Village School News
News from the Library
24th October 2007
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News from the Library
25th June 2007
Firstly some thank-yous are due for the support given to the
Village School Library/Resource Centre:
• A very big
thanks to the children and families purchasing Scholastic Books
over the past few years. Jacqui informed me last week that the
library received $500 worth of free books and resources from
these purchases.
• A very big thank-you flowing on from
that to Jacqui for continuing to provide the school with
Scholastic Book orders. She collects and phones in orders for
us each month then sorts and delivers the book orders when they
come in. It is a lot of work but keeps the children motivated
in their reading efforts. Thanks Jacqui!
• Thank you to
Edith and her sister for providing the library/resource centre
with beautiful posters from the National Gallery. These are
mostly of Australian paintings and will fit well with many of
the themes the teachers and students choose to pursue in the
course of their studies. They were laminated straight away to
preserve them and some relevant to Victorian Australia are
already hanging outside Tanya’s class.
• Thank you
to Fiona who generously donated some Secret Unicorn books from
her private collection to our collection.
• Someone also
donated an Animorph book to our collection. I’ve
forgotten who – if you re-remind me I will publish your
name in the next letter.
• Thank you also to the LRC
fairy that left a beautiful book (also from the NGV) for the
school about Australian Immigrants. Much appreciated whoever
you are.
Cheers,
Cathy in the (Library) LRC
News from the Library
7th June 2007
Long, long ago (when we were little kids) the library was a
sacred place where adults went to gaze into thick tomes and
children were to be seen but never heard - SHHHH! Librarians
were tall and they frowned and shelved books or shuffled cards
into little drawers. Well, … as I said at the start, that
was long, long ago. Since the introduction of the computer and
the Internet, that old place has been left behind. In fact,
most school don’t even have libraries anymore, they now
have Learning Resource Centres. The name reflects the changes
that have occurred. So what are LRC’s and what are
Librarians/Library Technicians roles now? I’m glad you
asked … Below is an article printed by the Australian
School Library Association – uh hem, the name library
hasn’t completely disappeared =) –
Literacy takes
on a new meaning in the 21stCentury
If you are reading this you
are obviously literate. There’s a good change you know
how to use a computer and, I’d be willing to bet, know
the meaning of the words ‘information overload.’
Most of us today are keenly aware of the avalanche of
information coming at us from the time we wake to our favourite
morning talk show until we turn off the late-night news. Books,
L newspapers, professional journals, email from our colleagues,
and newsletters from community organisations add to the volume
of information flooding our lives. But more information
doesn’t necessarily mean better information. If you read
the headlines, you know that opportunities for inaccuracies,
exploitation and deception have grown along with the speed and
magnitude of information available to us. Investors in one
small company lost millions of dollars when a false news
release was circulated online. As much as 70 per cent of health
information on the web may be inaccurate, according to one
study. Coping with a bewildering amount of information requires
a new form of literacy, one that goes beyond the ability to
read – something educators refer to as information
literacy. This expanded definition of literacy means more than
being able to read or use a computer. It means knowing how to
find, evaluate and use the best information from an
ever-increasing array of sources. Noted business leaders and
organisational theorists, such as Steven Covey, Peter Drucker,
and Peter Senge tell us that life-long learning and the ability
to apply new knowledge in a changing world is the first, most
important thing for career and life success. But information
literacy is more than theory. It is a critical skill in
today’s information maze. • Your child needs to
complete an assignment? How do you find the best information?
• The teacher says your child is hyperactive and
recommends medical treatment. Where do you turn for the latest
information? • Your children want to travel to northern
Italy to look up your grandparents’ family. How do you
find out more about the region? Good decisions depend on
quality information. Information literate people know how to
find quality information that will help them through family,
medical or job crises. They know how to separate the wheat from
the chaff, the true from the untrue, and the fact from the
rumour. Information smart people are good employers and
employees. They know when they need data and what data they
need to plan and work successfully. Teacher-librarians were
among the first to recognise that the traditional definition of
literacy no longer applies. Back in 1989, the American Library
Association’s Presidential Committee on Information
Literacy wrote: ‘How our country deals with the realities
of the information age will have enormous impact on our
democratic way of life and on our nation’s ability to
compete internationally.’ That was before the Internet
connected businesses, schools, libraries and, increasingly, our
homes. Teacher-librarians were also among the first to
recognise the importance of this new information technology and
to fight to make it widely accessible to members of the school
community. Today, virtually every school, public and higher
education library is connected. School libraries play an
essential role both in providing access to the latest
information technology and teaching how to use it. Today even
the smallest school libraries are one-stop shops - in-person
and online. More importantly, there are information experts
– teacher librarians – to help you find the best
and most current information available whether it’s a
website, book, video or pamphlet. As a nation, we have focused
our energies on maximising the availability of new technology.
