Hi there! My name is Cassie Kemmerlin and I am excited that you have stumbled upon my blog. I am a 4K teacher in South Carolina looking to move into a school library soon! I am currently in my last year of graduate school at the University of South Carolina. I am obtaining a Master’s in Library and Information Science. I have always had a love for reading and teaching and I am excited to bring two of my passions together!
I interviewed an elementary librarian and focused on the Include shared foundation. The National School Library Standards defines the shared foundation as “demonstrat[ing] an understanding of and commitment to inclusiveness and respect for diversity in the learning community” (AASL, 2018, 75).
This was a challenging interview to conduct because the librarian did not have an interest in the include foundation. I gave her the freedom to choose one of the shared foundations and she was unaware of what they were. After reading them off to her, she told me to choose and I selected the include foundation. I had to give background information and share the definitions from the standards book to guide the interview.
She talked about how the special education classes visit the library separately now for their scheduled visit rather than visiting with general education classes. She felt like this was an example of inclusion because she was able to design lessons that were appropriate for them. She also mentioned that special education students do not checkout books from the library based on a suggestion from the special education teacher.
When discussing some of the resources that she uses in the program to achieve the goals of the include foundation, she stated that the program does not do a great job at this. She admitted to having a weak collection of books in regards to diversity. She stated that she does make an effort to purchase books that are depict different races, but does not purchase books that pertain to different types of families. She stated that she personally believes that books like that (LGBTQ) do not belong in a school library and that she had the support of her principal. She also mentioned that she does not have a lot of books that represent different cultures and languages in her collection.
This interview left me feeling heartbroken, frustrated, and appalled. She so freely shared with me her beliefs when it came to diverse literature assuming that I would not think twice about what she was saying. She was passionate about not having special education students in classes with other children their age and used it as an example of inclusion. I also was embarrassed to hear that these students are not allowed to check out books from the library.
This interview will remain in my mind as what not to do when I enter a school library position. I must know the standards and strive to meet them each day in my school. I must have a diverse collection of books and resources for my students that showcase different races, cultures, families, and ideas. I cannot allow for personal censorship to have a place in collection development. All students deserve to be included in the programs, books, and materials in their school library and it is my responsibility to ensure that this is happening.
While this interview was incredibly disappointing, I know that these views and practices reflect only one librarian in the large pool of librarians in our country. We must continue to advocate for inclusion for our students so that the needs and well-being of all learners are met, welcomed, and accepted.
American Association of School Librarians. (2018). National school library standards. 75.
I interviewed a high school librarian and focused on the Collaborate shared foundation. The National School Library Standards defines the shared foundation as “work[ing] effectively with others to broaden perspectives and work toward common goals” (AASL, 2018, 83).
Mrs. Long was eager to share ways that she strives to provide opportunities for collaboration in her school. Mrs. Long operates on a flexible schedule which naturally allows for collaboration. She enjoys pushing into various classrooms to teach and co-teach with teachers. She said that most of her collaborations are centered around large projects that involve research. While Mrs. Long enjoys going into classrooms and collaborating with teachers, she does not feel that her staff utilizes her as much as they could.
Mrs. Long discussed how she spends a lot of her time working collaboratively with the dual enrollment seniors who do their online classes in the library. She finds that they need her assistance and guidance the most when it comes to the research and writing assignments that they are tasked to complete.
All students at Mrs. Long’s high school are 1-1 with ThinkPad Laptops. This is a huge help when using online research tools such as Discus. The high school also uses Teams through Microsoft to share and record content digitally. Chat, group chat, and e-mail are other resources that Mrs. Long uses to collaborate with students and staff. She has found that students are more likely to reach out for help via the Microsoft chat feature.
Mrs. Long also does a lot of programming and collaboration centered around college. She has held events on the college application process, how to complete a FAFSA, and more. She recently collaborated with an economics teacher to determine how the cost of a four year college would be paid over time. Students had to look at the requirements of loans, housing and tuition costs, and what they could make from a manageable job. She talked about how well this project went and how practical it was for many of the students.
