Evaluating and Selecting Resources

Proficiency Project #2 Option #1

Megan Farnsworth ID # 991636494 22 February 2012 CIMT 509 Davis Indiana State University

Farnsworth, CIMT 509 2 Option #1: Go to Resources for School Librarians at http://www.sldirectory.com/libsf/resf/selection.html . Once there scroll down the page until you get to the section titled Books and Audio-visualWeb Sites. From the list there, select any three (3) titles/sites. Using criteria identified in the text regarding considerations about relying on review and selection sources, evaluate each of your three (3) sources. Handle each review as a separate entity. In addition to your evaluative comments be sure to include the title and the web link for each. FYI, in my estimation no single title can be addressed in fewer than two pages. Hence, we are looking at a guesstimated total number of pages as six (6) pages for the resources. In addition, you should provide a reflective/summarizing paragraph as a wrap up to the exercise. Your total paper (not including title page and restatement of the project) may NOT exceed eight (8) pages!!!! NOTE: When I perused the site there were a couple of links that seemed dead for the moment that could be for a number of reasonsdoesnt necessarily mean that the link is totally kaput. If it turns out that one of your selected sites seems to be a permanently dead link, move on to another selection.

Farnsworth, CIMT 509 3 Follett Library Resources. (2012). Titlewave. Retrieved from http://www.titlewave.com Titlewave is a website from Follett Library Resources that can be used as a selection tool for collection development. Titlewaves online format is very user-friendly and can be easily navigated by a beginner as well as an experienced user. Titlewave allows librarians to search for books, e-books, audiovisual materials, and CD-ROMs. The website addresses interest levels from Kindergarten though young adults. It also indexes adult materials that would be of interest to young adults. Finally, Titlewave includes information about resources for library professionals. Once you log on to Titlewave, you can search by many topics. Basic searches include keyword, author, illustrator, title, publisher, number of pages, type of binding, and copyright range. Additional searches include lexile measure, lexile code, and reading level, which would be useful for elementary school and high school media specialists searching for materials for students with special needs or for students in primary grades. Titlewave also allows users to search by Fountas and Pinnell Guided Reading level. This would be useful at my school as we have a limited number of novels for upper elementary school students that are leveled for Guided Reading. I could use this website to help me purchase titles that can be added to our Guided Reading library at a specific reading level. Another area allows media specialists to search by Dewey Decimal range or classification. This would be an especially important tool for me as I work to expand the library collection. My five-year plan involves purchasing many new

Farnsworth, CIMT 509 4 titles in the 500s and 600s of the Dewey Decimal System. I purchased some books early in the school year from Amazon.com using title and subject matter as my guide. Several books that I purchased turned out to be classified in other Dewey Decimal ranges instead of the 500s and 600s. If I had used Titlewave, I would have been able to search by Dewey Range and would have ensured that all of my titles were classified in the 500s and 600s. Once the search is complete, the entry provides information about the author, number of pages, price, title, publisher, ISBN, interest level, Dewey Decimal call number, series information, lexile number, Guided Reading level and subject headings. Some entries contain an e-book preview where media specialists can view the first fifteen pages of the text. The entry also includes information from the publisher, which is usually a summary or short excerpt from the text. There is also a section that lists any awards or nominations that the text has received and reviews from noted journals such as School Library Journal, Booklist, Kirkus Review, Library Media Connection, and Publishers Weekly. Finally, the entry contains links to related lists, such as individual state award nominees. The Titlewave website has a section called Essentials. This section allows the user to search in a variety of categories. Media specialists may search for books that won American Library Association Awards or were recommended by the National Council of Teachers of English. Other categories include life skills (for grades K-6 and 5-12), character education, graphic novels, picture books for older students, middle school and high school classic literature,

Farnsworth, CIMT 509 5 and high school popular fiction. Social studies teachers can locate contemporary biographies as well as materials for holidays, festivals, and social issues. Another section highlights multicultural fiction with specific areas devoted to Native American, Asian American, and African American materials. There is also a link to titles that have been reviewed by School Library Journal. Finally, there is a section of expert picks. This section contains titles that experts have recommended. Some of these materials are effective with struggling readers or geared toward boys interests. Overall, Titlewave appears to be a useful selection tool for media specialists. It complies reviews of the materials from a variety of reliable sources and allows educators to search by topic, curricular area, Dewey Decimal call number, and reading level. Although the purpose of this site is to sell library materials, Titlewave also provides up-to-date and relevant information about current and past library materials.

