Elementary school libraries are not often thought of as suitable spaces for learning commons because most elementary school libraries operate on a fixed schedule, allowing only one class at a time to use the space. Elementary school libraries are too often the drop-off location for a specific class during the classroom teacher's planning period.…

A makerspace is a physical place in the library where informal, collaborative learning can happen through hands-on creation, using any combination of technology, industrial arts, and fine arts that is not readily available for home use. The underlying goal of a makerspace is to encourage innovation and creativity through the use of technology-to…

Describes changes brought about by a Library Power initiative at an inner city magnet school in Chattanooga (Tennessee). Highlights include: Library Power beliefs; collaborative planning between the library media specialist and teachers; the new role of the library media specialist as an information specialist, teacher, and instructional…

Addresses the Wallace-Reader's Digest Funds' experiences working with school libraries and the lessons learned from the Library Power initiative, including: how school libraries can support national education goals, particularly in meeting the challenges outlined in the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001; current threats to library reform; and how…

A library renovation class was offered to special education and low-income high school students during the summer, including lessons in Dewey Decimal classification, equipment repair and cleaning, and library organization and research skills. Students helped to plan and implement renovation of their school library media center. (MES)

Discusses design elements of a 21st century school library, including space, books and shelving, seats, tables, technology (computers, scanners, projectors), building materials (wood, metal, plastic, paint, glass, fibers), and light and color. A sidebar describes the L!BRARY initiative to creatively design, professionally staff, and…

Reviews 14 books and a CD-ROM for how they correlate with the goals of Information Power and how their theories, ideas and examples empower the school library media specialist (SLMS) to effectively implement Information Power. Two tables list Information Power books by groups and by roles of the SLMS. (AEF)

Presents a dramatization of a high school library in 1968, a place with wooden bookcases, card catalog, wooden furniture and tiptoeing librarian through 30 years of changes to a library media center with banks of computers, librarian-teacher cooperation, emphasis on authentic assessment, and the satisfaction of librarian, teachers, and students…

Describes the development of library media centers, programs, and staff at the Medford School District (Oregon). Information from the standards and research used to define roles and responsibilities is summarized, and relevant Oregon state educational organizations are listed. Some of the results of the district's well-defined library programs and…

This bibliography lists materials on school libraries, organized in the following sections: (1) Evidence that Quality School Library Media Programs Positively Affect Student Achievement; (2) Evidence and Arguments that Collaboration Pays Dividends; (3) Evidence and Arguments that Administrative Leadership Is Key in Developing Quality Library Media…

Discusses why school administrators have not heard about the difference libraries make in student achievement (e.g., stereotypes of libraries and librarians, lack of attention to library programs in teacher/administrator training, the absorbability and invisibility of library work) and how to make changes in order to draw benefits from school…

Discusses findings of six recent studies on the impact of school libraries on student performance. The findings concern: (1) school library development; (2) leadership and collaboration activities that foster information literacy; and (3) the use of instructional technology to extend the reach of the library program beyond the walls of the school…

Discusses the alignment of resources, including textbooks, instructional materials, and school library media center resources, to the curriculum based on experiences in North Carolina. Explains resource alignment and considers assessing the library collection, discarding materials, identifying gaps in curriculum support, writing a collection…

Discussion of the responsibility of school library media specialists for collection development and management focuses on the need to include materials on women's studies. Highlights include justifying collection expenditures; collection development guidelines; identifying relevant materials by genre; and the media specialists' curricular role.…

Discusses the process of weeding, updating, and building a school library media collection that supports the state curriculum. Explains resource alignment, a process for using the shelf list as a tool to analyze and align media center resources to state curricula, and describes a five-year plan and its usefulness for additional funding. (LRW)