Summer Teacher Institute - Library of Congress

The Summer Teacher Institute at the Library of Congress was an amazing experience...
There were 22 teacher/librarians in attendance from all over the United States and representing all different kinds and levels of schools; public, private, elementary and secondary. We had been selected from a field of approximately 180 applicants for the institute, and were feeling rather grateful to be there. Perhaps that's why this particular group of teachers was better behaved during instruction than I had ever encountered before in any workshop I've attended in my 20 years of teaching! It was either that - or the wonderful food and hospitality that was offered to us each day.

We were given tours of the three building Library of Congress complex, each named for a president (Madison, Jefferson, and Adams). We were instructed on the use of various kinds of resources, focusing primarily on the American Memory Project. We had tours of the Map and Manuscript Divisions, as well as a presentation of the Photograph Division. The institute culminated in hands-on computer lab time to explore the resources on a selected unit of study, and to prepare a brief multimedia presentation of our unit, which we shared with our peers.

I highly encourage anyone who has an interest in the American Memory Project and the Library of Congress to apply for this first-rate experience. What, may you ask, was my favorite part of the institute? Professionally, I was most taken with the presentation in the Manuscript Division, but personally I was most fulfilled when I used my Library of Congress Reader's Card for the first time! Rest assured, I'll be applying for the continuation of this institute next summer, right Danna? (Pick me, pick me!)