Lavin, M.R. (2008). Graphic novels: Resources for teachers and librarians. Retrieved from http://library.buffalo.edu/libraries/asl/guides/graphicnovels/ The University at Buffalo has developed an extensive site that media specialists can utilize to learn more about graphic novels before they add them to their collection. First, the site addresses concerns that many librarians have about adding graphic novels to their library collections. The site addresses concerns that parents and community members will object to comics in the library that graphic novels are poor quality literature, and that graphic novels promote

Farnsworth, CIMT 509 6 violence, anti-social behavior, and inappropriate themes. This section also provides support to refute these concerns and to address challenges from parents and community members. Another part of the website provides information about various types of graphic novels. This is very useful to me as I have a very limited knowledge of graphic novels. The site clearly explains the differences between ongoing series, annuals, limited series, and one-shot graphic novels. It also explains the differences between standard formats, prestige formats, treasury editions, magazines, black and white comics, and trade comics. The collection development section contains purchasing information and book reviews. Library Journal, Booklist, and Publishers Weekly contain regular reviews of trade comics. School Library Journal and Voice of Youth Advocates contain regular trade comic round-ups. It contains a list of recommended Internet resources and graphic novel review journals for finding quality graphic novels. It also contains guidelines and tips for selecting age-appropriate materials such as previewing all materials before circulation, becoming familiar with publishers who are known for controversial materials, and preparing for censorship challenges that may arise by developing written policies and procedures. The site also provides links to the American Library Association Office for Intellectual Freedom and the Graphic Novel Legal Defense Fund, which work to combat censorship. The website also includes selection criteria for evaluating comics and graphic novels. Media specialists can find lists of top-selling comics in trade

Farnsworth, CIMT 509 7 journals. They may want to select graphic novels that have tie-ins to television, movies, toys, and video games. Librarians must also consider the genre of the comic. The most popular genres are super-hero and fantasy, but other genres include science fiction, realistic fiction, and humor. Media specialists should also consider writing quality, artistic quality, artistic style, reputation of the author and illustrator, and awards received. Finally, special consideration should be given when choosing between black and white or color illustrations. There is a section of the website dedicated to major graphic novel publishers, Manga publishers, and independent publishers. One part of the website organizes graphic novels by genre as well as publisher. There are links within this section where librarians can preview the covers of these materials. Another section of the site provides recommendations for all ages, younger teens (ages 11-14), and older teens (ages 17 and older). There is even a list of graphic novels that are not recommended for younger teens due to mature themes. This website provides a large amount of knowledge about graphic novels. However, it does not contain summaries of the novels to help media specialists learn about the plot, setting, or characters. The site does not include any purchasing information or pricing for specific titles. This would be a useful selection tool to provide information about titles that librarians could then research for purchase using other selection tools.

Farnsworth, CIMT 509 8 National Science Teachers Association. (2012). Outstanding science trade books for students K-12: 2011. Retrieved from http://www.nsta.org/publications/ostb/ostb2011.aspx This website consists of lists of the best science trade books for students from the past 38 years. The annotated bibliography contains publishing information and a brief summary of the text. The book lists are arranged by the subject category where they have the greatest usefulness in science education. In addition, reviewers also indicate the correlation between the books and the National Science Content Standards. The reviews list the texts title, author, publishing information, number of pages, ISBN, price, edition, and reading level. The reviews also make note of special features in the book such as a glossary, index, photographs, illustrations, and maps. A member of the Book Selection Panel who is either a science teacher, literacy specialist, science coordinator, or college science professor signs the review. Their positions qualify them to write reviews as experts in the field of science education. The books that are selected for the list must have substantial science content. The information must be current, accurate, and presented in a clear, concise manner. The text must clearly differentiate between theories and proven facts. The books must not contain any gender, ethnic, or socioeconomic bias. Texts written for young children must not be oversimplified or contain misleading information. Generalizations must have facts to support them, and major facts must not be omitted. In addition, the text must have a logical sequence of ideas. The content must be appropriate for the intended audience. The illustrations

