How Things Are Right Now

What a wild ride.  I normally try to post a "back to school" update on this blog each year.  It's now October 22nd and I'm just now getting to the update.  That should give you an indication of how things have been going...BUSY!  I have not been a huge fan of the phrase "the new normal" so instead I will use "How Things Are Right Now" as the title for this update.

Our school buildings officially closed on March 13, 2020.  A return to in-person learning wasn't in the cards, but our classes and activities moved into the virtual environment for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year.  This posed many logistical challenges, but also enabled teachers to use technology in different ways for creating learning experiences and fostering connections.  I worked hard to support teachers and students with resources, create lesson content and video tutorials, and extend special library programming.  Through the Microsoft Teams platform, we were able to host Gimkit trivia competitions, book groups, and even virtual author visits.

End of Year Report for 2019-2020

The summer before the 2020-2021 school year wasn't particularly restful, as plenty of uncertainty loomed regarding what school would look like in the continuing era of COVID-19.  Iroquois administrators chose to employ a hybrid model with a 100% remote option also available.  Cohort A students attend in-person Monday and Tuesday, while students in Cohort B attend on Thursday and Friday.  Wednesday in-person attendance alternates weekly between the two Cohorts.  Students learning remotely participate in each period via use of Microsoft Teams.

As the school year began, students stayed in their home base classroom for the entire day and teachers rotated into these classrooms to teach.  As of October 19th, students are now moving into different rooms for their classes.  The library remains closed to students, so this has posed some logistical issues for library services.

Book Access
The first hurdle of the year was rising to the challenge of getting books in the hands of students within the context of the new learning environment.  It was interesting to have to think about how to get books out without having the use of the physical library as a place to browse and checkout materials.  Many different strategies have been employed so far:

Sora Introduction: Each student in grades 6-8 has been introduced to Sora, our district's service for ebook and audiobook access.  I was able to introduce Sora in a couple of different ways.  Our library website includes a Sora information page which features tutorials on how to use the service.  Some teachers chose to show these videos to their students.  Other teachers booked time with me to visit their classes.  I either visited the classroom in person or virtually.  While virtual, I shared my screen via Microsoft Teams so all students could walk through Sora access step by step.  In our region we are also lucky to belong to the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library system.  With a public library card, students can expand their digital book access through Sora by linking to the public library's collection.  Each student was also encouraged to utilize the public library collection and sign up for a card in case they didn't already have one.

Morning Book Browsing: Students are allowed to enter the building at 7:15 am, but home base does not begin until 7:40 am.  This creates quite a bit of downtime, but it's also the perfect opportunity for book checkout.  Each morning I wheel a cart around to the classrooms and students may check out books then and there.

BookHub: The last phase of this approach involved setting up a system for students to request books from the library.  While I was in Ms. Beauchamp's classroom reviewing Sora, her students commented that "BookHub" would be a perfect name for the book delivery service.  They even designed a gorgeous logo to go with the service!  Through BookHub, students can email requests, place holds on specific books, or request a surprise delivery.

Special thanks to Ms. Beauchamp's class for this great logo!

Book Promotion

Another concern was how to promote books in a climate where we are mostly virtual.  During last year's building closure, book clubs and book chats were held online.  Students and staff members had wonderful book recommendations, which were compiled and posted on the library website.  

In addition to sharing out these recommendations, reading teachers in sixth grade have also began promoting the 40 book challenge with their students.  As part of this challenge, students are asked to read widely across genres.  A genre organizer was shared with the teachers and I was "virtually" invited in to chat about genres and offer suggestions.  I'm blown away by the knowledge of the sixth graders!  This is a group that has read a TON of books.  They had amazing reading suggestions which they graciously shared with their classmates.

Book promotion also took place with Mrs. Maulucci's eighth grade ELA classes.  Mrs. Maulucci wanted to make sure each student chose something of interest for use during their independent reading times.  To aid in their selection, I used Wakelet to compile a collection of book trailers.  These book trailers corresponded to titles that were available in the physical library.  The Wakelet also included instructions for BookHub, so students were able to put in their book requests immediately.

