Standards

Once you dig in to the standards, I think it is very easy to find ways to link Inquiry projects to them. As a matter of fact I have quite a few and I started thinking that maybe that was to much. Since my project was for my family and me, I didn't link it specifically to the standards. I was thinking more in terms of each student completing a scrapbook page and compiling it into a class book or maybe using it as a visual aid in an oral presentation.

I focused on the English/Language Arts Standards for Grade 5. Here is the link to the online Indiana Academic Standards: http://www.doe.state.in.us/standards/welcome2.html

Standard 2 READING: Comprehension and Analysis of Nonfiction and Informational Text
5.2.1
Use the features of informational texts, such as formats, graphics, diagrams, illustrations, charts, maps, and organization, to find information and support understanding. Example: Locate specific information in a social studies textbook by using its organization, sections on different world regions, and textual features, such as headers, maps, and charts.
5.2.2
Analyze text that is organized in sequential or chronological order.Example: Compare the organizational structure of such biographical texts as The Life and Death of Crazy Horse by Russell Freedman or Pride of Puerto Rico: The Life of Roberto Clemente by Paul Robert Walker, noting critical events in the subjects’ lives.

Standard 4 WRITING: Processes and Features
5.4.1
Discuss ideas for writing, keep a list or notebook of ideas, and use graphic organizers to plan writing.
5.4.4
Use organizational features of printed text, such as citations, endnotes, and bibliographic references, to locate relevant information.
5.4.5
Use note-taking skills when completing research for writing.
5.4.6
Create simple documents using a computer and employing organizational features, such as passwords, entry and pull-down menus, word searches, the thesaurus, and spell checks.
5.4.8
Review, evaluate, and revise writing for meaning and clarity.
5.4.9
Proofread one’s own writing, as well as that of others, using an editing checklist or set of rules, with specific examples of corrections of specific errors.
5.4.10
Edit and revise writing to improve meaning and focus through adding, deleting, combining, clarifying, and rearranging words and sentences.

Standard 5 WRITING: Applications (Different Types of Writing and Their Characteristics)
5.5.3
Write or deliver a research report that has been developed using a systematic research process (defines the topic, gathers information, determines credibility, reports findings) and that:
uses information from a variety of sources (books, technology, multimedia) and documents sources (titles and authors).

• demonstrates that information that has been gathered has been summarized.


• organizes information by categorizing and sequencing.

Example: After completing library or Internet research, write a research report about the life cycle of a butterfly or about the different uses of a telescope, microscope, and camera.

Standard 7 LISTENING AND SPEAKING: Skills, Strategies, and Applications

5.7.1 Ask questions that seek information not already discussed.

5.7.4 Select a focus, organizational structure, and point of view for an oral presentation.

5.7.8 Analyze media as sources for information, entertainment, persuasion, interpretation of events, and transmission of culture.

5.7.10 Deliver informative presentations about an important idea, issue, or event by the following means:

• frame questions to direct the investigation.


• establish a controlling idea or topic.


• develop the topic with simple facts, details, examples, and explanations.

I am using the older Information Literacy Standards.

Standard 1 The student who is information literate accesses information efficiently and effectively.

Standard 2 The student who is information literate evaluates information critically and ompetently

Standard 3 The student who is information literate uses information accurately and creatively.

Standard 4 The student who is an independent learner is information literate and pursues information related to personal interests.

Standard 5 The student who is an independent learner is information literate and appreciates literature and other creative expressions of information.

Standard 6 The student who is an independent learner is information literate and strives for excellence in information seeking and knowledge generation.

Standard 7 The student who contributes positively to the learning community and to society is information literate and recognizes the importance of information to a democratic society

Standard 8 The student who contributes positively to the learning community and to society is information literate and practices ethical behavior in regard to information and information
technology.

Standard 9 The student who contributes positively to the learning community and to society is information literate and participates effectively in groups to pursue and generate information.

Wishing

Wishing is assessing, evaluating, and reflecting on the process and product. Students begin thinking about how the project went and consider possibilities for the future. Students have the opportunity to reflect on their project and express their desires for the future (Lamb).

