C.O.D. Library ESL/ABE/GED Faculty Newsletter August/September 2010
Resource of the Month
Welcome Back! For those of you who don't know me, I'm Jennifer Kelley, the library liaison for the ESL, ABE and GED programs. I'm your contact person in the Library and also someone to whom you can refer your students. In the sidebar, you'll see a short list of "What Your Librarian Can Do for You"-these are just a few of the things I can help you with!
http://www.worldatlas.com World Atlas is an interactive site featuring maps, photos, videos and descriptions of geographical locations. A simple click on a map projection of the globe will provide information on the continents, oceans or feature such as the Prime Meridian or Equator. From there, the user can easily drill down, for example, from the Arctic, to Asia, to Lake Baykal where in addition to descriptive facts of the region, World Atlas provides real time weather information and links to outside resources. Additional features include a gallery of national, state and special flags, links to outside services such as a currency converter and distance calculator, map clip art and population data. World Atlas uses data from the CIA World Factbook and other freely available statistical resources, but also contributes original graphics and descriptions. The site is easy to use and fun to explore, though pages generally feature ads for travel and related services.
One of my favorite things to do for my faculty is to share this newsletter with you. Every month, you can count on an update on Library news, lists of new or notable materials (books, videos, software), a recommended electronic resource, and more. I'll email you a link to the online newsletter as soon as it's available, but you can always visit any time you like at http://codlibraryell.wordpress.com. There you can see archived newsletters, the occasional newsflash update and a long list of online resources for you to explore. You can even share your comments and questions right on the website! If you're more of a traditional print-out paper kind of person, don't worry! I always attach a PDF of the newsletter to the monthly email, as well. Starting this Fall, the C.O.D. Library ESL/ABE/GED Faculty Newsletter will also be available from the Faculty pages of the new ESL and ABE/GED Research Guides. You can explore the guides online at http://library.codlibrary.org/esl and http://library.codlibrary.org/abe
Library Tours and Orientations Each semester, I look forward to meeting and working with the students taking ESL, ABE and GED classes. You can schedule a Library tour or orientation for your students at any time during the school year, but I recommend getting them started early so they can take advantage of our
World Atlas would be a useful addition to a social studies curriculum or a tool for discussing geographyand culture.
What Your Librarian Can Do for You ° Help you to identify and locate ESL and ABE/GED resources for teaching and student use. ° Support your students’ Library instruction via customized group sessions, library tours, and library card acquisition. ° Collaborate with instructors on the design and development of student assignments. ° Find information to answer basic reference questions as well as assist you in locating information for ESL and ABE/GED curriculum related projects. ° Assist you in finding and securing library materials from other libraries through Interlibrary Loan.
Your Librarian Jenn Kelley Reference Librarian Office: SRC 3043A Phone: (630) 942-2383 E-mail: kelleyj@cod.edu Library Website: www.cod.edu/ library Find me on Facebook
resources immediately. A library session can be short or the entire length of your class. It can involve a research project or a simple assignment. It can take place here in the Library or in your classroom-- even if you're off campus! Take a look at our Library Orientation menus for some ideas of the sessions and activities we can offer your students: • for ESL options: http://library.codlibrary.org/esl/ orientations • for ABE/GED options: http://library.codlibrary.org/abe/orientations If you can't fit a Library visit or activity into your schedule this semester, don't worry-your students can still get an introduction to the Library. During Chaparral Days (August 23-September 3), the Library will be offering 4 sessions of our popular workshop Introduction to the Library for New Students. These 90-minute classes will cover all the basics that new students need to get started in the Library-- from getting a Library card to using the online catalog to find books, movies and more. Learn more about our Introduction to the Library for New Students workshops at http://library.codlibrary.org/sos/life Students can register in-person at the Reference Desk, by phone (630) 942-3364, or online at http://services.codlibrary.org/emailpage/orientation.php Sessions are geared toward traditional students, but will surely benefit higher-level ESL students as well as ABE and GED students looking to familiarize themselves with Library services. As always, feel free to contact me directly with any questions you might have about workshops, instruction sessions, tours or anything else you can think of!