Lost in the Reads

Hidden . . . Behold the reference section!  Oh wait, let me move the whiteboard- ta-da!  Revealed!  Underwhelmed? So are ALL of my school’s staff and students.   In fact, this collection is so underused at the start of this class I had to go on a hunt to remind myself just where the reference section was. Once I found it I slowly moved the white board back in front of it and backed away. Not even a little bit joking.  Theme three forced me to once again pull aside the whiteboard and really examine what we have in the library, what we need in the library, and what should maybe be allowed to leave the library. The lessons that focused on distinctive reference type resources and with each week readings it gave me the chance to compare our own resources with these topics. Especially helpful were the "Evaluation and Selection" tables provided by Riedling in Reference Skills for the School Librarian.  Via Giphy I essentially came to the

via Pixabay   “A good reference source is one that serves to answer questions, and a bad reference source is one that fails to answer questions.” – Riedling The physical Reference section of our library is outdated, hidden, and untouched by both librarian and patrons for the last few years.   Part of the reason for this neglect is our district collection of online databases . These online databases are useful, relevant, and should be gaining the main attention from teachers and students. However, online databases are not the only reference resources that should be available to our school community. Complementing these valuable resources with a useful print section of dictionaries, atlases, curriculum specific encyclopedias, and curriculum specific texts will increase student use of all references resources and better serve our patrons. Below are the steps necessary to overhaul this dusty, overlooked section of the library to enhance student learning in conjunction with

via pixabay As educators, we are continuously trying to refine our practice so that we can have a meaningful impact on student learning. Teacher-Librarians are in the unique position to be able to provide support to the entire educational community to achieve this goal. This is one reason why being a Teacher-librarian is such an exciting position. To that end, Leading Learning states that in order to be an effective Learning Commons “It is essential to support both student and teacher growth.” (Canadian Library Association, 15).  This type of collaboration is beneficial to everyone, teacher, students, and the teacher-librarian. The examples below use the Concerns Based Adoption Model (CBAM) to identify how to best introduce and support change in a colleague’s practice. The following charts outline the Level of Use and Stages of Concern used in CBAM.    from  National Academies from National Academies Teacher 1: Mrs. Sinclair Profile Mrs. Sinclair is a

via unsplash I remember being in elementary school and getting assigned a topic for a research project. The whole class would go to the library to research said topic. Then the one or maybe two sets of encyclopedias would be set out on the tables with the instructions that they were not to be taken off the table, and you only had a certain amount of time to use the copy you needed because everyone needed a chance to use it. As someone who has since fallen down many a Wikipedia rabbit hole, this was a torturous way to be given an Encyclopedia, I wanted to look up EVERYTHING. via giphy This memory really resonated while reading lesson 6 and encountering the notion that, “ ‘Managing’ a school library resource centre or a reference collection does not mean building systems that protect it or limit access to it. In fact, it can mean the exact opposite.” I whole heartedly agree. Thankfully, my students have access to a lot of our reference resources online, and they can br

Part 1: Evaluation of Reference Currently in Use: Title:   Nature’s Children (Series, 81 titles) Type: Print Books Date of Publication: 1986 -2001 Publisher: Grolier Educational, Connecticut Physical Dimensions:   8.5 x 7.2 x 0.6 inches Unacceptable Acceptable Exceeding Currency 10 years old or older Maximum of 5 years old 0-2 years old, or continually updated to remain current Purpose Provides minimal amount and/or contradicting information with little to no pictures and no supports. Provides an adequate amount of information with supports like glossary or index in place. Has large, colourful pictures. Provides ample amount of relevant information on subject. Has supports such as; glossary, index, table of contents. Has large, colourful pictures. Relevancy / Audience Does not meet reading level appropriate for either primary or intermediate. Information is unorganized or

via giphy "Google can bring you back 100,000 answers. A librarian can bring you back the right one.”                                                                                             --   Neil Gaiman I have always loved the idea behind this quote by library advocate and generally incredibly famous author Neil Gaiman (maybe you’ve heard of him? *). As much as I love the idea of being that amazing know everything, quipping factual answers like I’m the actual Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy , librarian -I’m never going to be that good. In fact, that quote strikes a bolt of fear right through my little imposter-syndrome heart. As a fairly new teacher-librarian, I am pretty sure I can find an answer on google, but I’m also pretty sure I’m not going to get the right answer all of the time (unless it is 42- I know that one! **). So, does that make me a bad librarian? Should I show myself the door? Sorry for taking up your time! I’ll just find a new career to be