South Dakota State Library: Library Development e-Newsletter

Why didn't I think of that?

Weekly contest uses Web 2.0 tools

Canistota School Librarian, Melissa Weber, creates a weekly contest for her students using the Web 2.0 tool Wordle. Using song lyrics, text from e-books, or other materials she creates a word cloud and students guess the source of the words. Students love analyzing the size of the keywords in the word cloud and tracking down their origin. All Wordle of the Week winners receive a small prize at the end of the week. Here’s an example of a Wordle created using the text of this issue of the Cornerstone.

 

Family Event not “average day” at Faith School and Community Library!

Nearly 100 people attended the 1950’s themed Family Event held on March 15 at Faith School and Community Library, a successful combination school and community library in Faith, S.D.

Librarians Angela Ostrander and Linda Olson report the atmosphere in the library is “not the average day in the library” during these events, held semi-annually in conjunction with Scholastic book fairs. High school students in library skills classes designed visual aids to dress the library in the 50’s theme, including a cardboard cutout of a 50’s-era car where attendees could be photographed “driving,” attired in period garb borrowed by the library for the occasion.

During the event, older students managed 50’s-style activities--a hula hoop contest, bowling, Hop-scotch, Pick-up Stix, fake tattoo and coloring stations—as younger students gathered managers’ initials to qualify for prizes such as Slinkies, travel games and yo-yo’s. Prizes were also awarded for guessing games such as correctly estimating the number of pieces of bubble gum, Tootsie Rolls, and Bit O’ Honey bite-sized bars in a jar. Upon registration, students’ names were entered into a drawing for gift certificates, redeemable for Book Fair items, with several drawings held throughout the afternoon.

 

Canistota, event, Faith, web2.0

 

 

 

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