professional reading- Week 10 ypulse.com

Week 10
www.ypulse.com
I really enjoyed ypulse.com. I felt it was very informative, insightful, and well rounded in topics. Many of the articles brought on new discussion topics involving youth and the 21st century. I read a number of articles, the few that stood out the most were; Should Schools Be Breaking Up ‘Best Friends’?, A Teen’s Take On Tween Online Communities, Successful Social Marketing: Seed It, And They Will Run With It, and Social Nets For Tweens: Who Will Be The Facebook, The MySpace, The Friendster?
A Teen’s Take On Tween Online Communities
With the ever evolving generations and maturity, it seems that online communities are also ever changing with their participants. Julia is a high school senior who reflects on her online experiences as a tween. “My opinion that it doesn’t matter how safe developers try to make these games, kids will still experiment with what they can say and do… and eventually grow up and leave them for free-range networks like Facebook. Each generation has matured earlier on, and Gen Y is no exception. On the whole, I’m guessing what’s important to kids today is what was important to me — playing fun games and exploring a fantasy world (Julia).”
She makes good point that as she matured her needs and focus for online use changed, along with many other interests she had. Her once focus on games and fun is now turned toward socializing and “hanging out.” AS she matured, there was another group of tweens who felt the same way she did just a few years ago. However, with the every evolving youth comes the need to feel older quicker. Although these online communities are monitored, there will always be someone who is trying to push the limits.
Should Schools Be Breaking Up ‘Best Friends’?
This article looked at different aspects of friendship in youth. Have youth evolved from having one best friend into having groups of friends. They also looked at if school authorities should involve themselves in youth relationships, to avoid any problems?
Relationships and interaction with others is a natural part of society. How we deal with these relationships and manage them is a learned skill. Although friendship can be hard and hurtful at times, it’s a part of life and many times it turns into lessons for life. I do not think it’s the schools job or an adult’s job to interfere with relationships youth create (unless someone’s safety is at risk). Having close relationships and connections allows youth to learn how to mange certain behaviors and emotions when it comes to personal interaction.
Seed It, And They Will Run With It
This article was very eye opening. Product and brand marketing takes place all over the internet, but I was surprised to hear the interesting ways it is incorporated to tween sites. Marketers use the 3 P’s to reach the tween demographic: Person (put the person at the center of the branding), Place (create rooms and places where participants can discuss the brand) and Peer Influence (get everyone involved through different activities i.e. competitions). It appears that there are no limits and no one is excluded from product placement and sales. “YP: And finally, what tips can you give marketers from your experience in social marketing? PG: You need to have an agile development process so you can roll out new content every three or four weeks to keep it fresh and interesting. The key is to make it scalable so you don’t have to do all the work. You seed it and they will run with it. That’s also key in keeping the teen as the star of the show.”
Social Nets For Tweens: Who Will Be The Facebook, The MySpace, The Friendster?
Facebook is the most popular site for social networking, but unfortunately it eliminates children under the age of 13. However, in recent weeks there have been a number of social networking sites which have announced their launch or re-launch which are directed toward this group of 21st century users. Everloop, Togetherville and Imbee all have their own parallel to Facebook, however they are all safe, monitored, and appealing to a younger audience. All three are competing to become the next Facebook for the under 13 demographic. “Time will tell who will win the race to become the premier tween social network, in our opinion, Everloop is making the right moves and looks to gain the upper hand (Melanie).”
Ypuls.com is a great source for updating news on media and developments in youth products. The articles gave a wide range of opinions, views, and facts based on different aspects of youth media. There were articles from the marketer’s point of view, the ex-tween, the teacher, the parent, the developer, etc. The articles were short and too the point. They were informative and enjoyable to read. It makes it easy to stay current on changes and developments with in the tween and teen communities.

