Who are you?

OK...a major frustration of mine concerning blogs and on-line communities is setting in big time. I've been reading everyone's blogs, but I can't tell who is who. I'm trying to connect a face I remember from the meetings with an avatar or nickname. It is not going well. My request: can you put your name, school, & subject area somewhere at the top of the page? A real pic would be helpful, too. Yes, that's my glamour shot photo below. Cheesey, but at least you know who you are talking to. :)

More on Thing 2 - 'ringing my Hands over Bells & Whistles

Help!
I have created an avatar and attempted to add a site counter and a picture. But I can't figure out how to get the avatar on my blog and my site meter is coming out in Japanese. My pic only shows up in the blog itself and not in my profile. I followed their directions for getting the pic into the profile 5 times with no luck. Any ideas? Arigato!

Thing 2 - Murky Waters

I confess...blogging is not my cup of tea. It is like wading into the murky waters of a seemingly isolated inlet on the coast of the pacific northwest...you think it is just you and maybe a few friends out for a beach party. But in reality, there is a vicious riptide sucking your thoughts and words right into the thermosaline-based currents towards South America.

I've seen way too many students and young family members dragged under by myspace; suspensions and arrests among the worst results. Let's teach our students how to use it wisely. Personal boundaries apply to both face-to-face situations and in cyber-space.

Now that I have vented, there are, of course, some benefits to blogging. I can absorb people's opinion with a quick skim rather than hearing every word in a meeting that has to fit everyone's schedule. Students are used to it.

More on Thing 1...Info Literacy is mandated but easy to ignore

Information literacy, technically, is mandated in education, but it is spread so thinly through so many content areas that it is easy to ignore by any one content area. It needs to be a major standard in at least one content area at a very specific grade level so that every student is guaranteed the opportunity to learn and master accessing and using reliable data. Right now it is hit and miss.

Some thoughts:
Elementary school - basic computer skills
Middle school - research using reliable databases
9th grade - complete a research paper using reliable databases and proper citation
10th-12th grade - the above skills are expected and assessed in all research-based assignments

Thing 1 - Core - Information Semi-literate but Stale

I thought I was "Info Girl", able to access large quantities of information in a single click. But I realize that I'm more like "Info Girl" with a hang-over. I used to be up to speed and unafraid of digging through stacks of musty reference books in the library basements, but when it comes to internet research, my gusto is lacking. I was a googler and wikipedier because they are easy. I knew how to find reliable information or who to ask to get me there, but I was out of practice and stale. I didn't want to be organized, do a logical keywork search...that is once I got the password to the databases from the reference librarian. Finally I sat down with the Queen of the Harding Castle, our illustrious and regal librarian Ms. Preller, to walk me through the databases available through spps connect. I think that was the most important thing I needed: a hands-on walk through, then it is up to me to practice, practice, practice. Marcia and I are going to come up with some worksheets asking the students to find particular facts that they will only be able to find using the academic databases, not google.