Posted on by hildaweisburg

Holding On To Summer Joy

With August around the corner, summer is, I’m sorry to say, fading fast. Some of you are going back in only a few weeks. Some of you will be in your library weeks before it is necessary, so you feel more prepared. Did you have fun during your vacation? Take time to read something wonderful or go to some place special? How many books did you take off your TBR pile? What if you could carry some of that summer joy and relaxation into the school year or rekindle it when you need it?

Ken Blanchard, bestselling author of leadership books including The One Minute Manager, has some ideas you can use in his blog post Have a Summer Attitude at Work and at Home. If you can start putting his recommendations in place now, you will build the habit before your work schedule tries to pull you off track.

Blanchard says to Take Time to Recharge Yourself and gives these ways to do it and plan for it:

  • Get up a little earlier – You don’t want to start your day in a rush. You don’t do that in summer. Whether you exercise, journal, or meditate, this is how you bring a calm mindset to begin the day. A few extra minutes in the morning can have a lasting impact.
  • Make plans to take a break from the ordinary – What small pleasurable thing can you do that’s different from your routine? Whether you set up a date with your spouse or a friend to have dinner out or make fun plans for the weekend, having something you enjoy waiting in your immediate future to adds a lift to your day. Think of how fun it will be to put in your calendar and see the day get closer.
  • Use your vacation or PTO days– This suggestion of Blanchard’s works if you can plan ahead for when we do have off, whether that’s long weekends or winter/spring breaks. You may also be able to get time off to attend a conference during the school year. That’s another way to recharge after school has started again.

Blanchard’s next big idea is to Have More Fun at Work and at Home by:

  • Setting the tone – You are a leader, and the library is where it shows up for all to see.  In making it a safe, welcoming space for all, also make it a safe, welcoming space for you.  How does your office help or hinder your mental attitude? What do you enjoy seeing each time you come into the library?
  • Keep your own sense of humor at the ready – I’m dating myself with this one, but I always think of the TV program M.A.S.H. Despite all the horrors around them, they always found something to laugh at and knew to take time to each other’s company. Where can you bring or find laughter?
  • Celebrate everything – Don’t rush past or overlook any achievement or special day whether that’s yours, or that of others. I keep a daily success journal daily to remind myself about what I did rather than focus on what I didn’t do. Even some of the fun non-holidays can be a fun reason to celebrate (National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day anyone? It’s August 4th. And Book Lovers Day is August 9th😉)
  • Reframe Your Attitude – This one we’ve heard in many guises. Look for ways to change your mindset. There’s always another way to look at things. Choose a positive one, even if it’s “Welcome to our zoo.” (Maybe make a display of zoo books or books with a “hey, we’re gonna get through this” theme).

You love being a librarian. You love working with students and teachers, and you’re excited to see what this year will bring to them all. You are a leader and have a lot to give. Look for ways to bring some of the joy of summer into your library and your life and look forward to the sunny days ahead.

Posted on by hildaweisburg

ON LIBRARIES: Stopping Summer Slide

summerThe school year is coming to a close and teachers and administrators are talking about a persistent problem—summer slide.  Summer vacation is longed for by students and many tired teachers.  Long days, no homework (or lesson plans) makes those days away from school idyllic.

But all those weeks without any school work comes with a cost. Far too many students lose so much of their reading and learning skills that teachers need four to six weeks to bring them back to where they were at the end of the school year. Not surprisingly less proficient students lose more than those who do better in school. The latter are more likely to read on their own while the former are glad they don’t have any required reading. Lower income students are hit the hardest.

This is not just a problem in the United States. Canada recognizes it as well. The province of Alberta has a site on Preventing Summer Slide. It’s short and gives you some ideas on what to do.

Many schools have a summer reading list which has both positives and negatives aspects.  While it does force kids to read some books, those who have been through it before know that in most places there is little follow up when school resumes.  And if there is an assignment of some type connected with it, doing a poor job on it has only minor consequences. In addition, as librarians we know that putting reading in the context of something potentially punitive is the worst way to encourage life long readers.summer slide

Summer Loans

While you might not be able to do much about loss of math skills, you certainly can help to curtail loss of reading skills. One quick approach, if your administration approves, is to allow students to borrow books for the summer.  Yes, there is a danger they will be lost, but combatting summer slide is far more important. You can limit the number to four but ten would better, and you can restrict the borrowing to paperbacks or older book

If you go with this option, set up several table top displays to encourage browsing.  See if you can get paper bags with handles and put a colorful label saying “My Summer Reading” on them. Place students’ selections in them and encourage them to put them back in the bag when they are finished and bring the bag back at the beginning of the school year.

Put a “review” card or sheet of paper in each of their books.  Have them write the author/title and call # on top, rate the book from 1-10, and add an optional comment about it. Be sure to have a good selection of non-fiction books available for those who prefer them.

Outreach

If visiting the public library in the summer is an option for your student population, see if the children’s or young adult librarian can come to your school, bring library card applications, and tell kids about summer programs available at the library.  They normally have a reading program for the elementary grades and other possibilities for older students.  Just visiting the library, being surrounded by books –and computers—encourages reading.

Communicate with parents about summer slide.  While more challenging in low income areas, do the best you can. Your website is one way but it doesn’t work where parents don’t have Internet access. Find out if your town –or city—has a recreational program for the summer.  In many low income areas they or another group provide free lunch to those who can’t get it while schools are closed.  See if they will distribute brochures for you giving parents information about summer slide and what they can do about it.

Resources

resourcesEither on your website or in the brochures (or both) provide links to good resources for parents. Some possibilities are:

You can do an online search and find other resources.  Google and Bing have great images you can use to alert parents to the issue. This is a busy time for you. If you can’t put any of these ideas into action now, start collecting sources and information so you will be ready next year. It’s a great way to also promote your library program.

What are you doing to prevent Summer Slide with your students? Have you initiated something in the past that worked?