Teens and Technology @ The Independence Public Library

The Oregon Trail and other Classics

2012-02-08T11:25:00.001-08:00

When I was in school we would all gather around the computer in the back of the classroom and play Oregon Trail and Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

Now everyone can relive my childhood at virtualapple.org. You can enjoy classic educational games like the above or if you just want to play games and steer clear of the “book learnin’s” there are plenty of games like that too!

Upcoming Wii Tournament

2011-12-01T16:01:00.001-08:00

On December 27th at 3:30 come to the 2nd floor meeting room and see if you are the best of the best at Brawl, Tennis, or mario kart! Test yourself against other kids and maybe even see if you can beat me!

National Gaming Day

2011-11-05T11:05:00.001-07:00

National Gaming Day is November 12th. Come to the library and join us as we compete with library users across the United States in a Brawl tournament of epic proportions!

The fun starts at noon, there will be food, board games, wii, and computer games! You won’t want to miss this!

Wii Returning to the Library

2011-05-17T09:57:00.000-07:00

Starting in June every Tuesday at 1:00 we will be playing wii in the teen area on the third floor. Stop by and play some of your favorite games!

Teen Summer Reading Program

2011-04-30T13:07:00.001-07:00

This is going to be the first year for a summer reading program for TEENS like you. Be sure and talk to Haley Dunn about signing up at the Summer Reading kick off event on May 27th! Keep an eye out for fun events and read some good books!

Alborada: South American Folk Music

2011-04-19T13:00:00.000-07:00

Do you want to see some people rocking out with authentic handmade South American Instruments? Then you don’t want to miss Alborada at 7pm on May 9th!

Wii Wednesdays are Wii Tuesdays now!

2011-03-31T10:12:00.001-07:00

We will no longer be having Wii on Wednesdays and will instead have them on the 1st and 4th Tuesday of each month. Keep an eye out on the teen calendar for more fun programs you can participate in!

Movies at the Library

2011-03-22T08:45:00.001-07:00

We will be showing the movie Tangled on May 26th at 4PM Be sure and stop by for a great movie and a snack!

Cool Music Site

2011-02-23T09:16:00.001-08:00

Last.fm is a great website where you can find and listen to music. You can see what’s popular then find similar artists and make your own radio station to play the music you like! It’s easy to use and a great way to listen to some tunes while you play games, check your facebook or even while you are doing your homework!

Spring Break!

2011-02-23T08:38:00.001-08:00

The library has a bunch of fun events for teens planned during spring break. We will kick it all off with a Wii tournament on March 18th at 3:30. On Tuesday the 22nd we will play some computer games in the computer lab at 3:30. On Wednesday we will have another Wii tournament at 3:30. We will cap it all off with a movie at 3:30 on Friday.

Connect the Dots

2011-02-12T10:00:00.001-08:00

This is a cool website where you can upload a photo and create your own connect the dots puzzle. I made one with this photo of trixie.

Check it out.

Isle Of Tune

2011-01-28T08:58:00.001-08:00

Here’s a new game that I’m sure is going to be making waves soon. Isle of Tune is a game where you build roads to make music. As cars drive by various things on the roads a note or sound is played. I can’t wait to see what people do with this right now this is the only video on youtube but it showcases the potential for awesome this game has.

Isle of tune is free to play on your computer and is coming soon to the apple application store.

Looking For a Good Book?

2011-01-21T08:45:00.001-08:00

I don’t know about you guys but sometimes I have trouble finding a good book to read. Here’s a great site for you to find books and series to try. check it out.

Make your own cartoons

2011-01-05T15:44:00.001-08:00

Julie the library director shared this on her facebook. Go! Animate is a website where you can design your own characters cartoons and settings then share them on youtube. Check it out.

Animation Station

2010-12-03T08:18:00.001-08:00

Next week on Wednesday the 8th we will be having Animation Station. We will be going through a tutorial about drawing hands, having some free draw time then watching some Avatar. If you are interested in drawing, anime, or just want to watch some Avatar come to the 2nd floor at 3:30!