The biggest challenge that she encounters in regards to collaboration is getting teachers to give her the opportunity to come into the classrooms to teach. She said that many teachers do not want to give up their content time or do not want to co-teach. She also mentioned that her assistant often gets pulled to cover classes leaving her alone in the library. If she has a scheduled class, she has to close the library to the rest of the school. She also discussed how the responsibilities she has surrounding technology affect the amount of time that she has to plan collaboratively with teachers.
She is actively going to grade level and content meetings to share ideas and tips on what she could do to provide support. She is trying her best to give teachers the chance to share ideas with her in hopes that they will want to work on the project together.
While the quantity of collaborations is not where Mrs. Long would like for it to be, she is conducting high quality collaborations with students and staff.
American Association of School Librarians. (2018). National school library standards. 83.
I interviewed an elementary school librarian and focused on the Inquire shared foundation. The National School Library Standards defines the shared foundation as one that “build[s] new knowledge by inquiring, thinking critically, identifying problems, and developing strategies for solving problems” (AASL, 2018, 68).
Mrs. Rudmann immediately chose to focus on the inquire shared foundation because of the STEM focus that she was trained in as a classroom teacher. She is very passionate about teaching with an inquiry framework and uses her library time to provide her students with ample opportunities to be inquisitive. She started the year by doing a two week unit on inquiry processing skills. This unit focused on how we ask and investigate questions, descriptive observations, and take detailed notes. Mrs. Rudmann conducts experiments, teaches her students how to write lab reports, provide MakerSpace materials, create art projects based on books, write informational books, and create expert presentations. She just started an inquiry based unit on plants.
Mrs. Rudmann uses Discus resources daily in her library. She uses articles, videos, and books to provide students with research opportunities. She also has subscriptions to several magazines that are available in the library. She keeps past issues for students to use when researching so that they can highlight or write on the pages to take notes and/or cut out the pictures for their projects. Mrs. Rudmann makes it a priority to purchase books that are on topics that are apart of the curriculum.
Collaboration is a huge part of Mrs. Rudmann’s daily schedule and inquiry lessons are often apart of these collaborations. She recently finished a moon phases inquiry unit with all of the first grade classes in the school. She also loves when the classes come into the library for extra time for lessons and inquiry. She stressed the importance of attending planning meetings with teachers so that she can be apart of the conversations to listen to discussion, offer suggestions, and to advocate for the resources that she can provide through the library.
Mrs. Rudmann discussed how her fixed schedule proves to be the largest challenge for her when it comes to teaching inquiry focused lessons. When it comes to teaching inquiry based lessons in her library lessons, she mentioned how she only teaches each class once a week and then has to wait a week to start the next part of the lesson. She wants to use the National Science Stem Association lessons, but needs more time for the lessons than her schedule allows. She continues to advocate to her administration for a flexible schedule so that she can block off time each day to teach inquiry lessons in collaboration with teachers.
My favorite tip from Mrs. Rudmann’s interview was her advice to share a resource that the library has for 2-3 minutes each faculty meeting. She feels like this gives teachers a refresher to hear about the resources that she presented at the beginning of the year. I think this is a great idea and would be a great way to advocate for the library!
I enjoyed interviewing and observing Mrs. Rudmann teach an inquiry lesson on plants. It is clear that she is using this shared foundation on a daily basis in her library. It drives her instruction, collection development, and collaboration in her school!
American Association of School Librarians. (2018). National school library standards. 68.
I interviewed a middle school librarian and focused on the Explore shared foundation. The National School Library Standards defines the shared foundation as “discover[ing] and innovat[ing] in a growth mindset developed through experience and reflection” (AASL, 2018, 103).
Mrs. Jenkins was very excited to talk about what she does on a daily basis to meet the needs of her students and staff in regards to exploration. She implements the competencies by encouraging and fostering personal curiosity for her students. She also makes it a point to encourage students to read widely and deeply. She uses the South Carolina Book Awards to stimulate this exploration. She also discussed how important it is to provide students with opportunities to tinker and make in an unstructured environment so that they feel the freedom to create and explore without specific tasks.
Mrs. Jenkins emphasized the importance of purchasing materials that support student interests and inquiry. The school has a large Makerspace and it is important to Mrs. Jenkins that the space has a mixture of high and low tech tools. She has arts and craft supplies such as paper, markers, glue, sewing machines, and jewelry making kits. She also has Makey Makey’s, Spheros, coding programs, and Vex robotics tools.
