I've been getting some questions lately about what my new job entails. The title "Educator on Loan" doesn't paint a very clear picture, I suppose. That said, since so much of what I do is at the request of school districts around my state, I feel like my role is ever evolving - which is kind of exciting. It also means I'm on the road a lot - which is also kind of exciting. Although I'm putting A LOT of my miles on my car, I'm also learning so, so much from the different programs I've had the chance to visit. Plus, I feel like I always come home with a few more friends than I left with. And what's not to like about that?
Anyway, in attempt to document my adventures and to be reflective in my practice, I've created a google map where I pin all the places I visit. Each pin contains a short reflection on what I did/learned at each location along with, in a lot of cases, a photo from/related to the event.
Of course, there are some places that I've already visited multiple times, so... if you're really interested in following me, you're gonna have to do some zooming. I look forward to watching the map fill with blue pins as time goes on. I'm certainly learning a lot about how to navigate my state AND I'm learning that even in a state like ours, that has adopted the Common Core Standards AND has gone to great lengths to provide a state-wide vision for what library programs should look like within that framework, I'm seeing first hand how differently districts interpret and implement that. As varied as library programs are around the country and world, so too are they within a given state and even, in some cases, district. Again, it's exciting to be a part of it.
Switching gears...
In the spirit of sharing, I also wanted to, well... share the slides from a recent presentation I did for ALA Tech Source. These slides are related to a 4 day series of workshops I completed during the second week of November. I gotta tell you, this was a GREAT experience and I'm thankful for having had the opportunity to share/learn with the wonderful group of public/academic/school librarians who attended. It was a blast.
So... that's what I've been up to. Although I definitely miss seeing kids every day, I'm finding myself challenged and rewarded in whole new ways. It's an exciting time and as we head into the Thanksgiving holidays in my neck of the woods, I can't help but be super grateful.
