Use of Information can cure what ails ya! This article provides tips for teaching this important concept.

Deepen your students’ understanding of two important topics — friendship and Big6 — with this fun collaborative unit.

In a standards-based learning environment, the Big6 provides a model that focuses the curriculum on learner-centered activities. In essence, the Big6 becomes a tool that guides students through the information-literacy maze.

The library media specialist at North Elementary School in Ozark, Missouri, uses issues of Zoobooks, the children’s magazine, as a tool to introduce Big6 #3, (Location & Access) to third graders. To prepare for the lesson, the library media specialist placed several issues of Zoobooks, a sheet of notebook paper, and a pencil for each student on the tables in the library. The library media specialist explained to students that they would be doing research, and the task was to “find five surprising facts” about an animal and record those facts in their own words to share with their classmates. Students were asked to investigate the animal on the cover of the Zoobook issue in front of them.

Students were told that they would not need to read the articles in the magazine, but simply skim for details, a skill they had practiced the previous week. To be sure the students understood what they were to do, a student volunteer was called on to define the task (Big6 #1, Task Definition). Another student reinforced Big6 #2, (Information Seeking Strategies) by answering “How will you begin?”. The student suggested that they could look at the pictures and skim the writing under them.

The children began to locate and record their findings. After only a couple of minutes, the library media specialist asked how many students had written one surprising fact. Hands were raised and most students were busy writing the second note. After giving the students 13 minutes to complete the task, the library media specialist called on volunteers to share one unusual or surprising fact from their list (Big6 #4, Use of Information). The students were pleased to make announcements such as “Koalas can spend their whole life in a tree,” and “Ostriches can run 40 miles an hour.”

The lesson was simple, easy, and enjoyable. Several information skills were reinforced using the Big6 model. The students gained experience they could apply to a number of related activities and they exhibited new confidence in their ability to locate and access information. Zoobooks is a monthly publication for children ages five to fourteen and is available at Zoobooks, P. O. Box 85384 , San Diego, CA or call: 800-992-5034.

“Independence! That’s the goal” says Joyce Pagés. The Big6 approach helps students “take charge of their own learning.” Pagés compares the ways students interact with narrative and expository written material.

More than just extracting needed information, note-taking consists of three steps: Identification of keyword and related words in the researchable questions, skimming and scanning and extracting needed information.

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All subject areas have the potential for integrating information literacy skills.