Forward thinking in school librarianship...

*This post was written by Meg Brooke, Supervisor of School Librarians for Jefferson County. 

Twenty three years ago I interviewed for a library position in the system where I was moving my family. In preparing for the interview, I got my interview outfit ready (Ok…hate to say it, but this was my first thought!). I knew that I needed to get my mind and interview skills ready, and so I prepped by doing lots of reading on what was new in library theory as well as  in technology, and I talked to several practicing librarian friends. The CD-ROM was just starting to be used, and I memorized what the letters stood for and learned about information that was available on the CD-ROMS. I had a MacIntosh computer that I could use at home, and I felt prepared. But, whoa, Nellie! 

Dr. Robert Mitchell, superintendent of the system at the time, interviewed me, and I was amazed!!! This was 1990, and Dr. Mitchell was envisioning students being able to access our school library from their homes. Wow!  My finite mind could never have dreamed that big…everyone having a computer at home and being able to retrieve information from our school library…. but I’m thankful that others have minds to be able to see what possibilities lie ahead. 

Remember: computers were just appearing in schools around that time, and the library where I was hired to work had no computers….ZERO.  It took a few decades to get there, but his vision did become reality. (a side note…..Dr. Mitchell was a hero to me in several ways, but I’d love to add that he left the system a year after I was there and started the first daycare in the area that had cameras so that parents could log in and see what their children were doing whenever they had a chance to do that. A real forward thinker!)

Dreams of what our libraries will become must move from the ideas that many were taught and have practiced, too, if we are to move toward the vision of the library that our students will need.  In Harland’s The Learning Commons: Seven Simple Steps to Transform Your Library, we are given some questions to ask ourselves as we think about the future of our particular library. 

Ponder these:

• ·         Does your school need a library when most information can be accessed in the classroom using the Internet? (This is a question that we need to be able to answer!!!)
• ·         What is it that your library offers to your users in addition to accessing information?
• ·         Are you doing it well?  Could you do it better?
• ·         How can you increase and improve services?
• ·         Could you make a shift in your service?

We’ve heard the term libraries without walls, and we’re there. Dr. Mitchell got it right!  Our students can access Atriuum, Nettrekker, the AVL, and many ebooks outside of the school library. One leadership session at the upcoming AASL conference and one that was recently presented in a webinar entitled A Library in your Pocket is a reality NOW!  

High schools are without walls, providing online courses for students via ACCESS now. Our buildings are seeing changes as methods of teaching are moving toward more technology, and our library spaces will need to follow suit as well.  No longer are we just protecting what we have…our books, our AV, our equipment, but we are morphing into being the promoters of how to use what we have so that our students and teachers can easily access and use that information. 

This is just a smidgen of food for thought that you’ll find in The Learning Commons by Pamela Harland.  I hope you’ll check it out if you’re interested in moving your library forward into one that will meet your students’ needs.  

Be the “Dr. Mitchell” in the lives around you!

Christmas came to us in October!

*This post was written by our sweet and fearless leader, Meg Brooke! :)

Christmas came to us in October! J  There were some funds left in the account that we were approved to spend, and so I ordered these books for our professional development.  It does not look like we will be moving downstairs, and so I will keep these in my office upstairs.  I know that there is little time for much extra, but hopefully some of these references will be something that some or one of you needs to give that extra “umph” to take your library or you as a librarian to that next level!  Our students deserve this!

If you’re interested in any of these, let me know and I’ll send it by the PONY.  I plan to do some quick “reviews” of these in the future, too, to hopefully pique your interest.

These are the books:

I get pumped just reading the titles!  But the real worth is what’s inside………

TITLE	AUTHOR
School Libraries Matter: Views from the Research	Mirah Dow, ed
Growing Schools: Librarians as Professional Developers	Debbie Abilock, Kristin Fontichiaro, and Violet Harada, editors
Literacy: A Way Out for At-Risk Youth	Jennifer Sweeney
Get Those Guys Reading: Fiction and Series Books that Boys Will Love	Kathleen Baxter and Marcia Kochel
The International Baccalaureate Diploma Program and the School Library: Inquiry-based Education	Anthony Tilke
The Library Catalogue as a Social Space: Promoting Patron Driven Collections, online Communities, and Enhanced Reference and Readers’ Services	Laura Tarulli
Copyright Catechism II: Practical Answers to Everyday School Dilemmas	Carol Simpson
iPads in the Library: Using Tablet Technology to Enhance Programs for All Ages	Joel A. Nichols
Travel the Globe: Story times, Activities, and Crafts for Children	Desiree Webber, Dee Ann Corn, Elaine Harrod, et al
Book Clubbing:  Successful Book Clubs ..	Carol Littlejohn
Reference Skills for the School Librarian	Ann M. Riedling, Loretta Shake, Cynthia Houston
Integrating Young Adult Literature through the Common Core Standards	Rachel Wadham and Jonathan Ostenson
The Learning Commons: 7 Simple Steps to Transform Your Library	Pamela C. Harland
Seven Steps to an Award-winning School Library Program	Ann M. Martin
A Guided Inquiry Approach to High School Research	Randell K. Schmidt
Guided Inquiry Design: a Framework for Inquiry in Your School	Carol C. Kuhlthau, Leslie K. Maniotes, and Ann K. Caspari

Boy Books and Girl Books

I am a firm believer that all literature provides equal opportunity for any individual, regardless of gender. There are many who disagree. Some folks say girls don't like Hatchet, and some say boys would never be interested Little House on the Prairie. To them I would ask why a girl shouldn't enjoy a good survival book (Hunger Games demographics have very recently proven that), and also why a boy wouldn't enjoy a vividly descriptive work about pioneer life.