Yotsuba&!- Manga

Yotsuba&! #1
By Kiyohiko Azuma
Series: Yotsuba&!
ISBN: 1-4139-0317-7
Manga

Yotsuba is a young girl who learns about life and its lessons through her father, neighbors and friends. In this first book, her and her father move to a new neighborhood where excitement and energetic personality gets her in trouble. Yotsuba is a manga book which is a type of graphic novel originating from Japan. The book is read from right to left and is full of comic strips and pictures. All of the pictures are in black and white and there are very few words. Although this series is directed toward girls, it has a minimal following. Girls who are reluctant or struggling readers tend to enjoy these more.

The Creature from the Depths- Graphic Novel

The Creature From the Depths
By Mark Kdwell
Series: Graphic Horror
ISBN: 978-1-60270-057-4
Graphic Novel

This unique rewritten version of Howard Phillips Lovecraft the Creature from the Depths, attracts reluctant readers with its many pictures and short fragments of writing. This is one of five titles in the series Graphic Horror. Each book is a remake of a classic horror story, each with detailed pictures, which mainly tell the story. At the end of each graphic novel there is a glossary for the challenging words and related internet sites.

Top 10 Sports Stars - Biography

Top 10 Sports Stars
6 Titles
-Baseball’s Top 10 Home Run Hitters by Ken Rappoport ISBN 978-0-7660-3465-5
-Baseball’s Top 10 Pitchers by Ken Rappoport ISBN 978-0-7660-3465-5
-Basketball’s Top 10 Scorers by Barry Wilner ISBN
-Basketball’s Top 10 Slam Dunkers by Ken Rappoport ISBN
-Football’s Top 10 Quarterbacks by Barry Wilner ISBN
-Footballs’ Top 10 Running Backs by Barry Wilner ISBN

Who is the best hitter? Who is the best slam dunker? Who is the best quarterback? These are all answered in the great high interest, collective biographies of related sports personalities cover the ten biggest names in sports, both past and present. Students will have the opportunity to learn about the lives and struggles some of their favorite sports stars went through. Including accounts of game action, records held, most memorable moments and accomplishments. There are great action shot photographs with a quick bio of each player.

People to Know Today- biography

People to Know Today:
16 Titles
-Arnold Schwarsenegger: From Superstar to Governor by Sally Lee ISBN 978-0-7660-2625-4
-Bill Gates: Computer Mogul and Philanthropist by Michael A. Schuman ISBN 978-0-7660-2693-3
-Bono: Rock Star Activist by Martha P. Trachtenberg ISBN 978-0-7660-2695-7
-David Beckham: Soccer’s Superstar by Tom Robinson ISBN 978-0-7660-3110-4
-Donald Trump: From Real Estate to Reality TV by Sara McIntosh Wooten ISBN 978-0-7660-2890-6
-Dorothea Lang: A Life in Pictures by Laura Baskes Litwin ISBN 978-0-7660-2697-1
-Dr. Phil: Slef-Help Guru and TV Superstar by Mary Main ISBN 978-0-7660-2696-4
-George Gershwin: American Musical Genius by Carin T. Ford ISBN 978-0-7660-2887-6
-George W. Bush: President in a Turbulent World by Pam Zollman ISBN 978-0-7660-2628-5
-Hilary Clinton: A Life of Politics by Jeff Burlingame ISBN 978-0-7660-2892-0
-J.K. Rowling: Author of Harry Potter by Karen Leigh Harmin ISBN 978-0-7660-1850-1
-Robert Frost: The life of America’s Poet by Sara McIntosh Wooten ISBN 978-0-7660-2627-8
-Sam Walton: Business Genius of Wal-Mart by Sally Lee ISBN 978-0-7660-2692-6
-Scarlett Johansson: Hollywood Superstar by Michael A. Schuman ISBN 978-0-7660-3556-0
-Steven Spielberg: Director of Blockbuster Flims by Laura B. Edge ISBN 978-0-7660-2888-3
-Tina Fey: TV Comedy Superstar by Michael A. Schuman ISBN 978-0-7660-3557-7

These are lively biographies which summarize the lives of some of the most popular stars today. Each biography looks at the stars childhood, to there present status, to their plans for the future. They are easier biographies for reluctant and low level readers. The writing is easy to follow and not overly difficult. There are color pictures with captions and side notes. These fun-to-read books offer quotes, personal stories, and accessible features such as a timeline and glossary.

