Videos and QR Codes in the Library

YouTube

YouTube… it’s been around a while. There’s a bit of everything for everyone. It’s a great place to find videos on how to do something. So when I was asked to visit some Library channels to look at some of their videos- my first thought was directions and/or help videos. So the first channel I looked at was Norman High Library’s. The video I thought would be most helpful for kids was “Getting started with the NHS library website”. It shows users how to get to the website and navigate their site using a screencast. The second video is one that I thought students would probably like the most which was a video called “Tiger visits the Norman High Library”.  This video shows their school mascot roaming around showing all the different things one can do in the library.  It is a fun video that students would enjoy.

The second channel I visited was The Unquiet Library.  This channel has a ton of videos!  There are how to videos, teacher reflections, student reflections, and even gaming.   The video that I think students would find the most helpful would probably be any of the how to videos, especially the one on how to find Creative Commons images using different sites.  There were several videos on how to use Easy Bib to cite different types of media.  The video I think students would like the most is the video about student opinions of What Makes a Library- A Library.  It was interesting to hear about the different student perspectives on why they like the library.

Another channel I visited was the Pikesville High School Library’s channel. They had about 60 videos to including tutorials, how to access district databases and more.  The videos I thought were the most helpful were the course descriptions- I couldn’t just pick one.  The videos were from four years ago, but I am assuming that maybe the teachers are still there and the course content hasn’t changed. I think it could help students decide which courses to choose for the upcoming school year. I think the video that students would like the best is the Senior Party in the Library.  It was nice to see the students showing their pennants for their upcoming colleges.

The final channel I watched was BBMS Media.  BBMS has fun, student made videos. There are videos with games such as Family Feud and puzzles, etc. There were parody videos as well. I hate that I am picking a video that is about testing, but I think the most “helpful” videos are the ones about goal setting for their math and reading MAP tests. I think most of BBMS videos are for fun and it is hard to pick just one that students would like the best.  I think the one that stood out the most to me was Nick’s director videos, where there is a weekly question that students answer. I like the one that asks what is their favorite part of Thanksgiving. I like that they ask each grade level for answers and tally them.  

I’ve been trying to think of how I could use YouTube in my elementary library. I think my kids would get a kick out of making and watching videos similar to those from BBMS. They would love to be able to share their opinion on weekly questions or play games similar to Family Feud and/or the funny challenges. I’ll have to think about how to incorporate this into our week to show on Friday morning announcements. Another idea is to showcase new books that we have in the library in a short video or make a book trailer for a new book to show with announcements. 

Animoto and QR Codes

Next I played around with Animoto and made a book trailer on a book I just finished recently, The Beauty of Darkness by Mary E. Pearson. It is the third book in her Remnant Chronicles. I've really enjoyed all three books. Synopsis taken from amazon.com. 

Lia has survived Venda- but so has a great evil bent on the destruction of Morrighan. And only Lia can stop it.

With war on the horizon, Lia has no choice but to assume her role as First Daughter, as soldier- as leader. While she struggles to reach Morrighan and warn them, she finds herself at cross-purposes with Rafe adn suspicious of Kaden, who has hunted her down.

In this heart-stopping conclusion to the Remnant Chronicles trilogy that started with The Kiss of Deception and The Heart of Betrayal, traitors must be rooted out, sacrifices must be made, and impossible odds must be overcome as the future of every kingdom hangs in the balance. New Your Times-bestselling author Mary E. Pearson's combination of intrigue, suspense, romance, and action makes this a riveting YA page-turner for teens.

You can view my book trailer at either of the following:

The Beauty of Darkness

or



I have several ideas for using QR codes in the library. One is to use QR codes for different authors and what they wrote with a short biography placed along the shelves where those particular books are shelved. Another idea is to do QR codes with information about the library such as genres or the layout to use during library orientation. There was a lesson that I came across after Black History month that I may try next year, which included QR codes with information about different famous black Americans. There is probably an endless amount of ideas on how to use QR codes; librarians and teachers are constantly coming up with new ideas.