Saturday, May 19, 2012

Final Project: Part One


Dear Future Library Science Student,
            I’ve got a few tips to share with you when taking Library Science! It’s good to be quick thinking. It’s quite often that you don’t know what you’ll be doing in class until you arrive, quick thinking will help you get an image in your mind of how to complete Mme. Monk’s tasks, and then you’ll be off to do the work! As well as being able to help out students and teachers who approach you for help, quick thinking will allow you to help them quickly. This also means having independence in that Mme. Monk could leave you in charge for some time, and you need to be able to keep the Library in good shape on your own! These are some things that I have personally learned myself, to be spontaneous, and taking initiative in the Library, the most difficult challenge would be learning to take that initiative; knowing when and what to do in the Library during class time.
            The most important part of Library Science is efficiency. Although a block of Library Science seems long, once you get working on something, time flies by quick, so it’s crucial to work efficiently during the block, not to mention completing the assignments on time because there won’t always be time to work on them in class. Such as the Bitstrips assignment, where we had to make a comic strip for a classic fairytale, there was time to work on it in class, but some of it had to be done at home as well. An assignment I’d like to see possibly in the future would be something relating to books, such as an advertising library books assignment to get more students reading.
            One of the biggest challenges in Library Science is taking initiative in the Library. Some things are easy to pick out, such as checking books in and out, but there are many functions in the Library Mme. Monk must instruct us to attend to.
            The library itself could be improved if set up spaciously, during times when students can study, such as lunch, there are many students in the library, but tables have been placed so close together, it becomes chaos at these times trying to get about.
            What I like about this class is being able to work behind-the-scenes in a Library. I’ve gotten to learn so much about being behind the desk, such as how to put on a book cover, and how to buy books. But I disliked shelving books because it was a mundane task that I found to be time consuming, but also difficult finding the exact spot for the book to go. I am good at helping students who need help finding a book, or are having technical difficulties on a computer. But I have difficulty shelving items, and taking initiative in my work.
            Overall, Library Science is an enjoyable class to take, you won’t regret taking it.

Victoria Nguyen

Monday, May 7, 2012

Post #6: Bitstrip Reflection

I found Bitstrips to be a fun tool to make comics with. It was simple and easy to use, with a lot of different options in things such as character movement. Although there were certain things that could have been better, such as more variety in scenes, and clothes, and props. Overall it was a good experience in making a comic with Bitstrips.
A teacher could use Bitstrips for a social studies project by creating an assignment where students in the class are able to create a comic within the class. For example, the topic could be a comic to persuade someone to act on an environmental issue, so they read all the criteria in the teacher's assignment, then create the comic for it. The grade level of the assignment would depend on the class, and the assignments can be made for primary, intermediate, and secondary students.

Assignment #6: Bitstrips