LI831: Resources and Services for Children
LI831 introduced me to a wide variety of genres in children’s (ages 5-12) literature and how to apply knowledge of child development theories to design resources and services for children. This particular course focused heavily on how librarians can incorporate Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) concepts into programs and activities for children.
Artifact: Theory to Practice STEM Resource Handouts
This assignment allowed me to create materials to incorporate STEM concepts and activities into library resources and services. Thus, I created three handouts that were designed to meet the needs of the following scenario: an elementary school principal asked his librarian to create a one hour instructional workshop for teachers in the building so that they could learn about and practically apply connections between children’s literature and STEM materials. The first handout provided teachers with an overview of STEM and information about what current research says that classroom learning environments are doing to connect children’s literature to STEM. The second handout consisted of descriptions of online resources that provide suggestions for activities explicitly highlighting STEM concepts with children’s literature and descriptions of online reader’s advisory reference sources that inform selection of materials for STEM. The third handout was a detailed list and description of resources that can be used to support STEM concepts. The list contained detailed information of the following genres and formats: one DVD, three picture books, three early reader’s books, three fictional chapter books, three non-fiction books, one book aimed at the tween market, and one graphic novel.