Later this month, several Seuss characters will visit Park Side school for a photo opportunity.  Celebrate and encourage your child to read every day!  Here is a site that has links to 11 great, free reading websites. Simply scroll through the page menu, and click on the links.

Copyright Morsel by Diane Konjura

During workshop week in August, the copyright presentation included a framework for copyright analysis.  Consider the five questions in the order presented below for copyright analysis:

1.       Is the work protected by copyright?

2.       Is there a specific exception in copyright law that cover my use?

3.       Is there a license that covers my use?

4.       Is my use covered by fair use?

5.       Do I need permission from the copyright owner for my use?

Take time today to look at what you have posted on your teacher website.  If you have any questions as to what you have posted in regard to copyright please contact Diane Konjura or Nancy Thooft rather than taking the risk of being contacted by a publisher or other owner of copyrighted materials asking you to pay for a copyright violation.    

Green screens, Mozilla, and Copyright Morsel

Are your students creating video projects to demonstrate their learning?  A great way to spice up their video production is to use a green screen which allows them to change the background behind them.  The easiest way to think of this is to imagine a weather forecast where the screen behind the meteorologist changes to depict the maps or weather images needed.  

Bring the green screen to your room for little or next to nothing by simply tacking up green butcher paper.  Instructions are available here.  Then get your students started making your their own dynamic movies using the directions in the video!

In an earlier blog post, I discussed the arrival of makerspaces at the Middle School Media center.  Students have been making origami projects, constructing cranes, monster trucks, and airplanes, and making a puzzle.

The intent is to offer new projects and makerspaces every 3 to 4 weeks. 

A great resource for students to practice more technology related "making" is the Mozilla Webmaker site.  Create your own account and become a mentor.  Have students make their own account to explore and save all of the many wonderful web projects available to either remix or create from scratch.

I was able to get my feet wet to explore a beginning project called Meme Maker and created the following remix of a poster.  The original poster looked like this.

Copyright Morsel by Diane Konjura

Teaching Copyright is an excellent resource for teaching about copyright to teens.  It includes curriculum that covers copyright law, fair use, and public domain.  It offers help in teens understanding their legal rights and responsibilities with respect to copyright and technology use.  In addition to the curriculum, it also includes many resources.  Consider including copyright as an integral part of teaching.