Kuhlthau also thoroughly explores this phase of inquiry in her Assessment stage. I appreciate that she connects the feelings of the learner to the various stages. Students may feel a sense of accomplishment and maybe disapointment. This is also the perfect time to provide time for reflection on the project (hopefully their has been prior reflection time also). Students may appreciate the word reflection more than assessment! Something like the following reflection could be adapted to fit the project http://www.bcpl.net/~sullivan/modules/tips/rubrics_elem/stud_rubric.html

I am pleased with my project and the process that went with it. I still feel like Inquiry projects are something I need to work on. I struggle with how much I need to scaffold the kids, how to differentiate the lessons for students, and when to let go. I do recognize how important it is for students to know that the process is as important as the final product. This is a personal struggle for me. It can get messy.
I wish that I had started purchasing materials earlier, which really means that I needed to gather information sooner. I had hoped to get more than four pages done but I know this is something I will continue even after this course is over. Maybe once I have a little time I can complete Tyler's book up to his current age. I wish I had taken better photographs and organized them in some sort of order! I think I ruled out digital scrapbooking too soon. Sometimes technology frustrates me so I was a bit nervous from that aspect. As for my final product I am not entirely satisfied with the way the photos turned out. There was a glare and it was hard to view the whole page and still be able to see the stickers and embellishments. I am going to use Kodak photoshare to present my pictures.
I loved the fact that I could put the pages together any way that I wanted and they don't have to be done in order. I can't wait to begin digital scrapbooking as well.
I also learned that I need to invest in a good digital camera.

Using a KWL chart and Kidspiration software was one of my favorite parts of the project. I knew very little about scrapbooking so it felt really good to answer those questions that I placed in the W column.

Waving

Waving (communicating) consists of communicating ideas to others through presenting, publishing, and sharing. Students share their ideas, try out new approaches, and ask for feedback (Lamb). With this final aspect of the project finished I am feeling relieved. I have put together four pages for my son's scrapbook and enjoyed it tremendously. I did realize that I like to use background paper that is already a theme. I just don't have the patience to measure, cut, and adhere a variety of papers to make the "ground" paper.

I have followed closely to Kuhlthau's Information Search Process but found that the wrapping and waving stages seem to be overlooked in the ISP model. It did not seem to me that there alot of stages in between Preparation and Assessment. I felt like I needed something more after preparing my information and before the assessment process. I was curious as to how the other models compared. I really liked the simplicity of the Alberta Inquiry Model. I thought it provided that phase that was missing in the ISP. The Alberta Inquiry Model has 6 Phases: Planning, Retrieving, Processing, Creating, Sharing and Evaluating. During the Creation stage students are organizing information, creating the product, thinking about the audience and revising/editing. During the Sharing stage students have a better understanding of the audience, are presenting information, and demonstrating appropriate behavior (59).

I took the scrapbook to school today to get feedback from a couple of coworkers. They liked the layouts, etc. and one thought the birthday page was a little busy but all in all a good response. My husband really enjoyed seeing the pages take shape. He did think that I should not have gone from hospital/birth pages straight to the 2nd birthday page. That's the beauty of scrapbooking, you can do it in any order that you want.

I did find a rubric geared toward middle school that was specific to scrapbooking: http://www.bcpl.net/~sullivan/modules/tips/rubrics_sec/scrapbook.html
This is something I plan to share with my coworkers.

Resources:

Callison, Daniel, and Leslie Preddy. The Blue Book On Information Age Inquiry, Instruction and Literacy. Westport: Libraries Unlimited, 2006.

http://virtualinquiry.com/inquiry/waving.htm

Wrapping & Beginning to Wave

Wrapping is the creating stage of the 8 W's. I think this will be a really fun part to my project. I really enjoyed gathering information and purchasing materials but putting it all together will be the best part. I also know myself and my pages will be put together, taken apart, moved around, and put back together quite a few times before I complete each page.

According to Dr. Lamb, during wrapping students need to consider what kind of product will best communicate their vision to others. What's the best way to express your ideas to others? Synthesize the information you've collected into new words, develop a picture, create a chart, design a timeline, or make a video (Lamb). For some students this stage may make them feel a sense of relief but also some feelings of intimidation. I think it's important to give students ideas of various products that are available. Breaking down the wrapping stage into three phases: choosing, planning, and developing a product is very beneficial to the learner. It makes the process seem attainable while providing the necessary scaffolding to keep them moving along.

