The Journey Continues

So, I have had a slightly less than productive week on the ETL401 front but can say with confidence that I have done all the reading and feel like I am keeping up. It is just frustrating not to have more time to work on the activities etc, but this week is reports, PD and just generally very busy. I am hoping that once the holidays roll round I will be able to play catch up.

I have been reading the posts of others and the main issues focussed on were searches and blogs. I have previously failed to understand why blogs have been imposed on us but then understand it is all a part of keeping abreast of technology and then there was someone who posted the idea of using it for book reviews which I think I'll do as a class activity as we read a different book each day in class and it would be nice for the parents to see the books we are reading and how the students feel about the books we read which ones they like etc. Also maybe they might buy them so the kiddies can continue to enjoy them. So this weeks tasks is to set up a blog for the kiddies to share with the parents. I think I'll give it 2 weeks to get established then email the link to the parents.

The other issue was searches and databases to use. I feel I am OK in this area and definitely further on than I was a year ago but it got me thinking about something which happened last week. During homework club one of the kiddies had to research endangered environments but when I asked her what words she could search etc she had no idea. Why assign a task the kiddies can't do or have not been taught to do? (she is usually pretty clever so I am assuming this is why she couldn't do it). I get the feeling the teachers want them to be able to research but they are not teaching them how. And I know the librarian isn't because she taught them how to use non-fiction books the year before (my grade) and has not been in school for 3 weeks so can't have taught digital searches. Just frustrating really but has made me realise that when we start our new unit that as well as doing non-fiction book searches I might set up a few laptop lessons to show them some of the search techniques they could use at home to find pictures etc for their posters also show them how to use the resources that the library does have available.