food for thought about phase 2
It has been a fantastic month exploring the these four inquiry topics and taking some time to dive into the internet deep end and find some useful resources and new information. It has also been incredibly useful to read my classmates blog posts and see the amazing resources and ideas they had about the same topics. Even the simplest ideas make an impact. For a couple weeks now I have been listening to education themed podcasts after reading a blog post and have picked up on so many great little ideas.
Since my first blog post about fostering a love reading, it has been on my mind constantly. It was interesting because after this first post, I started a small contract at a tiny elementary school here in Victoria. The school I am at is in a low income area with many children who have a diverse array of needs. My first couple weeks was really about getting to know these children and have them see that I will be a constant in their life and I am someone they can trust. Already I have built relationships with some of the children and I know I can make a huge difference in their lives. As the teacher librarian I want to help develop their love for reading. I have put careful thought into what the library feels like (calm, low lighting) and sounds like (relaxing music) these first couple weeks. I'm now ready to move onto what it looks like and think about changing some of the furniture arrangements etc, now that I know what some of the students needs are. My first idea about creating a cozy space for reading is goal of mine in these next weeks. This reflection week has me thinking about how many elaborate or great ideas I have found but what it really comes down to is building relationships. Looking back on some of the ideas I have has been so helpful and I can't wait to bring more of my findings to fruition (like having my grade 4/5's take the reader personality test). For right now I am keeping these ideas in my back pocket and making sure the students want to come to the library and see Miss. Wilson and pick out a great book to read.
First being a teacher on call for the first time (after classroom teaching for 6 years) and now jumping headfirst into a Teacher Librarian job has taken me COMPLETELY out of my comfort zone. It has been pretty incredible to discover how helpful and welcoming and just plain amazing the teacher librarians I have met are (both online through courses and in person through my school district). The first TL I met here in Victoria inspired me so much that I enrolled in the diploma program. Since then I have witnessed collaboration/inquiry lessons in action, attended a GVTLA (Greater Victoria Teacher Librarians Association) meeting, joined a book club and looked into a Librarian mentorship program. The TL book club has just started to read 'Transforming Libraries' and I can't wait for our first meeting in December to start chatting about it. Our district has a mentorship program which will allow me to either witness a TL in action and go to their school or have an experienced TL come to my library and work with me there for the day. How amazing! It feels so much less overwhelming with all of the professional development and networking opportunities that I can continue to pursue. There is a whole teacher librarian family out there!
I need to continue to share, share and share some more. Now that I have so many PD opportunities at my finger tips, the biggest next step is to bring all of this back to my new library and staff. Getting to know the staff for just two weeks has helped my planning and direction so much. I look forward to continuing to get to know them and share with them my final project from this course as I think it will make my collaboration time hugely productive. I will share more about this in my next couple posts.
The developing libraries and mobile devices topic really opened my eyes to some amazing organizations out there who are putting so much time and effort into improving literacy and access to technology in places who desperately need it. Reflecting on that post has me thinking about my own school population. When I started two weeks ago and my first class came to visit, I said something like 'it's time to pick out two books to bring home and enjoy'. The kids immediately interrupted and let me know that they keep their library books in the classroom and aren't allowed to bring them home. This broke my heart a bit and when I talked to some teachers at the end of the day they told me that this is the policy because none of the books make it back to the library. This is something I want to talk to the staff and admin about more. I think it is SO important for kids to be reading at home both with and without parents or siblings. I understand that if every book checked out of the library was never returned it would be a problem, but on the flip side how do you decide which families would bring them back and which ones wouldn't? Do you take all the weeded books from the library collection and allow students to bring those home and keep them? Are there any other ideas out there or advice you might have for this conundrum of mine?
Here are my big take aways from this month:
1. Never be afraid to ask for help!
2. Create a welcoming space where the kids can't wait to come back and see you.
3. Take every professional development opportunity you can!
4. Share, share and share some more.
4. Breathe.
Hi Hannah, it seems we have some ah-ha moments in common. I'm so pleased that you feel that the teacher-librarian community is so welcoming. Sometimes the hardest part of going into a new school is feeling comfortable (I know it took 5 years for me to feel that way at a school in Oakville but my Saanichton school felt like home from the get-go). Like you, I have realized that networking with other teacher-librarians will help build my own pedagogy. As I'm not a TL, I have been working with my FI TL as much as possible and asking him questions, to try to get a better understanding of how he balances being a TL and a classroom teacher. I'm worried about feeling divided and finding one take precedence over the other...do you ever feel that way?
ReplyDeleteAlison, I am a classroom teacher and a TL. In some ways the mix is perfect (these subjects complement each other very nicely), but in other ways it is a challenge to balance the two. Right now I have far more time as a classroom teacher than that of a librarian (three blocks of English teacher to one block of librarian). I am hoping to one day be half and half as our school gains students and I acquire more time as a teacher librarian. Right now, when the balance is tipped toward being an English teacher it is difficult not to view my librarian time with that lens. I am constantly thinking of ways my role as a TL can benefit students in my role as an English teacher. I would like to be able to think more often about how my TL role can benefit math, science, art, drama, etc, etc.... I think as time goes on and I become increasingly comfortable in my role I will gain a wider focus.
