The Denouement: The End Is Only The Beginning

I am fortunate to have been able to observe the work of two exceptional high school librarians. Nevertheless, it was great to end my entire observation experience at the elementary level. My last hours at Peirce Elementary School in the Andersonville neighborhood were well spent.  

The school library is run by Ms. Melanie "Mel" Ferrand. She sees over 600 students per week in grades Kindergarten through 5th. (The 6th and 7th grade students visit with their teachers and only to check out books.) When I arrived, Mel was on her prep. She had planned to order books, but she used that time to familiarize me with the ins and outs of her library. Right away, I noticed that she had a lot of books--on the shelves, on carts, everywhere! A conversation about them seemed a good place to start.

Mel said that she inherited the library about 4 years ago when the previous librarian retired. She had already identified about 400 books that needed to be weeded. The oldest book was from 1942.  In disbelief, her immediate reaction was "This book has got to go!" Her plan is to focus on purchasing more and definitely multicultural non fiction books, When I asked her how she decides which ones to buy, Mel told me that Pierce is an IB, or International Baccalaureate, school.  It focus on developing the intellectual, personal, social and emotional skills children need to be fully functioning and contributing members of a global society. All of the teachers create units by grade level, so she works hard to match her collection with their units.  Regarding lost books, she told me that she asks herself how many she is prepared to lose. If they are new or hardcover, she tries to get them back.  If a paperback or a title with multiple copies goes missing, it does not matter as much. 

Keeping the library welcoming and as organized as possible does matter to Mel and her students. She color codes the books to make them easier to organize. With only two moms who volunteer, it is difficult to keep everything in its proper place first of all. The colors make it a bit better. Students get involved reshelving the books because they know that the orange stickers of the 500s books go in a different place than the 600s books with green dots.  Mel is not so picky about all of the books being in exact numerical and/or alphabetical order as long as the books are at least in the correct section or at least very close to where they are supposed to be. 

Andersonville definitely seems to be the place to be.  Friends of Peirce is a non-for-profit organization that donates money to the school. In one day, they raised $30,000 at Hopleaf, a bar on Clark south of Foster. The group gave $5,000 to Mel for the library! Of course, she was extremely grateful for the donation, but we agreed that that amount of money does not go very far. "You're right!", I told her. "I spent over $1,000 on only 75 award-winning books back in February." There is no doubt that it does help. That is why Mel is able to be so many titles by popular authors. If there too many on one shelf, she puts a pink paper on the book and then writes the author's name and the word "basket" on the spine of the book. The students are taught to look at the bottom shelf and locate the basket of books by that particular author. What a great way to encourage students to identify and then seek out their favorite authors!

I am sure that Mel's students have a hard time choosing their favorite Library center. They are seven that sounded like they would be interesting and fun places to learn. Students have a choice of going to the following centers:

iPads to learn (and play) using a number of apps

Arts where they use old books and pictures to create stories and books 

Listening which is especially helpful for auditory learners

Readers' Theater to dress up while they act out a variety of cool plays

I Read With A Friend to enjoy a favorite book with a buddy

Magazines to relax and read 

Puppets, another spot to learn and play  

There were no centers activities during my observation. After students wearing eyeglasses got them cleaned, and Mel called the classroom to order "since our administrative tasks are done",  I witnessed creativity in action by a group of twenty-four 3rd grade students. About three of them gave oral presentations of their soon-to-be-stories. After speaking for about 10 minutes, their classmates could ask them a couple of questions about their stories and make suggestions for their future creations.

When it was circulation time, students quickly chose books and then went to the blue carpet to enjoy their selection while everyone else was being checked out. If a child forgot his or her book, they were reminded to bring it the next morning. (Those who chronically fail to bring back their books are only allowed to read magazines during Library. One-time or repeat offenders still have to stay after school to help clean the library and water the plants (if their parents give permission.)   Just before their classroom teacher returned, Mel had the students return to their shape and color coded tables. When it was time to leave, she had the black triangles, yellow squares, purple circles, etc. get in line. The children smiled and waved goodbye to me and Mel as they went on their way.

My day, and even my 100 observation hours, were finally complete! I actually stayed an extra hour to learn about the above centers and to see what happened while the after school students cleaned the library. I quickly learned that even though it was a consequence for not returning their books, each child there seemed to take pride in what they were doing. Several times they asked, "Ms. Ferrand, is there anything else we can do?" What a nice, pleasant act of responsibility and community to witness at the very end of all of my library visits. With the insight that I have gained in both high school and elementary library settings, this end is only my beginning!