Students and Smart Phones

Whether you believe in cell phone use in the classroom or not, here are some interesting facts to ponder about how students are using their mobile devices.



Via: STUDYBLUE.com

The Book Nook

I want eBooks for my Media Center! It's hard enough finding funds to keep the hard copy collection fresh and current, but to add eBooks is even more of a challenge. Where to start?

I really wanted to purchase some Nooks since some of the students had told me they loved theirs and my BookEnds club was willing to purchase those. After discussing it with the appropriate people, I was graciously given 6 iPads with the hopes I could use the Nook app instead.

We anticipated a few roadblocks in the process but, with the exception of a few "bending of the norms" it all came together.

First, we had to determine which books we wanted to purchase for the book club, which were also purchased by the BookEnds club. This purchase had to be submitted and approved by district AND the BookEnds club officers before I could go any further in the process. I set up an account with Barnes and Noble online and added the eBooks to my wish list. Since you can add an eBook to a total of 6 devices after you purchase it, we went ahead and purchased 17 titles. Minus the cost of the device this is a nice savings!

Once I had my Barnes and Noble account set up, picked the titles I wanted, and the Nook app added to the iPads, I had one more obstacle to overcome...the credit card dilemma. Our district still works off of purchase orders which does not work with online ordering in many (or all) cases.  I was not willing to use my own personal credit card in this experiment so I went to Fry's Grocery Store and bought a pre-paid Visa for $25 (a small price to pay). The problem with the Visa is, if you don't use it, they deduct $2 a month. I am not sure if once it is $0 anything will happen. I was nervous about students being able to purchase from the credit card on file but since you have to sign in to Barnes and Noble online using your password in order to purchase, it isn't an issue.

Once I went to Barnes and Noble everything went smooth. I had my PO number, iPad, and account all set with my wish list. The employee was helpful and quick and showed me how to add the books to the Nook app. Viola! All the titles appeared on the Nook app but could not be viewed until the PO was approved after the purchase, which only took a day or so.

We now have 6 iPads with 17 titles for our after school book club. We have also purchased several hard copies of 5 of the titles as well. With a parent's consent a student who wishes to join the discussion may borrow an iPad to read the book for a week at a time. Our first meeting will be an in depth discussion of The Hunger Games!

Book Drive

Due to budget cuts in the district we have not had a library budget for several years. In our efforts to update our fiction section (to start) we had to get creative. With our Horizon High School Gmail account we created an Amazon Wish List and complied a list of books we would like to receive. We were able to add the school's address, add a profile picture of the school mascot, and ask for a certain amount of copies of each book. Amazon also offers library binding on certain titles. It was an easy task for us and made it simple for the parents and students to search the books and order them. The books came directly to the school which was wonderful. The only draw back was that sometimes the buyer didn't add their name to the packing slip and we didn't know who it was that bought the book. This was important to us because as an incentive we had prizes for those who donated.

Advertising played a large role in the the success of the book drive. We made flyer to distribute around the school. We also posted the flyer and the Amazon Wish List on the homepage of the Media Center website. Things really moved quickly when the parent group advertised the book drive in their weekly blast. We are so grateful to them.

The Book Drive was a huge success! In a months time we were able to collect more than 70 books for the library thanks to our students, the PAWS (Parent Association Working for our Schools) group, faculty, and those in the community who still believe the library plays a vital role in education.

Horizon High School Amazon Wish List

Hunger Games Trailer

Cell Phone Usage

Via: Online IT Degree

iPad User Agreement Form

As many of you have noticed, the Horizon High School Library is going through some changes. We now have iPads for students to check out to use for anything from reading iBooks to surfing the net to research for a project. If you are interested in using the iPads in the Media Center, please read the iPad User Agreement Form and the PVUSD Acceptable Use Policy carefully before you agree to it. In order to use the iPads, you must first agree to the terms.

To review the PVUSD Acceptable Use policy click here.

To read and agree to the iPad User Agreement Form click here.

New Titles in the Library

We have some new titles in the Media Center for you to check out.  These titles were carefully chosen off best selling lists for your reading pleasure!