I love the list of products and assessments for elementary students that Dr. Lamb provides at
http://www.bcpl.net/~sullivan/modules/tips/productselem.html There are some really cool alternatives to the tradition poster or research paper.

Hopefully, I can take this back to my job and promote it to at least one teacher.

For me, wrapping and waving seem to be interconnected. Waving is communicating ideas to others through presenting, publishing, and sharing. Students share their ideas, try out new approaches, and ask for feedback (http://virtualinquiry.com/inquiry/waving.htm).

The purpose of my project was very personal but I believe a scrapbook page or pages could be created for many different research topics. For my project I wanted to convey my information in the form of pictures, layouts, quotes, and journaling. My format is simply a few scrapbook pages in the print format. For this particular assignment I plan to share digital photographs of my scrapbook pages.

After completing the pages, I plan to ask my husband for feedback on how they look. He is usually very honest so I know that he will tell me if they don't look right or if something needs changed.

Weaving

Weaving (Synthesizing) consists of organizing ideas, creating models, and formulating plans. It focuses on the application, analysis, and sythesis of information (Blue Book).

During this stage, I felt pretty comfortable with all the information I had acquired and just took some time to sit back and really decide what products I wanted to purchase, what type of scrapbook I wanted (leather, fabric, theme, etc.), and where I would go for my materials. Since I have relied on Kuhlthau's ISP, I examined the model and felt that her collection stage resembled Lamb's Weaving Stage. During collection in the ISP the student's task is to gather information that defines and supports the focus that was formed in the prior stage. At this stage in the Information Search Process the learner begins to feel some sense of completion and confidence that the project can be managed.

I am very glad I did my research about the must-have materials. I could spend hours looking at all the scrapbooking products. It could also get pretty expensive. Since I decided to narrow down my initial scrapbook pages to birth/hospital, first birthday, and Halloween I felt prepared to purchase items for those themes.

I went to Wal-Mart first and really didn't feel like there was much selection. I decided to venture to Terre Haute and chose to go to the Hobby Lobby. They had a nice selection and decent prices (although their previous sale was not still going on.)

My purchases were:

1-12x12 snap bound leather scrapbook
1 package 12x12 page protectors
2 packages of card stock
3 packages alphabet stickers
Halloween stickers
Birthday stickers
Baby Boy sticker package
Embellishments-baby boy, Halloween, and birthday
1 package of ribbon
Double sided tape
Craft Scissors

I also decided to get a storage container so I could keep my materials organized. This past Christmas my husband and I had gotten a nice paper trimmer. At the time I really didn't have much need for it but I am glad to have it now. I also chose the leather scrapbook because I want it to last awhile and since it is not just a baby themed book I decided not to go that route.

I am glad I had some idea of what I wanted to buy or I might have bought a whole lot more than I really needed.

I am ready to start wrapping (creating) my product.

Moving On to Wiggling??

Wiggling? During this stage students evaluate content, along with twisting and turning information looking for clues, ideas, and perspectives . This can often be one of the most difficult stages for students, they don't know what to do with the information or where they are going with it (Lamb). For me I feel like I can closely relate to the Information Search Process by Kahlthau. The wiggling portion closely resembles the Formulation stage of ISP. During this stage, your task is to formulate a focus based on the information gathered. It is also the time to consider again personal interest, requirement for the assignment, and the availability of materials and time. During this stage, I can begin to create a theme or vision of what I want to accomplish an can start to take the information and decide how to use what I know.

As an educator during the Wiggling stage, we must take into consideration the Multiple Intelligences of our students. Unless you are prepared for the individual learning styles this phase can be chaotic (Lamb).
Using an organizer, chart, concept map, or notetaking guide is essential during the inquiry process. Dr. Lamb provides a list of scaffolds that can be used during this stage http://projects.edtech.sandi.net/staffdev/patterns2000/reception.html. Most if not all students will benefit from this type of scaffolding. This is our chance to guide students through the information seeking experience. By using various organizers and scaffolds we can begin to engage students into being authentic learners.

I did quite a bit of reflecting in my previous post and I am feeling confident about purchasing materials and beginning my scrapbook. I am a little nervous about doing the first page but I know I need to just take what I am learning and apply my knowledge.

