Middle school language arts teacher & her media specialist collaborated on a lesson that involved the writing process, photography, book creation, and Web 2.0 tools BeFunky and The Morgue File. The lesson was based on GPS, which are noted in the presentation. Presentation also includes the grading rubric used by the classroom teacher.
2. About me. . .
• Started my school library journey in
1995 @ a private PK-8 school
• Hired @ public PK-6 school in 2000.
In 2004 that school became a PK-5
• Spent 1 year in a small school in
the North Georgia mountains
• Switched schools with my first clerk
from the private school.
3. About me. . .
• Worked with middle school since
2007-2008 school year
• Fulton County is the 3rd largest
school system in Georgia with
approximately 83,000 students
• Elkins Pointe Middle School has
about 875 students and is Title I
Assisted
4. About me. . .
• Collaborative relationships are
tricky
– Tight schedules for classroom
teachers
– State and local testing take as many
as 40 days out of the school year
– Teachers need to see me as value-
added not work added
5. The background…
• 8th Grade Language Arts teacher
looking for innovative way to
facilitate the writing process.
• Middle school librarian always
interested in collaborating with
classroom teachers to incorporate
technology skills into the classroom
curriculum.
6. The background…
• Like it or not, we must align
ourselves with standards just like
classroom teachers
• In order to keep our seat at the
table we must be viewed as
teachers as well as librarians,
techies, storytellers, budgeters,
innovaters, and passionate
promoters of reading.
8. ELA Georgia Performance
Standards
• ELA8R1 The student demonstrates
comprehension and shows evidence of a
warranted and responsible explanation of a
variety of literary and informational texts.
– Analyzes and evaluates the effects of sound, form,
figurative language, and graphics in order to
uncover meaning in literature
9. ELA Georgia Performance
Standards
• ELA8W1 The student produces writing that
establishes an appropriate organizational
structure, sets a context and engages the reader,
maintains a coherent focus throughout, and
signals a satisfying closure. The student
– a. Selects a focus, organizational structure, and a point
of view based on purpose, genre expectations,
audience, length, and format requirements.
– b. Writes texts of a length appropriate to address the
topic or tell the story.
10. Technology Literacy GPS
• CTAEW-1: The student
demonstrates competence in a
variety of genres
– (a) Creates and follows an organizing
structure appropriate to purpose,
audience, and context
– (c) Follows an organizational pattern
appropriate to the type of
composition
11. Technology Literacy GPS
• CTAEW-3: The student consistently
uses the writing process to
develop, revise, and evaluate
writing.
– (a) plans and drafts independently
and resourcefully
12. AASL Standards for the 21st
Century Learner
• 3 - Share knowledge and participate ethically
and productively as members of our
democratic society
– 3.1.3 Use writing and speaking skills to
communicate new understandings effectively
– 3.1.4 Use technology and other information tools
to organize and display knowledge and
understanding in ways that others can view, use,
and assess.
13. AASL Standards for the 21st
Century Learner
• 4 - Pursue personal and aesthetic growth
– 4.1.3 Respond to literature and creative
expressions of ideas in various formats and genres
– 4.1.5 Connect ideas to own interests and previous
knowledge and experience
– 4.1.8 Use creative and artistic formats to express
personal learning
14. But how is literacy different in the
21st Century?
• Literacy education and literacy practices are
in the midst of a profound change.
• Changing so rapidly that educators, students,
and parents are unsure about how school
literacy learning experiences and out-of-
school literacy practices connect.
Writing Between the Lines – and Everywhere Else:
A Report from NCTE (http://www.ncte.org)
15. But how is literacy different in the
21st Century?
• NCTE further reports that
– Teaching methods undergone “marked changes”
– Ability to innovate and apply knowledge creatively
rated very important by 91% of teachers responding
to NCTE poll
– Learning through cross-curricular projects and
project-based learning
– Incorporating student choices becoming a
“significant part of instruction.”
Writing Between the Lines – and Everywhere Else: A
Report from NCTE (http://www.ncte.org)
16. But how is literacy different in the
21st Century?
So how do we address the current model of
composing in a world where anyone can
produce, publish, and share writing?
How do we get serious about helping students
become “citizen composers” instead of just
good test takers?
How do we design curriculum to support
literacy in our 21st Century reality?
17. How does the Graphic Novel
format fit in?
Analyzing, synthesizing, making inferences,
reading art as well as text, these are all things
that require more cognitive engagement than
looking at plain text on white paper.
More cognitive engagement usually points to
deeper understanding.
Bell, Jessica. Using Graphic Novels (.ppt)
http://api.ning.com/files/HM7kt9G63S2qci*AXJyEy2hasWp
JdRvOeOpQewFGypE_/Using_Graphic_Novels.ppt.
