THE LEARNING LIBRARY

As a librarian, I am constantly hunting for websites to meet curriculum and project needs.  Teachers will come to me with an idea, and ask me for help finding resources.  It's a part of my job that I honestly adore - I enjoy research, and get to learn so many interesting things in the process.  I especially enjoy discovering new programs and apps that I can share with our teachers and students.  One thing I've struggled with, however, is how to present what I find in a way that is both organized and interesting.  Lists of links, while useful, can get boring.  Then I found Symbaloo, and I was immediately drawn to it.  While the idea of social bookmarking is nothing new, I love the graphic interface that Symbaloo uses.  I can create a new board for any topic, choose the icons that I want, and embed the finished product on the library website.  I can also choose Symbaloos that others have created and include them on my own board, rather than recreating the wheel.  While I work with middle schoolers, I think the icons would also work well for younger students or students with reading difficulties.