Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated each year (September 15 through October 15th) to commemorate the anniversary of the independence of five Latin American countries (Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua). It is also a time to celebrate the rich Hispanic culture in our communities. We are planning a celebration in the library on Friday, October 6th.  Please stop by to see the displays completed by our students and enjoy our SUHI celebration.  Viva Mexico!

Also stop by the SUHI Library to learn about famous Latinos around the world or go online to read stories about this rich and beautiful culture. We also have books in Spanish as well as English for your reading pleasure. Take a look at the Latino Book Lists under the Resources tab on the left for suggested titles. Ask if you don’t see something that you’re looking for and we’ll be happy to help you. ¡Feliz lectura!

Mrs. Brown, Teacher Librarian

IT IS THIS TIME OF YEAR TO STAND UP TO READ BY CELEBRATING BANNED BOOKS WEEK SEPT. 24 – SEPT. 30. WE HIGHTLIGHT THE 2016 MOST CHALLENGED BOOKS IN THIS POST. LET’S CELEBRATE YOUR RIGHT TO READ BY READING!!! STAND FOR THE BANNED IS THIS YEAR’S THEME. Note this is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. A challenge is an attempt to restrict materials based upon objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. According to the American Library Association Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view, rather, they are attempting to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access to others. As such they are a threat to freedom of speech and choice.

Who should decide what you read? You or someone else?

The ALA Presidential Committee on Information Literacy: Final Report states: “Information literate people know how to find, evaluate, and use information effectively to solve a particular problem or make a decision. . .” Information literacy skills allow individuals to use the power of the Internet to help answer their informational needs; the lack of such skills leaves library users without the ability to navigate the vast resources of the Internet in efficient and effective ways. Although we live in the “information age” and children seem “connected” from birth, research has shown that people need education in developing skills that will help them use the Internet effectively. Libraries can serve as primary training providers to help meet this need.”

According to Leslie Preddy, AASL President 2015-2016,

“In layman’s terms, Digital Citizenship is the norms of responsible
and appropriate interaction with technology. It requires
a critical understanding that our responsibilities are
no longer just the immediate, face-to-face community
in which we live, but also include our ever-expanding
digital communities. It also encompasses the world as we
access global communities online. Digital citizenship
requires that we update the more-traditional critical
skills with an eye toward the digital as new tech tools
are added at an alarming rate. These skills include
plagiarism, copyright, and the increasingly complex
source evaluation in ever-expanding formats, as well
as the tools necessary to ethically and morally navigate
cyberbullying, digital etiquette, security, safety, hacking,
social networks, open source, knowledge sharing/
communication, e-commerce, and technology balance
(in daily life). This is not an all-inclusive list, as
technology continues to evolve, and digital citizenship
themes will need to be adapted as new technology uses
bring up issues unknown to us today.”

Over the next several weeks we’ll explore your thoughts on Digital Citizenship. I’ll ask questions and please post your comments. Students, teachers, administrators, and parents are welcome to comment. We will learn together and hopefully make us all safer online. Thanks! Mrs. Brown, Teacher Librarian

There are great free websites to try this school year. Search under Resources on the left navigation pane. There are websites that you can explore to assist you with your classwork and research. For example, WorldBookOnline is a vetted resource with lots of great information with citations built in at the end of the page. WorldBookOnline has articles in Spanish, too! Look under Estudiantil Hallazgos. Check out Ebsco Explora for high school research. It is excellent! Calisphere has over 900,000 images, text, and audio clips that help you discover California. Google Maps Street View can take you anywhere in the world. How cool to study a place and actually be able to see it online! Please visit the library with your class or individually to learn about how to research and get you ready for college or career! See Mrs. Brown, Teacher Librarian for research questions! Go explore!

https://www.google.com/maps/about/treks/#/grid

SDPLCentral Library Teen Center SRP 2017 Tri-Fold-rlnfo6

Overdrive is one of our online platforms. There are popular books and audiobooks for our students, teachers, and staff to check out and read.

Patrons can read and listen to books through their

· Browser

· Apps on Google or Apple (phone, laptop, desktop)

· Kindle

Sweetwater High School’s Overdrive page: http://sweetwaterschools.lib.overdrive.com

DestinyDiscover is another platform that we use. DestinyDiscover also has a great selection of popular titles and audiobooks to check out. The infinity symbol means that multiple users can access the same title at the same time. Highlighting and Note taking features, too!
https://www.gofollett.com/aasp/ui/pick/picked or

https://wbb10384.follettshelf.com/shelf/servlet/presentshelfform.do?site=10384

According to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Massive Ransomware infection hits computers in 99 countries

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-39901382

Hospitals and other organizations have been hacked for money. Please take a look at video hosted by the BBC about a British guy who couldn’t get his surgery done because the hospital had been hacked. He is waiting for the systems to come back online. What do you think of these events? How can organizations protect themselves? Do you think that they should pay outrageous sums of money to get their systems back online? Comments?

Library Students…I want to hear your thoughts. Please read the above article from the BBC about the Ransomware. Please blog by providing 3 points from your reading and experiences.

Happy Reading!

Mrs. Brown
Teacher Librarian

“Facebook’s campus in Menlo Park, California” Found the Atlantic 7, May, 2017, The Age of Misinformation.

Hello Students,
I saw this article that one of my previous professors posted that was in the Atlantic journal regarding Technology and I read it. Then, I thought perfect timing. We are overwhelmed by information everyday and how do we decide what is good information from bad information. This article made me pause to ask who is responsible? Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter, the gullible public, etc.

I used the CRAAP Test with some classes this school year to help evaluate websites and to get a handle on false and inaccurate information online. What are your thoughts? Do you think Facebook, Twitter, Google, or Microsoft has a place in helping us to recognize real facts versus false information. Please read this article by Jonathan Zittrain and let us know your thoughts….

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/05/american-discourse-version-12/523875/?utm_source=twb

Facebook, Twitter, Google, and Microsoft must recognize a special responsibility for the parts of their services that host or inform public conversation according to JONATHAN ZITTRAIN. Do you think librarians and teachers can help?

I want to hear from you! Library students need to have a minimum of three points in your response to this post.

Thanks for blogging with me this school year…

Ms. Brown, Teacher Librarian