Prof. Santoro
Children’s Literature: Children’s Library or the Rhode Island Festival of Children’s Books and Authors on Oct. 15
Library or Conference Paper
Topic: Children’s Section of a Library of Your Choice OR an Overview of Your Experience Attending the Rhode Island Festival of Children’s Books and Authors
What you choose has to be viewed in person (go the children’s section of a library of your choice OR attend some part of the RIFCBA and some of the workshops).
Note: Please do not go to the Young Adult section of a library. These are set up very differently from a children’s section.
Note about the Conference: It runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with continuous workshops by various authors and lots of activities for children, including autograph sessions with authors. You can arrive and depart the conference at any time that work for you and also bring children with you. There are usually food trucks on site, as well. It takes place inside Lincoln School, Providence, R.I., and is open to the public with a $5 admission fee.
Length: 2 to 3 pages
Format of the Paper: MLA format. Add a title at the top of your essay. Type it double spaced. Create paragraphs. The questions below are just for you to review and answer, but share the information in essay-style form.
Essay Writing: See my notes about essay writing in the “Various Notes” folder in Blackboard.
Helpful Hints:
Take notes while you visit the library or conference, or jot down your impressions after your visit so you remember details.
When visiting on site talk to a librarian, patron, etc. If visiting the conference, take notes from a workshop or two to reference in your paper.
You want the reader to feel like we experienced either the library visit or the conference attendance with you.
Structure and Content of the Paper Itself:
Introduction (may be one or two paragraphs):
Par. 1: Give some background about the library or the conference. State its location. Discuss what it looks like from outside of the library or the school. Cerate this as an introduction to an essay.
Par. 2: Discuss why you picked this particular library or chose to attend the conference. Do you have a connection/past experience associated with the library? For the conference, who do you hope to hear present? What makes this library or conference important?
End with a thesis to lead us into the paper.
Body Section One
Par. 1: Describe the children’s section or the conference set up. What do you see? What are the decorations or exhibits?
Par. 2: If it is a library, what services are offered? If it is the conference, look at the displays, tables. What visual elements would attract a child’s attention?
Par. 3: Based on what you see, what is available in the library or conference to promote interaction by the children? Are there interactive displays, exhibits? Technology to try? Describe.
Body Section Two (one or two paragraphs):
Make note on the content of the site. For the library, what displays are prominent? What authors/themes are featured? Interview a librarian or visitor to the library. What do they have to say about what books are popular? What books do you notice? For the conference, what authors did you hear present? What did you learn? Tell the reader a little bit about these authors/illustrators.
Conclusion:
What did you learn during your visit or attendance. What inspired you? Do you think this library or conference is worth visiting or attending?
If you brought children along with you, what did they think? Add their opinions in the conclusion.
Proofread your work carefully for typos, spelling, etc.
Remember to follow standard paragraph structure with a topic sentence, transitions, evidence, and transition sentence to the next paragraph. See my “Notes about Paragraphs” in Blackboard to review.
Grading: See rubric. This paper counts for 15 percent of your final grade.
Due Date: See Blackboard.
Late Papers: Papers will be marked down five points for every day they are late.