How can the school library gain social media standing with the student body and the school community? Using videos of course. Not all library videos serve the same purpose, some videos are informational and/or educational showing students how to use the library, the catalog, how to check-out, or turn in books. Other videos are fun and catchy by way of parodies on pop culture songs or movies. They either remind students to turn in their books or to come to the library. These videos remind the school community that it is an important resource. Here are some examples.
Instructional/Educational
Need to learn how to use the library? This video provides a lot of useful step-by-step screencast about how to get started with logging into the website.
Downloading images from the web is always a hot topic. This video is important to students who constantly download images from the Internet. It explains what type of images are ok to retrieve. It points out four categories of guidelines for using images in Creative Commons.
Need peer motivation from other students. This video is a motivational talk from past students to freshman at the high school. It gives important information about keeping grades up and looking ahead to the future.
This video is important to media students. It gives a brief overview of how to use Tricaster for recording live shows. It also gives everyone else a good impression of the behind the scenes of live television such as the news.
Eye-Catching Videos
Get the school mascot involved. This is useful to remind students of how to use the library at orientation or at the beginning of the year.
Show library service outreach. This video shows how students return books and a librarian checks out books to students in the cafeteria during the lunch period.
Showcase library programs. The title is catchy. This video slideshow is about a program it had for students when it invited Sugar Gang Hill to perform live on YouTube. The students look interested in the event.
Remind students to turn-in books. This video is a parody of a Star Wars scene that has been dubbed over to show how the library will get its books back.
QR CODES
Another way to gain traction is by creating a quick response (QR) code to promote the videos. Consider creating a campaign for a book trailer. Let's take the one I created for Erika L. Sanchez’s I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican American Daughter.
I would use a QR code for the trailer and another for the book review. I could post them to the school’s library website, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter accounts. Students would see this:
BOOK CAMPAIGN
I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter
4.03 · Rating details · 26,603 ratings · 4,382 reviews
Perfect Mexican daughters do not go away to college. And they do not move out of their parents’ house after high school graduation. Perfect Mexican daughters never abandon their family. But Julia is not your perfect Mexican daughter. That was Olga’s role. Then a tragic accident on the busiest street in Chicago leaves Olga dead and Julia left behind to reassemble the shattered pieces of her family. And no one seems to acknowledge that Julia is broken, too. Instead, her mother seems to channel her grief into pointing out every possible way Julia has failed. But it’s not long before Julia discovers that Olga might not have been as perfect as everyone thought. With the help of her best friend Lorena, and her first kiss, first love, first everything boyfriend Connor, Julia is determined to find out. Was Olga really what she seemed? Or was there more to her sister’s story? And either way, how can Julia even attempt to live up to a seemingly impossible ideal? -- goodreads
This campaign would generate interest in this book, leading to frequent checkout and holds for this title. I would also have a group of similar book suggestions while students wait for this title to become available.
SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER QR CODE USE
The use of QR codes doesn’t have to stop here. Consider these suggestions:
A QR code table of pathfinders for topics such as poetry, presidents day, or any topic that would support the curriculum.
QR codes for a library scavenger hunt so that they can learn the Dewey Decimal System.
QR codes for videos or ebooks related to maker space topics.
QR codes for read-aloud posted on the inside cover of the books (suitable for the younger students).
QR codes to book trailers or book reviews attached to the books.
QR codes for library procedures.
I hope you found these suggestions useful. Comment below and tell me how your library uses videos and QR codes.
We coincidentally chose two of the same videos. I was impressed by the Tricaster. I now have a better idea of the behind-the-scene happenings in TV shows.
I also liked the idea of having the school mascot visit the library. Not only do we need this visit at the beginning of the school year, but often times.