Library Lovers Month

Libraries provide an endless source of adventure, wonder, and educational resources. Delightfully, February brings the opportunity to not only celebrate sweethearts but a love of libraries. Library Lovers’ Month is a month long celebration of libraries of all types, including public, school, and private. February is a great time to recognize the value and importance of libraries of all shapes and sizes.

Visiting the Library

Sharing the services available at your local library is a wonderful way to not only support students’ access to reading material, but to broaden their academic achievements and study skills. Many public libraries provide a variety of educational and community outreach programs, access to computers, research and study resources, and special events. There are many different ways to familiarize students with the resources their local public library offers. 

• Take a field trip to the library as a class. You could take a guided tour or complete a scavenger hunt in order to gain awareness of the library's features. My students loved attending a weekly storytelling hour at our local library. After the event, we would spend an additional 20 minutes partner reading. 
• Research a librarian’s reading suggestions list online. Many of these are available by topic, grade, or reading level.
• Virtual library visits: If you cannot make it to the library, visiting the website and taking a virtual tour is the next best thing. Students can identify the location, hours, and services offered. You can also view the calendar of upcoming events, special programs, and search for books. Many library websites now offer online access to e-books and audio recordings to cardholders as well.

Classroom Library Activities

Each week, my students looked forward to the possibility of being the classroom librarian. As such, they were in charge of our selection of titles, choosing the books to feature in our librarian suggestions display, and getting the chance to make changes to the organization of the shelves. A classroom library offers a multitude of learning opportunities.

• Book sorts are a great way to explore alphabetical order, genres, topics and categories, authors, and the Dewey Decimal system.
• Annotated library entries or bibliographies are a wonderful way for students to practice citation methods and create a database of the classroom titles. In order to make this a manageable project, I liked to break students into groups of 4 or 5. As a team, they would compile the listings for a particular topic, genre, or category. Then, as a class, we would organize all the lists into a single master.  
• Provides suggestions and opportunities for students to choose the “right” or appropriate book for their interests and reading ability.
• Book recommendations: Both teachers and students can take part in recommending titles they enjoyed.
• Library posters and bulletin board displays: Creating interactive displays is a great way to actively engage students in their classroom library. Two of my favorite interactive displays were made using a poster board and sticky notes. At the top of the board was a statement, “Share your tips for choosing a good book.” Or  “Recommend a book.” Students would fill out and post sticky notes. The poster boards were easy to decorate with seasonal or topical themes (Holidays, Facebook theme etc).

Library Education Resources:

Mapping the Library 

While comparing and contrasting the features of their school and public library students gain a strong understanding of the layout and functions of a library. They use this information to craft a map that clearly illustrates their school library's features. This lesson includes several great extension links to library jokes, library songs and several virtual library tours including the Library of Congress. 

What Would A Wonderful Library Be Like 

By participating in a grade appropriate treasure hunt students identify how to best use the library while finding relevant resources. This lesson includes student worksheet samples illustrating what items could be included in the library treasure hunt, as well as important behavior norms for visiting a library. 

Sorting Library Books 

Developing a strong commitment to organization can be a difficult for young learners. By playing a PBS online game, they are able to see the power of sorting and storing items for easy future access. This anticipatory set leads into a whole group discussion and activity on sorting books and cataloging a library. Students are sure to delight in sharing their personal book classification systems.