George Lopez - Biography

Latino Biographies:
George Lopez: Latino King of Comedy ISBN 978-0-7660-2968-1

George Lopez is a well known comedian, which tweens including, Hispanic tweens, can relate too. There are very few “new” biographies written about Hispanic celebrities, most are historical Hispanic biographies. Like most biographies this one depicts the life of George Lopez and focus on how he became the famous comedian and late night host that he is today. From being raised by his grandparents to becoming the “Latino king of Comedy.” The layout and format supports both Language Arts Curriculum and multicultural curriculum. There is a glossary, Spanish vocabulary list, related reading and internet lists to support the curriculum.

Hot Celebrities- Biographies

Hot Celebrity Biographies (Series)
9 titles:
-America Ferrera: Latina Superstar by Shelia Anderson ISBN 978-0-7660-3210-1
-Daniel Radcliffe: Film and Stage Star by Stephanie Watson ISBN978-0-7660-3209-5
-Hilary Duff: Life in the Spotlight by Margie Markarian ISBN 978-0-7660-3211-8
-Johnny Depp: Movie Megastar by Jill Menkes Kushner ISBN 978-0-7660-3567-6
-Justin Timberlake: Breakout Music Superstar by Tony Napoli ISBN 978-0-7660-3566-9
-Kanye West: Hip-Hop Star by Gretchen Weicker ISBN 978-0-7660-3214-9
-Michael Phelps: Swimming for Olympic Gold by David P. Torsiello ISBN 978-0-7660-3591-1
-Miley Cyrus: Music and TV Superstar by Shelia Anderson ISBN 978-0-7660-3213-2
-Shaun White: Snow and Skateboard Champion by Marty Giltin ISBN978-0-7660-3212-5

This set of biographies focus on popular celebrities that young tweens would be familiar with. These books are high interest, but can be read by lower level readers. Each biography describes how these celebrities got to where they are today. These entertaining books offer quotes, personal stories, and accessible features such as a timeline and glossary. They are great books, which support the curriculum and would be perfect for biography reports. Students can learn about their favorite t.v. star, musician, or sports hero.

Celebrities with Heart (Series)
6 titles:
-Adam Sandler by Michael A. Schuman ISBN 978-0-7660-3402-0
-Angelina Jolie by Michael A. Schuman ISBN 978-0-7660-3403-0
-Avril Lavigne by Jeff Burlingame ISBN978-0-7660-3407-0
-Hilary Duff by Laura B. Edge ISBN 978-0-7660-3404-0
-Orpah Winfrey by Jen Jones ISBN 978-0-7660-3406-0
-Tim McGraw by Sarah M. Whooten ISBN 978-0-7660-3405-0

These celebrities are in the biggest movies, best televisions shows, and are popular musicians, but they also spend a lot of time, money and energy to help others. Each book depicts the lives of the celebrity, from birth to today, but the author has also incorporated the charitable work and contributions each celebrity has performed. The biographies have full color pictures and photo graphs with a well organized layout. Each book has supportive feature to further learning, such as related readings, internet sites, and an index. Each author has created a biography that is easy to follow, which teens can understand, and still giving a glimpse into the celebrities life.

Website-Infoplease.com

Infoplease
http://www.infoplease.com/

Infoplease is a well established internet site, which provides authoritative answers to questions. This website has a number of resources for tweens, such as; sports, news, history, health and science, and much more. Infoplease has a wonderful biography section which is well organized and easy to navigate through. There are thousands of people to choose from, both historical and modern day biographies. Each person has a short description of their life, with important accomplishments, birthday, death days (if applicable), and there are further links with more information. Also, some biographies have pictures

Website- Bio4Kids

Bio4kids
http://www.biography.com/bio4kids/index.jsp

Bio4Kids is an awesome site! They have many resources and tools centered around influential people, which students can use for homework, projects, and questions. Their biography section has tons of Pop-cultures biographies such as; Oprah Winfrey, Lil Wayne (rapper), President Obama, Charlie Sheen, etc. They also have a large selection of historical biographies; Rosa Parks, Jackie Robinson, Albert Einstein and many more. The organization of the website is so easy to follow and there are many fun activities the tweens can do as well. There are different forms of media tools about the person; videos, pictures, news articles, and sound bytes. Bio4Kids has designed a site that attracts tweens, but still meets the information requirements for learning.

