Teachable Moments

My youngest brother is eight. Being in my late twenties give my an interesting perspective both as a big sister and a future librarian. I watch to see what he picks up at the library. He loves non-fiction...books about dinosaurs, how cars work, and most recently, stars, are among his favorites. He asked me the other day when I was babysitting, "What does the big dipper look like?" "Is it like a big chip?"
"No," I said, thankful we were on our way to the library, "it's more like a big ladle, like mom uses when she makes soup. I can show you a picture when we pick out books today."

As soon as we got to the library, he was on a mission to find a book about stars or constellations....he pleased with my description when we found a picture. "Yep, it looks just like mom's ladle. Thanks." He took the book home so he could look at and read about the other constellations. It was a quick and easy find. So, what? Just a kid and a book. For me, it was a teachable moment, a chance to connect reading with the questions he was asking. It was a chance to show him how to find the information he wanted to know. In short, it was a lesson in information literacy that took five minutes.