We can't put readers in our preconceived boxes. 

But just because it's true that some girls really don't like Hatchet, here is a great list of books recommended for the little ladies from ages 1-9.

Likewise, just as the young gentlemen can be a bit choosy sometimes when being proffered literature, here's another good list for them as well, appropriate for various ages through middle school.

These might be a neat idea for a display for the last two weeks in April. What would you title it? Boy Books and Chick Lit?

Let the Games begin!

*This post is by Carla Crews, one of the school librarians at Shades Valley High School/JCIB/Shades Valley Technical Academies.

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, movie adaptations of books give us a great opportunity to promote recreational reading. Our library recently invited teachers and students to participate in our own version of The Hunger Games, based on the popular series by Suzanne Collins. The movie release is March 23, and we wanted to encourage students to read the book first! We set up activity stations around the library, which included archery, rope tying, costume design, arm wrestling, trivia questions, online games, and a viewing station for the movie trailer. Several of the station activities offered students a chance to put their name into the “reaping.” Here we deviated slightly from the book, as contestants actually wanted their name in this drawing. Students were quite competitive when they learned that a local theater donated movie passes for the prize drawing!

We began with some brainstorming sessions (and the Internet). The following two resources were particularly helpful during our planning phase:

http://www.bethanymediacenter.com/hungergames.html

http://blogs.publishersweekly.com/blogs/shelftalker/?p=365

We gathered our supplies, only spending money on a bow, arrows, and rope. We created themed signage for the event and typed questions for the trivia station. The braided nylon rope was cut into 18” pieces, and instructions were placed at the station for tying various types of knots. Paper rabbits were set up as targets at the archery station. Due to some concerns about teenagers shooting a bow in the library, we used a child-size bow and ‘play’ arrows that had suction cup tips... no damaged walls or speared children! For the opening ceremony costume designs, we already had all the necessary supplies – paper, pencils, crayons/markers, and lots of books on fashion, costumes, and clothing design. We also included a list of the districts’ trades and industries for inspiration. The Scholastic website offers some exciting online games related to The Hunger Games series. These online games, along with The Hunger Games Wiki, were set up as desktop icons at the computer station. Students could scan a QR code at the viewing station to watch the movie trailer. Tributes showed off their strength as they conquered opponents at the arm wrestling station, our school-friendly alternative to the brutal combat of the actual Games.

If you’re looking around on the web for ideas related to The Hunger Games, check out the hashtag #THGyalsa on Twitter. This was a YALSA-sponsored tweet session during Teen Tech Week to discuss the movie release and library programming ideas. One librarian tweeted that she is planning a Wii Archery tournament. And should you decide to turn your library into a Hunger Games arena…  may the odds be ever in your favor.

Cookin' the Books

What are your circulation records doing? A skilled librarian once said, "Put everything on your calendar - even if it's something that occurs last minute - to justify what you do and so people can see what is going on in the library". It's all about transparency, isn't it? Well, the same thing can be said of circulation records.

When a teacher asks you to pull books and have them available for a project for using IN the library, check them out to the teacher. It increases the circulation of your library and the teacher IS using the books, so there's no need to worry about "cooking the books!" It's legit! This whole idea sprang from a discussion that Sheri' (my library aide my right arm) and I had. A class had come in and we discussed whether to check out the books to the teacher. We decided we absolutely should to which Sheri' replied, "I don't think anybody's going to think we're cookin' the books!"

However, if you are looking for ways to increase circulation in your library, here are a few ideas:

• Create great displays and keep them coming! Once they empty out, replenish!
• Banned book displays, Coretta Scott King winner displays, series displays all work well.
• Movie book displays are always a winner.
• Suggest to teachers who don't visit the library that often to check out books to ignite discussion in the classroom (a science teacher might want to check out books for students to browse and thumb through after a test).
• Students often will come to the library to check out a book that a teacher has briefly used to teach a reading skill - so be ready for suggestions for teachers! They often indirectly influence what kids want to read.
• Teachers often dash in quickly and ask for some examples of informational text - I have given them ESL brochures with barcodes, technology how-to books without barcodes, and newspapers. Rule #1: Check out anything with a barcode.
• Teachers and substitutes often come in for a book or magazine saying, "I will be right back with it. Do you really want to check it out?" The answer is yes! Not only does it increase your circulation records, but you know where your resources are.
• There are also the ubiquitous reading contests that will help increase circulation.
• Programs in your library can help increase circulation: Create a display surrounding the program - Someone from the Civil Rights Museum is coming? Create a display. Having a gaming day in your library as a reward? Create a display on board games, sports, and word games. 
• What is your library doing to increase circulation? There must be many ideas out there to share.

Just keep those books cookin'! Check them out so they will reflect well on the circulation records of your library (the cooked books on the stove above are courtesy of our Teen Living classroom).