Final Presentation for Field Study Course LBSC744

1. REFLECTIONS ON MY FIELD
STUDY EXPERIENCES
Melissa McDonald
LBSC 744

2. A Comparison: vs
Ballou Senior High School Somerset Elementary School
District of Columbia Public Schools Montgomery County Public Schools

3. Ballou Senior High Somerset Elementary
School School*
Enrollment 1100 509
Black 98% <5%
Hispanic 1% 7.7%
White 1% 72.5%
Asian 0% 11%
FARMS 80% <5%
Special Education 22% <5%
ESOL 0% 9.4%
Budget $0 Approx $12/student
Library Schedule Flexible Fixed
*summer school enrollment = 59
students and ESOL population
approximately 30%

4. Ballou Senior High School
3401 4th Street SE, Washington DC

5. Ballou Senior HS
Campus

6. Ballou, a documentary film
Members of the Ballou Senior High
School Marching Band rise above their
violence-filled Washington, D.C.,
neighborhood in this documentary,
which follows the group as they try to
achieve their dream of winning the
national marching band competition.
Inspired by their tireless director,
Darrell Watson, and helped by a
dedicated team of volunteers, the
musical teens put their heads, hearts
and souls into making the band the
best it can be.
www.balloumovie.com
http://www.snagfilms.com/films/title/ballou
gardenthieves.com

7. Ballou in Pictures
Animoto Video (click on logo)
http://animoto.com/play/mZMBcRaE0PU1tfb0Mht5Ow

8. Librarian Led Activities
 Slam Poetry Club
 Chess Club
 Book Club
 Animé Club

9. Dedicated Librarian
Sponsor of the After-School Research Lab

10. Resourceful Librarian
Resume Writing
Workshop with
volunteers from
Howard University

11. My Collaborative Project
Honors English 10: Genocide Research Project
Presented:
Summary of project:
•AGOPPE Research Method using
Prezi Presentation After reading Night by Elie Wiesel and
•Created Student Research excerpts from Salvaged Pages by
Packet Alexandra Zapruder (followed by an
author visit), and studying World War II,
•Demo’d access to online data the students will have a solid
bases background in the history of the
•Research steps vertical Poster for Holocaust. This culminating project
the LMC will be to demonstrate the knowledge
they have gained about the Holocaust
through a comparison of the Holocaust
with modern genocide.

12. My LMC Presentations
YALSA Teen Tech Week:
•Technology Book Display
•Cyberbullying PPT
AGOPPE Research Method:
•Prezi Presentation
•Vertical Poster with Steps

13. Read Across America Day
In the spirit of Read
Across America Day and
Dr. Suess’ Birthday, we:
 Invited the toddlers
in for a storytime;
Handed out red,
handwritten “I love to
read” stickers to the
students;
Distributed free
books to students
during lunch;
Walked around
school catching staff &
students reading;

14. Somerset Elementary School
5811 Warwick Place, Chevy Chase (Town of Somerset), MD

15. Somerset
Elementary
School
Created using
Google Map
Maker

16. Somerset in Pictures
Animoto Video (click on
the mascot banner
below) or URL:
http://animoto.com/pla
y/QuGyYgsZhUgvzYybc
eER4g

17. Black-Eyed Susan Displays

18. My Collaborative Projects
Grades 2& 3 English Class Computer Class
Objective:  Objective:
 By the end of the lesson,  By the end of the lesson,
students will to be able to students will to be able to
identify traits of a folk tale, identify steps of the
and to compare and AGOPPE research method,
contrast two or more access online databases,
versions of the folk tale and take proper notes for
‘Jack and the Beanstalk’ research project.
using a Venn diagram.

19. My PowerPoint Presentations
Tips to Make a Great
PowerPoint Presentation
Goldie Socks and the Three by Ms . Me lis s a McDonald
Libearians
S chool Library Me dia S pe cialis t
Written by
Jackie Mims Hopkins
&
Illustrated by
John Manders
RESEARCH METHOD
WHAT ARE THE NAMES OF THESE
FOLK TALES?
Reading & Information Literacy Warm-up

20. Student PowerPoint Presentations
By: Eléa Cahuet

21. Collaboration: Lessons Learned
English Computer
 Make sure to check with  Make sure that you
teacher about the lesson remember who your
they will be teaching, and audience is and create
not assume they will be lessons and presentations
following the curriculum to that grade level
 Always be prepared with a  Can’t remind students
back-up lesson! enough to cite their
sources!

22. Strengths & Weaknesses of LMC Program
Strengths Weaknesses
 Media Specialist caring &  Ballou- Super Librarian and
dedicated to staff, collaborative in many ways,
students, and parents the actual circulation of
books was very low, and she
had no collection
 Ballou – administration
very supportive, just little development policy
money for LMC program
 At Somerset, the summer
 Collections met the needs school administration did not
of each community understand the significance
of the LMC program

23. My Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths Weaknesses
From my initial reflection:  Still learning the word
 Curiosity “NO”
 Creativity
 Take on more
 Determination responsibilities than I
 Willingness to Do What it Takes to Get the need to or should
Job Done (Resourceful)
After my field studies, add:
 Sense of Humor
 Keep Trying Till I Get it Right, but Know
When to Seek Help
 Advocate for the Under Dog

24. For More Information:
Check out my LiveBinder:
http://www.livebinders.com/edit/index/303047
Access Key: lbsc744

25. Questions or Comments?
One last thought … from actress Helen Hayes:
“From parents you learn
love and laughter and how
to put one foot in front of
the other. But when books
are opened you discover
you have wings.”

26. References:
District of Columbia Public Schools
Ballou Senior High School Profile
http://profiles.dcps.dc.gov/Ballou+High+School
Montgomery County Public Schools
Somerset Elementary - School at a Glance 2011-2012
http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/regulatoryaccountabilit
y/glance/currentyear/schools/02405.pdf
All photography by Melissa McDonald unless otherwise noted.