Download - A Guerrilla Librarian
A Guerrilla Librarian
Or, how to fight back against the threats to reading today
Find this presentation online at: www.slideshare.net/carolineroche
About me
We are using Accelerated Reader in Project Based Learning lessons to boost low literacy levels
We also use it with SEN pupils up to age 16
I have used Accelerated Reader in three schools in Kent to raise standards
My web presence
My personal blog: http://uulibrarian.wordpress.com
My Library blog (new): http://www.mhfederation.co.uk/mhfederationvle/readingmatters
My screenname to find me on these applications: carolineroche
Delicious; Diigo; Twitter; Slideshare
Why do we need to fight?
School libraries are closing all round the country
‘It’s all on the internet now’ – isn’t it? The rise of e-books and reading online It is no longer a ‘given’ that schools
have libraries
Threats to reading
Reading ages and literacy are dropping Computers and television are taking up time
previously used by reading Reading can be done elsewhere – books
are no longer physical Concentration spans are becoming shorter –
children find whole books too long for them The English curriculum no longer requires
pupils to read whole books, only extracts
Other ways of reading
So, do we need libraries?
YES – where else would you find professionals whose job is solely dedicated to finding the best resources for you to use in your project?
YES – where else would you find professionals whose job it is to read the latest children’s literature and make recommendations?
So what?
‘Where there is no vision, the people perish’ (Proverbs 29:18)
To remove reading means that you remove imagination and empathy from pupils
Is this what you want for the students in your school?
To be another brick in the wall? (2.27)
Is this your view of a library? Is this your student’s view too?
Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo. www.cmb.ac.lk
How about this library?
Creating your physical library
Buy appropriate shelving – we used folding shelving from a library catalogue, or use spinners
You can create a comfortable space at the back of a classroom using beanbags and soft seating
Creating an online library
There are lots of free Web 2.0 applications you can use to help you
Making the library ‘virtual’ and available to all students increases its visibility
You can build a large online community, and then grow your demand for more physical space
(All websites mentioned in this presentation are referenced in a list at the end)
Building an online library
You could use your blog to flag up the ‘Reader of the Week’
You could use the blog to advertise new purchases of books
You could use the blog to advertise competitions and author visits
Author Joe Craig at a book signing with one of our pupils
LibraryThing
www.librarything.com
Uses of LibraryThing
Can be used to catalogue books for free – after 200 books you pay a small fee monthly
You can put a ‘widget’ on your blog for people to search your books
It is very easy to use – well trained pupils can help you with this
How do I use a blog?
There are several good free blog providers, two recommended ones are Wordpress and Edublogs
Both will allow you to have free blogs, you can upgrade if you choose
Paying for your blog will mean you have more control over content, your own address, and extra features
An excellent library blog
Dixie Grammar School online library blog
LibraryThing book search
Covers of books in your library
Online bookmarks hosted at Diigo
List of previous blog posts
Delicious online bookmarks tagging tool
And another one ….
Hinde House School Library
Pictures of library space being used
Most used tags in blog seen as word cloud
Welcome and introduction to the library
Features you can use to promote your online library
Flikr or Picasa – to store online photographs
Diigo or Delicious for online bookmarks for students to use
Have links to lots of exciting online book and author sites for them to enjoy and get enthusiastic about
Other features
Use online book trailers (from YouTube and elsewhere) to create interest in books you may have
Ask pupils to create their own videos or podcasts about their favourite books and feature them on your blog
Student participation
Start topics, and allow students to make comments to gauge their views
Hold online polls and questionnaires for favourite books
Have an online suggestion box where pupils can ‘post’ book requests
Have an online chat box where students can ask questions
How do I win the reading war?
Use your blog to stimulate love of reading in pupils
Use borrowing figures to prove to Senior Management team that a library is invaluable and necessary
Insist that your library is staffed by someone who is enthusiastic and knowledgeable about children’s books
Keep the enthusiasm going!
Have lots of information posted to your blog all the time
Keep up to date with the new books, have a good mix of fiction/non-fiction/comic books/magazines/ebooks
Have visits and workshops from authors and poets to boost interest
Outside people who can help
Have you thought of using parents to help with reading?
How about approaching your local football club to see if they have reading champions?
Use the expertise of your local public library or Schools Library Service
Can I really do this?
Yes – if you have the enthusiasm and heart to build reading back into lives
Yes – if you don’t want to see school libraries disappear and be replaced by computers, we need to act now
Yes, embrace other forms of reading – get an ebook reader! – but encourage reading for pleasure, always!
List of websites referenced in talk
Blog providers: Wordpress http://wordpress.com Edublogs http://edublogs.org
LibraryThing www.librarything.com Photo sites: Flikr www.flikr.com Picasa http://picasa.google.co.uk
Online questionnaires: SurveyMonkey: www.surveymonkey.com Online chat box to add to blog: Meebo http://www.meebo.com Football clubs link: from the Literacy Trust site: http://
www.literacytrust.org.uk/football/index.html Author booking site: www.contactanauthor.co.uk Storyteller booking site: www.sfs.org.uk Performance poets booking site: www.applesandsnakes.org Collaboration with other professionals: www.twitter.com
Online book trailers and author sites
See these on Play.com: http://www.play.com/campaign.aspx?campaign=4841&cid=9345018
Meet the Author: www.meettheauthor.co.uk Reading Rockets:
http://www.readingrockets.org/books/interviews Wikireadia: http://www.readingforlife.org.uk/wikireadia Readergirlz: http://www.readergirlz.com Children’s Book Sequels:
http://www.childrensbooksequels.co.uk Some American books, but some relevant:
http://booktrailers.wikispaces.com
Websites continued
Excellent examples of school library blogs to have a look at:
Dixie Grammar school library blog, http://library-online.org.uk Hinde House school library blog, http://library-online.org.uk A blog with a slightly different look, on a website called a
‘ning’: http://jcclibrary.ning.com/ Excellent wiki site which brings a lot of the best web tools
together – a good place to start looking: http://webtools4u2use.wikispaces.com