Mommy22alyns Posted August 29, 2012 Share Posted August 29, 2012 How important is it that your kids learn to look things up in books? Are you emphasizing this or just having your kids learn to look things up online? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 I think both are important. Finding information in a book is clearly an important skill (using an index, finding the information on the page, etc.). Finding books (through using a library catalog, then finding them on the shelf, basic Dewey stuff, evaluating which book to look in, etc.) is also still important. I think everything in research is knowing what to look for where and what terms to use. I used to give my middle school students a find this information hunt test - they could use computers, some basic books on hand, etc. There was always a huge divide. A few kids would find everything almost immediately - they'd know what to use the encyclopedias for and what to find online and what search terms to use or what entries to look up. They'd finish the assignment with a long chunk of class time to spare. And the rest would be sitting there with two answers filled out staring at a Google search or a Wikipedia page looking confused. It's hard to teach that stuff, but it's important. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathryn Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 I think both are important. Finding information in a book is clearly an important skill (using an index, finding the information on the page, etc.). Finding books (through using a library catalog, then finding them on the shelf, basic Dewey stuff, evaluating which book to look in, etc.) is also still important. I think everything in research is knowing what to look for where and what terms to use. I used to give my middle school students a find this information hunt test - they could use computers, some basic books on hand, etc. There was always a huge divide. A few kids would find everything almost immediately - they'd know what to use the encyclopedias for and what to find online and what search terms to use or what entries to look up. They'd finish the assignment with a long chunk of class time to spare. And the rest would be sitting there with two answers filled out staring at a Google search or a Wikipedia page looking confused. It's hard to teach that stuff, but it's important. :iagree: Both skills are extremely important for college/graduate/professional research. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathryn Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 Oh, and I'll add that if they're particularly interested in history, there are quite a few places where they'll need to use a card catalog as well. The historical library at which I worked still had over half the collection only cataloged in the card catalog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lotsofpumpkins Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 I prefer real books, but I also realize that online research is important these days too. I don't want to turn my young dc loose on the internet yet, so I got the World Book Encyclopedia DVD-ROM so they can use that for computer research. I REALLY wish I had a real set of encyclopedias, but we don't have any bookcase room for them, plus the DVD was much cheaper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy22alyns Posted August 30, 2012 Author Share Posted August 30, 2012 I prefer real books, but I also realize that online research is important these days too. I don't want to turn my young dc loose on the internet yet, so I got the World Book Encyclopedia DVD-ROM so they can use that for computer research. I REALLY wish I had a real set of encyclopedias, but we don't have any bookcase room for them, plus the DVD was much cheaper. Have you had any trouble working or installing this? I've been tempted to get it but have heard mixed reviews. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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