Have you explored Wordle? It builds graphically appealing “word clouds” based on words you input or the tags in your Delicious account.  Here are a few samples, which can be saved to your online gallery or printed.

Thinking about school uses, what about:

• Using them to create visually appealing PR pieces for your school library
• Students using them to gather brainstormed descriptive words
• Could students create a biographical sketch using words inputted into Wordle, then lead their colleagues on a “tour” of their Wordle, explaining their word choice?

Tip - to paste into your blog after creating your Wordle, click “Save to Gallery.”  Paste the code into the code tab of your blog window, then remove the extra spaces in the code.  I found that I had to remove those spaces in order for the images below to render properly.

Wordle is addictive — enjoy!

Ever wanted to know what sound a child in Korea makes when imitating a train? The sound a pig makes in India? Try Bzzzpeek.com, which has recorded children from around the world making the sounds of animals and machines. Â

Has anyone chatted in LibraryThing for book discussions? Some colleagues and I are trying to use a LibraryThing group to discuss a novel this summer.  We’re just exploring the ropes and would love to know how others are using LibraryThing groups.