DeleteHi Hannah, I enjoyed reading your reflection. Like you I have met some fantastic teacher librarians who make their libraries welcoming places. I was talking tonight with a group of adults in their thirties and forties who told me their school experiences were the exact opposite. I am so glad we've come such a far way from the "shushing librarian." I love the list you've created at the bottom of your page!
ReplyDeleteFirst off Hannah, your passion for inspiring a love of reading is going to serve you well! You are a role model to the students already and your passion will rub off on your students for sure! I bet everyone of us new in a school faced a similar situation in that there are things we want to change, but "this is how it is done at our school" and we have to decide which battle to take on. For me, I want to work on my open door policy and have my library space open at lunch. Teachers in my school don't want students in at breaks and insist their students need exercise and fresh air. I challenge that by saying not everyone recharges the same way. So to your conundrum about letting books go home. I am not sure for your clientele, but your veteran teachers might need to be heard out. Once you get to know your clientele even better YOU will be better able to make your own decision for your space. For my school, students are allowed to take their books home. However, my school is....dual income, not transient, and with an involved school community. We only a have a handful of kids that forever loose their books and their parents tend to not help look or pay. The books going home with those students truly do go into a void every time. They have been asked to leave theirs at school. I don't know what I would do if I was you. It is tough for some kids who are late bringing back books, but their reason is because they are at dad's this week and their book is at mom's house. I don't blame an 8 year old for forgetting to pack their library books when shifting from one house to the next. Get to know your clientele even better and maybe you can try one book each to take home and then you will know who is reliable and can handle the responsibility. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteHannah, it was quite late last night when I replied to your post and I realize I never did get to responding to your conundrum. It takes time to change the climate of a school. I would first observe and get to know the culture of your school. Once that happens and you work on building relationships (as you have mentioned) you can slowly begin to challenge aspects of the culture of the school. I like your idea of starting with weeded books. Perhaps if students prove their trust-worthiness with these books it is not such a big step to move to allowing them to take out other books. In my own school we have not had a teacher librarian for some time and I am also slowly challenging the way things have been done before. I am allowing food at the tables (not near the computers). Our custodians are not super pleased with me. One of them told me we are going backwards instead of forwards. She was also not please that I made a professions development room for teachers to use instead of keeping that room filled with broken and outdated equipment. The reason she is not pleased is because it means one more room for the custodians to clean! Like Rehtaeh, I have been advocating for the library being open over the lunch hour. When I pulled together a group of PTA members to run a book club over the lunch hour so that they could keep it open my administration decided to use one cupe hour to have supervision in place. I think the admin was worried about having parents supervising the space and also worries about Union violations (It is also a union violation for me to staff it over the lunch hour because we have a duty free lunch in our contracts and our union worries about teachers establishing past practice). I was delighted to see a cupe staff member hired. Change is difficult and may ruffle feathers, but I still believe it is possible.
ReplyDeleteThanks to all of you for the great examples and advice! It is really helpful to hear about the different ways that other teachers go about advocating for change. You are very right that change is possible, it's about determination and what is best for kids because that is why we do what we do! I love that both of you are working towards having the library open during the lunch hour. You make a good point Heather that some children re charge in a different way. If coming to the library to spend time reading is a way for them to have a break then I am all for that. I was at a PD session in a high school and saw a poster in the library window advertising a board games club at lunch time. What a great idea! A way for students to enjoy the library and use it for socializing rather than just quiet reading.
ReplyDeleteExcellent reflective post that captures your enthusiasm, excitement and small plans for the future. I am so glad to read that Victoria T-Ls have been so welcoming and supportive of you and your school and staff have opened their school and welcomed you in. Your goals for relationship building and space and tone creation are solid early goals that you can build on in the future. Your growth and awareness have shone through this post very easily and your open and honest reflection on the few challenges and opportunities was refreshing.
ReplyDeleteA great read, Hannah! I know exactly how you feel in regards to being out of your comfort zone. That is exactly how I felt last year, walking into the library to cover a maternity leave. However, after getting to know the kids, I quickly realized how much I enjoyed being able to have an impact on every student in the school. I think your list at the end, definitely mirrors where I am out now in my journey as a TL. I am engaging more in PD opportunities, and really trying to create an environment that all the students in the school enjoy visiting. I'm also learning to "breathe" more often, and understanding more that the changes I would like to make, are going to take time.
ReplyDeleteA very interesting question you ask at the end. The library clerk I work with, and I, just finished weeding our entire fiction section. We easily had 5 or 6 boxes full of books that we have removed from circulation. A couple boxes will be books we will offer up to classroom teachers, and the others we are passing on to a local gentleman, that finds good use for old books. I had honestly never thought about offering them to the students. Hopefully some of your books can be enjoyed by your students at home!
Thanks for the great post, and your list of take aways!