Librarian on Hold

School started without me this year. Two years ago, our school district had eight certified librarians on eight campuses and well-funded libraries. Massive budget cuts closed one campus last year and cut the librarians down to four, based on longevity, to manage seven school libraries. I was number four. I went from managing one school library for three grades and 600 students to managing two school libraries for four grades on each campus and 1,800 students. This year the District cut the librarians down to two, who manage seven libraries between them now.

It felt odd-- seeing the Facebook posts of co-workers getting their classrooms set up and ready to greet the students. But I felt relief not having to manage two libraries anymore. I felt sad about the fact that schools are dropping librarians like hot potatoes in their scramble to balance their budgets. I feel for the remaining two librarians and the monumental task ahead of them. I wonder if this is their last year, or will the school district finally recognize their value and defend and keep them? It doesn't look promising. The District recently planned a training for a new reading incentive program, and no one thought to invite the librarians.

A school librarian is a

• Teacher of Information Literacy. 
• Media Center Specialist. 
• Proficient in Web and print resources and related technology.
• Student's segue to life-long-learner. 
• Promoter of reading and knowledge.
• Light in the darkness.

A school librarian position is also

• Under-rated.
• Misunderstood.
• Un-mandated. 
• Expendable. 
• On the endangered species list. 

Would you replace a certified, trained classroom teacher with an untrained paraprofessional and expect them to do as good a job as the degreed teacher? Of course not. And yet librarians are being replaced at an alarming rate because someone decided somewhere along the line that the position of a certified librarian was a luxury, not a necessity; that anyone could check out books and shush students.

Did you know that more education and training is required of a school librarian than a classroom teacher? A school librarian today has to have a bachelor's degree, a teaching certificate, a minimum of two years teaching experience, and a master's degree in Library & Information Studies.

Did you know that having a certified librarian and well-equipped library has a measurable impact on student achievement when it comes to test scores? http://www.lrs.org/impact.php

Did you know that school librarians collaborate with teachers, providing resources, lessons, and reinforcement of the teachers' efforts in the classroom?

Did you know that a school librarian spends countless hours of research developing a quality, current collection that supports the school's curriculum, as well as provides a wide variety of materials that appeal to specific age groups' interests in fiction and nonfiction?

Did you know that a school librarian is at the forefront of teaching students information literacy skills, which includes evaluating sources of information and recognizing the difference between fact and opinion, biased and objective reporting, and giving credit for using others' work? These are critical skills in preparing kids for life.

An un-informed, un-educated people are prey to those who would seek to control them through mis-information. School librarians teach students how to find and recognize reliable, trust-worthy sources of information, which are becoming harder and harder to find.

So needed in this time of political rhetoric.

So needed in this Age of Information.

100 Year Anniversary of the Titanic Sinking



100 years ago tomorrow, April 14th, the luxury passenger liner Titanic sank on her maiden voyage after hitting an iceberg. So in honor of man's fallibility, the window display at my second middle school library is about the Titanic.

I covered the back and far end of the loft bed frame with blue bulletin board paper to give it an undersea look, and cut a smaller wave border for the top. I wrinkled strips of orange paper to create a seaweed effect as a background. I had sewed all the stuffed fish about 4 or 5 years ago when I created an aquarium, and I've used them just about every year for something. From the angle in the photo below, you can see the fan that makes the fish move like they're swimming around.

We laid brown packing paper on the floor to give it an impression of sand, and added items representing things that were on the Titanic-- luggage, glassware, jewelry, a ladder etc. along with sea shells and books on the Titanic or shipwrecks.



Crumpled yellow paper around the life saver ring creates the effect of coral. The ring is authentic-- the name of the boat it came off of is on the other side.  I found it at the same house that was throwing away the disassembled loft bed, which has made the best frame for the library displays. We added our own lettering for the RMS Titanic, which stands for Royal Mail Steamer. I first had HMS on it, which stands for Her/His Majesty's Ship, until a student corrected me.

 

On the side and back of the loft, I added photos of the Titanic, the first telegrams, and some of the survivors along with some interesting questions and answers about the ship and the people aboard.

It makes my day when someone tells me they learned something new or were encouraged to learn more about a topic by looking at the library display.







Black History is American History is Our History Part 2

I used the same subject matter mentioned in the following post at the second library. They're just arranged differently.



Black History is American History is Our History

Since my library assistant worked so hard creating on the barn, I plan to use it multiple times before taking it down. It's gone from the book barn to a structure honoring the Underground Railroad and the Quilt System, which I've displayed in some form or fashion several years now.

Four generations sewed on the quilt I used. It was made with over a thousand hexagon pieces. My great-grandmother designed and pieced it; my mother and grandmother quilted most of it, and I quilted a corner of it. If you look at the individual materials, you'll see that my Mamo used some of the ugliest cloth-- they didn't throw anything away-- and at first glance, I thought she was a little senile putting all those patterns and colors that seemed to clash. But looking closer, you'll see that she alternated the solids and the patterns, and with most of them she pulled a color out of the pattern to be the solid color next to it. And when you step back, it makes a beautiful design, and I'm so proud that it's mine.

