This lesson actively engages learners in the process of evaluating an information source using the SIFT technique, designed by Mike Caufield. The approach uses lateral reading techniques and the lesson encourages learners to apply and reflect on the technique as it pertains to a specific information need.

Use this virtual mind-map to focus a topic and generate keywords for searching.

Learn how to read a scholarly article and identify the parts.

It's important to credit others when you use parts of their work. Complete this tutorial to learn when and how to best give credit to the work of others.

Searching for information in library resources is often like exploring a new land. You often won’t find what you're looking for the first time you search. Complete this tutorial to learn strategies for rethinking your search for better results.

Library databases work differently from Google. Learn how to create a search strategy for these databases.

Understand the difference between primary and secondary sources, and between popular and scholarly sources.

Annotated bibliographies have become a popular assignment in college courses and a way to scaffold research papers. Gathering a bibliography before turning in a completed research project allows students to focus on searching strategically and get feedback on the sources they obtained. Annotating that bibliography requires them to think critically about the sources they choose and their relationship to the research at hand.

This assignment was created to help undergraduate students use research articles to help inform their argument about a "text."  This exercise has been used in library instruction sessions for art history, composition, english literature, women's studies, and history classes. After reflecting on what they know about a text (or image or multimedia), brainstorming search terms, and tracking relevant patterns in search results, students can synthesize information from a variety of sources in an organized, methodological fashion. 

Developed in order to move students away from an outdated checklist approach to evaluating online content, we developed this tutorial to teach students how to read laterally and think critically. This tutorial consists of several small chunks of microlearning activities including an assignment. Students can complete as much or as little as they feel they need.