Wrap-up

“Accept the challenges so that you may feel

the exhilaration of victory.”  General George S. Patton

Reflecting back on the past 10 weeks of the library challenge I feel victorious in several areas. 

First of all...I’m blogging!  Thanks for the “push” to use this exciting tool!

Secondly, I have made new discoveries in our State Library’s databases as well as honing new skills in familiar ones.  Our challenge with Camio was a delight.    Oops…  I checked on my postings to see what I had recorded and found that I had not published that post, good thing I kept a hard copy.

My next challenge will be to revisit the databases to keep my memory refreshed.  As library patrons and library teachers we are so fortunate to have these resources that expand the physical walls of our libraries.

Thanks for the fine job of hosting the challenge each week and your prompt responses!  I look forward to more inspiring encounters.

Archive Grid -Camio

Archive Grid produced several primary source links to personal and business papers relating to the Revolutionary War hero Paul Revere.  The search term "Sioux" produced links to Siouxland Heritage Museums and references to the city of Sioux Falls and Sioux City.
I enjoy the work of Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851) and have had the opportunity to view his work in the National Gallery in London.  Archive Grid only had a few of his works, but it did provide links to personal letters.  Just as the site headlines....open the door to history!  It seems an inexhaustible resource.
 Camio is a virtual gallery at your fingertips with interactive features.  I am very excited to share this discovery with our art department.

AncestryLibrary, Heritage Quest and Sanborn Maps

Searching my own name I was able to find 4 matches, with my address at the top of the list.  I thought it was interesting that the search result produced zero matches when I clicked on “exact match”.  I was unable to find any information other than my address.  With regards to grandparents, I found records of their marriages with dates and ages.  I know the hours could disappear searching AncestryLibrary as one search leads you to another and another…. 

The “Photos and Maps” tab produced yearbooks, historic Sears and Roebuck catalogs and a Library of Congress photo collection.  I was impressed with the photos from the 1930’s and also the photograph of the library onboard the S.S. South Dakota. 

Using Heritage Quest I located the 1900, 12^th Census of the United States, records.  I found information on both of my great-grandfathers.  Some of the scans were difficult to read.  Browsing through the publications was very interesting, a good spot for some primary source material.  Doane Robinson’s Encyclopedia of South Dakota is in full text.  I really appreciate the zoom feature!

To satisfy the curiosity of those who “wonder where”, Sanborn Maps is especially helpful.  I searched for churches in my town and discovered that the 1898 map indicated that several churches were heated with a stove, and the location of fire hydrants… which would only make sense, as the maps were fire insurance maps.

We are so fortunate to have these resources available to our patrons!

WorldCat

Oh, my goodness the drop down menu provides so many choices!  Powerful search potential. 

I just finished a young adult novel titled Diamond Ruby  by Joseph E. Wallace and found that there were 529 copies in libraries worldwide, the top library was Brookings Public followed by Watertown, then libraries in Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska and Wyoming.  The call number was listed as:  Class Descriptors: LC:PZ7.W15675; Dewey: (Fic)

Joseph E. Wallace has written many non-fiction books related to baseball.  Thirty-seven books by him are listed, 5 sound records and 3 internet items.  I checked on the internet items and found a link to NetLibrary, however the book was not available to download.

Searching middle school libraries, in education, I found 6400 WorldCat hits, 650 ERIC journal articles and 30 journals in ECO.  I explored the ERIC journals and clicked on the Dec. 2010 article from School Library Monthly.  ERIC provided an abstract of the article, and also a link to the publication and I was able to access the entire article.  Another tool to keep us current when our budgets are getting tighter!

 Log Shanty with flag, woman and seven boys  Photograph from Stevens County Museum and Historical Society, Morris, MN.  Identified as possibly a school in South Dakota.  And I am complaining about a long winter!

Net Library

We have two eighth grade students who need information on the Korean War for their National History Day project.  Searching by subject 57 results were produced in Net Library.  Many were not in the collection but Korean War: Almanac and Primary Sources was.  Opening up the “viewing this eBook”, I found the library’s copy was currently in use so I asked for notification when the title became available, which was a very easy process.  I also sought out information on the subject of Alzheimer’s.  The search netted several eBooks, but I was very disappointed in the copyright dates…everything was older than 2001.  Of the 5,471 eBooks  “In our collection”, only two books have a 2005 copyright and 155 have a copyright after 2000.

The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America would be a great primary source.  I pursued the Project Gutenberg because several entries noted it and I discovered that it has over 33,000 free eBooks.

Thanks for the tip on searching the western history question.  I tried to search Nebraska by subject in basic search and only found 6 entries.  However using the advanced search and “publisher” I found 56 entries.  I did the same for South Dakota and found 14 under basic search and nothing using "publisher" in the advanced search.  I'm a little confused on how the "publisher" limiter works.

Net Library would be helpful with historical information and cliff notes, but I would not use it for health issues, travel, economics, career exploration, or other topics requiring current information.

Our 8^th grade Social Studies will soon begin their American Civil War Unit.  One of the elements students have difficulty with is locating appropriate photographs for their projects.  Using the American Civil War Reference Library and the list of illustrations the students would have access to a number of photographs.  These could be very beneficial, however they are not arranged in a very user-friendly search format.  The photographs were also slow to load, which would try the patience of some middle school students.

In “basic search” I typed in cell hydration and found one article from The Gale Encyclopedia of Nursing and Allied Health. Vol. 5.  It was a comprehensive article with a “read to me” option.  The “voice” was clear and articulate.

I typed in panther and 31 results were produced, many about the Black Panthers, the extremist group, only one article about the animal I was interested in.

I am grateful for the extensive access to business, law, medical and scientific resources.   

Proquest

Searching  Barnes and Nobles’ web site for the next book in the Ranger’s Apprentice series, I was drawn to the title of a book in the “new book release” scroll;  The Water Secret: The cellular breakthrough to look and feel 10 years younger.    Perhaps it was because it has been below zero for the past week, or it is midterm of the 3^rd quarter, or the approaching birthday…whatever the reason, I decided to check it out.  What an interesting concept, healthy cells equate to healthy mind and body.  I wanted to know more, so Proquest was the answer.  I searched by the book title and author and discovered a wide variety of articles, ranging from book reviews, to scientific studies, to the products the author markets.  The broad scope of articles gave me a good perspective….I’ll be checking it out from the public library!

I appreciate the insight and suggestions from my cohorts…thanks!  I agree with SMSEaglesLibrary and JeanWKLibrary finding our professional journals online will keep us connected and ease our budgets.