From what I've read about the quilt system, some folks say the stories that quilts and certain patterns sent messages to those embarking and traveling on the Underground Railroad are not documented or confirmed. But I would venture to say that most of the history of the slaves and the efforts to free them are not documented because of the danger involved for all of them. How ingenious to use common household items such as quilts to send messages to those seeking freedom.





And what a sad part of our country's history that so many folks accepted the owning of other human beings as property. We all owe a debt of gratitude to those courageous folks of all races who risked their lives, livelihoods, and reputations to line up the words of our Declaration of Independence:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal,

that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,

that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. 

"Oh, for the day when Americans are categorized by citizenship, character, and contributions to mankind; when colors refer to our flag instead of a label to brandish as a crutch or a bully stick; when our history is one history, undivided, and with liberty and justice for all." dvc

I just noticed in the last photo that the information I posted about Carter Woodson, which should be to the left of his picture, has been removed. Not sure why. More people need to know about this man; I'll just print out another copy.





The Book Barn

The loft bed turned into a barn this month. My library aide made posters of old barn wood and wrapped them around the frame before Christmas. We switched libraries after the break, so I finished the display for her. I had two old window frames that I tacked onto the back red bulletin board paper (folded vertically like a fan to make it look like slats- see close-up on 3rd picture). I tacked an X of white strips to give the appearance of barn doors.

I added a title using MS Word's letters; drew cartoon cow and horse heads on bulletin board paper and hung them from the loft frame where it looks like they're standing in a stall. I taped some recycled cardstock on their heads to keep them from curling.

I took an iron candle holder and added a rolled-up piece of yellow paper to make it look like a lamp burning and hung it in the center of the loft. I added comments for each animal and attached them to the back wall. The cow says, "Read any mooo-ving books lately?" and the horse answers, "Neigh... I like adventure stories." I know, it's corny, but we had to use barn humor.

The rectangle baskets look a little like hay bales, and we had a red metal tub stored in the back that I put some large bands of fringe in it-- it looks more like spaghetti than livestock feed, but that's okay. I pulled books with barns on the covers and farm animal books and propped some fence wire beside it to complete the display.

After I took the pictures, I placed a small table beside the barn to display more domesticated animal books. And that's our Book Barn.







A Paper & Chicken Wire Snowman

The handy thing about chicken wire is that it will hold things you stuff into it. I tore up packing paper into approximately 6x6 or 6x8 squares and rectangles-- do not take the time to measure anything, just start tearing. Then crumple each sheet up and stuff it into a chicken wire hole. I gave him two black eyes (crumpled black paper), a carrot nose (a twisted piece of orange paper), tree branch arms (twisted brown paper with fingers made from tearing one end into three parts and twisting them), and three green buttons (crumpled green paper). Excuse the reflection from taking the photo outside the library windows-- I should've taken a picture of the display before I set it in front of the window.

This background color is a truer depiction, but the snowman is fairly ragtag-looking from this angle, but it gives him character. I bought two lacy pillow shams for fifty cents each and covered a couple of boxes to display Christmas and winter books in the corners.  The wire shelving is another garage sale find that's become a permanent ficture on the chicken wire frame. Students made big and little snowflakes for the display and to hang around the library. I need to add some more small ones to the background.





I made the wreath the same as the snowman-- tearing green paper and stuffing it in the chicken wire. Add some red wads of paper for the berries, and voila! It's done. I put more holly and berries in the corners and above and below the saying. I think I misquoted a Mary Englebreit saying, which probably needs to say, "A book is a present you can open again and again." But since I'm about to have a book fair, the quote I used will do. Wrapping the back of the chicken wire frame with bulletin board paper makes a beautiful backdrop that pulls it all together.



 Here's a closer shot of the snowman and wreath.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Happy Hanukkah!



Be Thankful!



Where did this year go? I can't believe it is Thanksgiving already. This is the third year I've recycled some beautiful oak leaves cut by my kind library volunteer, Cindy Albers. They have saved me so much time for numerous displays, and they still look great. I rolled the library's big round ottoman from the magazine section over to the corner of the loft bed display background. It reminded me of a round bale of hay. I sat a goofy turkey on top of it and put a realistic turkey on the basket beside it. I wove the brown packing paper in and out of the upper bunk sides and taped the colorful leaves on them.







My library colleague brought some warm plaid material to use, so I draped them over the back and side. Another teacher gave me the top of a seven foot stretch of old fence that I propped on the floor in the background. A garage sale find of a fall banner is displayed along the back.

 I re-used a previous display sign for the side, which faces the interior of the library, and then displayed books along the same color scheme as well as things we are thankful for, scattered on the ground like the falling leaves.

And I have so much to be thankful for in my life-- for my wonderful family and friends and co-workers, for my job and a roof over my head, for an old car that still runs, for more food than I should be eating, for living in a great community and a country that enjoys more freedoms than most anywhere on earth, and especially for my Creator who loves me and gives my life purpose.





