Working on Research

It's been a while since my last post, in large part, because there's been a lot of research taking place in Montgomery Library! While wrapping up the Middle Ages inquiry projects with 6th grade, I began 8th grade research on the 20th century. We completed the in-class portion a couple of weeks ago and started with the 7th Grade Holocaust research.

While the students have been learning how to find and use information, I have been learning a good deal as well. I'm accustomed to working primarily with 5th and 6th graders, so it was a nice change of pace to select "advanced" when setting up the NoodleTools projects and aid them in the retrieval of sources that warrant this range of citation options. The use of end-notes and notecards within NoodleTools also allowed me to dust away some research cobwebs, as I recalled past projects, both taught and completed first-hand.

Each grade comes with it's own set of challenges. The younger students are just beginning to grasp the idea of various source types from and the idea that they can be found in a number of formats and locations. Additionally, learning not only to ask questions, but how to ask the right questions is a difficult concept to grasp and teach. As the students move along, the importance of the quality of the questions, more specifically, their essential question increases. Thus, the time spent developing that question increases and the degree to which they are guided decreases. At this point, they are in a precarious position, because they know enough of finding and citing sources that the basics don't need to be covered. However, they often become lackadaisical when it comes to keeping up with the checkpoints and details of the sources.

Overall, I've come to enjoy the research process from beginning to end, no matter the grade, subject area, or research focus. Adjustments can easily be made accordingly, though, time, or the lack-thereof, is one factor that can't always be adequately handled. The more time you have with students to intentionally direct them to be inquisitive and construct a hearty response to an essential question, the better. I suppose, my lack of free time recently is a good sign that we are heading in the right research direction, though!

Guided Inquiry

For several weeks now, I've been working with sixth grade on their Middle Ages inquiry project. We are using the Guided Inquiry Design that was developed by Carol C. Kulthau, Leslie K. Maniotes, and Anne K. Caspari. This framework breaks down the process into eight phases: open, immerse, explore, identify, gather, create, share, and evaluate. The book, Guided Inquiry Design: a Framework for Inquiry in Your School, takes you step-by-step through the process; providing worksheets and lessons along the way.

This is my first time going through the entire process and as we embark on the gather stage, I have a better understanding of how logical and useful this approach can be for students to learn more deeply about information that they are truly interested in. Also, it's impossible to not daydream of future projects, since it can be applied to any area in any subject.

One shining moment of learning, when the stars aligned and we could tell the kids were really learning, occurred during the identify stage. We modeled how to form an essential question by having them brainstorm information on the smart board related to a map displaying the route of the silk road and the goods that were traded at various locations. The ideas poured out of the students. There came a point when there was no room left to write and we modeled how we could look for connections between this information to inform our question. We then discussed that the wording and focus could be made even better by way of feedback. Then, the students formed their own question individually using this approach and then divided into their inquiry groups to comment on each others' questions in order to refine their question. We walked around to meet with each student individually about their question as the class continued to explore resources and record them in their inquiry log. I was astounded at the quality of the questions compared to what I've seen sixth graders produce in the past.

By taking the time to have the students read and gain background knowledge and also modeling how to ask an essential question, there's no doubt that the students have learned more and I would bet (though, we'll have to wait to see) that their final products will be of a higher quality, since they have truly taken ownership of the project.

stop and smell the books

It's been another busy week in the library! Between 6th grade coming to the library computer lab to begin their science literacy and the ongoing rollout of the 40 book challenge and Biblionasium, Mrs. Woody and I haven't had much time to stop and smell the daisies...or books?! So, it felt good to look down this morning and soak in the lovely view of a library packed with reading kids. A number of kids are already a few books deep into the challenge and the goal is to read one book this weekend!

Roming Around Research

5th grade can offer a lot of challenges for students. Transitioning from Lower to Middle School means learning your way around a new building, being given letter grades for the first time, and adjusting to no longer being the oldest, but the youngest. Also, we, as librarians, expect much more from students in terms of research. They learn how to search, access and cite a variety of sources. We also work a great deal on taking notes and paraphrasing. While this may seem like a simple task, reading information, plucking out the facts and piecing those facts back together into your own words is no easy task for a 5th grader...and some adults, for that matter. 