Reflection on Webbing

I felt like I needed to reflect on the information I had gathered in the webbing stage. I want to identify what questions I had answered, what search terms I used (keywords), share any new questions that I had formulated, and what resources I have found to be the most useful.

There are so many websites that have something to do with scrapbooking. When I searched "scrapbooking" I received over 42 million hits so I refined it to "begining scrapbooking" and reduced the hits to 152,000. When I conducted a search using "baby + scrapbooking" I came up with 21,800 hits. Some of the sites were just selling scrapbooking materials and others dealt with digital scrapbooking so I had to sift and sort through quite a bit of information. Like Kuhlthau states, "Living in the information age requires people to go beyond the ability to locate information and requires competence in seeking meaning and understanding."

Here are some of the search terms (keywords) that I have come up with:
scrapbooking, beginning scrapbooking, baby scrapbooking, scrapbook layouts, scrapbook themes

Although I have always known that I wanted to create a scrapbook for my son, I soon found that there were many themes and formats that I needed to choose from. I know that I will not have time to complete a whole book for this project (nor do I want to rush through to get a finished product) I had to decide what occasions, events, ages, or milestones that I would focus on.
These are what I plan to begin with:

• Birth/Hospital
• First Birthday
• Halloween

What questions did I answer:

• Coworkers scrapbook
• Babysitter scrapbooks
• No classes in my area at this time
• Useful material in books
• Must have materials: book, adhesive, pages & covers, cardstock, journal pen(s), paper trimmer, photos
• Materials I want: craft scissors, stickers, embellishments, ribbon, vellum

Most of the information about materials was gathered when I interviewed my coworker and babysitter. They were very helpful and even brought out their scrapbooks for me to look at. I think I have a good handle on what materials I will purchase.

The two books I checked out from the public library are Scrapbooking for the First Time and Scrapbooking Baby's Cherished Memories both by Rebecca Carter. The first book has been very helpful in providing lists and ideas of things to do to get started. I can easily scan the chapters and pick and choose what I want to read about.

I have created a word document as I have been going through this process to keep track of websites that I find useful. Here are the websites:

http://www.mycraftbook.com/Baby_Scrapbooking_Ideas.asp This site contains a wealth of information concerning beginning to scrapbook for babies. It was nice to view the photos of the various layouts and themes.

http://www.geocities.com/scrapbookingsite/scrapbooking_ideas/baby_scrapbooking_idea.html This site had various pictures of layouts to choose from when beginning to scrapbook your child’s milestones.

Journaling –
http://www.scrapyourstories.com/journalideas.htm Journal articles and ideas

http://www.allthingsscrapbooking.com/baby_scrapbooking_quotes.html Free site for quotes to use in the scrapbook

http://www.scrapbook-crazy.com/scrapbooking-baby-quotes.html Adorable scrapbooking baby quotes

Scrap Basics –
http://www.scrapbooking101.net/ A guide to the basics of scrapbooking

http://scrapbooking.about.com/ How to make a basic scrapbooking page

http://www.scrapbook.com/index.htm Acommunity of scrappers from beginning to advanced

http://www.michaels.com/art/online/static?page=scrapbooking How-to guide to scrapbook, materials and online forums

Youtube videos-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rz0ZUCzyHs Youtube video of tips for beginning scrapbooking

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poAhe8k3q_8 Pre-designed baby scrapbook album pages

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-d98uFBaq-8 Scrapbooking by Trish Hess

I believe I will now be able to make informed decisions about purchasing items and designing a few scrapbook pages.

Concept Map

I had created a concept map as part of my webbing stage and wanted to publish it in my last post but I wanted to make a couple of changes. I know the concept map may look confusing to others but I have found that it helped me organize some of my newly acquired information. There are some dedicated scrappers out there and a lot of materials!

I wanted to share some of the things that I have found to be the most useful for me.

• Interviewing/talking to my babysitter about scrapbooking was a perfect way to start. We looked at the scrapbooks she had created for her kids and this gave me a ton of ideas.


• I also talked to a couple of my fellow teachers about scrapbooking. One teacher and I met after school last week to talk about the size of the pages, the types of books she used, how she decided what layout to use, scissors, stickers, embellishments and how she organizes her materials.


