Kids and Teens at the Internet Public Library: http:www'ipl'org

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Kids and Teens at the Internet Public Library
http//www.ipl.org/

• Jennifer Lau-Bond
• User Services Coordinator
• jenlau_at_umich.edu

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IPL History

• Begun in 1995 at the School of Information and
  Library Science (now School of Information)
• Started by a group of students and professors
• An educational experiment that has continued for
  11 years

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IPL Consortium

• June 1, 2006 the IPL Consortium began
• Partnership of 14 I-Schools to develop and
  maintain the IPL
• http//www.ipl.org/div/about/IPLconsortium/consort
  iumInfo.html

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What Is the IPL?

• A website (http//www.ipl.org/) containing
• Collections of nearly 45,000 links
• E-mail reference service
• An educational and research laboratory for
  librarians
• Majority of work is student-driven

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http//www.ipl.org/
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Collections at the IPL

• Link to free sites
• All links selected and reviewed by library
  science graduate studentsmust meet our
  collection policies
• Sites indexed and abstracted
• Subject collections as well as special features,
  exhibits, and sections for children and teens

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Subject Collections
http//www.ipl.org/div/subject/

• Aimed towards adults but useful for kids/teens
• Links organized by headings
• Browse down to further sub-headings

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Subject Collections
http//www.ipl.org/div/subject/

• Examples
• Social Customs, Traditions, Folklore (under
  Social Sciences)
• http//www.ipl.org/div/subject/browse/soc70.00.00/
  
• Sports (under Entertainment Leisure)
• http//www.ipl.org/div/subject/browse/ent80.00.00/
  

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Special Features Newspapers
http//www.ipl.org/div/news/

• Links to online newspapers from around the world
• Includes papers in English and other languages

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Special Features Newspapers
http//www.ipl.org/div/news/

• Examples
• Michigan (under United States)
• http//www.ipl.org/div/news/browse/US.7007520/
• Pakistan (under Asia)
• http//www.ipl.org/div/news/browse/PK/

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KidSpace
http//www.ipl.org/div/kidspace

• Special section for kids (13 and under)
• Similar to adult collections but reviewed for
  age-appropriateness

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KidSpace Subject Collections
http//www.ipl.org/div/kidspace

• Examples
• Reference
• http//www.ipl.org/kidspace/browse/ref0000
• Reading Zone
• http//www.ipl.org/kidspace/browse/rzn0000

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KidSpace Special Features
http//www.ipl.org/div/kidspace/features.html

• Compiled by IPL staff and students
• Original content and outside links

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KidSpace Special Features
http//www.ipl.org/div/kidspace/features.html

• Examples
• Stately Knowledge (about United States)
• http//www.ipl.org/div/stateknow/
• Science Fair Project Resource Guide
• http//www.ipl.org/div/projectguide/

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TeenSpace
http//www.ipl.org/div/teen/

• Separate section of the IPL for teenagers (13-18)
• Includes learning materials as well as
  interesting and entertaining sites

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TeenSpace

• Examples
• Money Work subject category
• http//www.ipl.org/div/teen/browse/mw0000/
• A Research and Writing
• http//www.ipl.org/div/teen/aplus/
• Poetry Wiki
• http//www.ipl.org/div/teenpoet/

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Reference at the IPL

• Service is free to allquestions from around the
  world and people of all ages
• Questions answered by trained library students
  and professional volunteers
• Use free sites and sometimes refer to print or
  subscription sources (local resources when
  possible)
• Questions submitted on web forms

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Adult Question Form http//www.ipl.org/div/askus/

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KidSpace Question Formhttp//www.ipl.org/div/ask
/
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Asking a Reference Question

• Volunteer limitations--no medical/legal questions
  or questions that need a response immediately (at
  least 3 days)
• We use mostly free sources, so cant always do
  complex searches in print/subscription materials
• Let us know if youre a librarian!
• See more samples of questions weve answered at
• http//www.ipl.org/div/anniversary/timelineIntRefQ
  uest.html
• And learn more about our service at
• http//www.ipl.org/div/askus/refservice.html

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Reviewing the Slides

• These slides will be posted on IPL site at
  http//www.ipl.org/div/about/teachWipl.html
• Look for slides titled Kids and Teens at the
  IPL
• Linked from IPL homepage in left navigation bar
  (Teach With The IPL)

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• Have more questions about what the IPL can do for
  you? Contact Jennifer Lau-Bond, User Services
  Coordinator, at jenlau_at_umich.edu