Linda Froschauer

The Common Core Standards may center their attention on Language Arts and Mathematics, but they urge that science be included. You can expect to see a larger inclusion and development around science as the CCS continues to develop and be implemented. This is the case because of the movement toward STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) that is enjoying a new emphasis in many schools across North America. This said, teacher librarians in elementary schools should watch for and encourage more interest in science as they see these signals start to take hold in their school. Now to the book at hand. Every elementary teacher librarian should purchase this book; read it; and, share it with teachers. It is amazing. Amazing because it advocates that inquiry and science knowledge be integrated to help children to start thinking like scientists. It is exactly what we as teacher librarians would hope that teachers of all disciplines would do; that is, integrate the teaching of content knowledge and 21st Century skills/information literacy. When the reader understands what is happening here, it is like raising the curtain on the true integration of the library/leanring commons into the lives and practices of the classroom teacher. The book is layed out in chapters, each with a theme or stage of the inquiry process. Following a short introduction, the editor has collected articles from the NSTA journal that give practical examples of that theme. Here are the themes and you will recognize each: What do Scientists Do?, Process Skills, Science Notebooks, Investigable Questions, Data Collection and Representation, Selecting an Inquiry Experience, Switching from Cookbook Labs to Full Inquiry, Sharing Research Results, and, Assessing Inquiry. What a natural idea to marry such an idea from science with the inquiry skills teacher librarians wish to teach! Fabulous! What an opportunity! Get this book and start the conversation!… (más)