Elementary Librarian

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Home : 2003 : October : 11

Elementary Librarian
By Miss Library ( What my K-1st g

I am a 3rd year elementary librarian. I taught 4th grade for 15 years before moving into a librarian's position. My job is changing very much in my county school system. I teach in a K-5 school. I see each classroom twice
a week. I teach the students how to use the library more efficiently, try to instill in them a love of reading, and teach as many skills as I can to help on the all important testing in the spring. I organize the Accelerated Reader program for the school, which includes rewarding the students for their reading. I organize a school Literature Fair each fall, and run two book fairs

each year. I organize readers to come to our school to read to the students. I try to assist the students and teachers in any way that I can. On top of all my library duties, I was also given the job of computer specialist in our school. This takes up most of my planning time. Teachers need help in everything from changing ink cartridges in their printers to fixing old equipment in their rooms. I try to see myself as an important role in the school. Sometimes I feel more like I'm just there to provide the teachers with a 30 to 45 minutes planning period everyday(which I know they need). I also supervise lunch duty everyday with our primary students. Our county did away with many computer technicians this past year. The board members seemed to think we could train teachers on needed computer skills during their 30 minute planning time. They didn't realize most of the time the librarian has students in the LMC during this time. All the other computer problems were supposed to be handled on our planning time. I think our county is moving the librarians away from literacy and into computer troubleshooting. I don't think too many people realize what it takes to catalog and get a book ready to put on the shelf and then to maintain the library for the students and teachers to use. I am at school until 4:30 or 5:00 3 or 4 nights a week, just to keep things running. Many times I work on computers after the teachers have already gone home. All in all, I really enjoy my job. Just like everyone else in the education system, I wish there were more hours in the day to get everything done.