Welcome!
This topic page is designed to foster a dialogue about teaching the whole child, with an emphasis on research and inquiry through the school library. We will explore how we are meeting (or struggling to meet) the challenges and opportunities inherent in our efforts to enable our learners to make sense of the information that threatens to overwhelm them and to collaborate with our classroom teachers to create a culture of inquiry in our schools. I hope you'll visit often to read new selections of curated resources and engage with me and my guests in continued conversation.
Barbara K. Stripling
Barbara K. Stripling
Fostering the Power of Choice and Voice
by Barbara K. StriplingLibrarians have the honor (and responsibility) of empowering students to adopt an inquiry stance. We tantalize them with possibilities; we honor their choices; we teach them the enabling skills and attitudes of inquiry; and we provide opportunities for them to find their voice and use it.
Perhaps the first step is to provoke their thinking about who they are and what they like. Even the youngest students enjoy creating self-portraits that include the many facets of their identities. Older students learn a lot about themselves by reflecting on their lives as readers. I remember how enlightening it was for me as an adult to identify the three books that had had the most impact on my life. Read More >>
Video
![Helping Students Build Agency through Collaboration and Inquiry [32:22]](https://schoollibraryconnection.com/assets/mediaserver/SLC/2283/2283202s.jpg)
When classroom teachers and librarians work together, students benefit in numerous ways, particularly when it comes to embracing an inquiry mindset. In this video, Barbara Stripling and Suzanne Sannwald sit down to chat about how to get the most value out of collaborative work, as well as tips for navigating the challenges that can arise.
Video
![Helping Student Find their Voice with Video Projects [26:27]](https://schoollibraryconnection.com/assets/mediaserver/SLC/2266/2266191s.jpg)
Today's students are becoming increasingly adept when it comes to using media, which means they have new ways to find their voice, and connect with others. In this conversation, Barbara Stripling interviews North Carolina elementary school teacher Courtney Sears to learn about how Sears has helped her students both explore their own interests and engage with their community through self-directed video projects.
Video
![Empowering Student Choice [40:47]](https://schoollibraryconnection.com/assets/mediaserver/SLC/2265/2265857s.jpg)
As educators know, student agency is cultivated by encouraging students to direct their own learning. In this interview, Barbara Stripling talks with teacher librarian and instructional director Shannon Miller about choice boards, a tool she devised to help students take more ownership of their learning path.
Article
The freedom to explore the world through technology is still intriguing and highly motivating for students. Librarians can provide portals to these discovery experiences, even virtual summer camps, offered by museums, organizations, and corporations like Google. Here's Barbara Stripling's starter list of resources, but be advised that one link leads to another and it's hard to stop diving into them!
Webinars
Melissa Thom discusses creating a toolkit for joyful summer reading, building on her experiences and literacy expertise to help you help your students read more and stay connected this summer. Get ready-to-use ideas for community-library collaborations, book clubs, and ways to get free books into the hands of your students.
Feature
As educators, we can undermine students' willingness to read when we let our own reading prejudices take precedence over encouragement. By imposing rules and guidelines for what "counts" as reading, especially for supposedly "independent" reading, we create a perfect recipe for destroying interest and motivation.
Article
Jennifer Bromann-Bender—inspired by dating surveys—describes her "Book Match" program that helps match students with books that align with their interests, and build their awareness their own preferences when choosing books to read.
Grab 'n' Go
Reading interest questionnaires can help us help students discover new titles and authors that will keep them reading. Learn what sparks your students' interests with this ready-to-use survey, inspired by Jennifer Bromann-Bender's "Book Match" program.
Feature
In this article from Edutopia, Courtney Sears discusses how her students use video to document their knowledge, reflect on the learning process, and teach others how to do new things.
Feature
Promoting problem-solving, critical thinking, hands-on learning, differentiation, collaboration, organizational skills, and independent thinking, the maker movement is a welcome reprieve from standardized testing and rote memorization.
Column
It's important for students to share their work with each other and with people outside their usual circle. How do we do all that? By seeking out as many authentic audiences and practical purposes for their learning as humanly possible as often as possible. And, librarians are very good at researching solutions for issues just like this.
Audio
![One Lesson at a Time: Students Improving Communities with Dustin Hensley [35:06]](https://schoollibraryconnection.com/assets/mediaserver/SLC/2274/2274167s.jpg)
This month we're talking to Dustin Hensley, a high school Librarian in Elizabethton, TN. After his school adopted a Project Based Learning model, Dustin's library instruction became increasingly focused on community engagement. In our One Leson at a Time conversation, Dustin shares his experiences fostering student advocacy and harnessing student passion to create change in the community.