I've been slow to post on social media these days, but the library Instagram page is still up and running!  I'll be using @iroquoismiddlelibrary to post library updates as well as book recommendations.  Goodreads allows me to keep track of books in the library that I've read; the app's widget pairs with both this blog and the library website to promote recently read titles.

Digital Citizenship

The increased emphasis on virtual learning has made it increasingly important to discuss both the benefits and pitfalls of being online.  Common Sense Media provides an amazing digital citizenship curriculum which I've been able to utilize and adapt to meet the needs of learners here at Iroquois.

So far, I've delivered digital citizenship lessons to seventh grade ELA classes and both sixth and eighth grade STREAM classes.  Topics covered included how to problem solve "red flag" feelings that arise while online, making a plan for digital balance, and analyzing the characteristics inherent in excellent digital citizens.  Each of these lessons contained a reflection component where students shared what they enjoy about social media and what they would like to learn next.

Student Voice and Making Connections

As would happen in a typical year, I look for ways to ensure that student voice and choice remain central to all of the offerings in the library.  While pushing into classes for the Sora introduction, I invited each student to fill out a brief library survey.  This survey asked students to share their insights as to books that should be ordered and programming that should be offered.  I look through all of these responses and add the requests to the library book order.  The feedback will also help me to determine which programming would be most well received by students.  As time allows, I individually respond via email to each student survey.  Sending this email opens up another line of communication with the students; it's my hope that making myself available to them will urge them to reach out should they desire anything from the library.

New this year are library bookmarks and postcards.  Minute Print in Cheektowaga, NY designed gorgeous items to distribute to students.  The bookmarks contain a QR code to the library website and also remind students how to care for books in the age of COVID-19.  The postcards will be sent home to remote students, or to the hybrid students just to say hello.  There's nothing quite like getting an ACTUAL piece of mail in this digital age!

Minute Print created these postcards to send to students.

Custom bookmarks contain a WR code for the library website.

Assisting Staff Members

Finding ways to help staff members has also looked a little different because of the health concerns we are now facing.  In previous years I would be planning our Book Bistro staff party and potluck in the library.  COVID concerns prevent that, so I've been sending out all staff emails with library updates as well as targeted emails with resources/ideas that would be of interest to individual educators.

Library Twitter is always a great place to go for fresh ideas.  I'm ashamed to say that I can't find the person that originally shared the template below.  However, I was able to adapt this library menu in order to share library offerings with the educators at Iroquois Middle.

Library Services Menu via Canva

How Things Are Right Now

To conclude, library services are still chugging along but just in a different form than in the past.  Being an educator right now is a tough mental lift.  I'm used to being able to perform at higher levels.  Tasks that were once easy now require tons of creativity and effort.  I can't think of another time during my career as a school librarian where I've worked so hard only to feel like efforts are falling short of the mark.  It is some comfort knowing that all educators are finding new ways to make it all work.  I'll continue to lean on colleagues for support and inspiration!

Iroquois Middle School Reads!

As our building closure continues, I long for the days of striking up a casual conversation about favorite book titles while browsing the shelves.  However, thanks to the technology afforded to us through Iroquois, our community of readers can still stay connected to discuss favorite book titles!  It just took a little creativity to get the ball rolling.

Every two weeks, students and staff from Iroquois Middle School have been meeting via Microsoft Teams video chat in order to share reading recommendations and anything else of interest.  So far, we have had three chats where dozens of titles have been discussed.

On May 22nd, we will be hosting a special Virtual Book Club meeting on the Library Teams page.  All are welcome to discuss the touching and humorous Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling. The audiobook is available now through Sora!

After each chat, I have been compiling a list of all of the recommended titles from our Iroquois readers.  This keeps my own "to be read" list growing, but thankfully the digital copies of many of these books can be found online through our school's Sora subscription.

