Chancellor Elementary School Spotsylvania County, Virginia
| Digital Access – |
| https://sites.google.com/spotsylvania.k12.va.us/cheslibrary/home?authuser=0The library website is found by navigating from the student dashboard. It has a brief introduction to the librarian and the paraeducator followed by links to lessons, schedules, curbside pickup directions and a photo gallery from the 2020/2021 school year. Below that is their Bitmoji classroom which has links to their special collections and a link to Destiny, the county library online service. On the Destiny page, the librarian has been able to personalize the choices of resources available, and she has provided her school with access to PebbleGo, World Book for Kids, links to the public library, a link to the county webpage, and summer reading links. From this page, students, parents and staff can access the library’s physical collection to know if a book is on the shelf as well as the collection of e-books. During Covid, families could use Destiny to place books on hold and then pick them up “curbside”. The library serves a school of about 500 children ages preschool through fifth grade. The website is set up with large colorful buttons and a Bitmoji classroom with child friendly graphics as buttons. All of the links and books are age appropriate. The librarian and a paraeducator are the two staff members listed on the website. There is a link on the Bitmoji classroom to the school website where email addresses are located for all staff members. The website feels inviting. There are audiobooks, which could be used for the visually impared. Links to read-alouds help both visually impared and developing readers.· |
| The Space & Physical Access |
| The library is located in the newest part of an elementary school built in 1939. The school sits on a 4 lane divided road that runs through the county with an established neighborhood behind it. The original part of the building was built in 1939, with an addition mid-century, and the final addition in the 1990s. The library is in the newest part, along with a modern, well equipped art room, music room, and gym.The entrance closest to the library is under a covered area off the bus loop. Along the wall under the overhang is a series of file cabinets used by teachers to leave supplies for students and a set of shelving used by the librarian to exchange materials with students during the pandemic. Inside the hallway, outside of the library entrance is a widening of the hall which allows for traffic flow of classes through the area. The copier, printers, and other workroom-type tools line the hallway, so there are often teachers and volunteers working with children or doing prep work in the area. The library doors open to a large space with a circulation desk, a table white board, 3D printer, cabinets for student devices, and a wall of student computers. There is a smart board with a large area for a carpet and student-sized tables and chairs. The rest of the space is a mix of shelving and seating areas for students to access and read books. The shelves are low to the ground so that all students, regardless of age or mobility issues are able to easily access them. There is an office/classroom space that is being used by the speech pathologist. On the walls hang art from visiting authors and large paintings depicting characters from books read by the school for the One School, One Book event. The space has been painted and recarpeted within the year. It is a welcoming, inclusive space. |
| Services & Intellectual Access |
The library catalog is easily accessed with the student computers. The nonfiction books are shelved according to the Dewey Decimal system. The fiction books are divided into 2 sections. They are picture books and chapter books. Both are organized alphabetically by author’s last name. The librarian holds special events each year including reading nights, One School One Book, QuizBowl, Read Across America Week, Book Fairs, and a book swap. With so many different events and resources, it feels like everyone is welcome here. This student is picking out a book at the annual Book Swap event.Burke, M (2022). Book swap [Photograph]. CC BY NC |
| People – Patrons & Staff |
| This library serves the population of Chancellor Elementary School. These are people aged preschool through fifth grade and their families. The clientele come from various economic backgrounds. While caucasion students comprise the majority of the population, the students who are not caucasion come from a variety of ethnicities. There is a section of books in Spanish. There are books with characters of different cultures represented with and without the culture being the main point of the book. Books representing LGBTQ+ populations are not obvious, so a child wrestling with these issues may feel uncomfortable finding materials. The librarian and the paraeducator spend most of their time interacting with students in large groups, small groups, or individually. For most of the day, there is a large group with the librarian while the paraeducator helps small groups or individuals find and check out books or work on research or projects. · |
| Collections |
| This library has collections of traditional fiction and nonfiction. There is a section of graphic novels, video game themed books. There is a section of books in Spanish. Sanchez (2018) tells the story of Mexican-American students in their school library, and they say that they need to be represented in the library. Students need to see themselves in the physical space and the books that are on the shelves. (Sanchez, 2018) Although there are not many students who need books in Spanish, there are plenty of students who do have Spanish spoken at home. This section is popular with them which seems to show that htey feel represented in the library’s collection. The librarian has displays of popular authors, and seasonal books of interest are displayed on top of low shelves. There are computers for student use, a class set of Chromebooks, a 3D printer, OzBots, coding mice, and various cameras for student use. The librarian is addressing “literacy in all its forms-print, audio, visual, and digital. (Rubin, 2020) The coding tools need a teacher or the librarian to guide the use. While some of the tools are for older students and some for younger, all students have access to tools that they can use. The librarian and paraeducator are also there to assist. |
| Wrap Up |
| This library is clearly created, set up, and used by children. From the size of the furniture to the type of materials, children are welcome and encouraged to explore and learn. I teach at this school, so I was surprised to learn that I didn’t really know all that our librarian offers our students on grade levels unfamiliar to me. I would be interested to know more about material with LGBTQ themes or non-traditional families. I enjoyed my time visiting this library in a different sort of way and am happy to have learned more about the library that I consider to be “home”. |
| References Rubin, R. E., & Rubin, R. G. (2020). Foundations of library and information science (5th ed.). ALA Neal-Schuman. Sanchez, J. (2018). What Are They Doing, Like, in a Library?: Mexican-American Experiences in Their High School Library: Understand How School Libraries Can Support Institutional and Historical Racism. Young adult library services, 2018, Vol.16 (4), p.26 |
I love how you incorporated old course material into this blog post. Sanchez’s article is definitely relevant in this instance. I love how this library included books in Spanish. Although, I do think it is important for this school library to make it a priority to include more groups such as those in the LGBTQ+ community. Typically including material such unfortunately causes backlash in certain communities and with certain parents, but it is a librarian’s mission to include all groups. According to clause 3 of the Library Bill of Rights, “Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment,” so if groups did try to censor LGBTQ+ material, it must be fought (ALA, Library Bill of Rights, 2016).
References
American Library Association, (2006, June 30). Library Bill of Rights. http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill
I am intrigued by the young boy participating in book swap (what is book swap) ? Though I understand the building needed renovations I appreciate the history this school represents. Also, I am excited that they are able to have a 3D printer and have that experience. I have been given many ideas on changing my Destiny home page for this year