Lesson 4 - SIRS Discoverer/SIRS Issues Researcher

SIRS Discoverer
1. Now THIS is nice!!  I was delighted to see the easy navigation tools on the SIRS Discoverer site.  It's great to see they've broken the findings of my search for llamas down into the various results, as in newspapers, magazines, reference, graphics and webfinds.  It's also a nice touch to have a dictionary and thesaurus handy at the top of the page!  To make everything even better, each individual result found from my search comes with Reading Levels/Source & Summary icons.  The icons aid in making a quick assessment as to whether any particular search result is what the reader might be seeking. One of the best features is located on the bottom of the page, where one is able to specify which reading level is desired, as far as getting results in a search.  That's a very handy bonus.

The exercise had me look up my favorite animal, but I had to settle for my second favorite, the llama.  My first favorite is the Entlebucher Sennenhund, which is a rare Swiss Mountain Cattle Dog.  It didn't come up when I searched, so there it is.  There are some limits to this, as far as specific breeds of some animals, I am going to guess.  Had I just looked up dog, I'm sure a plethora of related items would have inundated my search results!

During my research, as I perused the various resources listed, such as Newspaper, Magazine, Graphics, Reference, and the others, it was disappointing to discover there were no graphics on the llama.  The tab, at the top of the page, states there are 17 graphics, but none show up when I clicked on the link.  So, I thought perhaps the graphics are accompanying the magazine articles!  That page won't even load for me, so I gave up and checked out the References, the Newspaper articles and the "All Articles" tabs.  When I visited the "All Articles" page, I was able to locate various magazine articles, some which declared graphics were included in the article.  I chose one and learned the magazine links work, via this page, as well as the graphics links associated with each article.  That helps a lot, if one has the time/inclination to "go around" in this way to complete research.  I really expected to see a list of thumbnail photos, at the least, on the "Graphics" page, once the link was selected.  Perhaps this is still a work in progress, I don't know.  At this point, the tab for graphics is unnecessary, as well as the magazine tab, since neither one works.  It's still a good resource!

2(a). Instructed to choose a country from the "Database Features", my choice was Peru, as it's the country where llamas are most commonly found.  The information about the country is presented in a concise format, with facts such as Official Name ,Capital, Population, Size, Continent/Region, Government Type, Government Official, Agriculture, Currency, Languages, and Observed Holidays.  Other information available includes a map, a graphic of the country's flag and Major Historical Events.  There is a link provided that leads the reader to further information about the country, by returning to the SIRS Discoverer page of resources on Peru.  There are quite a few articles I'd like to read there, now that I've been teased by the headlines!

2(b). Choosing the "Maps of the World", I chose Peru as my country of choice.  Three (3) maps came up and each is very interesting, in regard to the data attached to it.  The maps, 1531-1533: Conquest of Peru shows who the Conquerors were of the various regions of this country.  500-1000: Early Civilizations in Peru displays what it says it is.  The final map of Peru shows the country and the many cities, the capital(s), the borders and more.  These are pretty nice maps and they have the potential to be good tools when it comes to writing a report on this country, just for starters.

2(c). This led me to choosing "Skills Discoverer" on the Database Features, for the final leg of this exercise with the SIRS Discoverer.  I could spend hours here, as it's chock full of interactive play, learning exercises and so much fun!  This resource has several subjects, with sub-categories under each heading. This would definitely be a great tool for children, in that it comes more like play than "schooling" in its approach to the reader.  Very nice tool.  I'll definitely be going back and will share this with the students coming into the library.

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SIRS Issues Researcher
1. The Leading Issue I selected is Animal Cruelty.  The Topic Overview covers information regarding Animal Rights, with references to various laws enacted to protect animals and assist advocates in the animal welfare arena.  Other tools available on the Overview page include, but are not limited to: Pro & Con Essential Questions, Perspectives, Statistics, Global Impact and additional resources.  They provide "terms to know' related to the Leading Issue, as well as give the definition of each term. The research tools offered on this site are very helpful.  There are, besides the tools mentioned above, My Analysis, Timeline and Note Organizer.  These could benefit the researcher who is doing an in depth report on a topic.

