“I Didn’t Have My Students’ Attention…But Now I Do!”

I admit it, I am spoiled! As an elementary library media specialist, I’ve been used to scheduling storytimes, sharing a favorite story with students as they check out books, and working together with students as they research new projects. That was until two years ago when our school received a “Reading First” grant. Since then, library time has been relegated to classes checking out books on a fifteen-minute schedule every four days. I could not get their attention; much less hold it, because we had to hurry!

Then along came the GaETC Conference 2007 and a concurrent session called “If you don’t have the students’ attention, they aren’t learning!” Shaun Owen was the spotlighted speaker. Hmmm…maybe this was worth checking out! From her introduction to her closing statements, Ms. Owen was non-stop! Through her use of a digital projector, a computer, and several dynamic PowerPoint presentations, Ms. Owen showed how she transformed her students into avid learners. I thought to myself, I have a computer, a digital projector, and I know how to make a PowerPoint presentation…I can do this!

My idea…to make a fast-paced presentation that would continuously loop while the students checked out their library books. The presentation would include music (I found a killer song by DMC about reading from Reading Rainbow!), short book reviews, author facts, some funny cartoons or photographs, a bit of trivia…anything related to books, libraries, and reading. I admit, the first presentation took longer to create than I thought it would, but after that it was easy to go back and plug-in different authors, books, etc. and to rearrange them in different orders so the students wouldn’t think it was the same old presentation.

The first rotation did not go so well, there was a lot of talking and moving around. The next time the students came to the library, I announced I would ask questions randomly about the slideshow before they left and, yes, there would be a treat for correct answers! Success…well, at least they were quieter. However, the real success came when I noticed they were checking out books by the featured authors, using research skills to find the answer to the trivia questions, and looking for the spotlighted books! Finally, I had their attention and they were learning!!

Ms. Owen was right. In our fast-paced world, it is easy to be distracted and bored. Students are used to more visual cues and stimuli. I found that by implementing an alternative learning style, fostered by Ms. Owens’ presentation, I reach students more effectively during their limited time in the library. Thank you, Ms. Owen!!

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