Thing 14 - Reliable Online Resources

The reliable online resources that our school district provides are really excellent. I use every chance I get to teach the students about them. When a class comes in to the library media center, I do a little homework ahead of time and find the databases that will help them to find what they need. That way they can experience success, and will be encouraged to try again.
Probably the most effective thing that I do regarding the online resources is to have the ninth grade advisories come to the computer lab, one class at a time, and work through some exercises. The first half has the students read descriptions of five databases and find which ones are being described. The second half is a lesson that I adapted from one of Linda Wise's, having the students do an advanced search on Grolier Online. It's amazing that such a little bit of familiarity gives them the confidence to use the resources on their own.
Still, in spite of all of my best efforts, students' first inclination is often to go to Google or Wikipedia. My response is that I love those resources, too, but that for the purpose of scholarly research, they can do much better. And gradually they seem to be coming around.