A second-grade student brought a problem to my attention. He explained that the library collection has only 1 or 2 copies of books on topics that children want to read. He illustrated his point with a poster. It was a portrayal of… Read More ›
collection development
The movie was better
Is the book always better than the movie? My spouse prefers nonfiction reading. But when it comes to novels we have a little inside joke, where he says “I’ll wait for the movie.” As a librarian, I want to reply… Read More ›
Advocate with Food: 5 Reasons I Host Bagels & Books
Each year I purchase great new titles to add to our library. Many of these books connect to classroom curriculum and support a variety of reading levels. After spending countless hours making these decisions, I noticed they were not being… Read More ›
Being Proactive About Censorship and Intellectual Freedom
Before I share the professional development for November, I want to write to you about some banned book information that I have been reading. For the past couple of weeks, I have been thinking about censorship and book challenges because… Read More ›
School Library Archives
School archives are important and useful for many schools Information professionals everywhere are focusing on 21st-century skills. We are developing new uses for our library facilities like makerspaces and learning commons. It is not surprising that the idea of giving… Read More ›
The Magic of Tidying Up Your Library
Tidying Up Your Life Last year, I read The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. I’ve read a lot of books on decluttering and organizing, but this was the first one that simultaneously resonated with me and annoyed… Read More ›
Censorship in Public School Libraries
In addition to being Hispanic Heritage Month and Library Card Sign-up Month, September is also when Banned Books Week begins. My co-librarian and I have already started gathering brown butcher paper and caution tape to assemble a display in the… Read More ›
5 Authors Discuss Mental Illness in YA
An excellent panel on Mental Illness in YA at the 5th Annual SLJTeen Live! online conference this August 10 served as a reminder to continue to expand our collections to reflect a wide range of diverse experiences. These thoughtful… Read More ›
Weeded Books Everywhere, but Not a One to Read
Each and every year, school librarians engage in daunting task of weeding. Not cleaning out the flowerbeds, but cleaning off the library shelves. Most school librarians weed either before the school year starts or just as the school year ends…. Read More ›
Collection Development: The Want List
Sometimes we have a hard time categorizing our wants versus our needs in a school library. Put dollar signs in our eyes and the sky is the limit, we think. Until it happens. It’s spring, the time of year when… Read More ›