Farnsworth, CIMT 509 9 must clearly match the text and be accurate in terms of size, color, and scale. They also consider the size, format, binding, typeface, paper, and organization of the book. A useful part of the review is the brief summary of the book. The reviewer provides information about the content of the book as well as the style in which the book is written. Some of these science books are written as poems, alphabet books, photographic essays, narratives, and reference materials. The review also includes any printed and online supplemental materials that enhance the concepts presented in the book. I found this website to be very user-friendly and informative. I am currently seeking to expand the nonfiction science sections of my districts elementary and high school libraries. I found several interesting titles on the 2011 list that will appeal to students. Growing Patterns includes photographs that illustrate the Fibonacci sequence in the natural world. If Stones Could Speak: Unlocking the Secrets of Stonehenge provides new ideas and stimulates questions about this mysterious site. Case Closed? Nine Mysteries Unlocked by Modern Science combines science and anthropology to solve mysteries. This text would appeal to students who enjoy crime fiction and television programs. Newton and Me follows a young boy and his dog, Newton, as they explore laws of motion in everyday settings. Survival at 40 Below discusses animal adaptations for surviving harsh winters in Alaskas Gates of the Arctic National Park. Stories of tornado survivors, causes of the storms, and tornado safety tips are included in the book Erased by a Tornado!

Farnsworth, CIMT 509 10 These selection tools will be very useful as I begin to expand the collections in my elementary and high school libraries. I will use Titlewave to help me locate fiction and nonfiction titles. I like the features of Titlewave that allow media specialists to search by title, author, Dewey Decimal call number, and Fountas and Pinnell Guided Reading level. The website about graphic novels will be used as I begin to create a collection of graphic novels. I think the sections that identify books that are not recommended for young audiences will be useful. I also like the section that helps librarians defend including graphic novels as part of a library collection. The National Science Teachers Association website will be helpful for providing quality scientific literature. I will use this site as I continue to expand the science sections of the district libraries.

References Follett Library Resources. (2012). Titlewave. Retrieved from http://www.titlewave.com Lavin, M.R. (2008). Graphic novels: Resources for teachers and librarians. Retrieved from http://library.buffalo.edu/libraries/asl/guides/graphicnovels/ National Science Teachers Association. (2012). Outstanding science trade books for students K-12: 2011. Retrieved from http://www.nsta.org/publications/ostb/ostb2011.aspx Resources for School Librarians. (2012). Selection tools. Retrieved from http://www.sldirectory.com/libsf/resf/selection.html

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PROJECT SUBMISSION CHECKLIST

NOTE: The most frequently occurring problem with projects has to do with not following instructions regarding submission. These errors, particularly a few of them, are time consuming for you and for me to troubleshoot. As a result, the following checklist has been developed in an effort to eliminate the problem. Failure to include this checklist with each submitted project or failure to adhere to any submission rule will be costly in my grading of your worka deduction of 10 pts. Each item on the checklist is referenced in the course syllabus, so you might want to check there for further clarification.

INSTRUCTIONS: Include this checklist as the last page of all submitted project work.

Saved text file in correct format, Word for Windows (.doc or .docx file extensions)
or as Rich Text Format (.rtf file extension)

Named saved file appropriately, e.g. John Smith would name his file for proficiency
#1 as smith509prof1.doc.

Included cover sheet with prescribed information (see Syllabus). Restated project verbatim If applicable, adhered to page length specifications Included a header or footer with last name and course number on each page of the
project

Used Times Roman or Arial font only Unless instructed otherwise, double-spaced body text Incorporated pictures and/or illustrations as appropriate
Comments or explanations that you need to make (optional):

hsd 1/2012