Professional Reading Log -Week 7

What surprises you about the research from our readings? What beliefs, attitudes or opinions does this research appear to confirm or contradict?
What are the implications here for addressing the needs of tweens in our libraries?

I wasn’t really surprised about much of the findings. With the advances in technology, the amount of people who are constantly connected to the media has advanced as well. Even in the last 10yrs, the age that most children own a cell phone is much lower than it use to be. What worries me about these articles and studies is, there is little to no mention of parent monitoring their use. With the amount of inappropriate, violent, demeaning, and trashy material children are losing their sense of reality and connection to the “natural” world. Children spend so much time involved with the media and television that they are mixing what’s real and what fake. However, we do have to grasp that technology and staying connected 24/7 is part of society, so we could either embrace it or fight it. If we embrace it we can connect young adults to the library 24/7 and we can teach them the difference between what’s real and what’s not. Instead of letting them find their way through the mass amounts of media, perhaps we take advantage of this constant connection and steer them in positive ways to use what’s at their fingertips.


There were a few findings that I found interesting. In the study by Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts the looked at ethnicities and the differences between media use; “For example, Hispanic and Black youth average about 13 hours of media exposure daily (13:00 for Hispanics and 12:59 for Blacks), compared to just over 8½ hours (8:36) among Whites. Some of the biggest racerelated differences emerge for television time: Black youth spend nearly six hours daily watching TV and Hispanics spend 5:21, compared to 3:36 for Whites.” I would like to see a more in-depth perspective on this issue, because I don’t feel that this is true for all areas. This all depends on the child’s home environment, socioeconomic status, and support structure. The researchers do mention this “the relationships between media exposure and grades, and between media exposure and personal contentment, withstood controls for other possibly relevant factors such as age, gender, race, parent education, and single vs. two-parent households (Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts, 2010).”


Social networking has manifested itself into something different for every person and for every age. Teens use Facebook to chat, make weekend plans, share pictures etc. Where as adults use it to find old friends, stay connected with long distances friends, spread news etc. Teens are engulfed in the social aspect of the sites, where as adults use it more to network. I think it is important for tweens and teens to stay connected, however I think there needs to be a class or lessons on safe, appropriate, and mature ways of using social networks. It should be taught in schools and at home, because too many children are misusing the networks and hurting others in the process! School and public libraries are a perfect place to advocate and teacher safe social networking skills and tools. I’m not saying social networking is a negative tool, I think it’s a great tool to stay connected with hundreds of people at a time, however I think there are some guidelines that need to be taught. Looking at social networking as a marketing tool for libraries, I think it would be a great way for librarians to be seen and heard. It also allows librarians to reach a large magnitude of people very quickly and some that may not notice the library otherwise.

Is access still a major concern? Is ability a concern?

Access is no longer a major issue, it is limited in certain areas and for certain demographics, but overall the number of people connected to the internet daily has maximized. Everywhere you look people are on their phones or iPads, being connected is affordable and more convenient than it has ever been. Along with increase of access came and increase in ability. More and more people are using the tools and technology advances that are available and using them to their maximum capability. However, I do feel that the ability of technology users is a generational issue. Young adults are much savvier when it comes to technology access, where as older generations struggle or avoid technology as much as possible. Tweens and teens are growing up in an era where technology and internet is always around them. They are immersed in a world where staying connect no longer means long chats on the phone, it now means instant messages, and emails. These teens are becoming the leaders in technology access and ability.

Although Meyers’s research focuses on the everyday information behavior, what issues does this research raise that may be important for school and public librarians to consider?

