LS Library Annual Report 2016 prepared by Natalie Sapkarov Harvey for Carolina Friends School

1. Annual ReportJune 2016
Prepared by Natalie Sapkarov Harvey
Carolina Friends School
Lower School Library

2. 2 0 1 5 - 1 6
Issue 2
Research & inquiry
Reading & writing
Author visits, book fair, and more
North Carolina Children's Book Award
Collaboration
Celebrations
Overview
Librarians-in-Training
Self-checkout
Lunch recess
Collection
Circulation
Before & after
Designing a Learning Commons
Construction
Conferences &
Communication
Professional workshops
Sharing library news and events
Contemplating the Future
Growing a healthy library
Next steps
Lower School Library Annual Report 2016 prepared by Natalie Sapkarov Harvey | 1

3. LEARNING
D E S I G N I N G A
The Lower School Library transformed beautifully over the
summer of 2015. Renovation plans were changed mid-way
through the process to go from a small library expansion to
expanding the library into the entire current building, tripling
its size. Walls were removed and painted, new carpet was laid,
new bookshelves and furniture were installed, and the result
was a space that has transformed from a one-room school
library to a learning commons. (To learn more about the
learning commons, visit edutopia.org/blog/21st-century-
libraries-learning-commons-beth-holland.)
The IMPACT standards for North Carolina school
libraries, best practice in library design from the American
Association of School Librarians, and an array of public,
independent, and Quaker school libraries both near and
far informed and inspired the design process for the new
library. The results were clear - the new library, or learning
commons, should be a warm, inviting place with flexible yet
comfortable furniture and should allow for a variety of
activities to take place. From independent reading in cozy
nooks to small group instruction or discussion to large group
celebrations and gatherings, the library should be a place
where the whole community feels welcome. (For more about
the design process, visit aislnews.org/?p=2910.)
Students and teachers embraced the new library as the school
year began. Forest and Mountain classes first adopted the
space while their building was still under construction. By
September, all students had visited and oriented themselves to
the new library, and by November, students had claimed the
library as their own - comfortably lounging on the new
furniture, exploring new books, and freely visiting during
lunch recess. While students regularly visit the library for
book browsing and checkout, they also use it for language
groups, multimedia production, handwriting, research
projects, and more. This is our community gathering place.
B E F O R E
D U R I N G
A F T E R
COMMONS
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4. COLLECTION
600+ books
added
(thanks to a NCSLMA grant, book fair profits, and a budget increase)
The Lower School Library collection is a work in progress. Many popular materials were added this year to reflect
students' reading interests. Purchasing was also focused on books to support the school's mission and philosophy,
including materials reflecting a diversity of perspectives and experiences. We continued to subscribe to World
Book Online, Pebble Go, and SIRS Discoverer to teach and grow our budding researchers.
Visit
aislnews.org/?p=3935
to learn about our
Librarians-in-Training
program!
$1,000grant
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5. Every class visited the library at least once a week this year specifically for book browsing and checkout. Many
students chose to use this as a quiet reading time, even if they did not check out books. On occasion, I shared new
books and noteworthy titles with the whole class and regularly recommended books to individual students during
this reader's exploration and advisory time. Students also learned how to use the new self-checkout system.
CIRCULATION
3,066books total
This year, the library opened during lunch recess four days a week, so that students could check out books, read,
knit, draw, build forts, and find a quiet place to play and meet with friends.
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6. COLLABORATION
Learning to search for, use, and evaluate information is an essential skill in today's world, for children and adults
alike. School librarians are trained to teach just that (and much more!). For more information, please visit
http://www.ala.org/aasl/advocacy/resources/statements/program-role.
Here are some highlights from our classroom-library collaborations this year.
Forest class Skyped with a
fourth grade class in New
Jersey playing the
geography game, Mystery
Skype. Students asked
each other yes/no
questions to see if they
could guess the other's
location. Read more about