Here are the titles from our last three chats.  See any on here that you've read or would like to read?

Welcoming Spanish 7 and 8

The first two months of 2020 proved to be a busy time in the Iroquois Middle School Library.  Book checkouts, either from the physical library or from our digital OverDrive collection, remain steady.  There have also been a variety of visits across classrooms and grade levels. 

January 2020 Monthly Report

February 2020 Monthly Report

While it is natural to think that library and ELA/reading would be a natural pairing, other subjects frequent the library as well!  It was exciting to welcome both seventh and eighth grade Spanish classes into the library to kick off 2020.

Seventh Grade Spanish Book Creator Project
Ms. Marcinkowski brought her classes into the library for the second straight year for a project utilizing the Book Creator resource.  Book Creator is an online platform allowing students to create their own polished digital books.  I first learned of Book Creator through the American Association of School Librarians as it was chosen as a 2018 Best Website for Teaching and Learning.

The three day project was set up in a similar fashion to last year's visit led by library student teacher Ms. Allison Ryan.  One major difference between the projects was the subject matter.  This year, Ms. Marcinkowski's students focused on making books related to classroom objects, school supplies, and their likes/dislikes of different school subject areas.

Day one of the project was devoted to organizing project ideas into a storyboard outline.  Students partnered up to work together on figuring out what they would put on the cover and ten pages.  Each page would consist of an illustration, a sentence in Spanish, and a student audio recording of the Spanish sentence.  This storyboard helped ensure that students would have a solid plan before utilizing the Book Creator service.

Storyboard student example.

Students were responsible for ten page digital books.

Each page would include an audio narration in Spanish.

During day two, the classes received a brief overview about how to log in and use Book Creator.  How to add pages, backgrounds, illustrations, text, and audio were discussed in depth.  After the overview, students then got to work creating their digital books.  On day three of the project, students put the finishing touches on their project, including audio narration.

It was great to see a high level of enthusiasm and engagement during this project!  Teams worked efficiently and effectively in order to get their project completed.

Eighth Grade Spanish Green Screen Project

New for this year was a visit from Mrs. Germann and her eighth grade Spanish students.  Mrs. Germann was up for trying something different, so we decided to make use of the recently purchased green screen!  This screen and the accompanying lighting are housed in the library's back room, a perfect place for a student recording studio.

Prior to visiting the library, Mrs. Germann challenged groups of four students to develop a Spanish script pertaining to our school's dress code.  Each student would have at least four lines of dialogue.  Although it wasn't required, many students chose to memorize their scripts.  Other groups relied on note cards or cue cards during recording.

When groups came to the library to record, they were given a short amount of time to rehearse their lines and prepare their props.  Each group also had to decide on a background that would be used in place of their green screen.  We used the image search capabilities in Bing in order to find appropriate backgrounds.  Bing has a filter feature which allows users to search for only the images that are free to share, use, and modify.

Groups then took turns using the backroom of the library to record.  The green screen and the lighting really transformed the library into a professional recording studio!

The bright lights helped to remove shadows from the background.

Each group member had four lines of dialogue.

Some groups asked classmates to hold their cue cards.

Once each group recorded, the green screen background was swapped out with the image found via a Bing search.  On day two in the library, students learned how to use the Microsoft video editor app in order to add a title slide and credits (in Spanish, of course) to their finished project.  Some groups even went the extra mile and added background music to their videos!

On the Friday after the project concluded, Mrs. Germann showed the completed videos for each group that felt comfortable sharing their projects.  Special awards were also given out in a variety of fun categories for groups showing extra degrees of preparation or creativity.

Mrs. Germann was kind enough to bring in an award for me!

Student feedback on this project was varied.  Some students did not like recording themselves, which is totally understandable.  Seeing or hearing yourself on film can be unnerving!  Other students really enjoyed the opportunity to use technology to display their Spanish language knowledge in a creative way.

It's always wonderful to have our Spanish classes visit the library!  We look forward to seeing these classes in again soon.

