Notifications and Social Media: How Connected do we REALLY Need to Be?

Notifications and Social Media: How Connected do we REALLY Need to Be? : Social media played a huge role in first connecting me to other educators. But I found that the notifications and pressure can actually take away from creativity and focus.

Back when I first started out as a school librarian, it was mostly a job.  I enjoyed it, it was helping me pay off my student loans, and it was fun. But it was something that I did within my own space.  Sure, I would share ideas with other librarians in my district and I … Read more

AASL Post: To Teach Makers, We Must Become Makers

To Teach Makers We Must Become Makers // If we want to help teach and support our makers, we must become makers ourselves. By taking on projects, we can learn the design process and develop empathy.

Makerspaces are amazing places. Our students can learn all kinds of new skills. But it behooves us to learn some of those skills ourselves. You certainly don’t have to be an expert in all things to create a makerspace in your library. When I first started creating a makerspace in my library in 2014, I … Read more

Farewell to the Newsletter, Hello to Meaningful Blogging

Farewell to the Newsletter, Hello to Meaningful Blogging

Cross-posted from my last e-mail newsletter.  Post contains affiliate links.  If you make a purchase using them, I get a small commission that helps support running this blog. Reflections on Passion About two years ago, I wrote the Renovated Learning Manifesto.   At the time, I was getting caught up in a fervor of learning about blogging … Read more

AASL Post: A New Year’s Reset for Your Library Program

A New Year's Reset for Your Library Program | Reflect on the past year and make plans to reset and restart in the New Year.

(Note: I’m a bit behind on reposting these here, so please excuse the lateness) January is a popular month for resolutions, detoxes, resets, etc. It’s the perfect time to reflect on the previous year, to look at what went right and what could have been better. Being that it’s also the middle of the school … Read more

Why I Went on Cultural Tours at #AASL17

Why I Went on Cultural Tours during AASL17 | Cultural tours can be valuable learning and networking experiences during conferences.

When it comes to conferences, justifying going to sessions, keynotes and workshops doesn’t seem too hard.  The learning benefits from such experiences are obvious.  But what about cultural tours, school tours and similar networking events?  These may look like simple touristy or sightseeing experiences, but there’s a lot of benefit to them. This year, I … Read more

Make Your Own Creature Workshop #AASL17

Make Your Own Creature Workshop #AASL17 | I led a Make Your Own Creature workshop at AASL and it was a blast. Here's how to host one.

(Note: Post contains affiliate links.  Actions taken may result in commissions for Renovated Learning) A Creature Workshop Towards the end of last school year, one of my students came up with one of my favorite design challenges:  Make a creature that does something.  That’s it.  This prompt wins for simplicity and the designs that people come up … Read more

AASL Post: How to Get Ready for a New Year at Your New School

How to Get Ready for a New Year at Your New School | Starting off a new year at a new-to-you school can be daunting, but it's also an exciting opportunity. Here's five tips to help you prepare.

Starting at a new school can be overwhelming, so it’s good to have a plan. I’ve shared this on social media, but not in an official blog post here.  This year, I will be the new media specialist at Tampa Preparatory, an independent 6-12 school.  It’s my first time at a new-to-me school since I started … Read more

The Power of Slowing Down: Do I Really Need More?

The POWER of Slowing Down: Do I really need more? | It's so tempting in life to keep adding more and more. More responsibilities. More commitments. More speaking engagements and writing commitments and webinars and articles. But it's okay to slow down.

This summer has been one of a lot of reflecting for me.  For the first time in seven years, I’ll be at a new school next year.  This coming school year, I’ll have two books published under my name.  So much is going on and so much has happened so fast.  This summer, I’ve slowed … Read more

AASL Post: How to Make a Game Plan for Your Next Conference

How to Make a Game Plan for Your Next Conference | Going to a major conference is exciting and thrilling, but it's easy to get overwhelmed and exhausted. If you plan ahead and make a game plan, you're much more likely to have an awesome and successful conference.

Click on over to AASL Knowledge Quest to read the full post, or scroll down to get the summary: Going to a national conference can be exciting and thrilling. Unfortunately, it can also be overwhelming and exhausting. I’ve been to ISTE three times, AASL once, and FETC seven times, so I’ve had to time to … Read more