Accomplice: Corrigan, Eireann
Addicted to her: Lynch, Janet Nichols
Airborne : a guided tour of an airborne : Clancy, Tom
Along for the ride : a novel: Dessen, Sarah.
The angel experiment: Patterson, James,
Armored cav : a guided tour of an: Clancy, Tom.
Ash: Lo, Malinda.
Bakuman. 1, Dreams and reality: Oba, Tsugumi.
Battle ready: Clancy, Tom
The bear and the dragon: Clancy, Tom
Beat the band: Calame, Don.
Beautiful creatures: Garcia, Kami
Before I fall: Oliver, Lauren,
Bleach. 32, Howling: Kubo, Tite.
The book of basketball : the NBA: Simmons, Bill
Borderline: Barr, Nevada.
Breaking dawn: Meyer, Stephenie
Bruiser: Shusterman, Neal.
Bullet point: Abrahams, Peter
By the time you read this, I'll be dead : Peters, Julie Anne.
Carrier : a guided tour of an aircraft : Clancy, Tom,
Charles and Emma : the Darwins' leap of : Heiligman, Deborah.
Chasing Brooklyn: Schroeder, Lisa.
City of ashes: Clare, Cassandra.
City of fire: Yep, Laurence
The color of earth: Kim, Dong Hwa
The color of heaven: Kim, Dong Hwa
Compromised: Ayarbe, Heidi.
Dirty little secrets: Omololu, Cynthia Jaynes.
The disreputable history of Frankie: Lockhart, E.
Epitaph Road: Patneaude, David.
The Everafter: Huntley, Amy.
Fallen: Kate, Lauren.
Fang : a Maximum Ride novel: Patterson, James
The final warning: Patterson, James
Fire: Cashore, Kristin
A football all-pro: Ingram, Scott
The football game I'll never forget
Friend is not a verb : a novel: Ehrenhaft, Daniel.
Geektastic : stories from the nerd herd
Glimpse: Williams, Carol Lynch
Going bovine: Bray, Libba.
The good girl's guide to getting: Murray, Yxta Maya.
The graveyard book: Gaiman, Neil.
Half broke horses : a true-life novel: Walls, Jeannette.
Hetalia : Axis powers. Volume 1: Himaruya, Hidekaz
Hold still: LaCour, Nina.
The Hunger Games: Collins, Suzanne.
Hush, hush: Fitzpatrick, Becca.
Identical: Hopkins, Ellen.
If I stay : a novel: Forman, Gayle
Is it night or day?: Chapman, Fern Schumer.
Jane: Lindner, April.
The kids are all right : a memoir: Welch, Diana
Last night I sang to the monster : a: Saenz, Benjamin Alire.
The last song: Sparks, Nicholas.
Lips touch : three times: Taylor, Laini.
A little wanting song: Crowley, Cath.
Lockdown: Myers, Walter Dean
The magicians : a novel: Grossman, Lev
Max: Patterson, James
Maximum Ride : [the manga. 2]: Lee, NaRae.
Maximum Ride : [the manga. 3]: Lee, NaRae.
Maximum Ride : [the manga]. [1]: Lee, NaRae
The melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya: Tanigawa, Nagaru.
Mindblind: Roy, Jennifer Rozines
The monstrumologist: Yancey, Richard.
My abandonment: Rock, Peter
Naruto. Vol. 48, The cheering village: Kishimoto, Masashi,
Not that kind of girl: Vivian, Siobhan.
Nothing: Teller, Janne
Once: Gleitzman, Morris.
The Orange Houses: Griffin, Paul
The perks of being a wallflower: Chbosky, Stephen.
The pro football historical abstract : a: Lahman, Sean
Punkzilla: Rapp, Adam.
The red pyramid: Riordan, Rick.
The river: Beaufrand, Mary Jane.
The roar: Clayton, Emma.
Rosario+vampire : season II. [2]: Ikeda, Akihisa,
Saving the world and other extreme: Patterson, James,
 School's out-- forever: Patterson, James
Shakespeare makes the playoffs: Koertge, Ronald.
Shakugan no Shana. Vol. 6: Takahashi, Yashichiro.
Somebody everybody listens to: Supplee, Suzanne.
Split: Avasthi, Swati.
A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame: Woods, Brenda
Stitches : a memoir--: Small, David
Swallow me whole: Powell, Nate.
Tales of the Madman Underground : an: Barnes, John
Tangled: Mackler, Carolyn.
 Tender morsels: Lanagan, Margo
The tension of opposites: McBride, Kristina
Twenty boy summer: Ockler, Sarah.
Untamed : a house of night novel: Cast, P. C.
The unwritten rule: Scott, Elizabeth
Very LeFreak: Cohn, Rachel.
Wake: McMann, Lisa.
When the game was ours: Bird, Larry,
When you reach me: Stead, Rebecca.
Wintergirls: Anderson, Laurie Halse.
Witch & wizard: Patterson, James
X-Men : Magneto : testament: Pak, Greg.
You: Benoit, Charles.
The 10 p.m. question: De Goldi, Kate