In today’s fast-paced digital world, access to knowledge and information is crucial for the growth and development of every individual, especially our underserved populations. Librarians in public libraries and media specialists in schools play significant roles in fostering the love for learning, promoting literacy, and empowering communities. When these professionals collaborate, their partnerships can become a force for positive change, extending informative and educational opportunities to those who need it most. In this blog post, we will explore what synergy between librarians and media specialists in supporting underserved communities may look like. Before delving into a partnership, you should understand the uniqueness of both Librarians in public libraries and Media Specialists in schools. This is vital because it allows for targeted support and resource allocation in their respective environments. Recognizing their distinct roles enables the development of specialized programs and services that cater to the diverse needs of their…
Tag: School/Library Collaboration
“I didn’t know the library did that!” Building Better School Partnerships
“I didn’t know the library did that!” How many times have you heard that…this week? Press releases, emails, posters and skywriting do nothing to break through the advertising noise in our communities. Libraries are essential third spaces in our communities so the question is, how can libraries promote our services so people instead say, “Did you know the library did that?” This is especially true when it comes to collaborations with the schools in our service areas. Schools are busy Teachers are busy and they don’t always have time to meet. Administrators wear a lot of different hats and can’t always pass along the emails we send. Add to that a global pandemic, and libraries struggle to show teachers and schools our relevance. What is your goal? Our department’s end goal was to reach more kids through partnerships with teachers. We visit 60 classes a month and reach 1100 students. Most…
Back to school help for Students
To extend our reach and eliminate any barriers to service, we have partnered with our county school system to provide student accounts. Students can use their school account number as a library card, granting them access to print and online library materials. After a year and a half of virtual school, students are back to in-person learning. Do they have all the materials they need to succeed?
Virtual “Field Trips” to the Library
I like to start a school class visit to the public library where I work by walking up the stairs to the front door and stopping before entering to say, “When you go inside, be sure to look up!” The branch has very high ceilings, and there are two murals painted to mimic a cloudy blue sky, with seagulls flying around the light fixtures. Even the teachers and chaperoning parents get excited when they see the murals! My hope with this is that it sets the stage for the library to become something memorable, and a welcoming place they know they can turn to. With our system being closed to the public for almost a year, we have shifted to virtual class visits to connect with students and teachers. During these visits, I try to impart that same welcoming feeling, but have had to come up with some new pitches. …
The Ups and Downs of Transformation
I have always had the tendency to apply idioms and proverbial phrasing to the “bumps in the road” encountered while human-ing (I also make verbs out of lots of things). It is one of the ways I’m able to persist in difficult times and have had to rely heavily on this during a year where words like “challenging,” “chaotic,” and “concerning” are all surface level descriptors of 2020, a truly transformative year. Yes, I mean transformative.
Trust in the Time of COVID
I’m lucky. In the midst of a pandemic, when almost all of the local schools are remote, and with all of the programs that I run for my urban public library system online, I have developed extra-strong partnerships with classroom teachers and school librarians. Some ask me to recommend resources for students. Some invite me to visit classes over Zoom. All eagerly share information about my numerous Zoom book clubs, maker programs, and author visits. As a children’s librarian in a public library, I have always worked closely with my school-based counterparts. But now that everything has moved online, I find my school-based colleagues’ seal of approval more crucial than ever. Think about it: in the old days, families would wander into the library off the street. They would meet the librarians, see the environment, judge for themselves that the library was a safe space. They would pop in and…
Working Together When Nothing’s Working
My elementary school-aged daughters are in the midst of virtual learning, and as the stay-at-home parent, so am I! The other day I was sitting by my 3rd grader during her Library class. I heard the excellent school librarian (shout out to Mrs. Robin!) instructing the 6- to 9-year old students on the use of an e-book database; as she showed them how to navigate the interface, Mrs. Robin asked students if they had ever browsed the public library’s e-book collection. My daughter beamed at me as we recalled the many times we have enjoyed my library’s e-audiobooks on family trips, on our way to the store, or as a pre-bedtime listen. It was a small thing and Mrs. Robin quickly moved on with her lesson, but this in-class mention of the public library was a good example of something we all do in our work with children: make connections…
Gimme a C (for Collaboration!): Making Connections to Award Winners
A close friendship between two librarians, a school librarian and a teen services librarian, led to the creation of the Jane Addams Book Club, a collaborative program between Southold Free Library and the Southold Junior/Senior High School Library, featured in the Public Library and School Library Collaboration Toolkit. Students in grades 5-7 read the winners of the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award, which recognizes children’s literature that encourages young people to think critically about “peace, social justice, global community, and equity for all people.” Through lively discussion, database research, and making connections to their own lives, students learned how social justice and equity can impact their lives and the wider global community. The book club met at the public library and book club members used both the public and school library resources for their research. The subject matter of the books wasn’t the only topic up for discussion. Book club…