Coloring as Meditation - Resources

As crazy busy as things get at the holidays (and let's face it, in a school library in general) things really are crazy when you're on jury duty for an extended period. For me, I've been fortunate in that I am on jury duty three days a week, with two days to keep up with things (or at least not get quite as far behind). Anyway, back to some of the crazy goings-on making up my life lately- back in August I was contacted by School Library Journal. They had read something on the LM_Net listserv about using a coloring station to reduce the stress of my students. You might recall that late summer had me scurrying along with the rest of my school library friends to get everything ready for fall and imminently arriving students. With fall, things ramp up fast - I'm the teacher advisor for our school's Mock Trial team and FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America). Mock Trial is particular busy-- we practice 2-4 times per week in the first 3 months of school. We compete in late October and November so, we push to get the kids prepped. In the middle of all this, I got my latest Jury Duty notice. It was a call-in duty, so I decided to take a chance. The first two days (of five) went as expected, in fact after not getting called in on the Monday (Friday was Day 1), I thought I was home free. Tuesday's call was at Noon, my group was transferred to the county's main courthouse and there was an emergency shortage (gulp). I had one hour to report. Fast forward, Mock Trial has started and ended, FBLA had their fall Leadership Training Institute, and I've spent 14 days in a courtroom following the details of a complicated civil trial. Thankfully, we are in trial just 3 days per week-- I can maintain a semblance of order in my library office. Phew. In any case, I've become some kind of juggler this year and it certainly has shown me how loved I am at my school particularly. My students left me the sweetest messages:

All right, enough about me-- we are all busy. I hope you catch the fun article in SLJ and put together a sweet little stress reduction center in your library. You will be amazed! My kids just sit and color-- they put their phones down-- some may not believe, but they really do set the phone down and just focus on coloring. I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't experienced it over and over again. Take a break from your busy schedule and color a little-- you'll be surprised at how relaxing it truly is to color. I've collected some copyright-free coloring page resources, visit this Padlet for more information and links to coloring pages. Another great source is Pinterest. I'm on the site as Joy Millam and have a few too many boards (101) and almost 13k pins. I do have some great Library Boards- I hope to see you there. Feel free to drop me a line and share resources or leave comments.

Hour of Code??! But, I'm on Chromebooks!

 Last week (while daydreaming on jury duty- it was my lunch time, it's allowed) I got to thinking that the Hour of Code was coming soon. On top of that, I wondered about schools with large numbers of Chromebooks and what sites and apps would be useful in the "codeplay" extravaganza known as Hour of Code. I know some programs are not compatible with Chromebooks- most are, however.
If you're like me, your school has adopted the Google for Education life-- we have vast numbers of Chromebooks and a serious shortage of PCs/Macs. But, that doesn't mean Hour of Code fun has to be missed or passed over due to your equipment.

Programs for Pre-Readers:
Check out this short Edpuzzle/YouTube video on Kodable:




Kodable is great for younger students or those who do not yet read. It is all visual and does not include words.

Another great one for younger students and non-readers is Code Monkey.

Coding for the Older Set:

Students respond well to gaming as a learning tool. This brings us to Code Combat.

Students are able to work on either Web Development or Game Development. Each type is completely customizable. (The slide above shows one Hero)

Another good option is Tynker, it is suited for grades 3-8:

Lastly, please check out the resources on Beyond the Hour of Code. The podcast is chock-full of great resources and ideas. 

Have fun next week and beyond with coding. Think of me as I'm still in jury duty. (9 days and counting)