Neat Website

2010-11-18T13:56:00.001-08:00

Here’s a really neat website where you can make e-cards and more, just upload some pics and you can have your friends put on a performance. Post some in the comments.

The library is haunted?

2010-10-13T08:58:00.001-07:00

Have you heard rumors about the library being haunted? People who work and live around the library have reported hearing strange sounds and seeing ghostly apparitions. We even have a paranormal team out of Joplin coming to investigate the library! They are going to stay the night in our spooky library, do you think you could stay the night in the library?

If you are interested in ghosts, and ghost hunting come to our Haunted Libraries program on Thursday, October 14th at 7:00PM.

Make your own slideshow

2010-10-13T08:51:00.001-07:00

Hey guys have you ever had a bunch of pictures you wanna show off on your facebook, or myspace? Here’s a neat way to do it.

Create a Free Slideshow

Sign up for an account upload your pictures, pick music and add captions all in an easy to use and free interface. Check it out!

Animation Station

2010-09-08T08:43:00.001-07:00

Here’s a neat site we are going to use now and then in Animation Station it allows you to create your own movies just by typing up a script.

Here’s one I made this morning.

That young man wasn’t very polite to that gentleman was he? :(

Animation Station

2010-08-04T13:24:00.001-07:00

Are you interested in anime and animation? Starting in September on the 2nd Tuesday of each month we will meet to watch anime, learn about computer animation, drawing, and more! Be sure and check it out.

Free Music Site

2010-07-06T09:48:00.001-07:00

Do you like music?

Do you like free stuff?

If you like one or both of these things you are going to love grooveshark.

With grooveshark you can search for music listen to it and make your own custom playlists then share it.

Upcoming Wii Events

2010-06-25T08:15:00.001-07:00

Every month we have two Wii Free play sessions. In July drop by the library on the 7th or the 28th at 3:30 for some fun and games. If you are lucky I might let you beat me at Smash Brothers.

I also have some great news: The Friends of the Independence Public Library have given us the funds to buy some new games! If you are skilled at Mario Kart or Brawl keep your eyes peeled because I think there will be a Smashcart tournament sometime soon!

Cool online game

2010-06-16T07:56:00.001-07:00

I found this pretty neat text based online game called Kingdom of Loathing. It has a quirky sense of humor with some weird classes and abilities; however, it is a blast! You level up by fighting monsters like Smart Skeletons, Beanbats, and Accountant Goblins. Everyday you get a set amount of adventures you can use up fighting these creatures or exploring dungeons so you can’t play it for hours and hours on end like I’ve seen people play games like Runescape but if you are looking for a quick daily timewaster I’ve found none better. Check it out!

Schools out for Summer

2010-05-28T15:57:00.000-07:00

Are you guys coming to the cool summer program sponsored by the Friends and Marisa Fritzmeier? There's going to be fun crafts, awesome programs and maybe we'll even get to rock out a bit in rock band.

Also be sure and sign up for the summer reading program, just talk to Blinn in childrens to get your contract, if you finish it you get to come to a school swimming party!

Why I love my hometown

2010-04-28T08:19:00.001-07:00

Check out our new blog! The Independence Public library has started an initiative to film people talking about their hometown, gather stories, art and photographs then combine them into a virtual memory book. If you are interested in contributing let us know. Here’s our first video.

Library Snapshot Day

2010-04-20T10:50:00.001-07:00

Snapshot Day was a great success here at the Independence Public Library. On Tuesday, April 13th we had 315 people visit the library, they checked out 491 items, and 85 of them used the public computers. Throughout the day we had people using the library fill out surveys with what they were doing at the library. We had a great response with lots of wonderful comments. I used the surveys to create a Wordle. The bigger the words are on the Wordle the more prominent the answer was in the surveys!