In addition to the Makerspace, Mrs. Jenkins makes it a point to purchase the books from the South Carolina Book Awards. She utilizes and teaches students how to explore content on Discus to do research and inquiry. She intentionally highlights diverse material that is purchased. The school also has access to Sora which provides students with a variety of formats to explore text.
Exploration requires Mrs. Jenkins to collaborate with teachers. Her favorite part of this is helping teachers provide their students with choices for what they are reading or researching and the products that they are making to show their learning. This shared foundation allows for more challenged-based learning opportunities such as real world challenges that require students to identify a problem, research, and then tackle the problem with innovative solutions. She is also able to infuse more STEAM focused learning into the classrooms.
While Mrs. Jenkins does an excellent job at showcasing the competencies, there are several factors that make this challenging. She stated that time was the most difficult factor. She also discussed how the curriculum is so structured and that there is very little time for flexibility and open exploration in the curriculum. She is trying to find ways to give students time during the day to explore topics that are of interest to them. She also admitted that cross-curricular collaborations need to be a stronger focus so that students can become more immersed in the content and deeper exploration can occur.
Mrs. Jenkins makes exploration a priority for the students and staff that she serves. She is actively making her library space a place for exploration and inquiry. She also spends time collaborating with teachers so that the lessons and assignments that they teach are explorative in nature.
American Association of School Librarians. (2018). National school library standards. 103.
What a quick semester this has been! It seems like it was just yesterday that I was trying to set up this blog and prepare for the course. It seems as if all SLIS courses seem to move quickly but leave you with so much information! This course forced me to try new things and gave me new tools to add to my toolbox. Here are some of the biggest takeaways from SLIS 761!
Takeaway #1: Blogging is fun! The more posts I made, the more comfortable I became and started to truly enjoy the process. I have always enjoyed writing and having a blog has always been something that has been in the back of my mind. I was thankful that this course required to me to take that leap! I hope to continue sharing to this blog after the course is over!
Takeaway #2: Creating a website is an intense process! I had no clue how much time developing a website for a school library would take. There are so many things to include and so many ways to organize it. The more I worked on it the more I wanted to edit and make additions. I learned so much through the process but I also know that I have so much more to learn! However, I am very proud of the website that I created and wish that it wasn’t for a hypothetical school! I can’t wait to develop a website when I move into a school library position one day!
Takeaway #3: This course proved to me that I am eager to be a school librarian. This course gave me the tools that I needed to feel like this is a career that I will enjoy and find a passion for. After a tough year of teaching, this was the confidence booster that I needed. Even though I am not currently in a school library position, I am eager to one day move into that role and take all that I have learned with me to provide my students, families, and staff with the best library possible.
As this semester comes to a close and I enter my final semester in the program, I am feeling excited, energized, and ready for what lies ahead for me in the school library world!
Cassie Kemmerlin–Module 15
Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) is so unfamiliar to me. I have never used any virtual reality software or devices. To be honest, it hasn’t been something that I have ever been very interested in using–I am the farthest person from a gamer. However, I have also never been provided with the opportunity to use it. My current school does not have any nor does my public library. Virtual reality has seen a fluctuation in popularity and prominence due to various factors including price and maintenance of the equipment. However, as a future school librarian, I must enter this world with an open mind and eager to learn spirit!
I was thankful for the article, “Get the Most from AR/VR Technology without Breaking the Budget” as an introduction to VR in the school library setting. This article provides insight and suggestions when using VR in the school library. One point of the article that I found interesting was how to navigate the budgeting side of VR. Murphree (2020) discusses that it is important to not go for the cheapest on the market because of the “incompatibility with the operating systems already in place at your school.” This is an important point to ponder because if the operating system cannot support the product that you purchase, it will not be able to be used and will begin to collect dust rather than spark student engagement. This is something that I feel doesn’t always get considered when district personnel purchase products and should be a priority on the checklist.
This blog post by Jennifer Snelling features 25 resources on incorporating AR and VR into the classroom. The post includes links and short annotations to various tools that are beneficial to classrooms and school libraries. This is an excellent post to explore when considering AR and VR for your classroom/library.
