Moving a library media center takes time, energy, and organization. As the sole media specialist/librarian for a new facility, this author has experienced moving material from another school. She learned a great deal and had help from people who volunteered their time and energy to make it happen. Although she does not claim to be a moving expert,…

A well balanced curriculum is an area of great concern in a school. With an enhanced collection, the library media specialist can further educational progress on all levels. Through accessing a good science collection in the library, students can achieve their learning goals. This article describes a process used to evaluate a science collection…

School libraries are crucial to learning, but need resources to close the digital and print divide that widens as school budgets shrink. In this article, the author shares her perspective on stretching the library dollar. As budgets tighten and the use of library resources increases, school librarian's ingenuity, skill, and planning can ensure…

Closing a school library is not like switching out a broken computer with a working computer unit. Nor is it like moving a classroom of desks from one building to another. The collection is a wealth of information that is built and maintained to support the curriculum and student interests. It is a collection of categorized knowledge that must be…

School libraries can hardly keep graphic novels on their shelves. Enthusiasm for the genre has led many librarians to question how such novels might be infused into normal curricula. However, many librarians who have proposed such an integration have learned that their colleagues do not share their enthusiasm. From the teachers' perspective, it…

In 2003 the Public Education Network developed the pilot Revitalizing High School Libraries (RHSL) initiative, funded by The New York Life Foundation. Based on the Library Power Program, it included many of the same features--collaborative planning, flexible scheduling, collection development, and facility renovation--with a focus on how this…

The LMS and library media program standards were written to reflect the 21st century learner. The most current documents, "Standards for the 21st-Century Learner" and "Standards for the 21st-Century Learner in Action", have embraced the 21st century learner jargon, despite how vaguely the terms are defined. The library standards, although written…

Today school library media specialists operate in an environment of daily challenges and controversies. "No Child Left Behind" established mandates that all educators are scrambling to meet. No matter how people feel about the way the legislation is being carried out, it is difficult to argue against its purpose--that all educators must…

Two hundred years ago, literacy meant being able to read and write. Today people find themselves with many literacies in a nation that is considered ninety-nine percent literate. The plethora of literacies has just given birth to another term--transliteracy. Transliteracy is the ability to read, listen to, view, understand, synthesize, and apply…

Because so much information exists only in video format--from documentaries to instructional videos to entertainment films that create a significant amount of the popular culture--libraries have increased their collections of these materials. Nevertheless, no library could possibly afford to collect every item its patrons might one day request.…

Like middle school students, adults would never want to go into a new school not being able to speak the language. Most teachers aren't signing up to teach in Mexico or China unless they know how to speak with their fellow educators and their students. But English Language Learners (ELL) don't have the choices that teachers do. They have been…

According to the author, one of her most important goals as a school librarian is to inspire her students to become lifelong lovers of reading. She recognizes that she cannot do this alone, and one of her most powerful partners is a parent. She can encourage a child to check out a book that may open their eyes to the wonders of literature, but if…

This article presents the Louisa County High School Library's annual Thanks-a-Latte Day, an event that introduces the American political process to LCHS seniors in a real way. Thanks-a-Latte Day was born from an idea found in a "School Library Journal" article by Charli O'Dell published in 1999. Her basic idea was to promote the school library by…

Today media centers provide students the opportunity to learn and explore subjects of their interest in depth. The media center is the largest classroom in the school providing service to every student and every teacher in all curricular areas. The library should be a place to encourage students' interests and a place to broaden their horizons by…

The answers to questions and comments that continually arise in school libraries are found in the essential documents. The different ways of planning and writing essential documents as well as their promotion and application are described.