Library Management Archives - Page 6 of 7 - Staying Cool in the Library

School Library Planners

When I first became a school librarian, I bought a teacher planner at a teacher store. I loved the bright colors and cute graphics and thought it would keep me organized all year. Unfortunately, I quickly found out that the planner was not what I needed. It was made for classroom teachers, not librarians. I tried a few others over the years, but nothing worked for my specific needs. I do not need to keep track of student data or their IEP information or their test scores. So that’s when I decided to make my own school library planner. I could customize it any way I wanted and only include pages that would help me. Once I realized how much I loved the planner and how useful it was, I wanted to share it with other librarians. So I added it to my TpT store and it quickly became

Back to School Checklist for School Librarians

Can you believe it’s that time again? The back-to-school hustle is upon us, and if you’re anything like me, you’re feeling a whirlwind of emotions. There’s excitement bubbling up as we gear up for another school year, but there’s also a healthy dose of nerves mixed in there. It’s a rollercoaster ride of anticipation and anxiety, am I right? The neverending back to school checklist for school librarians can be overwhelming. But after years of experience, I have learned that it doesn’t have to be. As I sit down to think about all the things I need to check off my list before that first bell rings, it’s hard not to feel the pressure mounting. But then I remember that I have prepared a checklist that will guide me through all.the.things that must be done. So, stick with me as I lay out my ultimate back-to-school checklist for school

7 Questions About Library Inventory Answered

If you have never done a library inventory before, it can be a daunting task. I was taught the importance of doing an inventory in school but nothing about the logistics and process of completing one. This blog post will hopefully answer some of the questions you have about library inventory. I also want to point out that I am only familiar with the Destiny catalog system. I believe that other systems are similar but I have not used them. 1. Why do I need to do library inventory? There are numerous benefits of having an accurate and up to date inventory. They include: 2. When do I start inventory? Does it have to be at the end of the school year? No, you can start your inventory any time throughout the school year. In fact rarely have I done my inventory at the end of the year. I

My Library is Closed – Now What?

For one reason or another, the library will close and you will be expected to go to classrooms. This happens for a variety of reasons. A few that have happened to me When this happens, you will need to make some decisions. Will you attmept to check-out books? What kinds of lessons will you teach? How will you take your supplies to the classroom? Most of these decisions will vary depending on the situtaiton. How long will you be out of the library? What time of year is it? What resources are available in the classroom you are going into? In this lbog post I provide some ideas on ways you can make this situation work effectively. Checking Out Library Books This is always the hardest decision for me. I want students to have access to books, but it can be challenging trying to check out books in the

Cyberbullying Resources for Elementary Students

October is National Bullying Prevention Month. One type of bullying is cyberbullying. With technology becoming more enmeshed in every aspect of our lives it is more important than ever to teach our students what cyberbullying is and what to do if you are a victim of a cyberbully or witness this type of behavior. In this post I want to share with you some cyberbullying resources that you can use to help teach about this difficult topic. Educational Videos Videos can be a very effective tool in introducing a topic to students in an engaging way. There are several cyberbullying videos that I have used before. I like them because they are the perfect way to begin a conversation and open up communication with students. My school subscribes to BrainPop and there are several different videos on there about digital safety. But if your school does not have BrainPop, there

6 Tips for Teacher-Librarian Collaboration

Teacher-librarian collaboration can be difficult in the best of situations, but if you are on a fixed schedule this can be even more challenging. When I was working on my Master’s degree I took an entire class on collaboration one summer. When I went back to school I was so excited to implement what I learned. I scheduled a meeting with my principal to discuss strategies to increase collaboration with teachers. My principal’s solution? To make it mandatory that every teacher collaborated with me at least one time during the school year and to provide documentation to show what we did. Well, I’m sure you can imagine that went over like a lead balloon. One of the biggest issues was that I had no time to meet with teachers. Their planning time was during specials so it was hard to sit down and plan together. And I was not