18. The tools
• Internet connection:
– http://www.befunky.com
– http://www.morguefile.com
• Digital cameras
• Power Point, Publisher, or Word
• Scanner (optional)
• Printer (color is ideal but not
required)
19. Day One
• Students came to the media center as a class
– LA teacher introduces unit and provides rubric
– LMS provides examples of graphic novels
• Class discussion: design features
• Coherence in design (font, artist’s style, layout)
• Telling a story with pictures rather than descriptive
language
• Students select a graphic novel from library collection
to check out.
20.
21. Day One
This is the rubric
Ms. Manley
created for her
students.
All elements are
directly related to
Writing/ELA GPS.
22. Day Two
• Students were brought to the media center
– LMS demonstrates use of digital cameras owned
by media center
• Class discussion of shot design
• Concept of storyboarding
– LMS demonstrates alteration of uploaded photos
at BeFunky.com
• Students brainstorm a 4-slide story that is then
photographed, uploaded, and altered
23. …the process continues
• Cameras were checked out to Ms. Manley’s
classroom for student use
• Students created personal accounts on
BeFunky in the computer lab
• Students uploaded their photographs and
began altering them for their stories
• Students downloaded their altered photos to
their personal server space at school
24. And now... An example
A Cartoon Comic
By
Ms. Manley’s 8th
grade students Ben
H. and Rob L.
26. Hey we
challenge you
to a waffle vs.
pancake food
fight!
Fine we
accept
tomorrow at
the field 3:00 We need all of
the pancakes
you can make by
2:00 tomorrow!
We will pick up
500 waffles at
2:00 tomorrow
have them ready
27. Ha! I will hit them
with eggs! They
are in waffles and
pancakes!
28. Ewww!
Not a pancake! I will
get you for that
Holley!
An egg just
hit my face!
This is a
pancake
waffle fight
Random
Woman!
29. Acting like the little
kids? Unacceptable
Chaka! All of your
Man Cards, Revoked!But Mr. Wilson,
Holley and
Mean Bailey
started it
all…….
30. Today’s library…
Neither we nor our
learners need to choose
between technology and
reading. The two can work
in harmony.
Joyce Valenza
“Reading 2.0: Getting the Gears to Work in Harmony”
e-voya, Oct. 2008
31. Today’s library…
“Struggling students can find comic books
and graphic novels less threatening,
because the pictures in the graphic format
offer that additional support needed to help
students understand the meaning of the text,
figure out new and unknown vocabulary
words, and move the storyline along.”
(Thompson, 2007 p.29).
Thompson, T. (2007) Embracing reluctance when classroom
teachers shy away from graphic books. Library Media
Connection. January 2007 p.29-29
32. Today’s library…
…at best we can begin to make
real progress toward changing
the school writing experience to
better prepare students for a
future that is sure to include ever-
more complex tools and
purposes for writing.
Writing Between the Lines – and Everywhere Else: A
Report from NCTE
http://www.ncte.org/library/NCTEFiles/Press/WritingbetweentheLinesFinal.
pdf
33. Today’s library…
What if teachers and librarians started
basing the goals of their joint projects on
student test results? That way, teachers
wouldn’t have to shoulder the entire burden
of increasing kids’ test scores all by
themselves. And as scores began to soar,
librarians would be in greater demand as
teaching partners. It quickly became clear to
me that the key to our profession’s success
was data-driven collaboration.
Toni Buzzeo
“Strength in Numbers: Data-Driven collaboration may not
sound sexy but it could save your job” School Library
Journal, Oct. 2010
34. GraphicLanguage(Arts)
@the Library!
Susan K. S. Grigsby, LMS
http://susanksgrigsby.weebly.com
http://susangrigsby.wordpress.com
http://www.elkinspointe.net/virtual_media_center
Notas del editor
The technology literacy standards were adopted in 2009 and available on the Georgia Standards.org website. They are a little hard to find but worth the time to every librarian who wants to make sure he or she is addressing standards in the library program.
Technology literacy standards cover most curricular areas.
Newer digital cameras are inexpensive, have high pixel numbers, and are really easy to convert to digital files on the computer by simply plugging in the USB port. Most cameras now have their own software installed right in the unit and the download process is super simple. Schools without digital camera can use older scanners to create .jpgs and do the same project.
Ms. Manley talked about the concept of “hero” and the class discussed the possibilities of what that word entailed. She asked students to think about how they visualize what they are reading and then talked them through the process of going backwards with that process.
This form of writing really brought in the students’ higher order thinking skills: how do you develop a character visually instead of descriptively? How do you demonstrate action and movement with a still photo? How do you make sure your photos flow with the action?
We literally shot some photos of students in the class, uploaded them to BeFunky and played with some alterations. This really grabbed their attention and had them excited about getting to do it themselves.
Students had to understand that an alteration in their story or the dialogue would probably mean having to re-shoot the photograph. They understood they had to plan carefully to create continuity and flow. They also had to understand how to show their descriptions instead of writing them out.