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In the November 2013 Issue
Free tools to help teach research skills
Blachly and Nemeth win Spence White Service Award
Free November webinars
Save these dates
 
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Ohio academic coach upon learning about INFOhio's collection of free resources at October's Race to the Top Conference
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Free Tools to Help Teach Research Skills
   

If you've ever taught research, you know that presenting all the steps involved in even a simple research project in a way that doesn't overwhelm students can be daunting. And if you're one of the thousands of teachers statewide who for the first time find themselves responsible for teaching this complicated skill to meet Ohio's New Learning Standards, you may be wondering where to start. 

 

Start with INFOhio (www.infohio.org), of course. Not only will you find the research databases we've offered for years, but you'll also find online sites with comprehensive guides to help you introduce research concepts to your students. Take a look at a few of them below.

 

IMatrix. This site is a great place to start because it IMatrix lets you search by standard or by grade level, subject area, and inquiry skill. You can easily see how standards relate to each other across subject areas and how they build on one another from grade to grade. You'll find dozens of articles, websites, and assessments to help you help your students meet research standards.

 

GO! Ask, Act, Achieve. Designed for 6th-10th grade, GO! helps students manage all the steps in a research project, from designing the research question to choosing the best way to share findings. Although students can use GO! on their own, you'll find a Teacher's Guide that gives you background

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on recommended sites and suggestions for walking your students through the research process. Teachers who have used GO! have told us that the Teacher's Guide is as helpful for keeping their teaching on track as it is for helping their students learn.

 

Research 4 Success. While R4S covers the same topics as GO!, it's an actual blended learning course, complete with objectives and assessments. You can download R4S within your learning management system to use as a graded course, or you can use it straight from the website. Because it goes into more depth and covers more sophisticated research skills, we recommend R4S for juniors and seniors. As with GO!, R4S comes with a thorough Teacher's Guide to help you make the most of the tools. 

 

Both R4S and GO! can be used from start to finish, or you can use just the sections that you need. 

 

If you're an old hand at teaching research and want to design your own program, be sure to review these research tools, many of which provide their own research guides:

 

Searchasaurus, KidSearch, and World Book Kids for elementary students.

 

Student Research Center (6-8) and World Book Student for middle schoolers.

 

Student Research Center (9-12), World Book Advanced, and World Book Academic for high schoolers.

 

You'll find those and many other specialty research tools, such as Science Reference Center and Points of View Reference Center, at www.infohio.org.

Blachly and Nemeth Win Spence White Service Award

 

Bonnie Blachly and Mary Nemeth are co-winners of the 2013 Spence White Service Award given by INFOhio at the October 17 awards banquet held during the Ohio Education Library Media Association (OELMA) fall conference.

 

The award, given at the discretion of the INFOhio Governing Board, honors the memory of Spence White, an Information Technology Center director, who recognized early how the Ohio Education Computer Network could support INFOhio's vision of providing equal access to information resources to all Ohio students and teachers. The award recognizes an individual for notable accomplishments in promoting INFOhio's vision of equitable access to digital resources for all school children. 

 

Mary Nemeth

Nemeth, Coordinator of INFOhio Services at the Metropolitan Educational Council (MEC), was chosen for the award in appreciation not only for the day-to-day support she offers school librarians in the field, but also for her ability to anticipate and meet broad educational needs.

 

INFOhio Executive Director Theresa M. Fredericka specifically noted Nemeth's work to support the Third Grade Reading Guarantee. "She identified a need for e-books for K-2 and with a dedicated team of volunteers immediately sought possible solutions," she said. "The result is BookFlix, which not only provides early grades with e-books but also supports reading fundamentals and supports the Third Grade Reading Guarantee."

 

 

Bonnie Blachly

Blachly, the INFOhio Liaison supporting both the Northwest Ohio Area Computer Services Cooperative and the Western Ohio Computer Organization, was chosen for the award in appreciation for her extraordinary organizational and communication skills and for the day-to-day, on-site support she gives school librarians.

 

"They say that she has surpassed the title of mere 'INFOhio Liaison' and has become the 'INFOhio Mentor'," said Fredericka during the awards ceremony. "She works side by side with her librarians helping them support all of their students and teachers."

 

All of us at INFOhio want to add our congratulations and thanks to both Bonnie and Mary. We are proud to work with you! 

Free November Webinars

 

If you need to earn a CEU or just want to learn something new, log in to one of INFOhio's upcoming webinars.  

 
 
 
All sessions are held on Thursdays from 3:30-4:30 p.m. 
 
Can't join us at that time? You can still earn a certificate of attendance for CEU credit by watching the archived version and answering a few questions afterward. 

  

To register for an upcoming session or to view a previous one, go to the Learn With INFOhio! webinars page.
Save These Dates

  

Month of November--Pick any day to celebrate Library Snapshot Day. For more information, go to www.library.ohio.gov/snapshotday.

 

 

December 20, 2013--Last day to complete Project Tomorrow's annual Speak Up survey. Add your voice to the collection of opinions on educational technology, 21st century skills, and schools of the future. To participate, go to http://www.speakup4schools.org/speakup2013/.

 

 
February 5, 2014--Digital Learning Day, which promotes common-sense, effective applications of digital learning in all of America's schools, libraries, coffee shops, and homes. Find activities and ideas at http://www.digitallearningday.org/.