Teaching Hack: Use Memes, Gifs, and Cats
The more cats, the better.
People don’t usually see librarians as teachers but it is something we do quite often. I teach several “one-shot” library sessions at an academic library. This means that an instructor asks me to come to their class for an hour and asks me to show students how to access library resources for their research projects.
This can get repetitive and boring…really boring. I am NOT the type of person that likes to stand behind a podium and read from slides. I enjoy participation and active learning.
Librarians want to show you all the things. But information overload is not a wise teaching tactic. Instead, I focus on keeping students engaged. I want them to remember me. I want them to remember the library. I want to ignite a spark that pushes them to reach out and ask for more.
This is where memes, gifs, and cats work wonders.
It’s even better if you can combine them. Cat memes are gold, especially for librarians.
The distracted boyfriend meme is ALWAYS a winner. It’s hard not to laugh when you see a douchey white boy with his annoyed girlfriend…
