Author Archives

I am the sole school librarian at a moderately-sized high school in Knoxville, TN. I began my career as a school librarian in 2016 after eight years in public education as a school counselor.
-
Allowing Students to Pursue Their Passions
As a high school librarian, I am blessed with student library assistants each semester. These students are placed in an elective course that I call “Library Leadership.” Primarily, my library assistants do tasks in the library such as reshelving books,… Read More ›
-
Promoting Books with Bitmoji Libraries
One of my favorite ways to connect students with books is creating book displays. I have about 5 display areas in my library that I change out monthly with a new theme. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year my… Read More ›
-
Supporting Students during This Period of Unrest
In the wake of tragedy, followed by continuing protests around the country, I imagine many of you, like me, are wondering how to best support your students during this time. I have gathered a few ideas from colleagues and social… Read More ›
-
Minding Mental Health during COVID-19
As schools across the country are closing for weeks, months, and some for the rest of the year, school librarians (and other educators) are undoubtedly experiencing waves of emotion. We are sad because we miss our students and colleagues. We… Read More ›
-
Capitalizing on Society’s Current Obsession with True Crime
Several months ago, I happened upon a post in a school librarian Facebook group that caught my eye. The original post was from a librarian who had recently had a visit from one of the detectives involved in the case… Read More ›
-
Take Care of Yourself First
I love being a school librarian. Seriously, I absolutely love it. It’s the best job in the world. But…after my first year as a school librarian, I sought out a therapist to help manage my mental health. This decision was… Read More ›
-
Curating Manga Collections
If your library is anything like mine, manga accounts for a significant percentage of your circulation. The popularity and appeal of manga and anime only continues to grow and if they aren’t already, your students are likely to soon be… Read More ›
-
Building Cultural Competence through Reading Diverse Books
A few years ago a conversation started in my library that was prompted by a student reading Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give. The student in question identified as a person of color, but in our extremely homogeneous community she… Read More ›
-
Passive Readers’ Advisory
One of my favorite parts of being a school librarian is connecting students with books they love. Providing readers’ advisory is an art that librarians are skilled at. However, sometimes you just can’t reach every student for one-on-one help finding… Read More ›
-
Building Diverse Collections for LGBTQ+ Students
One of the values I hold most dear is appreciating and celebrating diversity in all its forms. I want this to reflect in the work I do with students, in my library as a physical space, and in my collection…. Read More ›