Q. How do I find books in the library that I could use to teach a math lesson to 2nd graders that would be at their interest and reading level?

You'll want to use the IUP Libraries' children's collection.  Our children's collection is located on the second floor of Stabley Library.  These books will have Dewey call numbers, but all are marked with a "J" or "JUV" which designates Children's Collection.

You can also use the Library Catalog to search for children's books in our collection by topic, title, and author.  Go to the library website www.iup.edu/library and type your search terms into the "Search Our Collections" box.  Depending on your lesson, your search terms might be something like addition, counting, or shapes.  In the "Search In" drop-down menu, choose Library Catalog.  Click Search.

On the right side of your screen, you will see a column labeled "Refine my results."  Scroll down in the page until you see the heading "Location."  Choose Children's Collection.

Your list of books will now be limited to only those located in the Children's Collection.

You can choose a book with an appropriate interest and reading level by determining its Lexile Measure.  The Scholastic website gives a nice overview of the Lexile Measure along with a chart showing what measures are appropriate for different grade levels. https://www.scholastic.com/parents/books-and-reading/reading-resources/book-selection-tips/lexile-levels-made-easy.html

Lexile.com provides an online tool where educators, parents, and students can search for books by grade, interest and reading complexity.  You can access the tool at https://hub.lexile.com/.

Another great tool is a database called Children's Literature Comprehensive Database.  This database will help you search for and discover books you can use in your teaching.  The database allows you to search by subject area, reader's age and grade, lexile and scholastic reading levels, author, publisher, genre and more.  From each book's record, you can read reviews, find similar books, and search for a copy of the book in the IUP Library, other libraries, or to purchase online.