Finding connections between the official curriculum and students’ daily lives is an essential
component of inquiry-‐‑based principles of learning and teaching, but this task is not always easy or
straightforward. How can a teacher connect an esoteric science concept – say, orbital
configurations of electrons – to students’ existing interests and prior knowledge? This question is
at the heart of several of the library science articles devoted to collaboration between the science
teacher and the school librarian.