In the afternoon I decided to document what the staff were working on during Library Snapshot Day. This resulted in a funny little video that kind of gives you an insight into the daily life of the staff of the Independence Public Library.

This morning I took the pictures we photographed throughout the day and uploaded them to Picasa. I then used created a slideshow of all the pictures check it out! There’s a really neat collage at the end I made with Picasa that features all of the photos.

Snapshot Day was a lot of fun. At the end of the day staff shared stories, read the comments on the surveys and looked at the pictures that we had taken throughout the day. Post in the comments and let us know why you visit your library, we’d love to hear from you!

Library Snapshot Day

2010-04-13T10:30:00.001-07:00

Today is Library Snapshot day. Library Snapshot Day provides a way for libraries of all types across a state, region, system or community to show what happens in a single day in their libraries. What are you doing in the library today? I bet a lot of you are checking your facebook or playing games, but I hope some of you are working on homework!. Fill out some of the forms scattered around the library and let us know!

April Fools Jokes

2010-04-01T13:14:00.001-07:00

Have you found any fun April Fool’s Jokes online? Here’s one of my favorites so far.

To find out more about Google’s Name change click here!

New Moon @ IPL

2010-03-13T07:54:00.001-08:00

Come to the Independence Public Library Saturday, March 20th at 12:00 for a Pizza Party and the libraries premiere of New Moon! There will be Pizza Soda and other goodies! You won’t want to miss out!

We will also be showing The Princess and Frog on Friday, March 19th at Noon, be sure and drop in for some pizza and good movies!

Spring Break @ The Library

2010-03-05T11:27:00.001-08:00

We have quite a few fun things planned during spring break, we’ll kick the party off with the movie Imagine That at 3:30 on Friday March 12th.

On Tuesday the 16th and Wednesday the 17th at 1:30 we will be having Wii Tournaments so be sure and drop in and show off your skills.

Finally on March 19th at 3:30 we will be showing the movie Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.

Teen Video @ The Library

2010-02-26T09:08:00.001-08:00

Haley interviewed some of you for a short video about Teens in our library check it out!

If you are interested in making some videos in the library let us know we would be happy to help!

Do you like Tv and Movies?

2010-02-18T09:57:00.001-08:00

If you do you are sure to love Hulu. It’s easy to get an account and once you do you’ll have access to the latest episodes of hundreds of shows, some shows even have the entire series. And it’s not just your typical shows if you like anime you can watch One Piece, Naruto, and Bleach on Hulu!

Hone Your Typing Skills While You Fight Ninjas!

2010-02-16T11:36:00.001-08:00

I found this neat typing game on a blog I read. You are a ninja defending your temple and as rival ninjas attack you have to type the word above their heads to defeat them. You get special powers and after every round you can buy upgrades! Check it out if you wanna get better at typing while slicing up some ninjas.

Homework Help Online

2010-02-11T14:39:00.001-08:00

Are you having trouble with homework? Get help with anything from long division to help with grammar and science at http://www.homeworkkansas.org/. Remember homework help is just a click away. If you have trouble connecting to the website talk to us we are here to help. :)

Saturdays @ IPL

2010-02-04T16:07:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder the Independence Public Library will once again be open on Saturdays starting this weekend. If you are sitting at home bored wondering what to do, well wonder no more, just drop by the library and use one of our computers, read a book, or just hang out. (quietly of course) Remember if you need more time on the computers just ask someone at the front desk or drop by my office.

Keep an eye out for fun new Saturday programs!

New Look, New Library Hours, More Teen Programs.

2010-02-03T13:15:00.001-08:00

Hey guys I’m trying out a new look for the blog let me know what you think in the comments. I’m fairly happy with the look.
Starting this week the Library has new hours:

Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday 10:00 – 6:00
Thursday 10:00 – 8:00
Saturday 10:00 – 4:00
Closed Sunday and Monday

We are also going to start having Wii twice a month instead of once a month. So swing on by from 3:30-5:30 on the first and third Wednesdays. You better bring your game though because I’m getting pretty darn good at Smash Brothers.