I decided to dive deeper into the AR tool Metaverse. Metaverse is a “platform that makes it easy to create AR and interactive experiences” (Metaverse, Professional Development Slides, Slide 2). It is a free platform that requires users to create an account with an email address or Facebook account. Metaverse is an app that is compatible with phones, tablets, and chromebooks. Users can create unlimited experiences for virtually anything!
I viewed this professional development slideshow provided by Metaverse for teachers and learned a lot about what it is, how it can be used in schools, and why it is beneficial for students. This was an excellent resource to stumble upon and allowed me to learn about this tool without having to navigate to multiple different web pages. There is also a video of the presentation that walks you through some of the steps that the slideshow details.
Metaverse would be a great way to create games, trivia, and more for students. It is also a great platform for increasing creativity and coding skills. This blog post by Vicki Davis provides great ideas for using Metaverse in the classroom. Metaverse also received a 4 star review on Common Sense Media. This review discusses the pros and cons of the platform and how teachers can efficiently incorporate it into their curriculums.
I noticed on several blog postings and reviews that I read for Metaverse that it takes time and lots of practice to feel comfortable enough to teach and use it with students. I absolutely believe that to be true! I read the basics and thought I could figure it out as I went, but I struggled to create an experience. This is something that I would need to devote a lot of time and effort into before being able to share with students. It would be beneficial for me to attend an interactive webinar or help session (Metaverse does provide these by appointment!).
In all, I have a lot to learn about AR and VR! I am hopeful to have more opportunities to learn about these platforms so that I can one day incorporate them into my school library.
Cassie Kemmerlin—Module 13
Makerspaces are a new component for many school and public libraries. These spaces encourage creativity, exploration, creation, and more! Laura Fleming defines makerspaces as “unique learning environment[s] that encourage tinkering, play, and open-ended exploration for all.” There are many websites and blogs available online to explore makerspaces and how to start one in your library. Dr. Moorefield-Lang, an expert in the makerspace field, shares information and examples of exemplar makerspaces around the country. This video is an excellent tool to view when deciding if makerspaces are something to start in your library.
When searching for school library blogs about makerspaces, I came across the blog “Mrs. J in the Library.” This blog shares information and tips on makerspaces. The post “Elementary Library Makerspace Resources” shares links to resources, other makerspace library blogs, and more. When exploring some of the links shared, I came across the blog Librarian in Cute Shoes by Cynthia Alaniz.
This blog contains book reviews, literacy ideas, and makerspace projects. This link will take you to all of the makerspace postings that have been shared. I was drawn to the “Poetry Makerspace Challenge” post. In this post Alaniz uses her makerspace carts to create a challenge based on the book “Poem Mobiles.” Students used the poems and illustrations as inspiration to create cars. They used a variety of tools and materials to create the cars. Students had access to markers, cardboard, egg cartons, and more. After creating their car, students wrote a poem to accompany their creation.
I really liked this idea and is one that seems very practical and feasible to complete. It does not require any special equipment or tools to complete. Britton (2012) writes, “the beauty of the maker movement…is that there is no set list of equipment or programming required to make a space successful.” This is so important for librarians to recognize that budgets don’t directly correlate to the success of a makerspace. Relying on community support and donations is one way to gain materials and resources for makerspaces! Writing grants and fundraising are also great ways to gather materials for your makerspace.
I found her two makerspace expectations to be interesting: 1. Clean up after yourself. 2. Take your creation home. I agree with both expectations but have questions about expectation number 2. I think it would be a great idea for students to display their cars in the library along with their poems. I agree that students should take them home eventually, but I think that showcasing them would be a great idea before they go home. It’s important for students to share their work with other students and staff!
Makerspaces belong in school libraries and have the potential to provide students with opportunities to engage in play, creation, and literacy. I would love to have a makerspace or makerspace cart in my future school library. I believe that it would allow students the space that they need to be creative and provide them with opportunities to collaborate with peers, use their imagination, and to share their masterpieces with supportive audiences. I will be making the space in my future library for Makerspaces!
Module 11
–Cassie Kemmerlin
Britton, L. (2012). The makings of maker spaces, part 1: Space for creation, not just consumption. http://www.thedigitalshift.com/2012/10/public-services/the-makings-of-maker-spaces-part-1-space-for-creation-not-just-consumption/.
