End of the year protocol...

[guybrarian]

I just looked at the calendar, and we are not too far from winding down our year. What do you "seasoned" (or not so seasoned! :) have on your list of things to do before you close your library at the end of the year? I'd love to see your lists. Thanks!

[guybrarian]

Ordering databases...how many of you don't pay for databases and use the public library resources?

[bj neary]

We do an annual report as well as a 4th quarter report to submit to Principal and head of the librarians and it includes statistics for the quarter and the year. We make up a summer reading list to be distributed by the district to students and the public library. We place our order for books, when we come back in September, they are in and ready for students and teachers. We get together the latest Reading Olympic books and if needed, order more. I take a box of books to read for the summer, I stay connected to my computer for the latest and greatest in the library and technology world. We just got an ActiveBoard so I will take an online tutorial and begin to create lessons for the fall. There are 2 librarians in my library because we have 2,000 students, that is why I say "WE". If you need me to send you our summer reading or reading olympic lists, let me know. Our clerks handles the overdues for students and getting the interlibrary loan straight for the year. We have a secretary and clerk who shut down the library because they work one week after we do.

[guybrarian]

This is very helpful. Thanks for your ideas! Are there more out there?

[Donna Eddings]

Besides doing a lot of the items already listed, I invite our public library's children's librarian to make a presentation to all of our classes about their summer reading program (we schedule 4 or 5 classes at a time in the library for 20-minute sessions and she also sends home flyers with all of our students). Our books are due 2 weeks before school is out, so she can get them excited about going to their "other library" to start getting books. I work at a primary school so we only serve Child Development, Kindergarten and First Grade students.

[Lisa]

I just had to laugh out loud about reading shelves and library aides! I have about 15 student aides over a two day period and not one of them can shelve correctly. They can "read" a bookcase of six shelves in about 2.5 seconds! :)
Any ideas on how to help this lively bunch be a little more productive???