Library Cat

2010-02-02T15:37:00.001-08:00

Hey guys have you noticed a cat around the library? I sure have, well don’t be alarmed she’s the Library Cat and her Name is Trixie. She even has a blog!

Upcoming Programs at the Library

2010-01-19T08:44:00.000-08:00

On January 24th and on February 3rd and the 24th we will be having Wii Free Play after School. Drop on by to play some Smash Brothers Brawl and Guitar Hero we now have a Drum Set :).

I'm also going to post a poll asking what your favorite types of programs are be sure and let me know!

Upcoming Events at the Library

2009-10-06T11:43:00.000-07:00

Come on out to the Park Tuesday night for some spooky stories told by storyteller Rosie Cutrer. You will not want to miss this, be sure and bring a donation to AWOL to help out some cool cats and dogs.

Twilight Book Discussion and Costume Party in the Young Adult Area, Thursday, October 8th at 7:00. Werewolves and vampires are welcome but the Librarians are NOT dinner.

Instrument Petting Zoo

2009-06-09T09:43:00.000-07:00

I cut together this film with some footage Mr. Blinn took at the Instrument Petting Zoo. It looks like everyone had a great time! Were you there?

If you are interested in making videos or video taping library events let me know in the comments or just drop by my office.

Summer Movies @ IPL

2009-06-03T08:52:00.000-07:00

The Independence Public Library currently has 5 summer movies planned starting on Friday, June 5th.

Friday, June 5th @ 2:30 PM, Rated PG.

Friday, June 26th @ 2:30 PM, Rated G.

Friday, July 3rd @ 2:30 PM, Rated G.

Friday, July 17th @ 2:30 PM, Rated G.

Friday, July 31st @ 2:30 PM, Rated PG.

You won't want to miss these great movies. Come have a rollicking good time at the Independence Public Library with food, fun, and friends.

End of School Bash

2009-05-06T09:19:00.000-07:00

The end of school bash is coming featuring a live band, a pizza party and lots of fun, be sure to head to the Independence Public Library on Thursday, May 21st bring your friends, bring your family and bring your appetite for fun and pizza! The program will start at 5:30.

Keep your eyes peeled for lots of fun in the sun summer programs and get your reading glasses on the summer reading program is just around the corner!

Earth Day 2009

2009-04-22T07:36:00.000-07:00

Today is Earth Day a day to respect nature, help clean up the earth and generally enjoy the outdoors. What are you planning to do on earth day?

If you don't have any plans there will be an event after school here at the Independence Public Library check it out!

We will be pulling weeds, cleaning up around the library, and maybe planting a garden.

New Contest

2009-03-31T08:34:00.000-07:00

Hey guys it's about time I posted a new contest, the winners of the last contest won extra time on the computer. Who knows what you will win this time.

All you have to do is play this classic online game and post in the comments with the highest level you reached. The only requirements are having a card at the Independence Public Library and having fun!

NASA Educator's Ambassador Neta Apple @ IPL

2009-03-20T09:00:00.000-07:00

Last night for the Visions of the Universe Event we had a wonderful speaker come to the Independence Public Library to talk about space.

Neta Apple gave a presentation about telescopes, black holes, and much much more. Here is just a small part of the presentation.

Out of this World Adventures @ IPL

2009-03-19T09:36:00.000-07:00

Tonight at 7 pm here at the Independence Public Library we will be having an out of this world speaker talking about NASA and other cool space things for our Visions of the Universe program. You don't want to miss this awesome program tell your family about it and bring em all.

If you haven't checked out the space exhibit you are running out of time, next Thursday it is out of here. Be sure and check it out and pick up some free space themed bookmarks, stickers and pictures in the 2nd floor gallery.

