The Top Five Reference Choices for My Elementary School’s Library

The selection of 5 reference tools for my school library learning commons was a somewhat difficult task however, given budget constraints, it was a very necessary one.  There are many intriguing types of resources to purchase, but given their shelf life, one must make some educated decisions to best curate a collection that is not only useful but is curriculum-based and worth the money spent on it.

Encyclopedias- Preferably, I would purchase the online version of the resource.  This would allow students to explore a large database of knowledge that has videos and other pertinent links embedded in the document.  It would also allow students to use the resource anywhere they can access a computer, whether that be at home or back in their classroom.  The ability to quickly access bibliographic information is an incredible convenience for those researching. Internet search engines also have a large role to play in research.  There are many excellent resources available to broaden the scope and breadth of a research topic, which may have been originally found in an encyclopedia entry.

Dictionaries-  Several levels of dictionaries would be helpful as reference materials.  Picture and children's dictionaries provide text types and visuals that are useful for these types of learners.  Learning the skills of researching by alphabetical order is extremely worthwhile as this is the format used in many books.

Atlases- Up-to-date atlases can be a source of information of many types of information, not just the location of countries. Several recent atlases I have seen will feature a particular area or country on a separate page.  This allows them to show the geography of the area but also to give pertinent information that may also be needed.

Thesauri- These are helpful for writers to expand their knowledge of vocabulary that would be appropriate for their reports. References with synonyms, antonyms, and homonyms would also help writers expand the vocabulary used.  This is especially helpful as students tend to stick with vocabulary that they are familiar with rather than pushing themselves to raise the level of their vocabulary.

Yearbooks- Yearbooks detailing current events in sports, history, politics, and other world events are often fascinating for students and are one of my most requested resources.  You could also add the school yearbooks past and present, as students have a clear connection to this information.

Although a difficult task, reviewing budgets and reference materials for this assignment was a small project for which I deeply appreciated. I felt as though this was a daunting yet necessary endeavour to complete for my school’s library learning commons, and I am glad that I was able to sit down and compile this shortlist. As mentioned previously, there are many intriguing types of resources which are available to purchase, but keeping in mind the relevancy in years to come and the budgetary constraints, I believe that I have curated an appropriate list of resources that will not only apply toward school curriculum but that will also be interesting for students to interact and learn with.