The time has come to expand that vision. Teacher-librarians
know that having Internet connections isn’t enough. We
must be information smart. Teacher-librarians are working to
build information literate school communities, where people of
all ages, have both the resources and skills they need to
prosper. In schools, teacher-librarians teach students the
information literacy skills they need to succeed on the job and
throughout life. A growing number of teacher-librarians also
provide instruction for parents, business people and others to
help them become smart information users. School libraries
continue to play a unique and central role in our democracy.
They are a place for education and self-help. They offer an
opportunity to all. Being information smart means knowing when
you need help and where to get it. The place to start is at
your school library.
Cheers,
Cathy in the (Library) LRC
From the Principal, April 2007
Dear Parents
Term 1 was full of interesting 'happenings' most of which were planned and some which took us by surprise, like the falling trees and tree limbs caused by the lack of water and causing damage to our fence. Our AGM and Whole School Meeting was very well attended. We filled all the vacant Council positions - thank you - and the scene was set for the year. Something, which always seems to catch us unawares, even after seventeen years of supporting it, is the Maroondah Festival, which took place in early February. We had some very hardworking parents to help, but only a few. The weather was very hot and the festival goers were unenthusiastic. We finished early due to the heat, and barely covered costs. Later in the term, the Warrandyte Festival proved more cost effective. The number of parents who helped was again very small, those who came worked very hard, but we got lots of interest in our school, covered costs, and made a bit of money. As a result of the festival our Tour Day was very full of very interested people. Both of our Tour Days this year have been very full. Many of the attendees have had very young children and have been very enthusiastic. Our student tour guides have received many compliments for their efforts. Their confidence and openness have been remarked upon by our visitors. The group themes this term were, Differences for Tanya's group, Electrickery for Mary's, Similarities and Differences for Edith's and Bodies for Wendy's. Tanya's group went on a shopping expedition to Box Hill to purchase 'different' items of food in order to cook some 'different' dishes. Mary's group went to Phillip Island to visit Amaz'n Things and the beach at Cowes. The students really enjoyed Amaz'n Things and found some amazing things on the beach afterwards. They had a great time fossicking around and we had to pry them away to make it back to school by the promised time. As part of their 'elecrickery' the students in Mary's group learned magic tricks and put on a show for Wendy's group who proved to be a very attentive audience. We started to learn AUSLAN with Lisa and all students are showing great enthusiasm for it. Every teacher reports that there is absolute silence and complete concentration in the groups for that session. Lisa is very happy with the reaction of the students and their enthusiasm. The older students each have a 'little friend' from Wendy's group who they have been taking care of and providing 'fun' experiences for. Our school is registered for the Premiers Reading Challenge and most of our students have taken it up. There are literally hundreds of books to choose from, many of which are in our library. Cathy has been taking each group for a session each week, on Thursdays, to teach them technical library skills. This will aid them in their endeavours to research for projects and their own needs. Next term we are looking forward to hosting some student teachers, beginning rehearsals for our Performance- 'what's that Holmes?' - which will be held in third term this year, and our usual mid year testing, parent teacher interviews and reportingMary
News from the Library
There are still a couple of weeks left to get forms in to register for the Premier's Reading Challenge. So far we have 17 students willing to take the challenge and several already bringing in titles they have completed. Just to clarify some points - Children in year 2 or under need to 'experience' 30 books: 20 from the challenge list and 10 free choice. Experience means share with a parent or sibling or listen to a book tape or attend a library story-time. They do not have to read them themselves (hence the large number!) Children in year 3 and up read 15 books: 5 of their own choice and 10 from the list. These need to be registered on line by the end of August so there is plenty of time yet. In these last two weeks of term, the children in Library Skills classes are helping to make the library more 'user friendly' and learning about the Dewey call number system at the same time. After some investigation into the different subjects under different call numbers, Mary's group is making sign-markers to point out where favourite topics are on the shelves. Tanya's group has chosen certain series to highlight on the fiction shelves. All the markers are original works of art (please drop in to see them!) and really draw a browser's attention. Edith's group, this past week, celebrated a special 50th birthday in the library. Dr Seuss's "Cat in the Hat" is 50 years young this year. We celebrated by making our own tall hats. We were going to re-read the classic but due to technical difficulties ran out of time so will enjoy it this week. You may like to drag out some of your other Dr. Seuss classics and enjoy them again with your kids (or on your own!) More new books have been ordered from the Paul's Collect-a-Cap money and will be on the shelves soon. Keep an eye out for them - first in best read! These have been purchased from the kids' suggestions pages on the library door. Thank you again to my group of volunteers who came in on Wednesday and began to sort and weed out the poster collection. As soon as we have completed this I can catalogue what we have and make them more easily available for the classrooms' use in developing themes. Happy Reading! Cathy in the library
Jan 2007
From the PrincipalWelcome back to Village School everybody. We also welcome Wendy Ferres who will be teaching in the prep room. Please remember that all students must wear an approved hat when outside this term and, if you want your child to wear sunscreen, please inform your home group teacher. Hats can be purchased from the office for $ 10.00. Sports afternoon is Wednesday and all students will have one term of games, horse riding, gymnastics and Freeform.
