I'm tickled to death because our LTCLs are getting on twitter, learning about Google Wave, and tonight...as we wait to go to dinner to celebrate our dear friend Sandra's birthday...several of them created their first blog.

It's so terrific to be here with such a dedicated group of teachers and librarians. They are passionate, excited, and anxious to learn it all. I just hope they don't hit critical mass on new knowledge...I don't want anyone's head to explode!

I cannot wait to see the viral sweep of integration that will follow them as they return pumped, excited, and with actual examples of how the technology to use with their students! This is how you do it...from the trenches, with real world applications, by real teachers - not technology gurus.

I love this group of syncing sistahs...my twittering team...blogging babes....waving women. You rock girls!

The Power of Twitter - Math help from over 200 people…

I love the idea that the whole concept of literacy has to change as we swim in this digital ocean of information. Being a good user of information means becoming a BETTER user of information. We have to analyze, critically, and we have to ask questions. We no longer simply accept that what is written is so.

Math has moved beyond numbers. All those 1's and o's are now video, images, text, design, light, motion...multimedia. Gives a whole new set of relevant, real world applications for learning math, huh?

My favorite quote from this article is..

"As we become increasingly overwhelmed by information, we must work hard to decide which information we are going to use, and which information we are going to ignore. In other words, information must now compete for our attention in much the same way that products on a store shelf competed for attention in the industrial age. So merely being able to write a coherent paragraph is no longer enough to be a communicator. Students must learn to also communicate with images, with sound, with video. Students must learn to express their ideas compellingly."

How amazingly relevant that statement is to education today! How can we, as teachers, ignore such a powerful message...we must teach our students to CREATE...to EXPRESS...and not on worksheets or essays (which all have their place - no flaming me please)...but with sound, video, digital imagery, and more. If we DON'T learn to teach this new literacy...WE WILL BE THE INFORMATION OUR STUDENTS CHOOSE TO IGNORE.

To quote Spiderman (the movie) - with great power comes great responsibility...and we have to teach our kids how to ethically move in this fluid informational environment. You can't lock up information in a glass case - remove the books from the shelves - or cover their eyes so they can't peek. With technology our kids have access to everything, every day, every minute. We have to teach our kids to police themselves, to be smart, and to make decisions with integrity.

David's concept of expanding our notion of literacy to include technology skills just hits home. The idea of information as "raw material" and the fact that our kids need to learn not only how to manipulate it but why and whether or not they SHOULD. It's a much more complex, holistic approach that goes so much farther than simple integration of some nifty tech tools.

So cool. Great article!

Literacy in the New Information Landscape ― David Warlick
Warlick, D. (2007). Literacy in the new information landscape. Library Media Connection, 26(1), 20-21.

Alas, my desire to be around for the next couple of decades and see my children grow up had to take precedence over my addiction to this lime-enhanced nectar of the Gods. So with a heavy heart - and an unbelievably aching head, shaking hands, and total lack of any energy - I broke with Diet Coke with Lime. Indeed with all caffeine and carbonation (an ode to my last coffee is forthcoming). It was, to say the least, a most painful separation.

Now, a mere 6 days of agony later, I am able to raise my head towards the light without fear of it imploding from the wicked withdrawal headaches, and see a brighter future. One without addiction - without dependence on one so cold, and unfeeling. Yet, it is also a world without the bubbly anticipation and flavor that I had come to take so for granted.

But I must move forward...and offer only this last, wistful look back at a beverage that had so defined me for over two decades. Farewell, farewell...parting is such sweet sorrow...