Fall 2016
Course DetailsInstructor
Dr. Kyungwon Koh Course Experience When discussing what courses I would take in my first semester with Dr. Martens, I mentioned the perspective of one of my mentors, Laura Raphael (Children's Services Coordinator at TCCL), for course selection in the MLIS program. Laura had suggested that taking an elective class alongside a core class would help me be inspired each semester in the program. Books and Materials for Children was a great first elective to pair with the introductory 5033. As I was already working in the field of children, this course supported me in my every day work by allowing me to pair assignments with real-life possibilities. ALSC Competencies At the time of this course, I was a Bilingual Children's Associate responsible for children's programming at the Martin Regional Library. I. Commitment to Client Group: I.1-7 II. Reference and User Services: II.1-8 III. Programming Skills: III.1-7 IV. Knowledge, Curation, and Management of Materials: IV.1-10 V. Outreach and Advocacy: V.1-8 Because this class is focused specifically on working with children, it fits most of the ALSC Competencies. Some important highlights from these many points include II.8, III.1, IV.1, IV.2, and V.1. |
Samples of CourseworkLearning how to write a review of a children's book is an essential practice for a youth librarian, because writing and publishing book reviews contributes to a body of knowledge. Reviews of children's books helps fellow librarians, parents, and even children learn more about the books they may (or may not) want to read.
A good portion of this class involved posting and interacting with others on the book social network site Goodreads. The review I wrote for a class assignment on the book Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer by Kelly Jones is posted on Goodreads for public consumption. These book-reading and -reviewing activities contributed to my development of ALSC Competencies for Knowledge, Curation, and Management of Materials. Of particular focus for this course and for me as a library professional was the importance of diverse literature, which is reflected in this competency category and most especially through IV.1: "Demonstrates knowledge, management, use and appreciation of children’s literature, multimodal materials, digital media, and other materials that contribute to a diverse, current, and relevant children’s collection." One of the projects for this class was to create a program specifically for children in a library setting. I had an idea for a writing club-style program that I named "Write Time." I later built on this idea in 5253 Community Relations and Advocacy.
Designing this program gave me experience with the Programming Skills competencies from ALSC by encouraging me to consider my audience and developing activities and materials for that audience. All of the competencies under that heading are relevant, but most especially III.1: "Designs, promotes, presents, and evaluates a variety of programs for children, with consideration of developmental stages and the needs, interests, and goals of all children, their caregivers, and educators in the community."
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Course Description from Syllabus
Childhood development and information needs of children; children’s information behavior, learning, and reading; contemporary children’s literature; digital media and technology; early literacy, information literacy, and 21st century skills; selection/evaluation of information resources; and information services for children; and 21st-century trends in children’s services.
Student Learning Objectives from Syllabus
Childhood development and information needs of children; children’s information behavior, learning, and reading; contemporary children’s literature; digital media and technology; early literacy, information literacy, and 21st century skills; selection/evaluation of information resources; and information services for children; and 21st-century trends in children’s services.
Student Learning Objectives from Syllabus
- Understand competencies required by information professionals working with children
- Identify developmental characteristics and information needs of contemporary children
- Assess the information needs of children from diverse and multicultural populations
- Develop strategies to help parents and caregivers develop early literacy skills in children
- Demonstrate knowledge of a range of information resources for children, from literature, to digital media and technology, to hands-on materials
- Select quality information resources for children using professional tools.
- Read and evaluate a variety of contemporary children’s literature from different genres.
- Demonstrate knowledge and skills of media mentorship in libraries serving children
- Design children’s programs and activities that engage children in libraries
- Analyze twenty-first century trends in children’s services in relation to society as a whole in order to understand current approaches and hypothesize about future directions.