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E d Te c h S h o w D a i l y W e d n e s d a y, F e b r u a r y 4 , 2 0 1 5 2 0 BUILD YOUR EBOOK COLLECTION WITH FUNDS4BOOKS & EBOOKS Every day, librarians across the country face slashed budgets and aging collec- tions, striving to keep their libraries and their jobs relevant in a changing techno- logical and educational environment. Although there is a lot to learn, and even more to teach, consider the exciting opportunity this new electronic world is providing for today's librarians. With MackinVIA, Mackin's free online platform for electronic resources, librarians now have access to hundreds of thousands of eBooks, audiobooks and databases. By acquiring, managing and instructing students and staff on how to use these new electronic materials, librar- ians can once again return the academic focus of schools to the library, and align with classrooms to improve and expand learning possibilities for students. Mackin's Funds4Books & eBooks, an innovative online donation program, is an easy and fun way for librarians to raise money to purchase eBooks and databases. With Funds4Books & eBooks, librarians receive 100 percent of all funds raised to spend on anything from Mackin. Whether building a new eBook collection or expanding the library's cur- rent digital offerings, this unique fundraising program gives librarians the ability to strengthen their libraries and provide students with the materials they need to succeed in today's world of digi- tal learning. Within the Funds4Books & eBooks department at Mackin, the compa- ny works with librar- ians to prepare for and manage these campaigns. Together, they create and tailor promotional materi- als to advertise the fundraiser, design a custom webpage where individual and corporate donors can contribute to the campaign, and plan how the funds will be used to benefit the library. Mackin then customizes the campaign with any goal you have in mind, such as acquiring pop- ular fiction eBooks for students, purchas- ing multi-user nonfiction eBooks for classrooms, adding audiobooks to the mix or getting more databases to facili- tate student research. Funds4Books & eBooks is also a great way to raise money to update or add new print books to your collection – all delivered, shelf-ready, for free. Whatever your objective, a qualified rep- resentative at Mackin is always available to help with ideas, suggestions or contributions whenever needed. To date, nearly 600 schools have already participated in Mackin's Funds4Books & eBooks, with hundreds of thousands of dollars raised and returned to libraries to spend on the mate- rials they need. If you are interested in running a Funds4Books & eBooks cam- paign, or would like more information, call 800.245.9540 or email info@funds4books.com. Visit Mackin at booth #311. For more information, visit www.mackin.com, call 800.245.9540 or email mackin@mackin.com. HELPING THE RELUCTANT WRITER WITH PEG WRITING What do you do for the kid in your class (or the one sitting at your dining room table) who stares up at the clock looking for inspiration that doesn't seem to be coming? How does that student get to write that first true sentence? There are several strategies you can pull out of your bag of tricks to help a student transform into a capable, fluent writer. Break the task down. What is the most important thing you want to write about? The second most important thing? And so on. Students can use one of the dozens of graphic organizers in PEG Writing to brainstorm, organize their thoughts and break down the task of writ- ing so that it is less intimidating. A picture is worth a thousand words. For some students, a picture prompt may better serve as inspiration than a written prompt would. With a picture, the student can describe details in and/or absent from the scene according to their task. Either way, the door is opened for the student to write. Teachers can create custom prompts in PEG Writing and attach images and other stimulus material that can motivate the student in ways that a traditional prompt would not. Encourage students to write about what they know and to use details effec- tively to describe a process or scene. The prompt "What I Did on My Summer Vacation" may not engage the reluctant writer because it is too broad. The result may be something like, "We went to the beach and had fun. The End." However, "What Happened When My Sister Touched the Starfish" allows the student to provide rich descriptions of memorable events. The more specific the prompt, the easier it may be to discuss details. Focus on the writing, not on the spelling or the grammar. Yes, the techni- cal details of writing are important, and the writer will have to deal with them eventually. But you may see greater improvements if you turn off PEG Writing's spelling and grammar feedback and allow students to focus on trait devel- opment first. This approach can lead to bigger jumps in their scores than a focus on conven- tions. Seeing improvement in their scores may encourage even more writing from reluctant writers. In the end, nothing helps the reluc- tant writer like continuing to write. Teachers can use PEG Writing to create different types of writing assignments, provide feedback and suggestions for improvement, and differentiate instruc- tion to appeal to reluctant and eager writ- ers alike. For more information, visit PEG Writing at booth #606. PROTECT YOUR HEARING AND LISTEN FOR A LIFETIME The American Speech-Language- Hearing Association's Listen To Your Buds campaign wants everyone to be able to "listen for a lifetime" to the music they love. But that may not become the case for some if they listen to personal audio technology too loudly, for too long and too often – behavior that can cause permanent hearing damage. The Buds campaign, which encour- ages safe listening, has strong support from musicians – a group who knows something about the importance of being able to hear. Leading music education organizations are campaign partners. What's more, the campaign employs musicians to go into schools and spread the word about safe listening through their music. Reviews of Buds "safe lis- tening" concerts from kids and educators alike are always very positive: "Best assembly we've ever had," "please come back, "the message is so needed." Such comments appear repeatedly in follow up surveys. Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL), which is per- manent and irreversible, can profoundly limit a student's ability to succeed academi- cally and socially. For musi- cians, NIHL can lead to lim- ited careers. Studies show that 37 percent of rock musicians and 52 percent of classical musicians show signs of hearing loss. Meanwhile, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2010 reported a five per- cent increase in teen hearing loss, and cited exposure to loud music as a risk factor. How can you encourage safe listening to music with ear buds if you're a parent, or practice safe listening yourself? Model safe listen- ing for the young; taking care of your own hearing will set a good example. Listen at volume levels set no higher than halfway. Avoid prolonged exposure to loud music by taking listening breaks; taking a break every 30 minutes is a good idea. For more information, go to www.asha.org. CHARGEHUB CHARGES UP TO SEVEN DEVICES FROM ONE POWER SOURCE The ChargeHub™ from Limitless Innovations is a seven-port USB charg- ing station. It plugs right into the wall through its own cord and can power up to seven devices. The hub itself sits on a desk or table, and then the devices plug into it with their own USB cords. Another great feature is that the ChargeHub includes patent-pending SmartSpeed™ Technology to allow any port to charge the connected device at its maximum charging speed, regardless of whether it is an Apple iOS or Android device. Limitless Innovations is a licensed Apple MFi Developer, which ensures that their CableLinx™ USB cables are fully compatible with Apple devices. For users who don't have the origi- nal USB cords that came with their devices, CableLinx from Limitless Innovation are 3-1/2-inch charge and sync cables that are sold as an accessory to the ChargeHub. They're available in the four most common types on the market today, including Lightning™, 30-Pin, Micro and Mini to USB, so they'll accommodate the widest possible vari- ety of devices. ChargeHub is a descendant of Limitless Innovations' CableHub ® , which organizes up to seven cables, cords or wires at once while keep- ing them stabilized, protected and tangle- free! CableHub reduces exposed cords for safety and convenience – up to 10 feet of cables wrap around the weighted disc, which then snaps shut. Both CableHub and ChargeHub are easy to personalize. Either Limitless Innovations can print a name or logo to be added to the top of the product, or the user can print whatever they like on paper and insert it into the top of the device. The ChargeHub sells for $59.95 and is available for immediate shipment and its CableLinx accessories start at $7.95. The CableHub retails for $14.95. For more information, visit www.limit lessinnovations.com, www.thechargehub .com and www.thecablehub.com.