it on the library blog!
Mountain class tackled a
vast research, design &
engineering, and
technology project all
about animals native to
North Carolina. Check out
their final products on the
library blog.
Ruth and Dee's language
groups embarked on a
fractured fairy tale
journey, from reading
original fairy tales to
writing their own
fractured stories. Read
more about the process on
the River class blog.
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7. CELEBRATIONS
We celebrate books and reading every day in the library, but sometimes we have extra special events!
From top to bottom, left to right: 1. International Dot Day - making our mark with The Dot by Peter Reynolds;
2. Award-winning author and illustrator Kevin Henkes visited the LS courtesy of Flyleaf Books; 3. Co-organized a
Story Walk at Eno River State Park with Durham Academy; 4. Hosted our first Bedford Falls Book Fair; 5. Live
webcast with Kate DiCamillo celebrating her character Mercy Watson; 6. Book Swap Interest Group; 7. North
Carolina Children's Book Award; 8. Jenni's language group performed Because of Winn-Dixie
1 2 3
4 5
6 7 8
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8. CONFERENCES
COMMUNICATION
The theme for the 2015 NCSLMA Annual Conference was Empowering
Students: Literacy For All. Two days' worth of concurrent sessions
included topics of inspiring readers, resource curation, coding, digital
citizenship, storytelling, research instruction, and more.
Seeking and participating in professional development opportunities is necessary for all teachers to
grow in their pedagogy and practice. To better serve your students and the community, these are the
professional experiences I engaged in this year.
The Association of Independent School Librarians
maintains a collaborative blog for and by its members.
Check out my blog posts at aislnews.org/?author=22.
UNC's World View hosted a two-day workshop for K-12
librarians and technology educators entitled "Creating a
Global Media Center," focused on topics of diversity.
NC LIVE provides digital resources to public and
private libraries. When NCAIS proposed to join this
partnership, NC LIVE held live webinars to inform
and guide school librarians through the process.
Unfortunately, NCAIS was not able to join this year.
CFS hosted one of the Educators New to Quakerism
workshops this year. These two days were spent learning
about what it means to be a Quaker educator.
Brooklyn Friends School and Mary McDowell Friends
School co-hosted the Librarians' Peer Network, focused on
celebrating and promoting diversity in our libraries.
The 11th Annual Librarian-to-Librarian Summit was
held at the Joyner Library at ECU. The theme was
Building Communities, with sessions focused on
collaboration and connections.
The best way to stay informed
about library resources, news,
and updates is through the
blog at lslibrary.cfsnc.org.
For bite-size updates, follow
me @nataliesap. This is also
where my own professional
learning community meets.
New this year was a
bi-monthly library newsletter,
which was emailed directly to
parents and families.
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9. CONSIDERING THE FUTURE
Growing a healthy library involves weeding books that
are no longer relevant or accurate, planting new books
and ideas in the minds of young readers, and cultivating
a collection that meets the needs and interests of the
entire community.
To grow the LS Library, the collection should be
analyzed, weeded, and inventoried every school year.
Stewardship of library resources is not only best
practice, but it is also one of our founding philosophies
as a school.
Specifically, the nonfiction collection will need attention
and care in the next few years, as funds are available. A
collection development plan will need to be formulated
to identify weak areas for growth and support. Books in
the sciences should be evaluated regularly for continued
accuracy as well as geographical and cultural materials.
As the collection flourishes, so too will the learning
experiences of both students and teachers. The library
collection serves to support the curricular and
recreational needs of our community. A healthy library
promotes healthy minds and bodies too!
Next steps for our library include:
Creating a collection development plan to grow our
nonfiction section
Swapping Mondays off with Fridays so that
collaborative planning and teaching can occur with all
four classes
Building a network of volunteers to help with
shelving books, processing new books, and other
small library projects
Initiating a student library helpers program to aid in
the selection of materials, book displays, and
stewardship of the space
Promoting the first annual Forest &
Mountain Reader's Choice Award
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