Information Grounds and Early Childhood Programming Andrea EmmonsLIS 5053 GROUNDED IN EARLY CHILDHOOD LITERACY

What are Information Grounds? Information grounds can occur anywhere Places where people come together for a common purpose, but where spontaneous information sharing occurs as an aside Information sharing is often unrelated to the purpose they came together May or may not be related to the place “Place” can be physical or virtual

Why Children’s Programs? Informal Places Where People Gather For A Common Purpose Children’s programs offer the essential nutrients needed to cultivate an information ground. These programs are generally informal in nature, have lots of people gathering together, and for a common purpose. Once people feel comfortable, it is only natural that information sharing will occur!

Who Comes to Children’s Programs at the Library? Parents or Caregivers of Children These may include Stay at home parents Foster Parents Grandparents who watch children while parents work Nannies, babysitters, or other child-care providers CHILDREN ages 0-5.

The Setting The early childhood programs I observed happened at a public library in my community. This particular library offers four early childhood programs weekly with a wide range of activities on a rotating basis including; Organized Play Times Story Times Movement Games Music Play Activities I observed four sessions of Music Play Activities.

Before Each Program: The Cycle Observed Caregiver arrives early, greets staff & claims child’s nametag Caregiver and child move to Family/Play Area Another caregiver arrives, claims nametag, and joins others in family/play area Discussion ensues Program Start Time Arrives: caregivers & children enter program room

Common Discussion Topics Observed in Family/Play Area Superficial Weather, standard greetings Related to Place Books enjoyed, other programs at the library Related to Event Child Development & Growth Since Last Visit Participants’ Interests Sports, Politics, Hobby Information Useful Information Current Sales, Medical or Specialist Referrals

Information Sharing During the Programs Librarian Information Sharing Introduced directions for activities Explained why certain activities are beneficial developmentally Coached care givers on how to interact with their children during activities or modeling behaviors Caregivers’ Discussions Minimal information sharing was noted during each program Discussions mostly focused on what was happening within the room

After Each Program 3-4 Caregivers would leave library 3-4 Caregivers would search for library materials 6-8 Caregivers would return to the family/play area and begin the discussion cycle again, with some overlap of caregivers between sessions. 2-3 Individuals would remain in the program room to request library staff assistance for specific needs/concerns

Observation Findings Serendipitous Sharing of Information! Other Topics of Interest (Politics, Sports, Current Sales, & etc) Topics Related to Place/Event (Children’s Growth & Development) Superficial Topics (Weather) Caregiver discussions before and after Early Childhood Programs do represent Information Grounds!

Surprise Findings There was minimal information sharing between caregivers during the program itself. While some information was shared during the program, content focused on what was happening in the room. This indicates the program itself was not an information ground. Possible Reasons Nature of particular program observed Directions demanded parental involvement Peculiarity of population or location observed How We Could Test This Observe other Early Childhood Sessions at this location to see if the same phenomenon occurs at different types of programs within the same population or not Observe Early Childhood Sessions at other locations to see if there are similar patterns in other areas

Literature Review: The Importance of Early Childhood Programming Library programs for early childhood and their adult caregivers are designed with two main purposes; Introduce caregivers to library resources for young children Enhance children's emergent literacy

Literature Review: Planting the Seed Research indicates story times not only meet children’s immediate information needs, but also have longstanding effects well into adulthood Prendergast suggests that the community has "a well-established need for young children to grow up in environments rich in language and literacy opportunities" (Prendergast 2011, 20).

Literature Review: Planning Early Childhood Programming Advice for Planning Early Childhood Programming is covered extensively in the literature. Some advice for planning early childhood programming include; Use purposeful planning for a variety of developmental and ability levels Cultivate an inviting atmosphere that make all feel welcome Prepare children for school by by modeling the behaviors, skills, and questions used in education settings Foster an appreciation of reading to children

Dig A Little Deeper: Gaps in the Literature What about the information needs of caregivers? While the literature includes generous information about the information needs of children in early childhood programming, there is very little about the information needs of caregivers. Are caregivers' needs are being met through giving their children more exposure to early childhood literacy activities alone, or do their needs run deeper? I’d like to see more discussion regarding how early childhood programming meets the needs of whole families in professional literature.

References Cahill, Maria "Meeting the Early Literacy Needs of Children through Preschool Outreach Story Time Programs" Knowledge Quest 33(2): D'Orazio, Antonette K "Small Steps, Big Results: Preparing a Story Time for Children with Special Needs" Children & Libraries 5(3): Fisher, Karen E, Joan C Durrance, and Marian Bouch Hinton "Information Grounds and the Use of Need-Based Services by Immigrants in Queens, New York: A Context Based, Outcome Evaluation Approach” Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology 55(8): McKechnie, Lynne E. F "Observations of Babies and Toddlers in Library Settings” Library Trends 55(1): Pettigrew, Karen "Waiting for Chiropody: Contextual Results from an Enthnographic Study of the Information Behavior Among Attendees at Community Clinics” Information Processing and Management 35(1999): Prendergast, Tess "Beyond Storytime" Children & Libraries: The Journal for the Association for Library Service to Children 9(1): Thomas, James "Wonderful 'Ones'" Children & Libraries: The Journal of the Association for Library Service to Children 6 (1): Tvaruzka, Kathryn "Warning: Children in the Library! Welcoming Children and Families into the Academic Library" Education Libraries 32(2):