As librarians we often focus on developing a library and collection that meets the needs and demands of the information community, however there is a lack of educating the community on how to use it to their advantage. When tweens are searching for information they tend to relay on the people around them to guide them in the right direction. "Adults play important roles in developing information-seeking skills
through modeling and scaffolding behavior." We as information leaders need to start teaching tweens on how to use the library tools and resources appropriate and to their advantage. While doing this we must create a safe and supportive environment where tweens feel they can access when necessary. Meyers states "we found that it is access to other people that often makes or breaks an information search." Because tweens are at an age were they are leaving the comforts of childhood and moving into the world of impendence, they need to have adult figures they trust and are reliable.

Candle Man: Book Two

Candle Man: Book two
By Glenn Dakin
ISBN 1606840193
Price $15.99
Fantasy

In the second book of the series, Dr. Saint is no more, Lord Dove has disappeared, and the Dodo has slipped back into seclusion, but for Theo Wickland, descendent of the Victorian crime fighter of legend, The Candle Man, the adventure is just beginning. He is now head of the Society of Good Works and is determined to turn the behavior of the order toward the betterment of humanity, starting with bringing the Network, the fascinating, secret underground maze of tunnels in London, back to its former glory. But dark forces still prowl below the London streets. Creatures and enemies of the Candle Man, who were thought to be dead, continue to plot the downfall of the world. Old enemies become new allies as Theo cobbles together a group to stop the sinister plans of these evil beings before they prove deadly. It is up to the new Candle Man, THEO, and his Society of Dread to snuff out these despicable plans, before it’s too late.

Storm Runners

Storm Runners
By Roland Smith
ISBN 0545081750
Price $16.99
Realistic Fiction

Chase Masters and his father are in search for the worst weather in the United States. Tornados, floods, hurricanes, and everything in the middle, is what they are after. While on the road Chase learns much more then he would in the classroom. Chase is dealing with the loss of his mother and sister and the fact that his father, who was struck by lightning, has decided to trek it across the United States looking for storms. When the end up in Florida Chase thinks this might be a good place to stay for awhile. This book depicts a 12 hour time frame, but teaches a lot about weather.

****

Edison's Gold

Edison’s Gold
By Geoff Watson
ISBN 1606840940
Price $15.99
Historical/Realistic Fiction

Tom Edison IV, the great–great-grandsons of Thomas Edison the inventor, is a smart boy with a lot of adventure, however he always seems to be in the shadow of his famous relative. When his parents inform him that they will be moving from New York to Kansas, Tom tries to fix his inventions to make money, but its no sue. However, when he finds the secret formula to one of his great-great-grandfathers invention, he knows this will save his family from moving. But he must keep it out of the hands of an evil billionaire whose been after it for years.

Week 5-Professional Readings

Week 5
I couldn’t agree more that socio-economic status has the largest factor on a students reading interest and ability. Being at two opposite socio-economic status schools, I am able to directly observe how high economic status differs from low economic status and their effects on tween boys. At the high economic school many boys are consistent, enthusiastic, and high level readers, however at the low socio economic school the boys are at very low reading levels and resist checking out books. There has been a change in the last year, however, the low school has begun to utilize the Accelerated reading program which pushes students to check out appropriate level books. The high economic school has been using AR for a few years, which has encouraged and pushed boys to read. What I find interesting, is now that the boys have to read, in order to reach a certain amount of points, they will take the time to choose a book they want to read, which improves their comprehension and increases their reading level. I think a reading program, like Accelerated Reading, is a great way for reluctant readers to get engaged in reading, but not by forcing them to read certain books. They have the opportunity to read what books they choose as long as it is in their reading range.
In order to “promote” reading and different books to boys, they need to find connections with the material. As observed in the study “Male Call” boys tend to read books with dangerous looking covers, characters that aren’t perfect, and topics they have already heard of; they choose books they can connect with. I think it is important as librarians to display some of these connections, through books talks or visual cues. This seems so basic and obvious, but it is difficult to reach all different readers, at all times. By constantly changing out bulletin boards, posters, book displays and sharing new titles, the more tweens we can reach…even the boys