Now on Exhibit: Prompting Higher Order Thinking Skills through Primary Sources

Have you ever shared a new technology tool, resource, or even a great book with your students and staff, but didn't get the level of excitement you anticipated? It is often very discouraging and usually I am left wondering where I went wrong. As a school librarian, I questioned how I could make my process of seeking collaboration opportunities more effective in engaging students, but it wasn't until this past summer my mindset began to change.

After attending the Teaching with Primary Sources Summer Institute at the Library of Congress, I was excited over how much I gained in regards to researching techniques and skills. In the classroom, teachers can use their content to teach important skills, but for school librarians, it's about finding those skills virtually anywhere so they can be adapted to the content areas. This week-long professional development opportunity taught me how to question primary source documents and artifacts, compare/contrast them with secondary sources, and then apply my analysis to the "bigger picture" through questioning and problem solving. And, the best way to put this into practice is to begin with your own interests.

Click to Enlarge +Now on Exhibit: Prompting Higher Order Thinking Skills through Primary Sources

While in Washington, D.C., I couldn't wait to visit the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center that houses various types of aircraft. Seeing machines such as the Lockheed Electra, a Boeing B-29 Superfortress, and the Space Shuttle Discovery was an incredible feast for the eyes for someone who enjoys investigating planes and their history. But some may have no idea the potential impact that these planes have and, in this moment, I could not help but think of how I approach teaching new content to my students and staff.

Evoking Curiosity

One of my first areas of reinforcement is to share how the library can support classroom instruction. In my first few years, I would just share ideas with teachers on how to use various technology tools, such as Google Apps, and different things the library had to offer, such as 3D printing. Looking back, I was sharing ideas in an effort to just get teachers to use the tools, without any connections to their instruction.

It is one thing to say that I saw a Lockheed Electra on exhibition, but it's another thing to say that I saw the same model of plane that Amelia Earhart flew on her last flight before she mysteriously disappeared. The history behind the plane tells us why the plane is relevant to the conversation and adds depth, but only to the recall level of information. In the classroom, we could mimic this activity with a picture of the plane. We could ask students, "What's the significance of the Lockheed Electra?" and their responses will have something to do with Amelia Earhart. But, if we supplement that with secondary sources, such as articles about investigations into Earhart's disappearance, that adds a level of curiosity to the activity.

Instead of just sharing ideas along the lines of "Hey, this is neat so you should use it" through newsletters, emails, and social media, I tailor specific tools based on teacher and student needs. I approach teachers and ask them about their successes and struggles within the classroom. When they mention activities they think were successes, I ask to share that with other teachers in the building. Likewise with struggles, I ask how I can support them. I am curious about their classroom and, in turn, they could become curious about the library.

Accepting Power

While at the Hazy Center, you cannot go past the Boeing B-29 Superfortress without doing a double take. This aircraft is shining in the middle of the hangar. But, reading the exhibit's placard will imprint on you this plane's haunting backstory.

The Enola Gay was the Boeing B-29 Superfortress that carried the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, during World War II and is an impressive and intimidating aircraft in size and reputation. But, it's a point to remember that this plane is a tool; a tool that was used for a purpose. And by identifying purpose, we identify impact. As librarians, what is our purpose? How do you help your library serve your school? How are your teachers and students impacted by the library? These are all questions that I answer through my collaborations with teachers, lessons to students, and assisting with independent inquiries from both.

The school librarian is a pivotal leader in the school, but it's all about embracing the role and showing how valuable the library is to the building. Ideally, the library has the resources to serve every content area within every grade level, but how are those resources being used? Are you, as the lead instructor in the library, instructing whole classes, small groups, and/or individual students? Does the library function even when you are not there? These are questions I ask myself daily because it is essential in developing my role as my school's librarian, because it is how I choose to serve my school.

Pursuing Hope

Too often I share ideas that are not accepted or flat out rejected. Responses like "that may work for someone else, but not for me" or "I don't have time" are common from classroom teachers and frustrating for me. Sometimes I am then guilty of avoiding approaching the same teacher with more ideas for fear of being rejected, and simply because I do not want to feel as if I have wasted my time. Looking back now, I wonder how many collaboration opportunities did I miss because I was afraid of being rejected?

The Space Shuttle Discovery has its own wing of the museum because of its sheer size. Seeing this spacecraft up close reveals all of the seams and screws that hold it together and each scratch and scuff seems like it could tell a story. Discovery's first mission was over thirty years ago after three launch delays, signaling that even after you have failed (multiple times), you still have the ability to succeed. Even more impactful, Discovery made the first shuttle flights after both the Challenger (1986) and Columbia (2003) disasters, signaling hope for space travel and perseverance after tragic failures, something that serves as a powerful reminder to keep going and hope for the best.

Instead of keeping ideas to myself, I write them down in an idea journal that I started during the Summer Institute. I carry it with me to all of my potential collaboration meetings and hope that one of the ideas inside might be of use to whoever I am working with. It's a small act that allows me to keep track of ideas on how to support teachers, while also keeping frustration in check. And while an idea may be rejected once or twice, it could work with the third suggestion and if there's a teacher who is struggling to get students engaged, sharing how the library could support them may just be what they need to succeed.

The Future

I learned some things that will become those "go-to" lessons when we teach about research and finding credible information. Lessons taught at the Summer Institute are structured so that teachers and school librarians attending can adapt them to various content areas and construct discussions over the integration and comparison of various types of sources. One lesson I am particularly fond of is providing a primary source, having students examine it and try to ask an essential question related to the unit. After students have discussed the primary source, the instructor provides secondary sources that also examine the key issues and open up the students' perspectives more.

The role of a school librarian is a multi-faceted one. Being curious, understanding our power, and encouraging hope are three lenses that help us become better leaders, teachers, and learners within the profession. These skills are all essential to what we consider to be good quality teaching and, with them, we can soar into what makes us quality educators.

Further Reading

Bell, Danna, Cheryl Lederle, and Stephen Wesson. Teaching with the Library of Congress blog. https://blogs.loc.gov/teachers/.

Stripling, Barbara K. "Inquiry-Based Learning." In Curriculum Connections through the Library: Principles and Practice, edited by Barbara K. Stripling and Sandra Hughes-Hassell. Libraries Unlimited, 2003.

Ritchhart, Ron, Mark Church, and Karin Morrison. Making Thinking Visible: How to Promote Engagement, Understanding and Independence for All Learners. Jossey-Bass, 2011.