Last week, we started our library session with a combined greeting/sharing game. We greeted one another, and everyone got a chance to share. Students talked about what they want the library to look like, sound and feel like. I wrote it down on the poster paper (each class has their own Y-chart). Students could add to it later, if they thought of something after the sharing turn. We will use this again in a few weeks to see if our current library rules still match our expectations and wishes for our library time this school year. With some classes we had time to play “Follow the Leader” (or “Conductor” as some students know the game), which was very fun!
This school year, I’ve been feeling inspired by the Library Lion, and I chose this picture book to read to the Foundation students. They are new to the library, and we are slowly introducing our library and our library routines to them. This week, we showed them the picture book section. Next week, we will show them the non-fiction section (which is very big!). Foundation students will always choose no more than one book to check out. Students who have not returned their book, can’t check any out. So please help your child to remember to bring their book to school on their library day, so they can return it to the library. Thank you!
My plan was to allow students to only check out one book, to get back into the returning-your-book-routine. But the students were so excited to read, and most wanted to check out two books last week. As Sophie pointed out, why stop that?! And she’s right! It was great to see their positive attitude towards reading. That is our mission: to guide students with their book choices, so they can experience the joy of reading! Our official library mission statement is the following:
Our library’s mission is to provide a diverse and inclusive collection of high quality fiction and non-fiction resources for our ISGR one school community. Our library and its activities reflect ISGR’s school values by celebrating diversity and providing global perspectives. We aim to maintain a welcoming and accessible library environment where students feel a sense of belonging, ownership and responsibility and where reading for pleasure is at the forefront. Our goal is that students can independently choose appropriate resources that will develop their literacy skills and nurture their personal interests and academic inquiries. Library staff are engaged in guiding and supporting students, building the foundations for students to become lifelong readers and critical thinkers.
Next week, we will work with the different kind of books that are available in the library, as well as what kind of activities we can do during library time. This is important, as in a few weeks students will think about, discuss and share their library learning goal (which we will write/draw on a bookmark). But before you can develop your library learning goal, it is good to be reminded of what you can find in our library, what kind of things we do, and what kind of reader you currently are.
Because I love board games, and since we can’t have our board game club after school due to the pandemic, I decided to make our own library lion board game! Two library lions (that way more students can have a turn) need to get to the library before it closes in 15 minutes! On the way, they need to find lost books, show us possible library activities, and answer some questions about the kind of reader they are. We will play this during our circle time. Our group goal is to get our library lions to the library before it closes for the day! Will we make it? (The tasks on the cards are differentiated according to the grade level).
We’ve switched out some of our books on the displays. Have a look!
Then, to round off this blog post, I would like to let you know that we had 36 students who successfully participated in the ISGR Summer Reading Challenge 2021! The notebooks have been ordered, and will hopefully arrive in a few weeks. Now we can start thinking about the ISGR Winter Reading Challenge 21-22!
Sincerely,
Your Library Teacher Fleur
ISGRGuldLibrary 