Moorefield-Lang. (2018). Makerspaces 761. [Youtube]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBsEHD0XE6E.
Cyberbullying is a topic that is heavy, full of heartache, and continues to happen even though it is talked about often. It continues to amaze me at how cruel some people can be when I read articles or hear stories about individuals who have experienced cyberbullying. I always think “Why would someone think it’s ok to say that?” As an enneagram 1, I am a huge believer in right vs. wrong and thinking that people are genuinely good and have others’ best interests at heart. While I know that this is not always the case, I can’t help but feel that way, which makes me furious when I hear about people experiencing cyberbullying.
In my 4K classroom we have four rules: Work hard. Show kindness. Play safe. Listen to others. While these rules were designed to be simple in terms for four year olds to remember, they are not simple in concept. I think it is important that these rules apply to not only what my children do in the classroom, but what they experience or could experience online in the future. I do my best each day to encourage kindness and to bring attention to and correct behaviors that are not kind or safe. I believe that starting to understand what kindness is, looks, sounds, and feels like is one of the best measures in preventing bullying and cyberbullying.
I did not experience cyberbullying as a child or adolescent, but I did have an experience with it in college over the social media platform YikYak. YikYak is a platform that allows users to anonymously post to a feed for others to read that are within five miles of each other. YikYak was an incredibly popular platform on many college campuses and led to many tears, embarrassments, and even police interventions. Numerous times were there posts about the sorority that I was a member of calling the members ugly, fat, weirdos, and the most hurtful and outrageous “beached whales at a slip-n-slide.” It’s hard to hear things written like that about you and those that you care about. Some may say “Well just don’t get on the app and you won’t know what they are saying.” Well that sure is easier said than done and does not erase the words being said. I was sad to hear that YikYak was making a comeback on college campuses this year. It is not a platform that supports working hard, showing kindness, being safe, or listening to the needs of others.
I was reminded of this experience while watching the videos from the Cyberbullying Research Center’s collection. This collection of videos is very diverse and features individuals from many different races, countries, and ages. Many of the videos moved me to tears and left me pondering and wanting to share them with others. The video that left me speechless was by Tyler Joseph entitled “Where are You?” This video was short, powerful, and deeply moving. This is a video that should be shared at the beginning of each school year to students and staff. It is something that we should be reminded of often and have the opportunity to discuss in a safe space.
I was also engrossed in Richard Byrne’s “Seven Digital Deadly Sins” interactive website. This website features videos, articles, polls, and more on Byrne’s Seven Digital Deadly Sins which are envy, pride, lust, wrath, greed, sloth, and gluttony. This website shared different perspectives on cyberbullying and circumstances that allowed it to arise.
After viewing all of the resources, what stood out to me the most is that there are still individuals who make the choice to bully online. Putting something online is forever and with the rise of cancel culture, this means that it will eventually be found, it will (hopefully!) be addressed, and you will experience the consequences of it. I was also surprised to learn about how cyberbullying is prevalent in K-12 schools, colleges, and the workplace in many of the same ways. The article by Faucher, Cassidy, and Jackson goes into great detail about the interconnectedness of cyberbully across one’s life.
I think it is important to educate students on cyberbully frequently and intentionally. They need to know to stop the bullying if they see it occurring or if they are participating in it. They must take the necessary steps to report the bullying to trusted authorities immediately so that appropriate actions can take place. Finally, they must rise above the negativity and hate and spread kindness, love, and compassion. Words hurt and those needing support should seek it and feel supported by their school families. With more education and accountability for actions we can continue to reduce cyberbullying and make the online world a safer and kinder place.
Social media has taken on a new meaning in our lives and has become something we use on a daily basis! When Facebook and Instagram had a lapse in accessibility this week, many (myself included) panicked. I assumed my internet was down and began troubleshooting. When that appeared to be fine I began to do some Googling to see if others were being effected or if it was just me. When I saw that it was a large outage, I found myself perplexed at what I should do since I couldn’t enjoy my after work social media break that I too often take.
With our dependency and desire for social media, why not use this as an opportunity to share content from our schools and libraries! My favorite social media platform and a popular platform among young people and families is Instagram. I decided to create an Instagram account for Bailey CDC to showcase exactly what is going on in our school library.
