Jay County High School Country Research Project

Due to the installation of new shelving on the Lower Level of the library, there are special processes for accessing Realia materials (objects like cultural artifacts, flags, musical instruments). 

Realia:

• Fill out a request form supplied by the librarian during the library session for up to two Realia items
• Turn your forms in to the librarian at the end of the session (10am)
• Items will be pulled and available for you to check out on a book truck near the service desk for EMM (on the lower level) after 11am. 

Search for books using OneSearch. You will find books in the General Collection, youth books and realia in Education, Music and Media, and maps in the GIS Research & Map Collection.

Start by finding a pool of records that are simply about your country.  Then, you can place different limiters to find the sort of item you need.

Here's how to get going:

1. After accessing OneSearch, type in your country name.

2. Press the Search button, and you'll pull up a large number of all kinds of titles having something to do with your country. 

Now, based on what you want to find, choose the appropriate filter on the left:

For children's or youth books about your country:

1. Click on LIBRARY LOCATION

2. Select Education, Music and Media Youth Collection.

You may need to scroll down to find it.

3. Write down the call number for the title you choose.

In the example below, the call number is 800 A177CH.

For other books related to your country's literature:

1. Make sure to choose "Clear all" at the top on the left.

2. Add another term after your country in the search box.  For example, look for poetry: 

Or, search for short stories:

3. Under REFINE YOUR SEARCH choose "Library Catalog," and under CONTENT TYPE choose "Book / eBook."

For realia -- things from the real world:

(Realia includes things like games, toys, classroom teaching tools, and cultural objects from around the world.)

1. Make sure to choose "Clear Filters" at the top on the left.

2. Under CONTENT TYPE, type realia in the Content Type Filter box. When you see the Realia checkbox appear, click on it. 

3. Write down the number for the item you choose, and fill out the Realia request form supplied by your library instructor.

In the example shown here, the item number is UDC 3260.

For information about the national language of your country:

1. Select Advanced Search beside the OneSearch search box. 

Try a subject search from OneSearch Advanced Search screen like this, where we're searching for one of Nigeria's language called Hausa:

2. Under CONTENT TYPE, choose "Book / eBook."

To access these library databases:

• Click on the links presented here
• Or, go to the library homepage at http://www.bsu.edu/library
  • Scroll down and select "Databases" under "Popular Services & Resources."
  • Click on the first letter of the database you want.
  • Look at the alphabetical list of databases and choose the one you want to access.

Gale eBooks

Gale eBooks provides longer reference articles that can give you background on culture, education, and more about your chosen country. 

Jump directly to some of the most helpful reference works in Gale eBooks (choose the 'search within' option to search for your country or topic):

• Countries and their Cultures
• World Education Encyclopedia
• Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life
• Food Cultures of the World Encyclopedia

Oxford Reference Online

Oxford Reference includes access to many dictionaries and encyclopedias. Information provided may often be very brief, but some entries are longer. 

Access World News

This database includes news from and about different countries. Especially helpful for finding current events.