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december 2011 volume 1 issue 4 what makes our schools and school libraries different by kathryn cook adelaide and lake grove teacher librarian news the library is not a shrine for the worship of books it is not a temple where literary incense must be burned or where one s devotion to the bound book is expressed in ritual a library to modify the famous metaphor of socrates should be the delivery room for the birth of ideas a place where history comes to life norman cousins what makes our school libraries and librarians different you ask well let s compare our school libraries to say an academic library the academic library has shelves and shelves of books some of them even in locked cases an academic library has multiple databases to meet the needs of the many disciplines there are adults or college students who are just barely adults sitting quietly at tables or on the computer researching many different topics the librarian is sitting behind a desk keeping an eye on the books to make sure that no damage is done and nothing disappears the librarian may pull articles for a diligent researcher but the main focus for an academic library and the academic librarian is to acquire organize and maintain a collection while allowing people use of them for research purposes meanwhile our school libraries have welcoming spaces that serves many purposes with many sources yes we acquire organize and care for the materials in our collections but that is not the end-all be-all of a school library a school library has an academic purpose but it also exists to help create life-long readers it is a classroom this is information central where students learn use the library to gather information our students learn to problem-solve and research learn how to use a computer learn to locate and use information through different avenues and learn to read read read we have materials to support the curriculum but that is not all not by any stretch of the imagination our school libraries are places to go on a treasure hunt have adventures in the wilderness or in space or in a magical kingdom find poems that will make them laugh or cry here our students make their own choices and find the perfect story guided by the librarian who can suggest and recommend and even cajole students into picking up a book just for the pleasure of reading it the librarian guides students through the overwhelming flood of information on the internet so that they can make good decisions about the quality of sources available online our school libraries are alive active interactive and welcoming places for our students there is so much going on in a school library it is often called the heart of the school buddy reading in the lake dollof library inside this issue what makes school libraries and librarians different watch for it grants in the school libraries battle of the books 2012 1 2 3 web 2.0 tool focus www.wallwisher.co m 4 tail waggin tutors 4 encourage students to read

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page 2 volume 1 issue 4 have you applied for grants lately several of our elementary libraries have applied for the laura bush foundation grant and others are gearing up to apply for the qwest technology grant when it is open in january news office supplies from office max through their a day made better firstbook books for all readers in fiction everybody and nonfiction sections star lake $445 for bilingual books from donorschoose.org star lake $534 for digital cameras and digital picture frames from donorschoose.org valhalla $1100 for ebooks from the pta in addition to these sources of outside funding most of the schools received money from book fairs to supplement their building funds watch for it grants in the school libraries by kim meschter star lake and valhalla teacher librarian as part of our continuing efforts to ensure that our students have adequate access to materials despite the economic downturn that has devasted education many of the fwps school librarians have written for grants reflecting a national school library funding trend according to the school library journal spending survey for the 2009-2010 school year farmer librarians are turning towards outside funding to ensure that the literacy and technology needs of the students are fulfilled in federal way public schools the following schools received grants in the past school year adelaide $1000 for ebooks from the pta brigadoon $400 worth of easy-reader nonfiction books from donorschoose.org · green gables $530 for books and a globe from donorschoose.org · mirror lake $500 target grant for books from firstbook for all readers in fiction everybody and nonfiction sections mirror lake $1000 worth of teaching olympic view $400 worth of books targeting boy readers from donorschoose.org · olympic view $400 worth of easy animal books from donorschoose.org · olympic view $400 worth of easy-readers from donorschoose.org · olympic view $500 target grant for books from funding for schools comes primarily from local property taxes with some funding from state and federal governments on average schools annually spend about $15.00 per student less than the cost of one hardcover book on print and non-print library resources marilyn l miller and marilyn l shontz the slj spending survey school library journal oct 2003 read the spending report at farmer leslie slj s spending survey as the economy limps along and federal dollars dwindle school librarians are turning into resourceful survivors school library journal march 1 2011 slj s spending survey results for 2009-2010 available at http www.libraryjournal.com/slj printissuecurrentissue/889109 -427 from slj s spending survey showing the average reported amount spent including amount spent by grants and by local allocations in the 2009-2010 school year.