Hummingbird Robotics Project

December is the designated month for schools to participate in Hour of Code opportunities.  Last year, we had all students in sixth through eighth grade visit the library with their STREAM classes to code with the Finch Robot from BirdBrain Technologies.  This company also offers a coding tool called the Hummingbird Bit.  Over the summer, Mrs. Lambert, Mr. Kwietniewski, and I took part in a training with Erie 1 BOCES instructor Antonio Scordo so we could better use these kits.

The Hummingbird Bit consists of a circuit board, Microbit computer chip, LEDs, and a variety of servos and other attachments.  Students will need to use Microsoft MakeCode to program their Hummingbirds, then build a robot in which to house the Hummingbird's components.  This allows for plenty of flexibility and creativity, all while learning coding, design, and engineering principles.

The Hummingbird Bit.

Mr. Kwietniewski brought his seventh grade STREAM students to the library for December 2019 and part of January 2020 to participate in a challenge involving the Hummingbird Bit.  There would be only four class periods devoted to this project, which made for a tight timeline!

On day one of the project, students selected their own groups of 4-5, then broke into subgroups of coding teams and design teams.  The coding teams learned how to assemble the Hummingbird Bit.  Due to the technical nature of this task, step by step directions were provided via a PowerPoint tutorial.  The design team created a blueprint for their robots, then decided how they would construct their robots.  Each robot had to contain spots to accommodate the five LEDs that the programming group was working with.

Programming groups first built their Hummingbird Bits.

Students then had time to view some programming tutorials.

Design teams sketched their plans for their robots.

Some of the design sketches were very involved.

Each design group also listed the supplies needed for their project.

On days two and three of the project, groups worked extensively on programming their Hummingbird Bits and constructing the robots.  Some teams even decided to devote more time to the project by visiting the library during lunch and study hall!  It was interesting to see the robots come together.  The programming groups also challenged themselves by creating detailed programs using Microsoft MakeCode.  Many groups figured out how to have their LEDs change colors or blink on and off.  Other groups even learned how to incorporate music into their codes.

Using programming to light the LEDs.

Some students brought in their own supplies for their robots.

Students visited during study hall to perfect their designs.

Cardboard was the base for most of the creations.

The fourth day of the project was devoted to presentations.  Student groups worked together for the first half of the class to finalize their programs and embed their Hummingbirds into the robots.  Each group provided a demonstration and brief presentation about their robot and program.  Every group also consulted with Mr. Kwietniewski about how well their team worked together on the project.

Finished product - gingerbread man

Christmas tree scene.

Snowman robot

A hardworking two person team!

To see a gallery of all student groups and their completed robots, click here.

At the conclusion of the fourth day, students filled out a feedback survey outlining their impressions about the project and if they are interested in any future STEM activities.  This feedback will help us as we plan the activity for next year.  Overall, students enjoyed the freedom to work with their friends on a project that was completely their own design.  It seemed that many students would have liked more time devoted to this project.

It was a pleasure having Mr. Kwietniewski and his seventh grade STREAM students in the library!  Hopefully this is just the beginning of many more Hummingbird projects to follow.

Lego League Robotics 2019

On November 23rd, 2019, sixteen students from Iroquois Middle School participated in the regional FIRST Lego League Robotics competition at the Nichols School.  This was the second year that Iroquois took part in Lego League.  Interest in the program is growing, which meant Mrs. Ferger and I (Ms. Muhlbauer) were able to grow the club from one team to two!

There was plenty of planning and preparation leading up to the competition.  We held informational sessions about FLL (FIRST Lego League) during lunches.  Interested students needed to apply by providing a guardian signature and also a paragraph explaining why they want to join the team.  We stressed that FLL isn't a club in the traditional sense; instead, it requires a high level of commitment.  Once the teams were selected, we met for two hour meetings 18 times leading up to the competition.

