Syracuse University (Syracuse University, School of Information Studies)

Syracuse University's Center for Digital Literacy, along with By Kids For Kids, the Connecticut Invention Convention, Brooklyn-On-Tech, Time2Invent, and OCLC's Webjunction, among other collaborators, will work with 96 school librarians and students in grades 4-8 to create a website called The Innovation Destination. The site, developed using an iterative design approach, will contain resources and training materials, including lesson plans, activities, web links, pathfinders, learning games, bibliographies, and research articles, for use by elementary and middle school librarians to stimulate and support creative thinking. The centerpiece of the site will be KidsClips, a searchable database of hundreds of interviews with successful young innovators who provide insights into the innovation process and serve as role models for students. The project aims to enable librarians to recognize the importance of motivating and supporting student innovation by creating innovation spaces within their libraries, demonstrate knowledge and skills for being innovation mentors, and report increased student interest in innovation resources and activities.