What Do You Teach? K-5 librarian
How Long Have You Been Teaching? This is my 26th year teaching (all in GCCISD). I was a classroom teacher for 10 years and am on my 16th year in the library.
How Does Educational Technology Play a Role in Your Classroom? Educational technology plays a role in the library by strengthening learning, literacy, and engagement. It takes the library from being just a place to check out books, to a place where students are involved in digital literacy, creativity, and research. While in the library students are able to explore online resources like Britannica School and PebbleGo, access eBooks through platforms like BookFLIX and Storyline Online, engage in their learning using a tool such as Kahoot, and exhibit their creativity by using one of my all-time favorites, Canva.
How Do You Find Technology in the Classroom Helpful? Technology in the library is helpful for the same reasons it plays a role in the library. It can support classroom learning, teach students digital skills and digital etiquette, and allow students to highlight their creativity in ways that time may not permit in the classroom. Students are very technology-based so it only makes sense to reinforce this in the library.
What Is Your Favorite Piece of Classroom Technology? Why? My favorite technology that I use in the library is the Sphero Bolt robots. The students look forward to the second semester because that's usually when I get them out to use. The students who have experience with them from previous years usually ask pretty early on in the school year, "When are we going to do those robot things?" Oddly enough I was nervous to use them when we first received them. I don't think I used them for the first 2 years. Now I don't think the students would let me get away with not using them!
What Do You Love Most About Teaching? I love being a librarian because it's a different environment than the classroom, and I'm able to do things in the library that teachers don't usually have time for in the classroom. Sometimes we do library-related lessons like learning how books are organized in the library (Yes, Dewey is still alive in the library!), sometimes we do technology lessons, and sometimes the students complete team challenges just as a break from the norm. One of my main goals is to create a welcoming and safe environment that students and teachers feel comfortable in. I cherish having the ability to do a variety of lessons that the students can enjoy and learn from and hopefully the teachers feel like it was a benefit to pause their Bluebonnet curriculum for 15-30 minutes to come to the library. I love to read, and I want students to love to read, but that's not what the library is all about to me. There are so many other possibilities to be explored in the library and my goal is to take the students along for that journey!
Nominated by Allison Alvarez: "Mrs. Albright is an incredible librarian who always finds creative ways to engage her students with technology when they visit the library. Mrs. Albright uses technology with intentionality and is focused on making learning exciting and meaningful. Whether students are coding, exploring with Sphero robots, or diving into lessons through gamification, she creates an environment where they’re actively learning and having fun. Her passion for digital learning and dedication to her students make her the perfect choice for Ed Tech Star of the Month!"