Another wonderful addition to Lego League this year was the introduction of student mentors.  High school students Analee and Bella, members of our Girls' STEM Leadership Group, were eager to help our Lego League students succeed!  Analee and Bella shared their science and team building expertise with the middle school FLL students.

For those unfamiliar with FLL, it is a three part competition.  The spontaneous "Core Values" section assesses how well team members work together as a group in order to perform a specific task (mainly a team building activity).  Team members must then discuss how the Core Values of Lego League can be applied to school and other settings.  The Core Values of Lego League are as follows:

We are a team.

We do the work to find solutions with guidance from our coaches and mentors.

We know our coaches and mentors don't have all the answers; we learn together.

We honor the spirit of friendly competition.

What we discover is more important than what we win.

We share our experiences with others.

We display Gracious Professionalism^® and Coopertition^® in everything we do.

We have FUN!

- See more at: http://www.firstlegoleague.org/mission/corevalues#sthash.cVFMw5M0.dpuf

We are a team.

We do the work to find solutions with guidance from our coaches and mentors.

We know our coaches and mentors don't have all the answers; we learn together.

We honor the spirit of friendly competition.

What we discover is more important than what we win.

We share our experiences with others.

We display Gracious Professionalism^® and Coopertition^® in everything we do.

We have FUN!

- See more at: http://www.firstlegoleague.org/mission/corevalues#sthash.cVFMw5M0.dpu

We are a team.

We do the work to find solutions with guidance from our coaches and mentors.

We know our coaches and mentors don't have all the answers; we learn together.

We honor the spirit of friendly competition.

What we discover is more important than what we win.

We share our experiences with others.

We display Gracious Professionalism^® and Coopertition^® in everything we do.

We have FUN!

- See more at: http://www.firstlegoleague.org/mission/corevalues#sthash.cVFMw5M0.dpuf

- Discovery: We explore new skills and ideas.
- Innovation: We use creativity and persistence to solve problems.
- Impact: We apply what we learned to improve the world.
- Inclusion: We respect each other and embrace our differences.
- Teamwork: We are stronger when we work together.

Students practiced Core Values by assembling our competition board.

Following step by step instructions is crucial.

The "Project" section is more of a traditional science project.  Students are given a topic to research first.  This year, the theme was "City Shaper" and teams were challenged to find a way to improve something within their community.  The challenge took on an architectural feel, as teams were urged to explore structures and buildings within their community.  The team shares their innovation with a group of people who can benefit from their research.  They then must create a short presentation to show the judges what they learned through the research process.

The White Team decided to tackle the problem of Iroquois's campus not being bike friendly.  By developing ways to make Iroquois more bike friendly, the environment would be positively impacted and students would receive more exercise.  In addition to performing research online, students also interviewed Mr. Eric Nagel, Iroquois' Transportation Supervisor, and Mr. Clark, an official from the Town of Elma.

The White Team's completed project board.

Members of the White Team share their project with an interested student.

Members of the White Team prior to presenting their project to the judges.

The Red Team identified Elma's lack of a community pool as a problem in our area.  Many of the other surrounding communities have access to a pool, but Elma/Marilla/Wales do not.  Through research and an interview with Mr. Joe Colern from the Town of Elma, students developed a plan to make a community pool that was accessible for community members of all abilities.

The Red Team's completed project board.

Members of the Red Team, just after presenting their project to the judges.

Last but not least is the "Robotics" component.  Students are honing their computer programming skills in order to train a robot to complete missions.  Each mission is worth a predetermined amount of points, so the team that accumulates the most points will win this section of the competition.  This part of the competition requires a lot of trial and error; it is difficult to get the robot's programming just right in order to complete the missions.

Members of the Red Team cheering on their robot.

Preparing for the robot competition.

Members of the White Team prepare for the robot competition.

Setting up the robot required care and precision.

During the competition, it was very exciting when our teams' robots successfully completed missions!  The White Team's robot came in eighth place and the Red Team's robot came in sixth place out of twelve teams.