This issue has provoked some very heated discussion amongst advocates and those who
against animals receiving any protections/rights.  There are a number of ways to narrow down your search here. A feature provides links (and snapshot views) of newspaper articles, magazine articles, graphics & multimedia, references and viewpoints related to this topic.  I like how the page gives a brief view into  the newspaper article or other informational source here. This could be very helpful to someone trying to hasten their search results.  With this function, the reader can see a summary of the text in any article/magazine, along with the what page the article/column might be on in which media platform (newspaper, magazine) and the Lexile score.  The reader is even granted an "add to my list" feature, which has to be beneficial to the researcher perusing several leads on any issue.  This is a very thorough site, complete with many links to the subjects related to the issue I chose.  All in all, a very well-thought out website/resource for the researcher. :)


 2. Select "Curriculum Pathfinders" on the right hand side of the window and mouse over the course subjects, noting the range of topics covered. Pick your favorite subject and discuss the information located there.

  There is a nice variety of subjects one can choose .from under the "Curriculum Pathfinders" section on this site.  The choices cover the average courses offered by most schools, including Math, Science, Social Studies, Language Arts, Fine Arts and Health. Each course, once you "hover" over with your mouse, displays the break-down of the course, giving the sub-topics under the umbrella of said course.  For example, I chose Language Arts for my course, because I'm a lover of words and books. The break-down  shows American Literature, Composition, Creative Writing, Drama, English Literature and Journalism.  Following that break-down, another is given which covers the History of the Language Arts. These sub-categories range from American Literature, English Literature (19th Century), English Literature (Middle English - 1100 to 1500), Medieval Literature, Canon Literacy and Modern Literature (20th century).  Following those categories, there are categories of different languages, as well as writing and reading helps. All of these fall under the left hand column on the page with the title, "My Courses".  In the center column, Research Ideas are given, with hyperlinks to a page, per tag word, to a page with links to many websites, news articles and more, that are related to the topic.  In my case, still under the Language Arts, I chose Creative Writing, then under Research Ideas and clicked on the link for Utopian Literature. The page that opens has several hyperlinks to newspaper, magazine and ezine articles.  I plan on reading one of those later tonight, as the summary was very enticing.

One may think this resource has given enough, but wait!  There's more!!  Below the Research Ideas area, there are a few more tidbits of information provided.  There is a 'How Do I?" where you can learn how to analyze a work of poetry or fiction.  There's a "Literary Criticism and Interpretation", which is a Virtual Interactive Fiction Tutorial (takes the reader even further in depth into the realm of Fiction and its' elements, the Cultural Contexts for Fiction and the Critical Approaches to Fiction), which allows the researcher/student an opportunity to learn about an author of a story (3 are given) and to start writing about the story in a virtual notebook. This site provides an eBook, in this case, "Beowulf in Hypertext" and a link to a Notable Person in Language Arts (Wm. Shakespeare), which is a fun page to visit, actually.  One part of it is written in Ye Olde English, just like back in old Bill's day.  The Wm. Shakespeare page is chock full of hyperlinks to some amazing sources of information that ye old librarian would not have considered checking, until I saw it on the page.  This resource is a gold mine!

Finally, in the third column, the reader will discover interactive tools to help make their research a bit more fun.  There is an interactive game here, "Lord Of the Flies" that, once I learned how to play it, was very educational and quite fun!  Another interactive tool provided is the "Printing Press", which enables the researcher to create Newspapers, Brochures or Flyers/Signs/Posters.  They offer templates, which you can select and edit at your pace.  The ability to save drafts to your computer is handy, as well as the options to add images and edit the fonts, size, alignment and many other editing tools one might find in Word. Once the reader/writer's document is completed, they are able to print it with the tools given within the program.  This is a lovely feature and could easily encourage young writers to take a running leap at the realm of creative writing! 

All in all, I was sort of bored, upon first examination of this site, but soon fell head over heels in "Oh Yippeee!" with it.  Once I began perusing the many features, it began to reel me in.  This may be a site that is geared towards young people, but this adult really appreciates the easy navigation, the plethora of incredible information provided and the fun aspects of the interactive tools.  This is a great resource and I've already shared bits about it with a couple of the teen patrons who frequent our library.  That makes for a good week, I think. :)