Media Messages

Podcasting

2008-12-11T11:10:00.000-08:00

We are proud to announce the arrival of Pirate Podcasts! If you are not familiar with podcasting, a podcast is simply an audio file that can be put on the Internet and accessed from a computer, or downloaded and transferred to an MP3 player. Downloading music is the most common way podcasting has been used.

This great technology can also be used in the classroom to enhance your instruction. It appeals to auditory learners, and it is a great way to engage your students. For example, teachers can create podcasts of important lectures that students can access when they are absent from school. Important concepts, skills, and topics can be the subjects of podcasts for students to review prior to testing. Students can create their own podcasts as a means of demonstrating their mastery of subject material.

Our Pirate Podcasts can be found under the Media Center tab on our website, or by clicking on the following link: http://piratepodcasts.podbean.com/
Here you will find podcasts that we have created to promote school wide reading among our students. Simply look for the book that you are interested in reading, click, and listen! On the teacher podcast page, we have our first teacher podcast that was created by Ms. Sanford to help her struggling readers with sight word recognition.

Creating a podcast is simple, even for the most technologically challenged! If you would like to learn more about podcasting, check out the following links:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExkMeQfuLGc

http://www.education-world.com/a_tech/sites/sites074.shtml

http://userwww.sfsu.edu/~nshelley/

http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/gadgets.html

If you would like to learn how to create your own podcast, please stop by the media center! The possibilities for this technology tool are as great as your imagination!

Technology Tools

2008-10-28T05:54:00.000-07:00

The BHS media center has many technology tools to enhance your instructional practices. First of all, we are excited to announce that our mobile lab is up and running once again! All of our laptop batteries have been replaced, and the laptops should hold their charges without any problems. We are also in the process of buying more laptops in order to complete our third mobile cart. When this cart is complete, there will be 45 laptop computers available for teachers to use with their students.

We have also purchased new digital still cameras and video cameras that are available for teacher and student checkout. Still photography and video clips can be used to supplement your instruction, or as as part of a student project. Mr. Lybarger just checked out a still camera and tripod to capture changes as they occur in his class's latest science experiment. Students love taking pictures, and real photos can be used in powerpoint presentations, digital stories, and other multimedia presentations. We recently purchased a set of five "flip" cameras, which are really fun to use! These cameras come with video capability, along with a USB port that can be hooked up directly to a computer. The video can then be easily extracted and ready for viewing.

If you have any questions about how to use these technology tools in your classroom, or if you would like us to purchase a new item, please stop by the media center to see us! Remember, you can do it, and we can help!

Welcome to Media Messages!

2008-10-08T08:42:00.001-07:00

Welcome to our first installment of Media Messages. It is our hope that we can use this blog to enhance our communication and keep our great BHS staff informed of what's happening in the media center. We have many services to offer - including information literacy lessons, collaboration opportunities, technology tools, and a wonderful print collection - that can all be used to supplement your instructional practices.

Have you begun to assign projects for your students that involve accessing information from the Internet? Have you noticed that some of your students may not be very skilled at finding the appropriate information? Many students, especially ninth graders, do not know how to conduct an effective Internet search. Some students have no idea how to write an MLA citation. Other students do not know how to paraphrase. We offer information literacy lessons that address these issues. We can do lessons on effective Internet searching, how to paraphrase and cite the appropriate source, website evaluation, and the research process. If you think your students could benefit from any of these lessons, please stop by the media center to see us.

If you would like to plan a unit or lesson that involves the use of technology, and you would like some ideas or advice, please let us help you. Being able to collaborate with our teachers is not only of our priorities, but it is also a lot of fun to do! Working together can enhance both your instruction and our media center!