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Hello all.

The question I posted concerned any management tricks or tips people had =
to
remember what resources you used for a project the year before, and to ad=
d
new materials to the list as you receive, or find, them.

Most of the responses said they used either pathfinders, or kept lists of=

resources in a notebook, with annotations as new materials come in. One
person creates special subject headings to find materials around one
project. The actual postings are below.

I too use a form of pathfinders but don't usually keep them in hard copy.=

My plan is to work more on remembering to check my resources, plus keep a=

hard copy of the handout the teacher gives the students, with annotations=

on the back as to resources we used.

The responses:
I keep a folder for each unit that my teachers have during the year. I ke=
ep
them (the folders) alphabetically within a grade level.  In that folder, =
I
keep a list of all the resources I use for that project and any informati=
on
that I need to have again. Sometimes, we use new materials and resources,=

but the old ones give us a starting point. Each year, I add to the folder=

and sometimes have to make new unit folders - things change from year to
year. But during the year, if someone tells me about a resource that fits=

one of our present units, I copy it and put it in the appropriate folder.=

It works for me and at least I can keep track of what I have already
located and used.

I too am working on such as situation.  As a new LMS, my teachers don't u=
se
the library as they should.  I've offered to compile bibliographies of ou=
r
materials based on what they use/need in the classroom.  My lists involve=

the books, magazines, videos, etc about each topic, as well as internet
links and patterns/worksheets from outdated issues of Mailbox, etc.  I'm
placing these in tab folders and labeling them for check-out.  You may tr=
y
this (in all your spare time!)

If I know that a teacher is likely to repeat a project, I start a (paper)=

file on the broad topic.  In it I include a pathfinder with whatever
sources (in and outside our library) I have found, as well as items the
students have discovered for  the project.  I am always surprised when th=
ey
find something I didn't when I searched the same site!  I usually include=

the section of my planning book to
indicate what the plan was, etc., and grade level, but these can vary fro=
m
year to year, as teachers change level and take a favorite unit with them=
!

I suppose I could do it on a computer, but I find that it's easier for me=

to write on paper and to put in copies of citations, etc.

Of course, I have also gone to the trouble of doing that for topics never=

used again, but it's not really that much extra work!  Once it's in my
file, I sometimes add to it during the year, as well.

You have either a file box ora card catalog or a computer catalog. Entrie=
s
in any of these under subject of the assignment will be
successful.

I prioritize my pathfinders instead of alphabetizing them and use them to=

list all print (I focus here first with at least three resources or all
students will go directly to the computers and they still need a lot of
practice with print resources as well as technology). I do number the
resources I want them to use in the order I want them to use them, this
gives me better control over their search strategies and gives students
exposure to all materials I need them to experience. After print resource=
s
I direct them to quality databases we have, then on to quality web sites
and lastly to searching.

It is hard to remember adding those items you find after you have begun a=

project, but you can add them to the LIBRARIANS copy of pathfinder and
update it the next time you use it. I also find it helpful to put my copy=

on card stock - as I'm using it a lot and a student will not walk off wit=
h
it that way by mistake.

I keep a folder for each theme or major project. I try to keep a copy of
any ditto, rubric, surveys I use as well as all my notes. If I do up a
bulletin board, I take a picture of it and throw that in as well. I can
save bibliographies in my circulation program on the computer, so I don't=

bother to print out a list of the books I've used. If I use something
that's too big to fit in the folder, ex. a puppet or a large poster, I ma=
ke
a list of those items on the front of the folder.

I'm not a librarian yet, but I know we do projects for repeated years and=

I'm wondering if perhaps when the books that were pulled for a grade leve=
l
project come back, maybe the librarian should be sure they all have an
appropriate subject heading that can be pulled up next year on the OPAC t=
o
retrieve them all easily. Also during the year when the librarian runs
across others she could go into the OPAC and add that subject heading to =
be
sure and get them the next go round.

I have tried putting in a unique subject that describes the topic being
studied.  For instance, our 11th graders do a project every year on The
Pregressive Era.  There is no one subject that ecompasses that topic.  So=
 -
years ago I identified the materials that we had and put the phrase
"progressive Era" in teh subject area so that I cna pull them up every ye=
ar
when the teacher signs up for that project.  I have several of these. =

Antoher one is an English porject that requires the studetns to read a
"treu story" that is not necessarily a biography.  As a matter of fact, s=
he
actively discourages students from choosing famous people.  So - books li=
ke
"The Perfect Storm" are the typical books students are looking for.  I pu=
t
the "subject" TS (for true stories) into any books I get along those line=
s,
so that I can make a bibliography of them every year.  I used HF for
historical fiction etc.  Codes like HF and TS work the best.  Real words
will often bring up items that you do not want.  Some people might be
bothered by these "codes" being in the subject field - but I have never
found them to be a problem, and it sure whips a bibliography together in
record time.

Deborah J. Stafford
Gen. H.H. Arnold High School
Wiesbaden Germany
now proudly on the web at http://www.wies-hs.eu.odedodea.edu
Deborah_Stafford@compuserve.com

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