Library Media Tech Talk

Since I started working as a school librarian, I've always found a way to have a book club. In this post, I'll talk about my current method for administering a book club. It has evolved a bit over the years. Since coming to Bethel Middle School this year I have adapted it for 6th and 7th grades in my current position. The students seem to really enjoy it. This year we have read two books in 4 separate clubs. In the fall we read The Girl in the Locked Room by Mary Downing Hahn. During the spring semester, we read Pax by Sara Pennypacker. Since we use a Scholastic Book Fair as our main fundraiser for the fall, I use some of the money to purchase book club books (usually from Scholastic). While we are reading a book, I generally have 3-4 book club meetings during lunch in the library. As long as students come to all the meetings and/ or participate in my Google Classroom discussions, they get to keep the book at no cost. I usually have around 10 students in each club. I have ...

Ever since I've been a school librarian, I've tried to include students in the library program as much as possible. This year I took a job as a middle school librarian after working with high school students for many years. One thing I remember from previous experiences with middle level students is that a large percentage of them want to help their teachers. I began thinking about how this could work well in a 6th and 7th grade library setting. I decided to try recruiting some student workers to help me cover the circulation desk. A student worker helps a student patron Recruiting When I started at Bethel Middle School this year, I immediately focused on creating a welcoming environment for students. I made a sincere effort to talk to students as much as possible. I decided to open the library before school so students could come in to use the library resources and technology. This took off with overwhelming success since each day between 40-60 students came in to ...