At times, it seems like the information is going in one ear and out the other, but around this time of year I see glimpses of the true learning that has taken place in the past months. Donna and I began the Ancient Rome unit this week by asking the kids to define plagiarism, common knowledge, paraphrasing, and citing in their own words. You could hear a pen drop when they were asked this in September, but hands shot into the air this time around. We touch on these areas every time we do research (much to the kids' chagrin), because these are terms and concepts that many assume students know, so they never intentionally teach them. Yet, they are outraged when they plagiarize. Just because these "digital natives" have been surrounded by speedy internet and electronics for most of their lives doesn't mean that they know how to disseminate that information and use it responsibly. In fact, with so much available at the click of a button, one has to be even more savvy in terms of identifying the different source types, evaluating the quality, and giving proper credit. We must give students the tools they need to swim in this ocean of resources rather than leave them gasping for breath. I can send this group off to 6th grade knowing they can swim. We'll work on some new strokes in the years to come. 

Keeping Current Events Current

This past week I worked with the 6th grade history teachers to introduce the students to a year-long current events project. They began this unit last year and had a good deal of success, so the improvements that were made this year really took it to the next level.

I met with Monsie before the project and we decided that it would be good for the students to stick with a couple of "themes" throughout the year; like politics, sports, health, etc. By giving the students a choice, they will be more interested in what they read and if they are unable to find a quality article pertaining to one of the themes, there is always another one. We also wanted to make sure that there was some deeper thinking taking place, so we decided that in addition to a 4-6 sentence summary of the article, the students will answer two "essential questions" in 4-6 sentences.

• Is this a "new" or "old" issue? Why is it old/new?
• Have you seen this theme come up before? When and where?
• How does this issue relate to a topic brought up in class? Explain.
• Is this issue affecting a large or small group of people? Explain.
• Who does this issue affect? Why? Give evidence.
• How is this issue connected to our daily lives? Give evidence.
• Do you share the author's perspective? If not, why? Explain. 

We felt that these questions push the students to question what they read, make inferences and connections, and relate the topics to their own experiences or to the experiences of those around them. With the addition of class discussions and presentations throughout the year pertaining to current events, the students will hopefully come away more aware of what's taking place around them locally and around the world. 

Over the three days of instruction we 

• covered the websites and databases given within the LiveBinder
• created a new project in NoodleTools for their citations
• discussed and practiced paraphrasing
• chose themes
• found one article
• paraphrased that article
• divided into groups of two and provided feedback on the paraphrase
• rewrote the paraphrase
• answered two of the essential questions
• and, FINALLY, cited the article

The students were engaged, for the most part, throughout. The more say they have in deciding what they are working on, the better. Also, I felt that this was one of the more productive collaborations I've had with a teacher in a while. We were able to fill in the the blanks for one-another and were truly on the same page. I look forward to watching how this project progresses throughout the year. 

Fall

Cooler temperatures mixed with busy school days always make me feel like Fall has truly arrived. The past couple of weeks have had plenty of both! I introduced all of the 5th and 6th graders to the book review process we're starting this year and there was a great response, as you can see from the ticket filled circulation desk.

Sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas I'll do a drawing for prizes from all of the tickets, so the kids were glad to learn that the more books they read and review, the better chance they have of winning.

Today, I started the 6th grade current events project, which will go throughout the year. The students will select two themes, like science, art, or health, to follow throughout the year. The scope of news that they will focus on will vary from one trimester to the next. The first trimester it will be national, the second will be European, and the third will be Latin America. Each week the students will be expected to find and paraphrase articles, ask essential questions, and make presentations periodically. We went over the expectations, the resources on the LiveBinder, and reviewed the paraphrasing process today:

1. Read the article once through without taking notes.
2. Read the article a second time, underline/highlight, and take notes while thinking about your essential questions.
3. Write your summary and respond to essential questions without looking at the article. Reference back for specific spelling, dates, and names. 

In class, the students read through and entire article and then I asked them to tell me some facts. Of course, they relayed the information in their own words and I pointed out that this is exactly what they will be doing on their own, except writing the information down instead of saying it out loud. 

A couple of the classes met in the Lower School Learning Commons, since the lab was being used. They were excited to sit on the story steps and were in aw of the new smart board. These classes seemed more engaged than usual, so I may change the scenery more often!  