Regards, MaryLibrary News
FROM THE LIBRARY The start of term has been a busy time for the library. There are many new things happening and some new features as well as books. Just before the children started back Bob and I retired the old computer and shifted the entire catalogue over to the newer computer. The old computer was not able to run the new software we acquired which is now up and running. The two new programs are Windows-based programs; one for the catalogue and one for circulation of books. These make the processes of finding and taking out books much more user friendly than the old DOS system. The other new feature I installed this term is a Links Plus, a catalogue subscription for web-sites that are appropriate for primary school aged children. This means that now when children search the catalogue for say “volcanoes” the search will bring up all the books we have in the library and sites on the internet that they can read and gain information from. This will cut down on a lot of the trolling they have been doing on Google in the past. So far there are 4000+ websites included and these are updated and added to each term. Brilliant! The preps class came to a library party last week as a way of getting to know the library. This was a planned event that was part of the Library Tech course I’m studying at the moment. The children came and learned where things were located, how the library works (looking for books, taking out/returning books), how to care for books. They also made some shelf markers so they can re-shelve books after they’ve looked at them and of course we had a story. New parents may be interested to know that books are on loan for 2 week periods, prep children go to the library each week so can return books then. They have a loan limit of 2 books and cannot take out books if they have an overdue book. Any lost or damaged books need to be paid for so we can replace them. The last of the Paul’s Collect-a-Cap fundraising bottle caps were turned in this week. We earned a further $60.20. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that in total we had earned $987.10 from this activity over the four years of participation. Many thanks to all who collected caps (especially the Cronin- Barreiro’s!) and to those who took caps down to the collection days. The children decided the money we have left from the Paul’s fundraising would go towards the purchase of more books for the library. They have been enthusiastically filling out wish lists and I have now a long order going into Ward Sagar and to Sealight Books. This year I have started teaching the three older groups Information Literacy on a Thursday afternoon. Information Literacy is how to efficiently plan and research projects (whether they be academic or some other kind) and how to review/evaluate how they went afterwards. There is a small display based on an American model called “The Super Three” up in the library that Mary’s group is using to work through a project on camouflage. We went through a practical example last week of using this method to plan a birthday dinner at a restaurant. I think there might be some up-and-coming event organizers in that class! Tanya’s class first looked at the many formats a project can take. We briefly discussed about 50 different types from a checklist. We next turned to planning a topic so that it is not too general. ‘Dogs’ is really a pretty big subject! We looked at narrowing things down based on what we already know about a topic and developing questions from that to take us into areas we are interested in or that fit the requirements of the assignment. Edith’s class is exploring the difference between fiction and non-fiction and moving into how the call numbers work for each of these. I owe many thank-you’s this week to the people who have donated books to the library (a big thanks to Cooper who has donated his Simpson’s comics, they’ll be VERY popular) and to Carol and to Selvi who are my library assistants this year. Without them I could spend my entire career sorting out muddles on the shelves. Please come and visit the library when it is not being used for classes. I try to stay for 10 minutes or so after school when I’m in of an afternoon so children can borrow before they go home. Parents are welcome to have a library card too. We have a quality parent library of books concerning child rearing. Please come and see me if you have any questions.
Cheers, Cathy in the library