In between the rigorous competition rounds, our students found ample time to have fun!  The staff at Nichols does an amazing job keeping the entire day exciting, interactive, and upbeat.

Nichols provided a button making station for all attendees.

Students were invited to dance in between each robot round.

The Lockport High School robotics team shared their creations.

The cookies at the concession stand were a huge hit!

Although both teams are to be commended for a successful day, the White Team deserves a special nod for winning the event's Core Values trophy!  This trophy is awarded to the team that displays outstanding teamwork, perseverance, and kindness throughout the competition.  In addition to earning the trophy, students on the White Team were also selected as Model Citizens by the robot judges because they cleaned up their robotics supplies without being asked.  This wonderful behavior is indicative of the amazing students we have at Iroquois!

Members of the White Team with their Core Values trophy.

Although Lego League is over for this year, the team members are keeping their robotics skills sharp by participating in the middle school's Bright Minds Club and Science Challenge.  All sixth and seventh grade students are visiting the library with their STREAM classes in December to compete in various coding activities.

Thank you to the Lego League students and families for another successful year!

Early America Research

During November 2019, the students in Mr. Smerka's seventh grade Social Studies classes spent over a week in the library for a research project.  During this project, groups of 3-4 students researched Early American topics and presented their findings to their classmates.

Student groups chose from topics such as: Northern Colonies, Middle Colonies, Southern Colonies, Sons/Daughters of Liberty, Salem Witch Trials, and The Lost Colony of Roanoke. These topics were very broad and open-ended, meaning that the groups had the flexibility to take their research in many directions.  This made for a challenging task for the groups.  Not only did they have to comb through sources to find relevant and interesting facts, but they also needed to present their information in a way that was organized and engaging.

The first few days of the project were devoted to introducing students to the various resources available for research.  Students spent time using nonfiction and reference books available in the library.  There were close to 150 library books on these topics, so every group found interesting information when browsing the books.  They recorded their research on MLA note sheets, which helped them to stay organized and avoid plagiarism.  Later this year, students will learn how to make MLA formatted works cited pages during an ELA research project.

Note Sheets help students to stay organized during the research process.

Once students exhausted the information found in the books, we moved on to using web resources to gather more facts.  Credible websites were displayed in a Symbaloo organizer found on the middle school library website.  Students were also encouraged to find their own sources through internet searching, but were instructed to evaluate sources for credibility prior to use.  As with the book sources, students filled out MLA note sheets for all of their web resources.

The Symbaloo organizer displayed helpful websites for the project.

MLA note sheets kept the students' research organized.

At the end of the third day of research, the students completed an online "Research Check In" form that was posted on the library website.  This check in allowed Mr. Smerka and I to see if students understood the importance of using reliable sources and if anyone was experiencing issues with the research process.  The data gathered from this was extremely helpful.  Students that might not have been comfortable telling us that they were having problems researching felt comfortable letting us know on the form.  Over the next few days, we were able to provide targeted assistance to those students.

A check in page via Microsoft Forms was distributed to all students.

The groups then worked on PowerPoint slides in order to provide a visual for their presentation.  The majority of these projects were well organized and utilized advanced features such as hyperlinks and transitions.

Students worked on research and PowerPoint presentations while in the library.

Student groups prepared to present to their classmates.

The flexible seating in the library allows students to work in comfort.

The last few days in the library were devoted to presenting the group projects.  Students received a grading rubric prior to presenting, so they had a clear idea of the assessment criteria.  The presentations were wonderful!  Many student groups displayed tremendous creativity (and the groups that brought snacks were much appreciated!).

Mr. Smerka instructs students on effective presentation techniques.

One group made Johnnycakes (a colonial recipe), and even brought in a sub tray!

The sub tray was a wonderful treat the day before the long weekend!

Having Mr. Smerka's students in the library made for a very enjoyable week and a half.  Most importantly, students were able to practice their research, teamwork, and presentation skills.  The seventh grade teams will return to the library for an ELA project in January where they will continue to hone their skills.