February 24, 2025
Interview with Shelley Ward; Teacher Librarian at Belle Hall Elementary School
I interviewed Belle Hall Elementary School librarian, Shelley Ward, regarding the shared foundation inquire and how she is implementing the foundation/domains and competencies in her school library. Mrs. Ward works in the school library on a combination schedule. She sees classes for one special area rotation, then is flexible the following week. In her Mount Pleasant, S.C. elementary school, she serves around 657 students in preschool through fifth grade.
Inquire is to build new knowledge by inquiring, thinking critically, identifying problems, and developing strategies for solving problems (AASL, 2018).
Several questions guided my interview with Mrs. Ward. Questions included:
What are some examples of the ways in which you are implementing these competencies in your library program?
What are some of the resources in your library program that you are using to implement these competencies?
Do any of the competencies that you are implementing include collaboration with classroom teachers? If so, please provide examples.
What are some of the challenges that you face when trying to implement these competencies?
Are there any other comments that you would like to make regarding the Shared Foundation / Competencies and Domains that we have discussed today?
Balancing fiction and nonfiction is a large way in which Mrs. Ward is working to teach students to display curiosity and activate prior knowledge. "Nonfiction tends to get pushed aside, so I am constantly implementing nonfiction" S. Ward (personal communication, February 24, 2025). For example, fifth graders read the engaging book, Evidence, and then participated in a breakout. Part of the breakout was for students to look up cholera on the MackinVia database. Mrs. Ward often creates opportunities using nonfiction that go along with curriculum standards.
A way that Mrs. Ward guided students through the inquiry process was by having students conduct authentic research about cats. She had students analyze cat adaptations and think about what types of toys cats are attracted to. Together, she and the students wrote a survey asking any staff member with cats to complete it. Staff members described cats and what motivates them. After compiling the surveys, students designed a cat toy based on what they learned. Students then bagged toys up based on what they learned and gave them to each staff member.
Although the cat research process was planned, Mrs. Ward stated that often times "inquiry is spontaneous" S. Ward (personal communication, February 24, 2025). For example she read the book Flight School and then decided to look up an ostrich after students reported that they had not seen one. Together they got on the database Pebble Go and looked up how an ostrich runs. When reading the book Except Antarctica, students became curious about where Antarctica was and what animals actually lived there. This led to lots of natural inquiry.
In order to support students inquiry, Mrs. Ward often uses databases available through MackinVia and Discus. She also puts lots of research-type questions on the morning news show. She noted that True Flicks through Scholastic is a great resource for nonfiction e-books.
During her flexible time, Mrs. Ward works to collaborate with teachers in her building and with other librarians. She recently collaborated with a fourth grade class on Native American research projects. She made a collection of books on Epic that covered tribes and walked through note taking by using a rubric.
Collaborations seem to be challenging, due to time constraints. She stated that she has a standing time each week during her flexible time where she sees first graders. She noted that collaborations take a good bit of planning. Another challenge related to time is that some classes do not have enough time to complete lessons or if the research lesson is moving slowly, she needs it to wrap up due to not seeing the class the following week.
After speaking with Mrs. Ward, I am more aware of ways that I can spontaneously support students inquiry by following their lead and seeing what interests them. Often, my lessons are thought through, but moving forward I will provide opportunities for learners to use inquiry questions to further guide learning. I will be more aware when I am reading books that all students may not know what I am talking about or have the background knowledge to complete a certain activity. Enabling learners to seek knowledge and make real-world connections is an area that I would like reinforce in my library. Ensuring that I am promoting and using nonfiction books regularly will also encourage students to probe possible answers to questions and assist them in constructing new knowledge.
(S. Ward, personal communication, February 24, 2025)
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