Teen Made, Teen Played Movies.

2009-03-13T15:43:00.000-07:00

Tonight we had our premiere and debuted the great movies our teens made here at the Independence Public Library. I think a lot of fun was had and the teens are excited to make even more videos.

The Teens used our Flip Video camcorders, Windows Movie Maker, and CamStudio software to make these films, we all learned quite a bit and ideas are already forming for follow up videos. Without further ado here are the videos!

If you were not able to participate in our Teen Made, Teen Played videos don't fret we will be doing this again.

Another Cool Youtube Video

2009-03-12T09:52:00.001-07:00

This video is making the rounds this week.

It's really a cool concept, it's commonly called a mashup the best way I can describe this is a video collage. This guy took it a step further actually mixing it into a funk song.

Teen Tech Week Update

2009-03-12T09:46:00.001-07:00

Teen Tech Week is going well, we have three videos shaping up and they should be ready by Friday.

One video is going to be a runescape music video, another is a guitar hero video, and finally two girls made a news show complete with interviews. I can't wait to see all of these come together. Tonight is the last night for editing our films and remember the party will be tomorrow at 1:00 here at the Independence Public Library. Friends and family are invited to see the 5:00 premiere.

Teen Made, Teen Played Begins

2009-03-04T14:49:00.000-08:00

Our first meeting for the Teen Made, Teen Played 5 minute movie shorts just ended, there were a ton of really great ideas! We have some creative kids here at the Independence Public Library I'm impressed.

One group of kids is thinking about doing a scary movie featuring zombies in the library, as many people know I'm a huge fan of ~~killing~~ zombies, some people say I shouldn't worry about zombies but then they haven't read the book. I have and let me tell you zombies bite.

A few other kids mentioned doing How-To Videos focused on video games, these should be fun I know kids (and a certain librarian) love games!

There was also some thoughts to doing a movie based on a book or some scenes from a movie.

I can't wait to see what they do, and there's still time to get involved our next get together is this Friday but if you are interested in the program just come talk to me anytime.

March Movie Madness @ IPL

2009-03-03T08:08:00.000-08:00

Not only are we making our own movies via the five minute movie project, but the Independence Public Library has five movies they are showing in March, many of them have a space theme to go along with the Visions of the Universe event.

We kick off March Movie Madness at 3:30 today Tuesday, March 3rd with Space Chimps. Space Chimps is about a crew of primates who fly through a wormhole in space to combat an evil dictator.

On Thursday, March 5th head on up to the meeting room at 7:00 to watch a great space program from the History Channel. You will learn about some of the many mysteries in space and sky shattering space collisions!

The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy will be shown on Wednesday, March 17th at 3:30. Don't miss this hilarious space adventure based on an even better book.

Finally on Tuesday, March 24th at 3:30 we will be showing the new film City of Ember. City of Ember is the tale of a secret underground city based on a book by Jeanne Duprau. If you like the movie be sure and check out the book.

The Cameras Have Arrived!

2009-03-03T07:33:00.000-08:00

Three more cameras for our Teen Tech Week Program have arrived! Here's a pic of them in their neat ordered boxes....and here's a pic of the cameras after they were unpacked, we now have three 30 minute cameras and one 60 minute camera for the program.
The first day is this Wednesday after school, show up with all your great ideas so we can kick off Teen Tech Week with a bang!

Teen Tech Week is Coming

2009-02-25T08:45:00.001-08:00

Hey check out this kickin' rad poster Julie made for Teen Tech Week!
Teen Tech Week is just around the corner keep an eye out for this poster popping up in your school. Don't be suprised to see Lona in your homeroom talking about it either!

About those Movies

2009-02-25T08:34:00.001-08:00

While we are talking about movies, what are your favorite TV shows or movies?

Personally I'm ~~kind of~~ a nerd so I really like superhero movies, over the Christmas Break I watched a lot of super hero movies My favorite one was Iron Man. I also really like to watch movies based on books, it's fun to compare the book and the movie although in my opinion the books are almost always better!