A Librarian's Idea of a Scary House 3

This is the third time I've used this idea in some form or fashion. At our other library, we turned an entire loft bed into a haunted house on the outside, and on the inside was a bedroom with all of these scary things. This time to create the house, I wrapped an AV cart in black bulletin board paper, printed out a door and some windows from MS Word clip art, cut them out and attached them.



The shingles took longer than anything--- cutting pieces of cardboard boxes and peeling back the top layer to expose the corregated rows.

I twisted brown bulletin board paper to make a scraggly-looking tree, and recycled the crumpled paper to make it look like fallen leaves. And some of the scary things about this house is that it's:

1. Where nobody reads
2. Where books get chewed up (note ferocious dog)
3. Where books are used for everything but reading

     4.  Where there's no time to read

     5.  Where library books get damaged

     6.  Where library books disappear

Throw in some scary books, and you're all set!







Medieval Round 2

 



I'm in charge of two middle school libraries this year-- two weeks at one and two weeks at the other-- so I get to do multiple displays a month. My daughter and granddaughter cut out two dragons so each library would get one. Because of the direction the school is facing, this dragon shows up good from inside and out.

I made the purple walls at the same time that I made them for the other library, and the purple walls covered the windows originally. But the day before the library officially opened for check-outs, I took them off the windows and wrapped the loft bed like a castle. Add an arched door, and it gives the effect.

These are the cardboard patterns I used to make the stone effect on the purple walls, and they turned out looking cooler than anything else I did. So I placed them on the floor of the display to create a cobblestone look.

Inside the display, I grouped medieval looking items-- a mirror with the book Fairest displayed beside it; a treasure chest, a candlestick, a chess board, and tapestry-looking material.

And baskets are always great to display books.

And the quest starts here!













The Quest Has Begun!

Our school district theme this year is Quest for Excellence so you will see castles and knights and dragons at most every campus. I made the castle walls with purple bulletin board paper and used about ten or twelve pieces of cardboard sheets for the stone patterns that I cut the corners off or cut in different sizes. I always save the cardboard protectors that come in large envelopes or boxes, so most of the cutting was already done. You can even cut up a cardboard box using a serated knife to make your patterns; cut out quick rectangles first, then saw off the corners. Or if you are too tired to mess with the corners, just leave them on and tell everyone you have quality medieval stonecutters on your campus who do precise work. : ) Then lay the cardboard pieces on the purple paper in a well-ventilated area outside. I fought the wind outside for a while, but the garage worked much better. Take spray paint of any color (I used black) to create the look of grout around your stones-- spray around the edges of the cardboard, then pick them up and place them further down the purple paper until you've filled up the sheet with the look of stones.







I drafted my talented daughter and granddaughter to draw and cut out a dragon silhouette and flames for the library's upper windows. They did a great job! If you would like to see more of their work, go to http://www.nessadeeart.blogspot.com and http://imagination-spark.blogspot.com/ . My daughter is an artist/illustrator, and my granddaughter is quickly following in her mother's steps. 



For the other side of the door, my father built a free-standing frame out of cedar fence boards and chicken wire. My principal was concerned for a while that I was going to have chickens in the library. : ) I draped earthy-colored materials and tapestry-looking cloth. Rustic baskets and woven placemats are great to display books in or on. I pulled books about castles, knights, dragons, the Middle Ages, etc.

The silhouette of the dragon is easier to see on the inside of the library than looking from the outside, so it's a nice surprise for students if they miss it coming into the library.

April is showers, poetry & spring flowers!

After two months of brown tones, it was time to add some color to the display. We're having a Poetry Contest this month, so along with April showers and spring flowers, this was a fun idea to quickly throw together. I used MS Word's wonderful letter panels to create the POETRY part of the sign. To make the umbrella-looking shapes, I grabbed some bulletin board paper and made big squares first-- no measuring-- just fold over to make a triangle, cut the leftover off, and keep folding like you would a fan. Cut the corners off, scallop or leave them smooth to make it look like an umbrella. I open them up and draped some of them over the bars, and others I tape opened up. The next part was where I literally threw the display together.

I raided the recycle bin in the paper room and pulled out all of the discarded bulletin board paper, tore them into pieces, wadded them up, and threw them on the floor. When one of my fellow teachers came through and asked me what I was doing with all that paper, I told him I was getting out my frustrations. He believed me, so then I told him they're supposed to look like wildflowers. I'm afraid some folks will only see wadded up paper.

I had fun with it, though. I scattered some baskets around filled with colored grass and added poetry books to the display, and it was done. So wadded up paper or wildflowers, it's April's display.





Remember the Alamo!



March always seems to slip in and slip out before I realize it, and especially Texas' Independence Day on March 2nd. This time I used the backdrop for February's display and hung a quickly drawn and cut-out cardboard Alamo from under the loftbed. I used the "stagecoach" font for the sign and tore the edges. To give it a burned look, run a black marker aroun the edge, and then a layer of brown color pencil. Pull books on the Alamo or Texas history and you're done! Sorry I didn't get this out before March was over.