Opening up about the shutdown

My morning commute always begins with NPR, so I found out about 6 hours after the initial announcement at midnight that the government is, in fact, being partially shutdown. Though, many of us, including myself, will continue to go to work and be paid, there are a number of people who won't. To even think about the stress they must be under makes my shoulders tense up. However, the simple fact of the matter is that most people will go on about their daily tasks without a second thought, since it doesn't affect them directly. Though, the reality is that we are all affected in some way. 

I realized this while checking my daily blog feed when I ran across this post by The Institute of Museum and Library Services:

"The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is closed due to a partial shutdown of the  United States Government.  As a result, IMLS is not engaged in any grant-making or other agency activities.  During this time, we will not be able to review or respond to any form of communication.  No payments for grant programs or contracts will be made by IMLS until the agency is reopened.  The agency website will remain accessible, but will not be updated until operations resume. Please refer to www.imls.gov for additional information."

This is a source I use regularly to make sure I'm up to date on the current news and trends in libraries. I, along with everyone else, will now be without this useful resource for an unknown amount of time and all work at these institutions will come to a standstill. The resources at these institutions that aren't online will not be accessible and the librarians will not be available to provide assistance or continue to maintain, add, and make resources available to the public.

Then, I decided to Google information about the shutdown and found this:

The link led to this article:

You read correctly, today is the 123rd anniversary of the opening of Yosemite National Park and it will not be visited by a single person. 

I write about this,not to give an opinion on the current events, but to present a perfect opportunity for educators to make this into a learning experience for our students. What series of events led to this point? What parts of the government dealt with this issue? What is the stance of our local and state politicians on this issue? Has this happened in the past? How can this issue be resolved?

Also, beyond the facts of this situation, teachers can bring to light the fact that this headliner is taking the spotlight from other historical events, like the roll out of open enrollment; the first phase of the The Affordable Care Act. Was this intentional? How have various news sources covered this event? What is The Affordable Care Act? How is our state dealing with the enrollment?

What a great opportunity to work on those research skills and have a hearty debate on current issues! One of my favorite news sources for kids that I recently ran across is Newsela. You can register for free as a student, teacher, or parent to access articles that are written about issues around the world that can then be read at various reading levels. There are also quizzes provided to test for comprehension and teachers can see their students' results instantly. 

Though, this is not an event to be proud of as a nation, it is one to be learned from. Our students are our future politicians, so start the discussion now. That way they will be fully prepared to discuss and compromise with the best of them when they are the ones in Washington.

Science in a Bag

This week has flown by, but I'm not complaining that Thursday is already coming to a close. :) 5th grade science classes have consumed much of my time this week, as I introduced them to plagiarism, citations, and research in general. Try explaining what a databases is to a 5th grader after recess...it's interesting. Everyone has to start somewhere, though, and the earlier the better. Ms. Stephan and Mrs. Van Wart set up the science in a bag project when we were still out for the summer, so they definitely live by this standard. The basis of the project is for the students to select something that relates to a personal experience and can also be tied to science in some way, find a small object representative of the the idea, experience or thing, find one database article pertaining to the topic, summarize the information on a notebook card, and cite their source. Of course, all of this is then placed in a plastic bag, thus, the name of the project "science in a bag." It sounds simple, because it is just that. Simple. For many of these students, this is the first time they have ever used a database, properly cited a source, or paraphrased an entire article, so a lot is covered in the few days I have with them.

NoodleTools has been a saving grace when it comes to citations. We begin using this online citation tool with 5th graders and it is used continually across subjects and instructors until they graduate. We pay a nominal fee for all of our students have access to all of the features, but you can also used the minimal version at no cost. I used NoodleTools for the first time a few years ago and was blown away by how simple it made citing any resource, no matter the citation format. Boy, do I wish I had it when I was in school! Through the years, the company has continued to improve the layout more user friendly and improved the usability of the additional aspects, like notes, tags, and end-notes.

Another online tool that I don't know what I would ever do without is LiveBinder. This resource has become the go-to place for organizing any project for any great. The layout consists of tabs, much like a file folder, onto which pictures, text, or sites can be loaded. Also, you can make your project password protected, so database log ins can be added without worry. It has a simple and clean layout that is perfect for kids that need as few clicks and as much information in one place as possible.