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page 3 volume 1 issue 4 news a committee of librarians choose the books for the battle list in the spring for the following year s competition the books are usually from the washington state sasquatch and the pacific northwest young readers choice award nominee lists these books are a mix of genres and reading levels with this year s list consisting of 17 titles teams read and study the books for months the completion itself is like a jeopardy game show where the students will answer questions that are related to the plot characters setting main idea and author individual schools hold a preliminary battle with the winning team from each school competing in the district battle of the books this program is extremely successful and gives students increased interaction with great literature and opportunities to discuss the books they have read other benefits include working together as a team competing before an audience and setting goals for success individual librarians will be able to tell you when the battle will be held at their schools and provide you with additional information the federal way school district battle of the books will be held thursday april 12th at decatur high school beginning at 7 pm we extend an invitation to everyone to attend this terrific literary event come join the fun battle of the books 2012 federal way school district elementary battle of the books by laura sarver enterprise and lake dollof teacher librarian in the year 2000 the librarians from mirror lake elementary and lake grove elementary started a book competition between their two schools based on what they had learned of the battle of the books program held in other school districts the first competitions in federal way schools were held in the spring of 2001 at mirror lake and lake grove the winning teams from these two schools then competed against each other fast forward to the year 2011 and we find that all 23 elementary schools in federal way have now been involved in the battle program for several years for the 2011 battle there were 360 teams comprised of 3rd 4th and 5th graders with a maximum of 4 students per team the total number of participants was close to 1,300 students each year the number of students joining continues to grow 11birthdays wendy mass happenstance found p.w catanese jake ransom and the skull king s shadow james rollins scat carl hiassen when the cherry blossoms fell jennifer maruno where the mountain meets the moon grace lin tango the tale of an island dog eileen beha nerds national espionage defense and rescue society michael budkley moving day meg cabot lost and found andrew clements the gollywhopper games jody feldman dying to meet you kate klise the flight of the phoenix r.l lafevers alvin ho allergic to girls school and other scary things lenore look long shot mike lupica wild river p.j petersen dragonbreath ursula vernon

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page 4 volume 1 issue 4 try it web 2.0 tool focus www allwisher.com w news does your school create parking lots using butcher paper and/or sticky notes well if so wallwisher.com is a free web tool to allow you to create digital parking lots creating a wall is fast and easy you have to create a title and subtitle choose an icon and a background image and choose a url name then anyone can post digital sticky notes to the wall this could be a great tool for staff brainstorming or for teachers wanting to post a quick comprehension check for the students posters can be anonymous or have names in a classroom situation perhaps students can use their assigned numbers 1-30 in order to maintain anonymity as well as allow the teacher to check the students work we re online library.fwps.org and fwpslibraries.blogspot.com tail waggin tutors encourage students to read by jeanne lunde meredith hill teacher librarian tail waggin tutors is a program that provides dogs to serve as listening partners for students who need extra reading help research shows that children with low selfesteem are often more willing to interact with therapy animals than with people because it gives them a nonjudgmental environment in which to read at meredith hill elementary we are fortunate to have two sets of volunteers joan and her keeshond pippi and leslie and her yellow lab addy the dogs are both certified members of therapy dogs international and have been specially trained to work with people they come once a week and listen to individual and small groups of children read the students look forward to their time with pippi or addy and form a special bond with the dogs and their trainers while reading aloud to the dogs the best part is the dogs always listen and share their unconditional love with the students library skills are 21st century skills for more information contact your building s librarian molly baker teresa bateman kathryn cook vicky drury ann elders sue flint julie gillespie hazel haines rebekah jacobs jeanne lunde ellie mccully diane mcsweeney kim meschter ryan patterson libby quesada laura sarver rhonda steinman

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