I'm really looking forward to the new season of South Park coming in March, I've always been a fan of South Park I like to say it's because they deal with current events in a funny way but it might be the crude jokes. :) What sort of TV Shows do you like to watch?

Cool Game!

2009-02-18T12:42:00.000-08:00

Hey,

Check out this cool game, there are 40+ levels of pyromaniac fun including some secret levels you only unlock by acing a level.

Register and post the highest level you reached in the comments to be entered into a random drawing to win a prize!
You must be a patron of the Independence Public Library to win.

Some Windows Movie Maker Tutorials

2009-02-18T11:06:00.000-08:00

A basic tutorial in how to use Window's Movie Maker.

Neat Ghost Effect

Cloning, Split Screen, and Picture in Picture

Green Screen in Windows Movie maker the website he is talking about is here

Youtube is full of helpful videos for doing cool effects in Windows Movie Maker, I found all of these by just searching for Windows Movie Maker.

Haunting of a Library

2009-02-18T09:32:00.000-08:00

The Albany Public Library in New York did a project like this for their computer camp check it out.

Celebrate Teen Tech Week @ IPL

2009-02-18T08:02:00.001-08:00

Hey guys, do you like movies, and video games? If so you are going to love Teen Tech Week. Starting in March we are going to have a 3 week event focused on movies, video games and more!

The first two weeks in March you will be making 5 minute movie shorts. We will break up into groups and use Flip Video Cameras, Windows Movie Maker and a few other neat programs to make our own movies. These movies are limited only by your imagination and can be anything from a thrilling tale of adventure fighting aliens in the library to a simple reading of your favorite book. You guys will be everything from the sound mixer to the director in these films so be sure to bring your great ideas! We plan to cap off the first two weeks with a pizza party, wii games and finally a showing of your films!

Don't forget to stop in @ IPL during Spring Break we are going to be hosting Wii tournaments and a few movies! Winners will recieve an extra hour on the computer so polish up your mad gaming skills and be ready to compete in Bowling, Tennis and Brawl!

The schedule for Teen Tech Week is located on the side of this blog and also on our website.

Teens and Technology @ The Independence Public Library

The Oregon Trail and other Classics

Upcoming Wii Tournament

National Gaming Day

Wii Returning to the Library

Teen Summer Reading Program

Alborada: South American Folk Music

Wii Wednesdays are Wii Tuesdays now!

Movies at the Library

Cool Music Site

Spring Break!

Connect the Dots

Isle Of Tune

Looking For a Good Book?

Make your own cartoons

Animation Station

Neat Website

The library is haunted?

Make your own slideshow

Animation Station

Animation Station

Free Music Site

Upcoming Wii Events

Cool online game

Schools out for Summer

Why I love my hometown

Library Snapshot Day

Library Snapshot Day

April Fools Jokes

New Moon @ IPL

Spring Break @ The Library

Teen Video @ The Library

Do you like Tv and Movies?

Hone Your Typing Skills While You Fight Ninjas!

Homework Help Online

Saturdays @ IPL

New Look, New Library Hours, More Teen Programs.

Library Cat

Upcoming Programs at the Library

Upcoming Events at the Library

Instrument Petting Zoo

Summer Movies @ IPL

End of School Bash

Earth Day 2009

New Contest

NASA Educator's Ambassador Neta Apple @ IPL

Out of this World Adventures @ IPL

Teen Made, Teen Played Movies.

Another Cool Youtube Video

Teen Tech Week Update

Teen Made, Teen Played Begins

March Movie Madness @ IPL

The Cameras Have Arrived!

Teen Tech Week is Coming

About those Movies

More Cool Youtube Videos

Cool Game!

Some Windows Movie Maker Tutorials

Haunting of a Library

Celebrate Teen Tech Week @ IPL