Children's Literature

Children's literature is a study of the history of children's literature, of notable writers and publishers, of illustrators and illustrations, of various types of writing for children, and the use of this body of literature with children.

Places to Begin: Reference Resources

Bibliographies

Major source: Subject Guide to Children's Books in Print Juv-Ref PN 1009.A1 S82
Call Numbers to browse by:   Juv-Ref PN 1009
Subject words to search by:

<childrens literature bibliography>
or add the word "juv" to a subject, e.g.,
<frontier and pioneer life juv>

 

Authors and Illustrators

Major source: Something About the Author Ref PN451 .S6
Subject words to search by:

<childrens literature bio-bibliography>
or (name of author), e.g.
<Blume Judy>

 

History and Criticism

Subject words to search by:
<childrens literature history and criticism>

 

Teaching with Literature

Subject words to search by:
<children books and reading>
<childrens literature study and teaching>
<activity programs in education>
<young adult literature bibliography>
Numbers to Browse by: LB 1575+
LC 1099+
PN 1009.A1
Curriculum LA-1
Web Resource:

 

Book Reviews

Major source: Childrens Literature Review, 1976- Ref PN 1009.A1 C5139

 

Awards

Subject words to search by:
<Newbery Medal Winner>
<Caldecott Medal Winner>
Web Resources:

 

Children's Books by Subject

Subject words to search by:
<picture books>
Subject "keywords" to search by:
(your subject) plus the word <juvenile>
e.g., <disabilities juvenile>
<african americans juvenile>
Web Resources:

Multicultural Literature for Children

Carol Hurst's Children's Literature Site
(Over 60 subjects with activities, book annotations, reviews and links)

back to top

 

Finding Journal Articles

Electronic Databases: EBSCO

  • ERIC - Educational Resources Information Center is the most important source for scholarly material in the field of education. It indexes journal articles, ERIC documents, and professional books. ERIC Digests, which are included, are full text. Consult the Thesaurus of ERIC Descriptors to improve your search results. The Thesaurus is located near the entrance to the Reference Room. Ask a Librarian for assistance.
  • Academic Search Premier - a multi-disciplinary database offering full text articles to many education journals
  • Professional Development Collection - full text articles from over 500 journals and magazines for educators

back to top

 

Additional Web Resources

CCBC: Cooperative Children's Book Center

Children's Book Council

Children's Literature Web Guide
(Good information, but last update 4/2001.)

The Clearinghouse on Reading's Children's & Adolescent Literature Resources (Indiana University)

Franklin Institute's Educational Hotlists - Literature
(Includes fables, folklore, Eric Carle, Anne Frank, read alouds, and more.)

International Children's Digital Library

Kay E. Vandergrift's Special Interest Page (Rutger's University)

 

back to top

 

For further assistance, see a Reference Librarian

 

08-JAN-2007 SJM
Links updated 22-May-2007 SJM

 


Updated 23-May-2007 SJM