As school librarians, we have positive interactions with students, staff, and community members. These interactions may be a positive comment, a hug, or even a thank you note. How many of us save these interactions? Are these interactions shared with others?
After 20+ years as a librarian, I do not remember many of those moments unless I saved a thank you card or another item from a student or staff member. The stories can be helpful when explaining why students check out books or why a book is important to keep in the school library. The past two years, I made a point to remember those interactions in the school library – either by adding a tweet to our library Twitter account or creating an electronic note system. In many ways, it is creating a historical record of the impact of our school library.
Examples
These stories can be used to advocate for our collection or the importance of providing access for students. Recently, I presented information about our school library collection to a group of community members. I was able to draw on specific interactions with students that painted a picture of how learners use the library. In a time when parents are not able to visit schools as often, it is important to provide many examples of positive interactions.
Author: Becca Munson
Becca Munson, Librarian, is a National Board Certified Teacher with over 24 years of experience in education. Becca is the Coordinator for Library Systems in the Blue Valley School District. Previously, she was school librarian at Blue Valley West High School. She opened two buildings in Blue Valley and spent some time as an Ed Tech Specialist before returning to libraries. Becca supports over 45 librarians and support staff as they work to fulfill the mission of flexible scheduling, collaboration, and literacy.
Categories: Advocacy/Leadership, Blog Topics, Community, Student Engagement/ Teaching Models
I love this. I found this post while poking around looking for resources on how to go about soliciting feedback and testimonials from my school library users with the intention of using it in much the same way: to use it to show the community what we do in the library.
This is great! I’ve been recording students’ comments for the past five years and often share them on Instagram stories but never thought of sending them out in a tweet. The more outlets we use for highlighting the library, the better!