T.I.P.C. and the Chocolate Factory

 

Illustration by Quentin Blake for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Much like Willy Wonka leading a group of kids through his chocolate factory, I think of myself as a similar character. As we progress quickly towards the summer break we are starting to get a lot of school field coming on to our floor looking to fill those last few days. My branch is five stories and every floor is something completely different with their own set of rules, offerings, and assortment of staff. The field trip groups are broken down and placed into a rotation with one these being a tour. They start in the basement which houses our collections department, maintenance shop, and the Library Foundation office/book store house. The 1st floor is the adult floor with all the adult books and computers plus auditorium and coffee shop. 2nd floor belongs to children, tweens, and teens and you know it because I've made it an explosion of color. Then it's on to 3rd which is reference and archives (aka: the quiet floor). Last is 4th and it's the makerspace that's filled with 3D printers, Glowforges, and all things maker-y. Each floor tour comes with an explanation of what it does but also how these visiting students can use it. 

"But, Lauren, what does this have to do with TIPC and is there also a chocolate fountain in your library along with everything else?" I'm sure you're asking...

Technology Innovation Progress Chart is a part of the Henrico 21 teaching and learning concept used in the Henrico Public County Schools located around Richmond, Virgina. Every year they host a showcase featuring lessons designed for the TIPC and these lessons must follow a strict set of rules and regulations. The lesson plan is then evaluated in regards to the TIP Chart that contains four essential components: 

  • Research and Information Fluency (How are the students finding and navigating through information?)
  • Communication and Collaboration (How do they discuss this information and then apply it to their group project?)
  • Critical Thinking and Problem Solving (How can the students solve real world problems?)
  • Creativity and Innovation (What can the students create with the information they've collected to solve problems or create products?)
Within each of these 4 categories, there are 4 levels that the teacher and the students move through: Entry, Development, Approaching, and Ideal/Target. The TIP Chart is an excellent and tangible rubric system to ensure that teachers are developing lesson plans that can be broadened or narrowed depending on the students in their classroom. You can peruse on their websites all the lesson plans and they have a breakdown on how that lesson plan fit into the rubric. One I thought was really interesting, and on one of my favorite authors, was on Laurie Halse Anderson's book Speak. The lesson is an amazing example of cross-curriculum (and school) programming that tackles a very heavy book subject. I would love to do something like this in partnership with other community partners in the public library.

The TIPC reminds me very much of the typical collection of students you might find in any randomly assigned group project with each student fitting into one of these 4 components. I was, and still am, the Creative and Innovative person in the group. For me, my weakest was the Research and Information Fluency part - what I thought of as "the boring stuff." In my day-to-day as a public librarian I'm more than happy to let other people write grants and sit in budget meetings looking at charts and data. If I'm Willy Wonka, then those people would be the Oompa Loompas - working away behind the scenes, telling/singing about how they saw situations coming. I'm happiest when I'm collaborating with my coworkers on programs, trying to solve problems that always pop up, and exploring what we can do for our patrons while guiding kids around a place that I think is magical.

...and though any desk drawer in our library might have chocolate in it and we do have a fountain, we do not have an actual chocolate fountain...

via GIPHY

Comments

  1. Jason HillMay 18, 2023 at 2:59 PM

    Lauren, I love that you have a "theme" for your post, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is one my favorite children's stories. Also, you get bonus points for using the 1970s version, and not the 2000s version for your illustrations and GIFs. You give a thorough explanation of TIPC. Having four levels for each of the four categories sounds detailed. Lastly, your library sounds positively delightful.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Books + Arts = Book ArtsMay 19, 2023 at 10:32 AM

      Jason, if I could've been at Quentin Blake's knighting ceremony then, boy howdy, I would've! I teach cooking programs for our young patrons and I love to cook from a book called "Roald Dahl's Revolting Recipes." It was written by Dahl's daughter and they're all based on his books but it's also illustrated by Quentin Blake. Also, I only recognize Gene Wilder as Wonka :).

      Delete
  2. Mary LeeMay 19, 2023 at 8:52 AM

    What a creative analogy! Libraries are magical operations after all. I do relate to the summer hype as we get ready for end of the year summer promotion. Good luck with everything! With regards to TIPC, what types of technology allows you to embrace the Creativity and Innovation in your life or career? What level would you rank yourself for the other three categories (Entry, Developing, Approaching, or Ideal)?

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    Replies
    1. Books + Arts = Book ArtsMay 19, 2023 at 10:28 AM

      Hiya, Mary Lee! In my life as an illustrator, I use collaborative technology mostly by way of Procreate - it allows me to work on book layouts but without all the fancy-schmancyness of Adobe ______. If I had to rank myself from best to worst in TIPC it would be 1. Creativity 2. Collaboration 3. Problem Solving 4. Research.

      Delete

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