I chose to create an Instagram for several reasons. First, I am very familiar with the platform and feel comfortable using it. It is a very user friendly platform and allows users to access it from the ease of their smartphones or other devices. Instagram is an incredibly popular platform among young people and families. Many people already have personal accounts and following the Bailey CDC Library account is as easy as tapping one button. If they do not already have an account, setting up one is easy and free. Instagram also allows users to post pictures, videos, text, and links to their accounts. The Story and Reel features allow for videos to be recorded and shared quickly and efficiently. Easy tagging allows for users to be connected with other accounts and allows for credit to be given easily.
I developed Bailey CDC Library on Instagram to connect with families, share information and resources, and to encourage reading, learning, and literacy. My first post was to share our school’s Mission which is “Bailey…Where the Adventure Begins!” It was important to me that I start with our mission so that families know what our school is centered on. My second post was an introduction post about myself as the school librarian. I shared a picture of myself and a photo of one of my favorite books. Look below or click the link above to see this account!
I plan to use this account to showcase instruction and collaboration, communicate with families and community members, and to advocate for our students.
This Instagram account will support instruction and collaboration by…
This Instagram account will allow for communication by…
This Instagram account will promote advocacy by…
Social Media belongs in the library and provides librarians with many opportunities to reach students and families! Wilson (2017) writes, “We can provide a space where students want to be. Get the word out by becoming active in your space, in your school, and on social media” (p. 17). Here’s to developing our social media space so that our physical spaces can continue to grow and prosper!
References
Jensen, L. J. (2019). Integrating social media into online education. Library Technology Reports, May/June, p. 27-30.
Robertson, N. & Davis, V. (2018). 5 ideas to tap social media to enhance PD and student learning. Cool Cat Teacher Blog [Podcast]. http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2018/08/5-ideas-to-tap-social-media-to-enhance.html.
Wetta, M. (2016). Instagram now: Engage young users with the image-based social media tool. School Library Journal, February, p. 30-32.
Wilson, J. (2017). Make your library more visible. School Library Journal, December, p. 16-17.
Module 8–Cassie Kemmerlin
Clocks and timers are important parts of our daily lives. They help us stay on time, alert us to how much time we have left, and help us anticipate what is next. What may seem easy for some to manage, can be stressful and triggering for others. Many children need access to visual timers and schedules to avoid stress from transitions and overstimulation. Routines are very important for children and allow them to thrive and feel successful! Visual timers give many children the confidence they need to be able to thrive independently!
Digital and visual timers are great adaptive technology resources. When looking for digital timers, I came across several articles that were helpful. This article defines assistive technology and provides many examples and how they can be used most effectively. This article focuses specifically on five visual timers that are helpful for children with special needs. I also found a Google Site called “A Teacher’s Bag of Tricks.” This website featured a great compilation of online timers in addition to other resources. This website features 20 visual timers and features a variety of physical timers, apps, and webpages for children to use.
There is a wide array of timers available that will assist students in their learning and transitions at school and home. There are many physical timers that are great for younger students who may need to carry the timer around with them to various centers in the classroom. In addition to physical timers, there is also a plethora of online and digital timers. For this blog post, I chose to highlight Online Stopwatch. This website has so many different visual timers to choose from. The “Classroom Timers” tab has traditional timers that have visual images such as a candle or clock. There are also party, animal, space, and sports themed timers that feature characters running, swimming, racing, or blasting off into space. These timers would be especially helpful for students who are not able to read or comprehend numbers yet because they will be able to see the character moving towards a destination or target. The various themes could also excite students and make them feel comfortable using the timers. My favorite part of this website is the “Sensory Timers” tab. These timers are designed for students who are easily overstimulated by loud noises, excessive movement, or bright colors. These timers feature calming visuals and sounds that will allow students to see the timer, but not become overwhelmed by the special effects of it.
The timers from Online Stopwatch, can be used on iPads, Chromebooks, SmartBoards, and more! These timers could be used for the whole class of students and displayed on the SmartBoard or TV in the classroom. Individual students could also use the timers that work best for them on their iPad, Chromebook, or other device. The website is free to use and is easily accessible.
Digital timers are wonderful tools for all students and provides students with structure, awareness, and independence!
–Cassie Kemmerlin, Module 7
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