• I also checked out 2 books from our public library-Scrapbooking for the first time & Scrapbooking Baby's Cherished Moments both are by Rebecca Carter.


• I have signed up for an online discussion forum at Michaels http://forums.michaels.com/community/postlist.php?Cat=&Board=scrapbooking


• I have found a few specific scrapbooking sites that I like and think will be useful for me

Journal tips http://www.scrapyourstories.com/journalideas.htm

Scrapbooking 101 http://www.scrapbooking101.net/

About Scrapbooking http://scrapbooking.about.com/

During my initial browsing at various stores, I found that I liked the way Hobby Lobby had their items organized and the selection was really nice. Not to mention, they were having 50% off all scrapbooking items at the time.

Now I know I need to "wiggle" with this information. I think I have found the basic information I need to get materials and feel confident that what I purchase will be something I can use.

Webbing

According to Dr. Lamb, the webbing stage consists of searching, locating, and connecting ideas and information. A piece of information can lead to new areas of interest and questions.
I haven't felt confusion during this stage but I have felt very overwhelmed. There is so much information in our world today that I think I could drown in it. Maybe this is why our students just pick the first bit of information that sounds good! I could spend days "information surfing." I know I need to stick to my chart and the essential questions for my project and begin to put my resources together.
I think the webbing portion of the 8 W's can closely relate to the exploring information stage in Kuhlthaus' ISP. For me, the fact that the Information Search Process identifies the feelings that go along with the stages helps me realize that I am on the right track and I am not alone in the way I feel. I havel felt the uncertainty and doubt about the information I am gathering and how I am going to put it all together.

I did try to follow my W section of my KWL chart. These were the initial guiding questions once I decided to do the traditional scrapbook. I will add the newly acquired information to the L section of my chart. From the information I have gathered I also decided to create a cluster map to further organize my thoughts and new information.

Wondering????

I think I am beginning to venture into the wondering stage. Since I have narrowed my topic down, my first order of business is to decide on what type of scrapbooking I want to do. The digital scrapbooking is appealing but I don't know anything about traditional scrapbooking so I want to try my hand at that first and then move onto the digital scrapbooks. I like to use KWL charts when I am brainstorming a topic or introducing something to my students. It is very interesting to see what children know about a topic and also what they want to know. For me the KWL chart just allowed me to structure the things I knew about scrapbooking and gave me guidance on what I wanted to know. Although I am feeling overwhelmed, I am really excited to have the opportunity to create this project.

This is the KWL chart I created to help me organize my thoughts and further my investigations.

I plan to come back to it often to add more items in the W & L sections.

More Watching

I thought about my topics and areas of interest and finally settled on the topic that interested me most. Although I feel very strongly about the humane treatment of animals, I decided that issue was something to explore at a different time in my life. I also wanted to learn more about the healthy living recipes for diabetics (my dad is insulin dependent) but found that two of my other topics just seemed to "pull" me to them.
As Kuhlthau states, "the motivation to seek information arises naturally out of the person's own experience." My motivation to learn more about podcasting and scrapbooking helped me to determine what my topic would be.
Although I want to learn more about podcasts, etc. I also know I have a great technology integrator who would be willing to work with me on this at a later date. She offers classes and release time to develop projects and provide assistance. I will save podcasting for next school year.

My desire to create a scrapbook for my son ultimately led me to my decision. So I plan to do my Inquiry Project about scrapbooking.
I feel that my research style/process more closely resembles that of the Presearch strategy by Virginia Rankin or Eisenberg's Big 6 model. I am very organized. I love to make lists and keep notes but when it comes to research and inquiry learning I am totally overwhelmed. I feel like i have all these ideas and when I try to get them on paper to make sense, it just doesn't work. I can only imagine how our K-12 students feel while trying to do these things.

Watching

Well, I am still watching. There are so many different things that I would like to explore but I know that I must narrow it down to a small list and then I'll be able to narrow it down to my final decision.
Here is a list of things that I would like to explore more information about. The humane an ethical treatment of animals, podcasting in the classroom and media center, digital scrapbooking (especially since my son is growing up so fast), and healthy eating for diabetics.

So many choices!!